This research to practice summary describes how an 8-week case study used field notes, interviews, and video-based fieldwork to examine local instructional practices and to investigate the policies and protocols which facilitate these practices. We describe how one Head Start classroom successfully navigated external accountability mandates while privileging students’ academic development and overall well-being when they attended to organizational infrastructure, instructional capacity, and the factors at their intersection. Findings indicate that while policies and protocols necessitated by external mandates impacted the organizational infrastructure, their intentional integration with sound pedagogy and the Center’s mission facilitated instructional capacity in a climate where children thrive. We therefore discuss how such decisions can be replicated in other Head Start locations.
This article describes the antecedents and the implications of the ‘accountability climate’ and associated ‘compliance climate’ in early childhood education through an 8-week case study of one Government-funded preschool in an under-resourced urban community. With attention to the macro- and micro-systems that situates the preschool, this study describes how the preschool achieved compliance with external mandates while maintaining pedagogically sound teaching practices. This article reaffirms that quality early childhood education opportunities are possible acrosseconomic disparities if appropriate supports are made available to teachers, students, and families. The qualitative case study, complemented by video-based fieldwork, examines local instructional practices and investigates the policies and protocols facilitating these practices. The join impact between macro- and microsystems contributed to the teachers’ successfully privileging student academic and social success within a compliance-driven ecological system. This study offers a concrete example of how supports and leadership can contribute to early childhood contexts upholding regulated compliance mandates while privileging children’s needs.
This study documented perspectives from parents, teachers and administrators involved in children’s transitions from public pre-K into kindergarten within a large, diverse county. The purpose was to better understand how these stakeholders experience transitions and how they view their roles in the transition process. Qualitative results indicated a wide range of transition practices were in use, although use of specific practices varied from program to program. Thematic analysis indicated areas of agreement and points of divergence in how stakeholders viewed transitions. Results are discussed in relation to considerations for teachers and administrators interested in streamlining the transition from pre-K to kindergarten.
This study examined Spanish-English preschoolers’ (n = 32) vocabulary performance when using traditional English-only compared to those that utilize conceptual scoring (i.e., vocabulary knowledge in terms of known concepts independent of whether the label for the concept is known in either Spanish or English) designed for and normed on Spanish-English bilinguals. Children’s performance at the item level on the conceptually-scored measures was also examined. In English, receptive and expressive average scores were in the below-average ranges. However, on the conceptually-scored vocabulary measures, the average scores were within the average range, receptively and expressively. Examination of children’s performance at the item level suggests there may be differences by language in bilingual children’s receptive and expressive vocabulary performance. The findings underscore the value of utilizing conceptually-scored vocabulary measures, suggesting that their use may have potential for differentiating language difference from language disorder among young bilingual learners.
This research to practice article summarizes the findings of a study that examined the frequency of Head Start teachers’ implementation of the physical activity components of I am Moving, I am Learning (IM/IL). Lead teachers in a large city in the United States completed questionnaires to self-report frequency of program implementation, their general attitudes toward physical activity promotion, and their specific attitudes about implementing IM/IL. Teachers reported using movement vocabulary most frequently, followed by facilitating unstructured activities. Implementing structured activities was less frequent. Almost all teachers reported positive attitudes about promotion of physical activity in general and the IM/IL program specifically. Three variables were associated with teachers’ program usage: (1) prior teacher training; (2) teachers’ perceptions about program usability; and (3) teachers’ prior experience leading physical activity. Many Head Start teachers described IM/IL as a feasible and acceptable physical activity promotion program. Understanding ways to promote more frequent implementation of structured active play is important
This qualitative study investigated how dual language digital books are used by early childhood teachers working with primarily Alaska Native children and families. In particular, there was a desire to know how the teachers used the dual language digital books in their classrooms and if the resources were used to foster early literacy and/or to help teach and preserve native languages. The research was situated in six preschool classrooms where researchers observed the teachers using the books and conducted semi-structured interviews to triangulate the data. Using a qualitative approach to analysis, findings emerged that teachers used the books to introduce specific content or concepts, to emphasize home languages, and to reinforce early literacy skills using both whole group instruction and independent exploration time. Â Additionally, how they used the books appeared to be in direct response to their students and their needs. Implications for teachers, families, and administrators are shared.
