Preschool Teachers' Sense of Community,Instructional Quality,and Children's Language and Literacy Gains

Research Findings: This study investigated relations among preschool teachers' (n = 75) sense of community, classroom language and literacy instructional quality, and children's (n = 398) gains in vocabulary and print concept knowledge during an academic year. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) results indicated that teachers' language and literacy instructional quality significantly predicted children's gains in print concept knowledge. Also, HLM results revealed significant interactions among teachers' sense of community, language and literacy instructional quality, and vocabulary and print concept knowledge gains. Higher levels of teachers' sense of community were associated with greater gains in children's vocabulary and print concept knowledge when children were in classrooms with higher quality language and literacy instruction. Practice or Policy: Findings underscore the importance of evaluating both language and literacy instructional quality and teachers' sense of community when considering high-quality preschool education.     

Validation of the Early Childhood Teacher Experiences Scale in Head Start

To address gaps in the availability of validated measures that assess early childhood teachers' workplace experiences, the current study examined the validity of the Early Childhood Teacher Experiences Scale (ECTES) for use in a diverse Head Start program. Mean differences in the ECTES dimensions of self-efficacy, job stress, and school support were examined across teachers' demographic characteristics and observed teacher–child interaction quality. Multilevel models examined associations between ECTES dimension scores and children's social-emotional and academic skills (N = 161 preschool teachers and N = 3,152 children). Findings support the reliability and validity of the three-factor structure of the ECTES in the diverse Head Start teacher sample. Higher teacher-reported self-efficacy and school support were associated with higher observed classroom emotional support, instructional support, and classroom organization. Higher teacher-reported self-efficacy was associated with fewer years of teaching experience. With respect to child outcomes, higher teacher self-efficacy and school support were associated with lower behavior problems and higher social-emotional skills but were not associated with academic skills. Implications of the findings, limitations, and future directions are discussed.     

Early Childhood Teachers' Curriculum Beliefs: Are They Consistent With Observed Classroom Practices?

Research Findings: This study examined the consistency between early childhood teachers' self-reported curriculum beliefs and observations of their actual interactive behaviors with children in classrooms. Also tested was the hypothesized moderation by teacher and classroom characteristics of the association between beliefs and practices. A total of 58 preschool teachers completed a survey describing their professional backgrounds and curriculum beliefs. Their classroom practices were observed using a newly developed instrument that documented teacher interactions with children. Most teachers in this sample strongly endorsed child-initiated learning beliefs, although their beliefs about teacher-directed learning varied considerably. The most frequently observed teacher behaviors in the classroom were giving directions to children, responding to children's initiations, and engaging in non-interactive classroom management activities. Overall, teachers' curriculum beliefs and observed classroom practices were weakly correlated. However, there were moderation effects. Stronger congruence between teacher-directed learning beliefs and observed teaching behaviors was found among teachers who had more professional training and more years of teaching experience. Practice or Policy: These results support the importance of early childhood teacher professional development. They suggest that teacher preparation and professional development programs should focus on the intellectual transformation between teacher knowledge and teacher practice, promoting both aspects of development.     

Chinese and US Middle-School Science Teachers' Autonomy,Motivation, and Instructional Practices

This study examined Chinese and US middle-school science teachers' perceptions of autonomy support. Previous research has documented the link between teachers' perceptions of autonomy and the use of student-oriented teaching practices for US teachers. But is not clear how the perception of autonomy may differ for teachers from different cultures or more specifically how motivation factors differ across cultures. The survey measured teachers' motivation, perceptions of constraints at work, perceptions of students' motivation, and level of autonomy support for students. Exploratory factor analysis of responses for the combined teacher sample (n?=?201) was carried out for each of the survey assessments. Significance testing for Chinese (n?=?107) and US (n?=?94) teachers revealed significant differences in teachers' motivation and perceptions of constraints at work and no significant differences for perceptions of students' motivation or their level of autonomy support for students. Chinese teachers' perceptions of constraints at work, work motivation, and perceptions of student motivation were found to significantly predict teachers' autonomy support. For the US teachers, teacher motivation was the only significant predictor of teachers' autonomy support. A sub-sample of teachers (n?=?19) was interviewed and results showed that teachers in both countries reported that autonomy was important to their motivation and the quality of science instruction they provided to students. The primary constraints on teaching reported by the US teachers related to materials and laboratory space while the Chinese teachers reported constraints related to the science curriculum and standards.     

