Parental strategies to scaffold emergent writing skills in the pre‐school child within the home environment

Joint writing activities between parent and child can enhance literacy skills in young children. This paper describes the strategies used by a mother to scaffold her daughter’s alphabet letter shaping, word and story writing in the years before formal schooling. The strategies included identifying alphabet letters embedded in environmental print and books, tracing letter shapes with fingers whilst using directional language, and using whole‐arm movements to form letter shapes in the air. Writing samples and examples of parent–child interactions were collected at three to four years of age and are described within the framework of Gentry’s writing stages. The joint writing techniques and activities illustrated in this case study emphasise the use of letter names and letter shapes and may provide effective strategies for parents and early childhood educators to scaffold emergent writing development in young children.     

Intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment: Predictors of child emotional maltreatment among 11 to 17 years old children residing in communities of Karachi,Pakistan

ObjectiveFamilies where parents had childhood history of victimization may likely to abuse their children; hence contributing as an important predictor of child emotional maltreatment (CEM). This study aimed to determine the relationship of intergenerational abuse with CEM among 11–17 years old children residing in peri-urban and urban communities of Karachi, Pakistan.MethodStructured interviews were conducted with 800 children and parents-pair using validated questionnaire “International Child Abuse Screening Tool for Child (ICAST-C)” comprised of 4 domains. Domain of child emotional maltreatment was considered as outcome (CEM-score). The relationship between Parental history of childhood victimization and CEM-Score was measured using linear regression.ResultsThe average CEM-score was came to be 19+5.2 among children whom parental history of childhood victimization was present (P < 0.001). The estimated mean CEM-score increased by 5.59 units (95% CI= {2.61, 8.51}) among children whom parents had a history of childhood victimization (Intergenerational abuse) with severe physical familial abuse.ConclusionThe current study provided evidence on intergenerational transmission of maltreatment suggesting early prevention to break the cycle of child maltreatment through generations. Preventive measures can be taken, once a parental history of childhood victimization has been identified, by providing appropriate services to those families who belong to lower socioeconomic status, where mothers are young, presence of siblings’ rivalry/ bullying and/or violence among family members. However, these factors do not explain a complete causality of the intergenerational transmission therefore additional factors, for instance parenting styles must be taken into consideration.     

Child Miscues and Parental Feedback During Shared Alphabet Book Reading and Relations With Child Literacy Skills

We studied 52 parent–child dyads reading an alphabet book to examine the nature of children's miscues and parents' feedback, and whether miscues and feedback were related to each other and to preliteracy skills. Letter knowledge, phonological awareness, and expressive vocabulary were assessed in 5-year-old nonreaders who were also audiotaped reading an alphabet book at home with their parent. Results indicate that after controlling for vocabulary, children with higher phonological awareness more often labeled objects with a name beginning with the page's target letter. Parents provided substantial sustaining feedback after miscues, as though using alphabet books as a way of fostering their child's literacy. Findings highlight the need to consider both the child's skill-base and parent–child interactions to understand the role of alphabet books in literacy development.     

Multiracial Children in Child Development Textbooks

The 2000 US census was the first to allow respondents to check more than one race/ethnic response for their identity. About 6.8 million Americans did so, and a disproportionate percentage of them were children under age 18 years old. The purpose of this article is to examine the extent to which this change is reflected in contemporary child psychology textbooks. Twelve books were examined to determine whether they covered multiracial and multiethnic children. Results of this study showed that only two of these books addressed issues related to the healthy development of multiracial/multiethnic children in any detail; and, while several used terms such as biracial and bicultural, these terms were always used to describe single-race minority children living in a majority context. The discussion section covers possible reasons for this omission.     

When language becomes power: Russian-speaking teachers in the bilingual general education system in Estonia

After the re-establishment of independent Estonian statehood in 1991, Russian lost its privileges as the dominant and official language in Estonia, and Estonian continued as the only official language. This paper attempts to map the position of a Russian-speaking teacher within the sociological categories of power and language, based on the analysis of legislative acts and strategic documents within the domain of language policy and language legitimization practices in historical retrospective. The main focus of the study stresses an attempt to elaborate on to what extent the low self-efficacy of Russian-speaking teachers as the agents of legitimization of the Estonian language in Russian-speaking schools, and their low position in power relations within the Estonian education system, can be explained in the categories of power and language, as conceptualized on the basis of the social theory of Bourdieu.     

