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Kindergarten
Terms modified by Kindergarten Selected Abstracts"Standardized Tests and Froebel's Original Kindergarten Model" (W. H. Jeynes, 2006)CURRICULUM INQUIRY, Issue 4 2008CARL CORTER First page of article [source] Structured Looseness: Everyday Social Order at an Israeli KindergartenETHOS, Issue 3 2006Deborah Golden In this article, I address notions of social order as these are conveyed to young children in an early education setting. On the basis of an ethnographic account of an Israeli kindergarten, I describe the routine structuring of everyday life at the kindergarten, as well as the ways in which this routine structuring was consistently undermined, primarily by the teacher herself. Specifically, the study shows how the relatively enfeebled routine structuring of daily life facilitated the emergence of alternative models of social order, namely, collective order and personal order embodied by the teacher. The interplay of structure and looseness discerned at the kindergarten is addressed in terms of the institutional distinctiveness of early education settings, as well as with reference to the Israeli sociocultural context. It is suggested that the study of the organization of daily life in early education settings may enrich our understanding of socialization into enduring perceptions of social order and of the sources of its legitimacy. [education, classroom ethnography, children, Israel, kindergarten] [source] Froebel Crosses the Alps: Introducing the Kindergarten in ItalyHISTORY OF EDUCATION QUARTERLY, Issue 2 2009James C. Albisetti First page of article [source] Shyness as a continuous dimension and emergent literacy in young children: is there a relation?INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2009Katherine Spere Abstract The present study assessed 89 children in a short-term longitudinal study from Junior Kindergarten (age 4,5 years) through Grade 1 (age 6,7 years) using a variety of tests of emergent literacy. Children were assessed for reading skill (a composite of word recognition, decoding, and letter-sound knowledge), phonological awareness, and oral language (i.e. both receptive and expressive vocabulary as well as syntax and fluency). Shyness was treated as a continuous variable rather than contrasting extreme groups of shy and non-shy children. Shyness was modestly related to vocabulary, verbal fluency, and phonological awareness. Results suggest that among young children the association of greater shyness with compromised skill development potentially extends beyond the vocabulary domain to include emergent literacy more broadly. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Integrating pharmacology topics in high school biology and chemistry classes improves performanceJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 9 2003Rochelle D. Schwartz-Bloom Although numerous programs have been developed for Grade Kindergarten through 12 science education, evaluation has been difficult owing to the inherent problems conducting controlled experiments in the typical classroom. Using a rigorous experimental design, we developed and tested a novel program containing a series of pharmacology modules (e.g., drug abuse) to help high school students learn basic principles in biology and chemistry. High school biology and chemistry teachers were recruited for the study and they attended a 1-week workshop to learn how to integrate pharmacology into their teaching. Working with university pharmacology faculty, they also developed classroom activities. The following year, teachers field-tested the pharmacology modules in their classrooms. Students in classrooms using the pharmacology topics scored significantly higher on a multiple choice test of basic biology and chemistry concepts compared with controls. Very large effect sizes (up to 1.27 standard deviations) were obtained when teachers used as many as four modules. In addition, biology students increased performance on chemistry questions and chemistry students increased performance on biology questions. Substantial gains in achievement may be made when high school students are taught science using topics that are interesting and relevant to their own lives. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 922,938, 2003 [source] Identifying Early Numeracy Indicators for Kindergarten and First-Grade StudentsLEARNING DISABILITIES RESEARCH & PRACTICE, Issue 1 2009Erica Lembke Recent studies have documented positive effects for early intervention in improving the mathematics performance of low-achieving children. Consequently, educators need technically sound mathematics screening measures to identify children at risk and then intervene to improve achievement. In this article, we describe preliminary technical adequacy evidence for four early numeracy measures (number identification, quantity discrimination, quantity array, and missing number). We assessed over 300 kindergarten and first-grade students in two states to evaluate the reliability and criterion validity of the four measures. Fall and spring administrations of the measures for one subgroup provided preliminary evidence of students' growth on the measures over time. The results supported three of the four measures as potential tools for screening in the early grades. [source] Structure and prevalence of PTSD symptomology in children who have experienced a severe tornadoPSYCHOLOGY IN THE SCHOOLS, Issue 3 2006Linda Garner Evans Children served by school psychologists are frequently impacted by natural disasters. In the United States, tornadoes are a particular threat but have been studied very little. The current investigation developed a scale for assessing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children in Kindergarten to Grade 6 impacted by a severe tornado. Six factors were found: Avoidance, Re-experiencing, Interpersonal Alienation, Interference with Daily Functioning, Physical Symptoms/Anxiety, and Foreshortened Future. Prevalence rates for PTSD symptomology ranged from 34 to 44% for factor scores and 41% for meeting all three Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, fourth edition-text revision (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) criteria; 40% indicated no symptoms. Children's fear during the tornado and damage to their school were related to many factor scores. