Aspects of Community Engagement According to the Early Childhood and Preschool Education Standard

Abstract

The article refers to a study conducted according to one of the articles of the  early childhood and preschool Educational Curriculum Standart – Family and Community Participation in the Educational Process. The family and educational personnel should jointly promotenthe development of the child. The participation of society is also crucial in this regard. Communiti participation is also crucial in this regard. Services provided by vommunity members, local, central and community organizations have a positive impact on children’s development and the needs of families. Especially if there are children with special needs in the family. Active communication with the kindergarten parents is crucial to ensuring the safely and well-being of the children. Open communication helps improve the learning process and psycho-emotional climate.

To clarify the problem, a study was conducted in the fall of 2024 on the topic – “Aspects of cooperation with the Community According to the Standard of  Early and Preschool Education”. The goal of the study is to highlight the existing challenges and needs that prevent family and community representatives from fully engaging in educational processes. 3 focus group discussions and 7 in-depth interviews were conducted. 25 respondents were involved in the qualitative research. Among them, 21 were women and 4 were men. Information was obtained from parents participating in the focus group discussion on the extent to which parent were familiar with the quality standard document. According to the information received, parents had very little information about the quality standard document.

A number of needs and challenges were identified with parents. Unfortunately, parents are unable to get involved in the life of the kindergarten, mostly due to lack of time; problems with communication between the kindergarten and development centers were also identified. During the research, specialists from the rehabilitation center were interviewed. During the interviews, the problem of unwualified staff employed in kindergartens was also identified, who very often do not know how to work with children with difficult behavior.