Infant removals: The need to address the over-representation of Aboriginal infants and community concerns of another ‘stolen generation’

ObjectivesThe removal of a child from their parents is traumatising, particularly in Aboriginal communities where a history of child removals has led to intergenerational trauma. This study will determine where disparities in child protection involvement exist among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children and characteristics associated with infant removals. Challenges faced by child protection and other agencies, and opportunities for overcoming these, are discussed.MethodsData from both the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and linked Western Australian government data was used to examine disparities between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in the child protection and out-of-home care system.ResultsNationally, Aboriginal children are ten times more likely to be placed in out-of-home care than non-Aboriginal children and this disparity starts in infancy. Infants were removed from parents with high levels of risk. Aboriginal infants were at increased risk of being removed from women with substance-use problems and had greater proportions removed from remote, disadvantaged communities than were non-Aboriginal infants.ConclusionsAboriginal infants have a high rate of removal. Although there are many complexities to be understood and challenges to overcome, there are also potential strategies. The disparity between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal infant removals needs to be seen as a priority requiring urgent action to prevent further intergenerational trauma.     

The representation of the Cold War in three Estonian history textbooks

The article looks at the discursive strategies different Estonian history textbooks employ to represent the Cold War period, and the ‘commonsense’ ideologies instilled through these representations. The textbooks analysed include two history books dating back to the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic and, for contrast, one written during the second period of Estonia’s independence. This lends the analysis a temporal perspective, making it possible to look at the changes over time and differences between the attitudes projected. The study focuses on the rhetoric and metaphors used in connection with the Cold War period. The practices of different textbooks are compared to one another using discourse analysis. The purpose is to bring out the commonsense elements of the textbooks’ discourse. The goal is to understand the ideological processes in these texts’ discourse and how they (in)directly intend to shape the reader’s worldview through language and rhetoric.     

新世纪北京儿童图书出版考察

新世纪以来,北京儿童图书出版迎来了新的发展,北京各家出版社都看好越来越大的儿童图书市场,纷纷瞄准了儿童图书的出版,于是原来少儿图书出版这块蛋糕主要由几家专业少儿社来切的局面被打破,而代之以群雄奋起。具体来说,新世纪北京童书出版主要呈现四种特点:一是在商业化语境下也走向了市场运作的道路,童书出版与传媒炒作亲密结合;二是经典童书的重复出版而原创童书出版不足;三是童书出版与家庭教育、学校教育密切结合;四是在多元化中逐渐走向儿童本位。     

生命教育视野下的幼儿图画书阅读

图画书不是插图书,不是认字书,也不是语言教科书。图画书运用"图"和"文"两种媒介,为幼儿创造了独特的阅读世界。从生命教育的角度看,阅读图画书就是幼儿与图画书、与同伴、与老师展开对话,共同建构多元化意义,从而引领幼儿享受图画书所创造的感性世界、故事世界、幻想世界的乐趣的过程。让图画书走进幼儿的日常生活,需要以合作共享为轴心建立生态阅读圈,以经验整合为轴心建立阅读系统。如此,逐步使阅读成为幼儿的生活方式,图画书才能真正以润物细无声的方式惠泽幼儿的生命。     

Using Quilts and Quilt Picture Books to Celebrate Diversity with Young Children

Quilts, with their bright colors, puzzle-like patterns and comforting touch, naturally appeal to children. Quilts may cover beds, blanket naps, or serve some other function in childrens homes, and the family context of quilts makes them appropriate for exploring diversity with young children in the classroom. A rich and extensive collection of quilt-centered picture books is available that explores cultural, intergenerational and social awareness themes through engaging text and captivating illustrations. Quilts and quilt-themed picture books are useful additions to an early childhood environment that explores, celebrates and integrates diversity in the daily life of the young child.     

