Assumptions are made by policy makers, service planners and providers that their aspirations for early childhood are shared by professionals, parents and children. Policy makers consistently use words such as holistic, integration, partnership and collaboration to describe the ways they wish early years practitioners to engage with children and families. In order to explore these assumptions and expectations this thesis utilises data from early years settings themselves (focus groups/interviews with parents and staff and child based activities) to critically examine the connections between participants’ ideas of childhood, Scottish Government policies and staff roles/responsibilities. It specifically utilises the experiences of staff, parents and children in selected early years settings in Scotland to critique the Scottish Government’s key policy document, the Early Years Framework (2008). In this thesis I identify four main themes from the data. These relate to early childhood experience: • in the home and the impact of work on family life • in the community and a child’s ability to participate • living independent lives with peers and the ability to take risks • in the inner life of the child and the impact of commercialism on her self image. I conclude that there was a measure of shared aspiration for young children between participants in my research and the Framework document in relation to the importance of building family and community based experiences. However, there were also wide differences in expectations relating to existing capacities of families and communities to support young children. In particular there was a lack of recognition in the Framework of the considerable pressures experienced by families and communities from wider economic and social forces driven by a neo-liberal marketised economy. This finding enabled the illumination of gaps and mismatches between policy objectives relating to family and community strength and the lived experiences of children, families and communities in Scotland. I identify in the thesis how such mismatches impact significantly on the ways in which services are organised and the ways in which practitioners understand their roles and responsibilities. Current professional responses are based in an assumed power and authority emanating from a restricted sense of professional identity. As such, they may act in a detrimental way on the development of collaborative, strengths based relationships between staff and parents and children. The thesis contributes to knowledge in this field by exposing, for the first time, the policy, practice and experience divides relating to creating strength and resilience in young children and their families in Scotland, and in discussing the implications for theoretical and policy based understandings of the relationships between the four themes identified above and professional responses.

This thesis is a practitioner based inquiry into how I can support the development of reflective dispositions within Early Childhood Studies (ECS) undergraduate students. The students involved in this research were all level 4 (first year, new entrants) who started their studies at an English University in September 2009. The study takes a Social Constructivist approach through pedagogical action research and was informed by a Reflective Methodology. My own beliefs regarding ontology lie in the notion that there is no one truth; that is multifaceted and that truths are ‘socially constructed multiple realities’ (Patton, 2002, p. 134). This is what Denzin and Lincoln (2008, p. 32) refer to as ‘relativist ontology’. It used qualitative methods to explore my own experiences and the experiences of students in establishing an understanding of expectations to use reflective practice to inform their developing professionalism. My own reflective journey has been a central part of this project and has enabled me to identify how my practice can be improved to enhance the development of a reflective culture within the Centre for Early Childhood in my institution. Reflective lenses of self, colleagues, students and literature have been used to create an understanding of the existing landscape of reflective practice within this particular context. Focus Group Discussion Forums (FGDF); reflective accounts; peer observation and Post-it Note response were all methods used to collect the data. A grounded theory approach to the data analysis was used which was both an inductive and deductive process. The findings of this research have been both enlightening and confirmatory. The pedagogical cultural differences between most new ECS students’ previous educational experiences, and those introduced when they start their programme in HE, entails a shift from a predominantly transmission approach to one of transformative learning. This requires an understanding of the tutor team to create an environment that is conducive to supporting students through this transition that is underpinned by Social Constructivist concepts. The data highlights that strategies already used within the ECS programme are complementary to this transition; however, it also highlights that tutors’ assumptions about students’ capabilities to demonstrate reflective practice is sometimes unreasonable. This research journey and the findings from the data of this project have enabled me to identify some key considerations when supporting the development of reflective dispositions within ECS students and in enabling a ‘Reflective Community of Early Childhood Practice’. These considerations include: • Transitional needs of students • Becoming professionally self-aware and developing a professional artistry • The significance of practical experience and its relationship to theoretical perspectives • Opportunities for collaboration within a community of practice The other significant finding from this inquiry is that of self-discovery and identifying that my own reflective limitations require consideration. My adaptation of Brookfield’s (1995) four lens theory, which includes a new ‘fifth dimension’ that uses a ‘peripheral socio-cultural lens’ to widen and enrich the critical reflective process, has been created. Post viva voce examination has prompted an additional section to this thesis (Section 6). This post script is a critically reflective piece from my perspective as a researcher. Applying my own theory of a wider perspective through a Socio Cultural peripheral lens (Figure 7) which has allowed me to explicitly communicate the significance of this project and demonstrate the relationships between the arguments I make and the impact of these within the early childhood sector and within extended fields of professional practice.

