E-books as support for emergent writing with and without adult assistance

The question posed in the current study is whether software alone is a sufficient tool for supporting young children’s emergent writing. We researched the effect of reading an electronic book (e-book) on kindergarten children’s emergent word writing with and without adult support. Ninety-six 5 to 6 years old children from low socioeconomic status (SES) families were randomly assigned to one of three groups (32 children each): (1) independently reading the e-book; (2) reading the e-book with adult support; (3) receiving the regular kindergarten program (control). Each intervention group received four e-book reading sessions. The children’s emergent literacy was assessed before and after the intervention and included letter-name recognition, phonological awareness and emergent word writing. Reading the e-book with adult assistance supported the children’s phonological awareness and emergent word writing more significantly than reading the e-book without support and more than the control group. Reading the e-book without adult support did not differ from the control group. Furthermore, the children’s initial emergent literacy level and reading the ebook with adult assistance contributed the most to the children’s emergent word writing. Educational implications are discussed.     

Disciplinary knowledge of K-3 teachers and their knowledge calibration in the domain of early literacy

Recently, investigators have begun to pay increasing attention to the role of teachers’ domain-specific knowledge in the area of reading, and its implications for both classroom practice and student learning. The aims of the present study were to assess kindergarten to third grade teachers’ actual and perceived reading related subject matter knowledge, and to investigate the extent to which teachers calibrate their reading related subject matter knowledge by examining relationships between actual and perceived knowledge. Results indicated that while teachers demonstrated limited knowledge of children’s literature, phoneme awareness, and phonics, the majority of these same teachers evaluated their knowledge levels quite positively. Teachers demonstrated some ability to calibrate their own knowledge levels in the area of children’s literature, yet they were poorly calibrated in the domains of phoneme awareness and phonics. These findings suggest that teachers tend to overestimate their reading related subject matter knowledge, and are often unaware of what they know and do not know. Implications for the design of teacher education at both the preservice and inservice levels are discussed. Note: This research was funded through the National Science Foundation IERI 00-74 Initiative to Anne E. Cunningham, University of California, Berkeley. acunning@uclink.berkeley.edu     

Positive Approaches to Learning in the Context of Preschool Classroom Activities

Positive approaches to learning are considered essential for young children’s school readiness and early school success. Researchers have reported that positive learning approaches, such as attentiveness and goal orientation, are associated with higher levels of early school achievement in math and reading. The present study extends this research by examining children’s learning approaches in the context of classroom activities from a range of curricular areas. Ninety-two children from pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classrooms took part in the study. Four approaches to learning were rated during children’s participation in seven classroom learning activities. Results showed that positive learning approaches were a significant contributor to children’s performance, but they were not equally effective in all activities. The effectiveness of a learning approach depends, in part, on the characteristics of the activity in which the child is engaged. We discuss the implications of these results for understanding the study of learning approaches, and for classroom practices designed to promote their development.     

Screening of phonological awareness in the early elementary grades: an IRT approach

The purpose of the present study was to explore the possibilities for the assessment of growth in phonological awareness of children in kindergarten and first grade. Phonological awareness was measured using four sets of items involving rhyming, phoneme identification, phoneme blending, and phoneme segmentation. The results of an exploratory factor analysis and analyses conducted within the framework of item response theory showed one latent ability to underlie the different sets of items, which nevertheless differed in difficulty. Analyses in terms of the children’s ability further showed the phonological awareness measures to be sensitive to growth. The amount of information supplied by the different sets of items depended on the children’s level of ability. The conclusion that it is possible to accurately monitor the development of children’s phonological awareness in the early elementary grades appears to be justified, and this possibility opens up new perspectives for the early screening for reading problems and dyslexia.     

