Early Childhood Education Commons^™

Time To Play: The Relationship Between Time Spent Playing And Educational Outcomes In Peru, Jasmine Davidson

Economics Honors Projects

Every day, children around the world are playing. There has been plenty of research on the importance of different kinds of play, but very little on the importance of the quantity of play. Understanding the relationship between educational outcomes and the amount of time spent playing would allow parents to better structure their children’s time and would settle the debate between psychologists and economists on whether play has inherent value for a child’s future outcomes. I focus on Peru because conducting this research in a developing country context broadens the current research mostly focused on high-income countries. Using child-level, longitudinal …

Preventing Teen Relationship Abuse And Sexual Assault Through Bystander Training: Intervention Outcomes For School Personnel, Katie M. Edwards, Stephanie N. Sessarego, Kimberly J. Mitchell, Hong Chang, Emily A. Waterman, Victoria L. Banyard

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of exposure to Bringing in the Bystander—High School Curriculum (BITB-HSC) on school personnel, which included a seven session classroom curriculum for ninth through twelfth graders (student curriculum), a bystander training workshop for school personnel (school personnel workshop), and reading materials (handout). We examined how exposure to these various BITB-HSC intervention components was associated with school personnel’s knowledge and bystander efficacy, intentions, and barriers specific to student relationship abuse (RA) and sexual assault (SA). Participants were 488 school personnel from 12 high schools in upper New England who completed the …

A Longitudinal Examination Of Peer Victimization On Depressive Symptoms Among Asian American School‑Aged Youth, Prerna G. Arora, Lorey A. Wheeler, Sycarah Fisher, Marymilt Restituyo, Jessica Barnes‑Najor

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The current study sought to examine the prospective relationship of peer victimization on changes in Asian American youth’s depressive symptoms during early adolescence, a crucial period for the development of depression and engagement in peer victimization among youth. Further, as guided by cultural–ecological frameworks, the current study also sought to examine the role of school-based peer support and gender as moderators on the relationship between peer victimization and depressive symptoms among this understudied population. Participants included Asian American youth (N = 232; M age = 12.96, SD = 1.40; 51% girls) who completed questionnaires in the school context. Data …

Culture Moderates The Relationship Between Family Obligation Values And The Outcomes Of Korean And European American College Students, Haein Oh, Toni Falbo, Kejin Lee

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Family obligation values have been described as an important element of collectivistic cultures that are related to the development of positive emotional well-being and motivation in high school and college students. The present study tested the hypothesis that culture moderates the relationship between family obligation values and the outcomes of Korean (n = 249) and European American (n = 251) college students. The results provided support for this hypothesis. Specifically, for Koreans, family obligation values were significantly and positively correlated with descriptions of parents as being more supportive of the self-determination of their children, which was found to …

The Distal Role Of Adolescents’ Awareness Of And Perceived Discrimination On Young Adults’ Socioeconomic Attainment Among Mexican-Origin Immigrant Families, Lorey Wheeler, Prerna G. Arora, Melissa Y. Delgado

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Cultural-ecological frameworks posit that there are harmful effects of social stratification on developmental outcomes. In particular, awareness of aspects of social stratification in society and interpersonal experiences of discrimination, more generally and within specific contexts, may differentially influence outcomes across life stages; yet, few studies have examined the distal effects during adolescence on early adult developmental outcomes. The current study fills this gap by examining distal mechanisms linking adolescents’ (Time 1: ages 13–15) awareness of and perceived general and school discrimination to young adults’ (Time 3: ages 23–25) socioeconomic attainment (i.e., educational attainment, occupational prestige, earned income) through adolescents’ (Time …

Statewide Policies To Improve Early Intervention Services: Promising Practices And Preliminary Results, Miriam Kuhn, Courtney Boise, Sue Bainter, Cindy Hankey

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The State of Nebraska Co-Lead agencies, who are responsible for developing statewide early intervention policies, rolled out professional development for two evidence-based strategies across several pilot sites. Implications of these strategies for child/family assessment, Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) development, and Early Intervention service delivery were examined utilizing family (n=30) and professional interviews (n=50), and analyses of IFSPs (n=30). The results of this mixed method study indicate widespread strategy implementation with fidelity fosters early working relationships with families and enables teams to generate, using family members’ own words, a robust group of high-quality child …

