A better start to literacy learning: findings from a teacher-implemented intervention in children’s first year at school

Reading and Writing - This study investigated the feasibility of a teacher implemented intervention to accelerate phonological awareness, letter, and vocabulary knowledge in 141 children (mean age...     

Understanding Barriers and Solutions Affecting Preschool Attendance in Low-Income Families

ABSTRACT

Preschool attendance problems negatively impact children's school readiness skills and future school attendance. Parents are critical to preschoolers’ attendance. This study explored parental barriers and solutions to preschool attendance in low-income families. School-district administrative data from a racially/ethnically diverse sample of parents with children attending the district's half-day preschool program were obtained (N = 111). Subsamples of parents participated in a phone interview and follow-up, in-person interview. Parents valued early learning and preschool. Children missed school due to illness, problems with child care, transportation, and family life. Differences in attendance rates appeared by school, family demographics, and race/ethnicity. African-Americans and Hispanics experienced more barriers than Whites and Asians, and were more likely to miss school because of illness and medical appointments. Hispanics were more likely to miss for vacation. Parents noted a lack of social connection with other parents in the school/neighborhood, making seeking help to resolve attendance barriers difficult.     

Differences in Graduation Rates Between Young Black and White College Students: Effect of Entry into Parenthood and Historically Black Universities

Black and White students who enrolled in college by age 20 were selected from a national probability sample, in order to estimate the prevalence of having children and the effect of having a child on probability of graduation with a bachelors degree. Black students reported significantly higher rates of having children than White students, but rates for Black students at historically Black universities were similar to those of Black students at predominantly White universities. After controlling for family background, achievement, and other student characteristics, having a child within 5 years of starting college generally reduced the probability of graduating with a bachelors degree for Black women and White women and men. The independent effect of attending a historically Black college was significantly positive for Black women but not statistically significant for Black men.     

“I Think About It All The Time”: A 12-Year-Old Girl’s Internal Crisis With Racism and the Effects on her Mental Health

I conducted an ethnographic study, situated within the conceptual framework of Critical Race Theory, which illustrates one child’s experiences with racism. The study was conducted in an urban after-school program, and explores issues of racism in both the school and community settings. Utilizing the storytelling aspect of Critical Race Theory, I explore the racial experiences of a 12-year-old African-American girl, and the dichotomous emotions of sadness and anger that emerge. I describe the risk to this child’s emotional well-being, and suggest a need within the mental health field to create a framework to deal with the trauma caused by racism. Amy L. Masko is affiliated with the Grand Valley State University. She is a professor of English Education, preparing pre-service teachers to teach elementary literacy. Dr. Masko’s research interests are in urban education, after school programs, and multicultural education. She is also an educational consultant in the area of diversity in education and literacy education. Address correspondence to Amy L. Masko, Grand Valley State University, 221 Lake Huron Hall Allendale, MI 49401; e-mail: maskoa@gvsu.edu     

The relationship between grit,self-control,and early grade reading: a trial measuring soft skills in rural Tanzania

Abstract

Soft skills such as grit, self-control, and self-confidence have been shown to predict outcomes in school and in life. As such, their valid and reliable measurement is of substantial interest in educational research and policy circles. However, the vast majority of this research originates in Western countries; relatively little is known regarding the measurement of soft skills in developing country contexts and whether similar types of instruments can provide evidence of these skills. This paper presents a novel means of assessing grit, self-control, and self-confidence in rural Tanzania: through the use of scenario-based self-report questionnaires. Survey instruments were administered in three regions in Tanzania to 961 Standard 2 pupils. We found that scenario-based items provided valid and, in most cases, reliable estimates of the three tested soft skills. When comparing self-reported soft skills and reading ability, we found that both grit and self-control were significant predictors of reading and mathematics performance. After controlling for sex, region, and age, grit was found to have a stronger association with reading performance than socioeconomic status.     

Teacher–Child Interactions in Early Head Start Classrooms: Associations With Teacher Characteristics

ABSTRACT

Research Findings: The current study examined characteristics of 71 Early Head Start lead teachers in relation to classroom interactions with infants and toddlers. Measured teacher characteristics included education, years of experience, beliefs about child rearing, depressive symptoms, and the temperamental characteristics of positivity and frustration. Teacher–child interactions were measured using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System, Toddler Version (La Paro, Hamre, & Pianta, 2012). Results indicated that field of degree was directly associated with the majority of dimensions of teacher–child interactions. Examination of teachers’ years of experience and intrapersonal characteristics revealed a number of significant interactions, indicating that teacher experience and appropriate beliefs may serve as protective factors in the presence of psychosocial risk factors. Practice or Policy: Overall, our findings suggest that both early childhood education degrees and years of experience are directly or indirectly associated with multiple dimensions of teacher–child interactions, confirming that these patterns established for preschool teachers hold for teachers of infants and toddlers. These results also suggest that years of experience and progressive beliefs about children may be especially important for teachers who are depressed or who have low levels of positivity and high levels of frustration. Implications for future research, as well as preservice and in-service professional development, are discussed.     

Mother-Child Play: Sequential Interactions and the Relation between Maternal Beliefs and Behaviors

This investigation of mother and toddler play had 2 goals. The primary goal was to examine the types of play mothers introduce in direct response to their toddlers' play. A secondary and exploratory goal was to examine the relation between maternal knowledge about child play and actual maternal play behaviors. 50 mothers and their 21-month-old toddlers were observed at home during free play. Mother and child exploratory, nonsymbolic, and symbolic play were coded. Sequential analyses revealed that mothers adjusted their play to their children's play level by responding to their children with play that was either at the same level or at a higher level than their children's play. Furthermore, mothers who were more knowledgeable about early play development more often responded to their children's play by introducing higher level play. These findings suggest that mothers tend to play with their toddlers in ways that might promote their child's development, and that mothers with more knowledge about play development provide their children with appropriately challenging play interactions.     

IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF PEER MARKING IN HIGHER EDUCATION

The implementation of peer marking within an existing tutorial system is examined. Peer marks were found to be in close agreement with the tutor's, lending credibility to the approach. The benefits of peer marking were discussed with the students, including their possible improvement in examination technique. This teaching approach has the added advantage in that the tutor can more easily act as a facilitator (rather than as an assessor) in the tutorial sessions. At the end of the year an evaluation of peer marking was carried out

Results from a questionnaire showed that five relative advantages of peer marking had been achieved. Further, the students believed that their work had been marked fairly, and that peer marks should count towards their end‐of‐year marks. Peer marking was found tobe most successful, fully complementing a tutorial system of teaching.