Suspected Child Maltreatment: Preschool Staff in a Conflict of Loyalty

Objective To investigate the actions of Swedish preschool staff when suspecting the maltreatment of children in their domestic environment, and the staff’s further experiences and relations to the family members. Methods A questionnaire in 2005 to the staff of 189 child groups in community preschools, including 3,100 children. Results A report to Child Protective Agency (CPA) was submitted in 30% of the cases where maltreatment was suspected. The staff’s decisions as well as their working situation, and how they estimated the parents’ benefits from CPA support were deeply affected by their different relations to the families. The staff had their best contact with the children and their most insecure and vulnerable contact with the fathers. Conclusions In situations with suspected child maltreatment the staff face conflicts of loyalty, mostly based on insecure relations, which could become an impediment to supporting and educating the children.     

The Development of a Curriculum Toolkit with American Indian and Alaska Native Communities

This article explains the creation of the Growing and Learning with Young Native Children curriculum toolkit. The curriculum toolkit was designed to give American Indian and Alaska Native early childhood educators who work in a variety of settings the framework for developing a research-based, developmentally appropriate, tribally specific curriculum to use with Native children aged 0–3. The curriculum toolkit should assist Native people in preserving and maintaining their unique culture and language. Challenges specific to the implementation of an early childhood program in Indian Country have been explained. A brief historical overview of Indian education has been included. The contents of this article were developed under Grant #P116Z05-0056 from the US Department of Education. However, the contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the US Department of Education and the reader should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.     

一双袜子

在一个阳光明媚的下午,我走在第五街,突然想起应该买一双袜子了. 我恰巧看到一家短袜专卖店,便走了进去.一个不超过十七岁的男服务员迎上前来说道:“先生,您需要什么?”“我想买一双短袜.”听了我的话,他的眼睛一亮.他的话语充满了激情:“您知道吗?现在您正站在世界上一流的短袜专卖店里!”他热情地向我讲解着.而我却根本没有在意他说的话,因为我来这里实属偶然.“跟我来吧.”他说着,就径直走向商店里面.他不断地把货箱一个个从货架上搬下来,让我随意挑选.     

Investigating the dynamics of formative assessment: relationships between teacher knowledge,assessment practice and learning

This exploratory study of elementary school science examines questions central to policy, practice and research on formative assessment: What is the quality of teachers’ content-pedagogical and assessment knowledge? What is the relationship between teacher knowledge and assessment practice? What is the relationship between teacher knowledge, assessment practice and student learning? Drawing on multiple measures, hierarchical linear modelling and path analysis, results suggest that despite weaknesses in teachers’ content-pedagogical and assessment knowledge, teachers’ formative assessment practices are positively related to student learning. Relationships between teachers’ knowledge and assessment practices are mixed. Findings underscore both the potential and challenge of bringing effective formative practice to fruition as well as the need for continued research.     

Pedagogical Content Knowledge and the 2003 Science Teacher Preparation Standards for NCATE Accreditation or State Approval

The 2003 National Science Teachers Association Standards for Science Teacher Preparation (NSTA-SSTP) were developed to provide guidelines and expectations for science teacher preparation programs. This article is the fourth in a special JSTE series on accreditation written to assist science teacher educators in meeting the NSTA-SSTP. In this article, the authors discuss pedagogical content knowledge and how this is expressed in the NSTA-SSTP. Included are competencies and examples needed for a science teacher preparation program to document developing pedagogical content knowledge in preservice science teachers.