Kelly Maxwell

Predictors of Developmentally Appropriate Classroom Practices in Kindergarten through Third Grade.

Abstract This study was designed to (a) test the psychometric properties of a new observation measure of developmentally appropriate classroom practices in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms, and (b) determine how well classroom and teacher characteristics predict developmentally appropriate classroom practices. Teacher-reported and observational data from 69 classrooms provided support for construct validity, internal consistency, and interrater agreement of the Assessment of Practices in Early Elementary Classrooms (APEEC) measure. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that classroom characteristics (grade, class size, number of children with disabilities), teacher characteristics (education level, years of experience) and teacher beliefs (developmentally appropriate beliefs and developmentally inappropriate beliefs) accounted for 42% of the variance in observed classroom practices. With all variables in the model, teacher education, grade, and beliefs in developmentally appropriate and inappropriate practice accounted for most of the variance in observed classroom practices.

Effects of a community initiative on the quality of child care

This study examined the effects of a broad-based community initiative (Smart Start) to improve the quality of child care for preschoolers. Data were collected in 1994 and 1996 from over 180 child care centers in 12 counties implementing the community initiative. The quality of child care, as measured by the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS; Harms & Clifford, 1980), was significantly higher in 1996 than 1994, both across the entire sample and across the subset of 91 centers observed in both years. The quality of child care in 1996 was significantly related to the number of local quality improvement activities in which the child care centers participated. This and additional evidence presented in the paper show that a comprehensive community initiative can improve child care quality if significant funds and activities are focused on the issue.

Providing heart-healthy alternatives at cardiology meetings: grilled salmon or beef tenderloin?

Abstract Recognizing that physicians have changed their eating habits, 1 such as reducing saturated fat in their diets, 2 we offered more prudent food selections as part of a recent cardiology conference. Our goal was to provide options to those who choose to consume a diet consistent with the saturated fat and cholesterol recommendations of the National Cholesterol Education Program.3 This report demonstrates the ease of offering such options and presents the results of a survey assessing the acceptability and importance of such prudent foods to the physician attendees.