Moving house for education in the pre‐school years

This paper uses data from the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) to examine house moves that take place in the pre‐school years, focusing on families who move for the education of their children. We present results showing that education‐ related house moves do indeed occur in the pre‐school years with particular types of parents making these education‐related moves to ensure their children attend a good primary school. We then examine whether this demand for high quality schooling is associated with a house price premia by linking the MCS data to Land Registry data and show that parents are prepared to pay significantly more to buy a house located near to better performing primary schools, even before their children reach school starting age. We interpret this as evidence of demand for school quality in the early years as parents (especially more educated and advantaged parents) ‘gear up’ their quest for what they perceive to be better schooling for their children before they start school.     

Three‐year results of the Friendly Schools whole‐of‐school intervention on children's bullying behaviour

A group randomized controlled trial tested the efficacy of the Friendly Schools program to reduce student bullying behaviour. This socio‐ecological intervention targeted the whole school, classroom, family, and individual students to reduce bullying behaviour. Self‐report data were collected in 29 schools over three years from a cohort of 1968 eight to nine‐year‐olds. Surveys measured frequency of being bullied, bullying others, telling if bullied and observing bullying. Results indicate that intervention students were significantly less likely to observe bullying at 12, 24 and 36 months and be bullied after 12 and 36 months, and significantly more likely to tell if bullied after 12 months than comparison students. No differences were found for self‐reported perpetration of bullying. The findings suggest whole‐of‐school programs that engage students in their different social contexts appear to reduce their experiences of being bullied and increase their likelihood of telling someone if they are bullied.     

Baby Bear or Mrs Bear? Young English Bengali‐speaking children's responses to narrative picture books at school

This article presents findings from a one‐year study of several Bengali‐speaking children aged 5–6 years, in their first year of the English school system. The investigation centres on exploration of the children's responses, principally to the visual text, of a selection of narrative picture books used in their school. The aim was to collect children's responses to characters and visual features, and to see what narratives the children made from the picture books. The children, some of whom were relatively experienced viewers and narrators of picture‐book stories, produced varied responses to character and décor. The article suggests that the books formed a bridge between the known and the culturally unfamiliar, giving the children access to an understanding of scenes from types of homes other than their own. The author asserts the need to welcome children's versions of stories and their interpretation of pictures, and to allow them the opportunity to re‐read picture books many times.     

Learning How to Learn: Parental ethnotheories and young children's preparation for school

This paper discusses one aspect of the findings from an ethnographic study of the ways in which four-year-old children learn, and are taught, at home and in their Reception class. The children were from two distinctive cultural backgrounds within the same urban neighbourhood: one-half belonged to UK ('Anglo') families, and one-half to families from Bangladesh. They were observed and assessed throughout their first school year, and additional data were collected from interviews with parents, practitioners and the children themselves. Analysis of the data suggested that one way of understanding the variation in the children's experiences was through the ethnotheories, or cultural belief systems, of their home communities--such as their parents' concepts of childhood, and their theories of intelligence and instruction. The paper argues that such differences in children's home preparation have consequences for their school experience, and carry implications for their school providers. The study of parental ethnotheories, therefore, may help to explain, and alleviate, the differences in school achievement of children from diverse backgrounds. However, accessing respondents' personal theories presents both ethical and methodological problems, particularly when the researcher is working with socially disadvantaged groups. La recherche dans les ethnothe´ories parentales, ou dans les syste ¤ mes de croyance culturels, peut contribuer a ¤ notre compre´hension de l'expe´rience scolaire diffe´rentielle et de l'accomplissement des enfants de classes diffe´rentes et de milieux culturels diffe´rents. Cependant, l'acce ¤ s a ¤ les the´ories personnelles des personnes interroge´es, que peut-etre ils sont inconscients de posse´der, pre´sente proble ¤ mes e´thiques et methodologiques, particulie ¤ rement quand les chercheurs travaillent avec des groupes qui sont de´savantage´s socialement. Cet essai pre´sente quelques de´couvertes d'une e´tude ethnographique sur les fac¸ons dans lequelles des enfants de quatre ans apprennent, et sont enseigne´s, a ¤ la maison et dans leur classe de re´ception. La expe´rience d'apprendre a ¤ la maison est diffe´rente pour chacun des 16 enfants, et dans chaque cas est forme´e par les croyances parentales -- en particulier leurs concepts sur l'enfance, et sur les ro´les des parents, et leurs the´ories sur l'intelligence et l'instruction. Ceux-ci refle ¤ tent partiellement la position des familles dans la communaute´ "anglo" ou bangladaise dans leur voisinage partage´. Quand les diffe´rences dans la pre´paration e´ducative des enfants a ¤ la maison sont comprises, il y a des implications e´videntes pour leurs pourvoyeurs d'e´ducation. La investigacio´n sobre las etnoteor L ´as paternales, o sea sobre los sistemas culturales de la creencia, pueden contribuir a nuestra comprensio´n de la experiencia diferencial escolar y del logro de los nin ¨ os de clases y or L ´genes culturales diferentes. Sin embargo, el acceso a las teor L ´as personales de los respondientes, que quizas ellos mismos no son conscientes de poseer, presenta problemas e´ticos as L ´ como tambie´n metodolo´gicos, particularmente cuando los investigadores trabajan con grupos socialmente desventajados. Este ensayo presenta algunas conclusiones de un estudio etnogra´fico sobre el modo en que los nin ¨ os de cuatro an ¨ os de edad aprenden, y se les ensen ¨ a, en casa y en su clase de recepcio´n. La experiencia de aprendisaje en el hogar es diferente para cada uno de los 16 nin ¨ os, y en cada caso esta´ formada por creencias paternales -- en particular sobre sus conceptos de nin ¨ ez, y el rol que juegan los padres, y de sus teor L ´as sobre la inteligencia y la instruccio´n. Estos conceptos reflejan en parte la posicio´n de las familias dentro de la comunidad 'Anglo' o banglades L ´ en su vecindario compartido. Cuando las diferencias en la preparacio´n educativa en el hogar de los nin ¨ os son comprendidas, hay implicaciones evidentes para sus proveedores de escuela.     