Classroom interaction and literacy activities in kindergarten: Longitudinal links to Grade 1 readers at risk and not at risk of reading difficulties

The purpose of the present study is to establish how the quality of kindergarten classroom interactions and the frequency of literacy activities affect reading development among Grade 1 children—both those who are at risk and not at risk of developing reading difficulties. Interaction was assessed in terms of classroom organization, and the level of emotional and instructional support offered in 49 kindergarten classrooms in Finland using the CLASS (Classroom Assessment Scoring System). Kindergarten teachers also recorded the frequency of literacy activities in their classrooms. The phonological awareness and letter knowledge of 515 children (i.e., their pre-reading skills) were assessed at the end of kindergarten, as were their reading skills at the start and at the end of Grade 1. Eighty-seven of these children were identified in kindergarten as being likely to develop reading difficulties. The results showed that emotional support and classroom organization in kindergarten were positively associated with the development of children’s reading skills across Grade 1, especially for those prone to reading difficulties. They also showed that frequent literacy activities in kindergarten were positively related to children’s reading skills shortly after entering Grade 1. All the positive longitudinal associations were stronger for those children seen to be at risk of developing reading difficulties than for those not at risk.     

Beginning literacy: links among teacher knowledge, teacher practice, and student learning

Although the importance of phonological awareness has been discussed widely in the research literature, the concept is not well understood by many classroom teachers. In the study described here, we worked with groups of kindergarten and first-grade teachers (the experimental group) during a 2-week summer institute and throughout the school year. We shared with them research about learning disabilities and effective instruction, stressing the importance of explicit instruction in phonological and orthographic awareness. We followed the experimental group and a control group into their classrooms for a year, assessing teachers' classroom practices and their students' (n = 779) learning. The study yielded three major findings: We can deepen teachers' own knowledge of the role of phonological and orthographic information in literacy instruction; teachers can use that knowledge to change classroom practice; and changes in teacher knowledge and classroom practice can improve student learning.     

The cross-lagged associations between classroom interactions and children’s achievement behaviors

This study examined the cross-lagged associations between the quality of classroom interactions and children’s behaviors in achievement situations. The achievement behaviors in challenging test situations of 166 Finnish children from 70 classrooms were rated by trained testers in grades 1 and 2. The quality of classroom interactions in terms of emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support were observed in 25 classrooms (out of 70) in grades 1 and 2. The results of multilevel modeling showed that classroom teachers’ low emotional support predicted children’s subsequent high passive avoidance, whereas high classroom organization and instructional support predicted children’s high social dependence. Furthermore, the more children showed active task avoidance, the more emotional and instructional support and classroom organization teachers showed later on in the classroom. The findings emphasize the importance of warm and supportive classroom interactions for children’s adaptive achievement behaviors. The results also suggest that teachers adapt their classroom interactions with respect to children’s active task avoidance.     

Children’s Narrating as a Way of Learning About Other People’s Beliefs in Interaction with Teachers

As a genre of talk, narratives represent important building blocks in children’s learning in many fields. The purpose of the study presented in this article is to examine how teachers can encourage children’s learning about people’s beliefs through narrating. Narratives play an important part in children’s learning to understand other people and how they will act according to what they believe, think or know. This study is based on video observations of six children, 3 and 4 years old, and their spontaneous personal narratives told to teachers over a period of 8 months. The narrative analysis revealed that in most of the narratives the teachers were passive listeners or were concerned about the structure of events. The teachers seldom asked questions about the children’s mental state or disagreed with the child in ways that revealed their different beliefs. Suggestions about implications of this study are that early childhood teacher education should focus on talking with children about what they may think or believe concerning narrated events, and also reveal what they think and believe themselves.     

Reading teachers’ knowledge of children’s literature and English phonology

We investigated relationships among elementary teachers’ reading-related content knowledge (knowledge of literature and phonology), their philosophical orientation toward reading instruction, their classroom practice, and their students’ learning. Correlations showed little relationship between instructional philosophy and content knowledge, and little relationship between instructional philosophy and classroom practice. However, relationships emerged between content knowledge and instruction, and between kindergarten teachers’ phonological knowledge and their students’ reading achievement. We recommend that the recent focus on teacher’s disciplinary knowledge be broadened to include teachers of beginning reading and that teachers be afforded opportunities to develop the necessary knowledge base to teach reading effectively.     

