Objective: This study aims to explore ways to enhance child care quality by examining the motivations and needs of directors and teachers in child care services who participate in consulting. Methods: A total of 479 directors and 482 teachers from child care services completed an online questionnaire. The survey examined their motivations for participation, reasons for non-participation, and preferred types of consulting. Results: The primary motivator for participating in consulting to improve child care quality was the provision of substitute teachers during consulting, whereas the main deterrent was the excessive preparation of documentation. The most requested consulting topic was guidance on managing young children's problem behaviors. Directors preferred on-site consulting, while teachers favored online consulting. Both groups also prioritized follow-up consulting and building rapport with consultants. Conclusion/Implications: The study concludes that, to effectively improve child care quality through consulting, it is essential to continuously gather and incorporate the needs and opinions of child care service staff, ensuring the support provided is both timely and practical.

Objective: This study aims to analyze the challenges encountered by novice teachers in private kindergartens through big data analysis, with a focus on identifying key themes and emotional responses. The findings will serve as foundational data for designing future support programs tailored to their needs. Methods: Data were collected from blogs, news articles, and online communities between March 1, 2021, and February 29, 2024, and analyzed using the Textom tool. Keywords were extracted using the TF-IDF(Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency) method, and their relationships were examined through CONCOR(CONvergence of iterated CORrelation) analysis. Additionally, sentiment analysis was conducted to evaluate the emotional responses of novice teachers. Results: The keyword analysis highlighted terms such as "school," "education," "children," "teacher," and "support" as central to the challenges faced by novice teachers. Sentiment analysis revealed a predominance of negative emotions, suggesting high levels of stress and dissatisfaction among this group. Conclusion/Implications: The findings offer valuable insights for improving teacher education programs and informing policy measures to better support novice teachers in private kindergartens

Objective: This study aimed to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of a Cyclical Model of Empathy for childcare teachers. The program focused on enhancing empathy skills through the use of picture books, fostering a deeper understanding of oneself and others, and promoting desirable qualities essential for professional growth. Methods: The study involved 72 childcare teachers from 12 childcare centers in Gyeonggi Province, comprising nine public and three private institutions. The efficacy of the program was analyzed using SPSS Statistics 25.0. Results: This program demonstrated statistically significant improvements in childcare teachers' empathy, teaching efficacy, and resilience. Conclusion/Implications: The program developed in this study was validated as an effective tool for enhancing childcare teachers' empathy, teaching efficacy, and resilience. This study is significant as it provides a foundational reference for character education methods for childcare teachers and demonstrates the program's practical applicability in real-world settings.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to explore ways to improve the operation of public indoor play spaces by analyzing the current operating conditions and challenges of public indoor play spaces for infants and young children. Methods: Individual interviews were conducted with a total of 12 employees working at the Seoul-type kids cafe, a public play area established by the Seoul metropolitan government, and the Seoul joint daycare center. Results: First, public indoor play spaces have various operational forms depending on the operating entity and type, and were operated as spaces that pursued the educational value of safe and diverse play for infants and toddlers. Second, administrative, financial and user difficulties emerged in operating public indoor play areas. Conclusion/Implications: This study suggests the importance of play environment and facility management according to the type of operation of public indoor play spaces for infants and toddlers, and the need to strengthen the expertise of fair operation regulations and management systems.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the factors contributing to early resignation among early-career childcare center teachers from the MZ generation. The objective is to identify strategies to improve their working conditions, increase their tenure, and foster greater professionalism and job satisfaction. Methods: In-depth interviews were conducted with three early-career childcare center teachers from the MZ generation, each with less than three years of work experience. The interview date were categorized and systematically analyzed. Results: Early-career childcare center teachers from the MZ generation were prone to resigning due to the abundance of reemployment opportunities. Contributing factors included a perceived lack of professional growth and insufficient respect from directors, colleagues, and parents. Additionally, heavy workloads coupled with inadequate support from daycare centers and the Ministry of Health and Welfare further exacerbated the issue, resulting in short-term tenures. Conclusion/Implications: Early-career childcare educators from the MZ generation prioritize work-life balance but face challenges due to excessive workload. Key factors contributing to resignation include a lack of recognition for their qualifications, limited opportunities to create meaningful change, and communication difficulties with senior educators. Policy improvements are essential to enhance retention rates and improve the overall quality of childcare services.

Objective: The study aimed to investigate the mediating role of young children's executive functions in the relationship between mothers' parenting behaviors and children's social development. Methods: The study involved 222 mothers with children attending childcare center in Gyeonggi-do. Regression analysis was conducted to examine the relationships, and the statistical significance of the mediating variables was verified. Data were analyzed using SPSS 23 and PROCESS MODEL 4. Results: Mothers' warm-encouraging and limit-setting parenting behaviors were positively correlated with young children's executive function and sociality. In contrast, overprotective-permissive and rejection-neglect parenting behaviors were negatively correlated with both executive functions and sociality. Additionally, young children's executive functions were positively correlated with their sociality. Furthermore, young children's executive functions mediated the relationship between mothers' parenting behaviors and their sociality. Conclusion/Implications: Providing educational programs that support mothers in adopting positive parenting practices and enhancing their children's executive functions can significantly contribute to the improvement of children's sociality.

