Models of childhood study programmes oriented to development of educators’ competencies
Models of childhood study programmes oriented to development of educators’ competencies

Summary/Abstract: Post-modernistic information society challenges the quality of pre-school education by aiming at the education oriented to the child’s needs, his / her learning style, open to social influences, oriented towards future and with the principle of ‘high educational standards’ applied. The article presents groups of competencies that guarantee quality of education and are acquired during undergraduate studies: common cultural, social-communicative, information management, efficient activity, change management, learning to learn, research and educational competencies. A model of educator competency-based childhood studies programme is also analysed. While implementing the programme, the research on efficiency of educator competency-based study programme was conducted. The aim of the research was to ascertain opinion of the graduates from the competency-based childhood studies programme regarding the acquired competencies. The methods of the research: interview, questionnaires, quantitative and qualitative data analysis. Sample: 74 graduates from the childhood study undergraduate programmes. The results of the research revealed efficiency of the programmes of new orientation. According to the graduates, the studies increased their professional motivation. Only slightly more than half of the students chose the childhood study programme guided by their professional vocation. The study programme enabled one tenth of the students to form professional vocation; two thirds of the students felt increase in their professional motivation, the studies opened new career perspectives for one tenth of the learners in the programme. The validity of the modules formation was confirmed by results of feedback questionnaires: 71% of the students pointed out perfect acquisition of self-study skills; 79% confirmed to have gained remarkable skills of learning from practice; 50% respondents stated to have acquired very good and 50% of them pointed out good abilities to reflect on practice, whereas 71% gained confidence in applying methods of qualitative research methods. The graduates pointed out that having developed a very good competence of managing education process, cognising a child and identifying his / her education style, testing and selecting of what is appropriate to a child and promote his / her education and development.

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