Are Gains in Decision‐Making Autonomy During Early Adolescence Beneficial for Emotional Functioning? The Case of the United States and China

This research examined the role of children’s decision‐making autonomy in their emotional functioning during early adolescence in the United States and China. Four times over the 7th and 8th grades, 825 American and Chinese children (M = 12.73 years) reported on the extent to which they versus their parents make decisions about issues children often deem as under their authority. Children also reported on their emotional functioning. American children made greater gains over time in decision‐making autonomy than did Chinese children. Initial decision‐making autonomy predicted enhanced emotional functioning similarly among American and Chinese children. However, gains over time in decision‐making autonomy predicted enhanced emotional functioning more in the United States (vs. China) where such gains were normative.     

Bilingual Baby: Foreign Language Intervention in Madrid's Infant Education Centers

The first years of life represent a unique window of opportunity for foreign language learning. However, key questions are: How much and what kind of foreign language exposure is needed to ignite learning? We conducted a foreign language (English) intervention in four public Infant Education Centers in Madrid, Spain. Intervention children (N = 126, ages 7–33.5 months) experienced 18 weeks of daily, hour‐long, group English sessions with native‐speaking tutors, using a brain‐based method of infant language development. Intervention infants were compared to a matched Current Practice Comparison (CPC) group of peers in the same schools. Intervention children outperformed the CPC group, showing rapid gains on measures of English word comprehension and English speech production. Schools' neighborhood wealth was not a significant factor in learning. Follow‐up analyses show that the language gains were fully retained 18 weeks post‐intervention. Children's foreign language skills advance quickly in school using this research‐to‐practice curriculum.     

Parental Participation in Paired Reading: a controlled study

Abstract A double‐blind controlled study of the effects of Paired Reading was carried out with 33 failing readers and their parents. The children were aged 8 to 11 and had reading delays of at least 18 months. After a mean time of 7.6 hours of Paired Reading at home, spread over six weeks, the children made gains of 2.43 months for reading accuracy and 4.36 months for reading comprehension compared with a control group which experienced respective gains of 0.81 months and 1.69 months. The differences were statistically significant for accuracy but not for comprehension. The conclusions of previous Paired Reading studies are discussed in the light of these results and suggestions are made for the evaluation of future, similar projects.     

The Facilitation of Information Processing in Learning Disabled Children Using Computer Games

Abstract The aim of the study was to improve the information processing and concentration skills of learning disabled (LD) children by using computer games in a procedure that enhances self‐verbalisation and mediated learning. Of the 21 LD children who participated in the study, 14 were trained in the specific procedure, while at the same time the seven children in the control group participated in regular tutorial activities in small groups. Subsequently, in the second training period, the control group was instructed to play commercial strategic games, with no stress on self‐verbalisation procedures and the experimental group participated in regular classroom tutorial activities, without computers. The following measures were used to assess the effect of the training: MFFT, Progressive Matrices and three subtests of the WISC‐R. The results demonstrated that the computer games presented within the framework of self‐verbalisation procedures and peer‐interaction facilitate the information processing of LD children. The interactions of passive and impulsive LD children with computer‐related activities should be examined in future research within the context of their ecological environment.     

Inclusion of Mobility‐Impaired Children in the One‐to‐One Computing Era: A Case Study

In recent times many developing countries have adopted a one‐to‐one model for distributing computers in classrooms. Among the various effects that such an approach could imply, it surely increases the availability of computer‐related Assistive Technology at school and provides higher resources for empowering disabled children in their learning and communicating abilities. New environments are created in which technology is no more a specific solution, but a matter of fact. This article describes three case studies involving children from Uruguayan special schools undergoing integration projects in mainstream schools. The children could count on a computer technology which did not mark them as “those who need some different tools,” but as special users of the same tools as the rest of the students.     

Student‐teachers’ Use of Computers during Teaching Practice in Primary Classrooms

It is argued that teacher readiness is crucial to the realisation of national goals for educational computer use and that the preparation of student teachers can make an important contribution. This study investigated student‐teachers’ dispositions towards computers and their use of computers in primary‐school classrooms during a final‐year practicum. The student teachers generally viewed computers positively but lacked confidence in their knowledge of computers. While they were nervous about using computers in classrooms, almost two‐thirds did use a computer at least once during a four‐week practicum and were more likely to do so if the supervising teacher modelled such use. The most frequently experienced problems in using computers were organisational. Based on the findings of this study it is suggested that preservice courses should focus on the pedagogical issues associated with computer use and they should provide students with opportunities to observe and practise classroom computing.     