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 43: 283,295, 2006. [source] Supporting Successful Transition to Kindergarten: General Challenges and Specific Implications for Students with Problem BehaviorPSYCHOLOGY IN THE SCHOOLS, Issue 8 2005Melissa Stormont The purpose of this review is to present factors that impede and promote successful transition to kindergarten, with a focus on the specific needs of students with problem behavior. The review addresses competencies that teachers report are critical for success in kindergarten, traditional transition practices, and challenges in implementing transition practices. Suggestions are provided to begin to attend to some of the issues affecting successful transition for children with challenging behavior and include an overarching framework to better support transition practices and specific suggestions for appropriate supports. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 42: 765,778, 2005. [source] Does Amount of Time Spent in Child Care Predict Socioemotional Adjustment During the Transition to Kindergarten?CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 4 2003Early Child Care Research Network, Human Development, National Institute of Child Health To examine relations between time in nonmaternal care through the first 4.5 years of life and children's socioemotional adjustment, data on social competence and problem behavior were examined when children participating in the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care were 4.5 years of age and when in kindergarten. The more time children spent in any of a variety of nonmaternal care arrangements across the first 4.5 years of life, the more externalizing problems and conflict with adults they manifested at 54 months of age and in kindergarten, as reported by mothers, caregivers, and teachers. These effects remained, for the most part, even when quality, type, and instability of child care were controlled, and when maternal sensitivity and other family background factors were taken into account. The magnitude of quantity of care effects were modest and smaller than those of maternal sensitivity and indicators of family socioeconomic status, though typically greater than those of other features of child care, maternal depression, and infant temperament. There was no apparent threshold for quantity effects. More time in care not only predicted problem behavior measured on a continuous scale in a dose-response pattern but also predicted at-risk (though not clinical) levels of problem behavior, as well as assertiveness, disobedience, and aggression. [source] Conflict resolution education and antisocial behavior in U.S. schools: A meta-analysisCONFLICT RESOLUTION QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2007Wendy M. Garrard This meta-analysis examines more than twenty-five years of evidence to determine whether participation in school-based conflict resolution education (CRE) contributes to reduced antisocial behaviors among youth in kindergarten through twelfth grade in U.S. schools. Evidence from thirty-six studies, representing 4,971 students, shows improvements in antisocial behaviors in CRE participants compared to control groups (Effect Size = .26), with larger effects observed during midadolescence ( ES = .53) and early adolescence ( ES = .22) compared to middle childhood ( ES = .06). Improvements in antisocial behavior outcomes attributable to CRE are significant in both practical and statistical terms and are similar for different CRE program approaches. [source] Bilingual experience and executive functioning in young childrenDEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE, Issue 2 2008Stephanie M. Carlson Advanced inhibitory control skills have been found in bilingual speakers as compared to monolingual controls (Bialystok, 1999). We examined whether this effect is generalized to an unstudied language group (Spanish-English bilingual) and multiple measures of executive function by administering a battery of tasks to 50 kindergarten children drawn from three language groups: native bilinguals, monolinguals (English), and English speakers enrolled in second-language immersion kindergarten. Despite having significantly lower verbal scores and parent education/income level, Spanish-English bilingual children's raw scores did not differ from their peers. After statistically controlling for these factors and age, native bilingual children performed significantly better on the executive function battery than both other groups. Importantly, the relative advantage was significant for tasks that appear to call for managing conflicting attentional demands (Conflict tasks); there was no advantage on impulse-control (Delay tasks). These results advance our understanding of both the generalizability and specificity of the compensatory effects of bilingual experience for children's cognitive development. [source] Social grooming in the kindergarten: the emergence of flattery behaviorDEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE, Issue 2 2007Genyue Fu The present study examined the emergence