예비유아교사의 교육실습 경험 이야기

The stories of preservice early childhood teachers’ teaching practice: focusing on building relationships

본 연구에서는 유치원 교육실습 기간 동안 예비교사들이 작성한 저널과 면담자료를 중심으로 그들의 실습 경험과 그 의미를 탐색해보고자 하였다. 연구결과, 첫째, 예비교사들은 실습 과정에서 유아와의 관계형성 및 상호작용을 통해 다양한 정서적 경험을 하며 실습생으로서 자신의 정체성을 형성해 나가는 것으로 드러났다. 둘째, 예비교사들은 실습지도교사와의 관계가 실습과정 중의 어려움을 상쇄하거나 가중시키는 등 실습 성패에 중요한 영향을 미친다고 인식하고 있었다. 셋째, 실습생들은 교실 안에서 자신의 위치와 구체적인 역할을 스스로 정립하지 못해 혼란스러워하였고, 수업 중에는 스스로의 평가나 유아의 반응을 보며 좌절과 당황 등 부정적인 정서를 경험하는 것으로 드러났다. 본 연구결과를 토대로 예비유아교사가 실습과정을 통해서 직전교사교육으로써 의미 있는 경험을 할 수 있도록 교육실습과 예비교사 교육과정에서 지원할 수 있는 방안에 대해서 논의하였다.

This study aims to explore the preservice teachers’ experience and understanding of teaching practice based on journals and interviews. Participants were seven female senior students in a four-year college of education at Kyeonggi-do province. They were involved in four-week teaching practice and asked to fill out their journals more than 3 or 4 times a week. They also conducted individual and group interviews before and after teaching practice. The findings indicated as follows: first, preservice teachers developed meaningful relationships with children and explored their identity in their teaching practices. Second, they agreed that how they build relationships with teachers increased or decreased their difficulties during teaching practice. They also recognized that teachers must be educational experts who conduct planning and implementation of curriculum and effective interactions with children. Third, they were confused about their role in the classroom and experienced negative emotions such as fear and worries while considering self-evaluation and children’s reactions toward their teaching practice. In addition, they confronted difficulties when they were asked to deal with children’s problematic behaviors. Physical exhaustion through overworking resulted in their malfunction. The journal writings allowed them to reflect on their identities as early childhood teachers, their educational value, and their teaching methods. Through journaling, they reflected their own experiences in teaching practice and gained practice knowledge. This study has implications for improvement of the practical experience for early childhood teacher educators, cooperating teachers, and student teachers.