Jennifer J. Baumgartner

Emotional Exhaustion, Absenteeism, and Turnover Intentions in Childcare Teachers Examining the Impact of Physical Activity Behaviors

Drawing on Salmon’s (2001) unifying theory of the beneficial effects of physical exercise, we examined physical activity behaviors as an important, but understudied, buffer against experiences of emotional exhaustion, absenteeism, and turnover intentions in 189 childcare teachers. Structural equation modeling revealed that workplace and leisure-time physical activity were negatively related to emotional exhaustion, which in turn, was positively related to teacher migration and attrition intentions. Post-hoc analyses revealed indirect (mediated) effects between physical activity behaviors and teacher turnover intentions via emotional exhaustion. This theoretically driven model fit the data better than an alternative model whereby emotional exhaustion predicts physical activity behaviors.

Exploring parental philosophies regarding childcare: overlap orientations and the influence of childcare programmes on families

This exploratory study examined the beliefs held by families regarding childcare. In‐depth interviews were conducted with parents of children ages 3–5 in full‐day childcare. Parents described their experiences with childcare, thoughts about the continuity between childcare and home environments and other life philosophies. From the analysis of the transcripts, three themes emerged: overlap orientation, influence of the programme on the family and parental involvement. In their descriptions of continuity and discontinuity between the home and care environments, parents provided insight into their orientation regarding the appropriate overlap between these environments. The relationships between these three themes are discussed. Practical applications and directions for future research are discussed.

THE CHANGING PROFILE OF TEACHING, RESEARCH AND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES IN LAB SCHOOL PROGRAMS

Although child development laboratory programs share a common history and a commitment to a three-part mission of teaching, research, and outreach, they vary in the ways their programs are structured. At the same time, lab schools are being confronted by new challenges that have put many of these programs at-risk for cutbacks in support and/or closure. The diversity that can be found in the structure of lab schools has made it difficult for these programs to collaborate on ways to address the challenges they face on a daily basis. The purpose of this chapter is to present findings from a national survey of lab schools, with a goal of identifying common issues and challenges being faced by programs regardless of their structure. Results are used to identify critical issues lab schools must address in order to continue playing an important role in bridging theory, research, and practice in the field of early childhood education.

Young Children’s Demonstrated Understanding of Hurricanes

We examine young children’s knowledge of disasters in the immediate aftermath of hurricanes, Katrina and Rita. Knowledge was measured by teacher reports of child-initiated spontaneous play in the classrooms and by children’s responses to an interview designed to measure their knowledge of hurricanes in general and Katrina and Rita in particular. Findings indicated age-related differences, with older children demonstrating more knowledge than younger children. Analysis of teacher-reported specific activities indicated that children’s demonstrated knowledge was different by region (with children more directly impacted by hurricanes demonstrating more knowledge of hurricanes than children less directly impacted) and seemed to reflect the stages of disasters: preparation, response, and recovery.

Preschool teachers' perceptions of rough and tumble play vs. aggression in preschool-aged boys

Rough and tumble play has been found to be positive for physical, social and cognitive development; it is often erroneously misinterpreted as aggression and generally stopped by preschool teachers. The current study sought to examine the relationship between teacher training and education and judgements about aggression in children. Ninety-four preschool teachers currently working in child care centres viewed two videotapes depicting preschool-aged boys engaged in naturally occurring outdoor play. Participants scored the tapes for occurrence of aggression, using their own definition. Results indicated that child care providers with a four-year college degree in early childhood education reported less aggressive behaviours than those without a college degree. Novice child care providers reported higher levels of aggression than more experienced preschool teachers; child care providers with similar education/experience were more likely to report aggression within the same observation segment. These findings suggest that education may support more accurate assessments of aggressive play.

Provider Stress and Children's Active Engagement

This study explored provider stress and provider-accumulated training as predictors of child active engagement in child care programs. Providers from 19 child care programs participated in a self-report of stress levels, using an adaptation of the Parent Stress Index-Short Form. Child psychosocial factors were assessed using the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment. Classroom observations of child engagement were assessed through direct observation using a modification of the Engagement Check II and E-Qual III. Results indicated that high provider stress and accumulated provider training hours are predictors of child engagement during free play in child care programs. Additionally, there was a significant interaction between provider training and provider stress, with accumulated training hours predicting high child engagement for those providers with high levels of stress. Thus, high training hours tended to assuage provider stress to a degree. Our results suggest the potentially mitigating effects of state-regulated child care training hours. They also suggest the need to address child care systematically during training and outreach programs.

“The Compass of Our Life”: A Qualitative Study of Marriage and Faith Among Chinese Immigrants

Twenty highly religious Chinese Christian married couples (n = 40) were interviewed to examine how religious faith influenced their perceptions of marriage and family life. Most participants held advanced graduate degrees (14 PhD and 13 MS degrees). Their ages ranged from 28 to 66, and the number of children ranged from one to four. Grounded theory methods (including open coding and axial coding) were applied to analyze the data. Based on the interview data three emergent themes were identified: (1) Moving from atheism to theism (“God is love”), (2) changing perceptions of marriage (“Marriage is established by God”), and (3) a new priority (“Put God first”). Supporting qualitative data are presented in connection with each theme. Implications for research and practice related to Chinese immigrants’ marriage and family in the United States are discussed.

Developmentally Appropriate Teacher Education “Practicing What We Preach”

Developmentally Appropriate Teacher Education “Practicing What We Preach” Jennifer J. Baumgartner a , Teresa K. Buchanan b & Renee M. Casbergue c a Family, Child and Consumer Sciences, School of Human Ecology , Louisiana State University , USA b Education, Department of Educational Theory, Policy and Practice , Louisiana State University , USA c Graduate Studies and Research , Louisiana State University , USA Published online: 25 Jul 2012.

Using structured choice to increase child engagement in low-preference centres

It is recommended practice for early childhood educators to provide children with extended periods of free play in which children are able to learn through hands-on experiences in the classroom environment. Early childhood educators plan meaningful experiences for each interest centre based on standards and objectives. Although some children choose to participate in all the provided activities, other children require additional assistance in choosing between the varieties of experiences that are provided in the early childhood classroom environment. Children who avoid spending time in certain interest centres or spend time not engaged in any activity miss the opportunity to practise the skills associated with those centres. In this study, a structured choice intervention was used to provide a choice between two low-preference centres and to also decrease the amount of time children spend not engaged in any activity. Results indicate that the structured choice intervention increased the amount of time children spent in interest centres previously identified as low interest and also decreased the amount of time children spent not engaged with materials.

Child Sustained Attention in Preschool-Age Children

ABSTRACT This study examined the mean duration of child attention across three teaching conditions (child choice, adult choice, or adult presentation) of 63 preschool-age children. A repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare the means across the three teaching conditions, indicating a statistically significant difference between the teaching conditions. It was also found that children attended for a longer period of time when given more choice, with child attention decreasing more as less choice what given. Results suggest that teachers should consider environments that allow children the opportunity to make choices in order to maximize their attention.