ホイクショ ホイクシ ノ ライフ ヒストリー : ショクギョウ センタク ト テンキ ヘンヨウ

When examining the specialization of nursery school teachers, in addition to research of child care itself, it is also important to conduct research related to the goals and abilities of the nursery school teachers themselves, and to their professional history and experiences. In this study, through the words of the nursery school teachers themselves, we will examine issues such as the events which formed the reasons or specific incidents that led them to select their profession, and the changes of the nursery school teachers. In addition, we will attempt to link these factors to observations concerning the specialization and professional identity sought by these nursery school teachers. The results from case interviews of 23 nursery school teachers made clear the following points. Reasons given for selecting this profession included the existence of a role model, influence from close adults, and pleasant experiences from childhood. Many of those interviewee selected a child care career as a means of becoming independent. Events which formed the specific incidents that led them to choose this profession included encounters with different types of persons in the workplace, incidents at nursery schools, conflicts with family, as well as childbirth, childraising, and other personal life-stage changes. Housework and childraising place many burdens and restrictions on female child care workers, however they were also an opportunity for them to fundamentally redefine their lives, children, and way of living. In child care workers, transformations which accompany a turning point (specific incident) in their lives become apparent as changes in that person\u27s view towards the subjects of children and child care. In some cases, these transformations produce a professional awareness, maturity as a human being, or changes in the person\u27s view of life or way of living. These "transformations" could be correctly described as "maturing." The persons who guide the child care worker to maturity are his or her superiors, coworkers, children, parents and guardians, and the worker\u27s own family. Through continuous interaction with other close individuals, the child care worker learns to understand himself/herself, reflect, and then work again with others. In this way, the child care worker matures to become a full-fledged professional. As a future issue, we intend to examine what the specialization of child care workers specifically means, and how it is related to the maturing of child care workers