Challenges and barriers to Austrian early childhood educators' participation in online professional development programmes

Online professional development programmes have a long tradition in adult education. However, in early childhood education, such programmes are only just beginning to be developed. Before online professional development courses can be made inclusive, accessible and widely available to early childhood educators, they must meet a few basic requirements. The present study provides insights into essential aspects that need to be considered when setting up online professional development programmes, a field which is still in its infancy in Austria. The results of a representative survey (n = 317) demonstrated that early childhood educators' digital competencies are highly variable and cannot be taken for granted. The survey results also stress the need to provide educators with functional digital devices appropriate to their work environment. Early childhood educators' interest in online professional development programmes is very high, in recognition of the advantages afforded by flexible participation options independent of users' time constraints or location. The development of attractive, compelling and accessible online professional development courses can contribute to current professionalisation efforts in the field of early childhood education.

Practitioner notes

What is already known about this topic

• Online professional development has already a very long tradition in the field of adult vocational training but not in Early Childhood Education.
• The possibility of attending online professional development programmes independent of a participant's time constraints or location is viewed as a particularly beneficial advantage.
• Online professional development programmes positively affect the professionalisation of educators. For this reason, they must increasingly be integrated into the field of early childhood education.

What this paper adds

• In the field of early childhood education in German-speaking regions, online professional development training courses are only beginning to be developed.
• This paper examines the challenges and barriers for early childhood educators associated with implementing online professional development programmes for early childhood educators.
• The survey was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic and includes current data on the ongoing digitalisation boom.

Implications for practise and/or policy

• Online professional development courses should not be understood as competition for conventional face-to-face programmes. Instead, they act as a useful supplement.
• Media competencies are a fundamental prerequisite for everyday professional life—early childhood educators need functional media devices, stable internet connections, and support structures in IT and computer literacy.
• Early childhood educators require effective instruction in using online professional development programmes to expand online professional development programmes in their field. They must also address compelling topics in early childhood education relevant to educators' practise.

     

An Examination of Resilience Processes in Context: The Case of Tasha

This research examined resilience processes in context through a narrative case study of Tasha, a young African-American woman who grew up in a poverty-ridden area of a mid-sized city in the Southeast. Personal and external data are analyzed and interpreted in terms of contextually defined themes of adversity (i.e., intersectionality of social identities, lack of attachment to her primary caregiver, and teenage pregnancy); adaptation (i.e., high school graduation, career goal-setting, commitment to her children, and “street” competence); and, protective processes (i.e., individual attributes, natural mentors, and extended family support). The importance of external sources of support and Tasha as an active agent in her development is highlighted. Research and practical implications are discussed.     

Evaluation of the 2000 and 2001 Rhode Island early childhood summer institutes

Abstract

This article presents the theoretical basis and methods for the process and outcome evaluations of the Rhode Island Early Childhood Summer Institutes held in 2000 and 2001. The article also discusses the evaluation results that demonstrated the institutes were received as high‐quality inservice professional development programs in which participants made significant knowledge gains. Additionally, the influence of the evaluations on the institute programs held in 2000 and 2001 as well as the impacts on the planning of future institutes are described. These evaluation studies can serve as models to others planning evaluations of professional development programs. © 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.     

BOOK REVIEW

The number of positive youth development (PYD) programs focusing on providing opportunities for optimal development has grown tremendously in recent years (Catalano, Berglund, Ryan, Lonczak, &; Hawkins, 2004 Catalano, R. F., Berglund, M. L., Ryan, J. A., Lonczak, H. S. and Hawkins, J. D. 2004. Positive youth development in the United States: Research findings on evaluation of positive youth development programs. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 591: 98–124. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Larson and Walker (2010) Larson, R. W. and Walker, K. C. 2010. Dilemmas of practice: Challenges to program quality encountered by youth program leaders. American Journal of Community Psychology, 45: 338–349. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] assert that it is important to understand challenges program leaders face when implementing programs and strategies they use to overcome such challenges. However, little research or discussion in the literature has focused on the everyday challenges of implementing youth programs. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to present four case studies of programs implemented in four different countries designed to enhance the psychosocial development of underserved youth using the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Model and/or life skills framework. Each case study is presented with a forthright discussion of the challenges faced and the strategies implemented to overcome these challenges. In addition, we offer potential strategies for furthering collaboration with nongovernmental organizations, enhancing program implementation, and transferring program ownership.     

