Relationship between preschool institution and social environment from the perspective of preschool staffs

Abstract

One of the most important social activities and responsibilities is to provide children from an early age with opportunities for high-quality education. One of the most important issues in the functioning of the preschool institution is the issue of openness to the social environment and establishing partnerships with it. The preschool institution and the programmes that are used in it have an effect on the development of children only when, together with the programme, parents and the entire social environment are engaged. The aim of the research conducted on a suitable sample of 41 respondents employed in preschool institutions was to examine their attitudes about the connection of preschool institutions with the social environment consisting of various institutions and organisations. For the purposes of the research, a descriptive method were used. Our initial expectation about the existence of statistically significant differences in the respondents' attitudes of the implementation of cooperation with institutions / organisations from the social environment, as well as the implementation of activities in the field of cooperation with the family, considering some characteristics of the respondents proved correct. The obtained results show that the respondents in kindergartens observe high degree of cooperation with cultural institutions, but also there is the lack of necessary cooperation with institutions in the field of health care. Also, the respondents considered that traditional forms of cooperation with the family are the most common in preschool institutions while modern forms of cooperation are present to a lesser extent. In the future, it is necessary to more intensively connect preschool institutions with the social environment, because in this way children are given the opportunity to expand and enrich their experiences in a direct encounter with the world around them.