Limited research has examined STEM education in early childhood, or addressed how STEM is integrated into the curriculum in the kindergarten level. Teachers‟ conceptions of STEM appear to differ from the pedagogical theory. They may be aware of the basic subject concepts, but they lack the effective teaching approaches required to integrate the subject concepts into playful learning processes. Thus, it is important to investigate how teachers can design STEM activities that involve digital toys, in addition to the subject concepts, pedagogical approaches, and factors that affect teachers‟ pedagogical designs. The aims of this study were to 1) investigate the different types of STEM activities in a kindergarten in Hong Kong; 2) understand the perspectives of school management teams and teachers on implementing STEM activities, and 3) provide recommendations for STEM activities appropriate to kindergartens. Copyright © 2019 The Author(s). All Rights Reserved.

The research reported here investigated the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) by 15 Hong Kong preservice early childhood teachers (PSTs) who had completed a course regarding the use of ICT in early childhood settings as they participated in their first-year teaching practicum. The study examined the preservice teachers use of ICT and their ability to integrate ICT into their teaching practices. The research took place in 7 preschool settings across the Hong Kong Special Administration Region (SAR). The results indicated that preservice teachers used ICT mostly in the context of a teacher-directed approach to learning. The contexts allowed for few child-directed activities and very few child-initiated activities. Similarly, when the preservice teachers incorporated learning activities that used ICT, they initiated and directed most of the activities. The findings from this study indicate that school factors, such as school-level curriculum, ICT infrastructure, and the mentor-teacher’s teaching philosophy exerted a powerful influence on the way that preservice teachers were able to use ICT in their teaching practicum.
[Copyright © 2017 National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators.]

This paper reports on the investigation of 15 pre-service teachers' information and communication technology (ICT) adoption during teaching practicums at seven preschool settings. Surveys, classroom observations, interviews, and teaching resources were analyzed to examine the extent to which technologies were applied. In addition to defining eight specific categories of ICT-related pedagogical strategies, this study provides evidence that pre-service teachers generally use ICT more for teacher-directed activity than for teacher-guided or children-initiated activities. Pre-service teachers working within preschools that allocated higher levels of teacher authority in the curriculum decision-making process and provided a rich ICT environment reported using ICT more often in classroom learning activities.
[Copyright © 2014 AACE]

It is important to promote the use of ICT, used in a broad sense, by teachers in the field of early childhood education. This paper discusses a case study of a pre-service kindergarten teacher in Hong Kong Institute of Education who enrolled on a course in Computer Applications in Early Childhood Education Curriculum in 2006. The research methodologies used were in-depth interview and content analysis. The case study aims to explore this pre-service student's conception of ICT and understanding of the strategies to integrate it into a one-day teaching plan. The research data showed that a range of technologies were used and identified the reasons for their use. It was found that the following factors influenced the student's decisions: experience of using technologies; beliefs about using technologies; the organizational environment; the acceptance of ICT use by kindergarten teachers; and the technical support and professional training available. The case study gave insights into the views of pre-service kindergarten teachers on preparing and implementing technologies in the classroom and should assist teacher educators to develop powerful training strategies for integrating ICT into early childhood education.