The Effects of MMCI Course on Chinese Preschool Teachers’ Child-Centered Beliefs

In the context of China’s preschool education reform, child-centered education is widely advocated, yet adult-centered tendencies remain visible in daily practice. This study examined whether the Making the Most of Classroom Interactions (MMCI) program can enhance in-service kindergarten teachers’ child-centred beliefs. Using a quasi-experimental design, 48 teachers from Jinan were assigned to an MMCI group or a control group. The MMCI group completed a six-week, practice-integrated course with weekly training followed by immediate classroom application; implementation was monitored via weekly video uploads from both groups. Beliefs were measured pre- and post-intervention (higher scores = more adult-centred). The results of independent samples t-test indicated that there was no significant difference (p=.590>.05) in the post-test scores between two grous. ANCOVA controlling pre-test, education, and years of service likewise showed no group effect ( p=.587>.05), while baseline beliefs strongly predicted outcomes ( p< .001). These findings suggest that short-term MMCI, even when integrated with practice, may be insufficient to shift entrenched beliefs; future work should lengthen duration, localize MMCI via context-relevant case analysis and reflective discussion of key child-centred practices, and employ adequately powered multi-region randomized designs.