What difference do role models make? Investigating outcomes at a residential environmental education center

Role models may be essential in helping students develop environmental literacy and characteristics associated with positive youth development (PYD). We examine the identities of middle school students’ self-reported role models before, immediately after, and three months following an immersive 5-day residential environmental education (EE) experience that targets environmental responsibility, character development and leadership, and attitudes toward school as programmatic outcomes. We explore whether students who identified different types of role models score differently on these factors. Students who identified parents, teachers, and pastors as role models scored higher on each of these outcomes. Moreover, who students identified as role models changed significantly after the EE program. We discuss the potential influence of the program on role model development and implications for EE and PYD programs.     

The Reality of Sustaining Community-Based Sport and Physical Activity Programs to Enhance the Development of Underserved Youth: Challenges and Potential Strategies

Many community-based sport and physical activity programs take a positive youth development approach when operating in underserved communities around the world (Forneris, Whitley, & Barker, 2013). However, one of the biggest challenges for these programs is sustainability (Lindsey, 2008). The purpose of this article is to present the 3 authors’ experiences related to program sustainability when working with community-based sport and physical activity programs using a positive youth development approach in underserved communities. The authors describe the challenges faced with program sustainability, including ineffective development approaches, building strong relationships with community partners, knowledge translation, and securing funding. Also described are the strategies used to overcome these challenges, such as planning, capacity building, recruitment, and evaluation. This article is intended to stimulate more open and honest discussions about the realities of positive youth development program sustainability around the world.     

Processing speed in childhood and adolescence: longitudinal models for examining developmental change

The primary aim of the present study was to examine longitudinal models to determine the function that best describes developmental change in processing speed during childhood and adolescence. In one sample, children and adolescents (N= 503) were tested twice over an average interval of 2 years on two psychometric measures of processing speed: Visual Matching and Cross Out. In another sample, children and adolescents (N= 277) were tested four times, every 6 months, on Cross Out. Age-related changes in performance on both tasks were examined using six longitudinal models representing different hypotheses of growth. Linear, hyperbolic, inverse regression, and transition models yielded relatively poor fit to the data; the fit of the exponential and quadratic models was substantially better. The heuristic value of these latter models is discussed.     

Longitudinally foretelling drug usage in adolescence: early childhood personality and environmental precursors

Drug usage in early adolescence (age 14) was related to concurrent and preschool personality characteristics for a sample of 54 girls and 51 boys. The personality concomitants and antecedents of drug use differed somewhat as a function of gender and the drug used. At age 14, for both sexes, the use of marijuana was related to ego undercontrol, while the use of harder drugs reflected an absence of ego-resiliency, with undercontrol also a contributing factor. At ages 3/4, subsequent adolescent drug usage in girls related to both undercontrol and lower ego-resiliency. In boys, adolescent drug usage related strongly, during their nursery school years, to undercontrol and with resiliency having no long-term implications. Early family environment related to adolescent drug usage in girls but not in boys. Drug usage in adolescent girls was related to homes earlier identified as unstructured and laissez-faire, where there was little pressure to achieve. Drug usage related to other substance use and, in boys, to IQ decline from age 11 to age 18. Implications of these results for contemporary views regarding adolescent drug usage are discussed.     

