Michal Perlman

Child-Care Quality Rating and Improvement Systems in Five Pioneer States: Implementation Issues and Lessons Learned

this work. This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for non-commercial use only. Unauthorized posting of RAND PDFs to a non-RAND Web site is prohibited. RAND PDFs are protected under copyright law. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please see RAND Permissions. Limited Electronic Distribution Rights This PDF document was made available from www.rand.org as a public service of the RAND Corporation.

Parent involvement in child care settings: conceptual and measurement issues

This paper discusses the conceptualization and measurement of Parent Child Care Involvement (PCCI) and questions whether PCCI should be included in high‐stakes quality ratings. It presents data on several PCCI measures, including one used by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Parent Caregiver Relationship Scale (Elicker et al., 1997) and PCCI items from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth and the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale—Revised (ECERS‐R). Across these measures parents uniformly describe child care providers as welcoming and supportive even when other quality measures reveal significant problems. Providers display similar positivity when reporting their own PCCI efforts. A new author‐devised measure, Family–Provider Partnership, produces similar positivity bias. Nevertheless, Family–Provider Partnership scores were strongly associated with other measures of child care quality, including the ECERS‐R Infant‐Toddler Environment Rating Scale (ITERS), ratios and staff credentials. Such relationships justify inclusion of PCCI in child care quality ratings.

Sibship Size, Sibling Cognitive Sensitivity, and Children’s Receptive Vocabulary

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the current study was to examine the relationship between sibship size and children’s vocabulary as a function of quality of sibling interactions. It was hypothesized that coming from a larger sibship (ie, 3+ children) would be related to lower receptive vocabulary in children. However, we expected this association to be moderated by the level of cognitive sensitivity shown by children’s next-in-age older siblings. METHODS: Data on 385 children (mean age = 3.15 years) and their next-in-age older siblings (mean age = 5.57 years) were collected and included demographic questionnaires, direct testing of children’s receptive vocabulary, and videos of mother-child and sibling interactions. Sibling dyads were taped engaging in a cooperative building task and tapes were coded for the amount of cognitive sensitivity the older sibling exhibited toward the younger sibling. RESULTS: Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted and showed an interaction between sibship size and sibling cognitive sensitivity in the prediction of children’s receptive vocabulary; children exposed to large sibships whose next-in-age older sibling exhibited higher levels of cognitive sensitivity were less likely to show low vocabulary skills when compared with those children exposed to large sibships whose siblings showed lower levels of cognitive sensitivity. CONCLUSIONS: Children who show sensitivity to the cognitive needs of their younger siblings provide a rich environment for language development. The negative impact of large sibships on language development is moderated by the presence of an older sibling who shows high cognitive sensitivity.

Cognitive Sensitivity in Sibling Interactions: Development of the Construct and Comparison of Two Coding Methodologies

Research Findings: The goal of this study was to develop a construct of sibling cognitive sensitivity, which describes the extent to which children take their siblings’ knowledge and cognitive abilities into account when working toward a joint goal. In addition, the study compared 2 coding methodologies for measuring the construct: a thin slice approach (i.e., making intuitive, impressionistic judgments) and an interval coding approach (i.e., coding the presence of behaviors in 20-s snapshots). A sample of 385 sibling pairs (younger sibling M = 3.15 years, older sibling M = 5.57 years) was used for the present study. In Phase 1, independent raters used both methodologies to code videos of sibling interactions using a subset of sibling pairs (n = 50 dyads). Siblings interacted for 5 min on a challenging cooperation task, and the extent of cognitive sensitivity was coded for each child. Measures of validity and interrater agreement were acceptable for both methodologies, and thin slice coding reduced time demands. The thin slice measure was chosen as the preferred method. Phase 2 added 3 additional items to the thin slice measure and validated the measure using data from all 385 sibling pairs. Psychometric properties of the final thin slice measure were good. Practice or Policy: Research and practical implications are discussed.

