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Eric.ed.gov – The Role of Classroom Quality in Explaining Head Start Impacts

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This study seeks to answer the following question: Are impacts on Head Start classroom quality associated with impacts of Head Start on children’s learning and development? This study employs a variety of descriptive and quasi-experimental methods to explore the role of classroom quality as a mediator or mechanism of Head Start impacts. This research uses data from the Head Start Impact Study (HSIS) and includes 4,440 3- and 4-year-old children who were randomly assigned off a waitlist to either receive an invitation to participate in Head Start services or to the control group. Children initially applied to 351 Head Start programs across 81 Head Start grantees. A total of 2,644 children were randomized to receive Head Start services and 1,796 were randomized to the control group. Following… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Mathematics: Essential Research, Essential Practice. Volumes 1 and 2. Proceedings of the 30th Annual Conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: This is a record of the proceedings of the 30th annual conference of the Mathematics Education Research Group of Australasia (MERGA). The theme of the conference is “Mathematics: Essential research, essential practice.” The theme draws attention to the importance of developing and maintaining links between research and practice and ties in with the joint day of presentations with the 21st biennial conference of the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers (AAMT). This special feature highlights the benefits of collaboration between researchers, practicing classroom teachers, and curriculum developers. Volume 1 contains the following papers: (1) The Beginnings of MERGA (Ken Clements); (2) Teaching and Learning by Example: The Annual Clements/Foyster Lecture (Helen L. Chick); (3) Introducing Students to Data Representation and Statistics (Richard Lehrer); (4) Studies in the Zone… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Natural Math: A Progress Report on Implementation of a Family Involvement Project for Early Childhood Mathematics among Children of the Oklahoma Seminole Head Start and Boley Head Start.

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The Natural Math project was undertaken to encourage parents of Native American and Black preschool and kindergarten children to engage in math activities and games at home. Natural Math also attempted to integrate Seminole culture into math materials. The project originally included only Seminole preschool and kindergarten children. Later, Boley school, located in a rural Black community, petitioned for inclusion. Natural Math activities included: (1) the provision of start-up supplies and other materials to the children and their families; (2) an initial meeting to explain the project and the proper use of the materials; (3) a portable computer lab; (4) a math fair; and (5) the distribution of materials for the summer. After their participation in the project, former Head Start children were tested for verbal, math,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – 2012 Preschool Pilot Study of PBS KIDS Transmedia Mathematics Content: A Report to the CPB-PBS “Ready to Learn Initiative”

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The 2012 Preschool Pilot Study of PBS KIDS Transmedia Mathematics Content (Preschool Pilot) is an important part of the authors’ multiyear “Ready To Learn” (RTL) summative evaluation initiative. Through this initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), it was the responsibility of the Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), and SRI International (SRI) to document and, whenever possible, to measure the impact of transmedia mathematics and literacy resources on learning for children from low-income families across a variety of settings: early childhood classrooms, community settings, and home. In this phase of the evaluation, the authors explored the potential of using technology (interactive whiteboards and laptops) and transmedia resources (digital videos and interactive games)–specifically games developed using the CPB-PBS RTL Mathematics framework,… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Let’s Begin with the Letter People[R]. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: “Let’s Begin with the Letter People”[R] is an early education curriculum that uses 26 thematic units to develop children’s language and early literacy skills. A major focus is phonological awareness, including rhyming, word play, alliteration, and segmentation. Children are encouraged to learn as individuals, in small groups, and in a whole-class environment. Teacher resource books and a set of classroom books and other program materials are available as a program kit. Two studies of “Let’s Begin with the Letter People”[R] meet What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evidence standards and no studies meet WWC evidence standards with reservations. The two studies include children in 49 classrooms in 25 preschools in Houston, Texas, and southeastern New York State. Based on these two studies, the WWC considers the extent of evidence… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – The Mechanisms behind the Results: Moderators of “Building Blocks” Curricular Effects

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: In intervention research, it is critical to determine not just if an intervention is effective, but for whom it is effective and “under what circumstances” those effects occur. Moderators can be the key to answering those questions. A moderator is a variable that affects either the direction or the strength of the relationship between the predictor (curriculum condition, in this case) and the dependent variable (here, child outcomes) (Baron & Kenny, 1986). Identifying those variables that help specify the conditions under which interventions are most effective is central to social science research (Cohen et al. 2003). Moderators of curricular effects may be particularly important to scale-up studies. There may be no more challenging educational and theoretical issue than scaling up educational programs across a large number of… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Promoting Effective Early Learning: What Every Policymaker and Educator Should Know

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: Language and literacy skills are critical to success in school. For low-income preschoolers, increasing early literacy and math skills is vital to closing the achievement gap between them and their more advantaged peers. New research shows that an intentional curriculum and professional development and supports for teachers are important components of effective preschool classrooms and programs. A special focus on these strategies is important because many low-income children in early learning settings fall behind early and remain very much behind their peers in reading and math. This brief provides a blueprint for state and local policymakers, early learning administrators, teachers, families, community leaders, and researchers to use effective preschool curricula and teaching strategies to help low-income young children close the achievement gap in early literacy and math… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Changes in the Characteristics, Services, and Performance of Preschoolers with Disabilities from 2003-04 to 2004-05. Wave 2 Overview Report from the Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study (PEELS). NCSER 2008-3011

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: PEELS involves a nationally representative sample of children, 3 to 5 years of age when they entered the study, with diverse disabilities who are receiving preschool special education services in a variety of settings. Topics covered in the report include declassification (children leaving special education), reclassification (movement from one primary disability group to another), changes over time in the special education and related services provided to preschoolers with disabilities, and changes in children’s performance on a series of direct and indirect assessments in the areas of emerging literacy, early math skills, social behavior, and motor skills from 2003-04 to 2004-05. The study found that fifteen percent of children were declassified between 2003-04 and 2004-05. Children were more likely to be declassified when they transitioned from preschool to… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Talking Science in an ESL Pre-K: Theory-Building with Realia

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: What is realia and theory-building? Tim Kinard and Jesse Gainer explain that when students explore using “realia,” they are not just being exposed to abstract concepts or text on a page, they are using “real-life” objects to build understandings of the natural world while they builds vocabulary about it. Handling and discussing real-world objects (acorns, pine cones, flowers, bones, antlers, dirt), in both the first language of the students, as well as a second language learned in school, builds vocabulary quickly as students engage in meaningful communication with scaffolds bridging first and second languages. The use of “realia” and other visuals are one way to provide ESL students opportunities for meaningful communication in English. Creating strategic partnerships that pair ELLs with native English speakers is another effective… Continue Reading

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Eric.ed.gov – Children’s Outcomes and Program Quality in the North Carolina Pre-Kindergarten Program: 2012-2013 Statewide Evaluation

eric.ed.gov har udgivet: The purpose of the 2012-2013 North Carolina Pre-Kindergarten (NC Pre-K) Evaluation study was to examine the quality of the program and the outcomes for children, along with comparisons to previous years. The primary research questions addressed by this evaluation included: (1) What were the key characteristics of the local NC Pre-K programs?; (2) What was the quality of the NC Pre-K classrooms attended by children and what factors were associated with better quality?; (3) What were the outcomes of children attending the NC Pre-K Program and what factors were associated with better outcomes?; and (4) To what extent have there been any changes over time in these results? To address these questions, information was gathered from multiple sources, including monthly service reports, teacher surveys, observations of classroom… Continue Reading