No description available.

<p> A mixed-method explanatory sequential design utilizing surveys and interviews conducted at three Florida library systems examines caregivers&rsquo; perceptions of emergent literacy programming, how these perceptions compare with the National Research Council&rsquo;s Features for Quality Programs for children, and what is their motivation for attending these programs. The results from the survey and interview reveal that caregivers&rsquo; perceptions of emergent literacy programming align with the National Research Council&rsquo;s Features for Quality Programs. The data shows caregivers&rsquo; perceptions are very positive toward emergent literacy programming in terms of learning and the environment. Themes emphasized in the interviews on why caregivers are motivated to attend include socialization, getting out of the house, and free access. The results of these surveys and interviews will inform public libraries as to how to design, market, and deliver emergent literacy programming to caregivers with very young children.</p>

<p> Within this dissertation I discuss my experience as both teacher and researcher in an early childhood art education research project with the goal to challenge traditional conceptions of power and knowledge in work with young children. Inspired initially by the idea of reactivating children&rsquo;s traditionally subjugated knowledges, in this research I aimed to foster a space where children and adults could ethically collaborate in art, making, and research. Over the course of 10 weeks, this art classroom was built as a space created for children, grounded in notions of change, movement, trust, and respect. The children were not only encouraged to create their own opportunities for making, and also to challenge what it means to exist and make in the early childhood art classroom by engaging in play, exploration, and collaborations with adults. In what follows, I share some of the children&rsquo;s words and work in order to make their experience in this classroom space visible. Both their artworks and experiences are analyzed through various theoretical lenses, including theories surrounding nomadism and movement, ethical encounters, collaborations between adults and children, and chaos theory in play. Ultimately, I argue that challenging conventional understandings of power, authority, and knowledge in the art classroom demands resistance from both adults and children. However, this resistance is coupled with a responsibility for educators to listen deeply to what their students both want and need, and to embrace curricular spaces that welcome the unknown. Throughout this dissertation it is my hope to present new and different ways of being and engaging with young children in spaces of art education.</p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to explore the application of andragogical principles to real-time embedded coaching of parents, when teaching their children with hearing loss to talk. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.) </p>

<p> The focus of this mixed methods study was to examine the possible differences between students who participated in the Missouri Preschool Program (MPP) and peers who did not attend the program. Areas examined through quantitative data in the study included academic achievement in communication arts in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. The qualitative piece of the study included examination of areas such as social development, emotional development, and school readiness. Quantitative data were collected from one school district in rural southwest Missouri. These data came from Aimsweb assessments conducted at the district for the kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade levels from 2009-2010 to 2015-2016. Students were grouped into cohorts (by school year), which were divided into two groups, students who participated in the MPP and students who did not participate in the MPP. An independent samples t-test was applied to examine the difference in the means of the scores between the two groups of students. There was not a statistical difference between the Aimsweb communication arts scores of students who participated in the MPP and scores of peers who did not participate in the MPP. This statement was true at all three grade levels examined. Kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade teachers from the district were interviewed as part of the study. The educators who participated perceived benefits of attending a preschool program to include the following: readiness to enter school, advanced social development compared to peers who remained at home prior to school entry, fine motor development, and increased parental involvement.</p>

