Cypriot Pre-Service Kindergarten Teachers’ Beliefs and Intensions about the Importance of Teacher/Child Interactions

Although a host of research has explored the association between beliefs and practices, limited research has been conducted exploring the association between beliefs and intensions. The present study aimed to explore Cypriot pre-service kindergarten teachers’ self-reported beliefs and intensions about the importance of teacher/child interactions and the relationship between them. Interaction has been chosen to be the focus of the present study due to the fact that research results indicate that one of the most important indicators of the quality of early childhood education and care is sensitive and responsive caregiving. Research results indicated that participating pre-service kindergarten teachers favor sensitive and appropriate caregiving. Thus, beliefs have been found to predict the sample’s intensions.