The aim of this study is to know the extent to which the national interactive curriculum scheduled for governmental kindergartens in Jordan take into account the psychological, social, aesthetic and cognitive foundations are considered. The researchers used the analytical descriptive approach. The sample of the study consisted of all kindergarten teachers in the education districts of Central Badia Region. The sample comprised 118 teachers, during the second semester of the academic year (2017/2018). The study concluded that there are statistically significant differences between the average estimates of the sample on the field of psychological foundations and the total score according to the difference of scientific qualification for the benefit of higher studies. No difference was found on the extent of taking into account the national interactive curriculum scheduled for the governmental kindergartens in Jordan for the social, cognitive, psychological, aesthetic and total scores except for the domain of social foundations, according to the years of experience variable. To determine the source of these differences, Scheffe test was used. Finally, the researchers proposed some recommendations.
The character of a Kindergarten child is that of a rapidly evolving and developing character. Hence, the kindergarten is keen to provide a dynamic curriculum that takes into account the personality of the child and his needs, for sound growth. This is in accordance with the age and mental characteristics of the normal child, taking
into account the reality of society and its philosophy.
The concept of the curriculum in kindergartens takes a somewhat different meaning from curricula in primary or secondary education. Here, educators agree on the broad lines and sometimes implementers differ on the details. It is not a specific curriculum based on scheduled subjects, it is a platform based on activity. Its first goal is to develop the child's perceptions, raise his senses, satisfy his desires and needs, discover his tendencies and talents and allow these talents to grow and appear in an atmosphere of freedom away from repression, fatigue and militancy in following a certain regime (Hawamdeh and Adwan, 2012).
If the feelings of communication are fast and volatile in the pre-school age, the way the child's emotion and the degree of expression of each affected by the impact of the situation, and the degree of freedom allowed by the social environment to express these feelings; then there will be varying degrees in the level of expression of children owing to feelings of different kinds (Ibrahim, 1999).
Sherif (2007) points out that the child is exposed in his life to many influences through the interaction of people or means of communication, technology and information provided; these train him on new skills in his life, in addition to the values and culture of the society in which he lives. This process, in which the culture of the society is acquired by social education, aims at providing appropriate behavior, standards and trends to certain social roles that enable him to cope with his social group and social harmony with them, and gain a social character and facilitate for him integration into social life.
Education also has a great responsibility in helping the child to grow through the creation of social conditions and settings. It is the biological preparation that helps him develop comprehensively, as well as the development of his cognitive, psychological, aesthetic, self-reliant and communicative abilities (Khawaldeh, 2003).
Sanker (1986) confirmed that it is needful to pay attention to this stage for its effective role in the development of all aspects of growth, where the child learns to establish social relations and is able to interact through his presence in his groups to deal with and interact with others. It is therefore necessary for the child to go to the kindergarten because the primary purpose of it is the growth of the child's personality.
Modern education emphasizes that quality education is not limited to the academic aspect, despite its importance; but it include mostly the education of all life skills, including: Social skills, such as cooperation, responsibility, communication skills, decision-making, problem-solving, self-esteem, and learner knowledge of his rights and that of others. These skills will contribute to the social well-being of the individual and help him to deal with others in a scientific way that will enable him to effectively integrate into the field of work (UNESCO, 2000).
Problem of the study
The problem of this study is to try to know the extent to which the interactive national curriculum is observed rapporteur of the State kindergartens in Jordan for the psychological, social and aesthetic dimensions. The study problem can be defined as follows:
(i) The pre-school level of students is low in most skills, based on the observations of the educational field.
(ii) The novelty of the interactive national curriculum, which means that it must be analyzed to determine the strengths and weaknesses, and to suggest solutions to address them.
(iii) Availability of notes on this curriculum after trying it for two years.
Hypotheses of the study
The researchers proposed some hypotheses:
(i) The national curriculum takes into consideration the psychological, social and cognitive dimensions.
