Education Commons^™

Early Sibling Play Interactions As A Source Of Developmental Support For Toddlers: Observation Of Young Children's Developmental Support During Play With Toddler Siblings, Tasha L. Olson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The sibling relationship is a unique and important context for infant and early child development. Despite the important role of siblings and the unique aspects of the sibling relationship, sibling interactions are largely overlooked by scholars as a resource of potential developmental support. Identifying and fostering developmentally supportive interaction (DSI) behaviors in sibling relationships may expand available supports for children’s early development and may also support family well-being.

This study used a sample of 15 child-toddler sibling pairs to identify DSI behaviors in interactions between young children and their toddler-aged siblings, determine if and how well DSI behaviors could be …

Preschool Children's Development In Number, Geometry, And Executive Function: A Cross-Lagged Examination, Brionne G. Neilson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Children develop rapidly during early childhood, and this includes their mathematics and executive function (EF) skills. Past research has focused on connections between early mathematics and EF, but more work was needed to fully understand these relations. In particular, past studies have generally used numeracy-based measures to assess early mathematics, although professional guidelines indicate a more comprehensive construct that includes geometry. The research herein addresses some of the gaps of previous work as it examines unique connections between early number, geometry, and EF. One hundred eighteen preschool children from urban and rural communities, being an average age of 53 months …

Validation Of A Brief Prosody Rating Scale For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sarai S. Holbrook

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Differences in the speech prosody, or "melody" of speech, of persons with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have long been noted by researchers. Yet, despite many studies, researchers have not identified a universal description of speech prosody in ASD. It may be flat or monotonous, not different from typical, or overly variable. However, atypical speech prosody can immediately set someone apart from their peers. This distinction could negatively social, academic, and vocational interactions. For those persons with ASD whose speech prosody is different from typical and interferes with daily functioning, valid, reliable, and efficient assessments of speech prosody are needed. Currently, …

Working Memory And Syntactic Processing In Bilingual And Monolingual Children, Carla I. Orellana

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between complex auditory working memory, syntactic knowledge, and complex sentence comprehension in bilingual and monolingual children using both offline (behavioral) and online (eye-tracking) measures. There were 19 children in the monolingual group and 19 children in the bilingual group with an average age of 11 years. The children listened to sentences, while looking at a screen with three images of the three nouns in the sentence. They were instructed to select the doer of the action (agent). Their eye movements were recorded as they completed this task. The four sentence …

Grammatical Accuracy Of Narratives Produced By Typically Developing Children Ages 4-7 In Three Story Contexts, Sierra Martin Southwick

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Guo & Schneider (2016) explored different approaches to identifying grammatical impairments in 128 children developing typically (TL) and those with language impairments (LI) between the ages of 6 and 8. The measures that they explored included: calculating the finite verb morphology composite (FVMC), the number of errors per C-unit (Errors/CU), and the percent of grammatical C-units (PGCUs) in narrative samples. They found that all three outcome measures provided acceptable diagnostic accuracy when applied to six-year-olds, but PCGUs were found to be the most accurate tool with eight-year-olds.

The purpose of the current study was to analyze the narrative samples of …

Changing The World Through The Word: Developing Critical Consciousness Through Multicultural Children’S Literature With Critical Literacy In An Elementary Classroom, Hyekyoung Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to explore how fifth graders develop critical consciousness regarding the self and the world through critical literacy approaches using multicultural children’s literature. I employed Lewison, Flint, and Van Sluys’ four dimensions of critical literacy. I used a qualitative case study to design, frame and conduct this study in order to collect data and examine students’ cultural patterns including values, beliefs, behaviors, and language that they enacted in the critical literacy practices. I collected data through classroom observations, semi-structured students and teacher interviews, informal conversation, researcher’s reflective journal entries and field notes, and student-made artifacts. …

A Dynamic Measure Of Morphological Awareness In Young Children, Frances Elizabeth Gibson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Although sound awareness has been proven critical for skilled literacy development, further investigation is needed to examine additional factors that could also be critical. Awareness of meaning or morphological awareness is an additional factor that could impact literacy development. Although morphological awareness is mastered early in spoken language, little is known in regard to this skill in other language and literacy contexts. This study investigated the validity of a dynamic measure of morphological awareness (DMMA) in young children. Seventy-eight first-grade children completed a language and literacy battery. Morphological awareness was assessed using both a standardized and an experimental measure comprised …

