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The Cycle of Inquiry (COI) is a tool for emergent curriculum planning and for professional development of early childhood teachers and teacher education students. The COI includes a sequence of five organizational forms connecting analysis of documentation data with intentional planning for long-term emergent inquiry inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach. The authors discuss and analyze the COI System through examination and analysis of the work of a student in a university early childhood teacher preparation program. Through this case study, the authors explore (1) whether a preservice teacher can learn to use the COI form-driven process to plan and facilitate emergent curriculum and (2) whether a mentor can scaffold and assess the development of an inservice or preservice teacher using the teacher's COI documentation. The authors also describe ongoing research into use of the COI System and outline potential directions for future research.

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Early science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education matters for young children’s learning and their academic trajectories (McClure et al., 2017), but teachers must be empowered and supported to effectively teach STEM subjects to all children, including dual language learners (DLLs). This study focused on a curriculum-agnostic professional learning model (Brenneman, Lange, & Nayfeld, 2019), which was co-developed with educators to positively impact attitudes, beliefs, confidence, knowledge, and ultimately, teaching practice for preschool teachers around teaching STEM and working with DLLs. Forty-seven lead preschool teachers were randomly assigned to treatment or control conditions. Treatment teachers participated in over two years of connected, reflective, multi-level experiences linked to their practice. Results showed positive effects on intervention teachers’ attitudes, beliefs, and confidence towards teaching science, math, and working with dual language learners compared to control teachers. Treatment teachers also exhibited significant increases in pedagogical and content knowledge related to teaching STEM and working with DLLs, but no significant impacts on knowledge of teaching math (numeracy). Implications and future directions are discussed.

Research Findings: This study evaluated the effects of an early mathematics intervention designed to engage preschool children, their teachers, and their families in an interactive mathematics game. Previous research shows that playing this specific type of linear board game results in increased numerical skills and understanding in young children under controlled conditions. The current study explores the game’s effectiveness under more natural conditions–a classroom-based intervention with teachers and a related family engagement component. A pilot study informed a larger-scale experiment, comparing outcomes in multiple skill domains (verbal counting, counting on, number line estimation, numeral magnitude, and numeral recognition) with those of control group children who played memory matching games. The analysis sample included 256 children in classrooms that were randomly selected from volunteer teachers and randomly assigned within 10 centers to either the treatment group (mathematics games, 23 teachers) or the comparison condition (matching games, 22 teachers). The intervention resulted in positive impacts for numeral identification, but not the other domains. The number of math games played was positively associated with verbal counting. No impact of family game play was found; however, implementation challenges could have influenced this finding. Practice or Policy: Including simple, research-informed mathematics board games in the preschool classroom can support mathematical learning. Future work must include families and educators in the design of these supports.

Ramps and Pathways (R&P) early physical science activities enable educators and young children (3–8 years) to explore and investigate what happens as marbles and rolling objects are released on constructed ramp structures and pathways using wooden cove molding. The R&P project challenged educators to transform their views of early science learning and instruction. Preliminary pilot and field-testing results demonstrate improved science achievement and teaching practices. The purpose of this paper is to examine the potential impact of R&P investigations for children with and without disabilities: (a) on learning and development in general; and (b) STEM outcomes specifically according to Idaho teacher participants. This investigation will likewise explore teachers’ attitudes and firsthand experiences toward implementing R&P with young children. Teacher reflections revealed that teachers witnessed developmental benefits related to language and social emotional development during R&P. Although teachers as a group observed STEM learning and thinking for learners in general, the early childhood–special education teacher noted children with disabilities specifically learning and developing STEM concepts.

Autism can be reliably diagnosed at 18-24 months; however, the average age of diagnosis remains at 4-5 years, which is relatively high in relation to the earliest age at which it can be accurately diagnosed. This gap in diagnosis provides an opportunity to train early childhood educators to recognize the early signs of autism, so they can identify children in their care showing these signs and refer them for further evaluation if needed. A widely used course that focuses on the early red flags of autism, Autism Navigator About Autism in Toddlers, is freely available online. Barriers such as, lack of access to the technology required to complete an online training may prevent some early educators from accessing this course. To explore if providing early educators with training completion instructions served to alleviate these barriers, a SMART design (i.e., two-stage randomization) was implemented. In Stage 1, participants were randomly assigned to a support—completion instructions with either text or pictures only, to facilitate their completion of the training. In Stage 2, participants who failed to complete the training in Stage 1 were randomly assigned to a new support—text and picture completion instructions with or without a webinar. While the study aimed to identify the initial and subsequent subsequent support to offer to facilitate early childhood educators’ completion of the Autism Navigator About Autism in Toddlers online course, the supports provided had no significant influence on training completion. Instead, participant characteristics (e.g., highest level of education) significantly contributed to training completion. The study findings can inform strategies to increase accessibility of online training about the early signs of autism for a wider variety of early childhood educators, which could lead to more timely identification of autism in young children. / A Dissertation submitted to the School of Communication Science and Disorders in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / 2019 / October 17, 2019. / autism early identification, early childhood education, online training, professional development / Includes bibliographical references. / Amy M. Wetherby, Professor Directing Dissertation; Chris Schatschneider, University Representative; Carla Wood, Committee Member; Mollie Romano, Committee Member.

