Predictors of portable technology adoption intentions to support elementary children reading

Much attention has focused on technology acceptance in the classroom, with little investigation into how parents make decisions about their children’s use of portable technology to support reading development in the home. Applying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology, this study identifies predictors of parents portable technology adoption intentions to support children’s reading development in the home. Participants were parents from two elementary schools within 46 classrooms in the southeastern United States. Phase one of data collection included 120 parents who responded to a validated survey that identified predictors and behavioral intention to adopt technology. The regression model explained 64% of parents have intentions to use portable technology to develop their children’s reading skills, with social influence and attitude as the most important predictors. Surveys indicated 99% of children used portable technology to support reading in the home, therefore phase two included explanatory interviews to examine adoption predictors. Interview data specified social influence ensued from the child’s school and parent community; attitude resulted from children’s affinity to use technology. Though parents’ intentions indicated continued portable technology use, parents preferred their child read print books. Interview data also revealed parents perceived an increase in performance expectancy when their child used portable technology. This study highlights the need for teachers and school administrators to be cognizant of educational requests on home learning, influences of the broader parent community on parent intentions to adopt educational technology, and children’s enjoyment reading with portable technology.     

Epilepsy in school‐aged children: more than just seizures?

Epilepsy is the most common neurological disorder in childhood and can have a significant impact on a child's schooling. Children with epilepsy may have special educational needs due to having learning disability, specific learning difficulties, specific cognitive deficits or having symptoms associated with ASD, ADHD, depression or anxiety. These difficulties are often under‐recognised due to the emphasis placed on the management of seizures. The effects of seizures and side‐effects of anti‐epileptic medications (AEDs) can also influence classroom learning. The significant stigma associated with epilepsy can influence attitudes towards affected children and impact on self‐esteem. Interventions to support children with epilepsy should focus on epilepsy management, learning and behavioural interventions and whole‐school psychosocial interventions. Epilepsy is a spectrum condition and for some children the effects on schooling will be minimal but for others significant supports will be needed. Therefore, an individualised approach within the school environment and close collaboration between teachers, parents and medical professionals are essential in order to meet the children's needs.     

Current Research on Child Maltreatment: Implications for Educators

The increasing rate of child abuse and neglect is a special concern for educators who are legally mandated reporters of suspected maltreatment, are often the first to identify and refer children who have been harmed, are in contact with parents and are aware of the family conditions contributing to child maltreatment, and who must often work closely with other professionals in their efforts to support child victims and prevent further abuse. Moreover, children's emotional or behavioral problems, learning disabilities, or other difficulties often reflect broader problems that are associated with abuse or neglect. Consequently, understanding the causes and consequences of child maltreatment, and contemporary child protection efforts, is essential to educators in their efforts to assist victimized children. This article surveys current research on child maltreatment with particular attention to the challenges of child protection, the multidimensionality of child maltreatment (distinguishing physical abuse, physical neglect, sexual abuse, and psychological maltreatment), and hopeful new avenues for prevention. The implications of this research for educational professionals are emphasized.     

Classroom-to-Home Connections: Young Children's Experiences With a Technology-Based Parent Involvement Tool

Research Findings: DVD classroom newsletters are one proposed technology tool to promote classroom-to-home connections. The present study explored the experiences of prekindergarten children from predominantly Spanish-speaking homes with bilingual (English and Spanish) DVD classroom newsletters. On average, parents reported that children watched each DVD nearly 3 times. Interviews with children and other sources, including parent logs, teacher logs, and a teacher focus group, also captured children's experiences. Findings indicate that children have overall positive experiences with watching DVD classroom newsletters at home. Practice or Policy: Overall the findings support the use of DVD newsletters in prekindergarten programs as a way to create an opportunity to empower children, strengthen their digital literacy, extend the learning environment, and provide opportunities for meaningful conversations in the classroom and home.     

Findings from a Pre-kindergarten Classroom: Making the Case for STEM in Early Childhood Education

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in early childhood education is an area currently given little attention in the literature, which is unfortunate since young children are natural scientists and engineers. Here, we outline our mixed-methods design-based research investigation of a pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) classroom where two early childhood educators are incorporating STEM activities. We used a protocol consisting of a list of potential characteristics of effective and appropriate STEM curriculum for young children to structure our classroom observations. We also used semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and a questionnaire to collect data from multiple stakeholders (teachers, students, and parents), to examine how STEM activities were incorporated in Pre-K, to explore students’ engagement with STEM concepts, and to investigate parents’ opinions about STEM in general and STEM as experienced by their children. Our findings provide support for the inclusion of STEM-based learning experiences for young children.     

