Young Children’s Curiosity About Physical Differences Associated with Race: Shared Reading to Encourage Conversation

Many have called for re-examination of the “colorblind” philosophy to which some early educators have, tacitly or explicitly, adhered (e.g. Boutte et al. 2011; Derman-Sparks and Edwards 2010; Husband 2012). It has been argued that, while colorblind approaches may appear to be politically neutral, they actually exacerbate racial oppression. In this article, we advocate for a direct and active approach to raising conversations about race with younger preschool children. Based on the developmental nature of young children’s concepts of self and of other, our focus is on initiating discussions about concrete and observable physical aspects of human diversity associated with race. Young children notice and are curious about differences in skin color, hair texture, and facial features. Because these differences are salient, are accessible, and are of interest to young children they can serve as an effective starting point. We suggest shared reading of high quality illustrated children’s books, incorporating the principles of dialogic reading, as a potent springboard for discussions about race with very young children. Our purpose is to equip children, very early in their schooling, with a color-filled appreciation for and comfort with physical diversity of appearance. On that foundation, children may better proceed on the course of developing anti-racist attitudes.     

Is the Door-in-the-Face a Concession?

The Door-in-the-Face (DITF) sequential message strategy was investigated in a three-study analysis of existing experimental findings. The current study predicted there would be a positive relationship between concession size and compliance rates in DITF studies. Study 1 included 25 comparisons where size of concession was quantifiable as measured by percentage reduction from initial to target request in the DITF condition. Study 2 data relied on a panel of undergraduate students to provide an index of concession size in 12 additional observations. A third study validated the panel procedure of rating concession size and also provided 9 additional independent observations from the pool of published studies on DITF. Results from each study indicated a positive relationship between concession size and effect size (r = 0.35, 0.55, 0.68, respectively). Study findings provide support for reciprocal concessions explanation for DITF effects.     

秃杉的胚胎发育及其与杉科各属的比较

 本文报道秃杉(Taiwania flousiana Gaussen)的雌雄配子体和胚胎发育的研究结果及其与杉科各属的比较。秃杉的大孢子经10次游离核同时分裂,产生1019—1021个游离核。  6月初游离核开始向心地形成细胞壁。雄配子体具两个大小、形状相同的精子。受精作用在湖北发生于6月底至7月初(1960)。受精卵经3次游离核分裂,形成8核原胚,排列成两群,紧接着形成壁。上下2群细胞的数目分配为5：3或4:4,少数为6:2。    从胚胎学的资料来看,秃杉与台湾杉一样,它们最接近杉木属和水松属,与柳杉属、落羽松属和水杉属也有类似之处。它们的共同特征是：精子形状、大小相同,复合颈卵器顶生,原胚具8个游离核,兼具裂生多胚。而红杉属、巨杉属、密叶杉属和金松属的胚胎发育各有特点,应分别属于杉科不同的类群。     

Do Phonological and Executive Processes in English Learners at Risk for Reading Disabilities in Grade 1 Predict Performance in Grade 2?

This study determined the degree to which the phonological and executive components of memory reflect language‐specific capacities in reading achievement. We tested whether the memory processes in a sample of English‐language learners that played a major role in predicting second‐language acquisition and risk for reading disability (RD) in Grade 1 (Swanson, Sáez, Gerber, & Leafstedt, 2004) also predicted reading performance in Grade 2. The present results showed that Spanish short‐term memory (STM) performance in Grade 1 predicted basic Spanish‐reading skills and Spanish comprehension in Grade 2, whereas Grade 1 English STM performance predicted English vocabulary and English comprehension in Grade 2. More importantly, children at risk for RD in Grade 1 differed from the counterparts in Grade 2 on both English and Spanish measures of reading, whereas their memory deficits were isolated to Spanish STM and working memory (WM). The relationship between language‐specific processes in memory and reading are discussed.