First- and second-language education is a much researched and universal phenomenon. Like in many other countries, South African children attend preschools from a young age. They often attend dual-medium or English preschools, although South Africa has 11 official languages, of which Afrikaans, the mother-tongue of the participants in this study, is one. During the preschool years, important milestones are achieved in terms of social, emotional and language development. Many researchers argue that basic concepts are best acquired in the mother-tongue, while other researchers highlight the advantages of multilingualism. The primary research question that is explored in this study is: How does the social and emotional development of Afrikaans mother-tongue three-year-olds who receive mother-tongue, dual-medium or second-language education present? This study aimed to expand the insight and knowledge regarding language of education, language dynamics, language diversity and social and emotional development during the early years. Phenomenological principles are at the basis of this study and the researcher built the conceptual framework on Erikson’s psychosocial theory. Vignette research, with supporting quantitative and qualitative questionnaires, explored the social and emotional development and language of education of three-year-olds. Vignette research provided in-depth, observational data on three participants’ experiences in their learning environments. Mothers’ (n = 36) and educators’ (n = 15) experiences of the children’s social and emotional development were captured using questionnaires. On a quantitative level, no major differences in three-year-olds’ social and emotional development were evident when they received mother-tongue, dual-medium or second-language education. On a qualitative level, significant granular differences and finer nuances were, however, evident in three-year-olds who received mother-tongue, dual-medium or second-language education. Although both groups of participants showed high levels of language skills, differences included the three-year-olds’ experience of social and emotional security in the learning environment, independence and initiative-taking in informal settings, empathy for peers and relationships characterised by qualitative depth and the processing of auditory information. Although the study focused on South African early-learning contexts, the findings may provide insights for future research on multilingualism. / Afrikaans: Moeder- en tweedetaalonderrig is ’n wyd nagevorsde en universele fenomeen. In ooreenstemming met ander lande woon Suid-Afrikaanse kinders van ’n jong ouderdom af dikwels kleuterskool by. In Suid-Afrika vind voorskoolse onderrig in baie gevalle in dubbelmedium- of Engelse kleuterskole plaas, alhoewel Suid-Afrika 11 amptelike landstale het, waarvan Afrikaans, die moedertaal van die deelnemers aan hierdie studie, een is. Gedurende die voorskoolse tydperk vind belangrike sosiale, emosionele en taalontwikkeling plaas. Verskeie navorsers redeneer dat basiese konsepte ten beste in die moedertaal vasgelê word, terwyl ander die voordele van meertaligheid beklemtoon. Die primêre navorsingsvraag wat in hierdie studie ondersoek is, was: Hoe presenteer die sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling van Afrikaans-moedertaaldriejariges wat moedertaal-, dubbelmedium- of tweedetaalonderrig ontvang? Die doel van hierdie studie was om die insigte en kennis oor taal-van-onderrig, taaldinamika, taaldiversiteit en sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling te verbreed. Fenomenologiese beginsels het die basis van hierdie studie gevorm en die navorser het die konseptuele raamwerk op Erikson se psigososiale teorie gebou. Vinjetnavorsing, met ondersteunende kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe vraelyste, het die sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling en taal-van-onderrig van driejariges ondersoek. Vinjetnavorsing voorsien observasiedata van drie deelnemers se ervarings binne hulle leeromgewing. Moeders (n = 36) en opvoeders (n = 15) se ervarings van die driejariges se sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling is deur middel van vraelyste vasgelê. Die bevindings dui aan dat daar op ’n kwantitatiewe vlak oppervlakkig nie ’n groot verskil in driejariges se sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling is wanneer hulle moedertaal-, dubbelmedium- of tweedetaalonderrig ontvang nie. Op ’n kwalitatiewe vlak is daar egter belangrike granulêre verskille en fyner nuanses in die sosiale en emosionele ontwikkeling van hierdie driejariges wat moedertaal-, dubbelmedium- of tweedetaalonderrig ontvang. Alhoewel die deelnemers van beide groepe sterk taalontwikkeling toon, presenteer daar verskille ten opsigte van geborgenheid binne die leeromgewing, onafhanklikheid en inisiatief binne informele situasies, empatie vir die portuurgroep en verhoudings wat gekenmerk word deur kwalitatiewe diepte, asook die verwerking van ouditiewe inligting. Alhoewel hierdie studie op die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks gefokus het, bevorder die bevindings insigte en moontlikhede vir toekomstige navorsing oor hierdie fenomeen. / Thesis (PhD (Vroeë Kinderonderwys))--University of Pretoria, 2021. / Die Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns / Early Childhood Education / PhD (Vroeë Kinderonderwys) / Unrestricted