Parent perceptions of the integration transition process; overcoming artificial barriers

The parents of 14 students with disabilities participated in interviews to evaluate the support they received during their child's transition to an integrated educational placement, to explore their concerns, and to discuss the effects of integration. Although parents identified areas of concern, they consistently expressed satisfaction regarding the outcomes of integrating their child, including professional and personal support. Responses emphasized the importance of commitment from local school districts and professionals, an individualized approach to parent involvement, and ongoing communication with parents.     

Parental Involvement in Children’s Learning: The Case of Cochlear Implantation—Parents as Educators?

Extensive research emphasises the importance of parental involvement for children’s learning and academic achievement. This paper reports from a Norwegian study researching parents’ experiences on follow-up after their child’s cochlear implantation. Within this context, parental involvement is suggested to be of major importance for the child’s language learning. The study explores the parents’ talk on their involvement in the child’s language after implantation. Data consist of 27 written parental accounts and interviews with 14 of these parents. The analysis shows the parents’ extensive involvement in the child’s language learning. The study brings into conversation how understandings of learning influence parental involvement, leading to implications for the parents and children involved. It addresses a need for debate on how parents can support children’s learning, whilst avoiding parenthood becoming a series of educational tasks.     

Students with reading difficulties/dyslexia: a longitudinal Swedish example

The aim of this study was to investigate the longitudinal development of students having difficulties with reading and their decoding ability in Swedish compulsory school. Another aim was to relate this to the experiences of educational activities expressed by students and parents. The decoding ability was assessed by a word chain test given at three occasions and was compared with results on a letter chain test. Retrospective interviews were performed with students and parents. The decoding ability tended to improve for most of the students over time, although some of them failed to improve or even decreased their scores, indicating a lack of environmental adjustment. Special educational support was according to students and parents organised in small and often very heterogeneous groups where the students sometimes received adequate support but often felt deviant from friends in their regular classes. The responsibility for helping the children with their schoolwork was allocated to the parents. Research in this area demonstrates the necessity of a well‐structured and stimulating learning situation. Yet, the development of these students’ decoding abilities, personal experiences, and parental involvement indicate that competence and resources at school regarding children at risk for developing reading difficulties are often lacking in the Swedish educational system.     

Parental perspectives and challenges in inclusive education in Singapore

Relatively little work has focused on inclusive education in Singapore. This study examines the experiences and perceptions of parents whose children with disabilities are attending mainstream secondary schools in Singapore. Data was drawn from interviews with 13 parents of children with mild disabilities. Our findings reveal that parental perspective on inclusive education in Singapore is not only about classroom support but also reflects a deeper concern about whether their children with disabilities will emerge from school as contributing individuals in society. While parents strive to effectively include their children with disabilities in mainstream classrooms, there were dichotomies in their (1) understanding of disabilities, (2) expectations of school support, and (3) expectations for their child with disabilities. Given that academic and social prowess is a critical prerequisite to have a shot at entering the meritocratic Singapore society, the tension parents experience is to gauge a reasonable amount of pressure to exert on their children, the school and themselves as they assert their children's educational entitlements within an imperfect but evolving state of inclusion.     

Classroom behaviour management strategies in response to problematic behaviours of primary school children with special educational needs: views of special educational needs coordinators

Children identified with special educational needs (SEN) and behavioural difficulties present extra challenges to educators and require additional supports in school. This paper presents views from special educational needs coordinators (SENCos) on various strategies used by educators to support children identified with SEN and problematic behaviours. The data were collected from telephone interviews with six SENCos from the UK’s South West Peninsula. The SENCos were invited to participate because their school was participating in a cluster-randomised trial of a teacher classroom management course (Incredible Years). Using thematic analysis to analyse the data, this paper illustrates strategies deemed by SENCos to be successful in the support of children identified with SEN. The management strategies generated by participating SENCos were then mapped onto those taught as part of the classroom management course for comparison. Findings indicate that strategies from the training programme appear to be appropriate for children identified with both SEN and behavioural difficulties.     

