“Doing the Math”: Maternal Beliefs About Early Mathematics Versus Language Learning

Research Findings: Little is known about how parents approach preschoolers' mathematics learning and how this aligns with early mathematics education research and policy. This study examined these questions by contrasting parents' approaches to early mathematics and language and by exploring key themes in parents' talk about mathematics learning and education. Consistent with current research and policy, parents reported helping preschoolers learn mathematics and attempting to connect this learning to children's interests and everyday experiences. However, parents admitted to lacking goals for and knowledge about early mathematics. In addition, compared to language, parents reported that mathematics was taught less often at home, should be emphasized less in preschools, was less interesting to preschoolers, required more direct instruction, and was less of a personal interest and strength. Practice or Policy: Parent interventions could capitalize on parents' beliefs and practices by providing parents with concrete examples of what mathematics preschoolers learn through daily activities, how to maximize children's mathematics interests, and what the similarities are between early mathematics and language. These efforts will also need to help parents overcome their mathematics anxieties and show parents why early mathematics education is important. Similar strategies could be used to help early childhood teachers improve their mathematics practice.     

Parent Involvement,Influence, and Satisfaction in Magnet Schools: Do Reasons for Choice Matter?

This paper explores the relationships between parents' reasons for choosing a magnet school and their levels of satisfaction, involvement, and influence with the school. Data are reported from over a thousand magnet school parents in two urban districts. The results suggest three general findings: (1) As reported in previous research, magnet school parents choose schools for a wide array of reasons and are highly satisfied with their chosen school; (2) parents' reasons for choice are important predictors of their levels of satisfaction, influence, and involvement with the school; and (3) parents who choose for values reasons, as compared to other reasons, are more likely to be involved in and satisfied with their school of choice and report that parents have influence over school decisions.     

Parents' Management of Their Children's Education Within the Home,at School,and in the Community: An Examination of African-American Families Living in Poverty

Using parents' answers to open-ended questions, we examine variation in parents' management of their children's education within the home, at school, and in the community as a function of whether their children were experiencing academic success or academic problems. Within the home, parents of high achievers used more specific strategies to help their children with their schoolwork and had more supportive conversations with their children than parents of low achievers. At their children's school, parents of high achievers not only were more involved but had different reasons for their involvement than parents of low achievers. In the community, more parents of high achievers explicitly engaged their children in activities to support their achievement than parents of low achievers. Implications for parents, schools, and communities are discussed.     

Intellective Functioning and Strategy Use in Children with Insulin-dependent Diabetes Mellitus

The cognitive development of children with either early or late onset insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) was investigated with tasks measuring intellectual ability, memory, and academic progress. In addition, children's perceptions of their competence and parents' perspectives on family functioning and their children's behavior were compared. It was found that children with IDDM scored within the normal range on standardized measures of intelligence and academic performance but evidenced some school difficulties, as reflected in subscale performance as well as in their need of remedial education services. Further, evidence was found to suggest deficiencies in children's use of strategies to organize and recall information, particularly for those with early onset of disease. Children's perceived self-competencies and parents' reports of family functioning were strikingly similar across groups. However, parents of those children whose illness began prior to age 5 reported their children to have poor attention spans and difficulty completing tasks.     

Conceptualizing parents' sign language use in bilingual early intervention

This research study investigates how parents and interveners conceptualize parents' early sign language use. Three groups of respondents involved in the same bilingual early intervention program were being interviewed: hearing parents (n = 12), hearing teachers (n = 6), and Deaf consultants (n = 6). The search and retrieve program 'The Ethnograph' was used for data analysis. The results demonstrate that neither a framework of linguistic proficiency nor one of communicative competence captures the complexity of the issues involved for parents and interveners in conceptualizing parents' early sign language use. The interpretative frameworks of each group emphasize different aspects of the task facing parents: balancing the quest for Sign Language proficiency with emotional and practical considerations in the family, acknowledging the overriding importance of communication regardless of what one may label the language used, and confirming the visual quality and child appropriateness of the signing. Results are related to the stocks of knowledge on which respondents draw and the implications for Deaf and hearing interveners assessing parents' progress.     

