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Faculty of Education
Facultyof Education

Photo: Frank von Wieding

FinK

FinK

Formative Assessment of inclusive natural science education in Kindergarten/Preschool

(Formatives Assesment in der inklusiven naturwissenschaftlichen Bildung in der Kita)

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Duration: 04/2018 -03/2021

Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Funding guideline: „professionalization of preschool teachers for inclusion“) (funding code: 01NV1724C)

Researchers

  • Prof. Dr. Mirjam Steffensky & Katharina Junge, Universität Hamburg
  • Prof. Dr. Henrik Saalbach & Dr. Anika Bürgermeister, Universität Leipzig
  • Prof. Dr. Miriam Leuchter, Dr. Timo Reuter & Dr. Laura Venitz, Universität Koblenz-Landau
  • Prof. Dr. Ilonca Hardy, Goethe Universität Frankfurt am Main

 

FinK focuses on pedagogical interactions of ECEC teachers in inclusive science learning environments. Inclusion is one the challenging tasks of our education system. However, there is a substantial lack of knowledge in the field on science-specific inclusive learning settings. FinK investigates the effects of different professional development trainings on the quality of inclusive science learning environments in kindergarten and the development of science competencies of 4–6 year old children. The main focus of the professional development is a formative assessment and adaptive instruction.

FinK is an intervention study with a pre-post design. The intervention includes professional development trainings focusing on early science education in inclusive learning environments. Participating preschool teachers are divided into two groups. Group 1 additionally participates in a workshop on formative assessment and adaptive instruction, whereas group 2 only receives educational materials on this topic.

The project addresses the following research questions:

  1. Which professional competencies regarding process diagnostics and adaptive instruction do preschool teachers have and how are these competencies associated with the preschools structural characteristics?
  2.  What are the effects of professional development workshops, including process diagnostics and adaptive instruction, on the development of preschool teachers’ professional competencies, the quality of the implementation of science learning educational offers and on the development of competencies of children with different requirements?
  3.  To what extent can differences, regarding the development of competencies of children with different requirements, be explained by differences in the implementation of the science learning opportunity.
  4. Which learning processes regarding science do children with different requirements show?

Implications

Besides the theoretical gain, the study has practical relevance for the development of preschool teachers’ professional competencies and thus, for the development of science competencies of children with different learning requirements. Thereby, the project aims to develop approaches to inclusive science learning environments in preschools, which acknowledge process diagnostics and adaptive instruction, as well as training concepts. This approach offers a deeper understanding for   the conditions of the acquisition of process diagnostic competencies in field of science didactics.