The purpose of this study was to examine the cognitive levels of block play among preschoolers in a combined block play and dramatic play center. Gender differences in the cognitive levels of block play as well as the location of block play were explored. The sample consisted of 17 children, 13 girls and 4 boys, enrolled in a preschool at a Midwestern university. Six hypotheses were formulated; two could be tested at the .05 level of significance. The others could not be tested due to insufficient data.Each child was observed, twice before and twice after the centers were combined, in groups of six for 20-minute periods.The findings of the study were:1. There was a highly significant difference in the percentage of time functional block play occurred, for both boys and girls, after the block play and dramatic play centers were combined, with more functional play occurring after (p = .002) after the centers were combined.2. Overall, boys engaged in functional block play a significantly greater percentage of time than did girls (p = .042).3. There was no significant difference in the percentage of time constructive block play occurred, for both boys and girls, after the block play and dramatic play centers were combined.4. Overall, boys engaged in constructive block play a significantly greater percentage of time than did girls (p = .038).5. Dramatic play with blocks did not occur before the block play and dramatic play centers were combined and it occurred only four times after the centers were combined.6. There were no episodes of games with rules play before or after the block play and dramatic play centers were combined.7. All of the block play occurred in the block play center both before and after the block play and dramatic play centers were combined.8. There was no block play in the dramatic play center before or after the block play and dramatic play centers were combined.Overall, the findings favored the block play and dramatic play centers being combined. Block play occurred a greater percentage of time after the centers were combined. / Department of Elementary Education

<p> This qualitative interview study examines the challenges and successes early childhood teachers in Oakland Unified School District face when addressing issues of race and racism in their classrooms. Teachers' and District Administrator's stories of barriers and strategies were analyzed to inform my professional practice. Data were collected through qualitative interviews and a focus group. The main theoretical framework that supported analysis came from Critical Race Theory. The data were analyzed through descriptive coding and analytic memoing. Key findings include the impact of personal beliefs and experiences on teachers' barriers and strategies. Teachers' barriers include the age or English proficiency of their students, lack of discussion at their school site, and a lack of training and tools. They used a wide range of strategies, including literature, general conversations, specific questions, creating a strong link between home and school as well as relying on experiences regarding race and racism they had in their personal lives. Teachers and district administrators were both working on addressing racism, however, their strategies were very distinct; administrators were working on large-scale projects while teachers were very focused on their individual classrooms and students. This study makes an important contribution to the literature because the role and impact of race and racism in Early Childhood classrooms is often overlooked. There is a lack of professional literature addressing the obstacles that teachers committed to engaging in this work face and also an absence of reflection from early childhood teachers about what strategies they use to support them in their anti-racist work. </p><p> <i>Keywords:</i> anti-racist teaching, early childhood education, critical race theory, obstacles to anti-racist teaching, teacher strategies </p>

There is no abstract available for this dissertation. / Department of Elementary Education

<p> The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness and feasibility of using tiered instruction to increase the frequency of conversational turn taking (CTT) among preschoolers with and without disabilities in an inclusive setting. Three CTT interventions (Universal Design for Learning, Peer Mediated Instruction, and Milieu Teaching) were organized on a hierarchy of intensity and implemented in an additive manner. Using an increasing intensity across participants with a reversal design, child progress was monitored over time and children were moved through tiers based on level of need. A functional relationship between tiered instruction and CTT was found for nine of 13 child participants and the strongest intervention effects were observed at tier one. All but one child participant showed an increase in conversational turn taking from baseline to reinstatement. Teacher fidelity of implementation was monitored at each tier. Her overall average was 90% with the highest percent occurring in tier one. Resulting contributions to the literature include a better understanding of the feasibility of tiered instruction for the inclusive early childhood classroom, the effectiveness of tiered instruction for increasing CTT, and practical considerations for implementation of tiered instruction across tiers and phase change decisions.</p>

<p> This qualitative case study is an investigation of the role of race, school context, and personal and professional experiences in the formation of an early childhood teacher's professional identity. Data sources included interviews, observations, conversations, field notes, and school artifacts. Member checking, triangulation, and extended observation supported the trustworthiness of the results. The findings of the research indicate that major themes related to identity formation included family influence, teaching values and beliefs, and identity shift. Main themes related to the minority status of the participant were emotions and feeling of alienation. Finally, major themes related to school context and personal and professional experiences included relationships with children and parents, relationships with teachers and staff members at the school, early learning experiences, and images of a good teacher. The study concludes with suggestions for early childhood education programs and future researchers.</p>