A Person-Centered Approach to Understanding Teachers' Classroom Practices and Perceived School Goal Structures

ABSTRACT

We examined 179 teachers' perceptions of their own classroom practices and their school's motivational climate to illuminate the ways these perceptions work in concert. Using teachers' responses to two scales of the Patterns of Adaptive Learning Survey, a cluster analysis revealed three profiles of teachers described as cluster 1: Aligned: Performance Moderate, Mastery High: We agree with everything!; cluster 2: Aligned: Performance Low, Mastery High: Yea to Mastery! Nay to Performance!; and cluster 3: Unaligned: Classroom Mastery with School Performance: We're Mastery Structured in a Performance School. Cluster analyses revealed significant differences suggesting these teacher groups had distinct profiles. This study adds to the literature on goal theory aimed at understanding and advancing teachers' motivationally supportive practices and can be used in teacher education and development to help teachers identify, reflect on, and understand their classroom goal structures and how they relate to structures operating at the school level.     

Understanding and Improving Classroom Emotional Climate and Behavior Management in the “Real World”: The Role of Head Start Teachers' Psychosocial Stressors

Research Findings: This article reports on two studies. Study 1 considered ways in which Head Start teachers' (n = 90) psychosocial stressors are related to teachers' ability to maintain a positive classroom emotional climate and effective behavior management in preschool classrooms. Study 2 tested the hypothesis that among teachers randomly assigned to a treatment condition (n = 48), psychosocial stressors serve as important predictors of their use of an intervention designed to improve classroom emotional climate and behavior management. Practice or Policy: Findings from Study 1 were mixed; notably, teachers' personal stressors were moderately predictive of lower use of effective strategies of behavior management in the classroom. Findings from Study 2 suggest that psychosocial stressors are not a barrier to teachers' use of intervention services. Contrary to our expectations, teachers reporting more stressors attended more training sessions than did teachers reporting fewer stressors. Teachers reporting higher levels of stress availed themselves of less support from mental health consultants during classroom consultation visits offered to treatment group classrooms as part of the intervention.     

How teachers' perceptions of the parent–teacher relationship affect children's risk for early childhood expulsion

Rates of expulsion from early care and education settings (e.g., childcare and preschool programs) exceed those in K‐12, and relatively little is known of how to prevent such disciplinary decisions. In addition, expulsion disproportionately affects children of color, especially boys. The present study explores a potential protective strategy existent in all early care and education settings, the parent–teacher relationship. Surveys with early childhood teachers (N = 295) outline the association between teachers' perceptions of the parent–teacher relationship and a child's risk for expulsion. Findings indicate that teachers' perceptions of high‐quality parent–teacher relationships are related to a lower risk for expulsion for children who have not been expelled, with the strongest association found for Black children. In contrast, for children identified as previously expelled, we found no association between teachers' perceptions of the parent–teacher relationship and future expulsion risk. Each finding will be described in detail with an eye towards implications and intervention.     

The Preschool Instructional Context and Child–Teacher Relationships

Research Findings: The purpose of this article is to examine how dimensions of the preschool instructional context predict child–teacher relationship quality. A total of 118 low-income, predominantly Latino/a children and their teachers participated in this study. Children were observed in their 1st preschool classroom. Measures of instructional context included the classroom instructional climate and teacher instructional strategies with individual children. Measures of child–teacher relationships included both observed and teacher-perceived child–teacher relationship quality. Our findings suggest that aspects of classroom instructional context do influence child–teacher relationships. Children are more likely to have secure, positive relationships with teachers who are more skilled at setting up appropriate classroom environments and giving children high-quality feedback to stretch their emerging knowledge and skills. Practice or Policy: These data provide preliminary support for the notion that high-quality early education can and should develop children's academic skills in a context that is deeply rooted in positive and supportive social interactions.     

Fostering a community of practice through a professional development program to improve elementary teachers' views of nature of science and teaching practice

This study explored the development of a community of learners through a professional development program to improve teachers' views of nature of science (NOS) and teaching practice. The Views of Nature of Science questionnaire and interviews were used to assess teachers' conceptions of NOS three times over the course of the study. Notes and videotapes taken during workshops and classroom observations were used to track influence of the community of learners on classroom practice. The community of practice (CoP) was fostered through an intensive summer workshop, monthly school site workshops, and classroom support to aid teachers in incorporating new techniques and reflecting upon their learning and practice. We found that teachers became aware of their changes in views about NOS once they struggled with the concepts in their own teaching and discussed their struggles within the professional development community. The CoP on its own was not sufficient to change teacher's practice or knowledge, but it created a well‐supported environment that facilitated teacher change when paired with NOS modeling and explicit reflection. Cases of three teachers are used to illustrate changes in views and teaching practice common to the teachers in this study. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 46: 1090–1113, 2009     

