Abstract:

Professional development is perceived as an integral part of the professional activity, determining quality of education (OECD, 2016). Data of scientific research and international pupil achievements reveal that one of very important factors is pedagogues’ professionalism, and it is recommended to more efficiently invest in teacher professional development (Lenaerts et al. 2018). This is particularly relevant to preschool education teachers, because high-quality early education and care are the basis for efficient and fair education system. (School Development…, 2017). Pedagogues’ professional development is especially emphasized in the European and Lithuanian education strategy and accompanying documents (Early childhood education, 2014; “Lietuva 2030”).

Considering today’s dynamics and requirements for children’s early education, independent learning for the pedagogue becomes one of the possibilities to reveal and implement personal powers and seek improvement in the professional field (Pendergast, Garvis, 2011). The teacher’s possibilities to learn independently should be related to his/ her need to constantly improve, experience satisfaction with personal and professional growth results and success (Dunst, Raab, 2010). The pedagogue is first and foremost an example as a personality for the learners; he/she makes educational influence by his/her personal qualities and activity. Therefore, it should be acknowledged that a very important part of the professional development process, which should be developed, is the diversity of the pedagogue’s competencies, acquired through the individual choice of personally meaningful and peculiar implementation of learning goals (Perels et al., 2010).

Therefore, there appears a need to reveal how Lithuanian preschool education pedagogues’ independent learning process, seeking professional development, manifests itself. Because most of the research in Lithuania is focused on general education teachers’ professional development, this research will supplement the missing link of preschool education. The conducted empirical research provides diagnostic information about the factual manifestation of Lithuanian preschool education pedagogues’ independent learning process, decoding strengths and weaknesses of this process as a professional development factor.

Therefore, it is important to rethink existing independent learning experiences and related professional development dimensions, which provides relevance to the analysis of manifestation of pre-school teachers’ independent learning process as the factor of professional development.

In order to investigate pre-school education pedagogues’ independent learning process in the aspect of striving for professional development, the analysis of Lithuanian and foreign authors’ scientific publications was carried out and a two-part complex study encompassing the qualitative research (interview) and quantitative research (questionnaire survey) was conducted.

Based on the results of the conducted research, it can be stated that although teachers theoretically understand the importance of independent learning, its meaning for professional development, the limits of personal responsibility, the necessity of purposefulness and systematicity, in practice, manifestation of professional development through independent learning is episodic, teachers have poor abilities of self-directed planning, organization and self-evaluation of their development process.

Keywords:

Independent Learning, Professional Development, Preschool Education.