Developing the next generation of engaged youth: Inspire Aspire – Global Citizens in the Making

School-based character education (CE) programs provide an opportunity to increase the moral fortitude of adolescents. This study is a preliminary evaluation of Inspire Aspire, a CE program that was implemented with 13- to 14-year-olds in Scotland. A relational developmental systems meta-theoretical approach and person-centered analyses were employed to understand whether teacher implementation variability is associated with student outcomes. The study aimed to: assess variation in program implementation across teachers; assess student poster quality, which served as a youth outcome measure; and, assess the relationship between variations in program implementation and poster quality. Teachers who fully integrated Inspire Aspire with the broader curriculum (as opposed to using it as a standalone program) as well as teachers who made more modifications to Inspire Aspire tended to have students with higher quality posters. This finding stands in contrast to the common narrative regarding evidence-based programs that requires teachers to strictly adhere to program guidelines in order to maintain implementation fidelity.     

一块金币的两面:师范性和学术性之争何时休--兼论综合性大学教师培养的专业性

学术性与师范性之争是综合性大学教师培养的“斯可尼芬”之迷。怎样解答这个争论百年的“热门话题”呢?只有坚持和提倡教师专业化,把二者作为教师专业性———这一块金币的两面,才能促进问题的解决,也才能促进教师专业的发展。教师培养的学术性与师范性实际是教师专业性的两个极端,在两极之间有许多中间状态,不同时期可以根据社会、经济、文化等因素和培养目标的不同而有所侧重。可以通过大学化、专业发展学校、案例教学、建立专业学院等措施,促进综合性大学教师培养的专业性的发展。     

Exploring the role of religion and spirituality in the development of purpose: case studies of purposeful youth

This study investigated the role of spirituality and religion in supporting purpose during adolescence. Two case studies of adolescents who were coded as purposeful in the religious and/or spiritual domain as part of a larger study at the Stanford Centre on Adolescence were analysed and discussed. The results showed religion and spirituality as overlapping domains with authenticity to self as expressed though spirituality as a distinguishing factor between the two cases. Authenticity fosters one of the key elements of purpose – meaningfulness to the self – but only if done with equal attention to the world beyond the self.     

Experience of sexual abuse in childhood and abortion in adolescence and early adulthood

ObjectiveThe present study examined the associations between the experience of sexual abuse in childhood (CSA) and the number of abortions in adolescence and early adulthood.MethodA 25-year prospective longitudinal study of the health, development, and adjustment of a birth cohort of 1,265 New Zealand children (630 females). Measures included assessments of experience of CSA using retrospective data gathered at ages 18 and 21, self-reported abortions from ages 15 to 25, measures of childhood socio-economic disadvantage, family stability, family functioning, experience of childhood physical abuse, and pregnancy in adolescence and early adulthood.ResultsSeverity of CSA experience was significantly (p < .01) associated with an increasing rate of abortions during ages 15–25. Adjustment of the association for potentially confounding factors from childhood reduced the magnitude of the association, but it remained marginally statistically significant (p < .10). However, controlling for the mediating effects of pregnancy risk in adolescence and early adulthood reduced the association between experience of CSA and abortion to statistical non-significance (p > .70).ConclusionsThe current study suggested that the association between experience of CSA and increased rates of abortion was mediated by the increased rates of pregnancy associated with CSA experiences. The results suggest a causal chain in which experience of CSA leads to increased rates of pregnancy, which in turn leads to increased rates of abortion.     

Character in context: Character structure among United States Military Academy cadets

ABSTRACT

Research about the structure of character has largely assessed purported universal attributes. However, character develops within specific social, cultural and institutional contexts. As part of the first wave of a longitudinal study (Project Arete) of character development among cadets at the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, an institution with a core mission to develop leaders of character, we examined the factor structure of a set of 15 character attributes of specific relevance to the West Point context. Data were derived from self-report surveys (N = 1,549; 75.6% men) completed in spring 2017. Results of exploratory factor analysis (EFA) identified a 4-factor structure of character: Relational, Commitment, Honor and Machiavellian and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) provided evidence for the validity and measurement equivalence of the factors. We discuss implications for promoting and assessing character within the context of USMA and other institutions seeking to develop leaders of character.     

