CDE 155 Midterm

Principles & Practices of Teaching Young Children

NAEYC

• National Association for the Education of Young Children

• Mission: promote high-quality early learning for kids from birth through age 8

Types of care

1. care centers

2. family child care homes

3. preschools

4. parent cooperatives

5. laboratory schools

6. public pre-k

7. Head Start

Who determines guidelines for Early Childhood Special Education?

the state according to I.D.E.A.

I.D.E.A.

• Individuals w/ Disabilities Education Act

• federal law governing provision of services for kids w/ disabilities & special needs

Kindergarten age range

5 - 6 year olds

Primary grades age range (1-3)

6 - 8 year olds

Ways to increase access to high-quality early childhood?

• Head-Start

• Child-Care & Development Block Grants (CCDBG)

• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

for low-income families

TANF

• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

• aka Welfare to Work

• Provides temp. financial aid but requires recipients to move into the labor force or schooling

Intentional teaching involves these personal & professional qualities:

• Caring & committed

• Enthusiastic & engaged

• Curious & creative

• Respectful & responsive

• Passionate & patient

• Purposeful & playful

• Focused & flexible

• Aware & accountable

• Informed & effective

• Listening & learning

DAP

• Developmentally Appropriate Practice

• Ways of teaching kids that engages their interests & adapts for their age, experience, & ability to help them meet challenging & achievable goals

Quality standards include:

• Child care licensing standards

• Quality rating & improvement systems (QRIS)

ECERS-3

• Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale

• Observational instrument used to rate program quality on a seven-point scale from inadequate to excellent

Ways to promote executive function & self-regulation in the classroom

• emotional support from teachers

• well-organized classroom routines

Perry Preschool Project

showed the effectiveness of early intervention such as preschool

• these Perry kids grew up to be less involved in delinquency & had a higher rate of high school graduation

• the benefits of this research show even the economy benefits from ECE

closing the achievement gap & Socioeconomic Status (SES)

• when they enter Kinder, kids from lower/middle SES typically are far behind their wealthier peers in reading, math, and general knowledge

• high-quality preschool could help close the gap in school readiness

• gap begins at 18 months

tabula rasa

• English philosopher John Locke

• believed what is written on these blank slates is determined by children’s experiences in their environment 

Images of children today (in our country)

• innocents

• in need of protection by parents

• we expect them to start becoming independent at young age

The image of children & the role of play

the way we view children affects how they play

Friedrich Froebel

• father of kindergarten

  • named his school “garden for children”

• believed children would learn on their own time when they’re ready

• the idea of kindergarten’s came into the U.S. bc of him

Froebel’s stages of development

• birth - 3: focused on family & relationship with mother

• 3-7: Froebel’s kinder work

• 7-10: formal school instructions

Froebel’s occupations & gifts

• Occupations: planned experiences designed to train kids eye-hand coordination & mental activity

• Gifts: concrete materials, many of which influenced later toy development

Role of teacher in Froebel’s kindergarten

observe, nurture, help but not interfere with natural growth of child

Maria Montessori

• Italy’s first female physician nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

• showed that educating needy children is a less costly & more effective strategy than waiting until they create problems for society

  • this was used to help launch Head Start

• viewed play as a waste of children’s time

• minimized value of social interaction

Montessori environment

• child-sized furniture

• materials arranged on open shelves for easy access by kids

• materials designed to be used in specific ways (to prevent play-based learning)

• kids taught practical life skills (sweeping, cleanliness, etc.)

Role of teacher in Montessori classrooms

observe, demonstrate materials, but not interfere with kids natural exploration

Loris Malaguzzi

Reggio Emilia founder

Reggio Emilia

• emphasis on arts, symbolic language, knowledge, engaging learning environment

• “hundred languages”

• equal collab b/w child and teachers

• children are individuals who will be respected and allowed to discover

Role of teacher in Reggio Emilia

• family is 1st teacher

• teacher 2nd

• environment/quality materials 3rd is teacher

progressive education movement

• Major effect to reform schooling at all levels to make it more democratic and responsive to children’s needs