A Longitudinal Study of the Effect of Computers on the Cognitive Development of Low-Income African American Preschool Children

Research Findings: The current study examined the impact of daily classroom computer use on the cognitive development of preschool children in 14 urban Head Start classrooms. The sample consisted of 208 predominantly African American low-income children with a mean age of 48.8 months. A quasi-experimental design was used in which 7 classrooms had computers and 7 classrooms served as the control. Assessments were made at baseline and at 6, 12, and 18 months. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to assess differences between the computer and control groups on cognitive developmental trajectories. Children in the computer condition displayed significantly greater increases in quantitative development than did children from the control condition. Practice or Policy: Children’s access to computers at home and at school has become increasingly prevalent. However, there is still a substantial disparity in access to technology between different socioeconomic groups. The preschool years may offer a promising opportunity to close this gap in access; however, little is known about the impact of computers on the developing minds of children, particularly those from low-income African American families. Findings from the current study suggest that daily use of computer centers in the Head Start classroom may benefit quantitative outcomes for young children.     

Eight‐year‐old‐pupils’ Problem‐solving Processes within a LOGO Learning Environment

A LOGO teaching period was arranged for 38 eight‐year‐old Finnish pupils. After the teaching period the pupils’ problem‐solving processes were videotaped in an open LOGO problem‐solving situation. The data analysis focused on the occurrence of the pupils’ social problem solving, effectance motivation and information processing. Cluster analysis was used to identify three clusters which are based on the variables present in the problem‐solving processes. The different clusters’ associations with school readiness and school achievement were analysed. The results indicated that during the problem solving the passive pupils (n = 16) needed a lot of teacher support, the independent pupils (n= 10) displayed considerable self‐directivity and rule making, and impulsive pupils (n = 12) had an off‐task behaviour. The school‐readiness and school‐achievement scores were highest among the independent group, moderate among the impulsive group and lowest among the passive group. The results suggest that LOGO promotes the development of problem‐solving skills, if each pupil receives sufficient support from the teacher.     

Teacher–Child Interactions in Free Choice and Teacher-Directed Activity Settings: Prediction to School Readiness

Research Findings: This article examines whether time spent in free choice and teacher-directed activity settings within preschool was associated with indicators of school readiness and the extent to which children’s learning was associated with the quality of teachers’ behavior within these settings. Participants were 325 preschool teachers and 1,407 children from low-income backgrounds. Teacher–child interactions were measured in multiple cycles across 1 day of classroom observation within teacher-organized free choice and teacher-directed activity settings. The overall proportion of class time spent in free choice was positively related to children’s average gains in inhibitory control, whereas class time spent in teacher-directed activities predicted gains in language development and early literacy skills. And more effective teacher–child interactions within the free choice setting were significantly related to children’s average gains in language development and early literacy skills. Practice or Policy: Findings confirm that both free choice and teacher-directed settings in early education classrooms can be assets for children’s learning; however, the value of time in child-managed activities is partially dependent on teachers’ behavior with children.     

LOGO: more than a decade later

More than a decade has elapsed since Papert and his MIT colleagues combined cybernetic and Piagetian concepts into a user-friendly computer program called LOGO; and five years have elapsed since Papert, in his book Mindstorms , extolled the virtues of LOGO, arguing that children who experienced LOGO learned much more than a computer language—they learned powerful ideas, skills, and heuristics as well. This paper examines the current state of LOGO and LOGO research and attempts to come to some conclusions about the efficacy of LOGO as a research and teaching tool.     

Absenteeism in Head Start and Children's Academic Learning

Using nationally representative data from the Family and Child Experiences Survey 2009 cohort (n = 2,842), this study examined the implications of 3‐ and 4‐year‐old's absences from Head Start for their early academic learning. The findings from this study revealed that children who missed more days of school, and especially those who were chronically absent, demonstrated fewer gains in areas of math and literacy during the preschool year. Moreover, excessive absenteeism was found to detract from the potential benefits of quality preschool education and was especially problematic for the early learning of children who entered the Head Start program with a less developed skill set. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.     

