0

Eric.ed.gov – The Power of Expectations: Two Stories

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This article describes the power of the word “CAN”. The author, Laurene E. Simms reports that as a poor, black, deaf youngster her teacher’s facial expressions conveyed their feelings that she was of low IQ and mentally retarded, however two persons had a positive impact on her, her father and 7th grade math teacher. They challenged her with high expectations and firm belief in her potential and she reports this had a “transforming power” over her. Belief in her own ability made her study hard and earn good grades. She graduated valedictorian. Whatever challenge life presented her father was there with encouraging words, “to always work to the best of her ability whether with good or bad situations.” It was up to her to decide to overcome… Continue Reading

0

Eric.ed.gov – Kids Today: The Rise in Children’s Academic Skills at Kindergarten Entry

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Private and public investments in early childhood education have expanded significantly in recent years. Despite this heightened investment, we have little empirical evidence on whether children today enter school with different skills than they did in the late nineties. Using two large, nationally representative datasets, this paper documents how students entering kindergarten in 2010 compare to those who entered in 1998 in terms of their teacher-reported math, literacy and behavioral skills. Our results indicate that students in the more recent cohort entered kindergarten with stronger math and literacy skills. Results for behavioral outcomes were mixed. Increases in academic skills over this period were particularly pronounced among black children. Implications for policy are discussed. [This paper was published in “Educational Researcher” v46 n1 p7-20 2017 (EJ1132546).] Link til… Continue Reading

0

Eric.ed.gov – The Impact of Family Involvement on the Education of Children Ages 3 to 8: A Focus on Literacy and Math Achievement Outcomes and Social-Emotional Skills

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This report summarizes research conducted primarily over the past 10 years on how families’ involvement in children’s learning and development through activities at home and at school affects the literacy, mathematics, and social-emotional skills of children ages 3 to 8. A total of 95 studies of family involvement are reviewed. These include both descriptive, nonintervention studies of the actions families take at home and at school, and intervention studies of practices that guide families to conduct activities that strengthen young children’s literacy and math learning. The family involvement research studies are divided into four categories: (1) Learning activities at home, including those that parents engage in to promote their child’s literacy and/or math skills outside school; (2) Family involvement at school, including the actions and interactions that… Continue Reading