The mediating roles of collective teacher efficacy in the relations of teachers' perceptions of school organizational climate to their burnout

This study examined the relationships between school organizational climate, collective teacher efficacy, and burnout in a sample of Korean middle school teachers. Using SEM, the results showed that school organizational climate reflecting higher levels of reflective dialogues was associated with both higher levels of collective teacher efficacy and lower levels of teachers' burnout. In contrast, school organizational climate reflecting higher levels of organizational politics was associated with lower levels of collective teacher efficacy, and did not have a direct effect on teachers' burnout. The relationship between school organizational climate and teachers' burnout was mediated by collective teacher efficacy.     

School cultures as contexts for informal teacher learning

This study profiles and compares international social contexts for teacher workplace informal learning from the teachers' perspectives. Set in elementary schools in the U.S. and Lithuania, the study illustrates how teachers make sense of and engage in professional learning within their historical, political and administrative contexts. A socio-cultural framework brings into view different opportunities for teacher informal learning. These evolve from comparing teacher interviews about their learning to ethnographic case studies of the school's cultures that include schools' missions, building structures, classroom environments, organizational arrangements, traditions, and professional relationships. The study illustrates key interrelated cultural qualities of schools that support and hinder informal learning; argues for the importance of acknowledging teacher informal learning as a method of career-long professional development, and suggests further research about how to build and sustain the school infrastructure necessary to maintain such development.     

Teacher Education Programmes and Their Contribution to Student Teacher Efficacy in Classroom Management and Pupil Engagement

This study focuses on how different educational programmes contribute to student teachers efficacy for classroom management and their abilities to provide learning opportunities and good classroom outcomes. Data were gathered from 491 student teachers attending different teacher education programmes in Norway and analysed via structural equation modelling. The results revealed the following: (1) problem behaviour in the classroom has a negative effect on student teacher efficacy, (2) students' perceptions of the integration of pedagogic knowledge and practice supports students' efficacy beliefs, (3) support from supervisors contributes positively to student teachers' efficacy beliefs, and (4) student teachers in university college programmes for primary school teaching report higher teacher efficacy than students in university programmes for secondary school teaching.     

Kindergarten Teachers' Use of Developmentally Appropriate Practices and Attitudes About Authority

This study examined the relationship between kindergarten teachers' use of developmentally appropriate practices and their attitudes toward authority in the classroom. The study found an overall low use of developmentally appropriate practices. Instead, the classrooms exhibited academically oriented, skill-centered programs. However, kindergarten teachers who rated themselves higher in authority sharing as opposed to authority controlling were more likely to use developmentally appropriate teaching strategies as delineated by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Aspects of the teachers' professional experience and education had little relationship to their attitudes about authority in the classroom. The positive relationship between an authority-sharing attitude and developmentally appropriate practices suggests that more importance be placed on developing teachers' and prospective teachers' attitudes about adult/child authority orientation than on simply prescribing overt teacher behavior.     

African-American women's decisions to become teachers: Sociocultural perspectives

In this study the authors describe sociocultural and school-related factors that influenced African-American women's perceptions of teaching and decisions to teach. Surveys were conducted of the participants' demographic and background characteristics, and life histories were developed that focused on early experiences with the family, in the community, and at school and how these experiences influenced their perceptions of teaching. These data revealed that the mother, women in the community, and female teachers were significant influences on the participants' decisions to teach. Moreover, their experiences and interpretations of these experiences have shaped their images of good teaching as shared, culturally responsive mothering. The participants' life histories further revealed that as their conceptions of good mothering and good teaching crystallized, their reasons for teaching transcended altruism and a love for children, resulting in perspectives on caring, and a sense of responsibility for the school success of all students. The authors suggest that improved understanding about African-American prospective teachers' lived experiences that give rise to their perceptions of and purposes for teaching hold implications for teacher education and African-American teacher recruitment and retention efforts.     

