This research study examines the problematic issues associated with developing a programme of in-service training for teachers on the topic of self-discipline in preschool children in Thailand. The study is predicated on the notion that a lack of understanding of ways to enhance self-discipline amongst young children can lead to difficult and challenging behaviour issues in schools, which may also contribute to poor academic achievement and poor social skills later on in the education system. It is noted that training on the topic of promoting self-discipline for preschool children has rarely been provided for Thai teachers and that the in-service programmes that do exist tend to be focused on short courses that emphasise the acquisition of knowledge through direct instruction in the form of lectures and presentations. This study thus focuses on the development and subsequent analysis of the effectiveness of a teacher education programme using the Socialisation, Externalisation, Combination and Internalisation (SECI) Model of training and development, which was originally developed in Japan, in order to develop teacher knowledge and skills in relation to the promotion of preschoolers’ self-discipline in one school in Thailand. A mixed-methods approach was employed to collect both qualitative and quantitative data on the head teacher, deputy head teachers, preschool teachers and preschoolers. Three methods including semi-structured interviews, semi-structured observations and classroom observations were used to collect the quantitative data, while the quantitative data was collected by questionnaires and behaviour checklists. The study was conducted in one nursery school in Bangkok, as a case study. The sample consisted of one head teacher, three deputy head teachers, 24 preschool teachers and 527 preschoolers. A total of 24 preschool teachers participated in all sessions of the programme for 9 weeks, excluding pre- and post-test. The data gathering in the study was divided into three phases: (1) before the programme, (2) the programme implementation, and (3) after the programme. The programme was conducted on preschool teachers and then evaluated on both teachers’ and preschoolers’ outcomes. The research findings revealed that the programme was effective in enhancing both teachers’ knowledge and behaviour in promoting preschoolers’ self-discipline, which resulted in improved self-discipline amongst the preschoolers involved in the study. Moreover, the findings also indicated that the adapted SECI model used in the programme could be considered a successful mechanism for preschool teachers’ professional learning and practice. There are several recommendations for further research. Firstly, further research should be conducted in other phases and types of school to confirm whether the SECI model is suitable for the training and development of teachers in all phases of education in relation to developing children’s self-discipline. Secondly, it is recommended that studies are carried out to examine whether similar programmes can be applied to other school issues and challenges in all phases of education. In addition, it is suggested that the provision of teacher education programmes in Thailand in general should be expanded and that those programmes should make greater use of social learning approaches. Finally, it is recommended that follow-up studies should be implemented in order to examine further the crucial issues of the maintenance and enhancement teachers’ knowledge and skills in Thailand.

The aim of this dissertation was to explore whether preschoolers understand that preferences differ over time and between people. The first goal was to determine if 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds could appreciate that their future or “grown-up” preferences may differ from their current ones (self-future condition). This understanding was compared to children’s understanding of the preferences of a grown-up (adult-now condition), or the grown-up preferences of a same-aged peer (peer-future condition). Results from 3 experiments (N = 240) suggest that these types of reasoning develop substantially over the preschool years, and that children are generally proficient by 5 years of age. Results also indicate that thinking about one’s own future preferences is more difficult than thinking about the (future) preferences of others. The second goal of this dissertation was to explore the relations between reasoning about preferences and theory of mind (ToM) and executive function (EF) abilities. Correlational analyses revealed that children’s reasoning about their future preferences and those of others was associated with EF skills, but not with ToM. These findings provide a timely contribution to the expanding research on children’s future-oriented cognition. Implications for theories about perspective-taking abilities, more broadly, and future research are also discussed.

Background music is often used in preschool classrooms with the belief that music makes children smarter and increases attention. The purpose of this study was to determine if background music increased children's focused attention during play activities. Focused attention occurs when children maintain attention to a task regardless of distractions. This quasiexperimental study investigated background music and play in a laboratory setting. I videotaped individual children during play with math manipulatives in a pretest-posttest research design with background music used as the treatment. Forty-three 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds played for 15 minutes. The first 5 minutes of play had no music (pretest), the second 5-minute play episode had background music (treatment), and the final 5-minute play episode had no background music (posttest). Data were analyzed using one-way repeated measures analysis of variance. Findings revealed that the subjects paid less attention to the play task with background music than they did during the pretest, with no music. Another key finding was that children with more musical experiences at home, as reported by the Child's Home Musical Experience Survey (CHIMES), exhibited longer periods of focused attention with background music. This study confirmed previous research that 3-year-old children have shorter focused attention than 4- and 5-year-old children with and without background music. These findings have implications for teachers and parents that background music, instead of increasing attention in children, might indeed decrease children's focused attention during play activities.

