Prep-kindergarten teachers\u27 beliefs : basic skills versus child-centered orientation

This research paper is a partial replication of the Stipek and Byler (1997) study, Early childhood education teachers: Do they practice what they preach? The study focuses on teachers\u27 beliefs, goals, standardized testing, and parental pressures of early childhood education. Results of this study revealed prep-kindergarten teachers from the state of Iowa believe social skills are the most important goal of their programs. This confirms the literature review of what is developmentally appropriate for early childhood classrooms. Nearly all teachers in this study reported that they believed their programs to be appropriate for young children and that parental pressure regarding a push for more academic work did not seem to be a problem