(ii) There are statistically significant differences at a level (α=0.05) in the teachers' point of view; due to the variables of the study (scientific qualification, experience, interaction between scientific qualification and experience).
Importance of study
The importance of this study is evident in the objectives it seeks to achieve. This study coincides with the efforts of the Ministry of Education in Jordan to find a suitable and comprehensive curriculum for kindergarten. The importance of this study is highlighted in the fact that it deals with the curriculum of the age stage, since childhood is an important stage in the formation of the principles of the human personality, and its influence the rest of his life; therefore, childhood is the most important stages of the individual's psychological and social development. The study also presents findings and recommendations that contribute to better and more appropriate change and development of the curriculum for this age group.
Objectives of the study
This study aims to know the extent to which the national curriculum take into account the psychological, social and cognitive foundations of the state kindergartens in Jordan are considered.
Limitations of the study
The results of this study can be generalized in light of the following limits:
(i) Time limits: 2018
(ii) Spatial boundaries: Directorate of Education for the Central Badia Region.
(iii) Human borders: All kindergarten teachers in the directorates of education for the Central Badia region.
(iv) The objective limits: To determine the extent to which the interactive national curriculum takes into consideration the psychological, social, cognitive and aesthetic foundations.
Definition of terms
Foundations
A group of principles that constitute a theoretical framework for education define their goals, clarify the criteria for its success, and provide some kind of autism to their activities and concepts, analyze their processes, or theoretical and ideological theories that condemn the authors of the curriculum as well as the construction of this curriculum in addition to its implementation and evaluation (Almushref, 2003).
Social foundations
Is the full knowledge of the needs and nature of the society that builds and manages schools, the nature of its economic production, its cultural heritage and its cultural changes, as well as its scientific and industrial progress (Sharadqa, 2001).
Knowledge bases
It means the foundations of knowledge epistemology, conceptual structure, and the nature of thinking. It is necessary to emphasize the organic relationship between different knowledge, values, attitudes and skills (Jabir, 2006).
Psychological foundations
These relate to the target learner and his characteristics. The curriculum should take into account the abilities, tendencies, aptitudes, psychological needs and stages of development of children (Batayneh, 2004).
Aesthetic foundations
These are related to the child's artistic and aesthetic appeal, which allows him a beautiful expression in a variety of ways about his feelings and thoughts as well as satisfy his desires; thus, he reflects a picture of himself and the world around him, which makes him feel comfortable and balanced (Ayesh, 2008).
Interactive national curriculum
It is a special curriculum for the kindergarten stage in Jordan, which is applied formally and it binds the government kindergartens. The fields are divided into six axes: moral, social, linguistic, physical, cognitive and aesthetic (Momani, 2010).
Kindergarten stage
The pre-school stage is from the age of 4-5 years, in which the child enters Kindergarten. Some schools include children's rooms specially equipped for children, which is a non-compulsory stage, free of charge by the Ministry of Education (Abu Talib et al., 2004).
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND PREVIOUS STUDIES
Theoretical framework
The difference between human societies in terms of traits, characteristics, goals and objectives, is that each community has its own independent educational personality expressed through the philosophy of the educational system of that society. It is incumbent on officials to prepare programs and curricula that provide the child with the concepts and experiences which gives him trends, tendencies and habits, which enable him to live in today's society, and helps him to understand the environment in which he lives in terms of its requirements and modern capabilities. Recent trends in the education of children in Riyadh have emphasized the importance of exposing the child to various sensory stimuli, and to provide the appropriate concepts to help him attach to this huge scale of modern technological development (Bahader, 2003).
It is not possible to imagine an educational curriculum for a nation without it being based on its beliefs and perceptions of existence, the universe, human and life. Therefore, it is not possible to imagine the possibility of borrowing from another nation educational curricula or to build a nation of its curricula or develop them according to specifications determined by another nation (Shadukhi, 2002).
