ERIC Number: EJ1473521
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0966-9760
EISSN: EISSN-1469-8463
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Early Childhood Professionals' Pedagogical Decision Making
International Journal of Early Years Education, v33 n2 p261-271 2025
The present study sought to determine how and where pedagogical decisions are made, as well as how such pedagogical decisions construct pedagogy, in the early childhood education context. The data was collected through interviews conducted with 46 early childhood education professionals, both teachers and practical nurses. The questions focused on the participants' perceptions of the children's learning and their own role in the process. Both data-based and theory-driven analyses were employed. The theory-driven analysis was based on the ecological dimensions introduced by Bronfenbrenner [Bronfenbrenner, Urie. 1976. "The Experimental Ecology of Education." "Educational Researcher" 5 (9): 5-15. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X005009005] and Sheridan (Sheridan, Sonja. 2007. "Dimensions of Pedagogical Quality in Preschool." "International Journal of Early Years Education" 15 (2): 197-217. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760701289151, 2009. "Discerning Pedagogical Quality in Preschool." "Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research" 53 (3): 245-261. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313830902917295). We found that teachers and practical nurses generally make pedagogical decisions based on their knowledge of child development. Moreover, they use their knowledge of pedagogy and learning theories when making decisions as they make plans for the child or a group of children in advance.
Descriptors: Preschool Teachers, Decision Making, Early Childhood Education, Teaching Methods, Teacher Attitudes, Nurses, Learning Processes, Teacher Role, Learning Theories, Educational Quality, Teacher Student Relationship, Child Development, Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Preschool Curriculum, National Curriculum, Foreign Countries
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Department of Education and Psychology, University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, Finland; 2Department of Applied Educational Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu, Finland