The Nebraska Covid-19 Early Care And Education Provider Survey Ii: Experiences, Economic Impact, And Ongoing Needs, Alexandra Daro, Kathleen Gallagher

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

The Nebraska COVID-19 Early Care and Education Provider Survey II, released in early August 2020, is a second survey following The Nebraska COVID-19 Early Care and Education Provider Survey that was conducted in March 2020. Both surveys were conducted by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska. Results from the March 2020 survey suggested that the coronavirus was negatively impacting early care and education professionals in Nebraska. Imminent threats of illness and directives for enhanced cleaning and precautionary methods (e.g., social distancing) were causing child care providers to experience high levels of stress. They were struggling to …

Ready To Teach All Children? Unpacking Early Childhood Educators’ Feelings Of Preparedness For Working With Children With Disabilities, Mindy R. Chadwell, Amy M. Roberts, Alexandra Daro

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Early childhood settings have the potential to support learners with diverse learning needs, including children with disabilities. However, if educators do not feel prepared to teach children with disabilities, this potential may not be fully realized. The current study examined early childhood educators’ (n = 1,296) feelings of preparedness for working with children with disabilities, including predictors of preparedness, and associations with assessment practices. Research Findings: Nearly 70% of educators felt well prepared to teach typically developing children whereas only 20% felt well prepared to teach children with disabilities. Educational attainment and education-related major predicted feelings of preparedness. Furthermore, feelings …

Elevating Nebraska’S Early Childhood Workforce: Report And Recommendations Of The Nebraska Early Childhood Workforce Commission, Susan Sarver, Catherine Huddleston-Casas, Cama Charlet, Renee Wessels

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Executive Summary The science of early childhood development makes clear that the early years, from birth through age 8, are a time of unparalleled human growth and development— and that healthy development during these pivotal early years requires reliable, positive, and consistent interactions between the developing child and familiar, caring adults. Because of today’s economy, in which most parents of young children work outside the home, families often rely on early childhood professionals to provide positive interactions and experiences that young children need to thrive. Yet, despite what we know about the critical role of early childhood professionals in young …

A Longitudinal Examination Of Bedtime Routines And Sleep In Toddlers, Amanda Prokasky

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Ample research has examined the impacts of sufficient and high-quality sleep on children’s health, development, and well-being (Chen, Beydoun, & Wang, 2008; Gregory & Sadeh, 2012; Touchette et al., 2009), yet less research has focused on the factors that contribute to sufficient and high-quality sleep in early childhood. The bedtime routine is one environmental influence on children’s sleep that has received little attention in the literature base and therefore is the focus of the current study.

In a sample of 399 30-month old toddlers studied over the course of one year, three aims were investigated: the within-age consistency of the …

Longitudinal And Geographic Trends In Family Engagement During The Pre-Kindergarten To Kindergarten Transition, Susan M. Sheridan, Natalie A. Koziol, Amanda Witte, Iheoma Iruka, Lisa Knoche

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The transition to kindergarten is foundational for children’s future school performance and families’ relationships with the educational system. Despite its well-documented benefits, few studies have explored family engagement across the pre- Kindergarten (pre-K) to kindergarten transition nor considered the role of geographic context during this period. This study examined trajectories of family engagement across the pre-K to kindergarten transition, and identified whether engagement differs for families in rural versus urban settings. Participants were 248 parents of children who participated in publicly funded pre-K programs and transitioned 1 year later into kindergarten. Home-based involvement increased from pre-K through kindergarten. School-based involvement …

Ethnic-Racial Socialization In Early Childhood: The Implications Of Color-Consciousness And Colorblindness For Prejudice Development, Flora Farago, Kimberly Leah Davidson, Christy M. Byrd

