Pre-Elementary, Early Childhood, Kindergarten Teacher Education Commons^™

Mental Health Supports In The Public Schools, Elizabeth Walters

Masters Theses

Increasingly, young students experience mental health challenges, some as early as first grade. With mental health challenges reaching students at younger ages, teachers and school staff need to be ready to assist their students in need. Roughly a third of young people experience mental health challenges, and 70-80% are unable to receive mental health services. As a large portion struggle in school with mental health concerns, teachers and school staff are likely to be the first to see any potential signs of struggle. When teachers notice signs of a student struggling with mental health, the staff often do not know …

Supporting Students In Transition To And From Elementary School, Meleah Ellison, Jamelle Simmons, David B. Naff, Taryn G. Traylor, Meredith Dean, Sooyeon Moon, Jia Jia Liu, Latonja Y. Wright, Cameron Parkins, Jennifer Locasale-Crouch, Dana V. Yarbrough, Audrina Farrar, Obed Amoakoh Boateng

MERC Publications

This report is part of a two-part series focused on supporting students in transition across PK-12 education. Specifically, it explores transitions into and out of elementary school. The report includes a synthesis of recent peer-reviewed literature, analysis of publicly available data (with a specific focus on Virginia and the metropolitan Richmond region), and summary of relevant federal, state, and school division-level policies. It answers the following questions:

1. What are key considerations for supporting students in transition to and from elementary school in the MERC region?

2. How do federal, state, and division policies guide support for student transitions to …

Exploring Collaboration In Interdisciplinary Ei/Ecse Programs: A Qualitative Study On Service Provider Preparation, Meagan Dayton

Theses and Dissertations

Interdisciplinary preparation is critical for early childhood special education professionals, yet few programs are designed to support such collaboration across disciplines. This study aimed to explore how interdisciplinary EI/ECSE preparation programs support collaboration. The study was guided by the following research questions: (1) How are program components designed to support the development of collaboration skills? (2) What is the student experience of collaboration in the program? (3) What connections exist between program components, student experiences, and the development of collaboration skills? Using a qualitative multiple-case study approach grounded in ecological systems theory, data were collected from program documents and interviews …

The Shifting The Balance Duology: A Book Critique From A Teacher Education Perspective, David Wolff

Essays in Education

Reading instruction has become a critical focus in many states in the country. Both in-service and pre-service teachers are adopting innovative approaches in reading instruction embedded in the Science of Reading. However, the transition to these new methods require a shift in practice that should be differentiated for both groups. In-service teachers have a wealth of knowledge and experience to draw upon, while pre-service teachers because of the lack of prior knowledge of past practices in literacy that include the Balanced Literacy approach. This book critique examines the Shifted the Balance duology, offering insights to its implications to Teacher Education.

Unpacking Exclusion: A Narrative Literature Review And Discrete Analysis Of Preschool Suspension And Expulsion, Megan Pheterson

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis explores exclusionary disciplinary practices in preschool settings, where children from marginalized groups, particularly racial minorities and those with disabilities, face a higher risk of suspension and expulsion. This thesis provides a qualitative overview and interpretation of existing literature, pointing trends and gaps in research and highlighting four main themes: (1) Navigating the layers of exclusionary practices: From policy to practice; (2) Exclusionary practices: An adult decision with complex consequences; (3) Exclusive education: Who is left out and why in early childhood settings; and (4) Resistance as a tool for inclusion. Through a Disability Critical Race Theory framework, this …

Benefits Of Teaching Pre-Literacy In Waldorf Education In Early Childhood, April Guerrero

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This senior capstone research project examines the benefits of teaching pre-literacy in Waldorf education in early childhood. In Waldorf Education, literacy development incorporates differentiated instructions that fosters cognitive and social emotional learning of their students. Through the use of literature review and several teachers in various grades of Waldorf schools, the result findings revealed that pedagogical practices around literacy instructions promote critical thinking skills, nurtures children’s creative expression, and imagination. Literacy curriculum in Waldorf schools allows students to create tangible evidence of self-expressions and communication skills. Given its emphasis on holistic curriculum, it allows teachers to engage with their diverse …

A Qualitative Study Of Iranian Efl Teachers’ Perceptions Of A Digital Diversified Education, Seyed Mohammad Reza Marvasti Zadeh, Azizollah Dabaghi Varnosfadrani Advarnosfadrani, Mohammad Amiryousefi

