Thesis PlanA (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

This study explored, through naturalistic observations and interviews, the teasing experiences of three dyads of preschool age siblings. The purpose of the study was to gain an understanding of the nature, form, intent, and responses of young children to experiences of teasing within their sibling relationship. Participants in this study included two brother dyads and one male-female twin dyad. The mothers from all three families also participated in the study. During the 50 hours of observation, 54 incidences of teasing were recorded between the siblings. The sibling dyads tended to utilize teasing in a distinctive manner, with teasing having both a role in playful interactions and creating an invitation for play while also being a source of hurtful and mean behaviour. The form of sibling teasing noted throughout this study included components not identified in previous research. The sibling teasing behaviours observed were also distinct from teasing more typical of peers. Taunting and more physical forms of teasing were more prevalent than verbal teasing. Results of the interviews of adults indicate that parents perceive a social and cognitive function for sibling teasing, and that schooling and early childhood programs both facilitate and address teasing and teasing prevention within their programs. Results of the interviews with the children indicate that siblings perceive teasing to have both a playful component as well as hurtful elements. The results of this study hold implications for the understanding of child development. Teasing may function to limit or enhance social skill development as children balance and negotiate aspects of pretense, non-literal communication, and facets of the social context in order to tease and formulate responses to teasing. The results of the study might also hold several implications for educators, parents, and training programs. The parents of this study often felt ill prepared or over-burdened in addressing their children’s conflicts, teasing, and aggression. This finding highlights the need for intervention and education on teasing that targets the home environment, early childhood programs, and schooling. Additionally, resources on the subject of teasing and young children need to be developed.

Many environmental educators insist that environmental education (EE) should be started from a young age. The Korean Ministry of Education (1999) has also emphasized the importance of environmental education in early childhood by including content and objectives regarding EE in the 1999 National Curriculum of Kindergarten. However, many Korean kindergarten teachers do not sufficiently implement environmental education in their teaching practice. To address this issue, this study aimed at investigating and overcoming barriers to fully implement EE in the Korean kindergarten context. Four experienced Korean kindergarten teachers were involved in a fourteeniv week critical action research project that included weekly group meetings. At these group meetings, teachers reflected on the barriers preventing the full implementation of EE in their classrooms and discussed possible environmental education actions to be attempted in the following week. These actions, individually implemented in teachers’classrooms, were reviewed at subsequent group meetings. Data from group meetings and teacher lessons were used to analyze the effectiveness of this critical action research project for developing environmental education. At the beginning stages of this study, Korean kindergarten teachers felt strongly uncomfortable participating in group communication. However, through the continuous encouragement of the researcher and with the involvement of participants who have similar educational backgrounds, age, and working experiences, participants came to actively engage in group communication. Participants in this study identified the following barriers to fully implement EE in kindergartens: insufficient understandings and awareness of EE, reluctant attitudes towards the environment, lack of educational support and resources, low parental involvement, and discomfort about going on a field trip to environments. Teachers came to understand the importance, objectives, potential topics, and teaching methods of early childhood environmental education. While implementing environmental education in their classrooms, teachers recognized possibilities for environmental education through connections with children’s daily lives and previous activities conducted in their classrooms. Teachers also identified that critical action research through group communication provided practical and useful knowledge of their educational practices. Teachers’ improved pedagogical knowledge and awareness about EE increased their confidence to teach environmental education. To lessen the burden of going on a field trip to environments, teachers provided children direct experiences in the environment surrounding schools and during school picnics. Teachers also actively participated in environmental activities with children. These direct experiences of the environment helped teachers and children appreciate the beauty of the environment and change their reluctant attitudes towards the environment. By providing parents children’s products produced during EE, teachers were also able to help parents develop an interest in environmental education. While most educational research in Korean kindergartens is conducted by university-based researchers, this research inquiry revealed that action research by the effective partnership with a university-based researcher can encourage the confidence and passion of Korean kindergarten teachers to reflect and resolve issues arising from their experiences and to change educational practices.

Thesis (Ph. D.) University of Missouri-Columbia, 2006. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on August 2, 2007) Includes bibliographical references.