A large body of research relates families’ socioeconomic status (SES) to child language development (Hoff & Tian, 2005). Results from these studies indicate preschoolers from low SES backgrounds may have underdeveloped linguistic foundations required for future academic success (Sirin, 2005; Lacouri & Tissington, 2011). These differences have been said to create a 30 million word-gap between the language experiences of low and middle to high SES children by the age of 3 years. Thus, children who come from lower SES backgrounds often lack the vocabulary knowledge used in school and in textbooks (Hart & Risley, 1995). One index of SES is parental level of education, specifically maternal education (Hoff & Tien, 2005). The current study compared the language processes related to word knowledge of 17 preschoolers who live in lower maternal education attainment (LEA) homes and 17 preschoolers who live in higher maternal education attainment (HEA) homes. An event related potential (ERP) thought to index semantic congruity and comprehension monitoring, the N400, was used. Preschoolers listened to nouns and verbs presented aurally that matched or mismatched with pictures to understand how preschoolers from varying SES backgrounds process linguistic stimuli. Additionally, participants completed an Auditory Oddball Paradigm, or tone judgment task, to evaluate how preschoolers categorized and judged non-linguistic stimuli (e.g., standard and target pure tones). Tone judgment results revealed a Group x region midline interaction, indicating that the groups may recruit different neural resources to judge tones. The noun picture task results indicated that the HEA group processed familiar object labels more robustly and quicker than the LEA group. N400 results did not differ for the verb picture task. These results may indicate that both groups require more neural resources to process action labels and that perhaps verbs represent a higher level of linguistic complexity for young children. These results provide preliminary evidence of neural linguistic processing differences between preschoolers from varying socioeconomic backgrounds. Because of the lack of minimal differences on associated behavioral measures of language, one may speculate that ERP underpinnings as exemplified in the current study may hold promise for identifying subtle underlying differences in the processing of language among preschoolers

Parental involvement 1n early childhood intervention with children at risk has been reported as an effective variable in treatment both in popular literature and research reviews. However, the results of meta-analyses of early intervention literature have concluded that research evidence is not currently available to support this notion. Therefore, research which employs strong methodology to study the efficacy of parental involvement in early interventions with children at risk is needed. The purpose of this study was to determine whether, in a sample of preschoolers exhibiting developmental and behavioral risk, there are posttreatment differences between different levels of parent-involved groups in developmental skill, problem behavior, or parents' childrearing behaviors and knowledge of behavioral principles. Forty-two 3- to 5-year-old children and their parents served as the study sample. The selection criteria included showing evidence of mild or moderate developmental or behavioral problems or other risk indices. Risk data was obtained by parent report and by scores on the Battelle Developmental Inventory. Demographic data was also obtained. Three intervention groups provided either high parental involvement, low parental involvement, or a no-treatment waiting list. Children in the high and low parental involvement groups participated 1n a four-month center - based program. Parents in the high involvement group participated in an intensive center-based program and home-based activities. Parents in the low involvement group completed only homebased activities. The children were assessed with the Battelle Developmental Inventory and the Burk's Behavior Inventory. Parents were assessed with the Iowa Parent Behavior Inventory and the Knowledge of Behavioral Principles as Applied to Children. The three study groups were found to be comparable in terms of demographic variables and pretreatment developmental screening scores. No significant differences were found between groups on any of the child assessments. Mothers in the high parental involvement group scored significantly higher on a test of Knowledge of Behavioral Principles as Applied to Children. Additional information was provided in the study on actual (vs. intended) treatment participation and on quality of parent-child interactions. Possible reasons for lack of child treatment effects and strengths and weaknesses of this study were discussed. It was recommended that future research combine high - quality research designs with a strong conceptual framework and assess both quantitative and qualitative treatment outcomes in exploring the benefits of parental involvement in early intervention with children at risk.