The Qualitative Report

Because Iran is a country of learners of diverse languages, socio-economic classes, genders, and ages, digital diversified education seems appropriate to address needs in English language education. However, there is a notable gap in research on teachers’ perceptions about this type of education. To fill this gap, this study aimed to investigate the perspectives of Iranian teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) regarding a diverse digital education. Data were collected via an open-ended survey with 30 EFL teachers, both male and female, who were selected through convenience sampling. Analysis revealed several key themes, including the utilization of diverse …

The Challenges That Nontraditional Early Childhood Educators Face When Completing Higher Education, Polixeni Pantelidou

Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The Challenges that Nontraditional Early Childhood Educators Face When Completing Higher Education by Polixeni Pantelidou

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore the challenges that non-traditional Early Childhood Education (ECE) teachers face as they pursue higher education. The study aimed to identify key barriers, motivators, and strategies that influence their educational progression and completion. It aims to identify the motivators that drive these individuals to pursue further education, the challenges they encounter once enrolled, and the strategies they employ to overcome these barriers.

Methodology: This study employed a qualitative descriptive method, engaging a select group …

Preparing Children For Kindergarten Readiness: Early Childhood Teachers’ Goals And Practices, Julie Chappell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Literature in the field of early childhood education suggests that standardization and the accountability movement in the United States has changed the way that teachers approach kindergarten, resulting in less play and more teacher-directed activities. This pedagogical shift causes challenges for early childhood educators striving to promote developmentally appropriate, play-based and child-centered approaches to learning for young children while preparing children for the expectations of kindergarten. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain an understanding of prekindergarten teachers’ views about their role in preparing children for kindergarten. The study was guided by two research questions: How do prekindergarten …

Radical Hospitality: Transforming Adjunct Care, Jennifer L. Kritsch, Rachelle Wong, Michael Corke, Ricardo Ramos, Deb Erickson

International Christian Community of Teacher Educators Journal

What would it look like to actively connect with others instead of fighting to affirm our differences? Could radical hospitality usher in a way to connect with others? What would a deep connection to adjuncts in an educational community look like? This research intended to document adjunct faculty responses to departmental efforts to better support adjunct faculty based on their expressed needs. Further, the researchers examined literature on the ethic of care, hospitality, invitational theory, and the role that leadership plays in making people feel welcome. The research team also illuminated how radical hospitality/transformative care can redefine the relationships found …

The Experiences Of Men As A Gender Minority In Early Childhood Workplaces, Julian Laferla

Graduate Teacher Education

Men comprise a small percentage of the early childhood education and care workforce worldwide. Men represent only three percent of the preschool workforce in the United States (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Labor, 2023). A review of the literature revealed challenges men commonly face as a gender minority in a female-dominated field. These challenges include the transgression of traditional beliefs about masculinity, structural barriers like low pay and poor working conditions, and workplace challenges like exclusion, double standards, gatekeeping, and suspicion of sexual threat. Research showed that men can contribute to the field through pedagogic practices that support …

Collaborative Professional Development Featuring Innovative Curriculum Materials, Cory Callahan

The Councilor: A National Journal of the Social Studies

Here I synthesize two research investigations (Callahan, 2018, 2019) that comprise a continuing line of inquiry into the potential of innovative curriculum materials and sustained collaboration as a professional development program to help in-service teachers understand and implement a complex model of social studies instruction. This article features an original innovative curriculum material and specifically explores the question: To what degree can a collaborative professional development program featuring innovative curriculum materials help social studies teachers understand and implement a powerful social studies approach? Findings suggest the professional development program and its innovative curriculum materials helped teachers promote substantive pedagogical thinking …

Human Capital At Home: Evidence From A Randomized Evaluation In The Philippines, Noam Angrist, Sarah Kabay, Dean S. Karlan, Lincoln Lau, Kevin M. Wong

Education Division Scholarship

Children spend most of their time at home in their early years, yet efforts to promote human capital at home in many low- and middle-income settings remain limited. We conduct a randomized controlled trial to evaluate an intervention which encourages parents and caregivers to foster human capital accumulation among their children between ages 3 and 5, with a focus on math and phonics skills. Children gain 0.52 and 0.51 standard deviations relative to the control group on math and phonics tests, respectively (p<0.001). A year later effects persist, but math gains dissipate to 0.15 (p=0.06) and phonics to 0.13 (p=0.12). Effects appear to be mediated largely through instructional support by parents and not other parent investment mechanisms, such as more positive parent-child interactions or additional time spent on education at home beyond the intervention. Our results show that parents can be effective conduits of educational instruction even in low-resource settings.