A substantial number of children with disabilities are enrolled in Head Start and it is therefore important to understand how they are included in this context. The inclusion of children with disabilities in eight classrooms across one Midwestern Head Start program is examined in this exploratory case study. How Head Start teachers plan and adapt activities with the needs of all children in mind, how they collaborate with others on behalf of children, and how children with disabilities participate in inclusive classrooms is described. Findings were presented in four cross-case themes: 1) Planning for Children, 2) Adapting Activities for Children with Disabilities, 3) Including All by Facilitating Peer Interactions, and 4) Connecting in a Community. Implications for practice are presented
This research to practice article summarizes the findings from a case study focused on examining how children with disabilities were included in eight Head Start classrooms in one Midwestern Head Start program. Lessons learned from this study provide important implications for practice. Specifically: 1) Teachers must be provided with support to recognize and address the individual needs of children with disabilities in their classroom; 2) Teacher need to intentionally facilitate peer interactions between children with and without disabilities; 3) Key stakeholders involved in serving children with disabilities should prioritize developing effective partnership; 4) Efforts are necessary to reduce the negative impacts of external factors influencing the quality of inclusive classroom environments.
Integrating creative arts in early childhood and assessing child development is not only good for children, it is mandated by policy in many countries. The United States congress passed Goals 2000: Educate America Act (P.L.103-227) which added creative arts to the educational landscape in 1994. When designing a creative arts curriculum framework, educators must determine how to measure children’s learning and development. This article shares ways to integrate creative arts into a curricular framework, and use authentic assessment in the process.
Obesity rates among low-income Hispanic preschoolers are higher than those of whites, highlighting the need for understanding the cultural factors that may contribute to obesity. A survey was distributed to Hispanic Head Start families; preschooler body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Two focus groups examined caregiver perceptions about obesity and meal practices. The rate of overweight/obesity in the preschoolers was 44%, whereas, 79.4% of caregivers reported child weight as “normal.†Caregivers perceived “thinness†as a disadvantage, favored home-cooked meals, and expressed a desire for children to assimilate to mainstream foods. Obesity prevention within Head Start must account for caregiver perceptions of healthy weight and incongruities between cultural values/ practices and guidelines. Head Start practitioners must understand the influence that school foods/meal styles have on cultural meal practices at home and the influence of social networks on home health behaviors. An opportunity exists to educate families within their cultural social networks.
Positive parent-teacher relationships are associated with positive child outcomes (Minke, 2010). Teachers’ work contexts, such as the number of children/families each teacher serves each day/week and a teacher’s self-efficacy may influence teachers’ abilities to build those relationships. Participants in this pilot study included families of children enrolled in publicly- funded preschool programs and their teachers. To assess their perceptions of self-efficacy regarding parent-teacher relationships, preschool teachers completed the Teacher Efficacy for Promoting Partnerships Scale (Moen, Sheridan, & White, 2016). Findings suggest that preschool programs using a single all-day session model with fewer children and families assigned per teacher, may permit teachers to more quickly establish partnerships with parents, or at least establish a confidence in working with parents sooner in the relationship than teachers assigned to teach to double (two half-day) sessions each day.Â
Positive parent-teacher relationships are associated with positive child outcomes (Minke, 2010). Teacher characteristics such as self-efficacy and their work contexts, such as the number of children/families each teacher serves may influence teachers’ abilities to build those relationships. Participants in this pilot study included families of children enrolled in publicly-funded preschool programs and their teachers. Teacher and family demographic information, class schedules, and enrollment numbers were collected through survey. To assess their perceptions of self-efficacy regarding parent-teacher relationships, preschool teachers completed the Teacher Efficacy for Promoting Partnerships Scale (Moen, Sheridan, & White, 2016). Findings suggest that early childhood programs using single session models with fewer children and families assigned per teacher, may permit teachers to more quickly establish partnerships with parents or at least establish a confidence in working with parents sooner in the relationship than teachers assigned to double sessions/day.
Obesity rates among low-income Hispanic preschoolers are higher than those of low-income whites, highlighting the need for understanding the culturally factors that may contribute to obesity. Utilizing a community-based approach, a survey was distributed to Hispanic Head Start families; preschooler body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Two discussion groups examined caregiver perceptions about weight status and meal practices. Caregivers perceived “thinness†as a disadvantage, favored home-cooked meals, and expressed a desire for children to assimilate to mainstream foods, but these practices could contribute to unhealthy weight status. Obesity prevention within Head Start must account for caregiver perceptions of healthy weight and incongruities between cultural values, meal practices and weight guidelines. Findings provide considerations for Head Start programs when designing culturally-relevant obesity prevention programs that are responsive to Hispanic families’ cultural needs and perceptions.
Teachers and teaching assistants from three Head Start classrooms implemented a multi-tiered narrative intervention in their preschool classrooms. They delivered large group, small group, and individual lessons with students and administered and scored a progress monitoring tool with all children once a month. A quasi-experimental control group design was conducted to determine the effect of the multi-tiered intervention on children’s story retelling skills and story-based language comprehension. The extent to which the Head Start teachers’ could deliver the intervention with fidelity and administer and score the progress monitoring probes accurately were examined. Feasibility data were collected via interviews and questionnaires. Results indicated statistically significant improvements favoring the treatment group at Winter and Spring assessment points for story retelling and language comprehension. All measures of teachers’ fidelity and reliability were above acceptable standards. As teachers and teaching assistants became more comfortable delivering the intervention, teachers’ perceptions of the intervention’s feasibility increased.