The intergenerational impact of trauma and family violence on parents and their children

BackgroundChildren who experience Child Abuse and Neglect (CAN) are at an increased risk of becoming a victim of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) or a perpetrator of IPV or CAN. Moreover, maltreated children are at risk for developing long-lasting trauma symptoms, which can subsequently affect their own children’s lives. Understanding the mechanisms of the intergenerational transmission of violence and trauma is a prerequisite for the development of interventions.ObjectiveWe examine whether the relation between historical CAN and current trauma symptoms of mothers is mediated by current IPV. Furthermore, we investigate whether current CAN mediates the relation between current maternal trauma symptoms and child Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. These mechanisms are compared for mothers and fathers.ParticipantsWe have recruited 101 fathers and 360 mothers (426 children, 50% boys, mean age 7 years) through child protection services.MethodsRespondents completed questionnaires about IPV, (historical) CAN and trauma symptoms.ResultsStructural equation models revealed that historical CAN of father and mothers was related to trauma symptoms. Only for mothers, this association was mediated by IPV. Trauma symptoms of both fathers and mothers were related to child PTSD symptoms. This effect was not mediated by current CAN.ConclusionIn violent families, maternal and paternal trauma can be transmitted over generations. However, intergenerational transmission of violence is found for mothers only. When family violence is reported, professionals should take the violence into account, as well as the history of parents and trauma symptoms of all family members.     

流动儿童社会融入困境的个案研究

中国城市里涌现的"民工潮"现象是流动着的"农民工"群体关于生存方式选择的权宜之计,也关系着整个中国的发展命运。随父母迁移的流动儿童在社会融入进程中"边缘化"的困境引起了众多研究者的关注。通过对Y市弱势家庭流动儿童小洁在流入城市生活的全貌展开质化研究,分析探讨了流动儿童社会融入中面临的一系列困境:弱势的家庭环境、城市社交的拒斥和代际传递的局限等。     

Models and processes for solving arithmetic word problems proposed by Spanish mathematics textbooks / Modelos y procesos de resolución de problemas aritméticos verbales propuestos por los libros de texto de matemáticas españoles

Abstract

Textbooks are frequently used as a resource to teach children how to solve word problems in mathematics classes. The solving models explicitly proposed by textbooks, and the kind of problems they propose, can therefore have a decisive influence on the way in which students learn to solve them. This paper analyses the extent to which the problem solving models proposed by the books include reasoning as one of the steps needed to solve a problem. To do this, the processes and steps articulated in the models proposed in the books by Anaya, SM and Santillana are categorized according to data, reasoning, choice of operation, strategies, execution of operations, expression of results, checking and inventing. The results indicate that reasoning processes are hardly ever found in the models, especially in lower year courses. It is concluded that mathematical textbooks provide incomplete solving models that fail to promote reasoning.     

重庆市高等学校民族学类教材开发研究

教材开发是课程建设的基础,更是人才培养的重要基石。重庆市高等学校民族类教材主要有少数民族预科教材、民族学本科教材、民族学硕士研究生教材、其他本科教材等类型。在重庆市高等学校民族类教材开发中,存在忽视民族学学科教材建设,师资队伍不足、结构不合理,学生对民族知识不感兴趣,少数民族文化氛围不浓等多种因素。因此,重庆市各高校应该重视民族学学科建设,加大民族学人才培养或引进力度,营造良好的民族文化氛围,脚踏实地地做好田野调查,为民族学教材建设、少数民族人才培养贡献力量。     

Widening participation,social mobility and the role of universities in a globalized world

ABSTRACT

The paper presents the initial results of research into the individual conditions of the psychosocial functioning of NEETs in the educational context. The study was performed between May and September 2017 in Slovakia, Poland and Estonia, by means of a triangulation of quantitative tools. The general objective of the study is to diagnose the level of critical thinking (Cornell Critical Thinking), reasoning (T.I.P.), problem-solving strategies (NCS) and individual development assessment (IDEA) in a group of NEETs, and to compare these variables with one another and with socio-demographic characteristics. Based on an initial analysis of the results (100 individuals from each country were invited to participate in the survey; 235 questionnaires were gathered), we can see that the group analysed presents a relatively high level of critical thinking and reasoning (intelligence indicator) and an average level of problem-solving attitude. Breaking stereotypes about NEETs, the study fits into the critical paradigm of andragogical research. The results served as the foundation for a series of postulates regarding educational programmes based on andragogical assumptions.     

