6533b872fe1ef96bd12d43b5
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Evening early childhood education and care: Reformulating the institutional culture
Laakso Marja-leenaEija SalonenEija Sevónsubject
Early childhood educationvarhaiskasvatusHealth (social science)Eveningevening carevuorohoitoOrganizational cultureEducationearly childhood education and careSuomiPedagogyDevelopmental and Educational Psychology0501 psychology and cognitive sciencesSociologybelongingFinlandinstitutional cultureyoung children4. Education05 social sciences050301 educationSocial environmentinstitutionalismiorganisaatiokulttuurilastenhoito0503 education050104 developmental & child psychologydescription
The article investigates the ongoing reformulation of the institutional culture of early childhood education and care (ECEC) in Finnish evening ECEC. Educators’ practices in implementing evening ECEC were explored and viewed through the lens of young children’s belonging. Data were collected by observing the evenings of eight children aged 20–36 months in two Finnish centers offering flexibly scheduled ECEC and analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. Three main themes of educators’ practices were identified: (1) managing a unique and changing social group, (2) fostering homeliness, and (3) maintaining routines and institutional order. While these practices mostly contributed to child-responsive interactions supportive of young children’s belonging, in some of them individual children’s initiatives were not responded to, thereby challenging their belonging. Overall, educators’ practices in implementing evening ECEC manifested the orientation of the institutional culture of ECEC toward the present ideals regarding young children’s belonging.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-08-30 | Journal of Early Childhood Research |