Within this study, the aspirations that communities are striving to realise in bettering the outcomes for their children have been explored. Their achievements are extraordinary and remarkable in the face of serious resource limitations. Nevertheless, some room still exists within the reach of communities themselves to improve the current situation of early childhood services. The roles of other early childhood development stakeholders who partner with communities in supporting the community-based child care centres have also been explored. Their greatest impact in infrastructure, play and learning resources is greatly appreciated. However, an apparent lack of need-based and systemic criterion for allocating resources creates serious disproportionate resource distribution among communities. While some limitations are obviously within the ability of communities to manage. some are obviously not. Substantial and systematic resource allocation by the Government, cooperating partners and all stakeholders in early childhood development, local and international if channelled through highly committed members of the communities, has great potential to ensure that children in these communities develop optimally. Greater synergy among all stakeholders that are supporting community-based child care centres in Malawi is therefore an indispensable password to unlocking the many aspirations that communities are striving to achieve through the community-based child care centres.

The study explored the differences that resulted when school districts participated in successful interdisciplinary community coalitions to improve the quality of and the opportunities for services for young children and their families—and ultimately enhance school success. The study examined the structure, function and impact of four successful intersectoral community coalitions in British Columbia. It determined that the coalitions’ work resulted in improved coordination, services and access to programs for the early learning of young children. The types of services examined were those that addressed local needs; were examples of collaboration of different service providers, including schools; addressed different needs of children and families; were designed to promote the community’s ability to care for its own families and to resolve issues and develop programs at the local level. The study employed case-study methodology—focus groups, interviews, data collection and analysis, and observations—to explore four diverse communities that had established programs in response to defined needs and had evaluated the effect of the services provided to children and families. The services examined were those that (1) capitalized on existing assets and resources; (2) planned for and accessed new resources through partnerships; and (3) promoted promising researchbased practices. The study focused on early-childhood initiatives that supported literacy development in the context of social, emotional, physical and cognitive development. The research questions examined the function and evolution of the intersectoral coalitions and the involvement of public schools in them; the characteristics that contributed to or impeded success; descriptions of programs and services initiated by the school district; and evidence of enhanced school success. The study noted social processes, relations, practices, experiences and actions. The study examined programs that evolved through the collaborative efforts of intersectoral professionals, and created social solutions for early learning issues. The study resulted in eight conclusions related to: (1) the pivotal role intersectoral coalitions play in community development, with four specific caveats; (2) the key role schools and school districts have to play if community coalitions are to reach their full potential; (3) the need for reliable data in order for proposed changes to be embraced; (4) the role of family literacy programs in meeting social and emotional needs as well as those of literacy; (5) the need for community coalitions to break down barriers to access in order to support the most needy families; (6) the momentum created by a sense of moral purpose and community consciousness as coalition work matures; (7) the need for sustainable and transformative leadership that changes as the coalition evolves and (8) the need for government to support grassroots movements by new service reorganization, funding mechanisms and related policy development. Through rich descriptions and respondents’ quotes, the study provides a variety of models that can be replicated by community agencies seeking to establish a broad, coherent approach to services for young families.

Guided reading is a common component of literacy instruction in elementary classrooms. The purpose of this research was to examine multiple areas of guided reading from the perspective of teachers who were using guided reading in their classrooms. Knowledge and beliefs, grouping, management and organization, dialogue, and assessment issues were the five instructional topics of guided reading that were investigated using a mixed methods approach. The research was carried out in a single school division located in northern Alberta and involved Kindergarten – Grade 3 language arts teachers. Survey data collected from 27 respondents were analyzed using an interpretational focus. The data were coded and categorized using the five identified instructional topics as a framework. Common themes and patterns of response were identified for each instructional topic. The survey findings were then used to generate a focus group agenda. The transcripts of three focus group sessions that involved 16 teacher participants were also analyzed using an interpretational focus. The findings of the study suggested that guided reading is an important component of early language arts instruction for the teachers who participated in this research. Two types of guided reading instruction were identified: a small group guided reading approach (Fountas & Pinnell, 1996) and a Four Blocks approach to guided reading (Cunningham, Hall, & Defee, 1991). The teacher participants identified a wide variety of goals and purposes in using guided reading. The grouping practices of the teachers shared some similarities and many teachers indicated that they used a variety of sources of information to determine students’ placement in guided reading groups. Repeatedly, the survey and focus group participants communicated how their guided reading instruction was affected by their perceptions of differences among students and classes as affecting their guided reading instruction. The teachers indicated that their continuous attempts to maintain balance and focus during guided reading instruction also affected their organization and management. The teachers’ responses to survey items and focus group questions that addressed dialogue also focused on maintaining balance and focus during guided reading instruction. The teachers also discussed how they used dialogue for instructional purposes and commented on their ability to maintain balance and focus during the discussions during guided reading lessons. Many teachers indicated that they used running records to inform their guided reading instruction. Various other assessment tools that are consistent with an assessment for learning focus were also identified by the teacher participants. Overall, many of the findings suggested that individual teachers have adapted their guided reading practices to such an extent that they are no longer consistent with a single guided reading approach. The findings of the research indicated a need for teachers the have opportunities to engage in reflective activities with respect to their guided reading practices.

