This study aimed to examine the childcare theory of Yoshiko Kunugi, who was involved in the preparation of Hoiku Yoryo (National Curriculum Standards for Early Childhood Education) published in 1948. The concept of childhood education environment discussed in her book published in 1944 was also reflected in Hoiku Yoryo. This study reviewed the Kunugi’s childcare theory based on her publication and clarified her perspective on childcare that was established through her practice as a nursery teacher and experience from studying in the United States. Her activities were acknowledged in the Civil Information and Education Conference report by Helen Heffernan of The General Headquarters/The Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers during the occupation; Kunugi, who served as an interpreter and provided a good understanding of Heffernan, had her visionary childcare theory and played a significant role during the postwar education reform period of Japan.

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This paper aimed to clarify the process through which the 1956 Course of Study for Kindergartens (hereafter “the Guidelines”) was established. This study was conducted to examie how and to what extent the discussions of the Kindergarten Subcommittee of Instructor Workshops at the Faculty of Teacher Training at Oita University (1954) were reflected in Guidelines. This study compared draft guidelines prepared at the workshops, the content of discussions, and the Guidelines. The results showed that the discussions at the workshops were reflected in the Guidelines to a considerable extent. In addition, it was clarified that during the process of establishing the Guidelines, a small group of researchers comprising those from national universities played significant role.

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This study examined how 3-4-year-old class children in kindergarten develop playful expression ability of negative emotions through peer play based on longitudinal data. I focused on situations in which children expressed negative emotions while managing relationships with their peers. In the 3-year-old class, playful expression of negative emotions, including responses to teacher’s actions, were often identified when children played with their peers. In the 4-year-olds’ class, on the other hand, such expression became more spontaneous and diverse among peers, in which children shared negative situations with their peers in a positive way refleced on themselves, self-deprecated, and looked back on their experiences. These findings indicated that playful expression of negative emotions takes significant role in regulating relationships with peers and is important for emotional competence.

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This study aimed to examine the relationships among reactive agility, running ability, and turn-around ability in 39 pre-school children. Measurement items were 4- sensor agility for reactive agility, 10-m run for running ability, and pro-agility run for turn-around ability. Significant correlations were found between all items. In particular, the higher the 4-sensor agility is, the faster the 10-m run and pro- agility are. Furthermore, pro-agility had a greater effect on 4-sensor agility than on 10-m run. It was also suggested that it is necessary to increase turn-around ability rather than straight running speed, in order to improve reactive agility.

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This study aimed to clarify the multilayered relationships between different age groups from the viewpoint of legitimate peripheral participation, which describes learning as a contextual social phenomenon (Lave & Wenger 1991). Three 3-year-olds in a mixed-age class for 3 to 5-year-olds were subjected to participatory observation through video. The way how three children approached other children of different ages was observed during the class and analyzed. The result indicated that the 3-year-old children approached older children not only with the same strategy as for the age-mate, but also with several other strategies that they newly found. In addition, analysis of the episodes revealed that the interest and experience of the 3-year-olds underlay their active participation. Specifically, younger children, who are in the position of being cared for, are clearly proactive in terms of participation, indicating that even the youngest children in a multi-age groups proactively participate and contribute to classroom culture.

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This study aimed to investigate the role of play space for toddlers by focusing on the staying and ymoving behaviors of a 2-3-year-old girl in a 2-year-olds class at a nursery school. A total of 140 observation data samples were obtained during a study preod of 21 months; each samplecase was qualitatively analyzed by the episode method and SCAT (Steps for Coding and Theorization) analysis. Analysis of the longitudinal data revealed that the girl tended to stay in one play space and repeatedly explored new features of the space. In addition, she was repeatedly moving around different play spaces with other children, suggesting that moving behavior itself was her purpose and she created a new feature at each play space to realize her own story.

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In this research, a questionnaire survey was ad,omostered to 277 teachers who worked in childcare centers or kindergartens. The questionnaire consited of the following questions: whether they had an opportunity to contact children with impulsive and hyperactive characteristics (14 questions), how difficult dealting with the situation (14 questions), what they thought about the situation (14 questions), and how they addressed the situation (3 questions). A total of 204 teachers responded. The results showed that children with impulsive and hyperactive characteristics were commonly found in the regular childcare centers/ kindergartens and many teachers were having difficulty interacting with these children. It was also revealed that the teachers had general knowledge about disabilities but lacked the knowledge of how to deal with them.

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This study aimed to clarify how a veteran preschool teacher (VPT) reframes their profession during the first year assignment as a special eduation support teacher (SEST). I conducted semi-structured interviews with a VPT who had 17 years of experience as a lead preschool teacher, followed by the Steps for Coding and Theorization (SCAT) analysis. The result showed that the participant had the following specific frames: a frame to understand differences among individual children, which enables to identify characteristics of disabilities through understanding of children’s personalities; and a frame to understand the diversity of a group in which individual children are different, regardless of disability. It is important to understand the children not just from the viewpoint of their disabilities but also through their characteristics.

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Although Italy has two separate periods of early childhood education system for age 0-2 and 3-6 years, respectively, the national policy is moving toward unified system for age 0-6 years. This unified system is based on experiences of municipalities that have played leading roles in their education system and practice. In this paper, the following aspects of Italian early childhood education related to the unification were discussed:process of unification, current system, national and municipal guidelines that reflect the characteristics of early childhood, and collaborative working conditions of professionals supported by pedagogical coordinators. A case analysis of consistency between educational practices for children age 0-2 years and those for children age 0-6 years were also presented.

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