Hellos and How Are Yous: Predictors and Correlates of Communication Between Staff and Families During Morning Drop-Off in Child Care Centers

Research Findings: The amount and quality of communication between staff and guardians in child care centers was examined using extensive naturalistic observations. Interactions between staff and more than 1,000 guardians who dropped their child off at their child care center were captured through a series of 20-s time-sampled observations. Structural quality indicators (ratios, staff education, etc.) were used to predict communication. Associations between staff–guardian communication and other aspects of quality were also examined. Results: Guardians spent an average of 63 s in their childs classroom during morning drop-off. Communication between staff and parents was limited, with staff providing child-related information to or soliciting it from approximately 15% of guardians. Out of several structural quality indicators, only greater professional development hours among staff in a classroom increased the likelihood of staff providing guardians with information about the program. Drop-off communication between staff and guardians and between staff and children was somewhat related to other measures of process quality. Practice or Policy: Results are discussed in terms of the importance of connecting families and centers, implications for rating center quality, and the accuracy of the drop-off period as parents’ lens into the quality of their childs classroom.

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of a Measure of Staff/Child Interaction Quality (the Classroom Assessment Scoring System) in Early Childhood Education and Care Settings and Child Outcomes.

The quality of staff/child interactions as measured by the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) programs is thought to be important for children’s outcomes. The CLASS is made of three domains that assess Emotional Support, Classroom Organization and Instructional Support. It is a relatively new measure that is being used increasingly for research, quality monitoring/accountability and other applied purposes. Our objective was to evaluate the association between the CLASS and child outcomes. Searches of Medline, PsycINFO, ERIC, websites of large datasets and reference sections of all retrieved articles were conducted up to July 3, 2015. Studies that measured association between the CLASS and child outcomes for preschool-aged children who attended ECEC programs were included after screening by two independent reviewers. Searches and data extraction were conducted by two independent reviewers. Thirty-five studies were systematically reviewed of which 19 provided data for meta-analyses. Most studies had moderate to high risk of bias. Of the 14 meta-analyses we conducted, associations between Classroom Organization and Pencil Tapping and between Instructional Support and SSRS Social Skills were significant with pooled correlations of .06 and .09 respectively. All associations were in the expected direction. In the systematic review, significant correlations were reported mainly from one large dataset. Substantial heterogeneity in use of the CLASS, its dimensions, child outcomes and statistical measures was identified. Greater consistency in study methodology is urgently needed. Given the multitude of factors that impact child development it is encouraging that our analyses revealed some, although small, associations between the CLASS and children’s outcomes.

Literacy Instruction in Canadian Child Care Centers

Abstract The purpose of this study was to describe literacy instruction in child care centers, examine aspects of child care center quality that may predict such instruction, and provide a limited analysis of whether literacy instruction impacts childrens concurrent pre-academic functioning. Staff and children in 103 classrooms serving preschool-age children from 64 child care centers in a major Canadian city participated in the study. Literacy instruction was captured using a series of 20-second, time-sampled observations over the course of one morning. The following types of literacy instruction were examined and are reported as a percentage of the snapshots in which they were observed: Reading Aloud, 2.8%; Word Instruction, 1.2%; Letter Identification, 1.2%; Printing/Writing, 0.7%; Symbol Recognition, 0.5%; Letter-Word Sounds, 0.2%; and Word Segmentation, 0%. Hierarchical linear models revealed that literacy instruction is a staff, rather than classroom or center, characteristic. Overall, literacy instruction occurred infrequently in child care classrooms. Indicators of quality were not found to drive literacy instruction, and literacy instruction did not predict greater verbal intelligence scores among children. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

