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The relevance of research. The changes taking place in society and culture affect the transformation of such a socio-cultural phenomenon as childhood. Obtaining current knowledge about childhood makes it possible to predict the features of the future society, the adult population of which will consist of modern children. Obtaining data on the similarities and differences of ideas about childhood in children and adults can allow us to build effective educational work with parents. This will help adults better understand children, change the educational and the pedagogical process in accordance with the needs, values, and problems of modern preschoolers. The article presents the results of a study of the peculiarities of ideas about childhood as a phenomenon in older preschool children and parents of older preschoolers and designing on this basis of an educational program for parents.

Organization of the study. The aim of the study was to develop methods and conduct a comparative analysis of children’s and parents’ ideas about childhood and to develop a program of educational activities taking into account the identified features. Diagnostic research tools included modifications of "soft" methods (S.N. Mayorova-Shcheglova): the sociographic method (drawing on a given topic "Children and their childhood", analysis of the depicted event) the collision method (analysis of the verbally presented situation) and the comic book method (inventing the child's replicas of the hero in the presented situations). In addition, an auxiliary method was used – a conversation – for the interpretation of children's drawings and a modified projective technique "Ladder".

Research results. As a result of the study, comparative data were obtained on the specifics of ideas of different generations about the phenomenon of childhood, the peculiarities of the understanding of childhood by modern children and modern parents were identified, on this basis a program of educational activities for parents was developed and tested. The program of educational activities: is focused on the development of parental competence as an integrative ability to solve the problems of development and upbringing of children, which involves the implementation of comprehensive educational work, including stimulating motivation, position formation, enrichment of ideas and the formation of practical skills; involves the organization of a system of individual support of parents, a variety of forms of work, the development of parental reflection, stimulating independence and awareness through keeping a personal diary; practice-oriented, illustrated with a large number of examples and cases from real practice; involves updating the existing experience of parents, helps everyone see points of their own growth.

Conclusions. The program of educational activities was designed on the basis of the data obtained on the specific ideas about the phenomenon of childhood of older preschoolers and parents and is focused on the problems of raising a child in a family that are relevant for modern parents and children.

The relevance of research. The article broadly discusses the issue of education of parents (legal representatives) of children of early and preschool age. The problem of parental education has been relevant for more than a century. During this period, it has been transformed from a simple transmission of information and the elimination of parental illiteracy in matters of health, development, and upbringing of children to an activity that is one of the measures of state support for parents, a way to form a generation of conscious and competent parents.

Organization of the study. The purpose of the study was to develop the content side of the education of parents (legal representatives) of children attending preschool educational organizations. The authors of the article propose to trace the dynamics of society’s approaches to educating parents, reveal the key features of the phenomenon of modern parenthood. Modern parents, living in the age of wide access to information, continue to experience difficulties in family education. However, their needs are no longer connected with information, but with help in a critical analysis of information, selection of the one that will help their educational practice, formation competent and effective parenting skills.

Research results. The implementation of the tasks of psychological and pedagogical support and assistance in the development of competent parenthood is facilitated by the educational activities of teachers of preschool educational organizations. The article contains a brief description of the developed Education Program for parents (legal representatives) of preschool children attending preschool educational organizations. The program was developed by the Laboratory of Preschool Education of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution Institute of Developmental Physiology of the Russian Academy of Education by order of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation as part of the development of state support measures in terms of the preparation and implementation of educational programs for parents of children attending preschool educational organizations (in pursuance of paragraph 3 of the list of instructions of the President of the Russian Federation dated June 14, 2022 No. Pr-1049GS following the meeting of the Presidium of the State Council of the Russian Federation on May 25, 2022).

Conclusions. The Education Program for parents (legal representatives) of preschool children attending preschool educational organizations contains content that can serve as a guide for preschool teachers in educational activities.

Relevance and purpose of the study. Studying the impact of digital technologies on the development of preschool children is one of the topical areas of modern psychology. Digital devices become part of the microenvironment of a child’s development from the first years of their life. However, their impact on a preschooler, is associated, on the one hand, with the discovery of new opportunities, and, on the other hand, with the emergence of risks and difficulties, is a great challenge for parents, teachers, and psychologists. In this regard, the study was aimed at identifying the features of the use of digital devices (tablet / computer) as components of the family educational microenvironment and studying their influence on the intellectual development of older preschoolers.