Faculty Publications

This chapter outlines how early childhood teachers can bring children into conversations surrounding race and racism by drawing on literature on how parents of color discuss these topics. Although educators’ practices surrounding race and racism remain largely unexplored, decades of developmental psychological research indicate that parents of color engage in ethnic-racial socialization practices that are beneficial for children (Hughes et al., 2006). The established dimensions of parental ethnic-racial socialization include (1) cultural socialization, or teaching children about their ethnic heritage and instilling ethnic pride; (2) preparation for bias, or teaching children about racism and preparing them to face discrimination; (3) …

A Physical Therapy Intervention To Advance Cognitive And Motor Skills: A Single Subject Study Of A Young Child With Cerebral Palsy, Stacey C. Dusing, Reggie T. Harbourne, Michele A. Lobo, Sally Westcott-Mccoy, James A. Bovaird, Audrey E. Kane, Gullnar Syed, Emily C. Marcinowski, Natalie A. Koziol, Shaaron E. Brown

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Qualitative Assessment Of The Pax Good Behavior Game Implementation, Xin Wei Ong, Patricia Roberts, Samantha Kinney, Jennifer Ruh Linder

PSYC Student Papers

This paper reports on a program evaluation of the PAX Good Behavior Game (GBG), an evidence-based practice intervention designed to create a nurturing environment conducive to learning in elementary schools. To evaluate and improve the PAX Good Behavior Game, a focus group was conducted at the end of the 2016-17 academic year. A total of ten teachers and school administrators from schools who implemented the PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX professionals) participated in a focus group session and provided feedback about the program. Focus group questions assessed four program objectives: (1) environmental change, (2) personal well-being and stress levels, (3) …

Buffett Early Childhood Institute: Five Year Report 2013-18, Buffett Early Childhood Institute

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

The Buffett Early Childhood Institute began operations in June 2013. We were charged with creating a new model for how public higher education can engage in early education by helping to transform the lives of young children and their families. This report presents a by-thenumbers profile of who we are and what we’ve accomplished in our first five years. Following the numbers you’ll find brief descriptions of programs, initiatives, financials, and the Institute itself.

The Nebraska Panhandle: An Assessment Of Birth-Grade 3 Care And Education, Panhandle Birth – Grade 3 Leadership Team

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

This report summarizes the collaborative work of the Panhandle Partnership, Inc., Educational Service Unit (ESU) 13, and the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska in documenting and assessing birth through Grade 3 programming in the Nebraska Panhandle. The report summarizes findings from 15 school-community conversations and includes data snapshots from local communities that provide information about the status of young children and the services and supports that exist to serve them and their families. Work in the Panhandle was undertaken on the basis of an agreement between the three organizations to work together to better understand and …

Nebraska Child Care Market Rate Survey Report 2019, Greg W. Welch, Elizabeth Svoboda, Amanda Garrett, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Molly Goldberg, Alexandra Daro

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 was reauthorized with renewed emphasis placed on the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program, which seeks to provide equal access to quality child care for families. The CCDF program is necessary to ensure children from low-income families have the opportunity to experience stable, high-quality early experiences while their parents experience a pathway to economic stability. A primary goal of the CCDF program is to ensure that low-income families receive CCDF funds to help them access quality child care in the same manner as families that pay the full …

Risk Factors For Depression Among Early Childhood Teachers, Amy Roberts, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Alexandra Daro, Iheoma U. Iruka, Susan Sarver

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

This study examined possible risk factors associated with teachers’ depression in a variety of early childhood settings. Teachers with lower pay, no health insurance, multiple jobs, greater job stress, and more adult-centered beliefs reported more symptoms of depression. To reduce these symptoms, efforts should be made to support teachers’ mental health at multiple levels, including individual, environmental, and policy.