The relationship between the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale and its revised form and child outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS) and its revised version (ECERS-R) were designed as global measures of quality that assess structural and process aspects of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) programs. Despite frequent use of the ECERS/ECERS-R in research and applied settings, associations between it and child outcomes have not been systematically reviewed. The objective of this research was to evaluate the association between the ECERS/ECERS-R and children’s wellbeing. Searches of Medline, PsycINFO, ERIC, websites of large datasets and reference sections of all retrieved articles were completed up to July 3, 2015. Eligible studies provided a statistical link between the ECERS/ECERS-R and child outcomes for preschool-aged children in ECEC programs. Of the 823 studies selected for full review, 73 were included in the systematic review and 16 were meta-analyzed. The combined sample across all eligible studies consisted of 33, 318 preschool-aged children. Qualitative systematic review results revealed that ECERS/ECERS-R total scores were more generally associated with positive outcomes than subscales or factors. Seventeen separate meta-analyses were conducted to assess the strength of association between the ECERS/ECERS-R and measures that assessed children’s language, math and social-emotional outcomes. Meta-analyses revealed a small number of weak effects (in the expected direction) between the ECERS/ECERS-R total score and children’s language and positive behavior outcomes. The Language-Reasoning subscale was weakly related to a language outcome. The enormous heterogeneity in how studies operationalized the ECERS/ECERS-R, the outcomes measured and statistics reported limited our ability to meta-analyze many studies. Greater consistency in study methodology is needed in this area of research. Despite these methodological challenges, the ECERS/ECERS-R does appear to capture aspects of quality that are important for children’s wellbeing; however, the strength of association is weak.

Promoting diversity in early child care education

Preschool‐aged children are aware of differences in the race and abilities of the people around them. Given this awareness it is important to promote childrens acceptance of diversity in the preschool period. The goals of this study were to assess the extent to which child care centres provide diversity instruction through classroom activities, materials and displays. The extent to which structural quality characteristics (e.g. staff training and education) contribute to diversity‐positive classrooms was also examined. Data were collected from 103 preschool classrooms in 64 child care centres serving a population of ethnically diverse families in Toronto, Canada. On average, these classrooms were found to be diversity‐positive environments. Hierarchical linear model analyses indicate that utilising a variety of teaching formats, higher salaries, greater supervision and having higher proportions of children who receive a child care subsidy predicted higher scores on a diversity instruction and materials index. This index was largely based on classroom observations. In contrast, lower levels of education and salary predicted staff reports of diversity‐promoting activities. These latter counter‐intuitive results are interpreted in light of potential self‐presentation biases.

Child-Staff Ratios in Early Childhood Education and Care Settings and Child Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Child-staff ratios are a key quality indicator in early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs. Better ratios are believed to improve child outcomes by increasing opportunities for individual interactions and educational instruction from staff. The purpose of this systematic review, and where possible, meta-analysis, was to evaluate the association between child-staff ratios in preschool ECEC programs and children’s outcomes. Searches of Medline, PsycINFO, ERIC, websites of large datasets and reference sections of all retrieved articles were conducted up to July 3, 2015. Cross-sectional or longitudinal studies that evaluated the relationship between child-staff ratios in ECEC classrooms serving preschool aged children and child outcomes were independently identified by two reviewers. Data were independently extracted from included studies by two raters and differences between raters were resolved by consensus. Searches revealed 29 eligible studies (31 samples). Child-staff ratios ranged from 5 to 14.5 preschool-aged children per adult with a mean of 8.65. All 29 studies were included in the systematic review. However, the only meta-analysis that could be conducted was based on three studies that explored associations between ratios and children’s receptive language. Results of this meta-analysis were not significant. Results of the qualitative systematic review revealed few significant relationships between child-staff ratios and child outcomes construed broadly. Thus, the available literature reveal few, if any, relationships between child-staff ratios in preschool ECEC programs and children’s developmental outcomes. Substantial heterogeneity in the assessment of ratios, outcomes measured, and statistics used to capture associations limited quantitative synthesis. Other methodological limitations of the research integrated in this synthesis are discussed.