Sample consisted of 200 preschoolers aged 6-7 years, their parents (mainly mothers) from Moscow city.

Methods. Methods of express diagnostics of intellectual abilities /MEDIS, (E.I.Scheblanova, I.S.Averina, E.N.Zadorina); expert evaluation of intellectual and creative activity, creative thinking of preschoolers in a specially designed game lesson; the survey of the parents about the use of a tablet / computer at home for the development of a child (frequency, time, programs / games); and methods of qualitative and quantitative analysis (statistical package SPSS Statistics 22).

Results. It was revealed that in the families of the majority of preschoolers (96%) digital devices (tablet / computer) are used for their development, but the intensity (time) of use was different: 20-30 minutes for almost half of the older preschoolers, and 30-60 minutes for a little fewer children; but for individual preschoolers, the time exceeded one hour. The analysis of the number of children’s interactions with digital devices (as part of the family educational environment) during the week showed that a significant part of the children were divided into two approximately equal groups (about 40% in each): the frequency of using a tablet / computer in the first group was 1-2 times a week, in the second – 3-4 times a week. There were significantly fewer preschoolers who used a tablet/computer 5-7 times a week – about a fifth. Among the computer programs / games used at home for the development of older preschoolers, those that develop logical thinking turned out to be the most in demand: three quarters of children use them. Approximately half of the children learn programs/games that develop memory, counting and reading skills. The comparison of the children’s intellectual indicators, taking into account the frequency of using a digital device, showed that preschoolers who spend at a tablet/computer 1-2 times a week have a higher level of the development of intellectual abilities than their peers who use this digital device more often.

Conclusion. The peculiarities of the use of a tablet/computer by preschoolers as a component of the family educational microenvironment may determine the variability of the indicators of children’s intellectual development. These features must be taken into account when developing recommendations for parents on the digitalization of the family microenvironment.

Relevance of the article. Modern research confirms a decrease in the age of use of digital devices. By the older preschool age, most children have been using digital devices for several years. The involvement of preschoolers in the media space, the peculiarities of parental mediation of the use of digital devices by children make it necessary to work on the formation of digital competence of preschool children.

Description of the research progress. The article is based on a review of publications from Europe, Australia, America, Japan, Turkey and Indonesia from 2006 to 2021 and empirical data from a study of the features of digital competence of older preschool children conducted and published by the authors in 2021.

The results of the study. Older preschool children are active users of various digital devices, have a good command of the technical skills of using digital devices, but do not have formed ideas about their safe and effective use in everyday life. The main purpose of children’s interaction with digital devices is entertainment. Children can get the experience of using digital devices for their own education and development, which is necessary for the formation of digital competence, in preschool educational organizations. However, at the moment there are no relevant programs available to a wide range of teachers. Digital competence is considered as a person’s willingness to effectively and safely apply digital technologies in various areas of life. Within the framework of the proposed structure and content of digital competence for older preschool children, a description of the program for its formation is presented, an example of a lesson is given.

Conclusion. The concept of digital competence can be applied to the study of issues related to the interaction of older preschool children with the digital environment. The presented results and materials will help teachers in developing strategies for teaching preschoolers safe interaction with the digital environment.

The relevance of the topic of the article. Modern parents of preschoolers are active participants in the educational process. Their satisfaction is an important criterion for assessing the quality of education. Studying their opinion is an effective tool for systematic improving the quality of preschool educational institutions.

The aim of the study. Identification and description of the reasons for the dissatisfaction of parents of Moscow preschool institutions. Methodology: thematic semi-structured interviews.

Description of the research progress. The sample consisted of 20 mothers of children aged 3 to 7 attending kindergartens of various types and forms of institutions in Moscow. Parents were asked to tell about the choice of kindergarten, subject-spatial environment, daily routine, supervision and care of children, interaction between teachers, children and parents, types of activity, development of speech, thinking and educational program. The spontaneously mentioned causes of dissatisfaction were thoroughly investigated. The thematic framework for the questions was the ECERS international scale and works devoted to identifying the correlation of parental involvement and their level of satisfaction.