Researchers used data collected in 2015-16 from a large survey of early childhood educators in Nebraska. Four early childhood settings were sampled: licensed family child care homes (home-based), licensed child care centers (center-based), state-funded PreK programs, and elementary schools serving children …

Is It Who Am I Or Who Do You Think I Am? Identity Development Of Adolescents With Substance Use Disorders, Danielle N. Treiber

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study was to unearth how adolescents with substance use disorders achieve the task of identity formation and the construction of self-concept in the midst of the drug culture and society that exists. It sought to uncover the social constructs designed to ignore and/or remove human complexities and allow an intersectional approach to be brought to a study on this population. Historically, there has been a failure to investigate the underlying social attitudes and behaviors that impact the very delicate and vulnerable process of finding self. Psychosocial and relational adjustment are strongly influenced by the extent to …

Early Childhood Teacher Turnover In Nebraska, Amy M. Roberts, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Susan Sarver, Alexandra Daro

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Teacher turnover is a serious challenge across early childhood settings. Turnover can be expensive for early childhood programs, burdensome to staff, and harmful to children throughout the nation. Nebraska is no exception. This research brief describes teacher turnover in the state’s early care and education settings, including licensed child care, state-funded PreK, and Kindergarten through Grade 3.

Research Questions The following research questions were asked across early childhood programs (licensed child care, state-funded PreK, and K-3): 1. What was the average rate of annual teacher turnover? 2. According to administrators, what was the most common reason teachers left their employment? …

Building Strong Family–School Partnerships: Transitioning From Basic Findings To Possible Practices, Susan M. Sheridan, Lorey Wheeler

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

In the present article, we describe the translational process undergirding a particular aspect of family science: families working in partnership with schools to achieve mutual goals for children’s optimal functioning. In doing so, we illustrate a translational cycle that began with identifying problems of practice and led to the development of a family–school intervention (i.e., conjoint behavioral consultation) in a way that embraced families as partners in goal-setting and problem-solving. We discuss the evolution of the intervention from development to efficacy trials and practice guidelines. Key decision points borne out of practical relevance, empirical investigations, tests of mechanisms and conditions, …

What Happens During Language And Literacy Coaching? Coaches’ Reports Of Their Interactions With Educators, Rachel E. Schachter, Melissa M. Weber-Mayrer, Shayne B. Piasta, Ann A. O’Connell

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Research Findings: This study investigated coaches’ interactions with educators in the context of a large-scale, state-implemented literacy professional development (PD). We examined log data and open-comment reports to understand what coaches found salient about their interactions with educators as well as how those reports aligned with the initial design of the PD. Coaches reported spending a large proportion of their interactions with educators completing administrative tasks. Our findings also indicate that coaches disproportionally targeted instructional content from the PD while also adding unrelated instructional content to their coaching. Although coaches reported focusing on relationship building, they reported using less efficacious …

The Effect Of Classroom Context On Head Start Teacher Feedback, Jasmine Renee Ernst

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS, LaParo, Pianta, & Stuhlman, 2004) assesses quality of teacher social and instructional interactions with children, and classroom management and productivity. Prior research indicated low quality of feedback scores in programs serving low-income children (Early et al., 2005). The purpose of this study was to compare the quantity and quality of managing interaction utterances (i.e. a type of feedback) provided by Head Start teachers (N = 8) in two classroom contexts. Video-recorded book-reading and 20-minute center-time sessions in the fall and spring of a school year were used to assess managing interaction utterances in structured …

Mexican-Origin Parents’ Stress And Satisfaction: The Role Of Emotional Support, Tierney K. Popp, Melissa Y. Delgado, Lorey Wheeler

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Guided by a process model of parenting and the integrative model, this study examined sources of emotional support (i.e., partner, maternal, paternal) as related to stress and satisfaction resulting from the parenting role in a sample of Mexican-origin young adult parents who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) during Wave IV. Participants were male and female parents (26–35 years of age; 59% female; N = 737) who had children and a partner. Results from structural equation modeling revealed support from mothers as salient; high levels of maternal support were associated with high levels …

Implications Of Parents’ Work Travel On Youth Adjustment, Lorey Wheeler, Anisa M. Zvonkovic, Andrea R. Swenson, Caitlin Faas, Shelby Borowski, Ruth Nutting

