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Exploring Childhood: Discovering Teens, Nancy Erickson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This is a study of a practicum-based child development curriculum for eighth grade students in a middle school setting. One hundred students were tested on self-image concepts and attitudes toward young children after they had been exposed to the curriculum. The experimental group was involved in the "Exploring Childhood" course which gave them experience in actual child care agencies in the community. The control group students used the more traditional child development unit in the home economics program.

Testing showed that the experimental group made significantly higher self-concept scores than the control group. There was no significant difference between the …