The influence of child,family, home factors and pre‐school education on the identification of special educational needs at age 10

The early identification of young children's special educational needs (SEN), as well as the development of specific strategies to support those children identified with special needs, are increasingly recognised as crucial to facilitating good adjustment to school and to ensuring that such children are helped to reach their full potential in education. Using a large national sample of young children in England whose developmental progress was followed up from pre‐school, this study investigates which child, family, home and pre‐school factors can be viewed as risk or protective factors for later SEN‐status at age 10. The experience of high‐quality pre‐school education is shown to reduce the likelihood of a child being identified as experiencing SEN in the long run. Teachers’ assessments of SEN are found to be strongly related to children's reading and mathematics attainment, but other factors also predict SEN, including a child's age within a year group.     

Exploring patterns of Latino/a children's school readiness at kindergarten entry and their relations with Grade 2 achievement

This study contributed to the school readiness literature by taking an intrachild perspective that examined the relations between Latino/a children's school readiness profiles and later academic achievement. Teachers rated the school readiness of 781 Latino/a kindergartners during the first month of school using the Kindergarten Student Entrance Profile (KSEP). Latent class analysis (LCA) examined KSEP profiles across social-emotional, physical, and cognitive domains and identified five distinct school readiness classes that described students’ strengths and weaknesses at kindergarten entry. Among the predictors examined, gender was the only significant difference among the top two readiness classes, with girls less likely to be in the lower of these two classes (OR = 0.38). In addition, children in the bottom three readiness classes were significantly less likely than students in the top readiness class to have preschool experience (ORs = 0.02–0.19) and had significantly lower levels of English proficiency (ORs = 0.51–0.72). Class membership was significantly associated with scores on the Grade 2 California Standards Tests and only the top two readiness classes had reading fluency rates near or above a national benchmark at the end of Grade 2. The variation of early achievement found across readiness classes also showed that considering the pattern of a child's social-emotional and cognitive readiness might enhance school readiness assessment. Implications for integrating universal school readiness screeners within a comprehensive multigating assessment model are also discussed.     

‘Nothing to do’: The impact of poverty on pupils' learning identities within out‐of‐school activities

This article reports the findings of a project funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which explored the participation of children in out‐of‐school recreational activities. The experiences of children living in poverty were compared and contrasted with their more affluent peers. The aim of the project was to explore these out‐of‐school activities as sites of learning and to identify the impact of the children's experiences on the development of individual ‘learning identities’. Through in‐depth interviews with 55 children it was concluded that there were substantial differences in levels of participation and in the learning gained from these activities by two different groups of children, and stages in the development of their different dispositions towards the activities were shown. Attempts to identify the roles occupied by the children within a community of practice led the authors to question the extent to which the terms ‘core’ and ‘periphery’ can adequately account for the activity within such a community.     

The ability to label the letters of the alphabet at school entry: a discussion on its value

The article discusses the main findings of a research project into the development of reading in the first year of school. The research questions were addressed by: 1) assessing the range of literacy development exhibited by 191 children on entry to school; 2) identifying the entry skills that most reliably predict success in reading by the end of the first year of school; and 3) considering the extent to which reception teachers facilitate a mastery of literacy by both capitalising on, and teaching to, each pupil's prior knowledge. The findings from the data related to the first two research questions are the focus of this paper. The analyses showed that the ability to identify and label the letters of the alphabet and to write one's own name at school entry were the most powerful predictors of successful reading by the end of the year. Understandings of the conventions of print, although weaker, still had a positive relationship with reading, both at school entry and at the end of the reception year. An explanation of these findings is offered.     

The effects of documentation on young children's memory

A central aspect of the Reggio approach to early childhood education is documentation, in which educators observe, record, and display children's work. Educational anecdotes and developmental theory suggest that documentation may facilitate children's memory; the current study explored this possibility empirically. Sixty-three preschool/kindergarten children experienced a novel learning event. Two days later, children were reminded with either documentation or worksheets of event details and the factual information that had been presented, or they were not reminded. Three weeks later, children completed a memory interview that included episodic and semantic measures. Children in the documentation and worksheet conditions remembered more factual information than those in the no-reminder condition. Children in the documentation condition produced more on-topic speech than those in the worksheet condition during reminding and a subsequent learning session. Potential benefits of documentation for classroom performance are discussed.     