<p> The purpose of this self-study is to examine and analyze if and how an understanding of early childhood trauma informs my practice in my student-teaching placements in early childhood special education and a special day class (SDC) autism preschool. This study was informed by research in the field, as well as qualitative interviews on the subject. This study aims brings to light the need for more training and education on trauma-informed care in ECE. Data was collected through self-focused reflections and feedback from my colleagues on my work in my student-teaching placements at a center-based early intervention program in Oakland and an autism SDC preschool in San Leandro. Data was also collected through qualitative interviews with professionals working in the realms of early brain development and childhood trauma. This data was examined using an understanding of trauma&rsquo;s impact on brain development, behavior, learning, and interactions with others, the role of early childhood educators as protective factors who provide supportive, responsive care that fosters resiliency, as well as literature on trauma sensitive care. This study makes an important contribution to the literature because, while there is a great deal of literature on early childhood trauma in the fields of psychology and neurobiology, there is a disconnect between this knowledge base and what training early childhood educators receive and a general lack of trauma-informed care in early childhood settings. This study discusses how trauma-informed care can be put into practice in ECE and advocates for more training and implementation in these settings.</p>

<p> This qualitative descriptive study explored the experiences of three Kuwaiti pre-service teachers with guided reflection and the extent to which video technology facilitates reflection. The data sources were semi-structured and video-elicited interviews, field notes, and researcher reflective journals. The study was guided by two research questions: In what ways does video elicitation facilitate Kuwaiti pre-service teachers&rsquo; reflections? What do Kuwaiti pre-service teachers reflect about? I used Rogoff&rsquo;s Sociocultural Theory (2003; 1995) as my conceptual lens for this study which stresses the importance of cultural contexts in all areas of education. I developed a concept I call &ldquo;third-eye&rdquo; thinking to define a multifaceted approach to education and reflection. I also developed a concept I call &ldquo;cultural spheres of influence&rdquo; to describe the multitude of cultural influences that shape individuals and groups in unique ways. This study also depended on guided reflection to complement the process of video elicitation. The findings of my study indicated that video elicitation provided concrete material as a basis for reflection. My findings showed that Kuwaiti early childhood pre-service teachers reflected on various topics including: teaching tools and materials, strategies and techniques, everyday problems and challenges, classroom dynamics and management, and evaluators and the evaluation process. This research contributes to the existing body of literature by giving reflection a new culturally-rooted definition based on its application by Kuwaiti pre-service teachers and through a careful consideration of the cultural spheres of influences that shaped who the participants were and what they brought to the reflective process. </p>

In early modern Europe, syphilis tormented individuals regardless of social standing. The various stages of infection rendered individuals with visible chancres or “pocky” marks throughout their body. The tertiary stage signaled the spreading of the disease from the infected parts into the brain and cardiovascular system, eventually leading to dementia and a painful death. Beginning with the initial medical responses to venereal disease in the sixteenth century and throughout the early modern period, medical practitioners attempted to identify the cause of syphilis. During the seventeenth century, English practitioners maintained that women were primarily responsible for both the creation and transmission of syphilis. In England, venereal disease became the physical manifestation of illicit sexual behavior and therefore women with syphilis demonstrated their sexual immorality. Contrastingly, French medical practitioners refrained from placing blame on women for venereal infection. The historiography of early modern discourse on venereal disease fails to account for this discrepancy between English and French perceptions of syphilis in the seventeenth century. This thesis seeks to fill the gap in this historiography and suggest why French practitioners abstained from singling out women as the primary source of venereal infection by suggesting the importance that cultural influences and religious practices had toward shaping medical perceptions. The cultural impact of the querelle des femmes and Catholic practices in France plausibly influenced the better portrayal of women within the medical treatises of seventeenth-century France when compared to Protestant England.