Despite evidence that interactive book-reading is a way to promote children's language skills, few book reading interventions exist for Latino dual language learners (DLLs). The aims of this pilot study were to (a) examine the effects of participation in a culturally responsive interactive book-reading intervention on the language abilities of preschool DLLs and (b) investigate the social and cultural validity of the intervention. With 73 mother-child dyads (35 intervention and 38 control), we examined the effectiveness of the intervention on children's language skills, as measured by standardized assessment and language samples. Children in the intervention group made significantly greater gains in number of different words and mean length of utterance in words than children in the control group. No intervention effects were found for the standardized language measures. Mothers reported the intervention had strong social and culturally validity. Future directions for refinement and further testing of this intervention are discussed.
Preschoolers’ integrated technology usage was examined related to cognitive and visual spatial functioning. The sample consisted of 502 typically developing preschool children. Parent/caregiver reports of children’s television viewing and digital technology usage, and WPPSI-IV intelligence scale scores and Visual Spatial Composite scores were examined. The preschoolers’ screen time was also compared to a previous sample to look for changes in television viewing patterns over time. The results provide evidence of the interaction between digital media usage and visual spatial abilities. Preschoolers with higher reported digital media usage had lower WPPSI-IV Visual Spatial Composite scores and Full Scale IQ scores. Television viewing patterns have remained the same over time, but usage of technological devices has increased. Lower SES, and historically disadvantaged populations have greater usage time overall. Lower maternal education levels were also linked to higher usage. Practical implications for prevention, early intervention, education and policy are discussed.
This research to practice paper summarizes a study focused on typically developing preschooler’s integrated technology usage. Different amounts of usage were found based on parental education, ethnic/racial identity, and SES. Television viewing patterns from a 2010 study were also compared to a 2014 group of children. Preschoolers from the 2014 group were watching similar amounts of television, but also had increased technological device usage. Children had greater total screen time than in the past. Lower maternal education, lower SES, and being from a historically disadvantaged background were associated with greater usage time. Preschoolers with higher reported digital media usage had lower WPPSI-IV Visual Spatial Composite scores and Full Scale IQ scores, on average. Strategies to improve visual spatial skills in the classroom setting are provided.
The purpose of this study was to understand the process of implementing Promoting First Relationships (PFR; Kelly, Zuckerman, Sandoval, & Buehlman, 2008b), an evidence-based parent-child interaction intervention, into an Early Head Start (EHS) home visiting program. This study documented seven home visitors’ early experiences with intervention implementation, specifically preparation and training on the intervention, overall adaptation to use of the intervention, challenges and issues identified during implementation, as well as recommendations and suggestions for sustainability of PFR within the EHS program. Data were collected via semi-structured individual interviews. We employed a constant-comparative method and a systematic coding process. Findings indicate that overall, home visitors reported an alignment between the intervention content and their own philosophies, a belief that implementing the intervention improved their home visiting practice, and a sense that participating families benefited from the experience. Some negative experiences were identified in relationship to the lengthy training process and changes in home visiting practice. Major challenges involved learning about intervention content and household issues. Recommendations for sustaining the intervention in Early Head Start are also reported.
The present study summarizes lessons from implementing an evidence-based parent-child interaction intervention, Promoting First Relationships, within an Early Head Start (EHS) home visiting program. The study documented seven home visitors’ early experiences and feedback with intervention implementation examining overall experiences in using the intervention, challenges and issues identified during implementation, and recommendations and suggestions for sustainability of the intervention within the EHS program. Findings indicate that overall, home visitors reported positive experiences with the implementation process. Some negative experiences were identified in relation to the lengthy training process and changes in home visiting practice. Challenges included learning about intervention content and managing household issues. Recommendations for sustaining the intervention included providing ongoing support and having flexibility with the training process.
Ongoing child assessment is increasingly viewed as a tool for informing and individualizing instruction in early childhood, yet little is known about how ongoing child assessment is implemented at the classroom or the programmatic level. This literature review focuses on how teachers use ongoing assessment and adjust instructional practices and content to better meet the individual strengths, needs, and interests of young children. We identified four important issues in the literature in ongoing assessment in early childhood: (1) many teachers do not consistently collect ongoing assessment data, nor do they use it for instruction and individualization; (2) barriers to using data include lack of pedagogical content knowledge and knowledge about how to conduct assessments and interpret data; (3) teachers want more training and professional development in this area; and (4) more needs to be known about how to support the successful implementation of ongoing child assessment.
