Dale C. Farran

Motivation and Self-Regulation as Predictors of Achievement in Economically Disadvantaged Young Children

Abstract The primary purpose of the present study was to better understand the roles of motivation and self-regulated task behavior for early school achievement differences among young, economically at-risk and not-at-risk children. Of the at-risk participants, 43 were 5-6-year-olds and 42 were 7-8-year-olds. Of the not-at-risk participants, 21 were 6-year-olds, and 21 were 8-year-olds. Results of the study showed that child-and-teacher-reported motivation levels were comparable among the at-risk and the not-at-risk children. However, the at-risk children showed poorer abilities to regulate their task attention than the not-at-risk children did. In addition, younger at-risk childrens achievement scores were predicted by their levels of attention-regulation abilities. Results are discussed in relation to the importance of at-risk childrens attention-regulation skills.

Longitudinal associations between executive functioning and academic skills across content areas.

This study assessed 562 four-year-old children at the beginning and end of their prekindergarten (pre-k) year and followed them to the end of kindergarten. At each time point children were assessed on 6 measures of executive function (EF) and 5 subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson III academic achievement battery. Exploratory factor analyses yielded EF and achievement factor scores. We examined the longitudinal bidirectional associations between these domains as well as the bidirectional associations among the separate content areas and the EF factor. In the pre-k year, strong bidirectional associations were found for EF skills and mathematics and oral comprehension skills but not for literacy skills. After controlling for pre-k gains in both EF and achievement, EF skills continued to be strong predictors of gains in mathematics in kindergarten and a more moderate predictor of kindergarten language gains. These results provide important information on the interrelationship of the developmental domains of EF and achievement as well as support for efforts to determine effective pre-k activities and/or curricula that can improve childrens EF skills. They also suggest that mathematics activities may be a possible avenue for improving EF skills in young children.

Preschool Classroom Processes as Predictors of Children's Cognitive Self-Regulation Skills Development.

This research focuses on the associations between interactive processes of early childhood classrooms and gains in childrens cognitive self-regulation (CSR) across the preschool year. Data from 803 children (45.8% female; M = 54 months; 39.1% Caucasian, 26.3% African American, 24.6% Hispanic, 9.9% Other) were collected at fall and spring of the preschool year, and classroom observations were conducted three times throughout the year. Multilevel models tested associations between classroom behaviors of teachers and students using the Classroom Observation in Preschool and the Teacher Observation in Preschool and gains children made in a CSR composite score (Dimensional Change Card Sort, Peg Tapping, Head Toes Knees Shoulders, Copy Design, and Corsi Blocks) across the preschool year. After controlling for demographic covariates and childrens pretest scores, both affective and cognitive classroom processes were associated with gains. More teacher behavior approving, less disapproving, and more positive emotional tone were associated with gains. The proportion of observed time teachers spent delivering instruction as well as the proportion of time children were involved with mathematics and literacy were also related to CSR gains, as was the quality of teacher instruction. Although exploratory, these results highlight the potential for modifications in classroom practices to aid in childrens CSR development.

Title I funded preschools as a developmental context for children’s play and verbal behaviors

Abstract This study examined changes across the school year in the play and verbal behavior during center based activities of 283 children in 22 public school preschool classrooms, funded through Title I. Using a time sampling method, observations of children in classroom settings were conducted twice during the preschool year. Repeated measures multivariate analyses of variance revealed that: (1) children were involved most in parallel play activities, and the amount of parallel play increased across the year; and (2) associative and cooperative play decreased. This pattern of behavioral change was present in 15 of the 22 classrooms. Conditional probability analyses indicated that associative play was an important context for verbalizations directed to both teachers and peers. At the time of each observation children played and talked with their peers most. We obtained one interaction effect between gender and time—the amount of talk from girls to teachers increased over the school year, whereas boys talked less to teachers over time. Classrooms were staffed by a certified teacher and an assistant and uniformly rated quite high on the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale. This research demonstrates that public school preschools are funded and staffed appropriately, but that more attention could be paid to facilitating play and verbal interactions that might be important for later school success.

The North Carolina Child Care Corps: The role of National Service in Child Care

Abstract The purpose of the present study is to document the impact of training and ensuing experience on the knowledge, beliefs, and practices of AmeriCorps national service volunteers in child care classrooms. The North Carolina Child Care Corps (NCCCC) combined federal (AmeriCorps) and state (Smart Start) dollars in the state of North Carolina to improve existing teacher-child ratios by providing trained teachers for child care centers. Participants (Corps members) in the project received four weeks of intensive training in child development and early childhood education and were then assigned to child care classrooms in counties receiving Smart Start funding in five regions of the state. Corps members did not replace existing staff, but were added as assistant teachers above and beyond the mandated teacher-child ratios. Results from Year One of the project indicate that the NCCCC was successful in training Corps members in the areas of child development and early childhood appropriate practices. However, Corps members showed a decline in the appropriateness of their interactions with children after nine months of service in child care classrooms. Implications concerning the use of AmeriCorps volunteers to improve the quality of child care are discussed.