Understanding Singaporean preschool teachers' beliefs about literacy development: Four different perspectives

Investigating teachers' beliefs may shed light on their activities in the classroom, and in turn, on the pedagogical process itself. It is, however, not easy to study teachers' beliefs empirically. Q-methodology has been used over several disciplines to systematically investigate individuals' points of view on a range of issues. A study involving Q-methodology was conducted in Singaporean preschools to investigate some teachers' perceptions of early literacy development and instruction. The study revealed four viewpoint groups among the 30 preschool teachers who participated in the study, and possible teacher characteristics that distinguish the viewpoints from each other. The results suggest that the differences in viewpoints are indicative of differences in cultural expectations held by various groups of teachers.     

Spatial thinking in science,technology, engineering,and mathematics: Elementary teachers' beliefs,perceptions, and self-efficacy

Fostering students' spatial thinking skills holds great promise for improving Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Recent efforts have focused on the development of classroom interventions to build students' spatial skills, yet these interventions will be implemented by teachers, and their beliefs and perceptions about spatial thinking influence the effectiveness of such interventions. However, our understanding of elementary school teachers' beliefs and perceptions around spatial thinking and STEM is in its infancy. Thus, we created novel measures to survey elementary teachers' anxiety in solving spatial problems, beliefs in the importance of spatial thinking skills for students' academic success, and self-efficacy in cultivating students' spatial skills during science instruction. All measures exhibited high internal consistency and showed that elementary teachers experience low anxiety when solving spatial problems and feel strongly that their skills can improve with practice. Teachers were able to identify educational problems that rely on spatial problem-solving and believed that spatial skills are more important for older compared to younger students. Despite reporting high efficacy in their general teaching and science teaching, teachers reported significantly lower efficacy in their capacities to cultivate students' spatial skills during science instruction. Results were fairly consistent across teacher characteristics (e.g., years of experience and teaching role as generalist or specialist) with the exception that only years of teaching science was related to teachers' efficacy in cultivating students' spatial thinking skills during science instruction. Results are discussed within the broader context of teacher beliefs, self-efficacy, and implications for professional development research.     

Educational personnel's perceptions of mainstreaming and resource room effectiveness

Equivalent forms of a questionnaire were administered to elementary classroom and resource room teachers. The questionnaires were designed to elicit teachers' attitudes and perceptions as to the effectiveness and appropriateness of mainstreaming, regular classroom teachers' level of skill competency, assistance from the resource room, and communication between the resource room and regular classroom teachers. Results indicated that resource and regular teachers evidenced differential perceptions as to all factors investigated. Educational implications of the findings were discussed and specific recommendations were proposed.     

Teachers’ Lives in Context: A Framework for Understanding Barriers to High-Quality Teaching Within Resource Deprived Settings

There is a profound for more effective schools, especially within resource-poor communities in low- and middle-income countries. A wide range of literature identifies teachers as the most critical component of schools in regards to student learning. Despite this, there is a dearth of literature on how teachers' experiences influence their ability to attend school, remain in the teaching profession, and provide high quality teaching within the classroom. This study presents a theoretical framework for understanding the role of teachers' lives in context (skills, knowledge, and attitudes; poverty and health; contextual supports/barriers to teaching) in influencing teacher effectiveness. This framework builds upon Tseng and Seidman's (2007) systems framework for understanding youth social settings in order to incorporate teachers' lives into a larger model of educational effectiveness. This synthesis reveals significant gaps in our understanding of teachers' experiences and how they affect teaching. At the teacher attendance, attrition, and pedagogical quality and a key moderator of educational interventions. Implications for research, practice, and policy are discussed.     

The impact of a professional development model on middle school science teachers' efficacy and implementation of inquiry

This study investigated a professional development model designed to improve teachers' inquiry teaching efficacy as well as the quality of their inquiry instruction through engaging teachers in practice-teaching and reflection sessions. The programme began with a two-week summer Institute focused on both inquiry pedagogy and science content and continued with academic year support for participants' inquiry implementation. An inquiry teaching efficacy instrument was administered 3 times to 25 teacher participants to gauge changes in their personal self-efficacy and outcome expectancy across 5 essential features of classroom inquiry. To examine actual practices, pre/post classroom observations of the teachers' inquiry enactments were evaluated using a quality of inquiry observation protocol. Following the summer Institute, teachers had statistically significant increases in their self-efficacy for teaching inquiry in four of the five essential features and increases in one of the five essential features for outcome expectancy. Teachers' quality of inquiry teaching also increased after the professional development programme. We discuss implications of this PD model for moving teachers towards implementation of new instructional techniques as well as the influence of a supportive school community on teachers’ efficacy with inquiry instruction.