<p> The purpose of this feminist case study was two-fold: (1) to describe the ways that Collaborative Inquiry (CI) can be proposed as a counter-discourse of professional development that acknowledges the multiple forms of personal and professional knowledge among five women preschool practitioners, and (2) to explore alternative constructs of the preschool practitioner that seek to disrupt the preschool teacher/child care worker dichotomy. Data were collected through transcripts of CI group meetings, semi-structured participant interviews, selected researcher field notes, and participant observations during select classroom visits and meetings with participants. Feminist and poststructural perspectives set forth by Butler (1990), Osgood (2010), and Foucault (1977), among others, were utilized to interpret the data. Findings from the CI process included the importance of conversation and 'small talk' informal and shared readings, the use of student documentation and artifacts, and collaboration as important tools and processes of the group. Findings from the case included the positioning of the Center and its staff within a business discourse. Data revealed how these preschool practitioners complied with and/or negotiated the discursive practices of power relations, regulation, normalization, and surveillance, as the Center participated in the voluntary <i>Step Up to Quality</i> accreditation process to increase Center funding. </p>

<p>Play is an important part of a child&rsquo;s development. Play is often defined as an activity done for its own sake, characterized by means rather than end. Pretend play receives a huge focus at the pre-school and kindergarten levels, especially socio-dramatic play. Socio-dramatic play, common from around 3 years of age to six years of age, is a type of pretend play. Socio-dramatic play incorporates sustained role taking and a narrative line. This study intends to examine pretend play in greater detail and to determine if the structuring of pretend play by the teacher can positively affect student social and behavior skills. The two students under study, a 5-year old female with limited social skills and a 6-year old boy who exhibits poor behavior skills. The two students under study were placed in an unstructured and structured dramatic play area center through the course of the study. The researcher used a duration recording form, a partial recording form, and field notes to measure behavior. The results of the study showed that the children improved their behaviors during the structured dramatic play area center time. </p>

This study investigates the potential of learning stories to provide a means to incorporate Indigenous perspectives and transform the educational status quo by working with locally based early childcare educators to knead the learning story approach into something community specific. This is an action research project grounded in Indigenous methods and methodologies embedded in processes of transformative education informed by post-colonial discourse and de-colonial theory. The study found that learning stories provide a medium through which children can see themselves as part of a world that includes Inuit knowledge(s) and practices. These stories provide a place through which identities grounded in Inuit knowledge(s) and language can be formed. By creating learning stories, the work of the educator and children together becomes visible to children, parents, and the educator’s colleagues. The process of creating learning stories and planning for them strengthens connections with Elders, who become through the process recognized for their role as valuable transmitters of cultural knowledge. / Graduate

<p> Precision teaching (PT) is a measurement system used in multiple settings for all types of behavior, from driving to mathematics. The ultimate goal of PT is to develop fluent, free operant behaviors through analyzing response frequencies on a standard celeration chart. Research has found PT to be effective at improving both the speed and accuracy of academic skills. There is little research, however, in the effects of learning channels, a component of PT, as they relate to the acquisition of academic skills. The present study examined the relationship between single and multiple learning channels on the acquisition of mathematics skills by five 1^st graders in a public school setting. Implications related to universal designs for learning (UDL) utilized in educational environments are also discussed. </p>

<p> The focus of this comparative study was to examine the connection between attendance in preschool and kindergarten students' literacy success as measured by the Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA2+). Historical data were obtained from the DRA2+ scores of 1,080 kindergarten students in one Missouri school district for the 2010-2011, 2011-2012, 2012-2013 school years. The study was also used to determine the perceptions of kindergarten educators of the impact of preschool on their students. The following overarching question was: What difference exists when comparing the DRA2+ scores of kindergarten students who had a preschool experience and those who did not? Additionally, the perceptions of teachers working with students who had received an early learning experience and students who had not received an early learning experience were gathered. Using a t-test to examine the difference between the mean scores of participating and non-participating students, there was a statistically significant difference in scores of students who participated in preschool and those who did not for 2010-2011; however, there were not statistically significant differences in the sets of data for 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. Educators surveyed in this research perceived that students who had not received an early learning experience seemed to have more difficulty learning the basics of school life; attending for longer periods of time; taking direction; using manipulatives, such as scissors, pencils, and crayons; and getting along with peers.</p>