Impact of Structured Movement Time on Preschoolers’ Physical Activity Engagement

Preschool-aged children are not meeting national physical activity recommendations. This study compares preschoolers’ physical activity engagement during two different physical activity opportunities: outdoor free play or a structured movement session. Eighty-seven children served as participants: 40 children participated in outdoor free play and another 47 children participated in a planned movement session. Children in the movement program replaced their outdoor free play with a structured movement session on 2 days each week. All movement opportunities were 30-min in duration. Physical activity was objectively measured using accelerometers. Results show that, compared to children on the playground, children in the movement program engaged in less sedentary behaviors and more light, moderate, vigorous and moderate to vigorous physical activity. In total, children in the movement program engaged in 15.5 min of healthier physical activity behaviors as compared with children in the outdoor free play. Structured movement time appears to afford children an opportunity to engage in more physical activity than outdoor time alone. Findings support that preschool centers should provide children with a daily structured movement time that includes formalized instruction in addition to regularly scheduled outdoor free play.     

DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICES IN TEACHER EDUCATION: LESSONS FROM ONE SEMESTER

Abstract

A major challenge for teacher preparation programs and future teachers is learning to work skillfully with the diversity of children in American classrooms. This paper describes a tool developed to address this challenge: the Learning and Teaching Assessment System (LTAS). The LTAS is a performance‐based, curriculum‐embedded assessment tool designed to uncover young children's strengths in different curricular areas as well as their approaches to learning. Developed for use with children 3–8 years of age, the LTAS helps teachers understand what children know in relation to key concepts in the different disciplines as well as how they learn in order to further their learning in subsequent days and weeks of teaching. The development of the LTAS is based primarily on two theoretical frameworks: Leont'ev's activity theory and Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences. To examine the efficacy of the LTAS in its proposed objectives, a pilot study was conducted; results point to the potential of the LTAS for helping student teachers uncover new information about children to guide future instruction.     

Improving Opportunities for Bridging Social Capital: The Story of a Full-Service Community School Initiative at an Alternative High School

Abstract

This article describes the collective efforts educators and multiple community partners are taking to transform one alternative urban high school into a full-service community school. The article presents preliminary findings on the opportunities for bridging social capital that the full-service initiative has created and the impacts such opportunities have for students in urban alternative settings with multiple risk factors stacked against them.     

Letter writing instruction for children: Case-sensitive letter frequencies in children’s handwriting workbooks

Reading and Writing - Children’s ability to write letters automatically has been linked to academic achievement. Despite the importance of handwriting, handwriting instruction is often...     

Mindfulness and discussing “thorny” issues in the classroom

Being in the moment, showing compassion, being non-judgmental, acknowledging deep emotional challenges without getting stuck: these are mindfulness characteristics important to us as teachers, yet not often included in teacher preparation. These concerns become magnified when we focus on difficult knowledge and thorny issues, like topics related to gender and race. Using a sociocultural framework, we address how mindfulness, heuristics, and other contemplative practices can be adopted to create safe, supporting, and healing spaces for such complex, often emotionally painful discussions. Participant narratives are used extensively to provide a voice to those marginalized or hurt. Drawing from these narratives and their experience in discussing thorny issues, we put forth possible solutions and interventions that can create spaces that encourage and support critical discourse through mindful practices. The development of a heuristic for discussing thorny issues whose characteristics can be adopted by interested teachers and educators to help frame and mediate this type of difficult discussion is an outcome of this research.     

Predicting First Graders’ Social Competence from Their Preschool Classroom Interpersonal Context

Research Findings: This study investigates contributions of the preschool classroom interpersonal environment to students’ social competence in 1st grade. Participants were 862 ethnically/racially diverse children who attended public preschool classrooms serving low-income families. Systematic observations of 60 classrooms occurred across the preschool year and quantified teacher and student behaviors. Preschool and 1st-grade teachers provided reports of children’s social behavior. First-grade teachers also assessed children’s problem behaviors. Multilevel analyses indicated that at the end of 1st grade, students who experienced preschool settings with teachers who displayed more approving behavior, less disapproving behavior, and more positive emotional tone showed significant gains in positive social behavior and lower rates of problem behavior, even after students’ social skills at preschool entry were controlled. Greater gains in positive social behavior and fewer problem behaviors in 1st grade were also predicted by immersion in preschool classrooms that had more positive and cooperative interactions among peers. Practice or Policy: Universal preschool is a policy under consideration nationally and locally, with social competence often listed as an important goal. This study indicates that even in the absence of a particular social-emotional curriculum, preschool teachers’ behaviors and interactions among their students may have lasting implications for children’s social development.     

Science Education in U.S. Natural History Museums: A Historical Perspective

The role of education in United States natural historymuseums has a long andchanging history. The past century and a half has broughtchanges not only inhow the role of education in museums is viewed, but in therelevance it playsin overarching institutional decisions. As the educationalrole of natural historymuseums evolves, so do the ways in which education of thepublic on suchconcepts as the very nature of science is carried out inthese institutions. Lookingat past trends and future challenges will assist with theidentification of the role ofeducation in the natural history museum of the new millennium.     

The status of sign language instruction in institutions of higher education: 1994-2004

Surveys of sign language programs in institutions of higher education in the United States, conducted in 1994 and 2004, are compared to reveal changes over time. Data are presented concerning the institutional environment of programs, program administrators, and instructors. Institutions examined in 2004 were on average 5 years older than those examined in 1994. More institutions accepted sign language for general education and foreign language requirements. Program administrators in 2004 were more likely to have primary duties as teachers rather than administrators, and to have greater understanding of the subject matter. Faculty in 2004 had more education and teaching experience. Full-time faculty showed increases in the proportion who were Deaf and the proportion who were in tenure-track positions. Program staff size increased. Overall, evidence indicates that sign language has become more accepted as an academic discipline and that programs are more entrenched at their institutions.     

Meaning of parental involvement among Korean immigrant parents: A mixed-methods approach

The authors' goal was to identify ways in which Korean immigrant parents define the concept of parental involvement and to examine the statistical significances of interrelationships among these meanings. Seventy-seven parents responded to an open-ended question that asked them to define the meaning of parental involvement; 141 responses were analyzed. Qualitative analysis resulted in four distinct categories: (a) support at home (68.8%), (b) home–school connection (17.7%), (c) participation in school (5.0%), and (d) duty (8.5%). The category of support at home was divided into three subcategories: Support of nonacademic development (31.9%), support of emotional psychological development (29.1%), and support of academic success (7.8%). A correlational analysis indicated that support of emotional psychological development was negatively correlated with home–school connection and support of academic success. The parents who considered parental involvement to be their duty did not perceive their roles as participating in home–school connections and supporting nonacademic development activities.