Investigation of the relation between preschool children's school readiness level and character strengths

The preschool period marks a critical time for children's academic and socio-emotional development, encapsulated by the terms "School Readiness" and "Character Strengths". Understanding and fostering these early childhood strengths are critical for effectively addressing possible educational needs. Despite recent expansions in Character Strengths literature, studies examining its correlation with school readiness in children are limited. This correlational study aimed to fill this gap by investigating the relationship between 208 preschoolers' (aged 60-69 months) demographic data, school readiness, and character strengths levels in Bodrum, Muğla, during the 2022-2023 academic year, using the convenience sampling method. Parents completed the Character Strengths Inventory-Early Childhood Form and a demographic questionnaire, while teachers assessed school readiness using the Developmental School Readiness Scale. Conducted Independent Samples t-Test revealed no significant gender differences in children's School Readiness (t206=-0,059, p=,953) or Character Strengths (t206=0,52, p=,604) levels. Similarly, Welch's analyses indicated no significant relationship between children's preschool education attendance periods (1 year, 2 years, 3+years) and their character strengths and school readiness. However, when investigated in the subscale level with Welch and Games Howell as Post-Hoc, it was found that the 3+ years group had significantly lower scores in the Creative Arts subscale in the School Readiness scale and Bravery and Zest subscales in the Character Strengths Scale than the 1 and 2 years conditions. Regression Analysis indicated that preschoolers' character strengths significantly predicted their school readiness (R=0,64, F(1,206)=142,82, p<,001, Adj=,40) The alignment of the results with the literature and their potential implications have been discussed in the thesis. It is crucial for future studies to conduct similar research with larger and more generalizable samples of preschool children from various cities. KEYWORDS: Preschool Period, School Readiness, Character Strengths