Cooperation between preschool teachers and parents and effective interpersonal communication are both important factors of quality preschool education. Without genuine relationships, there can be neither effective cooperation, interpersonal trust and consequently understanding of a child's development and behaviour nor coordinated mutual efforts in the education process. The aim of this master's thesis was to study the current state when it comes to cooperation between parents and preschool teachers. In the theoretical part of the master’s thesis, we defined the legal and formal aspects of cooperation between parents and professional preschool employees, levels and models of cooperation as well as forms and methods of cooperation between a preschool and a family. We focused on interpersonal relationships and communication of a preschool teacher with parents, analysed competences and communication skills of a preschool teacher required for quality cooperation and described the importance of professional growth of a preschool teacher. In addition to what influences effective communication and interpersonal relationships, we wanted to determine what hinders it and causes dissatisfaction and conflicts between preschool teachers and parents. The results of the research showed that professional preschool employees and parents resort to conventional forms of formal cooperation and interpersonal communication, such as notices on the notice board, office hours, parent-teacher conferences and conversations at the door. An important form of interpersonal cooperation proved to be e-mail. Interpersonal communication causes no considerable stress to older professional employees, while younger professional employees experience communication with parents as something rather stressful. The most burdensome cooperation with parents, from the professional employees’ point of view, is telling parents bad news about their child, visiting a family in their home and introducing a child in preschool in the presence of their parents. The latter is the most challenging to professional preschool employees. They desire more skills in the field of personal communication in order to ensure more quality cooperation with parents and between co-workers.
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