As the caregivers and educators of young children, kindergarten teachers often have to make spontaneous decisions and deal with challenging situations on a daily basis. The well-being of kindergarten teachers is of interest to parents, teacher trainers, and policymakers, as whether kindergarten teachers do well physically, psychologically, and occupationally has important implications for young children—the future pillars of society. Therefore, it is important to examine factors that may contribute to our understanding of the well-being of kindergarten teachers. This cross-sectional study examined whether mindfulness was linked to Chinese kindergarten teachers’ physical, psychological, and occupational well-being and tested self-compassion as a mediator. Online questionnaire data were collected from 336 kindergarten teachers working in Hong Kong, China (mean age = 31.6 years; 86% of them were women). Kindergarten teachers rated their physical well-being (indicated by physical health and voice disorder symptoms), psychological well-being (indicated by life satisfaction and depressive symptoms), and occupational well-being (indicated by job satisfaction and turnover intentions) as well as their mindfulness and self-compassion. Structural equational modeling revealed that mindfulness was associated with all three aspects of well-being and self-compassion mediated such associations. Theoretically, findings highlighted the multidimensional nature of kindergarten teachers’ well-being and the roles of intrapersonal factors—such as mindfulness and self-compassion—in understanding it. Practically, findings pointed to the potential utility of supporting kindergarten teachers’ well-being by targeting their mindfulness and self-compassion. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s).

Early childhood educators' (ECEs) well-being is important for many outcomes. Drawing on the job demands-resources model, many variable-centered studies have found that job demands, job resources, and personal resources are linked to ECEs' well-being. Yet, little is known about the heterogeneity of these demands and resources and their implications for well-being, especially considering school-level effects and the adoption of a holistic view of well-being. This study used multilevel latent profile analysis to examine these issues. Participants included 1198 Chinese ECEs from 50 kindergartens who reported their job demands (i.e., quantitative, cognitive, and emotional demands), job resources (i.e., influence at work, quality of leadership, support from supervisors and colleagues, and sense of community at work), and personal resources (i.e., self-control and resilience). At the teacher-level, four profiles emerged: (a) at risk, (b) undemanded, (c) safeguarded, and (d) vulnerable learners. ECEs with lower salaries, higher educational levels, and larger class sizes were more likely assigned to the at-risk profile. Teachers in the at-risk and the safeguarded profiles reported the worst and the best well-being, respectively. Demands (in particular quantitative and emotional demands) appeared more critical than resources in distinguishing well-being. At the school-level, two profiles emerged: (a) high demand climate and (b) mixed climate. Kindergartens in Hong Kong were more likely assigned to the high demand climate profile and kindergartens with a high demand climate showed poorer school average well-being. This study reveals the complex configuration of job demands, job resources, and personal resources in ECEs and its implications for well-being at both teacher- and school-levels. The findings also inform strategies to enhance ECEs' well-being. Copyright © 2024 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those

Within the early childhood context, kindergarten teachers encounter day-to-day ethical dilemmas. These relate to the multiple obligations and responsibilities that kindergarten teachers have when working with different stakeholders, such as children, families, colleagues, organizations, and policy makers (Dahlberg & Moss, 2005; Feeney & Freeman, 2007). Although codes of ethics for teaching profession have been developed and applied in the worldwide, understanding professional ethics of early childhood teachers has been an underdeveloped area of study in Hong Kong. Using the ethical codes from three counties as the base, this study attempts to explore and develop the principles of professional ethics for Hong Kong early childhood sector. Those principles are conceived as an essential part of the professional repertoire which helps teachers make judgment and choices of action in the real-life workplace (Campbell, 2000; Mahoney, 2008). However, those principles are not exhaustive nor applicable to every situation. This study reports the suggested principles of professional ethics which are built on reviewing the extant ethical codes from international and regional contexts and collecting qualitative data from the semi-structured interviews with a total of 13 pre-service and in-service teachers. Findings reveals that professional ethics among early childhood education can be conceptualized into five domains. The interview data also reflect that the dimensions and meanings of professional ethics are varied among pre-service and in-service teachers. This study contributes to articulate dialogues about the notions of professional value, moral reasoning, professional autonomy, and teacher identity. Findings of this study reaffirm the responsibilities and obligations of kindergarten teachers, and this could be seen as a source of insights into the ethical base of teacher professionalism in Hong Kong early childhood context. Copyright © 2023 ISA, International Sociological Association

In this conceptual paper, we propose a new three-pronged theoretical framework derived from Chinese philosophy: (1) Tian Shi (timing), (2) Di Li (context), and (3) Ren He (human capital). Specifically, we delineate the nature of Tian Shi, Di Li, Ren He required for the successful translation of top-down education policy into practice using Hong Kong as a case example. Applying this new conceptual framework, we conducted secondary data analysis of two cases examining the implementability of U.S.-originated and popular child-centered early childhood models by Hong Kong kindergarten teachers (serving children ages 3–6), with one case focusing on the Project Approach in one kindergarten, and the other on the HighScope Curriculum in another kindergarten. The findings revealed that Hong Kong had not yet attained favorable Tian Shi, Di Li, Ren He to render success in these kindergarten teachers’ adoption of imported early childhood approaches with fidelity due to incompatibility in sociocultural and educational realities as well as professional competence. Instead, the teachers’ implementation behaviors made a case for a hybrid model as a viable and potentially sustainable solution to reconcile these contextual incompatibilities by weaving local and global practices into a conflation. © 2022 Childhood Education International.

International kindergartens, which offer an immersive dual-language (English and Chinese) environment, are popular among middle-class families in Hong Kong. The international learning and teaching environment is cultivated primarily by developing a diverse workforce, in which Chinese-speaking (Putonghua and/or Cantonese) teachers with local training or from mainland China generally work with their English-speaking counterparts from overseas in the same classroom. Such heterogeneity has complicated the already challenging concept of collaborative teaching. This article presents a case study of the collaborative teaching practice in a trilingual international kindergarten which had been established for over 50 years. Through in-depth interviews, questionnaires, text messaging, document analysis, site visits, and observations, the study examined the collaborative teaching practices among international colleagues in the kindergarten. The findings revealed that collaboration among international colleagues was made successful by: (1) senior management and teachers sharing a common goal; (2) a dynamic whole-school supportive structure that embraced heterogeneity; and (3) the development of a shared culture of professional learning. The implications of these findings for management, practice, and research are discussed, including the need to foster a culture of collaboration, the importance of professional development, and the need for further research on collaborative teaching practices in diverse educational settings. Copyright © 2023 Springer.