본 연구는 유아교육기관의 교육환경을 알아봄으로써 지역사회 유아교육기관의 질적 발전을 위한 기초 자료를 제공하고자 하였다. 연구대상은 광주광역시 40개 공 · 사립 유치원 및 어린이집이며 유아교육 환경평정척도(ECERS)에 의하여 측정되었다. 관찰자나 교사에 의해서 측정한 결과 교육환경은 선행연구 결과보다 전반적으로 향상된 것으로 나타났으나 각 기관간에 통계적으로는 「개별적 보호에 관련된 일과」 영역 이외의 모든 영역에서 의미있는 차이가 나타나지 않았다. 면담을 통한 질적 분석을 통하여 하위 영역별 문제점과 질적 방안이 논의되었다.

The purposes of the current study are to carry out follow-up research on the educational environment of early childhood educational institutes following the framework of the 1988 study, and to provide a basic groundwork to improve the quality of the early childhood educational institutes of this region, Kwang-ju City. The data obtained from 40 institutes, public and private kindergartens and child care centers, which make up approximately 15% of all early childhood educational institutes. The Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS), with 37 items in seven sub-areas, was used as a major tool of examination. The educational institutes were analyzed by both outside observers and teachers. In addition, the researcher visited 20 institutes for qualitative analysis through interview. Both analyses show that the overall educational environment has improved since the previous study carried out 10 years ago. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the two studies in the area of "personal care routine" in the scale and in the evaluation of teachers. A qualitative study shows a low rate of satisfaction in both personal care routines and language reasoning experiences in public and private kindergartens. It also shows a low satisfaction rate in the item of adult needs.