Classroom Community and Peer Culture in Kindergarten

This study reflects a naturalistic, interpretive 5-month study in a public school morning kindergarten regarding the children’s social development and creation of a peer culture during the transitional months into public education. The main focus of the research was the children’s perspectives on these transitions and their evolving classroom community and peer culture in response to the teacher, classroom and school environment. This study captures the dynamic and complex flow of activity that occurs in classrooms, the give and take of relationships, and the agency that children take in developing peer culture as one piece of community. Elements of the peer culture that are foregrounded include secondary adjustments as realized in clean-up strategies, protecting play materials over time, and hypothetical competition with the afternoon kindergarten class.     

The Role of Teacher Efficacy in Strengthening Classroom Support for Preschool Children with Disabilities Who Exhibit Challenging Behaviors

Challenging student behaviors are a prominent factor in the development of teacher stress and burnout. When classroom-based teachers of preschool children with disabilities were surveyed to identify their training needs in one North Carolina county, the most frequent request was how to address behavior challenges of preschool children with disabilities. This study examined how instructional support to teachers of preschool children with disabilities and challenging behaviors affected three teachers’ classroom practices. The teachers received training and mentoring in classroom behavior management strategies and engaged in an online community of learners discussion group. Interviews and interactions from an online learning community were used to disclose whether the participants had implemented effective intervention strategies in their classrooms following the training. Teachers felt more competent in managing challenging behaviors after the online interaction with their colleagues. Teachers’ online interactions were a highly effective way to impact teacher efficacy. Therefore, special education preschool programs should consider providing more opportunities for the teachers to build their own learning communities to interact and support one another.     

Teacher perspectives on peer relation problems of young children

The purpose of this study is to investigate teacher perspectives on peer relation problems of young children. Examined are teacher definition of and assessment criteria for peer relation problems, and the most poignant peer relation problem perceived by teachers. Three experienced American preschool teachers are interviewed and observed for one year. It is found that the teachers define children’s peer relation problems as part of developmental processes and individual differences. The teachers judge peer relation problems in terms of children’s emotional well-being, intentions, and social skills, and perceive children’s control of others as the most serious peer relation problem in the classroom. It is posited that the teachers’ perspectives rely on the emotional and motivational bases of children’s relationships with peers. The related issues are discussed and implications for teaching practices are provided.     

Making learning visible in kindergarten classrooms: Pedagogical documentation as a formative assessment technique

This study investigated interactions between pedagogical documentation—a formative assessment technique and instructional intervention designed to increase student learning by recording children’s experiences—and kindergarten children, families and teachers in the UAE. The study sample comprised six teachers in six kindergarten classrooms, 141 kindergarten children and 67 parents. The major data-gathering techniques were participant observation, semi-structured individual interviews, focus group interviews and parent questionnaire. The results revealed that pedagogical documentation has the potential to improve children’s learning, contribute to teachers’ awareness of learning processes and help parents gain a better understanding of learning processes in their children’s education.     

Promoting equity in mathematics teacher preparation: a framework for advancing teacher learning of children’s multiple mathematics knowledge bases

Research repeatedly documents that teachers are underprepared to teach mathematics effectively in diverse classrooms. A critical aspect of learning to be an effective mathematics teacher for diverse learners is developing knowledge, dispositions, and practices that support building on children’s mathematical thinking, as well as their cultural, linguistic, and community-based knowledge. This article presents a conjectured learning trajectory for prospective teachers’ (PSTs’) development related to integrating children’s multiple mathematical knowledge bases (i.e., the understandings and experiences that have the potential to shape and support children’s mathematics learning—including children’s mathematical thinking, and children’s cultural, home, and community-based knowledge), in mathematics instruction. Data were collected from 200 PSTs enrolled in mathematics methods courses at six United States universities. Data sources included beginning and end-of-semester surveys, interviews, and PSTs’ written work. Our conjectured learning trajectory can serve as a tool for mathematics teacher educators and researchers as they focus on PSTs’ development of equitable mathematics instruction.     

