Need for approval and children's well-being

This research examined the hypothesis that a tendency to base one's self-worth on peer approval is associated with positive and negative aspects of children's well-being. A sample of 153 fourth through eighth graders (9.0 to 14.8 years) reported on need for approval, global self-worth, social-evaluative concerns, anxiety and depression, and exposure to victimization. Teachers reported on social behavior. Results confirmed that need for approval is a two-dimensional construct composed of positive (enhanced self-worth in the face of social approval) and negative (diminished self-worth in the face of social disapproval) approval-based self-appraisals. Need for approval had trade-offs for well-being that depended on the dimension (positive vs. negative), the psychological domain (emotional vs. social adjustment), children's sex and age, and children's social context (high vs. low peer victimization).     

Impact of a Technology-Mediated Reading Intervention on Adolescents' Reading Comprehension

In this experimental study we examined the effects of a technology-mediated, multicomponent reading comprehension intervention, Comprehension Circuit Training (CCT), for middle school students, the majority of whom were struggling readers. The study was conducted in three schools, involving three teachers and 228 students. Using a within-teacher design, middle school teachers' reading classes were randomly assigned to treatment (n = 9) or business as usual (n = 7) conditions. In the CCT condition, students received, on average, 39 lessons of video-modeled instruction in word reading, vocabulary, and comprehension instruction during reading intervention classes. Results of multilevel structural equation models indicated statistically significant effects favoring the CCT condition on three measures: reading comprehension latent variable (ES = 0.14), proximal vocabulary (ES = 0.43), and silent reading efficiency (ES = 0.28). Subgroup analyses indicated that students with lower entry-level reading comprehension tended to benefit more from the CCT intervention in reading comprehension, silent reading efficiency, and state test scores.     

The Emotional Contours and Career Trajectories of (Disappointed) Reform Enthusiasts

Three individual cases, drawn from a larger body of case study data, illuminate a relatively unexamined aspect of teachers’ participation in large‐scale reform‐‐teachers’ experience of heightened emotionality and its relationship to career discontinuity or career risk. Disappointed reform enthusiasts point to three conditions that intensify emotional responses to reform and appear to result in career turning points: (1) the nature and extent of reform‐related conflict within salient work groups; (2) the degree of equilibrium among multiple sources of pressure and support; (3) institutional or administrative capacity to manage the pace, scale and dynamics of reform.     

Family portrait: a profile of educational developers around the world

Educational development (also called academic or faculty development) has been described as fragmented, disconnected, and a ‘family of strangers,’ due mostly to the different academic backgrounds of its members. In this paper, the authors report on a survey of over 1000 educational developers from 38 countries on six continents. To help the field gain a clearer picture of itself at the international level, the authors provide a profile of developers’ demography, institutional locations, academic backgrounds, and current roles, and discuss the implications for educational development as a field and developers as a community.     

Developmental trajectories of sex-typed behavior in boys and girls: a longitudinal general population study of children aged 2.5-8 years

The stability of sex-typed behavior from the preschool to the middle school years was examined. The Preschool Activities Inventory, a measure of within-sex variation in sex-typed behavior, was completed by the primary caregiver when the child was 2.5, 3.5, and 5 years, and a modified version, the Child Activities Inventory, was completed by the child at age 8. The investigation involved a general population sample of 2,726 boys and 2,775 girls. Sex-typed behavior increased through the preschool years, and those children who were the most sex typed at age 2.5 were still the most sex typed at age 5, with those children who showed the highest levels of sex-typed behavior during the preschool years continuing to do so at age 8.     

Gender Labels and Play Styles: Their Relative Contribution to Children's Selection of Playmates

The relative contribution of gender labels and play styles (masculine or feminine) in playmate selection was evaluated in 60 children between the ages of 4 and 8 years using a novel interview measure. In the interview, when targets' gender labels and targets' play styles were presented as independent dimensions, children showed predicted sex differences in preferences for gender labels and for play styles (including toys, rough-and-tumble play, and activity level). However, when targets' gender labels and targets' play styles were presented as competing dimensions, boys of all ages chose female targets with masculine play styles over male targets with feminine play styles. In contrast, younger girls (4–5-year-olds) chose female targets with masculine play styles, whereas older girls (6–8-year-olds) chose male targets with feminine play styles. This suggests possible sex differences in the contribution of gender labels and of play styles in the development of children's preferences for same-sexed playmates.     