An Analysis Of Variability Of Play Behavior With Preschool Children With Autism, Mary Katherine Endicott Harris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Children with autism often display repetitive, stereotypical movements with toys in lieu of appropriate play skills. Unlike typically developing children, they do not vary their play with toys. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether three preschoolers with autism would vary their play actions when exposed to a lag schedule of reinforcement and physical prompting procedure. All three participants demonstrated varied play actions with the lag schedule and prompting procedure in place. These behaviors maintained when a probe was conducted two weeks later in the absence of the lag schedule. Although responding was high in the 2-week …

Comparison Of Neurological Activation Patterns Of Children With And Without Autism Spectrum Disorders When Verbally Responding To A Pragmatic Task, Daphne U. Hartzheim

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined the neurological activation of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) while performing a pragmatic judgment task. In this study, children between the ages of 9 and 15 years responded to questions regarding a social situation, taken from the Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language, while concurrently having their brain activity measured. We targeted four brain regions for analysis: dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), superior temporal gyrus (STG), and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL).

Ten children with ASD and 20 typically developing (TD) children participated. Matching occurred in a bracketing manner with each child in the ASD …

Clinician Recasts And Production Of Complex Syntax By Children With And Without Specific Language Impairment, Rebekah Wada

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined whether children with specific language impairment (SLI) respond differently than children who are typically developing in response to an intervention composed of the strategies of priming and recasting. Twenty-six children between the ages of 6 years, 10 months to 10 years, 11 months participated in the study (13 with SLI and 13 developing typically). The intervention was completed in one session. Findings revealed that both children with and without SLI were able to be primed to produce subject relative and object relative sentences with subject relative clauses being easier to produce than object relative clauses.

An Exploratory Study Of Attributes, Affordances, Abilities, And Distance In Children's Use Of Mathematics Virtual Manipulative Ipad Apps, Stephen I. Tucker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This exploratory qualitative study investigated the presence of and relationships among constructs that contribute to children's interactions with educational technology, leading to the development of the modification of attributes, affordances, abilities, and distance (MAAAD) for Learning framework. For this study, each of 10 fifth-grade children participated in one individual video-recorded semistructured interview session, during which they interacted with two mathematics virtual manipulative iPad apps and responded to follow-up questions. Video recordings and observation field notes were analyzed for evidence of attributes, affordance-ability relationships, distance, and relationships among these constructs.

Constant comparative data analysis using memoing and eclectic coding provided evidence …

Teacher Perception Of Social/Emotional Skills Of Preschool Children And The Relationship To Common Core Standards, A. Mi'kel Price

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Sampson is a 4-year-old preschooler. It is difficult for him to make friends, understand simple social settings, and interact with peers. He struggles to interpret incoming contextual information (such as talking to a peer about the blocks they are playing with), has difficulty comprehending non-literal/figurative expressions (such as jokes and irony), and implicit messages (such as when a child does not want to play with him). Sampson’s difficulties increase his risk of social isolation and lower self-esteem.

This vignette offers a glimpse into the challenges faced by children with low social/emotional skills. The social use of language, often referred to …

Picture Books And Literacy Development For Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Lichelle Slater

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In the past decade, research has focused on children’s literature and how it can facilitate literacy development (LaCour, McDonald, Tissington, Thomason, 2013; Lee, 2010). Although current research has identified the importance of age-appropriate literacy development for children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH), few studies have explored the character representations depicted in current picture books, and their cultural and individual impact on children who are DHH. To gain a better understanding of the availability of books in which deafness or hearing loss is addressed, or books in which children who are DHH are featured characters, a search of …

The Mainstream Kindergarten Teacher's Perspective Of Pragmatic Skills Of Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing Aligned With Common Core Standards, Marianne Ingram Huish

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Pragmatics, or social/emotional skills are learned early in life by most typically developing children (DeLuzio, Girolametto, 2011). According to the American SpeechLanguage-Hearing Association (ASHA), social/emotional skills involve three major communication strategies. These include 1) using language for different purposes such as greeting, informing, requesting, 2) changing language depending on the relationship with the listener, and 3) following conversational and storytelling rules such as taking turns in conversation, staying on topic, using non-verbal signals, and maintaining appropriate body position and eye contact (ASHA, 2013). Social/emotional skills among children entering into the mainstream kindergarten setting, according to early childhood core state standards, …

Bridging Music And The Early Childhood Curriculum In Listening And Spoken Language Programs For Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Whitney Wright