Research results. Among the main groups of reasons for dissatisfaction with preschool educational institutions, “interaction” is leading by a wide margin, implying the quality of interaction between children, educators, administration, and parents. It is the reasons for the “interaction” group that become the critical point for transferring children to another preschool. Among the main complaints are: the individuality of the child is not taken into account; tough discipline; strict, rude, unprofessional educators; the authoritarian position of the head towards parents; poor quality of feedback; relationships with peers. The group “types of children’s activity” has the potential to become as significant as “interaction”: when choosing a kindergarten, parents pay attention to the presence and variety of circles, in the private sector they are ready to take their child further for the sake of quality classes. Parents are rather satisfied with supervision, care, compliance with the temperature regime, the subject-spatial environment. The group “development of speech and literacy” stands apart: parents do not mention this topic. They are either poorly informed about the kindergarten program, or consider this aspect unimportant.

Conclusion. Satisfaction of parents as active participants in educational process is one of the important criteria for assessing the quality of preschool education, and dissatisfaction is a marker for the necessary improvements. If the administration and teachers, when assessing the quality, evaluate the group and the kindergarten as a whole, that the comfort and emotional well-being of their own child is important to parents. This means that the individual approach and personal development are at the forefront. The main attention should be paid to the quality of interaction between children, parents and the kindergarten staff and to the quality and variety of types of children’s activity. These studies of the causes of parental dissatisfaction can be useful for heads of preschool educational institutions of various forms of ownership to improve the quality of services provided and develop a marketing strategy.

The article discusses the results of the study of the emotional well-being of 6-7 years old children of kindergartens in Moscow. The data were obtained through a questionnaire survey of children and their parents using the supplemented Children’s Barometer methodology, consisting of 22 questions for a child and 8 questions for a parent. The study was attended by 151 parent-child couples; children from 15 groups of 5 different preschools. Emotional well-being is based on satisfying the needs of the child, both basic and essential for the age at hand, and essential for personal development including personal relevance, recognition in the group, autonomy and initiative. It was important for us to hear the “voice of the child”, attitude towards kindergarten, what makes child happy and discomforting. It was found that children of 6-7 years old can express their opinion and attitude to what is happening in kindergarten. Organized forms of activity are less interesting for children than free activity; there are discrepancies between children’s and adults’ assessment of issues important for the child; children remember conflicts in kindergarten and it is important for them how the teacher resolves the children’s conflict. The educational environment and style of interaction between adults and children in groups implementing different pedagogical systems influences children’s attitude towards kindergarten, which was shown in significant statistical differences.

This article analyzes the development of public and government requirements to definition of duration of work of kindergartens for all period of existence of system of early childhood education in Russia. The results of the monitoring of the attitude of preschool teachers to the introduction of “family schedules” in modern kindergartens, reflecting the advantages and risks of innovation associated with meeting the needs of families in the baby-sitting, as well as the successful solution of educational problems by the joint efforts of the family and kindergarten are presented. The article describes the possibilities of the current regulatory framework for creation of variable working hours of early childhood educational organizations.

The purpose of the study is to determine the reasons and nature of changes in the operation of early childhood institutions in a historical retrospective. The research was based on the experience of the first Russian kindergartens, legal framework defining the work of early childhood institutions during the XX century and at the present stage of development of early childhood education, the results of the survey of 3415 teachers of preschool groups of 22 regions of the Russian Federation, and review of the studies related to the problem under study. The results of the retrospective analysis of the reasons for the change in the duration of work of Russian early childhood institutions during the whole period of their existence, have been presented. It has been revealed that the work regime was determined by the goals of the kindergarten to ensure the full development and upbringing of the child in different historical periods and reflected the leading trends in the country’s social and economic development and the State’s desire to involve women in active social and productive life. This ensured the normative approval of the variation in the work schedules of kindergartens (pre-school groups) depending on the location, needs and demands of families, which is a distinctive feature of modern public early childhood education. Based on the results of the monitoring of teachers’ opinions on the increase in the time of stay of children in kindergarten, possible risks associated with the reduction of the time of communication between parents and children were identified. Today some parents tend to increase the working hours of the kindergarten as they are not ready to communicate with the child, because of their own parent’s failure. The desire of parents to “build up” the schedule of work of the kindergarten, to correlate it with personal needs is often associated with a lack of understanding of the essence of educational work. Tendencies of interaction of teachers with families in order to draw attention of parents to the importance of dialogue with the child have been defined.