The Interactive National Curriculum is one of the most important achievements of the project to develop kindergarten education in Jordan. The curriculum was developed by a national team specialized in kindergartens, under the supervision of the National Commission for the Development of Kindergarten Education. All public kindergartens in Jordan were provided with the curriculum and Experimental starting from the second semester 2003/2004 (Hawamda and Al- Edwan, 2009). The psychological bases are related to the target learner and the characteristics of the learner. These foundations form sources of the program's objectives, the selection of its contents, the selection of its methods and activities. Also, the curriculum should take into account children's abilities, attitudes, aptitudes, psychological needs and stages of development (Batayneh, 2004).
Whatever the aims of the educational process, the learner first and foremost is an element of society that lives a current life in which there are many fields in which it is required to engage in it, we can say that the creation of the knowledge society necessary for human development can only be achieved through the acquisition of knowledge, language and the mechanism of acquiring and disseminating scientific and technical knowledge. It is the incubator with its various degrees and creativity, it is the means of communication between members of the society and its various institutions, exchange information and ideas among them (Hawamda and Ashour, 2007).
Education is considered the arena of convergence of physiological and social, relationship with the community as a variable of the philosophy of education, which runs on its own. Education is sometimes subject to the leadership of its society, sometimes driving and leading the march and its development. There are those who see it as a social institution within other institutions that interact with each other, according to the laws of the distribution of social science (Ali, 2001). The foundations on which kindergartens in Jordan are based on are seeking to achieve the needs of the child, which is difficult for the family to achieve. Here, the child compensates what is deprived of him in his home environment, and to complement the role of the family in the upbringing of its children by transferring it to the world of young people and helping him to adapt properly, integrate development as well as inclusive and balanced growth, in addition to correcting socialization errors in which a family can be found by creating an environment free from the moral flaws of society (2008).
Previous studies
Momani (2010) conducted a study on the Analysis of the Interactive Kindergarten Curriculum in Jordan and its relevance to the abilities of children from an Islamic perspective. The sample of the study comprised of 165 children, the instrument of the study comprises analyzing the content of the interactive curriculum and a 25-point performance test. The results show that the curriculum is suitable for kindergarten children.
Momani (2007) study tested the effectiveness of a proposed training program in social development of pre-school children's skills. It consisted of three divisions comprising 69 children randomly distributed to three groups. The first experimental group received total training, the second experimental group received partial training, and the control group received training and education in normal circumstances. The researcher built a training program in social growth, and developed a measure of the beginning after the process of reliability and consistency. The results of the study showed that there were statistically significant differences in the skill of the pilot in favor of the experimental group compared to the children scores in the control group, and the absence of statistically significant differences due to the gender of the child or the interaction between sex and group.
Halloran (2003) conducted a study aimed at identifying the impact of the teaching of direct social skills in an educational attitude on social behavior, on improving problem solving skills, and on improving self-concept. The study sample consisted of 94 children with learning difficulties. The results of the study showed that there is a positive impact of training on social skills in improving problem solving skills and improving the self-concept of students with learning difficulties.
Sharaa (2006) conducted a study aimed at revealing the degree of representation of the Islamic education curriculum for the basic stage in Jordan for the social, cognitive, psychological and philosophical foundations of the curriculum, using a list of contents developed by the researcher. It was used as an analysis tool for the content of the book. The sample of the study consisted of the books of Islamic education for the basic stage of basic education in Jordan. The results of the study showed that the contents of the knowledge bases exceeded the contents of the other foundations (42%), psychological foundations (34%), then the social foundations (14%), and the philosophical foundations (9%). The study recommended the need to pay attention and focus on these foundations in the construction of curricula of Islamic education in Jordan.
Al-Batayneh (2004) conducted a study aimed at identifying the degree to which the Social Book considers the criteria of the social and national foundations of the curriculum at the secondary level in Jordan, and the development of the study unit in the light of those foundations. The researcher developed a questionnaire covering these principles. The results of the study showed that the degree of social sensitivity to the standards of social and national bases is high from the point of view of supervisors and teachers by a significant difference in favor of supervisors.
