Helping children learn about disabilities: Part II

Cary A. Buzzelli is an assistant professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Nancy File is a doctoral student in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.     

The special needs of teachers of special needs children

More and more, special needs children are entering early childhood education programs. But the integration of special needs children into the regular classroom — and their acceptance by their nonhandicapped peers — continues to be a concern of both parents and teachers. Many of the proposed benefits of mainstreaming are based upon opportunities for interactions between special needs children and their nonhandicapped peers. What we know about enhancing the quality of these interactions has definite implications for teachers. After examining the research on social relations and social skills training programs for special needs children, we will discuss these implications.Cary A. Buzzelli is an assistant professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in Birmingham, Alabama. Nancy File is a doctoral student in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.     

Nontraditional sites for learning about children

Students of early childhood need extensive experience to comprehend children's interpersonal interaction styles, expressions of curiosity, and dawning understandings, as well as to understand family and teacher support of, or interference with, the growth of cognitive competence, self-esteem, cooperation, and other prosocial interactions. Alice Sterling Honig teaches at Syracuse University in the Department of Child and Family Studies, College for Human Development, in Syracuse, NY. She is an editorial board member of Day Care & Early Education.     

Attachment and the secondary caregiver

Separating from a primary caregiver or parent can cause anxiety and stress for the young child. Although separation anxiety is experienced by all children in varying degrees, for secondary caregivers in child care centers and family day care homes, it poses particular problems.Sandy Osborne is a doctoral candidate, Department of Child and Family Studies, College of Human Ecology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The author thanks Kay Pasley and Jan Allen for their helpful comments.     

Supervisory techniques for positive performance

Directors of early childhood programs wear many hats in the performance of their job responsibilities. One of the most important is that of providing leadership through effective supervision of staff. Promoting positive and helping relationships among the staff yields confident, motivated caregivers who want to provide quality care and education for young children.Diane M. Kohl is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Child and Family Development at the University of Georgia in Athens, GA.     

How to recognize handicaps in preschoolers. Part II: Cognitive and emotional exceptionalities

Susan Culpepper is Director of the Child Study Center and Assistant Professor of Family and Child Studies, Department of Home Economics, University of Montevallo, Montevallo, AL.     

Longitudinal effects of quality preschool programs

Conclusion Commitment to excellence in quality preschool education plus reach-out programs that help families enhance the learning careers of their children can ensure true TLC for every child born in America — Tender Loving Care in Total Learning Centers.Alice Sterling Honing teaches at Syracuse University in the Department of Child and Family Studies, College for Human Development, in Syracuse, NY. She is an editorial board member ofDay Care & Early Education.This research review is based on testimony presented May 1988 to Senator Ted Kennedy, Chair, United States Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources on behalf of Senator Chiles's Early Intervention and Dropout Prevention Act of 1988, Bill S2034.     

Is day care safe? A review of research on accidental injuries

A major concern about the effects of day care has been the safety of the children who participate. Although studies are limited, a body of research literature is beginning to emerge that provides some important information about the magnitude of accidental injuries in day care centers.Charles W. Snow is Professor and Jane King Teleki is Associate Professor, Department of Child Development and Family Relations; David M. Cline is Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine; and Kathleen Dunn is Clinical Instructor, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health Policy, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC.     

Early Care and Education Matters: A Conceptual Model for Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Integrating the Key Constructs of Knowledge,Reflection, and Practice

There has been a great deal of discourse in the field of early care and education concerning the experiences, skills, competencies, and education level needed by early childhood teachers to ensure that quality teaching and learning take place in the early years. The purpose of this article is to describe an early childhood teacher preparation program developed by a Child and Family Development Department at a large, urban, state-funded university in the hopes that we can further the discourse on how the field can ensure quality teaching and learning in both ECE and university classrooms. We propose a conceptual model that is built around three key constructs: knowledge, reflection, and practice and describe our approach to preparing early childhood educators. Using qualitative data from student reflections and course syllabi and quantitative data on the experiences and perceptions of graduating seniors, we hope to present promising practices in early childhood teacher education and provide support for our contention that the quality of early childhood teacher education matters.     

Child development knowledge: Is it enough?

It would seem a foregone conclusion that early childhood program directors need a knowledge base in child development if they are to establish credibility in their role as directors (Kuykendall, 1990). The general assumption, then, is that directors' client base is young children. However, early childhood program directors in their daily experiences deal with opposite ends of the development continuum from children to adults.Sharon L. Wooden is Professor, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM. Nancy E. Baptiste is Coordinator, Child Development Associate Program, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces.     

Multiculturalism Incorporated: Student Perceptions

Multicultural education has transformed higher education both in terms of research and in terms of student experiences. Given the complexity of our institutions, the overall effects of these transformations are mixed. Building on the successes and strengths of multicultural education as it is currently incorporated in institutions and programs will involve better understanding how it is perceived, positively and negatively, by those who are experiencing it first hand. In this article we seek to contribute to this reflection through a discussion of a survey of students’ perceptions of multiculturalism in a large first-year program in a research university. Patrick Bruch is Associate Professor of Writing Studies in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. He received a B.A. in English from Western Michigan University and a Ph.D. in English from Wayne State University. His teaching and research focus on struggles for equality within and through higher education. Jeanne L. Higbee received her B.S. in Sociology from Iowa State University and earned both her M.S. in Counseling and Guidance and Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She currently serves as Professor and Senior Advisor to the Center for Research on Developmental Education and Urban Literacy, College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota. Her research interests are related to student development and the access and retention of student populations that traditionally have been underserved in postsecondary educational institutions. Kwabena Siaka is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Educational Policy and Administration at the University of Minnesota.     

