Background: Proxy ratings of young children’s curiosity has the potential to be useful for research in Sweden. One such proxy rating is the parent-rating Interest/Deprivation Young Children scale. This scale has previously only been validated in Dutch samples, where it differentiated curiosity dimensions of interest (joyful exploration) and deprivation (reduction of aversive feelings of not knowing).

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate internal and construct validity of the Swedish version of the Interest/Deprivation Young Children scale.

Method: A translation of the Interest/Deprivation Young Children scale was conducted and then administered to 266 parents in Sweden, who rated their children (4-6-years old) on 10 items, with 5 items each for subscales of interest and deprivation dimensions of epistemic curiosity. Responses were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis.

Results: Results indicate acceptable internal reliability for deprivation-curiosity items (𝛼 = 0.78) and for interest-curiosity items (𝛼 = 0.79). For the combined scale score alpha was found good (𝛼 = 0.84). However, confirmatory factor analysis failed to differentiate interest and deprivation dimensions of curiosity.

Conclusions: Item revisions are suggested which could be implemented for further investigations. Also, the possibility of using the I/D-YC total score as a more general measure of child curiosity is argued for. An open question is how other dimensions of curiosity might be more viable for proxy ratings of child curiosity.

Little is known if, and how, individual differences in curiosity propensity interact with different Early Childhood Education (ECE) methods. Drawing from previous psychology research, we developed the Epistemic Curiosity Propensity Model (ECPM), which posits that individual variability in curiosity propensity interacts with degrees of uncertainty in learning conditions in ways that differentially affect learning outcomes.  In a preliminary test of the model using data from a preschool classroom-based intervention study, we hypothesized that high curiosity propensity would positively moderate outcomes from an inquiry/discovery-based intervention, while low levels would positively interact with outcomes from a direct teaching intervention. Outcomes included measures of executive function (EF), language, socio-emotional skills, and early mathematical abilities. Parent-rated curiosity propensity was related to poorer EF outcomes in the direct instruction condition, but not in the inquiry-based condition. Also, parent-rated curiosity propensity had a predictive effect for EF outcomes and, at a trend level, for math outcomes. Given the high value placed on curiosity in ECE, and with regard to possible effects of curiosity on outcomes as shown in this study, we argue that the role of curiosity needs further investigation. Future directions are discussed in terms of research design, sample size, and measurement employing a combination of different methods to measure curiosity along with relevant outcome measures. 

Curiosity-driven learning is a cornerstone of Early Childhood Education and Care, yet structured accounts of how teachers can effectively support its development remain limited. This paper introduces the Scaffolding of Curiosity-Driven Learning (SCDL) framework, which integrates research on curiosity and scaffolding to offer a testable theory of change for how educators can foster curiosity-driven learning. The framework was developed through an iterative process based on a substantial literature review of the field of empirical and psychologically oriented curiosity research and the analysis of teacher-child interaction. The framework conceptualizes curiosity-driven learning as a process comprising distinct phases: attending to information gaps, seeking or anticipating information, and experiencing satisfaction.  In parallel it specifies how teachers scaffolding can support each phase. The proposed framework is employed as an analytical lens for examining teacher–child interactions, illustrating its potential to reveal in greater detail how scaffolding of curiosity-driven learning unfolds in naturalistic settings. While further empirical work is needed, the SCDL framework holds promise for advancing intervention design, research, teacher education and professional development focused on curiosity-driven learning. Hypotheses for future research are proposed. 

Nyfikenhet ges en central plats i förskolan och betraktas som en nyckel till lärande, särskilt inom pedagogik som tar sin utgångspunkt i barns utforskande. Samtidigt saknas teoretisk och empiriskt grundad kunskap om hur nyfikenhetsdrivet lärande kommer till uttryck och kan stöttas i förskoledidaktisk praktik. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur pedagoger stöttar nyfikenhet på kunskap inom ramen för Reggio Emilia-inspirerad utforskandepedagogik. Detta undersöks med hjälp av ett teoretiskt ramverk för stöttning av nyfikenhetsdrivet lärande där utgångspunkten är att nyfiket lärande kan förstås som en cykel där (1) informationsgap uppmärksammas av barnet, (2) barnet söker eller inväntar information och som (3) fullföljs när information som fyller informationsgapet erhållits. Analysen utgår från ramverket kombinerat med detaljerade multimodala interaktionsanalyser av videoinspelad interaktion från utforskande aktiviteter inom ramen för den förskoledidaktiska praktiken socioemotionellt materiellt lärande (SEMLA). Resultaten visar att stöttande av nyfikenhetsdrivet lärande utgörs av komplexa samspelsprocesser som kan brytas ner i termer av att vara riktade mot olika faser i nyfikenhetscykeln vilka underhåller nyfikenhetscykelns momentum och gör att barnet erhåller valid information. Resultaten visar vidare att det är av vikt för pedagoger att vara medvetna om barns förståelsehorisont när ambitionen är att sätta igång och stötta deras nyfikenhet i riktning mot ett specifikt lärande.

Curiosity has a central place within Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) and is considered valuable for learning, especially in pedagogies that take children’s explorative and discovery learning as a starting point. At the same time, there is a lack of empirical knowledge regarding how curiosity-driven learning emerges and is supported in ECEC. The aim of this study is to investigate how ECEC teachers scaffold curiosity-driven learning within Reggio Emilia inspired practices. This is achieved with a framework for curiosity-driven learning combined with detailed multimodal interactional analyses of video sequences taken from Socio-Emotional, Material Learning practices (SEMLA) in Sweden. The theoretical framework posits that the scaffolding of curiositydriven learning consists of scaffolding during the different stages of the child’s curiosity cycle that begins with (1) the child placing attention on an information gap, (2) the child seeks or awaits information, and which is concluded when (3) information is reached that satisfies the information gap. The results show that the scaffolding of curiosity-driven learning can be broken down in terms of support during the different stages of a curiosity cycle and that supporting the momentum of this process and enabling children to reach valid information is of importance. Moreover, the results indicate the need for teachers to be aware of children’s pre-existing knowledge when the aim is to initiate children’s curiosity.