Teachers are required to manage difficult behaviors within their classrooms with limited support and resources. Additionally, there is not a lot of research that has been completed looking at teacher attitudes or how children’s behavior impacts them personally. The current study looks at teacher outcomes based upon an evidence-based teacher training program. The teacher training was implemented at the Western Kentucky Head Start. Teachers’ job stress and self-efficacy were measured before the training, after the training, in the fall, and in the spring. In addition, standardized observations were completed, looking at classroom climate and management, in the fall and spring following the training. There were no significant differences among Pretest, Post-test, fall, or spring data for measured job stress or self-efficacy. Based upon observation results, Positive Climate significantly increased from fall to spring and Concept Development significantly decreased. Teacher’s attitudes and perspectives are extremely important as they provide the general climate of the classroom. Continued research should be completed to assess teacher outcomes and how these outcomes impact the overfull functioning of the classroom and success of students.

Twenty years ago, kindergarten was a year of informal education designed to help a child develop some readiness skills, adjust to school, adjust socially and learn through play. Readiness for elementary education was defined in terms of attitude and motivation rather than in specific academic achievements. The hazards of the academic model for young children is supported by recent research. Elkind (1986), for example, confirms that young children do not learn in the same ways as older children and adults. Because the world of things, people, and language is so new to infants and young children, they learn best through direct encounters with their world rather than through formal education. During the '80s there has been an increase in the number of high-risk children entering kindergarten who may not be ready for that experience. Perhaps in response to this trend, kindergarten, rather than serving as a readiness program for future schooling, has become an experience for which children need to be prepared entering kindergarten. The National Association of Early Childhood (1987) notes that expectations have become increasingly high and unrealistic, as the curriculum from upper grades has been pushed down to lower levels, thus doom large numbers of young children to the increased possibility of failure. As a result of this change, there has been quite a controversy over the policy of kindergarten retention. Although grade retention is widely practiced at all levels, research suggests that it does not help children to "catch up." While retained children may appear to do better in the short term, they are at much greater risk for failure than are their non-retained peers (Shepard and Smith, 1990). The provision of an extra year of schooling prior to first grade is intended to protect unprepared children from entering too soon into a demanding academic environment where, 'it is thought, they will almost surely experience failure. Yet Shepard and Smith (1988) note that, "depending on the philosophical basis of kindergarten retention, which differs profoundly from one district to the next, the extra year is meant either to be a time for immature children to grow and develop learning readiness or a time to work on deficient prereading skills" (p. 34). So the criteria by which retention decisions are made are critical. The question of which criteria determine a child's kindergarten retention becomes paramount. The study examines this question by addressing the following issues: 1. Current practices regarding kindergarten retention;2. The percentage of kindergartners retained each year (locally and statewide); 3. The effects of kindergarten retention; 4. The ways in which teacher pressure, parents, standardized tests, and basal reading programs contribute to kindergarten retention; and 5. Alternatives to kindergarten retention. There will always be a group of children who lag behind their kindergarten classmates. Before we create a new program, however, we need to examine the effects of kindergarten retention. It is the intent of this study to provide county school supervisors and others with information which would enable them to take action to reverse the negative effects of past practices. This information can assist those responsible for decision-making as they struggle to make the correct decisions regarding the placement of young children.

This study examined the effectiveness of training Head Start teachers and aides in child teacher relationship training (CTRT). CTRT is based on child parent relationship therapy (CPRT) (Landreth & Bratton, 2006), a filial therapy model based on the principles of child-centered play therapy, and was adapted for the classroom. In this quasi-experimental design, 12 teacher/aide pairs (n = 24) were assigned to the experimental (n = 12) or active control group (n = 12). Children who scored in the Borderline or Clinical range on at least one scale of the Child Behavior Checklist-Caregiver/Teacher Report Form (C-TRF) at pretest qualified for the study (n = 54). Nine hypotheses were analyzed using a two factor repeated measures multivariate analysis to determine if the CTRT group and the active control group performed differently across time according to pre-, mid-, and posttest results of the C-TRF. Additionally, effect sizes were calculated to determine practical significance. Five hypotheses were retained at the .05 level of significance. Post hoc analysis was conducted to analyze the effects of the two phases of treatment. Results indicated that children in the experimental group made statistically significant improvements in externalizing problems (p = .003). Children of focus made statistically significant improvements in externalizing (p = .003) and total behavior (p = .01) problems. Results are particularly significant for the non-children of focus, who only received the in-classroom intervention. The non-children of focus made statistically significant improvements in externalizing behavior problems (p = .04) and practical significance was large. Results indicate that a school based intervention such as CTRT is a viable treatment option for many children with externalizing behavior problems.

Children exposed to secondhand smoke (SHS) are at risk of developing ear infections, asthma, wheezing, bronchitis, as well as retarded lung growth. Indoor smoking is the main source of children's exposure to SHS. Despite a downward trend in smoking, children from low income families, especially African American and Hispanic children, continue to be exposed to SHS at a higher rate than their wealthier counterparts. This multiple case study explored the perceptions of 15 parents of 3- to 5-year-old children currently enrolled in Head Start regarding children's exposure to SHS. This study relied on the social ecological model, the theory of reasoned action, and harm reduction for understanding the views of parents and protective behaviors aimed at eliminating children's exposure to SHS in their homes. Data were obtained from semistructured individual interviews and document reviews. Data were analyzed inductively through coding to develop themes and thick rich descriptions of each case and a composite of all cases. Although participants were aware that SHS poses serious threats to the health of children, overall, they lacked knowledge of SHS exposure. They also exhibited a lack of awareness of specific illnesses associated with children's exposure to SHS. Findings from this study might help improve parents' understanding of the health risks associated with exposing children to SHS and possibly help reduce the exposure of Head Start children to SHS through the use of contextualized interventions within the Head Start community.

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The current exploratory study, as part of the Massachusetts Farm Fresh (MAFF) research project: 1) examined the effect sensory attributes (i.e. taste profile, color, shape, texture, growth pattern) of the target vegetables have on children’s willingness to explore and consumption and 2) compared these outcomes for: facilitator-guided (FG), vs. children’s self-guided (SG) exploration. We conducted a 6-week multi-sensory nutrition education intervention with Western Massachusetts Head Start preschoolers (3-5 years of age; n=94 children) using eight vegetable pairs; outcome measures were recorded by observers. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results are reported for 50 children with complete data at both baseline and follow-up. Willingness improved from baseline (40-50% of children = SCORE O) to follow-up (20-40% = SCORE 0) for all vegetables. Willingness scores (1) increased for “lower-sugar” vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, green bean, radish) (p=.013) (2) were lower for white vegetables (cauliflower, parsnip) versus the other color categories (red, green, orange) and (3) were higher for both pod (sugar snap peas, green beans) and long-root (carrot, parsnip) versus root vegetables (beet, radish). Pre-post mean (SE) consumption (g) increased for carrots (p=.013) (2.45+/-.39 vs 3.49+/-.43) and radishes (p=.023) ( .90+/-.22; vs 1.45+/-.29) ). At follow-up consumption of ”higher-sugar” vegetables was greater (p=.000) and carrot-parsnip pair was higher than broccoli-cauliflower (mean difference 1.49+/-.51) (p=.005) and beet-radish1.01+/-.55) (p=.071) pairs. Overall, children’s willingness and consumption varied by sensory attributes of the vegetables. The multi-sensory approach successfully activated children’s senses while providing exposure to a variety of local vegetables in the Head Start setting.

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