Investigating early childhood teachers' views on science teaching practices: the integration of science with visual art in early childhood settings


Yilmaztekin E. O., Erden F.

EARLY CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND CARE, cilt.187, sa.7, ss.1194-1207, 2017 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 187 Sayı: 7
  • Basım Tarihi: 2017
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1080/03004430.2016.1160899
  • Dergi Adı: EARLY CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND CARE
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.1194-1207
  • Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

This study investigates early childhood teachers' views about science teaching practices in an early childhood settings. It was conducted in a preschool located in Ankara, Turkey. The data of the study were collected through multiple sources of information such as interviews with early childhood teachers and observations of their practices in the classroom. The findings of this study indicated that early childhood teachers believed in the importance of science activities in their practices and they claimed that they provided child-centred activities for children to enrich their science experiences. Moreover, the findings showed that they used different learning experiences that were naturalistic, informal, and structured. The findings also revealed that an integrated curriculum improved children's developmental progress. More specifically, participant teachers used art as an assessment tool in science activities because they considered that they were able to evaluate children's understanding on the basis of their art work such as their drawings.