Browsing by Author "Aroranta, Sonja"

Objectives. In recent years worldview education in early childhood education and pre-school education has turned from religious education into non-confessional worldview education. The aim of this study is to examine what worldview education is like in early childhood education and pre-school education in Helsinki. This study investigated worldview education in national and local curricula of early childhood education and care and pre-school education. In addition, this study explored how worldview education is put into practice in the early childhood education and pre-school education in Helsinki. Methods. The data was collected in spring 2019 by analysing the curricula for early childhood education and care and pre-school education and by a qualitative survey sent to the workers of the early childhood education and pre-school education in Helsinki. The data was analysed by using qualitative content analysis. Results and conclusions. The National Core Curriculum for Early Childhood Education and Care (2016) emphasized familiarizing oneself with different cultures and worldviews, acting in the diverse Finnish society and enhancing equality. Helsinki’s local Curriculum for Early Childhood Education and Care (2017) had the same themes but they were emphasized differently. The themes in worldview education in the National Core Curriculum for Pre-School Education (2014) were uniform with The National Core Curriculum for Early Childhood Educa-tion and Care. Also, Helsinki’s local Curriculum for Pre-School Education (2016) was the same as the national curricula. In practice, the implementation of worldview education in both early childhood education and pre-school education differed from the legally binding curricula. In early childhood education the worldview education was not predominantly put into practice at all, or it was shown as conversations, as Christian education or as restrictions in the every-day life. In pre-school education the worldview education was most often shown as conversations but also as Christian education, as restrictions in everyday life or was not implemented at all. Therefore, in practice, worldview education meets many, but not all, of the objectives set by the curricula. In pre-school education the worldview education corresponds the curriculum slightly more than in early childhood education. Nonetheless, the practices in both early childhood education and pre-school education need to be developed when the practice is wanted to correspond the legally binding curricula.