| dc.description.abstract | Background: The use of child day care and play groups has seen an increase, making these preschools one of the main sources in the upbringing of children. As a result, it is important to monitor the quality of the teacher-child interaction, since the teacher is an important spill in the process quality on preschools. Aim: the purpose of this study is to determine contributing factors to the quality of educational support on
preschools. Educational support is the extent to which preschool teachers can effectively support the learning, general knowledge and language development of children. The focus lays on the relationship between structural characteristics (teacher’s educational level, additional training and use of educational programs) and teacher’s educational support for children. The mediating role of guidance on the job is discussed. Method: a total of 126 preschool teachers filled in a questionnaire, which contained questions about their demographic background, guidance on the job and the way they stimulated play, language and math activities for children. The CLASS Toddler, an observation instrument,
determined the degree to which preschool teachers encouraged and facilitated the children’s development.
Results: the results revealed that the use of educational programs, significantly correlated to educational support; mainly found in play groups. Conclusion: there is small evidence to assume that preschools may benefit from educational programs as these may enhance the quality of educational support of preschool teachers for children.
Implications: Further investigation is recommended to determine the role of guidance on the job for the quality of preschool institutions | |
