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Journal of Early Childhood Research
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What's this?

what is appropriate mathematics education for four-year-olds?

pre-kindergarten teachers' beliefs

Joon Sun Lee

Hunter College, City University of New York, USA

Herbert P. Ginsburg

Teachers College, Columbia University, USA

This study explored pre-kindergarten teachers' beliefs about the appropriateness of early mathematics education. Thirty pre-kindergarten teachers of four-year-olds, half working with low-SES children at publicly funded pre-kindergartens and the other half with middle-SES children at private pre-kindergartens, were interviewed concerning written vignettes describing two fictitious pre-kindergarten teachers' contrasting pedagogies concerning key issues in teaching mathematics to young children. The low-SES publicly funded pre-kindergarten teachers tended to support a strong focus on goal-based mathematics teaching at pre-kindergarten and at home to get children ready for kindergarten. The middle-SES private pre-kindergarten teachers tended to endorse flexible mathematics education relying on a child-centered curriculum and child-initiated learning and to oppose the instructional use of computers. Both groups, however, were similarly likely to mention that with increased academic demands, pre-kindergarten teachers needed to provide mathematics education, especially in simple arithmetic, albeit in a fun manner, without triggering stress or anxiety. These findings have significant implications for professional development.

Key Words: mathematics education • pedagogy • pre-kindergarten • teacher beliefs

Journal of Early Childhood Research, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2-31 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/1476718X07072149
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