Early childhood education is a profession which requires the professional staff to spend considerable time in intense involvement with other people. The pressure from the demands this profession has can create a sense of physical and emotional exhaustion that often leads to burnout. Thus, previous research has linked perceptions of the work environment to burnout. Despite the fact that burnout was identified as a serious concern in the childcare profession over 20 years ago, limited research has been undertaken into the field of burnout in early childhood educators in Greece. The present study, employing the Maslach Burnout Inventory–Educators Survey and the Parents and Staff subscale of the Environment Rating Scale Self-assessment Readiness Checklist, aims to examine whether there is correlation between the levels of burnout reported by Greek early childhood educators and the level to which the setting meets their needs. Research data suggest that the subscales predict one another whereas only partial correlations were found among the “Emotional Exhaustion” and “Depersonalization” subscales and the ratings in the Parents and Staff subscale.

The study reported here examined Greek parents’ perceptions of barriers to men entering the early childhood education and care profession and their recommendations for recruiting more males into the field. Parents were asked to respond on a Likert scale to statements regarding males’ decision to enter the profession, possible benefits for male early childhood educators, and perceived societal attitudes towards male early childhood educators. The findings indicate that the participating parents were in favour of recruiting more males into the early childhood education and care profession but at the same time they recognize the difficulties men encounter when choosing to become early childhood educators. Recommendations for future research designs are formulated.

Technology plays a large role in the daily experiences of young children. Presently, technology is used both to support and enhance ‘educational’ activities and in the context of children’s play. The aim of the present study is to understand how much time teachers in early childhood centres across 8 countries implemented technology into their classrooms. Our data revealed major similarities across countries, with technology play being the least used type of play by teachers and indoor non-technology and outdoor play being the most frequently used forms of play across the 8 countries studied. Similarities were also found in early childhood teachers’ perceptions regarding the value of technology play, even though they do not use it extensively and despite different aspects of technology contribution being reported. The research further revealed differences in the time allocated to technology play the types of technology equipment and resources available to children in each country.

In choosing to become early years teachers, men are positioned in a context which is numerically dominated by women. Male early years teachers may feel they experience difficulties, being induced into a predominantly female culture. The present study intended to examine whether Greek male early childhood educators experience difficulties. More precisely it has a twofold aim: on the one hand to explore Greek male early childhood educators' perceptions of their chosen profession; on the other to explore how different social groups encountered the entry of those males into that profession. Concurrent with previous international research results, the present study suggests that there are males who love working with young children and are committed to early childhood education and thus, as in other countries, in Greece too male childcare workers experience difficulties and mistrust of their choice.