Beyond Learning and Teaching in Preschool Free-Play Centers in Daliat el-Carmel-Isfiya

This article describes a group of Druze preschool and kindergarten teachers from Northern Israel who participated in an in-service course in their community. The focus of the training experience was to improve the social climate of the classroom by implementing a life-world approach. Analysis of their reports shows that the children’s meaningful learning, improved emotional coping with ordinary hardships, and mutual social support are a product of intervention that involves multiple, interrelated activity channels: staff collaboration, guided small group discussions, informal discussions, cooperation with parents and community agents, and free play. Each activity channel is associated with a compatible, dominant, learning modality and a predominant interpersonal process—free play, for example, is mainly associated with free inquiry and discourse among children, whereas group activity is also likely to be associated with learning guided by educators.     

Picture Partners: A Co-creative Journey into Visual Literacy

This article describes an integrated art and early literacy project entitled, ‘Picture Partners’. The main purpose of the project was to explore how young children create and express meaning through art. Children’s responses, both written and spoken, were included because accompanying modes of expression expand the nature and content of their drawings and inform teachers about children’s intentions and processes of thinking. A secondary purpose was to investigate how children use illustrations from familiar picture books as models for their own creations and whether children’s responses to stories might be enhanced through their collaboration with peers. Partnerships were formed and participants worked in close proximity as they drew pictures in response to a teacher directed prompt. Using qualitative, interpretative analysis, a small subset of drawings produced by kindergarten and first grade children was examined. The results revealed that the process of drawing was influenced by illustrations in picturebooks, peer interactions, and the artwork of partners in close proximity. The shift in emphasis away from the interpretations of visual realism in children’s drawings towards their own purposes allowed readers to focus on the way drawings represent meaning within children’s socio-cultural worlds.     

Social IEP Objectives, Teacher Talk, and Peer Interaction in Inclusive and Segregated Preschool Settings

The purpose of this study was to examine: (a) the role of teacher talk in promoting peer interaction, (b) the adequacy of social IEP objectives to reflect children’s social functioning and guide provision of teacher talk, and (c) differences in children’s peer interaction and teacher talk in inclusive and segregated settings. Thirty children with disabilities and their teachers participated. Overall, we observed low rates of teacher talk thought to support peer interaction; however, when teachers verbally facilitated peer interaction, children were observed interacting more frequently with peers. Children’s social IEPs accurately reflected their current level of social functioning. However, the social IEPs appeared to fail to influence teacher intervention. Finally, children with disabilities in inclusive settings interacted with peers more than children in segregated settings, even though there was no significant difference in amount of teacher talk in the two settings.     

Does task-focused versus task-avoidance behavior matter for literacy development in an orthographically consistent language?

We examined the importance of children’s classroom activity, defined as task-focused versus task-avoidance behavior, on different literacy outcomes in an orthographically consistent language. Greek children (n = 95) were tested in kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2 on measures of general cognitive ability, phonological awareness, RAN, and short-term memory. The teachers of the children also assessed their task-focused behavior. Nonword decoding, reading fluency, spelling, and reading comprehension measures were administered in grades 2 and 3. The results indicated that task-focused behavior accounted for unique variance in spelling and reading comprehension, even after controlling for the effects of autoregressor, non-verbal IQ, and phonological processing.     

The effects of CD-ROM storybook reading on Israeli children’s early literacy as a function of age group and repeated reading

The effects of reading a CD-ROM storybook on children’s early literacy were examined as a function of their age group and the number of times they used the software. The investigation was carried out on 214 children: 108 pre-kindergarten children (aged 4:2 to 5:3) and 106 kindergarten children (aged 5:3–6:4). This population included 107 girls and 107 boys. The children in each group were randomly assigned to one of three groups. The first intervention group was afforded three CD-ROM storybook reading sessions. The second group was afforded five reading sessions and the third group served as a control and was afforded the regular kindergarten program. Pre- and post-intervention early literacy measures included vocabulary, word recognition and phonological awareness. No age group differences were found between the children’s early literacy progress after using the software and no interaction was found between age group and the number of reading sessions. Children from both age groups exhibited a similar level of story comprehension. Children who used the software five times exhibited greater progress in word meaning than those who used it three times and children in both of these groups did better than the control group. Children who used the software five times exhibited greater progress in word reading and phonological awareness than children in the control group. Implications for future research and education are discussed.