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Music is an integral aspect of human life. Its impact weaves through arts, culture, communication, recreation, and education. In addition to benefits of enjoyment and entertainment, music is a vital component of early childhood educational settings. Educators routinely utilize music as an embedded component of instruction to meet both group and individual needs of young children in early childhood classrooms. In fact, specialized musical instruction can be particularly beneficial for children with disabilities, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) (Gfeller, Driscoll, Kenworthy, & Van Voorst, 2011). Children who are DHH are at significant risk for speech, …

Does Teaching Narrative Structure To Children With Language Impairments Improve Comprehension Of Expository Text?, Brynne Cook Evans

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Research has shown that knowledge of narrative text structure enhances students’ abilities to comprehend and produce narrative discourse. The current study was designed to determine if training in narrative text structure was associated with improved comprehension for expository passages that adhered to a narrative structure. Six children between the ages of 5:3 and 9:7 with language impairments participated. Children were matched by grade and randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. Participants in the intervention group received instruction 2 times a week for 45-minute sessions for a duration of 12 weeks from a graduate student in speech-language pathology with …

A Multi-Component School-Based Intervention Aimed At Increasing Vegetable Preference And Intake Among Elementary-Aged Children, Elizabeth Strasser

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study aimed to implement and assess a school-based multi-component intervention aimed at increasing elementary school-aged children's knowledge of, preference for, and intake of vegetables. The multi-component intervention included lunchroom exposure, nutrition curriculum in the classroom, after school program vegetable curriculum, family friendly nutrition newsletter, vegetable fair and parent cooking class. Lunchtime vegetable consumption was assessed by direct observation. Changes in preference, attitude, and knowledge were assessed using a pre- and post-intervention survey.

The multi-component intervention was implemented at Canyon Elementary during the 2008-2009 school year. Classroom teachers provided 20 minutes of nutrition education to students in grades one through …

What Do Families Want? Utah Families Respond To Current Early Intervention Practices, Amy Poole-Zisette

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

This study surveyed Utah families who are currently enrolled in six different early intervention programs for their children 0-3 years of age with special needs. The purpose of this study was to examine how skills and qualities families felt were important in their early interventionists changed in order to determine what skills and qualities were most important to different demographics of families. Participating families filled out a questionnaire which rated the degree to which they found various skills and qualities important for an early intervention practitioner to possess, as well as the perceived frequency with which early interventionists used said …

After-Schools Programs And Their Influence On Parent Involvement With Children At Home, Marci Malone

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Eight-year-old Victoria, with hands on hips and chin stuck up, defiantly said, "No mom, I want to stay for After-School Club. I don't care about the dentist." Her mother patiently responded by telling Victoria, "I know you want to stay but we have to leave now or we will be late for our appointment." The little girl, seeming to know from experience that her mother would not budge, stomped her foot as she began leaving the school saying, "I hate when I have to miss After-School Club!"

Teaching Children About Social Justice Through Picture Books, Brooke C. Sorenson

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

"Boys can't play with dolls!" "A girl can't be a doctor!" "Those people look weird!" "He's to dumb to play with us!" "My mommy says I can't play with you!" Unfortunately, phrases like this can be heard on a typical elementary school playground. As teachers, we have the difficult task of teaching about social justice and working to uproot prejudice and discrimination.

Parental Attitudes Toward Using Inventive Spelling With Kindergarten Age Children, Sue Dearden

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Across the United States millions of children are reciting spelling lists, participating in Spelling Bees, and taking spelling tests. In fact, a significant portion of an elementary child's school day is devoted to learning to spell words traditionally or correctly. With such an emphasis being placed on spelling, it is logical to assume spelling traditionally is valued in our society. However, a different philosophy, Whole Language, takes an opposite approach on how writing and spelling should be incorporated in the classroom. Whole Language focuses on children learning to write and read at the same time. The focus is not on …

The Effects Of Mild Hearing Loss On Academic Performance Among Elementary School Age Children, Donna White Massine

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Research endeavoring to determine the effect of a mild sensorineural hearing-impairment on academic performance has resulted in conflicting conclusions. To date, there has been limited research on the educational implications of a mild hearing loss in the elementary grades but very few studies have utilized a normal-hearing control group to compare with the hearing-impaired and none have examined whether a relationship exists beyond sixth grade. This study measured the academic performance of mildly hearing-impaired children by comparing them with their normal-hearing counterparts. The achievement scores of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills from twelve pairs of children in the 5th …

