关于幼儿园教学活动有效性的思考

一个优秀的、有效的幼儿教学活动应该是以幼儿的发展为本的:教学活动呈现出一种低成本、高效益;内容价值取向好,符合幼儿的年龄特点和学习特点,贴近幼儿生活经验,具有一定的挑战性,促进其发展;以幼儿为学习主体,教师有效促进幼儿主动学习;教学目标全面、具体、清晰、操作性强且达成度高;教师与幼儿之间处于一种真正的交流和沟通状态;教学方式与幼儿的学习方式相匹配;幼儿参与状态是积极、有序、投入的。     

Defensive Behaviors in Infant Rhesus Monkeys: Ontogeny and Context-dependent Selective Expression

We examined the ontogeny of the infant rhesus monkey's defensive behaviors and the ability to modulate them in response to specific environmental cues. Rhesus infants in 4 age groups (N = 8 per group) were briefly separated from their mothers and tested under 3 conditions: alone, in the presence of a human who averted his gaze, and in the presence of a human staring at them. Infants as young as 0 to 2 weeks displayed defensive behaviors but did not selectively respond to the human's presence or direction of gaze. By 9 to 12 weeks of age, infants modulated their responses in relation to the parameters of the threat. At this age, infant rhesus monkeys undergo cognitive and emotional changes associated with brain development similar to those in human infants 7 to 12 months old. This also is the time when human infants engage in complex emotional and behavioral responses to threatening situations. Understanding the development and expression of defensive behaviors in infant monkeys should be applicable to similar issues in emotional development of human infants.     

The role of audition in infant babbling

The traditional belief that audition plays only a minor role in infant vocal development depends upon evidence that deaf infants produce the same kinds of babbling sounds as hearing infants. Evidence in support of this position has been very limited. A more extensive comparison of vocal development in deaf and hearing infants indicates that the traditional belief is in error. Well-formed syllable production is established in the first 10 months of life by hearing infants but not by deaf infants, indicating that audition plays an important role in vocal development. The difference between babbling in the deaf and hearing is apparent if infant vocal sounds are observed from a metaphonological perspective, a view that takes account of the articulatory/acoustic patterns of speech sounds in all mature spoken languages.     

Empowering infants through responsive and intentional play activities

This qualitative case study explored how an infant teacher provided meaningful learning experiences for infants through play and the teacher’s educational rationale behind these experiences. Findings were based on multiple sources of data, including classroom observations (natural observation and videotaped observation) for approximately 12 weeks and a teacher interview. The findings confirmed that infant play is critical for infant learning and development and portrayed the process through which the infant teacher created play spaces for infants and supported infants’ play through both pre-planned, teacher-directed, intentional activities, and child-initiated, emerging play activities. Our study highlighted that the designing of infant play and the learning process needs to be flexible and based on careful observation and reflection in order to meet the rapidly changing needs and interests of a group of infants as well as individual infants.     

Ethnotheories of development and education: A view from different cultures

Cultures differ according to the type of competences adults encourage in infants, the age at which these competences should be acquired and the level of expertise that should be reached (Hess & al., 1980). Consequently, three main criteria are involved in the shaping of the infant’s environment: the age at which some particular behavior are expected, the presume most appropriate time to initiate various activities with the infant, and the beliefs in the possibility of influencing some aspects of development. To discuss this problem we worked on naive conception of development assessed through semi-structured interviews and focussed questionnaires. Data were collected in 3 cultures: French, Bambara (Mali) and Bakongo (Kongo-Brazzaville). The results show that Bambara and Bakongo mothers have clear cut idea of development and relevant educational practices that rely upon traditional and empirical knowledge about the infant. French mothers are greatly influenced by medical and psychological modern knowledge.     

Use of the Bayley Scales to characterize abilities of premature infants

The Bayley Scales of Infant Development were administered to 92 white, middle-class infants, half of them premature and half full-term, at 1 year of age from term to determine whether this instrument is useful in characterizing the abilities of premature infants. Although both full-term and premature infants achieved mental and motor development scores within the average range, full-term infants attained significantly higher scores on both the Mental and Motor Scales. Both groups scored significantly lower on motor than mental functioning; however, the difference was significantly greater for premature infants. As a group, premature infants also evidenced greater variability in their performance on both the Mental and Motor Scales, and they showed greater intra-individual variability in performance of motor ability. Furthermore, premature infants were less likely to succeed on items testing eye-hand coordination, imitation, and vocalization. Preselected perinatal risk variables accounted for a significant amount of variance in both mental and motor ability of premature infants.     