This column describes creating a classroom culture for engineering.

abstract: Food insecurity and childhood obesity are both major public health concerns in the United States of America. Research has not found a definite relationship between childhood obesity and food insecurity to date, with conflicting results being found due to differences in sample sizes and protocol for measuring key variables. Preschoolers (children aged 2-5 years) are a population of particular interest as there tends to be improved health behaviors and greater adaptability to change at this period of growth and development. This study aims to evaluate if there is a relationship between food insecurity and childhood obesity with diet quality as a mediator among preschoolers in the Phoenix area. A secondary data analysis from participants (n=154) from the SAGE (Sustainability via Active Garden Education) research project was used to evaluate food insecurity status, diet quality components (kcal, saturated fat, added sugars, and servings of juice, fruits, and vegetables), and anthropometrics (waist circumference and BMI percentile). No significant associations between food insecurity status, diet quality components, and anthropometric data were found. There was an increased rate of food insecurity and childhood overweight/obesity in this sample compared to state and national averages. Further research of high quality is necessary to determine whether a relationship exists between childhood obesity and food insecurity exists and in what context. Additionally, practice and policy will need to be implemented to decrease rates of food insecurity and childhood obesity among Phoenix preschoolers. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Nutrition 2020

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The purpose of this study was to examine whether Western typologies of parenting (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and psychological control) and their dimensions (e.g., connection, regulation, physical punishment, verbal hostility) can be measured in the context of Japanese parenting. Based on the literature review, it was hypothesized that these parenting constructs are measurable in Japan. The participants were 214 Japanese mothers of preschool-age children (101 boys and 113 girls) from several preschools in Kushiro-city, Japan. A series of two-group (boys and girls) Confirmatory Factor Analysis was carried out with Mplus statistical software to test the measurement models of authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and psychological control constructs and to establish measurement invariance across child gender. In addition, latent intercorrelations and gender differences in the means of the latent constructs were computed. To a large extent, our hypotheses were confirmed. In line with expectations, authoritative and authoritarian parenting items formed a 23-item, five-factor model. For psychological control, a 9-item, two-factor model emerged, indicating that the constructs of shaming and directiveness are also measurable in Japan. However, an invariant measurement model for permissive parenting could not be identified. Based on latent intercorrelations, many parenting dimensions were highly correlated, but a series of chi-square difference tests showed that most dimensions were statistically distinguished within our measurement models. Interestingly, shaming and directiveness were associated with dimensions of both authoritative and authoritarian parenting. Latent mean comparisons identified no significant gender difference in Japanese mothers' parenting patterns for boys and girls. This study was one of the first quantitative, systematic studies of parenting styles in Japan using advanced statistical modeling and represents a starting point for cross-cultural research in Japanese parenting.

Researchers have recognized that social withdrawal in early childhood is a complex and multifaceted construct which includes three main observed subtypes: reticence, solitary-passive withdrawal, and solitary-active withdrawal. Each is differentially associated with children's behavioral outcomes in Western societies (e.g., United States, Canada). Furthermore, potential gender differences may exist regarding the distinct associations between non-social behavior and indices of maladjustment across boys and girls due to differential societal and cultural gender-role expectations. Previous studies suggest that subtypes of observed social withdrawal can be identified in Chinese preschoolers. It is important to examine the behavioral correlates of observed withdrawn subtypes in the Chinese cultural context due to the social-cultural variations in what is considered as socially acceptable/adaptable behaviors between North America and China. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the various behavioral correlates of different forms of nonsocial play among Chinese preschoolers and potential gender differences in the linkages. Teachers of 506 preschoolers from two cities in mainland China completed a battery of questionnaires that assessed various aspects of child behavioral outcomes in early childhood, including social withdrawal, assertiveness-prosociability, aggression, impulsive/disruptive behaviors, and anxiousness. Measurement models estimated with two-group confirmatory factor analyses yielded invariant factor structures for boys and girls for each of the behavioral measures. Distinct patterns of associations were found among behavioral correlates of subtypes of observed social withdrawal across boys and girls. Solitary-passive play was negatively associated with prosocial behaviors for girls and boys, positively related to impulsive behaviors for girls and boys, and negatively associated with victimization and anxious behavior for girls, but not boys. Solitary-active play was found to be negatively related to prosocial behaviors, positively associated with physical aggression, victimization, impulsive, and anxious behavior for girls and boys. Reticence was associated with less prosocial behavior for boys and girls. It was also positively associated with victimization, impulsiveness, and anxious behaviors for girls (but not boys). These gender difference findings and their implications for child adjustment in the Chinese cultural context are discussed.