Promoting Emergent Literacy In Preschool Through Extended Discourse: Covert Translanguaging In A Mandarin Immersion Environment, Robin E. Harvey, Kevin M. Wong

Education Division Scholarship

Rich oral language practices, including the opportunity and ability to participate in cognitively and linguistically challenging extended discourse, are foundational to early literacy development. To meet children’s needs in their first exposure to the languages of schooling, educators may engage students in extended discourse multilingually. The current study focuses on student-centered translanguaging conversations to examine strategies that preschool teachers employ to support young children’s emerging bilingual and biliteracy development in a Mandarin immersion preschool serving primarily nonheritage learners of Mandarin in the United States. Findings indicate that, despite the school’s Mandarin-only policy, teachers engaged in covert translanguaging practices to extend …

Development Of A Sensory-Based Intervention Manual For Educators, Bralie Dent, Zeida Gutierrez

Summer 2024 OTD Capstone Symposium

This project focused on the development of an educational manual on sensory processing disorder (SPD) for educators. The manual was created as a resource to enhance teachers' understanding of SPD and confidence in implementing sensory-based interventions and accommodations in the classroom for students who have sensory processing difficulties.

Policy, Practice, And Perceptions Of K-12 Social-Emotional Learning, Janice Filer, Ebony C. Cain, Della Thompson-Bell

Education Division Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of K-12 school staff who participate in social-emotional learning (SEL). Since the global pandemic, several school districts have included SEL as part of the school curriculum. Teachers, counselors, social workers, school psychologists, and school administrators participate in SEL instruction and/or practices. Classroom teachers instruct students in SEL instruction and other school staff practice the SEL components of self-awareness, self-management, decision-making, social awareness, and relationship skills through their daily interactions with students. This study was conducted in various schools throughout the Los Angeles area using open-ended interview questions that utilized focus …

Why Researchers Need To Hear Practitioners’ Voices: A Call To Action, David Wolff, Donna Zerr, Carissa Gober

Essays in Education

Educators play a crucial role in shaping student learning experiences. Practitioners engage in scholarly inquiry daily in classrooms and educational settings. Scholarly inquiry varies based on context and student needs. By viewing classrooms as research labs, educators can foster curiosity and develop research. It is the goal of this article to encourage educators to engage in The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning by formalizing their insights into publishable writings.

Meta-Narrative Review Of Gender Portrayal In Disney Movies For Young Children And Its Pedagogical Implications, Xuan Jiang, Linlin Zhang, Diana Rivero, Brittany Torres

Journal of Global Education and Research

Many of Disney movies have been criticized for perpetuating traditional gender stereotypes which constrain opportunities for children at large. Its recent characters have also incurred heated discussions on gender portrayal. Moreover, stereotypes of gender roles, developed early on, can exert an immediate impact on individuals’ behaviors and utterances and a long-term impact on individuals’ perceived options academically, professionally, personally, and socially. Recognizing the significance of this matter, this paper employed a meta-narrative review to collect and conceptually and empirically synthesize previous literature on the impact of Disney movies on young children’s gender awareness. Through an academic database search, 49 articles …

Exploring Saudi Families’ Engagement In The Us Early Childhood Schools: Experiences Of Bearing The Burden, Sarah Alberaidi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A vast body of research in early childhood education has shown the positive effect of parents' engagement on children's emotional, cognitive, and social development. However, researchers identified limitations to parent involvement activities within the culturally diverse context. The purpose of this case study was to fill the literature gap in exploring how Saudi families engage in their children's early education in the United States. Within the context of sociocultural theory, Muscrit theory, family ethnothories, and mirror, window, sliding glass doors framework, this study aimed to understand the family engagement practices of three Saudi families whose children enrolled in early childhood …

Gender Role Depictions In Arabic Children’S Picture Books, Aljawharah A. Almuqbil

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to explore gender role depictions in children's Arabic picture books. The importance of this study emerged from its focus on young children, where the concept of gender begins to be constructed. This study provided insight into the nature of gender roles in children’s picture books, especially under the remarkable changes that Saudi society is witnessing and the lack of Arab studies in this area. Social cognitive theory, gender schema theory, and critical literacy pedagogy guided the study. A sample of 26 picture books was selected from the Child Book Club at King Abdulaziz Public Library and analyzed …