• Highly influential on early childhood education and later ideas about DAP

Nursey School Movement

• aka preschool and prekindergarten

• nursery schools began for research and demos of teaching for middle & upper-class kids

• Patty Smith Hill and Lucy Sprague Mitchell launched this movement to a wider field of ECE

Patty Smith Hill

• her father believed girls should be educated (radical for the time)

• mother secretly taught enslaved people to read, write, do math

• mother believed play essential to childhood

• she focused her work in the community school which served poor children

• founder of NAEYC

Lucy Sprague Mitchell

• major link between Dewey’s progressive education movement

• launched Bureau of Educational Experiments to teach teachers and conduct research

• whole-child approach

Child Care Movement

• child care moved from mainly helping out poor families, to supporting working parents

• became associated with physical care rather than education

Head Start

• represents a coming together of the nursery school movement and child care movement

• includes all children

• comprehensive education, health, nutrition & education

• parent involvement

• promotes school readiness skills

NAEYC’s position statement on DAP

• changes with new research

• describes principles and guidelines for teaching young kids from birth through age 8

• presents recommended practices for different age groups (infants/toddlers, preschool, etc…)

  • advocacy tool for improving programs for young children

push-down curriculum

• content previously taught in a higher grade that’s being expected to be learned in an earlier grade

• one of the og motivations for writing DAP

State learning standards and testing Promoting Play

• Common Core State Standards

• use of play isn’t specified in Standards, but it’s welcome as a valuable activity to help students learn

• many educators believe the CCSS are not achievable for most kids in K-3

3 fundamental considerations that guide teachers in making decisions about what’s developmentally appropriate for kids

1. consider what’s known about development and learning of kids within a given age range

2. consider what’s known about each child as an individual

3. consider what’s known about social and cultural contexts in which kids live

5 roles of the teacher

1. Creating a caring community of leaders

2. Teaching to enhance learning and development

3. Planning curriculum to achieve important goals

4. Assessing children’s learning and development

5. Build relationship with families

2. Teaching to enhance learning and development

aka intentional teaching

Teacher roles to support play

• player

• planner

• assessor and communicator

• mediator

True or False

Learning centers, organization of the physical space, scheduling and routines can affect how well a student can focus on and engage with the material/other students in class

True

True or False

What and how a child learns affects their development.

True

Domains of Development

• Physical

• Cognitive

• Social

• Emotional

What is the relationship between theory, research, and practice?

Theories come from hypotheses and research, which come in the form of observations/experiments

Baumrind’s Parenting Styles

• Authoritative

• Authoritarian

• Permissive

Synapse

Connections in the brain that carry info between neurons

Pruning

Process where brain eliminates unnecessary/unused synapses

• this aids in learning & memory

• increases brain’s flexibility

• helps w/ efficient brain operation

plasticity

brain’s ability to develop & change in response to experiences

executive function (EF)

Activities of the prefrontal cortex region of the brain that allow us to self-regulate

_______ are some of the most important skills for learning and development

executive functions

window of opportunity

Periods of time which brains are particularly susceptible and responsive to certain types of experiences

toxic stress

Children’s experience of intense, frequent, prolonged anxiety without adult support to help them cope

Erik Erikson’s theory

• Psychosocial Theory of Development

• eight stages (infancy - death)

• kid learns through environment & experiences through play to make sense of the world

What are the first 3 stages of Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory of Development?

• Trust vs Mistrust (birth - 1yr)

• Autonomy vs Shame & Doubt (1-3yrs)

• Initiative vs Guilt (3-6yrs)

Abraham Maslow’s theory

• Self-Actualization Theory

• Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (basic needs & growth needs)

Jean Piaget’s theory

• Cognitive Development Theory

• 4 stages of development

What are the first 2 stages of Piaget’s theory?

• Sensorimotor (birth - 2yrs)

• Preoperational (2-6yrs)

Sensorimotor stage

• child learns through senses & motor abilities

• environment is the teacher

Preoperational stage

• kids thinks symbolically

• egocentrism appears

Lev Vygotsky’s theory

• Sociocultural theory

• Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)

Distance between actual developmental level an individual has achieved and the level of potential development she could achieve with adult guidance or collaboration with other children

Bronfenbrenner’s theory

• Ecological Systems Theory of Development

• (the circle diagram that shows how everything is connected)

• 5 different systems

What are the different systems in Nronfenbrenner’s theory?

