Examinando por Autor "Tuul, Maire"

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A cross-cultural study on factors affecting children's agentic action in their play
(Springer, 2022-08-23) Rentzou, Konstantina; Slutsky, Ruslan; Gol–Guven, Mine; Kragh-Müller, Grethe; Tuul, Maire; Paz-Albo, Jesús
Play, and especially free play, offers a unique opportunity for children to act with agency. Yet the regulated and routinized structure of early childhood education and care settings, impedes children’s agentic action which is limited by adult-imposed rules. The present cross-cultural study aims to explore the extent to which Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) systems in seven countries are enabling children to be agentic and provide opportunities for children’s agency development during play. Specifically, founded on the rationale that in the context of an ECEC setting the notion of agency is interconnected with the notion of freedom, the present study aims at exploring through the responses of 187 early childhood educators from seven countries, children’s prerogative to choose how, where and with whom to play, which resources to use in their play, how much time to spend on play and the extent to which adults’ rules limit children’s opportunities to exercise agency and control. In addition, the study aims at exploring if and how educators’ and children’s characteristics affect the opportunities for agentic action. Results highlight that although children’s autonomy and their right to participate in shaping their experiences in the ECEC setting are valued and acknowledged across countries, their agentic action is not equally supported in all seven countries. Specifically, although ECEC systems in some of the countries are characterized by an ethos of agency, in the majority of them children are not viewed as real co-constructors of their play experiences.
A cross-cultural study on technology use in preschool classrooms: Early childhood teacher’s preferences, time-use, impact and association with children’s play
(Taylor & Francis, 2021) Slutsky, Ruslan; Kragh-Müller, Grethe; Rentzou, Konstantina; Tuul, Maire; Gol–Guven, Mine; Foerch, Daniela; Paz-Albo, Jesús
Technology plays a large role in the daily experiences of young children. Presently, technology is used both to support and enhance ‘educational’ activities and in the context of children’s play. The aim of the present study is to understand how much time teachers in early childhood centres across 8 countries implemented technology into their classrooms. Our data revealed major similarities across countries, with technology play being the least used type of play by teachers and indoor non-technology and outdoor play being the most frequently used forms of play across the 8 countries studied. Similarities were also found in early childhood teachers’ perceptions regarding the value of technology play, even though they do not use it extensively and despite different aspects of technology contribution being reported. The research further revealed differences in the time allocated to technology play the types of technology equipment and resources available to children in each country.
Preschool teachers' conceptualizations and uses of play across eight countries
(Springer, 2019) Rentzou, Konstantina; Slutsky, Ruslan; Tuul, Maire; Gol–Guven, Mine; Kragh-Müller, Grethe; Foerch, Daniela Fenu; Paz-Albo, Jesús
Increased emphasis on academics has led to play becoming a controversial and topical issue in the field of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). Although play has been extensively researched we still lack consensus on what play is and how play is actually implemented and used in ECEC classrooms. The present cross-cultural study aims at understanding how play is conceptualized and provided across eight different countries. The study investigates whether and how conceptualizations of play affect uses of play; whereas it also examines similarities and differences in conceptualizations and uses across countries. Results have revealed the existence of both universal and non-universal characteristics of play. Despite the existence of universal characteristics, however, variations in the extent to which they were mentioned across countries have been revealed. Differences were identified in terms of how early childhood educators act on their ideas about children’s play within early childhood programs. Various patterns of correlations between definitions and uses have been revealed. Some countries seem to be characterized by an ‘ethos of play,’ both in terms of how play is conceptualized and used, whereas others seem to struggle between offering a more child-initiated, play-based curriculum versus a more teacher-led approaches to instruction.