The impact of a teacher education course on pre‐service teachers' beliefs about inclusion: an international comparison

In this comparative study, the impact of two stand‐alone university courses on pre‐service teachers' attitudes, concerns and teaching efficacy to teach in inclusive classrooms is examined. Twenty‐eight pre‐service teachers (PSTs) from Australia and 60 PSTs from Canada completed a survey at pre‐ and post‐stages of the course. It was found that after completion of the course, Australian participants' attitudes improved, their concerns declined, and they became more confident in their ability to teach in inclusive classrooms. Similarly, Canadian participants' concerns declined and their teaching efficacy improved, but they became more apprehensive about teaching in inclusive classrooms. Relationships among the three variables (attitudes, concerns and teaching efficacy) were examined at pre‐ and post‐test stages for both cohorts to understand how they interacted within each of the two countries. Implications of the findings for teacher education are discussed.     

提升初中生数学文化素养策略分析

数学反映的不仅是一种现实世界的空间形式和数量关系,数学还是一种文化。当前初中生数学教学的形式化、功利化,导致数学文化缺失,针对这些现状,努力提升初中生数学文化素养的策略具有十分重要的现实意义。     

Playing to Learn: an overview of the Montessori Approach with pre‐school children with Autism Spectrum Condition

This article explores some of the literature concerning the effectiveness of the Montessori educational approach for children with ASC within an English school context. Firstly, there is a discussion, including a short historical review, regarding the ideology of inclusion and how it has impacted upon mainstream education. Also, how this can be facilitated using play‐based approaches such as Montessori. Secondly, various models of disability are identified in order to highlight how they have informed societal attitudes towards people with disabilities. There is a brief history of ASC detailing how a child with this disability may be affected on a daily basis and the effectiveness of alternative play‐based educational approaches such as Montessori in helping children with ASC to develop the appropriate skills they need in order to self‐regulate and thus modify their behaviour. Furthermore, the value of play‐based curriculums in supporting a child diagnosed with ASC throughout the learning process is also evaluated. The summary highlights the need for more evidence‐based studies to be undertaken in order to assess whether the Montessori approach is a valid alternative in teaching pre‐school children with ASC.     

Holy Lemons! Learning from children's uses of the Internet in out‐of‐school contexts

The Internet offers new possibilities for engaging with information and is associated with a wide range of literacy practices. National guidance in the United Kingdom on ‘reading the web’, however, has focused largely on the different skills children may need to learn in school to navigate web‐based texts successfully. Here it is argued that much can be learned both about the potential of the web and of the kinds of reading associated with it by examining children's use of the Internet outside school. This article therefore begins with an overview of particular features of on‐screen reading and the different practices and orientations towards knowledge associated with this. It then reports on the use of the Internet out of school by a group of Year 6 children. It explores the purposes for which these children access the Internet, the attitudes and orientations they demonstrate in their approach to web‐based texts, and their own perceptions of what has enabled them to develop as Internet users. This exploration highlights the way that children may experiment and innovate in their use of the Internet out of school, and in doing so demonstrate considerable autonomy. These findings are used to make suggestions for framing and supporting children's Internet use in school.     

The relationship between behavior at school entry and services received in third grade

Recent studies report the cumulative prevalence of behavioral disorders among school‐age children to be second only to anxiety disorders. Unfortunately, by the time behavior has been identified as needing special education services, patterns of disruptive and externalizing behavior have often become unremitting. If at‐risk behavior can be reliably identified at school entry, there is potential to intervene early to reduce severity and chronicity of behavior. Thus, with the aid of a nationally representative sample (n = 17,490), this study aimed to ascertain if teacher‐observed disruptive behavior in kindergarten predicted children’s categorical identification for special education and receipt of behavior goals in their individualized education plans in third grade. Results indicated externalizing behaviors and approaches to learning at school entry, predicted identification with emotional disturbance, and other health impairment due to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in third grade. In addition, externalizing behaviors at school entry increased the likelihood of a child receiving an individualized education plan with an appropriate behavior goal. Self‐control was not a significant predictor of any outcome. Finally, the covariates of sex, reading achievement, and race at school entry were significantly associated with a child’s need for behavior‐related services. Implications for early intervention are discussed.     

The impact of the National Curriculum on teaching methods at a secondary school

This study sought to explore the extent to which the introduction of six National Curriculum subjects (English, Mathematics, Science, Technology, History and Geography) has had an impact on teaching methods. A case study was conducted at one secondary school, which comprised interviews, questionnaires and lesson observations (including video taping for stimulated recall). Particular attention was paid to the National Curriculum Council's guidance concerning the teaching methods to be used in teaching these subjects. The data indicate that most teachers felt their general approach to teaching was based on using a variety of teaching methods and adopting a more active and investigatory approach. They felt this approach had generally been supported by the National Curriculum. However, there was a concern that the content and method of national assessment tests may make it difficult to sustain this emphasis in their approach in future.