Science in early childhood education: the perception of Spanish teachers during initial training

Science teaching is present in the curriculum at all levels of education. However, little research has been done into what content is taught, how it is taught and what pupils actually learn at the pre-primary stage. In this paper, we will study student teachers' perception about what science teaching is being carried out in Second Cycle of Childhood Education classrooms (3-4-5 years). Using their experiences from teaching practice, a number of pre-school education degree students have ompleted a questionnaire through which to understand better the educational reality under study. The results reveal the limited attention given to certain content areas and the absence of key activities throug…