Abstract
The case study presented in this article is designed to provide an in-depth understanding of how a highly trained and experienced early childhood educator thinks about her interactions with children within the context of a setting identified as providing quality childcare for 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds. Qualitative research methods are used, including interviews, participant observation, videotaping, and the teacher's reflections on interactions with children. Verbal and nonverbal patterns emerging from videotaped observations demonstrate how the teacher integrates information about specific children into these interactions. Although children's conceptions of time and space are consistently embedded in her thinking and reflected in her behavior, she never explicitly acknowledges these dimensions. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the discrepancy between the teacher's implicit and explicit understanding of her interactions with children to childcare and the preparation and development of early childhood practitioners.
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Kugelmass, J.W., Ross-Bernstein, J. Explicit and Implicit Dimensions of Adult–Child Interactions in a Quality Childcare Center. Early Childhood Education Journal 28, 19–27 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009591319113
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009591319113