Academic literature on the topic 'Education, Preschool – Namibia – Case studies'

This paper details three examples of technology education in process. The first case study highlights how an early childhood teacher comes to think about and plan for technology education. A series of diary entries are included to show the progression in thinking. In the second case study, a preschool teacher shows how very young children can participate in technology education. In the third case study a Year 3 teacher reveals how young children can become investigators in a simulated architects studio. The focus is on following the children's technological questions. All three case studies provide some insight into the sort of technological language that can be fostered in early childhood.

The article highlights the problems of preschool education in the municipal district, which is the initial link in the system of continuing education and the basis for the full-fledged growth of an individual. Analysis of the influence of various conditions of the economic and social life reveals the problems that impede the development of preschool education. There have been analyzed the factors characterizing the coverage of children by preschool educational organizations and the availability of preschool education at the regional level. The methodological basis of the study was the economic and statistical analysis of indicators that determine the development of preschool education. The main characteristics of preschool educational activities in Republic of Bashkortostan (a study of municipal districts) are given. It has been stated that for the period from 2010 to 2018 in Republic of Bashkortostan, the number of independent preschool educational organizations decreased by 41.3%, while the number of pupils increased by 42.4%. The studies have revealed the relationship between the level of economic development of the municipal district, its specialization and the involvement of children in preschool educational activities. It has been established that in the municipal areas with well-developed industrial production the coverage of children by preschool educational organizations is high, and vice versa - in the municipal areas with a low level of industrial development the coverage of children by preschool educational organizations is poor. In the municipal areas oriented to the production of agricultural products the involvement of children in preschool education is low. The analysis results can serve as the basis for further research on the development of preschool education and be of practical importance in the development of strategic documents on the regional development.

This article explores images of young children in preschool music curricula in an Australian and a Chinese preschool. The ‘images of the child’ relevant to each country are presented by including children’s voices, teachers’ perceptions of children’s personalities and their ways of learning, and children’s roles in learning as designated in official documents on early childhood education. Framed by a sociocultural perspective, this qualitative case study responds to the changing contexts of early childhood music education (ECME) in both countries. Crystallization as a methodological lens is applied to shed light on the variations and complexities from the teachers’ and the children’s perspectives. Data-gathering methods include document analysis, classroom observations, teachers’ interviews and conversations with children. This article particularly reflects the images and experiences of the children through their own lenses and enriches the scope of current ECME research.The main findings suggest the existence of both alignment and gaps, in varying degrees, between the official policy documents, the teachers’ perceptions, and the children’s understandings of their musical experiences. First, images of the child in the policy articles are interpreted differently in Australia and China, and there is a marked difference between the countries in their definitions of child-centred learning in specific contexts. Finally, implications and directions for future research are suggested to facilitate children’s musical exploration in preschools.

This paper investigated the perceptions of Religious and Moral Education (RME) teachers with regard to the implementation of RME syllabus in Namibia. The paper engages a crucial global debate on paradigms for teaching religion and moral values while contributing to the literature through research in the Ompundja Circuit of Oshana Region, Namibia. Contrary to the previous colonial era when Christianity was the only recognized religion, the Republic of Namibia adopted a new constitution making it a secular state upon independence in 1990. This new constitution, however, brought new challenges to teachers who were previously trained only to teach Biblical Studies as a school subject. With this new constitution, Namibia adopted a policy of teaching a multi-cultural religious and moral education curriculum. The teaching of RME replaced Biblical Studies in the Namibian curriculum. Teachers are now required to make their learners aware of the different religious and moral values of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, African traditional religions, Bahai and others inextricably. This, paper, therefore, presents findings from a case study research conducted at Ompundja Circuit of Oshana Region in Namibia that examined the perceptions of Religious and Moral Education (RME) teachers with regard to the implementation of RME syllabus. Fourteen teachers from selected schools participated in this study. Teachers were interviewed, observed and later completed a set of questionnaire. Findings indicated that teachers’individual religious and moral values shaped the teaching and learning process; teachers’ individual religious and moral values played a major role regarding conflicting concerns over RME; and as most RME teachers were Christian, they felt a commitment to share their personal Christian religious beliefs and moral values. The paper recommends that teachers be provided with the necessary teaching resources and be trained to develop more confidence and broad understanding of RME as a subject.

Coding is increasingly recognized as a new literacy that should be encouraged at a young age. This understanding has recontextualized computer science as a compulsory school subject and has informed several developmentally appropriate approaches to computation, including for preschool children. This study focuses on the introduction of three approaches to computation in preschool (3–6 years), specifically computational thinking, programming, and robotics, from a cross-curricular perspective. This paper presents preliminary findings from one of the case studies currently being developed as part of project KML II—Laboratory of Technologies and Learning of Programming and Robotics for Preschool and Elementary School. The purpose of the KML II project is to characterize how approaches to computation can be integrated into preschool and elementary education, across different knowledge domains. The conclusions point to “expression and communication” as an initial framework for computational approaches in preschool, but also to multidisciplinary and more creative methodological activities that offer greater scope for the development of digital and computational competences, as well as for personal and social development.

