| Effects of Experiences in Child-Care Centers on Communication Ability of Children from Multi-Cultural Families: The Moderating Effect of Mothers’ Korean Fluency |
| Yang Mi Lim1, Ju Hee Park2 |
1Department of Home Economics Education, Jeonju University
2Department of Child and Family Studies, Yonsei University |
| Corresponding Author:
Ju Hee Park ,Tel: +82-2-2123-3147, Fax: +82-2-363-8877, Email: juheepark@yonsei.ac.kr |
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Received: October 4, 2012; Revised: October 9, 2012 Accepted: November 3, 2012. |
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| ABSTRACT |
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This study aimed to investigate how mothers’ Korean fluency and children’s experiences in child-care centers influenced the communication ability of children from multi-cultural families. The subjects were 600 children from multi-cultural families who enrolled in child-care centers in Gyeonggi province, their mothers, and 350 teachers caring for these children. The data were collected by administrating a questionnaire and analyzed with descriptive statistics and hierarchical regressions. The results of this study were as follows. The mothers’ Korean fluency, number of years children had attended child-care centers, and language guidance provided by child-care centers for children from multi-cultural families all had positive effects on children’s general and oral communication ability. On the other hand, the number of years that the children had attended child-care centers had no significant effect on the children’s written communication ability, but the mothers’ Korean fluency and language guidance provided by child-care centers for children from multi-cultural families had positive effects on children’s written communication ability. Finally, the mothers’ Korean fluency moderated the effects of children’s child-care experiences on their communication ability. Specifically, the more fluent the mothers’ Korean, the stronger the effects of children’s childcare experiences on their communication ability. |
| Keywords:
communication ability of children from multi-cultural families, mothers’ Korean fluency, children’s experiences in child-care centers |
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