Early childhood socio-emotional development indicators: Pre-school teachers’ perceptions

Abstract

This study explored pre-school teachers’ classroom experiences of socio-emotional development in early childhood. Participants were twelve coloured/mixed race pre-school teachers from low-income communities in Cape Town, South Africa. The teachers completed semi-structured interviews focusing on their classroom experiences of socio-emotional development in early childhood. This included teachers’ influence on socio-emotional development, activities to foster socio-emotional development, and challenges related to learners’ socio-emotional development. A thematic analysis of the data suggests teachers perceived that boys displayed more emotional immaturity and poorer peer relations than girls. Learners also had poor adherence to following instructions. The teachers reported that they engaged in reinforcing prosocial behaviour and routinised behaviour for a positive classroom environment.