Children's education and the intergenerational transmission of inequality: a simulation

Data from the 1970 Brazilian Census are used to explore the effects of parents' investments in their children's education on the pattern of future income distribution and on the intergenerational transmission of inequality, using a simulation model. Starting from the observation that the number of children in low-income households is greater on average than the number in high-income households, the paper focuses primarily on whether and how child schooling mediates the effect of the negative relation between income per child and household size on shifts in the income distribution toward greater inequality, and on lack of intergenerational mobility. The paper examines the implications of different assumptions regarding increases in the availability of schooling, shifts in the returns to schooling and the role of inherited traits in the determination of future incomes and intergenerational mobility. Cross-section measures of inequality are insensitive to schooling and inherited traits, but these do affect intergenerational mobility.     

中国现代教科书发展的“黄金二十年”

从1903开始,中国现代教科书发展进入"黄金二十年",并在1922年新学制教科书达到最高峰。这期间,教科书种类呈现多样性,与学制规定课程名称不完全吻合,以满足实际教学需求为主导,学科门类、名称、知识、术语基本定型。教科书编排力求科学性,注重理论指导及教育心理规律,以儿童生活经验为主导,诠释教育之人性意义。教科书制度凸显支持性,官方审定信息多渠道发布,以鼓励优良教科书为主导,成就了出版的多元良性竞争。教科书编撰出版形成地域性,留学生群体积极参与,以江浙地区知识分子为主导,张元济堪称现代教科书之父。教科书启蒙指向现代性,以对现代人及现代中国的召唤为主导,映射出风雨如晦岁月中教育有为的思想样貌。     

Developing phoneme awareness through alphabet books

Previous research suggests that children who are successful in phoneme awareness tasks also have high levels of alphabet knowledge. One connection between the two might be alphabet books. Such books typically include both letter-name information and phonological information about initial sounds (B is for bear). It may be that children who are read alphabet books, and thus understand how B is for bear, will learn both letter names and be able to isolate phonemes. To examine this, we gave three treatments to different groups of prekindergarteners. In the first group, the teacher read conventional alphabet books. In the second, the teacher read books chosen to contain the letter names only, without example words to demonstrate sound values. The third group, a control, read only storybooks. We found that all groups gained in print concept and letter knowledge over the course of the study. The conventional alphabet group made significantly greater gains in phoneme awareness than the group that read books about letters without example words, suggesting that conventional alphabet books may be one route to the development of phoneme awareness.     

Maternal adverse childhood experiences,attachment style,and mental health: Pathways of transmission to child behavior problems

BackgroundInvestigations have found mothers’ adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) confer an intergenerational risk to their children's outcomes. However, mechanisms underlying this transmission have only been partially explained by maternal mental health. Adult attachment insecurity has been shown to mediate the association of ACEs and mental health outcomes, yet an extension of this research to children's behavioral problems has not been examined.ObjectiveTo examine the cascade from maternal ACEs to risk for child behavioral problems at five years of age, via mothers’ attachment insecurity and mental health.Participants and settingParticipants in the current study were 1994 mother-child dyads from a prospective longitudinal cohort collected from January 2011 to October 2014.MethodsMothers retrospectively reported their ACEs when children were 36 months of age. When children were 60 months of age, mothers completed measures of their attachment style, depression and anxiety symptoms, and their children's behavior problems.ResultsPath analysis demonstrated maternal ACEs were associated with children's internalizing problems indirectly via maternal attachment avoidance, attachment anxiety, and depression symptoms, but not directly (β = .05, 95% CI [−.001, .10]). Maternal ACEs indirectly predicted children's externalizing problems via maternal attachment avoidance, attachment anxiety, and depression. A direct effect was also observed from maternal ACEs to child externalizing problems (β = .06, 95% CI [.01, .11]).ConclusionsMaternal ACEs influenced children's risk for poor behavioral outcomes via direct and indirect intermediary pathways. Addressing maternal insecure attachment style and depression symptoms as intervention targets for mothers with histories of ACEs may help to mitigate the intergenerational transmission of risk.