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Guided by ecological, work–family spillover and crossover frameworks, this study examined mechanisms linking parental work travel (i.e. nights per year) to youth adjustment (i.e. externalizing and internalizing behaviors) through youth’s perceptions of parenting (i.e. knowledge, solicitation) with traveler and youth gender as moderators in a sample of 78 children in 44 two-parent families residing in the United States. The findings from multilevel analyses suggested that mothers’ travel nights predicted lower levels of maternal knowledge, with variation by traveler and youth gender. Mothers’ and fathers’ work travel and perceived parenting were predictors of youth’s externalizing behaviors, whereas only fathers’ work travel …

Video-Based Approach To Engaging Parents Into A Preventive Parenting Intervention For Divorcing Families: Results Of A Randomized Controlled Trial, Emily B. Winslow, Sanford Braver, Robert Cialdini, Irwin Sandler, Jennifer Betkowski, Jenn-Yun Tein, Lisa Hita, Mona Bapat, Lorey Wheeler, Monique Lopez

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

The public health impact of evidence-based, preventive parenting interventions has been severely constrained by low rates of participation when interventions are delivered under natural conditions. It is critical that prevention scientists develop effective and feasible parent engagement methods. This study tested video-based methods for engaging parents into an evidence-based program for divorcing parents. Three alternative versions of a video were created to test the incremental effectiveness of different theory-based engagement strategies based on social influence and health behavior models. A randomized controlled trial was conducted to compare the three experimental videos versus two control conditions, an information-only brochure and an …

A Single-Subject Evaluation Of Facilitated Communication In The Completion Of School-Assigned Homework, Nancy A. Meissner

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Few projects have combined quantitative and qualitative approaches in the analysis of facilitated communication as did this study of a 17-year-old nonverbal autistic male responding to homework questions using facilitated communication. Findings were consistent with prior studies: Tim was minimally able to produce correct responses independent of facilitator influence under controlled conditions; whereas, at least some typed messages in the spontaneous narratives appear to be his authentic communications independent of facilitator control.

An overview of the history of facilitated communication, its related research, and the heated debates around its validity are presented. Disparate findings between controlled and non-controlled circumstances are …

Confabulation In Individuals With Disorders Of The Corpus Callosum: Educational Implications, Cheryl Lynn Wright

Dissertations

Individuals with disorders of the corpus callosum (DCC) may have subtle cognitive differences. Historically, confabulation has been associated with DCC. Therapies to mitigate confabulation is a newly emerging field. This study explores the possible educational implications that those with DCC may experience with confabulation.

The community of people with DCC and the community of people who interact with individuals with DCC were surveyed to ascertain the prevalence of confabulation within the population of those with DCC. A subset of questions probed whether age and/or gender impact the rates of reported confabulation. The research paradigm included a section that covered the …

Workforce Well-Being: Personal And Workplace Contributions To Early Educators' Depression Across Settings, Amy M. Roberts, Kathleen C. Gallagher, Alexandra Daro, Iheoma Iruka, Susan Sarver

Buffet Early Childhood Institute Reports and Publications

Building on research demonstrating the importance of teachers' well-being, this study examined personal and contextual factors related to early childhood educators' (n =1640) depressive symptoms across licensed child care homes, centers, and schools. Aspects of teachers' beliefs, economic status, and work-related stress were explored, and components of each emerged as significant in an OLS regression. After controlling for demographics and setting, teachers with more adult-centered beliefs, lower wages, multiple jobs, no health insurance, more workplace demands, and fewer work-related resources, had more depressive symptoms. Adult-centered beliefs were more closely associated with depression for teachers working in home-based settings compared …

Depressive Symptoms In Mexican-Origin Adolescents: Interrelations Between School And Family Contexts, Prerna G. Arora, Lorey Wheeler

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

This study, as guided by cultural-ecological frameworks, examined multiple contextual stressors, including subjective economic hardship, acculturation, discrimination, and negative perceptions of school safety, as simultaneously linked to adolescents’ depressive symptoms, as well as the role of gender, familism values, family cohesion, and school connectedness on these associations. Data come from the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (Portes and Rumbaut 2012) that included second-generation 8th- and 9th-grade children of foreign-born parents from the Mexican-origin subsample (n = 755; 52% male; time 1 M age = 14.20 years). Adolescents were either born in (60%) or immigrated prior to age 5 to …