Child's learning: Conceptualisations by students of pre-primary education

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to shed some light on (1) how a sample of pre-school student teachers conceptualise the child ' s learning, (2) how they describe the child ' s learning in different developmental stages, (3) how they ascertain that the child has learned something, (4) how they relate teachers ' practices to the child ' s learning? The data were gathered by in-depth interviews with 35 students who were enrolled in the first semester of the pre-school education bachelor ' s programme in a university in the Czech Republic. In the participants descriptions, learning is acquisition of knowledge and skills, or better, elimination of unknowingness. The fundamental way of the pre-school learning is observation and imitation, less frequently it is trial and error learning. Adults, especially parents are ample models for observational learning. The play is an important frame for the child ' s learning and the pre-school teacher, in fact, " wraps up" the learning to the form of the play. The proof of whether something has been learned is the repetitive employment of the learned product. The pre-school period of the child ' s learning is contrasted with learning in the primary school. In the primary school the child is imparted " information" and learning becomes conscious.