Interpersonal Skills of the Early Childhood Education Teacher in Narrations of Pupils of Younger School Age – the Grounded Theory Emergence Process Cover Image

Umiejętności interpersonalne nauczyciela wczesnej edukacji w narracjach matek uczniów w młodszym wieku szkolnym – proces wyłaniania się teorii ugruntowanej
Interpersonal Skills of the Early Childhood Education Teacher in Narrations of Pupils of Younger School Age – the Grounded Theory Emergence Process

Author(s): Anna Szkolak-Stępień
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Family and social welfare
Published by: Zakład Historii Edukacji w Instytucie Pedagogiki Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego
Keywords: early childhood education teacher; mothers’ expectations; grounded theory; interpersonal skills; early school pedagogy

Summary/Abstract: Aim. The article is devoted to exploratory research focused on discovering grounded theory: proposing an innovative idea that, revealed from research material obtained on the basis of interviews with mothers of early school-age students, could outline social needs for interpersonal skills of early childhood education teachers. Methods and materials. The research is based on a qualitative research strategy. The research process is based on the grounded theory method. The research used a semi-structured interview or a guided interview, semi-structured interview conducted with mothers of students of younger school age. Results. The construction of the grounded theory in empirical data resulted in the reinforcement of the hypothesis allowing the researcher to sketch a portrait of the ideal figure of the early childhood education teacher that consists of interpersonal skills presented by him/her. Among the latter, priority skills include the teacher’s language skills, the ease of making contact, creation of the right atmosphere in the classroom, giving support to children, and the skilful solving of conflicts in the classroom. Conclusion. Teachers are expected to meet very high standards. These include both individual characteristics and a variety of skills related to the profession, including interpersonal skills. The nature of this profession justifies that only those who are prepared to face challenges and show enormous potential in working effectively with students should be selected for the job.

  • Issue Year: XXXII/2025
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 95-112
  • Page Count: 18
  • Language: English
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