아동의 사회·정서 발달지원 서비스 현황분석 및 개선방안

Abstract

The research aims to assess the current state of services dedicated to supporting the social-emotional development of children and formulate improvement strategies to enhance these services. The concern arises from the diminished chances of building essential socio-emotional skills, as children are deprived of opportunities for social engagement during the COVID-19 era. Furthermore, there is growing apprehension that the prevailing emphasis on excessive cognitive education may undermine awareness and interest in the socio-emotional development of young children. A total of 1,412 respondents participated in a parental survey, comprising 708 parents of infants and 704 parents of elementary school- aged children. Among them, 604 parents reported having experience with social-emotional development support services, while 808 parents had no such experience. Subsequently, in-depth interviews were conducted with parents who had utilized these services to explore concerns about their children's socio-emotional development, experiences in applying for and utilizing services, and to identify areas for improvement. This study examines parental awareness and concerns related to social-emotional learning (SEL), focusing on how parents contribute to their children's social-emotional development through conversations and experiences in childcare and educational institutions. A total of 90% of parents demonstrated awareness of SEL, actively engaging in conversations and providing experiences to support their children's social-emotional growth. Among the respondents, 65.5% of parents expressed concerns about their children's social-emotional development. Interestingly, only 26.4% reported receiving concerning feedback from daycare centers or educational institutions. Additionally, the analysis of social-emotional development support services available for infants, preschoolers, and elementary school students in the local community revealed a deficiency in services tailored for elementary school students in the lower grades. This highlights the need for improvements to address this gap. Based on the research findings, this study proposes four major policy directions: a universal enhancement of social-emotional development support for all children, from infants to elementary school-aged, ensuring continuity in their developmental journey; strategies to strengthen the substantive content and levels of social-emotional development support services provided by local community agencies; the development of targeted programs for promoting social-emotional development; and initiatives to enhance parental awareness and promote practices in social-emotional development through targeted awareness campaigns.