留守儿童道德成长问题的心理社会分析

家庭教育的缺席是导致留守儿童道德成长问题的主要原因,作为影响这一过程的心理社会因素,亲子关系的失谐、父母榜样作用的缺失和父母监控机制的弱化影响了留守儿童道德观念的获得,道德情感的发展以及道德行为的养成。解决留守儿童道德发展问题的现实途径在于充分利用农村现有的教育资源,扩展农村学校的道德教育与心理辅导功能。     

Parents' views on sexual debut among pre‐teen children in Washington,DC

Objective: Present US parents' perceptions about factors leading to early intercourse and strategies for overcoming them.

Methods: Conducted analysis of eight focus groups with 78 male and female African‐American and Hispanic caregivers of fifth‐graders and sixth‐graders (ages 10–12).

Results: Participants gave the following primary reasons for early sexual activity: lack of structured activities, adult supervision, and communication; and influence of peers, society, and media. They suggested strategies targeting these reasons, and the need for parents, schools, and the community to work together.

Conclusion: Incorporating parents' perspectives would help tailor interventions to the needs of the target population and increase parental support.     

Adolescents' and Parents' Evaluations of Helping Versus Fulfilling Personal Desires in Family Situations

A sample of 118 predominantly European American families with early and middle adolescents ( M _ages= 12.32 and 15.18 years) and 1 parent evaluated hypothetical conflicts between adolescents' and parents' requests for assistance versus the other's personal desires. Evaluations differed by level of need, but in low-need situations, adolescents viewed teens as more obligated to help parents than did parents, whereas parents rated it as more permissible for teens to satisfy personal desires than did teenagers. Justifications for helping focused on concern for others, role responsibilities, and among parents, psychological reasons. Middle adolescents reasoned about role responsibilities more and viewed satisfying personal desires as less selfish than did early adolescents, but satisfying personal desires was seen as more selfish by parents of middle than early adolescents. Implications for adolescent–parent relationships are discussed.     

Exploring the disclosure of child sexual abuse with alleged victims and their parents

OBJECTIVE: The goal of the present study was to examine how children disclosed sexual abuse by alleged perpetrators who were not family members. METHODOLOGY: Thirty alleged victims of sexual abuse and their parents were interviewed. The children were interviewed using the NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol by six experienced youth investigators. The same principles were followed when the parents were asked to describe in detail what had happened since the abusive incidents. The statements made by the children and parents were then content analyzed. Major characteristics of the children's and parents' reported behaviors were identified by two independent raters. FINDINGS: More than half (53%) of the children delayed disclosure for between 1 week and 2 years, fewer than half first disclosed to their parents, and over 40% did not disclose spontaneously but did so only after they were prompted; 50% of the children reported feeling afraid or ashamed of their parents' responses, and their parents indeed tended to blame the children or act angrily. The disclosure process varied depending on the children's ages, the severity and frequency of abuse, the parents' expected reactions, the suspects' identities, and the strategies they had used to foster secrecy. CONCLUSIONS: The children's willingness to disclose abuse to their parents promptly and spontaneously decreased when they expected negative reactions, especially when the abuse was more serious. A strong correlation between predicted and actual parental reactions suggested that the children anticipated their parents' likely reactions very well.     