Shammari (2005) conducted a study aimed at identifying the degree of observance of geography book for the upper elementary stage of the psychological bases of the curriculum from the point of view of teachers and school principals in the province of Hafr al-Batin in Saudi Arabia, a randomized stratified sample was formed from (89) teachers and (57) students. The researcher developed a questionnaire of (50) paragraphs. The results showed that there are a number of psychological bases that should be considered in the geography curriculum, where there were differences of statistical significance to the degree of consideration of the psychological bases attributed to the variable status of the job.
Hawamdah (2006) conducted a study aimed at identifying the degree of representation of Arabic language books for the basic stage in Jordan for the psychological, philosophical, social and cognitive bases of the curriculum using the descriptive method. The study sample consisted of all the Arabic language books for the basic stage in Jordan. The results of the study showed that the highest frequency was the standards of knowledge based on the ninth grade book, and the researcher recommended the need to reconsider the criteria of social foundations.
Khuraisha (2009) conducted a study aimed at revealing the degree of representation of English language books in the seventh, sixth and fifth grades in Jordan to the social, cognitive, psychological and philosophical foundations of the curriculum. The study sample consisted of English language books for the seventh, sixth and fifth grades. The researcher used the method of content analysis and the researcher developed a list of the contents of these foundations distributed in different fields of foundations and conducted the truth and stability. The results of the study showed that the social bases obtained the highest frequencies followed by the cognitive bases, psychological foundations, and philosophical foundations, indicating that there is a clear lack of representation of the contents of these social and cognitive bases in the English language books for the mentioned stage. The researcher recommended the development of curricula in the Ministry of Education to take into account the social and cognitive foundations in the future.
Beni (2013) conducted a study aimed at identifying the effectiveness of the interactive national curriculum in providing kindergartens with social skills. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher used observation card as a tool for collecting data, the researcher used the quantitative approach in descriptive style and the quantitative approach in an abstract manner of preliminary designs. The observation card consisted of (68) paragraphs in its final form and was applied to the study sample consisting of 225 children, distributed to 100 children and 125 children, of the total study population. The results of the study showed that the social skills (as a whole) were included in the interactive national curriculum with a high arithmetic mean. The results also showed the strength of the interactive national curriculum, and the results showed that there is a difference in social skills according to the gender variable.
The researchers used analytical descriptive approach and analyzed its data. Furthermore, they describe the relationships among its components, the views expressed about it, the processes involved, and the effects they produce.
Study population
The population of the study consisted of all the kindergarten teachers in the education districts of the Central Badia Region, the sample reached 118 teachers during the second semester of the academic year (2017/2018), according to ministry statistics.
Study sample
The entire study population was selected for its small size. Table 1 shows the distribution of sample members according to the study variables.
Instrument of the study
After reading the theoretical literature and previous studies on the subject of study such as the study of Khuraisha (2009) and Bani (2013), a scale has been developed to identify the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan is subject to the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations, from the point of view of teachers in the light of some variables, where the questionnaire was formed from (38) paragraph and distributed over four areas (The field of knowledge bases, the field of social foundations, the field of psychological foundations, and the field of aesthetic foundations). The triangular Likert scale was used, as follows: high, medium and low to answer those paragraphs.
Validity of the instrument
The researchers designed the questionnaire in its initial form, and then presented it to a group of arbitrators (9) with the expertise and experience of faculty members in the departments of colleges of education in Jordanian universities. The arbitrators were asked to judge the quality of the content of the paragraphs, to express an opinion on the language and integrity of the paragraph, the appropriateness of the paragraph for the field under which it was included, and the linguistic accuracy, as well as any other views they may deem appropriate, whether by deletion, addition or integration. The arbitrators made many observations, as some of the paragraphs have been amended, with 88% of them in agreement.