CLASSROOMS AND CULTURE: THE ROLE OF CONTEXT IN SHAPING MOTIVATION AND IDENTITY FOR SCIENCE LEARNING IN INDIGENOUS ADOLESCENTS

Many rural indigenous communities rely on science knowledge and innovation for survival and economic advancement, which requires community members to be motivated for learning science. Children in these communities have been viewed by some as unmotivated due to their low science achievement as they progress in school, particularly into majority secondary schools. Current theories of motivation, such as achievement goal theory, take classroom context into account when examining individual motivation. However, motivational climate can also be considered as tightly woven with the cultural and social practices of a community rather than individual perception. In this study, researchers spent time in two indigenous villages observing classrooms, participating in community events, and talking with community members. During those visits, Attayal/Sediq children in Taiwan (n?=?18) and Mopan Mayan children in Belize (n?=?18) participated in three semi-structured interviews about their experience learning science in school, home, and community. Results indicate that motivation for learning science is closely linked with their identity as science learners. Three themes emerged to illuminate how social practices may or may not support individual identity, and consequently motivation, for learning science—student/teacher relationships, support for learning, and motivational climate. Differences between children in Taiwan and Belize are explored. Implications for motivation theory, educational practice, and policy are discussed.     

Choosing a secondary school for young people on the autism spectrum: a multi-informant study

Deciding on a secondary school for children with autism is notoriously difficult for parents. While current UK legislation emphasises the choice that parents of children with special educational needs should have in educational decision-making, there is a dearth of research in this area, which means that little is known about how parents come to make decisions about secondary school placements and the types of support, if any, they receive from professionals. The present study aimed to determine the factors that immediately influence secondary school choice for young people with autism in one London local authority from the perspectives of multiple informants. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of children with autism (n?=?7), young people themselves prior to secondary school entry (n?=?6), parent advisors (n?=?5) and secondary school professionals (n?=?5). Parents emphasised the anxiety and burden of the decision-making process. There was, however, substantial agreement among adult groups on the factors necessary for a successful secondary school placement: a nurturing, flexible and inclusive environment that emphasised both academic and life skills. Few adults, however, mentioned the importance of children's social relationships – a factor that featured prominently in the reports of young people. These findings highlight both the different perceptions of those involved in making decisions about the educational placements of children with autism and the challenges associated with weighing up these potentially conflicting perspectives. More work is needed to ensure both that information is transparent and accessible to all parents and that young people are actively involved in decisions that ultimately affect their lives.     

Feel the Quality

abstract

Learning through conversation constitutes a simple form of pedagogy which has received a great deal of rhetorical but little serious attention, certainly with regard to children of school age. This paper first examines research on preschool children conversing with their parents or carers which serves to highlight the vital role of dialogue in early intellectual development; conversational learning also appears to be crucial for the success of programmes designed to accelerate early learning. Conversational learning is necessarily curtailed when children start school. Nevertheless, a number of indicators have recently emerged which suggest that conversational learning loses little, if any, of its potency as children grow older. These include studies in which researchers talk to individual children in the classroom, experimental studies of adult‐guided learning and the experience of parents who educate their children at home. Peer‐tutoring and cooperative learning are considered.     

Blame,guilt and the need for ‘labels’; insights from parents of children with special educational needs and educational practitioners

Previous research on home–school relationships and blame has concentrated on the experiences of parents with children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD). This has led to the voices of educational practitioners, as well as parents of children with other special educational needs, being neglected. This article, by Karen Broomhead of Lancaster University, details part of a larger study examining socio‐emotional aspects of home–school relationships between parents of children with special educational needs and educational practitioners. The study reported in this article explored perceptions of blame via semi‐structured interviews with 15 educational professionals and 22 parents of children with various special educational needs. The findings reveal that parental experiences of blame and guilt were influenced by the nature of their children's special educational needs, which consequently influenced parental focus on obtaining ‘labels’ of special educational needs for their children. The implications of these findings for educational practitioners are discussed.     

Teachers' attitudes to signing for children with severe learning disabilities in Indonesia

The Indonesian education system is striving for an inclusive approach and techniques are needed which can support children with severe learning disabilities and their peers in this context. Manually signed language has proved useful both in supporting the development and empowerment of children with severe learning disabilities and supporting inclusive educational practices. The development of an Indonesian signed language approach for this purpose is therefore argued to be an appropriate goal. There is evidence that the use of signed language within classrooms is significantly influenced by teacher attitudes and beliefs. This paper examines the attitudes towards such an approach based on semi-structured interviews with 20 teachers in 7 schools in East Java and questionnaire responses from 69 teachers and educational professionals more widely located across Indonesia. The results suggest that teachers hold broadly positive attitudes to the possibility of signing. There is a complex relationship between social stigmatisation, the nature of signing and a possible classroom pedagogy. These issues need to be considered if the development of an Indonesian signed language approach for inclusive classrooms is to proceed successfully.     