Universal newborn hearing screening and early identification of deafness: parents' responses to knowing early and their expectations of child communication development

This article presents results from an interview study of 45 parents/caregivers (representing 27 families) whose infants were correctly identified as deaf during the first phase of the implementation of the national universal Newborn Hearing Screening Programme in England. Average age of children when parents were interviewed was 25 weeks. Two issues are explored: (a) how parents talk about significance of knowing early that their child is deaf and (b) parents' expectations of their child's development in light of early identification. Although results demonstrate clear support from parents' perspective of knowing early, they also identify the psychological complexities of recognizing both the grief and reassurance that early knowledge brings; the risks of early knowledge-inducing timetables of expectations that create distress when not met speedily; the extent to which parental models of the developmental advantages of early identification are underpinned by notions of normal speech and the possibility of being like hearing children; and the pervasiveness of deficit and illness models associated with having identified deafness early. Implications for parental support and professional responses are also discussed.     

论高考焦虑症的成因及其化解

高考焦虑症是高考生常见的一种心理问题,对考生有严重影响,但不少人对焦虑症认识不足、处理不当,导致问题更加严重。化解焦虑症需要认清其真正源头,其直接原因是学生心理素质较差;主要原因是家长的期望值过高;根本原因是社会就业形势严峻。所以,化解高考焦虑症的关键在于引导社会正确的就业观;消除家长过高的期望值;提高考生心理的承受力。     

校本课程:理念·特点·策略

校本课程是在国家课程标准规范下，与国家课程、地方课程相对应和补充的，以学校为本位，以学校为阵地，在学习需求分析基础上，由学校自主开发和编制的可供学生进行多种选择的课程，具有校本化、个性化、特色化和自主性等特点。其实施策略有理论与思想准备，师资校本培训，对学生及家长的需求分析，对校本课程资源及条件的评估，典型引路、点面结合等。     

The expectations of parents of disabled children

Following the diagnosis of a child's disability, parents have to develop new expectations concerning the child, their role as parents and the support services that are designed to meet their needs. Research shows, however, that these needs frequently remain unmet. In this article, Fran Russell, who writes as a parent of a son with a learning disability and as a professional with experience of practice in early years support services, explores parents' perspectives from a different direction. She argues that an investigation into parents' expectations could lead to a greater understanding of how parents of disabled children respond to their new-found situation. Fran Russell's own research, undertaken as part of her Education Doctorate programme at Leeds University, reveals that little is currently known about parents' expectations and indicates a pressing need for parents to be better informed, at an early stage in their experience of parenthood, in order to interact more effectively with professionals at a range of levels.     

北京市特殊儿童学前家庭教育状况调查报告

特殊儿童的学前教育对于个人成长和社会发展都具有十分重要的意义。但事实上 ,只有极少数的特殊儿童学前有机会在特殊教育机构中受到教育 ,绝大多数的学前特殊儿童只能呆在家中。本研究对北京市 6 8名特殊儿童的学前家庭教育状况进行调查 ,并对其中 2 2名儿童的家长做了深入的访谈。研究发现特殊儿童学前家庭教育的一些基本特点 :特殊儿童的问题发现较晚 ;特殊儿童接受学前专业机构教育人数少 ;获得社会的支持较少 ;特殊儿童家长对早期教育的重要性认识不够 ;缺乏专业人士的指导。最后 ,我们从家庭和社会两方面作了分析 ,并提出了相应的建议     

Why social workers do not implement decisions to remove children at risk from home

OBJECTIVES: The study explores why social workers do not always implement their decisions to remove children at risk from their homes. METHOD: Social workers in Israel filled out questionnaires for 96 children at risk at two points of time: when they began to consider whether or not to remove the child, they completed questionnaires tapping their own, the parents', and the children's features. Six months later, they reported their decision, whether or not they had carried it out, and if not, why not. RESULTS: Some 21% of the workers' decisions were not implemented, almost all of them decisions to remove. The main reasons given were the objections of the parents and/or the child. Decisions were implemented for all the children whose mothers were alcohol or drug addicts. Implementation was lower for older children, children who were uncooperative with the social worker, and for children whose parents were uncooperative. It was also lower among experienced workers than novices. CONCLUSIONS: Further study is required to examine the generalizability of these findings to other countries, to understand better the reasons for the non-implementation, and to follow-up on the consequences of the non-implementation.     

