<p> Purpose. The purpose of the qualitative study was to explore early childhood classroom teachers&rsquo; experiences with administrative support in the implementation of the Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP) as an authentic assessment tool. </p><p> Methodology. The participants included 10 Head Start and 10 State Preschool teachers implementing the DRDP. The researcher conducted and transcribed one-on-one participant interviews. The questions were pilot tested, and a member check was conducted. An inductive analysis approach, which included both the researcher and a second rater independently examining the data, was employed to identify common themes. </p><p> Findings. Results reflected the participants&rsquo; experiences regarding administrative support provided in DRDP implementation. The findings revealed 6 themes relevant to the research questions: (a) reflecting on DRDP results is challenging due to time constraints, (b) time off the floor with children aids in reflecting on DRDP results, (c) the Center for Child and Family Studies at WestEd (WestEd) DRDP training is encouraged, (d) the WestEd website is helpful in implementing the DRDP, (e) program-specific DRDP resources are provided, and (f) time is a valuable resource to aid in DRDP implementation. </p><p> Conclusions. The study&rsquo;s results indicated that administrative support is important in DRDP implementation. A major finding of this study exposed the need for time off the floor with children for both reflection on DRDP results and the completion of the required paperwork. The data from the study will aid early childhood administrators in future planning. </p><p> Recommendations. The researcher recommends additional early childhood program types be studied. Additional recommendations for further research include a quantitative study on the same topic. The researcher further recommends that support regarding authentic assessment tools other than the DRDP be explored. </p>

<p> This correlational study examined the relationships among half-day and full-day public prekindergarten participation and the attainment of social and personal skills, evidenced by the Maryland Model for School Readiness assessment. The chi square test for association was used to test the correlation between the variables and the subgroups of ethnicity (Hispanic), race (Caucasian and African American), and socioeconomic status. A statistically significant correlation emerged; therefore the data were further analyzed using Cramer&rsquo;s V to determine the effect size of the correlation. </p><p> This study included seven Maryland counties that offered both half-day and full-day public prekindergarten in the 2011&ndash;2012 year. Of those prekindergarten students, data were collected from a sample of 3,538 students who participated in either half-day or full-day public prekindergarten. The public extant data were arrayed in the aggregate and then disaggregated by ethnicity, race, and socioeconomic status. Data revealed a statistically significant correlation between half-day and full-day prekindergarten and the attainment of social- and personal-readiness skills. Findings indicated a higher percentage of participants in half-day public prekindergarten programs demonstrated readiness in social and personal skills over those participating in full-day public prekindergarten programs.</p>

<p> The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore how the facilitation of clinical experiences for early childhood education candidates impacts the cooperating teacher. The tenets of school reform initiatives often require longer and more frequent clinical experiences for pre-service teachers. The success of student teaching relies on the effectiveness of cooperating teachers; however, research has not addressed the development and sentiment hosts experience while facilitating this process. </p><p> Qualitative interviews and observations produced four single case studies and one cross-case comparative. All of the participants taught in Northeast Georgia and hosted student teachers prepared by a single school of education. Research themes included control and autonomy, personal and professional impacts, and the benefits or costs associated with hosting pre-service candidates. </p><p> Findings indicated that cooperating teachers had complete autonomy in the facilitation of the student teaching process but expressed a strong preference for collaboration. Self-preservation and student achievement influenced decision-making and were associated with minimal shifts in control. Professionally, host teachers felt their roles were ambiguous and evidence indicated key concepts were undefined. Participants did not experience an increase in professional capital although they did request professional development in several areas. These hosts described their experiences as intense and stressful yet personally rewarding. Future implications for practice include strengthening selection and pairing processes as well as training members of the student teaching triad to utilize collaborative methods. The study also exposed a need to research implementation errors in outcome-based evaluations of teacher education programs.</p>