积极心理学理论下心理健康课堂的定位与特质

就心理健康教育而言,方法和途径尽管多种多样,但心理健康教育的主渠道始终是课堂教学。根据积极心理学理论,建构致力于培养学生积极人格的心理健康课堂,是开展积极心理健康教育的重中之重。积极心理学理论下的心理健康课堂需定位于学生积极品质的开发与培养,具备追求积极的课堂价值取向,活动导向的课堂教学思维,直通生活的课堂教学内容,正向多元的课堂反馈机制的课堂特质。     

字符方式下的汉字显示及实现

本文提出了一种独特的汉字显示方法。利用EGA／VGA以上显示卡提供活动字库的原理，将常规字样集替代以汉字点阵信息，从而实现在DOS字符方式下进行汉字显示。     

谈体育运动与青少年个性发展

通过说明体育与发展个性的关系 ,分析了促进个性形成和发展的体育因素 ,提出了体育中促进个性形成与发展的方法。认为体育科学 ,作为教育的一个重要组成部分 ,它对青少年个性的形成与发展有着积为重要的促进作用。     

电视娱乐节目主持人个性魅力缺失及培养

现代荧屏上大大小小的电视娱乐节目带给观众精神上愉悦,但部分主持人在尽情展现才华的同时也显示出个性魅力的缺失:将受众引向有偏差的价值判断;语言粗俗、易生歧义、不规范;“克隆”现象严重,主持缺乏创意等。提高节目主持人自身的政治理论素养、知识修养、语言修养、树立正确的审美观等几个方面是解决制约娱乐节目发展的瓶颈问题的关键。     

儿童文学创作的共性与个性

儿童文学创作既有文学创作的共性，也有儿童文学创作的个性。儿童文学创作的共性是，它和成人文学创作一样，也是主体和对象的和谐统一、生命融合。儿童文学创作的个性是由儿童文学的作者和读者的不一致性（主要是读者的特殊性）决定的，儿童文学是成人写给儿童看的文学，读者（儿童）的心理特征、接受程度和审美水平，在一定程度上制约着儿童文学创作。儿童文学创作的个性主要表现在创作主体的二重性、创作对象的限定性、文学形象的特殊性、创作风格的空灵性、语言表达的浅近性等几个方面。     

军事武术的社会特征及其发展对策

以辩证唯物方法论为理论基础，采用文献资料、专家访问等研究方法，对中国军事武术发展的历史主线及时代背景进行研究，解读了军事武术的社会特征，剖析了军事武术的发展对策等。     

Cultural and linguistic diversity in early childhood teacher preparation: The impact of contextual characteristics on coursework and practica

The population of children in early childhood settings is becoming increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse, and these changes in demographics have warranted teachers becoming more culturally responsive and better prepared to work with diverse young children and families. Teacher preparation programs across the nation have responded differently to this critical issue, in part because of the different contexts in which they exist. Analyses were conducted using data from the National Prekindergarten Center’s (NPC) National Study of Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Programs and the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) Integrated Post-Secondary Education Dataset (IPEDS). Geographical, program, and institutional characteristics were analyzed from a sample of 416 Bachelor’s degree programs to determine how these variables were associated with the amount of diversity content and experience required in teacher preparation programs. Results indicated that the presence of non-White full-time faculty was positively related to more required coursework focused on working with children and families from culturally diverse backgrounds, while degree of urbanization, governance of institutions, and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education accreditation were associated with required coursework focused on working with bilingual children and English language learners. The percentage of the non-Hispanic White population in a state and geographic region were both associated with practica requirements focused on working with bilingual children and English language learners. Implications and recommendations for policy, future research, and early childhood teacher preparation are discussed.