Purpose
The study investigates how pre-produced teaching materials can support kindergarten teachers and improve learning opportunities for children. The research questions are: 1) What teaching objectives do kindergarten teachers have when using this material? 2) What objectives become apparent during the implementation of the teaching? 3) How do the kindergarten teachers combine the children’s previous experiences with new learning situations? 4) What objectives are described in the teacher guides for the material? 5) How do the teacher guides affect the use of the material?
Result
The results show that although kindergarten teachers used the same teaching material, they developed three different teaching practices that created different learning opportunities for children. The study also shows that the teacher guides were unclear and allowed for different interpretations about what should be emphasised in the teaching. The researchers behind the study highlight the importance of clear and unambiguous teacher guides.
Design
The study focuses on kindergarten teachers’ use of the material ‘Naturvetenskap och teknik för alla’ in three Swedish kindergarten departments. The data material was collected through interviews, video observations and analysis of teacher guides. Firstly, interviews were conducted with kindergarten teachers in order to understand the planning and objectives of the teaching. Video observations were used to analyse the actual implementation of the teaching and the interaction between kindergarten teachers and children. The teacher guides were also analysed to understand how they influenced kindergarten teachers’ practices.
References
Eriksson, E. (2022). Undervisning med stöd av förproducerade material: Ett närmande av naturvetenskap i förskolan. Akademisk avhandling. Högskolan Dalarna.