Reliability of the instrument
To verify the reliability of the study instrument, the reliability coefficients were calculated in two ways: the first is the method of testing and retesting; it was applied to a survey sample from outside the study sample (25 teachers), by applying them twice and with a time interval between the first application and the second application of two weeks. Person Correlation Coefficients were calculated between the results of the two applications, the total correlation coefficient was 0.87. In the second method, the Cronbach Alpha method was used to identify the internal consistency of the paragraphs. The values of stability coefficients (0.91) of the instrument as a whole were acceptable values to
conduct such a study. Table 2 shows the values of the stability coefficients of the domains in the regression method, and the alpha-Cronbach method of internal consistency.
Correction of the study instrument
The three-step Likert scale of the approval scores was used as follows: high (3°), the average of two degrees, the low one degree, to assess the role of kindergartens in the development of health concepts among kindergartens from the view point of the teachers. The following statistical staging was used for the distribution of arithmetical averages, according to the following equation:
Therefore, the distribution of categories is as follows:
First: (1- Less than 1.67) low.
Second: (1.67 - less than 2.34) Moderate.
Third: (2.34-3) high.
Study variables
Independent variables include:
(i) Academic qualification: it has two levels (Bachelor and below, postgraduate studies).
(ii) Years of experience: it has three levels: (less than 5 years, 5-10 years, more than 10 years).
Variable dependent: The extent to which the interactive national
curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan is subject to the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations from the teachers' point of view.
The researcher presents the findings after collection of data, using the study tool and presented them according to the study questions. To answer the first hypothesis, the mean and standard deviations were calculated for the sample of the study on the areas, comprising the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan is subject to the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic principles, as shown in Table 3.
Table 3 shows that the field of social bases ranked first with an average of (2.71) and a standard deviation of (0.34) with a high rating, the field of knowledge bases came second with an average of (2.40) and a standard deviation of 0.19 and a high estimate. The field of psychological bases came last with an average of 1.87 and a standard deviation of (0.37) with a moderate rating. The arithmetic average of the sample estimates was based on the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan was observed of the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations as a whole (2.30), with a standard deviation (0.20) and with an average estimate.
This result is due to the fact that the interactive national curriculum still needs to be further reviewed and developed and to benefit from the global experience in building the curriculum for kindergartens, calculations and standard deviations were also calculated for the study sample on the areas of the extent of taking into account the national interactive curriculum scheduled for the State kindergartens in Jordan for the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations.
The first domain: The field of knowledge bases
Calculation averages and standard deviations were calculated for the sample of the study to the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan is subject to the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations of this area, as shown in Table 4.
Table 4 shows that item number (4), which provides an environment conducive to children's linguistic development", was ranked first with an average of (2.52) and a standard deviation of (0.55) with a high rating. Paragraph 10, which states "developing knowledge of modern technology", came second with an average of (2.50) and a standard deviation of 0.50 with high appreciation. Paragraph 6 stating "developing the child's creative aspects", ranked last with an average of 2.26 and a standard deviation of (0.50) with a moderate rating. The arithmetic average of the sample estimates for the subjects in this field has a whole (2.40) and standard deviation (0.19) with a high rating.
This result is due to the fact that the curriculum still focuses on certain aspects more than other aspects within the same grounds or one area, and here the activities must be applied by teachers and focus more on creative activities.
The second domain: The field of social foundations
The means and standard deviations of the sample estimates of the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan were based on the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations of this area were calculated as shown in Table 5. It is clear in Table 5 that item number (18), which states "developing the positive side in dealing with others", ranked first with an average of 2.82 and a standard deviation of 0.39 with high appreciation. Paragraph (16), which states "Helping children to learn about etiquette and dealing with others", ranked second with an average of 2.81 and a standard deviation of 0.51, with high appreciation, while paragraph (15) which states "develop the ability to dialogue and accept the other" ranked last with an average of 2.59 and a standard deviation of 0.63 with high estimate. This result is attributed to the fact that the national curriculum and its activities have given a large space for the development of the social aspect, that is they need more to focus on developing a culture of discussion and dialogue among children to become more skilled in this area.