This article analyzes the attitude of respondents to the profession of Early Childhood Education Teacher. Respondents were preschool teachers (n = 203) and parents of preschoolers (n = 706). The basis for the empirical study was the Kazan Center for Social and Humanitarian Education, which is being implemented within the framework of the experimental site of FEDI RANEPA. The study was conducted over September and October 2018. A questionnaire method was used to collect information. The research has shown that to be recognized as a professional, significant for the progressive development of society, the early childhood education teacher fulfills his/her social order, but is assessed by public opinion as a person who does not have the opportunity to rise to a high level in the social hierarchy. Despite the fact that the respondents, i.e. the teachers of early childhood educational institutions belong to the low-income strata of the Russian society and the absence of a high socio-economic status, their ideas about their profession are generally positive. The authors suggest that the positive interpretation of the external assessment of their profession by the respondents is a mechanism for conscious increase of professionalism. An early childhood education teacher is a creative profession and a positive self-esteem of the prestige of the work in the field of early childhood education work can be linked to the processes of self-actualization and self-realization. On the other hand, overestimated perceptions of the prestige of the profession help early childhood education teachers to form their symbolic capital.

Responding parents demonstrate trust in public early childhood educational institutions, which is defined by paternalistic orientation of parents in relations with teachers and administration of preschool educational institution and is interpreted by the authors as loyalty of respondents to government. The authors note that the prestige of the profession of an early childhood education teacher has different meanings for its bearers, for those who use educational services, and for society as a whole.

Introduction. The paper examines the necessity of public urban playgrounds for children. Psychological and pedagogical studies reveal that the quantity and quality of outdoor play areas do not cover the needs of children. The authors monitored playgrounds in different areas of Moscow, Russia in order to explore the actual situation in the urban space from the perspective of well balanced development and spontaneous outdoor learning of children of different ages. They looked into how existing public playgrounds covered the needs of children, and if the outdoor learning was possible.

Methods. The study had two stages. The data was collected by structured non-participant observation with interview elements in which 24 public playgrounds in Moscow were involved, 417 adults were interviewed. The authors carried out an analysis of the equipment of playgrounds, and children activities to determine whether and how far playgrounds were used for communication in mixed age groups.

Analysis and Results. The authors analyzed characteristics of playgrounds, including: location, observation time, age and number of visitors, equipment and its arrangement, presented play areas and infrastructure, surface materials, individual and group activities of children and adults. The observation discovered that children of three different ages (early, preschool and school age) were using public playgrounds at the same time. The vast majority of the playgrounds near apartment blocks (76.9%) and almost a half of the playgrounds in parks (45.5%) had separated play areas for children of different ages, which largely meets the needs of parents. The qualitative analysis revealed that the equipment of the park playgrounds was more diverse, while almost a half of the playgrounds near apartment blocks (53.8%) showed one and the same type of equipment. The authors emphasize that, both playgrounds near apartment blocks and playgrounds in parks, were more focused on active exercises; most components of the equipment were of the same type and had closed character. The authors discovered lack of equipment for experimenting. The infrastructure of the playgrounds of both types showed that the playgrounds were considered as a space for children only, the interests and needs of adults coming with children were not taken into account.

Conclusion. The study indicates the need to create additional conditions for supporting and developing of children’s game, and increasing educational capacity of playgrounds. Among the measures proposed by the authors is increasing the educational capacity of playgrounds, and creating a citywide digital resource with a map and description of psychological and pedagogical characteristics of outdoor areas for children. An important role is given to educational work with families, that will increase the parental competence and responsibility in the field of educational structuring and outdoor learning.

The problem of communication between teachers and parents in research, law and practice. The problem of the relationship between education and family is shown. The involvement of parents has a positive impact on the results of child, the quality of education, the intensity of the parent-child relationship and makes children feel comfortable. However, interference in the life of the educational institution can create tension, have an association with mistrust, train lack of independence in a child, and put pressure on the educational process. The basis of the solution and building of friendly, effective communication must be a clear vision about what is the same and what is different in the opinions of teachers and parents, and which features of communication assure greater satisfaction from the relationship. The aim of this study is to research the preferable forms of the involvement of parents in the life of the educational institution and the conditions of satisfaction from communication with each other.