A computer in the preschool: What happens?

Joyce Killian, an Associate Professor, is a specialist in teacher education and suppervision and also teaches computer education courses. JoAnn Nelson, an Assistant Professor, is affiliated with the Child Development Laboratories and teaches child development and early childhood courses, with a special interest in cognitive development. David Byrd, an Associate Professor, is a specialist in instructional design. The authors are all in the curriculum and Instruction Department at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.     

The tasks of early childhood: The development of self-control — Part II

Four-year-old Tommy felt mad that Jonah was hogging the big building blocks. He stood nearby, feeling more and more disgruntled. Just a week ago, his teachers had carried out a group discussion about hitting and hurting. No one was supposed to hit, even if you were mad. The group had discussed other ways to express their feelings. They had talked about telling a child what you wanted, or getting a teacher to help you out. Alice Sterling Honig teaches at Syracuse University in the Department of Child and Family Studies, College for Human Development, in Syracuse, NY. She is an editorial board member of Day Care & Early Education.Therese Lansburgh is Chair of the Maryland Committee for Children and an advocate for families and children at the state and national levels.     

The Three-ring Circus of Academia: How to Become the Ringmaster

The three-ring circus of academia is made up of research, teaching, and service. It is also characterized by continuous action that must be facilitated by the academic ringmaster. Academic life is more difficult than most anticipate because the responsibilities are time-consuming, diverse, and conflicting. Therefore, this article focuses on strategies faculty members can develop to meet these pressing demands. Specifically, we begin with a discussion of how to balance research, teaching, and service. We then highlight strategies faculty members can use in becoming an effective academic ringmaster. We conclude with a discussion of life outside the “big top.” Michelle L. Toews received a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Science from The Ohio State University and is currently an Assistant Professor of Family and Child Development at Texas State University-San Marcos. Her research interests include separation violence as well as conflict and coparenting after divorce. Ani Yazedjian received a Ph.D. in Human and Community Development from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is an Assistant Professor of Family and Child Development at Texas State. Her research interests focus on adolescents and the role of families, peers, and schools in promoting ethnic identity development. In addition, both authors are currently working on a longitudinal study examining personal and internal variables as predictors of college adjustment and achievement.     

Personnel interviewing for quality child care

Child care directors' interest in hiring well-qualified staff has increased as issues related to insurance and liability, media-hyped occurrences of child abuse in day care, and quality of child care in general have become of greater concern. Thus, many directors are seeking and developing thorough and innovative methods for interviewing prospective employees (Leak, 1982; Neugebauer, 1982; Sciarra and Dorsey, 1990).Jan Allen is Associate Professor, and Carol Catron Director, Campus Child Care Programs, Department of Child and Family Studies, College of Human Ecology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN.     

Infants and toddlers at play: Looking for meaning

The world is an ever-changing place. Objects are always moving, appearing and disappearing, and changing how they look. Very young children are being constantly confronted with the challenge of understanding the world around them as it changes from minute to minute, day to day.Dee Smith and Jeanne Goldhaber both teach early childhood courses in the Department of Human Development Studies at the University of Vermont.     

The Makaton Vocabulary: An Analysis based on Recent Research

In 1982–83 the author held a Rotary Scholarship at the Hester Adrian Research Centre, Manchester University, and attended a European Makaton Vocabulary Training Course. She presently continues doctoral studies in impaired communication at the Department of Education, Purdue University, USA. The Makaton system of communication by manual signing is widely used in special education in this country. Since its introduction much has been written on the normal acquisition of language and on conditions for learning by handicapped pupils. In the light of research findings, the author examines the Makaton vocabulary and the procedures which are recommended for training non-speakers in its use.     

Volunteers in the classroom: Guidelines for orientation

Fortunate child care directors have many volunteers in their centers. Parents, grandparents, student interns, and other community volunteers may work occasionally or regularly in the child care center. Directors should be prepared to host these volunteers by planning in advance for their orientation. This will make the director's task easier and the volunteers' work more meaningful to them and more useful to the children and staff. At the University of Tennessee's Child Development Laboratories we regularly host volunteers with little or no prior experience in child care. Volunteers from the Foster Grandparents Program, from other departments in the university, parents of the children enrolled in the program, as well as our own majors in the beginning stages of their field work, are frequent participants who require orientation and guidelines for working with young children in group care. Because it is not unusual for some volunteers to leave after a semester, training and orientation for new volunteers occurs regularly throughout the year. The information below is offered to directors to promote meaningful involvement of volunteers in their center.Jan Allen is Associate Professor in the Department of Child and Family Studies. Kathy Carlson is a Master Teacher in the Child Development Laboratories. They work together at The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, TN. The authors wish to thank Dr. Carol Catron and Anne Miller Farmer for helpful comments.     

Safe touch: Reassurances for child care workers

Early childhood educators are aware of the important role touching plays in child development, nurturance, and guidance. But with attention increasingly focused on child sexual abuse in day care, we need to reexamine our behaviors and the role of touching in child care.Jan Allen is Assistant Professor of Child and Family Studies at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. This article has been adapted from a series of workshops presented to the Minneapolis Child Care Workers Alliance in 1983. The author expresses appreciation to Margaret Boyer, Minneapolis Child Care Resource Center-Southside, for suggesting the need for such workshops.     

Mothers and daughters: Gender-role socialization in two Newbery award books

Jane M. Agee is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Language Education at The University of Georgia. She is completing dissertation research which examines preservice English teachers' perceptions of literature.