engleski

THE CORRELATION OF DIFFERENT PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS IN EARLY EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS WITH THE LEVEL OF CHILDREN’S MOTOR ACHIEVEMENT DEVELOPMENT

The aim of the present research is to determine the correlation of different physical environments in an early education institution with the level of motor achievement development with children of an early age. The research encompassed two mixed nursery groups of a total of 34 children attending the City of Rijeka kindergartens. The quantitative variables were formed based on the Childfit tests intended for the measurement of early and preschool children’s motor achievement. The basic descriptive parameters were calculated, while to determine the statistical significance of differences between groups the independent sample Student’s t-test was used.The research results indicate that the physical environment which stimulates movement can significantly (p=0.00) influence the development of motor achievements in all biotic motor knowledge domains (mastering space, obstacles, resistance and object manipulation).The physical environment which stimulates movement is significantly correlated with the integral development of children’s motor achievements. Such an approach enables children to satisfy their need for movement, but also to enjoy in the learning process which in fact stimulates them to further construct and co-construct knowledge. It is normal for a child to seek movement as an unavoidable part of integrated learning, so it has to be constantly stimulated by the physical environment. Children thus live and learn by moving.

children, early age, physical environment, motor achievement

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