In this paper, the authors explore the methodical approach in Catholic religious education in kindergartens in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The theoretical framework is represented by the concept of holistic education. It also includes spiritual education, in the case of this study, religious education. The aim of the empirical part of the research is to determine the methodical elements of religious education in preschool institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina (types of religious educational activities in religious education of preschool children and their representation, religious climate) and to compare public kindergartens with Catholic kindergartens. The results indicate that practical and spontaneous religious activities are often used in the introduction of children to faith, while artistic activities are moderately used that religious activities are more often realized with the whole group, and average individualization, and that there is no statistically significant difference in the investigated elements of religious education between public and Catholic kindergartens.

Academic excellence of students with special needs depends on many factors such as the level of individual intelligence, slow development, the level of hearing loss, vision problems and age at diagnosis. Children who have been identified to undergo continued in the preschool early intervention such as the use of hearing aids, provide training in language and communication, socialization, teaching them how to read and write using Braille, improve motor skills, orientation and mobility to increase student confidence. The findings of previous studies have found the teachers lack the skills, knowledge, experience and the lack of disclosure of the technical conduct of early intervention. Therefore this study was conducted to explore the practice of implementation of early intervention preschool special education towards preparation for school. This study used a qualitative approach with case study design. Data were collected through structured interview techniques and document analysis. The study used purposive sampling involving three preschool special education teachers with learning disabilities, vision and hearing. Data was analyzed using ATLAS. ti 7.1.8.The findings show that there are seven themes identified practices affecting the implementation of early intervention teachers' understanding of early intervention, early intervention program implementation practices, Preschool Special Education curriculum, teacher recruitment, infrastructure, collaboration and monitoring. The implications of these findings suggest that preschool teachers need specialized training in the implementation of early intervention in preschool special education. The Ministry of Education should devise strategies to improve pre-school teachers in order to help special education students toward school supplies.

Purpose of the study: The purpose of this study is to assess Student Satisfaction and Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning: The Case of University Education in Namibia. The concept of customer satisfaction has attracted much attention in recent years. Institutions of higher education are accountable for their performance to their trustees, state boards, accreditation agencies, employees, parents, and of course, their students. Students are the reason for the existence of Institutions of higher education. Hence Student satisfaction should be the core business of such institutions. Yet despite a large body of research literature examining customer satisfaction and student satisfaction for that matter, researchers have not fully investigated the relationship between student satisfaction and technology integration in teaching and learning. This study explores the Challenges faced by academics in terms of technology integration in teaching and learning. It further assesses Students’ Satisfaction in relation to Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning as well as the relationship between the use of technology in teaching and learning and Students Satisfaction. Research Methodology: This is a correlation cross-sectional quantitative survey. Responses were obtained from a 200 valid random sample comprising of Students and Lecturers at one of the major public Universities in Namibia. The responses were analysed using SPSS version 23. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to examine the research questions. Descriptive statistics were used to report demographic information and for inferential statistics, the principal components analysis (PCA) was used. Further, in order to explore the relationships between Student Satisfaction and Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning, Pearson correlation and analysis of variance (ANOVA), were used to address research questions accordingly.Findings: The study found significant relationships between Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning and Students Satisfaction. The results prompted recommendations guiding effective marketing strategies for Institutions of Higher Education, policy making in relation to Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning vis-à-vis Student Satisfaction.Contribution: Regular appraisal of students satisfaction with technology integration is critical. Evaluation of lecturer’s perception and awareness of technology integration is essential-to reduce the Knowledge Gap in the area of technology integration in teaching and learning. Specific studies related to technology integration in teaching and learning per discipline (Programme) are desirable since different Programmes may have different needs in terms of technology integration. Lecturers’ commendations/support for technology integration is key to ensure adoption and full technology integration in the long run. Institutional Policy on course web/e-learning presence is fundamental

Sociocultural transformation of society, its digitalization dictate certain requirements to the system of education. Adaptation of education processes both in kindergartens and universities is related with readiness of teachers for implementation of digital technologies into education process. The significance of their use in education is accompanied by numerous questions regarding elimination of negative influence of digital content on a forming developing person, on their rational and reasonable application at early stages of social and personal development of preschool children. The conceptual field of pedagogy is supplemented by new categories: digital education, digital education environment, digital competence. This article presents results of teachers’ surveying on the issue of readiness to designing information environment and attitude to the digital technologies implemented into education. On the one hand, the teachers highlighted advantages of the applied information technologies: individual education, possibility to master the program by preschool children and to consolidate knowledge and skills in the case of prolonged absence from studies, time saving, mobility and flexibility of education. On the other hand, the teachers mentioned the main drawbacks of the use of digital technologies: possible harm for health of children, inability of full development of speech, communication skills, development of gaming activity. The main problems preventing active use of modern technologies are comprised of low digital competence of university graduates and working teachers; age features of preschool children, which do not allow to study material without assistance by adults; the lack of opportunities of pupil’s parents to actively participate in educational activity of preschool entity.