Child-Centred Education: Preschool Teachers' Beliefs and Self-Reported Practices

Abstract

This study analyses the beliefs and self-reported practices of preschool teachers with regard to the concept of child-centred education, as well as the consistency between these beliefs and practices. Data were collected via interviews with 20 female teachers employed in public preschools in Ankara, Turkey. The results indicated that the participants' beliefs and practices related to developmental domains were not consistent with child-centred education, whereas their beliefs and practices involving the physical environment of the classroom, instructional activities, relationships, behaviour management, assessment, and parental involvement were partially consistent with it. Congruence between beliefs and practices in the sphere of child-centred education was strongest with respect to developmental domains and less strong in the other areas studied.