The passage of PL 94-142 in 1975 required educational agencies to develop a continuum of placement options allowing children with disabilities to be educated with children who are not handicapped. The acceptance handicapped children receive from normally developing peers appears to be a factor in determining the success of mainstreamed settings. School systems have an ongoing responsibility to educate students about differences since knowledge deficits contribute to negative peer perceptions and greater social distance. / This study has examined changes that occurred when third grade children received one of three instructional programs about children with disabilities and their associated etiologies. A pretest-post test multigroup design was used to measure program effects. Experience, knowledge, and social distance scales were administered. / Puppets presented informational content about blindness, deafness, retardation, cerebral palsy and learning disabilities. A second group was shown a video featuring the same five handicapping conditions. Group three received both the puppets and video. A control group received no planned intervention. / The first hypothesis concerned the effects prior experience with a handicapped person would have on knowledge and social acceptance. With more than 520 Colquitt County, Georgia third grade students participating in the study, experience was not found to have a significant effect on either students' pretreatment knowledge or social distance. Repeated Measures Analyses of Covariance did, however, indicate that third grade girls were more positive than boys about the possibility of having peers with disabilities as potential classmates or friends. / A second and third series of hypotheses postulated expectations about the students' knowledge and social distance following three treatment interventions. Repeated measures ANOVA analyses were used in the comparisons. Gains in both knowledge and social distance were clinically significant for all three treatment methods. Mean knowledge gains were greatest in the group receiving the combined video/puppet treatment, followed by the puppets, then the video. Mean social distance differences were highest for the puppet group, followed by the combination treatment, with the video ranking third. / With all treatment conditions showing significant gains in both knowledge and social acceptance, the implications are that both puppetry and film have potential for reducing children's disability related concerns while instilling more positive perceptions of people with disabilities. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-11, Section: A, page: 3793. / Major Professor: Virginia P. Green. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

This dissertation presents an overview of the accountability measures that shape kindergarten teachers’ definition and perceptions of effective teaching in racially diverse classrooms. The impact of school reforms such as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) has presented outcomes where teachers’ instructional practices and school administrators’ leadership styles have become the focal point. In addition to the scrutiny that teachers and school leaders face, racially diverse students are facing great disparities in terms of their academic performance. These disparities are also known as the “achievement gap.” In Florida standardized test data from grades 3-10 show disparities in the achievement of racially diverse students. Research contends that the achievement gap is now evident as early as kindergarten. With scholarship suggesting the achievement gap starts in kindergarten, there was a need to understand the perceptions of kindergarten teachers as they implemented instructional practices in racially diverse kindergarten classrooms. The purpose of this qualitative case study was (1) to understand the teachers’ definition and perceptions of effective teaching in racially diverse kindergarten classrooms in a North Florida School District; (2) understand how accountability measures shaped their definition and perceptions of effective teaching in their racially diverse classrooms. The main finding of this study was that the teachers’ definition and perceptions of effective teaching was indeed shaped by the school’s accountability paradigm. Although their definition and perceptions were shaped by the same core values outlined in the schools’ accountability paradigm, they each implemented instructional strategies through high expectations differently. This final chapter of this dissertation includes how the findings interact with the conceptual framework of this study and recommendations for stakeholders and future research are listed. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. / Spring Semester 2018. / March 20, 2018. / Accountability, Instructional Strategies, Racially Diverse Classrooms, Teacher Perceptions / Includes bibliographical references. / Ayesha Khurshid, Professor Directing Dissertation; Stephen McDowell, University Representative; Kristal M. Clemons, Committee Member; Stephanie Zuilkowski, Committee Member; Robert Schwartz, Committee Member.

The present investigation is divided into two main studies. The purpose of the first study was to assess individual differences in children's challenge preference using Dweck's categorization procedure, to assess the short-term stability of this classification process, and to examine its relationship to demographic and other motivational variables of interest. The purpose of the second study was to explore the relationship of challenge preference classification to maternal behaviors. Participants in the first study included 236 four to six year old children attending private day-care centers and public kindergarten in the Tallahassee area. A subsample of 72 children was selected for the second study. The children attempted challenging tasks individually and while interacting with their mothers. The presence of helplessness in younger children was confirmed along with a cognitive and affective profile similar to that shown by older children. A significant relationship between initial skill and challenge preference was also revealed. The short term stability of challenge preference was found to be low although it improved when a composite measure that included a behavioral choice and the reasoning behind that decision was used. Girls exhibited profiles more consistent with predictions, showing significant relations between their challenge preference status and two other motivational indexes. Finally, maternal requests for their child to persist at a challenging task differed by group, with those from the CS group encouraging their children not to give up significantly more often than CA mothers. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-04, Section: B, page: 2903. / Major Professor: Janet A. Kistner. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