Theory and practice in self‐esteem enhancement: Circle‐Time and efficacy‐based approaches—a controlled evaluation

There are differences of opinion about self‐esteem enhancement in the classroom; these differences exist at both conceptual and practical levels. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether techniques employed by primary school teachers as a day‐to‐day part of their teaching can have measurable effects on the self‐esteem of their pupils. Two different approaches to self‐esteem enhancement in primary classes were evaluated. The participants were 519 primary school children and their teachers (n = 21). Circle‐Time and efficacy‐based approaches were compared with a control condition over a four‐month period. On two self‐report measures of self‐esteem, gains were found for both experimental conditions, but not for the controls. Significant sub‐scale differences suggested that the two approaches achieved their effects in different ways, consistent with a two‐dimensional model of self‐esteem. Circle‐Time methodology, focusing on the creation of a climate in which individuals are respected and valued, is more likely to help children to develop a sense of self‐worth. On the other hand, an efficacy‐based approach tends to focus on the achievement of performance goals, and is thus more likely to develop the self‐competence dimension. It is argued that we should now reconsider how we think about self‐esteem enhancement in primary classrooms.     

Predicting First‐Grade Math Achievement from Developmental Number Sense Trajectories

Number sense development was tracked from the beginning of kindergarten through the middle of first grade, over six time points. Children (n= 277) were then assessed on general math achievement at the end of first grade. Number sense performance in kindergarten, as well as number sense growth, accounted for 66 percent of the variance in first‐grade math achievement. Background characteristics of income status, gender, age, and reading ability did not add explanatory variance over and above growth in number sense. Even at the beginning of kindergarten, number sense was highly correlated with end of first‐grade math achievement (r= 0.70). Clarifying the observed slope effect, general growth mixture modeling showed that children who started kindergarten with low number sense but made moderate gains by the middle of kindergarten had higher first‐grade math achievement than children who started out with similarly low number sense with flat growth. The majority of children in the low/flat growth class were from low‐income families. The findings indicate that screening early number sense development is useful for identifying children who will face later math difficulties or disabilities.     

Assessing effectiveness of nurture groups in Northern Scotland

The aim of this small‐scale study was to assess the effectiveness of nurture groups in Northern Scotland. Data were collected from children (N = 19) and staff (N = 5) from three nurture groups. Pre‐ and post‐nurture group Boxall Profile information was also assessed for 33 children across two of the nurture groups. Analysis of the Boxall Profiles found that nurture group children had made significant gains. The majority of children reported that they feel happy and enjoy attending the nurture groups. Nurture group staff reported improvements in the children, and that parents are positive about the nurture groups. However, staff did report a number of challenges that the nurture group face. Overall, this study contributes to the evidence that nurture groups can be an effective intervention for improving social, emotional and behavioural outcomes for children.     

Developing young readers through the linguistic phonics approach

This paper reports findings from a large‐scale evaluation undertaken to explore the impact of the ‘linguistic phonics approach’ (LPA) on young children’s reading. The LPA is a systematic and applied programme that differs from traditional phonics programmes. For example, rather than ask children to look at letters and speculate on the sounds they make, the LPA begins with the sounds and oral language skills children bring with them to school and progresses to a stage where they marry sounds with the written word. Implicit in the approach is the notion that children can learn to make associations between their spoken language (native speech sounds which are embedded from around the age of one) and the written language. Findings from this three‐stage test/retest matched‐samples evaluation (n = 745, Yr 2 and Yr 3 pupils) indicate that the LPA does significantly raise standards and that the gains made by pupils taught through this approach sustain over time. Particularly worthy of note is the finding that, in contrast to non‐systematic phonics approaches, the LPA positively affects the attainment levels of high‐, middle‐ and low‐ability readers.     

Goodness of Fit Between Children and Classrooms: Effects of Child Temperament and Preschool Classroom Quality on Achievement Trajectories

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine whether child temperament differentially predicted academic school readiness depending on the quality of classroom interactions for 179 Head Start preschoolers. Teachers rated children's temperament as overcontrolled, resilient, or undercontrolled in the fall and reported on children's language/literacy and math skills continuously throughout the year. Observations of classroom emotional and instructional support were conducted in the spring. Results from multilevel models indicated that overcontrolled children (compared to resilient children) made greater math gains in classrooms with higher instructional support, whereas a trend-level effect suggested that undercontrolled children (compared to resilient children) made lower math gains in classrooms with lower emotional support. Results also showed that resilient children's gains in language/literacy were more positively associated with high emotional support than were the scores of overcontrolled children. Practice or Policy: This study adds to prior findings suggesting that overcontrolled and undercontrolled children need special attention in the preschool classroom. Teachers and administrators may want to carefully consider the effect that classroom interactions and instructional techniques have on individual children and attempt to tailor instruction to meet the individual needs of children within classrooms.     

