영아보육 질 제고를 위한 평가도구 개발 및 활용방안

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to develop an ‘Infant Observation Scale based on Childcare Curriculum for Ages 0 to 2’ and assess the characteristics and changes of infants based on the purpose and contents of the Standard Curriculum for Childcare Centers in Korea. It also aims to contribute to a more stable operation of childcare curriculum for ages 0 to 2 by suggesting measures to utilize the scale. To guide infant class teachers to observe and assess the overall childcare activities and daily lives of infants effectively, observation and activity cases were developed along with the observation questions. Literature research was conducted, and advanced researches were analyzed to review the contents of the childcare curriculum. A survey on the current status of infant class assessment and requests was conducted, and 624 infant class teachers participated in the survey. The results of the survey showed that infant class teachers recognized the significance of infant assessment, and the development of a convenient, easy-to-use infant assessment tool was required. The majority of infant class teachers recognized the necessity of teacher education/training courses related to infant assessment of the Standard Curriculum for Childcare Centers in Korea, but the majority had no experience of such training or education. Results of the survey analysis were used for developing the utility measures of the scale. Observation questions were developed based on the contents and details of the six areas (everyday life, physical activities, communication, social relationships, art experiences, and nature exploring) of childcare curriculum for ages 0 to 2, and the preliminary drafts for the scale were made according to each individual age classes between 0 and 2. To test the feasibility and appropriateness of the scale, a preliminary research was conducted using the drafts and 30 infant class teachers in Seoul (60 infants from age 0 to 2) participated in the research. The main research was conducted based on the results of the preliminary research after modifying the drafts and finalizing it. 303 infant class teachers nationwide (606 infants from age 0 to 2) participated in the main research. To prove the validity of the scale, descriptive statistics analysis, reliability analysis, validity analysis, and item discrimination power analysis were carried out. To further validate the items, 17 people, including professors in the academia and principals and teachers of childcare centers, reviewed the test. The result of the study revealed that ‘Infant Observation Scale based on Childcare Curriculum for Age 0 to 2’ had high internal consistency and reliability. 17 experts proved the content validity of the scale, and the construct validity calculated by the correlation coefficient method appeared to be high. It is confirmed that the items in the scale can distinguish the accessibility of infants in the Standard Curriculum for Childcare Centers in Korea. Final versions of the scale, consisting of 30 items for age 0, 45 items for age 1, and 50 items for age 2 were created reflecting the six areas of the Standard Curriculum for Childcare Centers in Korea. As for the measures of utilizing the assessment tools to improve the quality of childcare for infants, the followings were suggested: supporting measures for a more fruitful operation of the childcare curriculum, measures to create conditions to carry out infant assessments, measures to distribute and utilize the scale, and measures to strengthen the research and education of infant assessment.