The Crisis in Jewish Education

What will the Jewish supplementary school be in the 1990's? A more definitive question might be what will it supplement? In the beginning “supplementary” schools brought Jewish knowled[ggrave]e to the student who was already experiencing living Judaism in the home. In the 1960's, heyday of Jewish afternoon schools, the school supplemented secular knowledge and secular living with Jewish knowledge and some Jewish life experience as the home contributed less and less.     

Guest Speakers in School-Based Sexuality Education

This study, using data from a statewide survey (n = 332), examined teachers’ practices regarding the inclusion of guest speakers to cover sexuality content. More than half of teachers (58%) included guest speakers. In multivariate analyses, teachers who taught high school, had professional preparation in health education, or who received professional development covering sexually transmitted disease (STD) or pregnancy prevention had greater odds of including guest speakers (all p <.05). Teachers who included guest speakers covered more sexuality topics and were more likely to cover controversial topics (p <.05). Findings have implications for teachers, school policies, and organizations that offer sexual health education and outreach.     

White children's empathy-related responding and prosocial behavior toward White and Black children

Relations among White (non-Latinx) children's empathy-related responding, prosocial behaviors, and racial attitudes toward White and Black peers were examined. In 2017, 190 (54% boys) White 5- to 9-year-old children (M = 7.09 years, SD = 0.94) watched a series of videos that depicted social rejection of either a White or Black child. Empathy-related responses, prosocial behaviors, and racial attitudes were measured using multiple methods. Results showed that younger children showed less facial concern toward Black than White peers and greater increases with age in concern and prosocial behaviors (sharing a desirable prize) for Black, compared to White, targets. Children's facial anger increased with age for White but not Black targets. The findings can extend our understanding children's anti-racism development.     

Relations of Inhibition and Emotion-Related Parenting to Young Children's Prosocial and Vicariously Induced Distress Behavior

Children's prosocial behavior and personal distress are likely affected by children's temperament as well as parenting quality. In this study, we examined bidirectional relations from age 30 to 42 months between children's (N = 218) prosocial or self-focused (presumably distressed) reactions to a relative stranger's distress and both supportive emotion-related maternal reactions to children's emotions and children's shyness/inhibition. When controlling for 30-month prosocial behavior and personal distress behavior, maternal supportive (emotion-focused and problem-focused) reactions were positively related to prosocial behavior and marginally negatively related to children's personal distress behaviors and shyness/inhibition at 42 months. Thirty-month personal distress behavior predicted greater shyness/inhibition at 42 months, and 30-month shyness/inhibition was negatively related to prosocial behavior at 30 months.     

Self-Regulation and School Readiness

RESEARCH FINDINGS: In this article, we review research on the relations of self-regulation and its dispositional substrate, effortful control, to variables involved in school success. First, we present a conceptual model in which the relation between self-regulation/effortful control and academic performance is mediated by low maladjustment and high-quality relationships with peers and teachers, as well as school engagement. Then we review research indicating that effortful control and related skills are indeed related to maladjustment, social skills, relationships with teachers and peers, school engagement, as well as academic performance. PRACTICE OR POLICY: Initial findings are consistent with the view that self-regulatory capacities involved in effortful control are associated with the aforementioned variables; only limited evidence of mediated relations is currently available.     

The Effect of Two Years of Tutoring on Mathematics and Reading Achievement

This study investigated the cognitive impact of two years of tutoring on disadvantaged children in a “big-brother” type program. Although tutors were not specifically required to upgrade achievement, almost all assumed this to be a major thrust of their activities. Mathematics and reading skills were measured over a two-year period for children tutored two years, one year, and not at all. Findings indicate that one year of tutoring yielded some cognitive gains; however, a second year of tutoring did not increment them. Less emphasis on achievement goals during the second year of tutoring appeared to account for these results.