2004～2009年青岛市幼儿体质状况的动态分析

为了解青岛市3-6岁幼儿的体质状况,探讨幼儿体质发展变化的规律及完善国民体质监测网络,对青岛市七区和五市的805名幼儿进行了测试与分析。结果表明：青岛市3-6岁幼儿体质总体状况良好,身体形态方面,男幼儿好于女幼儿,城市幼儿好于农村幼儿,但身体素质发展不平衡,下肢力量和平衡能力有所提高,而上肢力量出现下降。对此,幼儿教师和家长应转变观念,树立＂健康第一＂和教育始于体育的思想,合理安排幼儿的体育活动。     

Education of infants with down syndrome

The early education of infants with Down syndrome has been strongly influenced by studies highlighting the importance of the environment. These studies encouraged the belief that intelligence is not fixed and that early experience is critical to the course of development. Since the origins of a decline in IQ for Down syndrome had been traced to early infancy, it was hoped that early intervention programs might halt or even reverse this decline. The de-institutionalization movement converged with these studies to emphasize the home as a teaching environment and to view the mother as a teacher. It is suggested that the concept of the environment should expand beyond the family and that professionals should consider their own role in terms of the social ecology of the family. The programs need also to address the specific arousal needs of the infant with Down syndrome and to include motivational aspects in addition to cognitive measures when evaluating the effects of infant education.     

幼儿游戏:回归自然与回归生活

游戏是幼儿的存在方式,幼儿以游戏的方式与整个世界建立联系,因此教育以游戏的方式存在也是幼儿教育本身的要求。然而在我们近年来的教育中追求"高大全"和尽善美,外在的强加和过度的人为干预,教育脱离了本真的轨道。农村幼儿园游戏活动实践中,游戏观念与具体行动还存在着一定的差距。因此实践游戏回归自然,首先是精神层面上的回归,教育遵循幼儿成长的自然法则,游戏回归童心,回归生活;其次是物质层面上的回归,游戏环境和材料是幼儿游戏的支架,游戏回归大自然。     

Physiological effects of infant exposure to environmental tobacco smoke: a passive observation study

This study explored infant physiologic responses of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) using a longitudinal passive observation study with a control group. Fifteen smoking and 15 non-smoking mothers were initially contacted in hospital maternity units, with home visits made when their infants were 2, 4, and 6 weeks old. Exposure to ETS was measured using infant urinary nicotine and cotinine levels. The physiologic effects of infant ETS exposure were measured by rectal temperature, pulse rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation. The smoking mothers in this sample were poorer, had less education, and were less likely to be married than the mothers who did not smoke. At birth, the infants of smoking mothers had higher diastolic blood pressure than infants of non-smoking mothers (p < .008). Mothers who smoke cigarettes should be educated that maternal smoking behavior can affect an infant's cardiovascular function. Parents should also be counseled about the risks of smoking in close proximity and/or in an enclosed space with an infant, especially in a motor vehicle.     

To Sign or Not to Sign? The Impact of Encouraging Infants to Gesture on Infant Language and Maternal Mind‐Mindedness

Findings are presented from the first randomized control trial of the effects of encouraging symbolic gesture (or “baby sign”) on infant language, following 40 infants from age 8 months to 20 months. Half of the mothers were trained to model a target set of gestures to their infants. Frequent measures were taken of infant language development and dyadic interactions were scrutinized to assess mind‐mindedness. Infants exposed to gesture did not differ from control conditions on language outcomes; thus, no support was found for previous claims that encouraging gesturing with infants accelerates linguistic development. Microgenetic analysis revealed mothers in the gesture training conditions were more responsive to their infants' nonverbal cues and encouraged more independent action by their infant.     

Infant Motor Development in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Synthesis and Meta-analysis

Studies of infant motor development in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have increased in recent years. This article synthesized this literature through meta-analysis to assess (a) whether infant motor ability differs in ASD relative to neurotypical controls; and (b) whether motor ability and communication are related in infants with ASD. Study 1 aggregated data from 1,953 infants with ASD (ages 3.0–42.0 months), and Study 2 included 890 infants with ASD (age 6.0–42.9 months). Study 1 revealed that infant motor ability differed significantly in ASD compared with neurotypical infants—this difference was robust to variation in measurement and design. Furthermore, this group difference amplified as age increased. Study 2 indicated that within ASD, infant motor ability and communication are related.     

