Measuring Psychosocial Outcomes in the Step by Step Program

Measuring Psychosocial Outcomes in the Step by Step Program: A Longitudinal Study in the Czech Republic

by Miluse Havlinova, PhD, CSc, Researcher, National Institute of Public Health, Prague, and E. Hejduk, N. Kozova, E. Sulcova, L. Tomasek and E. Weinholdova

Published in Educating Children for Democracy, Issue Number 6, Winter/Spring 2004

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III. The third assumption-- that children in Step by Step kindergartens would not differ from children in non-Step by Step kindergartens in school readiness-- was also confirmed. There was no difference between the two groups in the indicators used to diagnose their maturity for school attendance, which was examined upon their entrance to the first grade of primary school. As measured by the Kern’s Drawing Test, children in both groups were equally ready to meet the standard requirements of primary school at a level comparable to the rest of the population of children attending primary school in the Czech Republic. This finding refutes the objections of those who do not believe that the Step by Step Program sufficiently prepares children for mastering school requirements.

Conclusion

The results of this research show that the Step by Step Program succeeds in meeting its goals of promoting children’s emotional, intellectual, social, and personality development. The findings confirm that children in the Step by Step Program acquire a wide range of psychosocial skills related to the aims of the Step by Step Program. At the same time this does not weaken the acquisition of skills required by mainstream schools at the time of school entry. Furthermore, this research suggests that the child-centered educational methodology employed by the Step by Step Program facilitates normal child development in a non-stressful and secure setting. Key to this methodology is learning through play, cooperative work, thematic projects that build on children’s interests, and the opportunity for children to engage in self-selected activities in a stimulating environment. In light of these demonstrated beneficial effects, the Step by Step Program holds a promising position in the field of preschool education in the Czech Republic.

References

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Jirasek, J. (2003). Test skolni zralosti [Test of school readiness]. Brno: Psychodiagnostika.

Kozova, N. & Hejduk, E. (1997). Skala socialni prizpusobivosti ditete [Scale of child´s social adjustment]. Unpublished manuscript.

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This article was adapted from a manuscript prepared by Jana Kargerova and Vara Krejcova, based on the final report of the research project “A Longitudinal Study of the Impact of the Step by Step Educational Programme on the Development of Psychological and Social Competencies of Children in Participating Kindergartens (1997-2001).”