Writing with young children: a comparison of paternal and maternal guidance

The increasing involvement of fathers in active parenthood raises questions concerning their parenting style. This study compared mothers and fathers in their writing interactions with their young children, exploring how parents' writing guidance related to children's early literacy. Mothers and fathers of 51 kindergarteners were videotaped separately at home while writing words with their child. Video analysis assessed measures of parental guidance specifically in the writing process and guidance measures that characterised teaching interactions in general. Children's early literacy was assessed. A family style of guidance emerged, where a parent's guidance resembled the spouse's. Moreover, both parents' guidance correlated significantly with children's early literacy. Still, mothers scored higher than fathers on both the writing and the more general guidance measures. The study suggests that encouraging both parents to write with their children, while supplying them with productive methods for guidance, can enhance children's literacy competencies.     

家庭教育异化与独生子女社会化不良问题分析

从大多数独生子女家庭教育现状来看,由于教育观念陈旧和父母教育子女的基本素养的缺失等原因,导致家庭教育异化现象:家长们不重视帮孩子进行情感财富积累,不注意正确价值观的引导及健康生存意识和习惯的培养,导致了孩子认知和情感发展不平衡,学习观念的功利主义,盲目的崇拜偶像和缺少健康生活所需要的基本知识和技能等不良问题。改变这种局面应更新家长的观念,发挥家庭在独生子女良好社会性的形成中的重要功能。     

Attributions and Attitudes of Mothers and Fathers in Italy

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined mean level similarities and differences as well as correlations between mothers' and fathers' attributions regarding successes and failures in caregiving situations and progressive versus authoritarian attitudes. DESIGN: Interviews were conducted with both mothers and fathers in 177 Italian families from Rome and Naples. RESULTS: Fathers' attributions reflected higher perceived control over failure than did mothers' attributions, whereas mothers reported attitudes that were more progressive than did fathers. Only the difference in progressive attitudes remained significant after controlling for parents' age, education, and possible social desirability bias. Site differences emerged for four of the seven attributions and attitudes examined; three remained significant after controlling for parents' age, education, and possible social desirability bias. Medium effect sizes were found for concordance between parents in the same family for authoritarian attitudes and modernity of attitudes after controlling for parents' age, education, and possible social desirability bias. CONCLUSIONS: This work elucidates ways that parent gender and cultural context relate to attributions regarding parents' success and failure in caregiving situations and to progressive versus authoritarian parenting attitudes.     

Attributions and Attitudes of Mothers and Fathers in Colombia

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined mean level similarities and differences as well as correlations between mothers' and fathers' attributions regarding successes and failures in caregiving situations and progressive versus authoritarian attitudes. DESIGN: Interviews were conducted with both mothers and fathers in 108 Colombian families. RESULTS: Fathers reported higher uncontrollable success attributions and higher authoritarian attitudes than did mothers, whereas mothers reported higher modernity of attitudes than did fathers; only the gender differences related to parental attitudes remained significant after controlling for parents' age, education, and possible social desirability bias. Medium effect sizes were found for concordance between parents in the same family for attributions regarding uncontrollable success and progressive attitudes after controlling for parents' age, education, and possible social desirability bias. CONCLUSIONS: This work elucidates ways that parent gender relates to attributions regarding parents' success and failure in caregiving and to progressive versus authoritarian parenting attitudes in Colombia.     

大学英语教师自主性的影响因素和实现途径

本文首先分析了影响大学英语教师自主的内因和外因.内因包括:知识结构不合理和科研意识缺乏;教师效能感相对较低,外因包括:大学英语教学的特殊性;缺乏科研条件和学术带头人.并提出了实现大学英语教师自主的途径,包括:构建合理的知识结构,处理好与外部制约的关系,成为终身学习者.大学英语教师实现自主是大学英语教学成功的关键.也是实现学习者自主的前提.