The third domain: The field of psychological foundations
The statistical averages and standard deviations were calculated for the sample estimates of the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the state kindergartens in Jordan for the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic bases on the paragraphs of this field, as they are shown in Table 6.
It is clear in Table 6 that item number (28), which states "developing children's ability to control emotions", was ranked first with a mean (2.01) and a standard deviation (0.75) as well as a moderate rating, item (27), which states "provides activities satisfying the psychological needs of children" ranked second with a mean of (2.00) and a standard deviation of (0.83) and a moderate rating. Item (26) stipulates that "develop children with the ability to organize themselves", ranked last with a mean of (1.68) and a standard deviation of (0.77) and a moderate rating. The arithmetic average of the sample ratings for the subjects in this domain as a whole was (1.87) and a standard deviation (0.42) with a moderate rating. This result is due to the fact that the interactive national curriculum needs to be developed in the field of emotional activities and to focus on the concepts of self-control.
The fourth domain: The aesthetic foundations domain
The means and standard deviations of the sample ratings, regarding the extent to which the interactive national curriculum for the governmental kindergartens in Jordan take into account the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations of the items of this domain, as shown in Table 7.
It is clear from Table 7 that item number (38), which states that “develop the ability to choose beautiful dramas among children" came in the first ranked with a mean of (2.22) and a standard deviation of (0.80) and an average rating. Item (35) which states “develop the child's ability to conform to the rhythmic motor dynamics “came with the second rank with a mean of (2.21) and a standard deviation of (0.78) and moderate rating. Item (33), which states "developing the child's ability to enjoy his artistic achievements", came in the final level with arithmetical average (1.85) and a standard deviation of (0.83), as well as a moderate rating. The arithmetic average of the sample ratings was (2.13) and a standard deviation (0.53), with a moderate rating. This result is due to the fact that the child is interested in the aesthetic aspect, making his pleasure in the implementation of the activities of the curriculum. However, he needs to focus on developing his ability to touch the creativity and beauty in what he offers.
To answer the second hypothesis, the statistical averages and standard deviations of the sample ratings were calculated according to the extent to which the national interactive curriculum for the governmental kindergartens in Jordan take into consideration the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations, depending on the variance of the scientific qualification variable (Bachelor and below, and postgraduate studies), and years of experience variable (five years and less, five to ten years and ten years and more). Table 8 illustrates it further.
Table 8 shows that there are apparent differences between the averages of the students' scores on the total score of the scale and the extent to which the national interactive curriculum for the governmental kindergartens in Jordan take into consideration the social, cognitive, psychological and aesthetic foundations according to independent study variables (scientific qualification and years of experience). To detect these differences in arithmetic averages, the MANOVA analysis was used using the Wilk's Lambda test at the (α= 0.05) level. Table 9 shows the results of the Wilkes test for the principle and results of multivariate analysis. Table 9 shows:
(1) There are statistically significant differences at the level of (α=0.05) between the average estimates of the sample on the field of psychological foundations and the total score, according to the difference of the scientific qualification for the benefit of higher studies. This result is attributed to the fact that the high scientific qualification provides teachers with more knowledge and experiences than the rest of their colleagues, especially in the psychological domain.
(2) There are statistically significant differences at the level of (α=0.05) between the average estimates of the sample on all the extent of taking into account the national interactive curriculum scheduled for the governmental kindergartens in Jordan for the social, cognitive, psychological, aesthetic and total scores except for the domain of social foundations according to years of experience variable. To determine the source of these differences, Scheffe test was used.
It is clear in Table 10 that there are statistically significant differences between the average ratings of those with more than 10 years of experience on the one hand, and the average of those with less than 5 years of experience and 5-10 years of experience on the other hand,attributed to years of experience variable, in favor of the ratings of more than 10 years’ experience in all domains and the total score. The result shows that the more years of experience with the teacher have, the more he/she is able to evaluate the curriculum.
