This paper presents the results of an action research conducted in a kindergarten in Sarajevo Canton. The participants were four female kindergarten educators who collaborated with two university professors who took the role of research leaders and moderators of reflective meetings. The action research was conceived as a model of professional development for preschool teachers in the Reggio pedagogy field, aiming to develop the skill of documenting pedagogical observation and the competence of implementing reflective practice (RP below the text) based on the Reggio principles. Data were collected on two levels: the educators documented their educational practice (photos, transcripts, videos, etc.), which was the basic material for analysis at collaborative reflective meetings, and all of it was documented by the research leaders. The data were analyzed simultaneously during the research (to decide on further action) and finally at the end of the research. The results of the research indicate that the action research raised awareness of the elements of traditional educational practice and developed the skills of pedagogical documentation management and the skill of implementing RP. Considering the limited time period for the realization of the research (14 months), significant but not optimal results were achieved, and there is still room for further progress in terms of improving the skills of keeping records and the capacity of RP implementation. It is necessary to systematically provide support for the professional development of educators through the development of reflective learning communities in kindergartens instead of the one-off and lecture-based forms that are offered.

Vođenje je važna odrednica kvalitetnog funkcioniranja i perspektive razvoja predškolske ustanove. Kvalitetno vođenje i funkcioniranje predškolske ustanove ne ovisi samo o jednoj osobi, nego o cijelom kolektivu. U radu su prikazani rezultati istraživanja mišljenja odgajatelja, ravnatelja i stručnih suradnika o utjecaju kvalitete odnosa na kulturu ustanove, raspodjeli prava i odgovornosti u njihovim ustanovama, načinu donošenja odluka, ulozi ravnatelja i značaju vođenja, potpore i uvažavanja mišljenja u postizanju kvalitetnijih suradničkih odnosa. U istraživanju je sudjelovalo 122 ispitanika iz devet predškolskih ustanova Zeničko-dobojskog kantona. Kao istraživački postupci primijenjeni su anketiranje, procjenjivanje i prosuđivanje, uz odgovarajuće instrumente (upitnici i skale stavova). Primijenjene metode u istraživanju su: metoda teorijske analize, deskriptivno-analitička i servey metoda. Rezultati su pokazali da kvalitetni odnosi uposlenika pozitivno utječu na kulturu predškolske ustanove te da većina ispitanika smatra da je za rad potrebno kvalitetno vođenje i potpora. Potvrđeno je da kvaliteta rada ustanove ovisi o spremnosti rukovodstva na suodlučivanje i dijeljenje prava i odgovornosti sa svim uposlenicima, što u konačnici sve uposlenike dovodi u ravnopravan odnos.Vjerojatnost uspješnoga rješavanja problema veća je ukoliko ga rješava veći broj ljudi sa zajedničkim ciljem. Istaknuta je potreba za pravednom raspodjelom odgovornosti i zajedničkim rješavanjem problema. Ukupni rezultati svih ustanova pokazali su da je potrebno angažiranje svih uposlenih na izgradnji suradničkih odnosa kako bi se postiglo unaprjeđenje kvalitete rada predškolske ustanove.

This paper analyzes the key determinants of the quality of preschool education in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Based on the analysis of recent data, the paper indicates the status and development trends in this regard in the last decade. Although preschool education in Bosnia and Herzegovina has a long tradition, it is facing a number of challenges, mostly arising from the arrangement of the state system and post-war transition processes which have significantly impoverished this level of education. Therefore, the main goal of this paper is to point out the recent public policy efforts made in the attempt to ensure the quality of preschool education in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the effects that are being achieved in this regard. Since quality can be approached from the aspects of structure and process, the elementary structural and process dimensions of preschool education will be taken as units of this analysis. Conceptualizing the results of this analysis, the status and quality of preschool education in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be positioned through an orientation towards the European framework for the quality and development trends of preschool education in Europe.