Learning to support self-regulation: empowering preschool teachers through understanding by design and blended learning

In this study, preschool teachers’ self-regulation knowledge and practices were improved through a professional development program. The program was crafted using the Understanding by Design framework to facilitate the transfer of learned concepts into the classroom. A blended learning approach with synchronous and asynchronous components was used to accommodate time and location constraints. The program covered executive functions, metacognition, emotion regulation, and motivation regulation in five modules. Program effectiveness was assessed using a nested mixed-method design. The study included 68 preschool teachers from 26 Turkish cities. Pre- and post-tests were used to collect quantitative data, while electronic survey forms and focus group interviews were used to collect qualitative data. The program significantly increased teachers’ use of metacognition and emotional-motivational regulation practices. Teachers’ belief in children’s control potential improved, resulting in significant shifts in their understanding and application of self-regulation.