Quality of Center Child Care and Infant Cognitive and Language Development

The relations between quality of center-based child care and infant cognitive and language development were examined in a sample of 79 African-American 12-month-old infants. Both structural and process measures of quality of child care were collected through interviews with the center director and observation of the infant classroom. Results indicated that quality of infant care positively correlated with scores on standardized assessments of cognitive development ( Bayley Scales of Infant Development ), language development (Sequenced Inventory of Communication Development), and communication skills (Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales). In addition, quality of care in child care centers and at home was positively related. Analyses that adjusted for this association between quality of care at home and in child care suggested that the process measure of quality of child care independently related to the infant's cognitive development, and one structural measure, the infant-adult ratio, independently related to the infant's overall communication skills. Neither child nor family factors was found to moderate the association between child care quality and infant development. These findings, in conjunction with the growing child care literature, suggest that researchers and policymakers should focus on how quality of child care can be improved to enhance, not impair, infant development.     

The Value of Vocalizing: Five-Month-Old Infants Associate Their Own Noncry Vocalizations With Responses From Caregivers

The early noncry vocalizations of infants are salient social signals. Caregivers spontaneously respond to 30%–50% of these sounds, and their responsiveness to infants’ prelinguistic noncry vocalizations facilitates the development of phonology and speech. Have infants learned that their vocalizations influence the behavior of social partners? If they have, infants should show an extinction burst in vocalizing when adults temporarily stop responding to infant vocalizations. Thirty‐eight 5‐month‐olds were tested in the still‐face paradigm with an unfamiliar adult. When the adult assumed a still face, infants showed an extinction burst. Thus, 5‐month‐olds have learned the social efficacy of their vocalizations on caregivers’ behavior. Furthermore, the magnitude of 5‐month infants’ extinction bursts predicted their language comprehension at 13 months.     

幼儿游戏治疗中家长介入方式及指导策略研究

游戏治疗是通过解决情绪问题来增强儿童适应性行为的一种有效方式,家长在其过程中有着重要的作用。在幼儿游戏治疗中,家长需要根据情况采取不同的介入方式和指导策略。在间接介入指导中,家长应积极配合治疗师,跟进治疗,观察幼儿行为,适度给予孩子鼓励和支持。在直接介入指导中,可采用玩偶会谈和故事讲述等方式进行干预。家长明确自己的角色和职责定位,端正治疗心态,掌握一定的治疗技巧,有助于矫正并预防孩子的一些行为、情绪问题。     

Infants at Social Risk: Maternal Depression and Family Support Services as Mediators of Infant Development and Security of Attachment

31 infants at high social risk due to the combined effects of poverty, maternal depression, and caretaking inadequacy were assigned to weekly home-visiting services. At 18 months infant age, the home-visited infants were compared with 2 groups of socioeconomically similar unserved infants on measures of infant development, infant attachment, mother-infant interaction, maternal depression, and maternal social contacts. Home-visited infants of depressed mothers outperformed unserved infants of depressed mothers by an average of 10 points on the Bayley Mental Scale and were twice as likely to be classified as securely attached, with unserved high-risk infants showing a high rate of insecure-disorganized attachments. Duration of services was positively correlated with maternal involvement at 12 months. Results of the study point both to the negative developmental consequences associated with severe social risk conditions and to the buffering effects of developmentally oriented home-visiting services for infants at greatest social risk.     

论早期幼儿智力培养教育

人的智力培养教育应该从幼儿抓起。人类大脑组织的成熟有80%是6岁前定型的。幼儿期是智力发展、各种智能开发的黄金时期,把握幼儿早期教育的这一段宝贵的时机,使孩子的智力得到正确培养,潜能得到充分发展,这对未来成才具有重要意义。     

Infants as Others: uncertainties,difficulties and (im)possibilities in researching infants’ lives

Increasingly, researchers are trying to understand what daily life is like for infants in non-parental care from the perspectives of the infants themselves. In this article, we argue that it is profoundly difficult, if not impossible, to know how infants experience their worlds with any certainty and, indeed, whether they do or do not possess well-worked out ‘perspectives’ on their experiences. Three key difficulties are discussed: firstly, the difficulty of interpreting non-verbal expressions and behaviour; secondly, the difficulty of knowing whether researchers’ constructions of the ‘infant’s perspective’ align with the infant’s experiences of their world; and, thirdly, the difficulty of providing opportunities for infants to disrupt researchers’ predetermined categories of understanding, meanings and expectations. Because of these difficulties, we argue that research endeavours to understand infants’ experiences in non-parental care should be seen as sites of ethical rather than epistemological practice.     

幼儿快乐情感的培养策略

幼儿身心的健康成长需要快乐情感的滋润,而幼儿的快乐情感需要教师富有智慧的呵护与培养。幼儿教师应从宽松和谐的情感环境、丰富多彩的感受和体验情境、自主畅快的情感表达等方面对幼儿进行快乐情感的培养。