In the Master's thesis titled "Comparing Rural and Urban Kindergarten Cooperation with Local Community Institutions," the principle of cooperation with the environment, as described in the Kindergarten Curriculum (1999), is presented. My interest lay in exploring the extent to which legal acts and other documents promote cooperation with the environment. The theoretical section outlines the legal and statutory basis for kindergartens' collaboration with the environment. This section delves into the reasons for engaging with the environment, the advantages and disadvantages for all stakeholders (children, parents, kindergarten staff), and the local community. Additionally, I describe various methods and forms of working with the environment. One of these methods, which could enhance successful school/kindergarten interaction, is the implementation of project work. Project work is an educational approach through which individuals or groups study, analyse, solve, and interpret challenges to achieve specific goals. A well-structured project task closely resembles natural learning, emphasizes experiential learning, and possesses strong motivational power.
In the empirical part of the Master's thesis, I present the survey results obtained through a questionnaire. The survey results reveal differences between professionals in urban and rural kindergartens in terms of their perception of the significance of kindergarten's collaboration with the environment, the primary initiators of collaboration, the frequency of kindergarten's engagement with the environment, the institutions, associations, and individuals they collaborate with, the criteria used to select partners from the environment, the methods of cooperation with the environment, and their views on the benefits and drawbacks of collaboration with the environment for all parties involved and for their professional growth. I discovered that practitioners in rural and urban kindergartens do not differ in their recognition of the importance of kindergarten cooperation with the local community. In both types of kindergartens, the majority of practitioners rated cooperation with the environment as highly important. There are also no disparities between rural and urban kindergartens in the frequency of cooperation with the local community, as most practitioners from both types engage with the local community on special occasions, often on a monthly basis. Both types of kindergartens also share similar approaches to cooperating with the local community, often through project work. Additionally, practitioners from both urban and rural kindergartens hold similar opinions on the benefits of kindergarten cooperation with the local environment for their professional development. They mention gaining knowledge, experience, skills, new ideas, and more. Furthermore, the majority of respondents from both types of kindergartens believe there are no disadvantages to such cooperation. Differences are minimal in the disadvantages mentioned by the respondents.
However, variations emerge between professionals in urban and rural kindergartens regarding the most common initiators of kindergarten cooperation with the local community. While teachers and their assistants are primary initiators in both cases, the frequency differs – very often in urban kindergartens and always in rural kindergartens. This trend also extends to other initiators, where local community institutions are frequent initiators of collaboration in both cases. There are partial distinctions in the partners with whom urban and rural kindergartens mostly collaborate within the local community. While both types of kindergartens primarily cooperate with libraries, rural kindergartens also engage equally with various associations. The frequency of cooperation with other stakeholders in the local community also slightly varies between urban and rural kindergartens. Among the associations listed by professionals, thirteen are common to both types, with seven companies being shared between them. Moreover, some differences exist in practitioners' opinions on the benefits of kindergarten cooperation with the environment. Urban kindergartens strongly agree with four statements on the benefits of cooperation, whereas rural kindergartens strongly agree with nine statements. However, criteria for partner selection differ between rural and urban kindergartens. Most practitioners in urban kindergartens choose partners based on different projects within the kindergarten, while those in rural kindergartens select partners based on various events.
|
