Study of Kindergarten Teachers’ Intentions to Choose Content and Teaching Method for Teaching Science

Bibliographic Data

ID22043034
AuthorsAnastasios Zoupidis (0000-0003-3097-9451, Democritus University of Thrace, corresponding author), Vassilis Tselfes (0000-0001-7533-6201), Vasilis Tselfes (Department of Early Childhood Education, National and Kapodistrian University, 10679 Athens, Greece), Πηνελόπη Παπαδοπούλου (0000-0001-9644-8798, University of Western Macedonia), Πέτρος Καριώτογλου (0000-0002-8532-7859, University of Western Macedonia)
Year2022
Volume12
Issue3
Pages198
Publication date2022-03-11
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEducation Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/educsci12030198
OpenAlexW4220735825
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited31

In this paper, we investigate the intentions of kindergarten teachers to use the content and to apply the teaching methods that they acquired in a one-day teacher training seminar. According to the theory of planned behavior, the answer to this research question is directly related to a series of social-psychological personal criteria assessments, such as an assessment of the personal gains or losses, the opinions of important third persons, the teacher’s own assessment of the value of the students’ learning, and the perceived behavioral control assessment. A total of 114 participants completed a 5-point Likert-scale questionnaire that consisted of two sets of five questions each. The results show that the kindergarten teachers’ intentions to use particular content and teaching methods are based on whether they have the skills to apply them successfully, and on their assessment of the ability of their students to acquire meaningful knowledge. The teacher’s choice of teaching method is also associated with the assessment of the personal gains or losses, as well as with the opinions of important third persons. Furthermore, the study findings show that there are two distinct categories of kindergarten teachers: those whose teaching is based on the tradition of science education, and those whose teaching is based on the tradition of early childhood education. The teaching implications of the results are also discussed

Developmental psychology · Likert scale · Mathematics education · Pedagogy · Teaching method · Computer Science · Diverse Educational Innovations Studies · Educational Strategies and Epistemologies · Psychology · Science Education and Pedagogy

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