This thesis examines the use of dialectal language in pre-school years, focussing on two Slovenian kindergartens – the Sodražica kindergarten and the Ribnica kindergarten. The main aim of the study was to find out whether kindergarten teachers use dialect or standard language more frequently in their professional activities, how often children use dialect, whether kindergarten teachers encourage children to distinguish between dialect and standard language, and whether there are differences in dialect use between younger and older preschool children.
The theoretical part of the thesis deals with language development, the language varieties of the Slovene language, the significance of dialects and their role in modern pre-school education. Special attention is paid to the Lower Carniolan dialect group and the Ribnica dialect, which are characteristic of the observed environment.
In the empirical part, data were collected using a questionnaire completed by 35 preschool teachers and preschool teacher’ assistants. The analysis revealed that most respondents use dialect occasionally or frequently, especially in informal communication and free play, while standard language tends to be used in structured activities. The interviewees attach great cultural and educational value to dialect and consider it important to preserve it. Children in kindergartens still frequently use dialectal expressions, especially the younger children, although the differences between the age groups are not significant.
The preschool teachers do not make a strict distinction between dialect and standard language, but gradually introduce the children to both. This leads to the conclusion that the dialect is still present in the kindergarten environment, but that its preservation requires conscious integration into the pedagogical work.
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