When two elephants fight the grass suffers: Parents and teachers working together to support the literacy development of Sudanese youth

Reading achievement and academic challenges of Sudanese children were investigated. Sudanese parents, and their children, and English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers were interviewed. Parents' and children's interviews were transcribed and four themes were generated from the data: Cultural Differences/Practices; Parent roles and expectations; Home–school relationships/interactions; Teacher expectations and practices. Results reflect the willingness of Sudanese parents to work with teachers; the need for teachers to form strong parent–teacher relationships; and for teacher practices that support students' literacy within the classroom context. Teacher interviews were used to provide a better understanding of Sudanese home–school relationships and educational issues.     

Pupil involvement in special educational needs disagreement resolution: a parental perspective

Recent international and Governmental policy has identified the need for all public services and professionals involved with children to take into account the children's views, needs and wishes, when making decisions about their care and educational provision. This is of particular importance in the context of special educational needs disagreement resolution. This article reports on a small scale preliminary study carried out in January 2004, focusing upon parental perspectives of pupil involvement in SEN disagreement resolution. Ten parents of children with SEN were interviewed using a semi‐structured interview schedule, addressing their experience of the disagreement resolution process and the extent and nature to which their child was involved. Whilst it is acknowledged that the sample in this study was small, and thus may be regarded as tentative and preliminary, a thematic analysis of the content of the interviews indicated that children are not directly involved in informal disagreement resolution meetings. Most notably the parents report that they are unclear about the process and rules about directly involving children. Where children are involved, their views are given indirectly and in most cases their views are only presented by the parents. The authors make several recommendations for enhancing pupil participation in SEN mediation arrangements including, making the overall process more transparent and perhaps having a child advocate who could ensure that the child's views are represented in a way that is suitable to the particular needs of each child.     

Pakistani Teachers’ Perceptions of Kindergarten Children’s Learning: An Exploration of Understanding and Practice

This paper considers perceptions of children’s learning and classroom practice to support learning in the Pakistani early years educational context. In Pakistan, there is a growing focus on quality provision of early childhood education and building early childhood education teacher capacity. Over the course of one academic year, data were collected from kindergarten teachers in a Pakistani urban school through interviews and classroom observations as part of a larger study. Findings presented in this paper are based on the interview data of two teachers in the sample, a novice and an experienced teacher. Data analysis examined their perceptions of kindergarten children’s learning and of their practice to support kindergarten children’s learning, taking into consideration the gender perspective. The results showed tensions in the teachers’ perceptions which contrasted between a constructivist approach and a teacher-directed skills approach. Perceptions of their practice reflected a formal, teacher-directed approach rather than a constructivist approach and a teacher-directed skills approach to teaching. Several factors, including deep-rooted perceptions as well as curriculum structure, time, number of staff and resources, contributed to this.     

Attitudes of Greek parents of primary school children without special educational needs to inclusion

Successful inclusion of children with special educational needs (SEN) in school settings depends largely on the attitudes of parents of peers without SEN. The purpose of the present study was to explore the attitudes of Greek parents of primary school children without SEN towards inclusion. The participants were 338 parents (182 fathers, 156 mothers), aged 27 to 58 years (mean age = 39 years and 5 months). They were asked to complete the My thinking about inclusion scale and a further short questionnaire. The findings revealed that Greek parents of primary school children not identified as having SEN had an overall positive attitude towards inclusion. Gender differences were also established—fathers held more positive attitudes towards inclusion than mothers, even when controlling for age, educational level and the presence of a child with SEN in their child’s classroom. However, mothers were overall more willing than fathers to engage themselves and their child in interaction with a child with SEN.     

Teachers’ Perceptions of Teacher–Child Relationships: Links With Children’s Observed Interactions

Research Findings: The present study examined associations between children’s classroom interactions and teachers’ perceptions of teacher–child relationships during 1 year of preschool. Teachers (n = 223) reported their perceptions of closeness and conflict in their teacher–child relationships in the fall and spring. Children’s (n = 895) positive classroom interactions with teachers, peers, and learning activities and their negative interactions were observed midyear. Children’s positive interactions with teachers and learning activities predicted teachers’ perceptions of more closeness in the spring when we accounted for fall closeness. Children’s negative interactions predicted teachers’ perceptions of more relational conflict in the spring when we accounted for fall conflict. Children’s positive peer interactions did not predict spring closeness or conflict. Implications regarding teachers’ perceptions of teacher–child relationships and children’s independently observed classroom interactions are discussed. Practice or Policy: Findings provide empirical evidence for an aspect of Pianta, Hamre, and Stuhlman’s (2003) conceptual model of teacher–child relationships. Results indicate that children’s classroom interactions may be a factor related to how teachers report on their relationships with children across 1 year of preschool. Findings point to links between a range of children’s positive and negative interactions during typical instruction and teachers’ relationship perceptions.