Abstract

WOOD, Lesley  and  ESTERHUIZEN, Stef. Enhancing the well-being of early childhood education practitioners working in resource-constrained contexts. SAJCE [online]. 2024, vol.14, n.1, pp.1-8. ISSN 2223-7682.  http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajce.v14i1.1477.

BACKGROUND: The recent migration of early childhood care and education function brought with it many changes that affect the workplace well-being of practitioners and centre managers, yet little research has reported on the voices and experiences of those working on the ground AIM: To find out the current state of well-being of practitioners working in resource-constrained contexts to help us theorise how might they take action to improve it SETTING: Early childhood care and education centres in rural and township areas in six different provinces METHODS: The first author conducted 10 semi-structured focus group interviews with 80 practitioners recruited by collaborating researchers at various universities. All ethical protocols were adhered to. The focus groups were audio-taped, transcribed and thematically analysed independently by the two authors before reaching consensus RESULTS: Two themes were identified: (1) participants experienced negative emotions arising from both internal and systemic aspects that were affecting their well-being. (2) Several factors promoted the well-being of practitioners despite their difficult circumstances CONCLUSION: Based on the findings, it appears that close collaboration among practitioners within centres and, with other external stakeholders, was an important factor for enhanced well-being. Drawing from action learning theory, we suggest how practitioners can collaborate to sustain their well-being while addressing the challenges they face CONTRIBUTION: This collaborative action learning approach can be applied not only by ECCE centres, but to any organisation wishing to improve the well-being and practice of their members

Keywords : early childhood education; critical action learning; community of practice; community hubs; positive psychology; capability theory.

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