Student Teachers Meet Ethnic Families

Sixty preservice teachers participated in a program which allowed them to research one ethnic culture, to spend one day as a participant observer in the life of an ethnic family, and to explore the similarities and differences between cultures and within cultures based on their own experience and the feedback of experts. Students self‐reported quantitative gains in empathy, self‐development, understanding of the relevance of multiculturalism in education and confidence to teach the culturally different. Qualitative change in attitudes indicated a decrease in stereotypic thinking, greater understanding of ethnic parents and children and a willingness to make further contact with people from diverse cultures. Benefits to participating hosts are also discussed.     

Gender Differences in Lunar‐related Scientific and Mathematical Understandings

This paper reports an examination on gender differences in lunar phases understanding of 123 students (70 females and 53 males). Middle‐level students interacted with the Moon through observations, sketching, journalling, two‐dimensional and three‐dimensional modelling, and classroom discussions. These lunar lessons were adapted from the Realistic Explorations in Astronomical Learning (REAL) curriculum. Students’ conceptual understandings were measured through analysis of pre‐test and post‐test results on a Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) and a Geometric Spatial Assessment (GSA). The LPCI was used to assess conceptual learning of eight science and four mathematics domains. The GSA was used to assess learning of the same four mathematical domains; however, the GSA test items were not posed within a lunar context. Results showed both male and female groups to make significant gains in understanding on the overall LPCI test scores as well as significant gains on five of the eight science domains and on three of the four mathematics domains. The males scored significantly higher than the females on the science domain, phase—Sun/Earth/Moon positions, and on the mathematics domain geometric spatial visualisation. GSA results found both male and female groups achieving a significant increase in their test scores on the overall GSA. Females made significant gains on the GSA mathematics domains, periodic patterns and cardinal directions, while males made significant gains on only the periodic patterns domain. Findings suggest that both scientific and mathematical understandings can be significantly improved for both sexes through the use of spatially focused, inquiry‐oriented curriculum such as REAL.     

Children's concepts of gears and their promotion through play

The mechanical transmission of motion, which is observable in gears’ turning direction (TD) and turning speed (TS) can be understood as part of the core concept “force and motion”. Previous studies have suggested that most children before the age of nine have naïve concepts of gears’ TD and TS. However, these studies relied on children's explanation data and might have therefore underestimated young children's potential. Moreover, these studies did not examine whether preschoolers can overcome their naïve concepts through teaching. Recently, educators have proposed guided play as an educational approach that combines children's play with teacher guidance in a purposefully designed environment. We conducted two subsequent studies. In Study 1, we investigated the children's (naïve) concepts of gears’ TD and TS with a cross‐sectional approach using a nonverbal test procedure. This study comprised 248 children aged 5–10 years and 73 adults. The results showed that the proportion of children with adequate concepts increased with age. More specifically, 7‐ to 8‐year‐olds differed significantly from 5‐ to 6‐year‐olds, indicating a developmental shift around this age. However, naïve concepts of TS were more persistent with age than naïve concepts of TD. Altogether, the results indicated the potential to foster 5‐ to 6‐year‐olds’ concepts of both TD and TS in an intervention. Thus, in Study 2, we developed and tested a guided play intervention to foster 5‐ to 6‐year‐old children's concepts of TD and TS. We conducted a prepost‐intervention design with a guided play group (n = 19) and a free play group (n = 21). The results suggested stronger learning gains in the guided play group (d_TD = 0.337, d_TS = 0.758) than in the free play group (d_TD = 0.224, d_TS = 0.158).     

Evidence for General and Domain‐Specific Elements of Teacher–Child Interactions: Associations With Preschool Children's Development

This study evaluates a model for considering domain‐general and domain‐specific associations between teacher–child interactions and children's development, using a bifactor analytic strategy. Among a sample of 325 early childhood classrooms there was evidence for both general elements of teacher–child interaction (responsive teaching) and domain‐specific elements related to positive management and routines and cognitive facilitation. Among a diverse population of 4‐year‐old children (n = 1,407) responsive teaching was modestly associated with development across social and cognitive domains, whereas positive management and routines was modestly associated with increases in inhibitory control and cognitive facilitation was associated with gains in early language and literacy skills. The conceptual and methodological contributions and challenges of this approach are discussed.