• individual

• microsystem

• mesosystem

• exosystem

• macrosystem

• (chronosystem)

B.F. Skinner’s theory

• behaviorism

• operant conditioning

  • positive reinforcement

  • negative reinforcement

  • punishment

  • extinction

Types of Play

• Functional play

• Constructive play

• Symbolic play

• Games with rules

Functional play

kid plays with and manipulates objects

• bby shakes rattle or bangs drum

Constructive play

kid uses toys/objects to create something new

benefits of play

• language development

• self-regulation

• attention

• creativity

• problem-solving

• social and emotional skills

Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

• eight different intelligences as opposed to just one

• logical/mathematical

• linguistic

• musical

• naturalist

• spatial

• bodily/kinesthetic

• interpersonal

• intrapersonal

Response to Intervention (RTI)

• three tiered framework intended to prevent learning delays in primary grades from becoming learning disabilities

• Tier 1: Screening, assessing, monitoring of children’s progress

• Tier 2: Developmentally appropriate large/small scale group interventions for kids who need more focused learning

• Tier 3: Focuses on ~5% of kids who do not meet expected progress in tiers 1 and 2. Here, kids receive intensive, individualized interventions.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

children who display a pattern of severe inattentive, hyperactive, and/or impulsive behavior that interferes with the child’s learning

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

child has impairments in social communication and interactions and demonstrates restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior and interests

Down syndrome (DS)

• Condition which extra genetic material causes child to exhibit developmental delays and/or intellectual disability

• Children with DS tend to share physical features such as a flat facial profile, upward slant to eyes, small ears, a single crease across the center of the palms, and an enlarged tongue

Cerebral palsy (CP)

neurological disorder that appears in infancy or early childhood and permanently affects the child’s body movement, motor development, and muscle coordination

Deafness and hearing impairment

• hearing is impaired, either permanently or temporarily, and negatively impacts a child’s academic performance

• deafness is a severe hearing impairment that prevents a child from hearing and processing language and other sounds

Visually impaired or blind

Condition describing loss or partial loss of vision.

Intellectual disability

child has limitations both in cognitive functioning and in social and adaptive behavior

Developmental delay

• child whose development is behind expectations for their age group as measured by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures

• occurs in one or more areas of development: physical, cognitive, communication, social, emotional, or adaptive

Gifted

children with outstanding talent who perform or show potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment

I.D.E.A. legal requirements

a team of educators/family must create an IEP for each student

F.A.P.E.

children with disabilities should not be denied the same opportunities offered to anyone else

I.E.P. legal requirements

1. statement of child’s present lvls of academic achievement and functional performance

2. statement of measurable annual goals, including academic and functional goals

3. description of benchmarks/short-term objectives

4. description of child’s progress and when periodic reports on child’s progress will be provided

5. statement of special education and related services/aids

6. statement of any individually appropriate accommodations that are necessary to measure academic achievement & functional performance of child

individualized family service plan (IFSP)

• similar to IEP

• revolves around family, as well as the child

universal design

concept that materials and environments need to be usable by everyone, including those with disabilities, to the greatest extent possible

• Inclusion requires:

  • access to the learning environment and curriculum

  • participation in activities and routines

  • adequate support for teachers

How do cultural contexts influence learning and development?

• culture influences how children behave and how they make sense of their experiences

• acculturation

implicit bias

attitudes or stereotypes that unconsciously affect our thoughts, actions, and decisions

cultural competence

ability to work respectfully and effectively with people of all cultures, languages, socioeconomic classes, races, ethnicities, religions, and other aspects of diversity

low-context cultures

focus on direct, logical, and precise verbal communication

high-context cultures

communication relies less on words and more on contextual cues, such as facial expressions, gestures, or other physical clues to convey meaning

4 goals of anti-bias education

1. identity

2. diversity

3. justice

4. action