The Relationship Between Revision Behaviors And Syntax In The Spoken Narratives Of Language-Impaired And Normally Developing School-Aged Children, Marilyn Cleckler

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The relationship between spontaneous revision behaviors and quantitatively measured syntax skills for language-impaired and normally developing school-aged children was investigated. Differences in revision behaviors and syntactic behaviors between the two groups of children and across three age levels were also examined. Narratives were obtained from 39 language-impaired and 39 normal-language children, aged 8 through 10 years. Correlations between spontaneous revision behavior scores and syntax scores were low to moderate. The revision behavior mean scores were not significantly different between the two groups of children. Mean syntax scores were higher for the NL children and did discriminate between LI and NL …

The Effects Of Mild Hearing Loss On Academic Performance Among Young School Age Children, Miles Ellis Peterson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to measure the academic performance of children with mild hearing loss (20-45 dB) by comparing them with a normal control group. Twenty-four pairs of children in the first through fourth grades were compared. The achievement scores of the second and fourth grade student pairs were compared for the current academic year and for the previous academic year. A two-way analysis of Variance was used to compare the achievement scores from the Iowa Test of Basic Skills of the two groups. The results indicated statistical significance on some subtests of the first and fourth grade …

Nutritional Understanding Of Preschool Children Taught In The Home And Child Development Laboratory, Thomas R. Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was devised to determine the readiness of preschool children to learn about basic concepts of nutrition. Sixty preschool children enrolled in the Utah State University Child Development Laboratory, comprised the sample. Twenty children were taught at home by parents, 20 were taught at the Laboratory, and 20 received no instruction. The curriculum was based on the concept of nutrient density and used the Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ) in developing instructional materials. INQ is an index for comparing the amount of nutrients to the amount of calories in a food. Food Profile Cards, visual representations of this information …

The Preschool Child's Knowledge Of Musical Pitch, Farol Ann Nelson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The objective of this study was to determine what kinds of musical instruments were most effective in developing pitch discrimination in preschool children. Five melody instruments were used in this study, including a wooden soprano recorder, a C flute, a commercially made xylophone, a melodica, and a set of cut conduit pipes played as a xylophone-type instrument. Children from the Child Development Labs at Utah State University, Logan, Utah comprised the sample.

It was found that children do identify high and low pitches more easily in some instruments than in others. They discriminated between high and low pitches of the …

The Indian Student Placement Program As A Means Of Increasing The Education Of Children Of Selected Indian Families, Geraldine T. Lindquist

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this paper was: (1) To compare the number of years of formal education of participants in the Latter-Day Saints Indian Student Placement Program with those that had not participated. (2) To see if the number of years a student participates in the Indian Student Placement Program had an effect on the amount of formal education he receives. (3) To compare the future educational and employment plans of the two groups. (4) To see how students evaluated their educational program.

The results showed no differences between the two groups in number of years of formal education, future educational …

Visual Perception In Pre-School Children, Howard Mark Bardwell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was undertaken to determine if sessions in discrimination tasks with the aid of instructional cues would influence the visual perceptual abilities of pre-school children. The research was conducted in the Child Development Laboratories at Utah State University. Twenty children were used--ten in the experimental group and ten in the control group. The ten children in the experimental group were given training in performing tasks that required ability in visual perception. The ten children in the control group received no such training.

It was found that the ten children who received the individualized instruction scored significantly higher on post-test …

The Ability Of Young Children To Recognize Words, Katherine K. Armstrong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The young child's ability to learn to read (defined in this study "to recognize") words was studied in an attempt to determine the influence of age.

Fourteen, three-year-old children and 16, four and one-half year old children, 14 girls and 16 boys, were instructed to read eight words. Groups of three were taught in four, ten minute sessions and were then tested one at a time for word recognition. A retention test was given two weeks later.

The hypotheses, that three-year-old children will learn to read more readily than children nearer five years old and that girls will read better …

Visual Perception In Pre-School Children, Candace Savage

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The efforts of practice sessions in discrimination tasks with the aid of instructional cues were studied to determine their influence on the visual perceptual abilities of pre-school children. The research was conducted at the Utah State University Child Development Laboratories with twenty children. Ten of these children were three years of age and ten were four years of age at the time of the study. Of the twenty children, five boys and five girls, were given training in performing tasks requiring ability in visual perception. The remaining ten children, five boys and five girls, were not given any visual perceptual …