“Exploring this whole thing of social justice” narrative as a tool for critical sociocultural knowledge development in teacher education

Many teacher education programs provide teachers with opportunities to read, write, and discuss critical pedagogy, with the hope that such work will allow them to develop more equitable and just teaching practices. Yet, there often remains a gap between the theoretical discussions of teaching and learning in teacher education classrooms and the pedagogical practice in those teachers’ K-12 classrooms. In this study, we examine how one teacher, Gabriela, used narratives to make connections between her third-grade classroom and the critical concepts she was exploring in a teacher education course. Embedded within an ethnographic case study of an inservice teacher education program, we used a discourse analytic approach to examine both the sociocultural knowledge and the identities Gabriela constructed through narrative as she engaged with issues of language, race, and power within the course. We consider some of the affordances of narrative in this space, including how it allowed Gabriela to integrate her understandings of multiple course topics, to position herself in multiple ways as a teacher, and to disrupt her existing understandings of race and racism in the classroom. This analysis suggests that critically oriented teacher education programs might more intentionally make space for narrative to connect critical theory and pedagogical practice.     

Embedding Probeware Technology in the Context of Ocean Acidification in Elementary Science Methods Courses

Research indicates that preservice teacher (PT) education programs can positively impact perceptions of scientific probeware use in K-8 environments. Despite the potential of probeware to improve science instruction and student engagement, its use in elementary education has been limited. Sixty-seven PT enrolled across three sections of an elementary science methods course participated in a mixed-methods study through which they utilized probeware in a thematic experience on ocean acidification. One-way repeated measures ANOVA of pre and post survey data measuring subscales of utility, ability, and intent to use probeware demonstrated a statistically significant increase with medium to large effect sizes for all subscales across all sections \( \left(p<0.01,\kern0.5em {\eta}_p^2=0.384;\kern0.5em p<0.001,\kern0.5em {\eta}_p^2=0.517;\kern0.0em p<0.001,\kern0.0em {\eta}_p^2=0.214\right) \). Analysis of reflective journals revealed over 60% felt the multiple capabilities (notably graphing) of probeware make it a useful classroom tool, and almost one-half believed that its use makes science more enjoyable and engaging. Mapping of the unitized data from the journals on the Next Generation Science Standards suggested that probeware use especially engages learners in planning and carrying out investigations and in analyzing and interpreting data. Journals also revealed that despite PT having prior experience with probeware in science courses, its use in their future elementary classroom is conditional on having a positive experience with probeware in a science methods course. Further, embedding a probeware experience in a unit on ocean acidification provides PT with strategies for addressing climate change and engaging in argument from evidence.     

Emotion Regulation,Harsh Parenting,and Teacher Sensitivity Among Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Toddlers in Child Care

Research Findings: This study examined the transactional nature of harsh parenting and emotion regulation across toddlerhood, including the moderating role of teacher sensitivity in child care. Secondary data analyses were conducted with a subsample of families from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project who participated in center-based child care. Autoregressive cross-lagged path models were used to examine stability and transactional associations between observations of mothers’ harsh parenting behaviors and observers’ ratings of toddler emotion regulation at 14, 24, and 36 months. Teacher sensitivity was observed in children’s child care classrooms and was hypothesized to attenuate the negative impact of harsh parenting on subsequent emotion regulation. Results suggested that poorer emotion regulation and increased harsh parenting at 14 months were particularly salient in setting the stage for worse parent and toddler outcomes at 36 months. Teacher sensitivity was not a significant protective factor. Practice or Policy: Results are discussed in terms of the importance of early parent–toddler interactions that match the developing regulatory needs of young toddlers as well as considering how teacher sensitivity is conceptualized and measured so programs such as Early Head Start can best meet the needs of socioeconomically disadvantaged parents and toddlers.     

Predictors of Help‐Seeking Attitudes in College Student Service Members and Veterans

We explored predictors of attitudes toward psychological help seeking among 103 student service members and veterans (SSM/V). Results showed that self‐stigma, public stigma, and gender significantly predicted attitudes toward psychological help seeking. A test of mediation revealed that self‐stigma fully mediated the relationship between public stigma and attitudes toward psychological help seeking. Implications for college counseling professionals who serve SSM/V are discussed.