The purpose of the study was to investigate how social context influences kindergartners' topic selection strategies and subsequent written text for journal writing. Operating from a cognitive-psychological and a sociolinguistic perspective, the researcher became a participant observer in a kindergarten classroom over a period of 19 weeks. Within the social context of the kindergarten classroom, the researcher employed a number of qualitative methods designed to gather information pertinent to the research questions proposed: participant observation, interviewing techniques, audio recordings, fieldnotes, photographic recordings, the case study method, and triangulation procedures. Data collection consisted of the children's writing samples, social interaction recordings, ongoing interviews, and collected artifacts. Presentation and analysis of the data collected relating to the whole kindergarten classroom is included along with the data relating to three case study participants. The following contextual factors were identified and considered pertinent to the proposed research questions and the data collected: setting, genre, materials, routine, audience, evaluation, the role of the teacher, social group influences, and social/school competence. Based on the results of the study, the following tentative conclusions/hypotheses were generated with regard to the kindergartners' topic selection strategies and subsequent written text for journal writing: (1) the kindergartners' perspectives of the purpose for journal writing within the context of the classroom influenced selected topics, (2) the sharing of materials for journal writing served as a catalyst for social interaction which exerted an influence on their topic selection strategies and subsequent written text, (3) the teacher, along with the students, seemed to impose an acceptable structure for journal / writing which was indicative of social/school competence, and (4) the role of the teacher had a strong influence on the kindergartners' selected topics and subsequent written text for journal writing. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-02, Section: A, page: 0405. / Major Professor: Virginia P. Green. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

The primary focus of research and treatment of abusive parents and their children has been on the alteration of abusive parents' behavior. While this is essential to the elimination of further abuse of the child, it does not address the potential negative effects of abuse that has already occurred. Literature supporting a hypothesis of disturbed social behavior of abused children is presented in this paper. The purpose of the present study was to test this hypothesis by conducting a multimodal assessment of peer interactions and sociometric status of 14 physically abused preschool children and a matched group of 14 nonabused children. This was accomplished through the use of behavior observations, a peer assessment instrument, sociometric measures, and the Preschool Behavior Questionnaire, completed by child care center staff. Results of observations and teacher reports indicated that abused children do indeed demonstrate disturbed social behavior. Further, abused children were less well-liked by their peers than were comparison children. The social significance of these results is presented and recommendations are made for future research endeavors. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-02, Section: B, page: 0749. / Major Professor: Janet A. Kistner. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.

The purpose of this investigation was to describe the intentional communicative behaviors of profoundly mentally retarded children. Ten 6 to 12 year old subjects, equally grouped according to age, participated in communication sampling with familiar and unfamiliar adults. Intentional communicative acts were collected using structured communication tasks and subject-initiated free-play. Acts were identified and coded according to communicative function, communicative means, discourse structure, and, when applicable, syllable shape. / Findings revealed communicative profiles characterized by a predominance of functions to regulate others' behavior and by gestural means. The majority of older subjects demonstrated more communicative acts per minute and a broader range of communicative functions than their younger counterparts. Initiated acts predominated as did vocalizations without consonants. Self-injurious and aversive behaviors were evident only in older subjects' samples. No substantial differences in subjects' communicative abilities were observed during sampling with familiar and unfamiliar adults. / The use of the communicative sampling and analysis procedures implemented in this investigation with profoundly mentally retarded persons is discussed. Some suggestions for how these procedures can be used to generate communicative profiles instrumental to intervention planning are offered. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-12, Section: A, page: 3550. / Major Professor: Amy Miller Wetherby. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.

The problem addressed in this study is whether children from lower SES homes would benefit in their reading and verbal skills through interaction with computer software that reads to them. If the verbal abilities and reading skills of a child increase as a result of an adult reading to him or her, would interactive storybook software provide similar results? / The rationale is twofold: (1) It has been demonstrated that one-to-one storybook read-aloud increases the literary skills of the child, but the teacher:student ratio in the kindergarten classroom and the time allotted weekly to the teacher to reach individual students limits this interaction; (2) Computer technology and highly interactive storybook software that reads to children are being introduced into the classrooms that allow children to actively participate in the reading process. / The major hypotheses are: (1) Interactive storybook software will facilitate the emergent storybook reading behaviors of kindergarten children from lower SES homes; (2) Interactive storybook software will increase the verbal abilities of these same children. / Subjects were randomly selected after a determination of SES was made. The design was a pretest-posttest control group design, using pretest scores from the Verbal Scale of the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities (1972) and Sulzby's Observation of Emergent Storybook Reading (1985) as covariates with posttest scores from the same instruments. The treatment took place in public school kindergarten classrooms equipped with CD ROM and MS-DOS hardware. The schools are located in a district in northern Florida. Each subject in the treatment group worked with the software three times a week for seven weeks. Storybook software was provided by Discis Knowledge Research, Inc. / The results of the study indicate that the software is significant in increasing the verbal abilities of children when they use it for 42 minutes a week for at least seven weeks. There were no significant results for emergent reading behaviors. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-11, Section: A, page: 4270. / Major Professor: Charles Hall Wolfgang. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.