This multiple case study examined the self-regulation strategies used by 6 preschool-aged boys. The participants in this study were selected based on criterion of an undercontrolled behavior style. The researcher gained this description of the children via parental perceptions and naturalistic videotaped observations. Using these videotaped observations of natural play in the preschool environment, the researcher gained insights into the self-regulatory behaviors of these boys within their solitary play, and their peer and adult interactions. The across-case patterns revealed that the boys' behavior included a large proportion of prosocial and constructive coping responses. The data also suggested that the boys demonstrated deficits in their language strategies, especially within distressing or challenging peer situations where their negative emotion seemed to disrupt their use of skilled responses. Similarly, the boys were only observed using aggressive and negatively emotional responses subsequent to their failed attempts at peer interactions. The findings of this study can assist educators and parents in providing early education practices and play experiences that promote the development of socially competent language, emotional regulation, and peer initiation strategies.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:46:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 5232.pdf: 2518937 bytes, checksum: 7a2f1441ada3274020df991e23d0d951 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-02-25 / Students in kindergarten who shows signs of precocity, they deserve to have access to an educational service that meets their needs and develop their skills and competencies. For this to occur it is necessary to call the teacher to have knowledge about the precocity. In this perspective, this research aims to provide information to guide the teacher from kindergarten to recognize signs of indicators that characterize the precocious child. The study included 46 students from kindergarten aged three and four years, four parents and eight teachers who taught in a Municipal Center for Early Childhood Education in a city in the interior of São Paulo. This study was developed as a qualitative approach, and it was characterized as a case study. The information for the development of this research were obtained through the following instruments: questionnaire indicators of earliness, directed to parents and teachers; characterization form teacher participant and socioeconomic questionnaire answered by the parents. The results showed that of the 46 children observed by teachers only four showed 50% of the indicators proposed by the instrument. Regarding to teachers sort, we found that there are still many myths about whom is the talented child. These erroneous ideas are reflections of a formation that has large gaps regarding to the identification and discussion of the talented student attendance. We found that the study focused to the precocity is still barely discussed in academia. Thus, the relevance of this research is to provide a valuation of the potential development of children since kindergarten. / O aluno inserido na Educação Infantil e que apresenta sinais de precocidade, merece ter acesso a um atendimento educacional que supra suas necessidades e desenvolva suas habilidades e competências. Para que ocorra este atendimento é necessário que o professor tenha conhecimento sobre a temática da precocidade. Nesta perspectiva, esta pesquisa tem como reconhecer sinais de indicadores que caracterizam a criança precoce a partir das informações dos professores e pais. Participaram do presente estudo 46 alunos da Educação Infantil com faixa etária de três e quatro anos, quatro pais e 8 professores que lecionavam em um Centro Municipal de Educação Infantil de uma cidade do interior de São Paulo. Este estudo teve uma abordagem qualitativa, e caracterizou-se como Estudo de caso. As informações para o desenvolvimento desta pesquisa foram obtidas por meio dos seguintes instrumentos: questionário de indicadores de precocidade, dirigido aos pais e professores; ficha de caracterização do professor participante; e questionário socioeconômico respondido pelos pais. Os resultados mostraram que das 46 crianças observadas pelos professores, apenas quatro apresentaram 50% dos indicadores propostos pelo instrumento. Em relação à concepção dos professores, verificamos que ainda existem muitos mitos sobre quem é a criança precoce. Essas ideias errôneas são reflexos de uma formação que apresenta grandes lacunas em relação à discussão da identificação e atendimento do aluno com precocidade. Verificamos que o estudo voltado à precocidade ainda é pouco discutido na academia, assim, a relevância desta pesquisa está em proporcionar a valorização do desenvolvimento do potencial das crianças precoces desde a pré-escola.

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