Early Math Trajectories: Low-Income Children's Mathematics Knowledge From Ages 4 to 11

Early mathematics knowledge is a strong predictor of later academic achievement, but children from low-income families enter school with weak mathematics knowledge. An early math trajectories model is proposed and evaluated within a longitudinal study of 517 low-income American children from ages 4 to 11. This model includes a broad range of math topics, as well as potential pathways from preschool to middle grades mathematics achievement. In preschool, nonsymbolic quantity, counting, and patterning knowledge predicted fifth-grade mathematics achievement. By the end of first grade, symbolic mapping, calculation, and patterning knowledge were the important predictors. Furthermore, the first-grade predictors mediated the relation between preschool math knowledge and fifth-grade mathematics achievement. Findings support the early math trajectories model among low-income children.

Learning-related cognitive self-regulation measures for prekindergarten children: A comparative evaluation of the educational relevance of selected measures

Many cognitive self-regulation (CSR) measures are related to the academic achievement of prekindergarten children and are thus of potential interest for school readiness screening and as outcome variables in intervention research aimed at improving those skills in order to facilitate learning. The objective of this study was to identify learning-related CSR measures especially suitable for such purposes by comparing the performance of promising candidates on criteria designed to assess their educational relevance for pre-K settings. A diverse set of 12 easily administered measures was selected from among those represented in research on attention, effortful control, and executive function, and applied to a large sample of pre-K children. Those measures were then compared on their ability to predict achievement and achievement gain, responsiveness to developmental change, and concurrence with teacher ratings of CSR-related classroom behavior. Four measures performed well on all those criteria: Peg Tapping, Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders, the Kansas Reflection-Impulsivity Scale for Preschoolers, and Copy Design. Two others, Dimensional Change Card Sort and Backwards Digit Span, performed well on most of the criteria. Cross-validation with a new sample of children confirmed the initial evaluation of these measures and provided estimates of test–retest reliability.

First-Grade Teacher Behaviors and Children's Prosocial Actions in Classrooms

Research Findings: This study examines whether specific teacher instructional practices in early education are associated with childrens engagement in prosocial behavior. Teachers’ verbal encouragement of prosocial behavior and empathy, emotional warmth, positive behavior management, vocabulary instruction, and encouragement of expressive language were explored in relation to childrens classroom prosocial behavior. We also examined whether increased prosociability was evident in the classrooms of teachers who both encouraged prosocial behavior and empathy and demonstrated emotional warmth. We observed 124 first-grade classrooms that included 2,098 children. Results indicated that teachers’ verbal encouragement of prosocial behavior and empathy was most strongly associated with classroom prosocial behavior. There was also a significant association between encouragement of expressive language and prosocial behavior. Emotional warmth, positive behavior management, vocabulary instruction, and the joint effect of teacher emotional warmth and encouragement of prosocial behavior and empathy was not associated with prosocial behavior. Practice or Policy: These findings suggest that teachers’ more deliberate encouragement of prosocial and empathic behavior and their creation of a positive, interactive social environment may support students’ prosocial behavior. The implications of these findings are particularly important for young children learning to engage with others.

Predicting First Graders' Social Competence from Their Preschool Classroom Interpersonal Context.

ABSTRACT Research Findings: This study investigates contributions of the preschool classroom interpersonal environment to students’ social competence in 1st grade. Participants were 862 ethnically/racially diverse children who attended public preschool classrooms serving low-income families. Systematic observations of 60 classrooms occurred across the preschool year and quantified teacher and student behaviors. Preschool and 1st-grade teachers provided reports of children’s social behavior. First-grade teachers also assessed children’s problem behaviors. Multilevel analyses indicated that at the end of 1st grade, students who experienced preschool settings with teachers who displayed more approving behavior, less disapproving behavior, and more positive emotional tone showed significant gains in positive social behavior and lower rates of problem behavior, even after students’ social skills at preschool entry were controlled. Greater gains in positive social behavior and fewer problem behaviors in 1st grade were also predicted by immersion in preschool classrooms that had more positive and cooperative interactions among peers. Practice or Policy: Universal preschool is a policy under consideration nationally and locally, with social competence often listed as an important goal. This study indicates that even in the absence of a particular social-emotional curriculum, preschool teachers’ behaviors and interactions among their students may have lasting implications for children’s social development.

The relationship between kindergarten classroom environment and children's engagement

The primary aim of the present study was to examine the way in which instructional and emotional aspects of teacher support combined to predict childrens engagement in learning-related activities in kindergarten classrooms that served a socio-economically diverse population of children. Observations were conducted on teachers and children in 45 classrooms. Results revealed that instructional and emotional support in combination were predictive of the intensity of childrens learning engagement. The effect of instructional practices was contingent on the emotional tone of the classroom. The instructional practices had larger effects on the mean level of engagement in classrooms with more positive emotional tone. The study has critical implications for future research in terms of classroom environments supporting childrens learning.