Laburpena
Background: Teachers/Caregivers in preschool centres are well recognized for their role in the care and education of growing children. The sociodemographic and other work related characteristics of these caregiver staffs have been shown in many literatures to exert influence on the quality of educational delivery and care they provide in the care centers. Such information which is useful to advise policy directions in other systems is however scarce in our local environment. This study was therefore set out to assess the sociodemographic and work related variables of preschool caregivers in Ibadan.
Methods: A descriptive cross sectional survey using mixed methods was used. Self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information from 362 teachers and 44 headmistresses (key-informants) also volunteered information. Three-stage sampling technique was used to enroll participants into the study. Interview questions included sociodemographic characteristics and other work-related profile of the caregiver staffs. Qualitative data were analyzed manually while the quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.
Result: Caregivers’ male: female ratio was 1: 9 and were aged between 18 and 60 years with a mean age of 35.2 ±8.9 years. About 56.0% were of the entry level career stage and most (68.0%) were married. The majority (96.7%) of the respondents had at least, a secondary school education, 36.0% of which had Early Child Care Education (ECCE) training. Caregiver: pupil ratio was 1: 10. Mean daily work hours was 8.2±1.2 hours/day and a total of 41hours/week. Monthly salary ranged between 15 and 35 thousand naira ($42 - $97) and increased with better education, job experience and specialized ECCE training (p<0.001). Twenty-one (47.7%) informants admitted to observing a regular health promotion programme in their facilities out of which 14(66.7%) of them claimed that the programmes had no oral health content.
Conclusion: The preschool teachers’ sociodemographic and work-related profile revealed less emphasis on the required specialized training and poor remuneration. Many centres did not observe a regular health promotion programme and a significant number of the few that observed it did not have oral health content.
Keywords: Preschool caregiver, Preschools, Socio-demographic characteristics, Oral health education
Résumé
Contexte: Les enseignants / personnes responsables de soin des centres préscolaires sont reconnus pour leur rôle dans les soins et l’éducation des enfants en croissance. Il a été démontré dans de nombreuses littératures que les caractéristiques socio- démographiques et autres caractéristiques liées au travail de ces personnels soignants ont une influence sur la qualité de l’enseignement dispensé et des soins qu’ils dispensent dans les centres de soins. De telles informations, utiles pour conseiller les orientations des politiques d’autres systèmes, sont toutefois rares dans notre environnement local. Cette étude visait donc à évaluer les variables sociodémographiques et liées au travail des personnes responsables des soins préscolaires à Ibadan.
Méthodes: Une enquête transversale descriptive utilisant des méthodes mixtes a été utilisée. Un questionnaire auto-administré a été utilisé pour obtenir des informations auprès de 362 enseignants et aussi 44 directrices (informatrices clés) donnaient l’information volontairement. Une technique d’échantillonnage en trois étapes a été utilisée pour inscrire les participants à l’étude. Les questions de l’entrevue comprenaient les caractéristiques sociodémographiques et autre profil professionnel des personnes responsables de soin. Les données qualitatives ont été analysées manuellement, tandis que les données quantitatives ont été analysées à l’aide de SPSS version 22.
Résultat: Le ratio hommes / femmes des responsables de soin était de 1: 9 et était âgé entre 18 et 60 ans avec un âge moyen de 35,2 ± 8,9 ans. Environ 56,0% étaient au stade de début de carrière et la plupart (68,0%) étaient mariés. La majorité (96,7%) des répondants avaient au moins une formation de niveau secondaire, dont 36,0% avaient suivi une formation en éducation de soin de la petite enfance (ESPE). Le ratio responsable de soin: élève était de 1: 10. La moyenne des heures de travail quotidiennes était de 8,2 ± 1,2 heures / jour et un total de 41 heures / semaine. Le salaire mensuel variait entre 15 000 et 35 000 Naira (42 à 97 dollars) et augmentait avec une meilleure éducation, une expérience de travail et une formation spécialisée en ESPE (p <0,001). Vingt-et-un (47,7%) informatrices admettaient à observer un programme régulier de promotion de santé dans leurs établissements, dont 14 (66,7%) ont déclaré que ces programmes n’avaient aucun contenu en matière de santé bucco-dentaire.
Conclusion: Leprofilsociodémographique et relatif au travaildes enseignants préscolaires a révélé une moindre importance accordée à la formation spécialisée requise et à une rémunération médiocre.De nombreuxcentres n’observaient pas deprogramme régulier de promotion de la santé et un nombre significatif des peu qui l’observaient n’avait aucun contenu relatif à la santé bucco-dentaire.
Mots clés: Responsable de soin préscolaire, Préscolaire, Caractéristiques sociodémographiques, Éducation en santé bucco-dentaire
Correspondence: Dr. Mary E. Osuh, Department of Periodontology and Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. E-mail: meosuh2@gmail.com; meosuh@yahoo.com.
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