Purpose: The study aimed to explore the authority and power of kindergarten superintendents in public education to elucidate their leadership dynamics. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 Israeli kindergarten teachers about the authority and power of their superintendents. Thematic analysis was used to…

Research has shown that effective leadership in early childhood education (ECE) can positively influence its quality. Yet, there is limited research on ECE leaders (ECLs), particularly teacher leaders. The goal of the current study was to examine how ECLs in Israel, with a dual role -- as kindergarten teachers and as teachers' leaders -- perceive…

Kindergarten teachers' work is unique because they juggle the roles of caregiver to young children, tending to their physical, emotional and educational needs, and managing their kindergarten unit. The year of internship and transition into teaching is particularly intense. For new kindergarten teachers (NKTs) to fully integrate in the…

Purpose: In 2012, the Israeli Ministry of Education and its Testing and Evaluation Department introduced a new tool to evaluate the quality of kindergarten teachers' work. This paper aims to identify how kindergarten teachers perceive the new multiple domains performance tool. Design/methodology/approach: The study applied a qualitative paradigm…

Purpose: This study examines the attitudes of Jewish and Arab kindergarten teachers in Israel towards multicultural teaching of holidays, within the context of the widening social divisions in Israeli society. Design: The study is based on the interactive acculturation model (Bourhis et al., 1997) and utilizes qualitative research methods such as…

The kindergarten teachers of the Religious Kibbutz movement (RK) as a unique group are connected both to the educational approaches of the kindergartens in the general Kibbutz Movement and the state religious kindergartens. A qualitative study included semi-structured interviews with 15 RK kindergarten teachers in order to explore their…

The article discusses the role of the different forms of capital within the patterns of relationships between kindergarten teachers (KTs) and parents in kindergartens located in one medium-high socioeconomic status neighborhood in Israel. The qualitative analysis conducted reveals how the parents' cultural capital serves as a resource to advance…

The study examines the use of technology by kindergarten teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the course of their professional careers, and their attitudes toward the integration of technology in kindergartens with the resolution of the crisis. The article presents findings derived from interviews with kindergarten teachers in Israel. The…

The phenomenon of diverse families has expanded in recent years. Although it has important implications in the field of education, this issue has been largely overlooked in the research on early education in Israel. The aim of the present study is to examine the attitudes of Israeli kindergarten teachers towards diverse families and the practices…

This study aims to explore in-service preschool teachers' attitudes towards and beliefs about geometry and its teaching and to investigate their knowledge of shapes and solids. The study uses a mixed descriptive approach employing quantitative and qualitative research methods. Thirty-four Israeli preschool teachers of children aged 3-6 from 34…

This ethnographic study examines kindergarten teachers' perceptions and practices of "school readiness" in kindergartens in low-SES settings in northern Israel, with the aim of illuminating the ways in which global educational ideas are appropriated by teachers in their daily work. Data collection included participant observation,…

This paper presents a qualitative study of the interactions between public kindergarten teachers and their superintendents, using the symbolic interaction theoretical framework. The purpose of the study was to gain insight into the meaning-making processes and social dynamics that occur in these interactions, specifically monitoring ones. The…

The present research examined attitudes toward career education in kindergarten classes among kindergarten teachers. Cognitive and behavioral aspects of teachers' attitudes toward career education were investigated as they related to teachers' education level, children's economic status, cultural differences, and teaching self-efficacy.…

Purpose: The current study examines the ways preschool teachers handle parents' WhatsApp groups. The study explores the associations between professional capital, perception of the application, and communication patterns with the parents utilizing WhatsApp, an instant message application. Design/methodology/approach: A group of 214 Israeli…

In this qualitative constructivist study, 36 Israeli preschool teachers who work with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were asked how they perceive the role of parents of children with ASD in their work. Data gathered in semi-structured in-depth interviews are analyzed via grounded theory. The findings show that preschool teachers…