Methods of the research and sample. The parents and teachers of preschools in Tula and Moscow took part in this research, were asked to fill out the questionnaires in paper and in an electronic form. The questionnaires contain questions about the preferable forms of a parent’s engagement in the life of the preschool and the level of satisfaction from the relationship between parents and teachers.

Forms of parental involvement in the life of the kindergarten preferred by teachers and parents. It is shown that the perspectives of teachers and parents are largely similar: “live” communication is more preferable than remote, the traditional forms of involvement of the families in the life of the preschool like festivals and group meetings are popular. The work in a parent committee and the participation in the evaluation of the quality of education are unpopular. Some divergences in the perspectives of parents and teachers are revealed: the former prefer to involve parents as assistance or as a passive spectator, while the latter tend to prefer active forms of participation.

The satisfaction of teachers and parents from communication with each other. The satisfaction of teachers from the relationship is first of all related to the participation of parents in the design of the kindergarten. Teachers, who prefer financial support of parents are less satisfied from the relationship. Parents’ satisfaction is related to, in what degree their opinion is accepted in the process of communication with the teacher. Both parents and teachers consider themselves the initiators of the communication.

Background. Modern parents form the public opinion about a preschool educational organization and about each preschool teacher. However, very often the influence of parents on the reputation of a kindergarten is underestimated, which leads to unfavorable consequences for the kindergarten. In this regard, it is extremely important to know how preschool teachers look like to parents, the requirements and requests of parents in order to maintain the competitiveness of the kindergarten.

Objectives. The aim of the study is to identify current problems in the interaction between parents and preschool teachers, to analyze the attitude of modern parents towards preschool teachers, and to develop recommendations for optimizing cooperation between participants in the educational process.

Sample. The study involved 210 respondents — parents of different ages and genders from different regions of Russia, whose children attend preschool educational institutions aged from 2 months to 7 years.

Methods. The following methods are used in the study: a scientific and theoretical analysis of publications on the research problem, a questionnaire conducted with the help of an outsourcing company, generalization and systematization of the obtained data, content analysis of the content of parents’ statements about the professional activities of preschool teachers.

Results. 177 statements by parents about the professional activities of kindergarten teachers were analyzed according to the following parameters: attitude towards parents, attitude towards children, attitude towards professional development. Based on the parents’ opinions the current problems in the interaction between parents and preschool teachers were identified: lack or insufficient information for parents, lack or insufficient number of joint events for children-adult communities, inability of preschool teachers to interact with different categories of families. 144 statements of modern parents about their own attitude towards preschool teachers were also analyzed in the study. It was found that parents often have a biased attitude towards preschool teachers and make unreasonably high demands on preschool teachers.

Conclusions. The study allowed to identify the main problems in the interaction of parents and preschool teachers, positive trends in modern preschool education, and also to record the unfriendly attitude of modern parents to preschool teachers. The results obtained indicate the need for careful preparation of prospective preschool teachers for cooperation with parents.

Background. Currently, constant video surveillance of children in both private and public preschool institutions has become a normal, everyday phenomenon, and has a significant impact not only on the organization of the daily activities of teaching and support staff of preschool institutions, but also on the processes of socialization, education, and psycho-emotional development of children.

Objective. This article analyzes parental perception and attitudes towards constant video monitoring in private preschools. Additionally, its examines the impact of video monitoring on the daily work of preschool staff and raises questions about the potential long-term effects of constant video monitoring on the development of child’s personality.

Sample. The study involved 185 participants, including parents of preschoolers attending private preschools in Moscow and Tyumen, as well as preschool owners and employees.

Methods. The research used a questionnaire survey and an incomplete-sentence test specifically designed for this study, supplemented by clarifying questions when necessary.

Results. The study sheds light on parental motivation for supporting video monitoring. It also explores how constant video monitoring influences the work of teachers and the relationship between parents and private preschools.

Conclusions. The findings raise critical questions for further exploration: What are the long-term implications of constant video monitoring? Are there hidden negative aspects that parents and teachers should consider? How does the availability of new technological tools reshape relationships and communication between parents and children?