Objective: This study examines the relationship between early childhood teachers' mathematics teaching efficacy, their constructive beliefs, and mathematical interaction. Additionally, it explores whether mathematical interaction mediates the relationship between constructive beliefs and mathematics teachingefficacy. Methods: A survey was conducted with early childhood teachers working in daycare centers and kindergartens, yielding 260 valid responses. Data were analyzed using partial correlation analysis with IBM SPSS Statistics 25. Mediation effect were verified through regression analysis based on the Baron and Kenny(1986) method and further confirmed using the Sobel Test. Results: First, early childhood teachers' mathematics was found to have a significant direct relationship with both constructive beliefs and mathematical interaction. Second, mathematical interaction was shown to partially mediated the relationship between constructivist beliefs and mathematics teaching efficacy. Conclusion/Implications: This study highlights the importance of constructivist beliefs in enhancing early childhood teachers' mathematics teaching efficacy. Additionally, mathematical interactions play a significant mediating role in the relationship between constructivist beliefs and mathematics teaching efficacy.

Objective: This study aims to examine the mediating and moderating effects of positive psychological capital and social support on the relationship between academic stress and happiness among Chinese pre-service early childhood teachers. Methods: A total of 453 Chinese preschool teachers participated in this study. Descriptive statistics and correlation analyses were conducted using SPSS 28.0. Mediation and moderation models were tested using Models 4 and 1 of the PROCESS macro version 3.5. Results: The mediating effect of positive psychological capital and the moderating effect of social support were found to be significant among Chinese preschool teachers. Specifically, high levels of social support moderated the relationship between academic stress and happiness, while positive psychological capital mediated this relationship. Conclusion/Implications: It is recommended to focus on enhancing students' positive psychological capital and providing high-quality social support to prevent a sustained decline in happiness. Additionally, long-term initiatives aimed at strengthening students' psychological capital and building a strong social support network should be developed and implemented.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the overall trends and effects of music-related physical activity programs on the physical motor skills and playfulness of infants. Methods: To achieve the purpose of the study, 64 infants and toddlers aged 1(33) and 2(31) from 6 daycare centers in Gyeonggi-do were selected. The participants were divided into an experimental group(29) and a control group (35). The experimental group participated in a 12-session program conducted over 60 days, with 15-minute sessions held for 5 consecutive days, excluding weekends and holidays. The study evaluated the participants before and after the program using a physical motor skills test and the infant playability scale. Data were analyzed using SPSS 30.0, with an independent sample t-test performed to compare pre-test scores and ANCOVA used to verify the program's effects. Results: The study found that the program participation group showed significantly greater improvements in physical motor skills and playfulness compared to the control group. Conclusion/Implications: Based on the music-related program verified in this study, it is recommended to distribute programs that can be applied in educational settings. Additionally, the study suggests the importance of developing joint education initiatives that can link infants through various stages of early childhood.

Objective: This study investigated a prediction model of maternal parenting stress based on decision tree analysis. Key predictions were children"s age, gender, temperament, ADHD diagnosis, mother's employment status, and the quality of mother-teacher relationships. Methods: The participants consisted of 737 children aged three to five years and their mothers. Mothers completed assessments on children's temperament, parenting stress, and mother-teacher relationships. Teachers provides reports on children's ADHD symptoms using a ADHD scale. The data were analyzed using decision tree analysis. Results: Results reveled significant predictors of maternal parentign stress including children's behavioral inhibition, effortful control, ADHD and trusting, cooperative mother-teacher relationships and Children's behavioral inhibition and ADHD were identified as risk factors that increased parenting stress, while effortful control and trusting, and positive mother-teacher relationships served as protective factors reducing parenting stress. Conclusion/Implications: This study provides evidence that children's temperament traits, such as behavioral inhibition, effortful control, along with ADHD and positive mother-child relationships, are significant predictors of maternal parenting stress. Based on these findings, targeted intervention are recommended to develop parental support programs for mothers experiencing high levels of parenting stress.

Objective: This study explores the experiences of daycare center directors regarding parental involvement and analyzes the essential meaning of those experiences. Methods: To understand the meaning and nature of parental involvement as experienced by directors, six daycare center directors were interviewed, and Colaizzi’s (1978) phenomenological research method was used for analysis. Results: The findings on the meaning of parental involvement experiences are as follows: (1) some directors feel embarrassed by the changing pattern of parental involvement; (2) some experience a burden to quickly address and resolve parental involvement issues; (3) some strive to understand the nature and dynamics of parental involvement; and (4) some grow and coexist alongside parental involvement Conclusion/Implications: Through the experience of addressing parental involvement, directors enhanced their capabilities and implemented cooperative system to achieve the shared goal of fostering positive relationships between parents and daycare centers. This study is significant as it aims to identify constructive solutions for parental involvement and promote social consensus within childcare settings.