No abstract

Despite the importance of continuity between educational phases, little is known about continuity/discontinuity in writing instruction across preschool and primary education. The main purpose of this study is to understand children's early writing development within these learning contexts. The study was carried out in three preschool and three primary classrooms located in a city in the middle of Turkey with four children from each class, a total of 12 focus children, and a total of six teachers, the teacher of each class. This study traces early writing skills developed by children in preschool and primary classrooms in order to answer the following questions: How are teaching practices in the two contexts similar or different? Is there continuity between preschool education and primary education? How do children in these settings respond to these different contexts? Qualitative data collected from the same cohort of children as they moved through the end of preschool and the beginning of primary education show children's responses to different classroom practices. Data indicate that children engage with different activities in these two settings, and teachers adopt different teaching approaches. There is a more free environment for teachers to organise activities in terms of children's needs and abilities in preschool education, whereas a more product-based approach shapes pedagogy in primary education. Children in this study developed their pre-writing skills in preschool and continued with more formal ways of learning how to write in primary education. However, there is a need for a more coherent transition between the two settings that account for what is known about early years' writing development.

The activities, approaches, and classroom instructions in which technology is at the center gradually increase as a necessity of our world. Through classroom practice, it is aimed that children develop competence and skills from an early age. On the other hand, substantial research has been undertaken on nature-based approaches to children’s learning. However, integrating the benefits of nature-based learning and digital competencies has yet to be understood. The present study seeks to understand and explain this integration and relationship between nature and technology in the early years of education. For this purpose, this study used previous literature as a supporting resource. This review found evidence that the practice of integrating nature-based learning with technology is effective in children’s understanding and development. Therefore, this study can contribute to a better understanding of why and how to integrate these different approaches and should be valuable to practitioners wishing to support children with a well-rounded approach.

Bu araştırma, MEB Okul Öncesi Eğitim Programında bulunan sosyal-duygusal, dil ve öz bakım kazanımlarının doğa temelli öğrenme ile ilişkisinin incelenmesi amacıyla yürütülmüştür. Araştırma kapsamında, doküman incelemesi yöntemiyle program ilgili beceriler yönünden içerik analizi yapılmıştır. Araştırmacılar, bu becerilere ait kazanım ve göstergeleri literatür ile eşleştirmiş ve doğa temelli öğrenme ile ilişkisini incelemiştir. Elde edilen sonuçlara göre dil gelişimi alanında sesleri ayırt etme, sesini uygun kullanma, dili iletişim amacıyla kullanma, sözcük dağarcığını geliştirme, dinlediklerinin/izlediklerinin anlamını kavrama ve çeşitli yollarla ifade etme ile görsel materyalleri okuma kazanımlarının doğa temelli öğrenme ile ilişkili olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Sosyal-duygusal gelişim alanında kendini yaratıcı yollarla ifade etme, bir olay ya da durumla ilgili olumlu/olumsuz duygularını uygun yollarla gösterme, bir işi ya da görevi başarmak için kendini güdülenme, farklılıklara saygı gösterme, değişik ortamlardaki kurallara uyma, estetik değerleri koruma, kendine güvenme, toplumsal yaşamda bireylerin farklı rol ve görevleri olduğunu açıklama ile başkalarıyla sorunlarını çözme kazanımlarını desteklediği görülmüştür. Öz bakım alanında ise dinlenmenin önemini açıklama, günlük yaşam becerileri için gerekli araç ve gereçleri kullanma, kendini tehlikelerden ve kazalardan koruma ile sağlığı ile ilgili önlemler alma kazanımlarının yer aldığı bulunmuştur. Sonuç olarak, Okul Öncesi Eğitim Programı’nda doğa temelli öğrenmeyi destekleyecek kazanımların bulunduğu ve okul öncesi dönemin etkili bir şekilde ele alınması için doğa temelli öğrenmeyi desteklemesi gerektiği düşünülmektedir.

Nature plays a crucial role in terms of supporting children's overall development, and the need for integrating nature with mainstream education and extending nature-based education to primary grades has consequently become a necessity. This chapter examines the literature surrounding nature-based education in early years and primary education. The role of nature in teaching and learning in early years education will be explored from a socio-cultural perspective. This will include the importance of using natural settings and integrating these settings into indoor learning environments and nature's power in terms of facilitating the transition to formal schooling. The roots of nature-based pedagogy will be explored through the arguments of different theorists within the chapter. It will also be discussed that enhanced learning, awareness, and understanding in the early years can maximize young children's experiences and that consistent practices between early years and primary education can facilitate the transition process.