of flattery behavior in young children and factors that might affect whether and how it is displayed. Preschool children between the ages of 3 and 6 years were asked to rate drawings produced by either a present or absent adult stranger (Experiments 1 and 2), child stranger (Experiments 2 and 3), classmate, or the children's own teacher (Experiment 3). Young preschoolers gave consistent ratings to the same drawing by the person regardless of whether the person was absent or present. In contrast, many older preschoolers gave more flattering ratings to the drawing when the person was present than in the person's absence. Also, older preschoolers displayed flattery regardless of whether the recipient was an adult or a child. However, they displayed flattery to a greater extent towards familiar individuals than unfamiliar ones, demonstrating an emerging sensitivity to social contexts in which flattery is used. These findings suggest that preschoolers have already learned not to articulate bluntly their true feelings and thoughts about others. Rather, they are able to manipulate their communications according to social context. [source] The contribution of phonological awareness and visual attention in early reading and spellingDYSLEXIA, Issue 1 2007Monique Plaza Abstract We examined the development of phonological processing, naming speed, and visual attention in kindergarten and addressed the question of their contribution to reading and spelling in grade 1. Seventy five French-speaking children were administered seven tasks at the two phases of the study, and reading and spelling were assessed in grade 1. The major findings revealed that syllable awareness and visual attention were the most important predictors of early reading and spelling, and confirm the influence of naming speed and phoneme awareness on specific skills. These observations strongly suggest that written language acquisition relies on linguistic, perceptual and cognitive cross-modal skills and highlight the need for diversifying written language measures and analyzing their specific predictors. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Structured Looseness: Everyday Social Order at an Israeli KindergartenETHOS, Issue 3 2006Deborah Golden In this article, I address notions of social order as these are conveyed to young children in an early education setting. On the basis of an ethnographic account of an Israeli kindergarten, I describe the routine structuring of everyday life at the kindergarten, as well as the ways in which this routine structuring was consistently undermined, primarily by the teacher herself. Specifically, the study shows how the relatively enfeebled routine structuring of daily life facilitated the emergence of alternative models of social order, namely, collective order and personal order embodied by the teacher. The interplay of structure and looseness discerned at the kindergarten is addressed in terms of the institutional distinctiveness of early education settings, as well as with reference to the Israeli sociocultural context. It is suggested that the study of the organization of daily life in early education settings may enrich our understanding of socialization into enduring perceptions of social order and of the sources of its legitimacy. [education, classroom ethnography, children, Israel, kindergarten] [source] Early Versus Late Start in Foreign Language Education: Documenting AchievementsFOREIGN LANGUAGE ANNALS, Issue 4 2005Rocío Domínguez Abstract: This study compares 27 sixth grade students who have been learning Spanish since kindergarten with 5 who have had Spanish for only 1 year using a battery of Spanish oral and written tests. The students who started early outperformed the new students in listening, speaking, and writing Spanish. Those who started early also displayed a positive attitude toward speaking Spanish in the classroom, a high level of confidence in their Spanish oral and literacy skills, and the use of sophisticated language structures in writing. These findings provide additional evidence supporting the case for early foreign language learning. [source] Individual differences in preschool children: temperament or personality?INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 3 2010Cathy L. Grist Abstract Individual differences among adults have generally been conceptualized in terms of personality theory and traits. In contrast, individual differences among very young children (birth to kindergarten) have generally been conceptualized in terms of temperament theory and traits. The present study compares and contrasts measures of temperament and personality in a sample of preschool children. Temperament traits were assessed with a well-established measure (the Rothbart CBQ), and a new preschool rating instrument was used to assess personality traits from the five-factor framework (M5-PS). Indeed, a key purpose of this study was to further the development of the M5-PS. Data were gathered on 122 preschool children who were rated by their teachers. Significant correlations were found between the temperament trait Surgency and the personality trait Extraversion, between the temperament trait Negative Affect and the personality trait Neuroticism, and between the temperament trait Effortful Control and the personality trait Conscientiousness. The overall pattern of correlational data suggests that individual differences in preschool children can be adequately described using the five-factor theory, and that this framework may effectively subsume traditional theories of temperament. Preliminary support for the reliability and validity of the M5-PS is offered. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Further examination of the convergent and discriminant validity of the student,teacher relationship scaleINFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2009Sarah Doumen Abstract Two studies extended psychometric research on the Student,Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS) with kindergarten and preschool children (N1 = 60,71; N2 = 35) and their teachers. These studies used a multi-method approach to replicate and extend previous findings concerning the convergent validity of the STRS Closeness, Conflict, and Dependency scale and to further examine the discriminant validity of the STRS. Study 1 investigated convergence between the STRS scales and child- and peer-reports of the same constructs based on a multi-trait multi-method approach. Study 2 examined the pattern of associations between the STRS and indicators of teacher,child relationship quality rated by external observers. Support was found for the convergent validity and to a lesser extent the discriminant validity of the STRS Closeness and Conflict scale. For the STRS Dependency scale, additional research remains necessary. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Predicting school adjustment from motor abilities in kindergartenINFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2007Orit Bart Abstract The present study assessed the relations between basic motor abilities in kindergarten and scholastic, social, and emotional adaptation in the transition to formal schooling. Seventy-one five-year-old kindergarten children were administered a battery of standard assessments of basic motor functions. A year later, children's adjustment to school was assessed via a series of questionnaires completed by the children and their class teachers. The results indicate that in addition to the already documented association between visual,motor integration and academic achievement, other motor functions show significant predictive value to both scholastic adaptation and social and emotional adjustment to school. The results further suggest a better prediction of scholastic adaptation and level of disruptive behaviour in school when using an aggregate measure of children's ability in various motor domains than when using assessments of singular motor functions. It is concluded that good motor ability may serve as a buffer to the normative challenges presented to children in the transition to school. In contrast, poor motor ability emerges as a vulnerability factor in the transition to formal schooling. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Decade of Behavior Distinguished Lecture: Development of physical aggression during infancyINFANT MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL, Issue 5 2004Richard E. Tremblay Violence is a major public concern in our modern societies. To prevent this violence we need to understand how innocent children grow into violent adolescents and adults. It is generally believed that humans are most frequently physically aggressive during adolescence and early adulthood. With longitudinal studies of large samples of children from different countries that followed them from infancy to adulthood, scientists tried to discover at what age individuals learn how to physically aggress. These studies indicated that the peak age for physical aggression was not during early adulthood, adolescence, or even kindergarten, but rather between 24 and 42 months after birth. Although there are important individual differences in children's use of physical aggression, most of them will learn to use socially acceptable alternatives when angry or frustrated before they enter school. To prevent chronic physical aggression and its terrible consequences over the whole life course, modern societies should provide children with the optimal prenatal and postnatal environments. [source] Early Head Start: Investigations, insights, and promiseINFANT MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL, Issue 1-2 2002JoAnn L. Robinson The authors review the significance of the research summarized in this special issue, including activities that contribute to successful university,community partnerships. The promise of Early Head Start (EHS) will be realized if investigators focus on moderators and mediators of program effects, program quality, and linkages between Early Head Start and community resources. Key factors that must be taken into account in the analysis of EHS program outcomes include assessing children's transitions to preschool, kindergarten, and elementary school; changes in family personal and social resources; the role of fathers in early child development; and the impact of family bilingualism. ©2002 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health. [source] An analysis of child consumers in TurkeyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 5 2003Özlen Özgen Abstract This research was conducted on 402 children going to kindergarten and primary schools with the purpose of analysing the children's interests, responsibilities, economic resources, purchasing activities, and socialization agents and purchase influences as consumers. Data were collected using a questionnaire, which was prepared by considering some previous research. The questionnaire was applied to subjects through face-to-face individual interview. The data were analysed by using explanatory variables, including age, gender, socio-economic status and family type. Findings indicated that consumer socialization of children was connected to selected demographic characteristics, especially age, and they were surprisingly independent and influential consumers. The results of this study are important for those involved in children's and adults' markets, and for consumer educators. [source] Testing the developmental distinctiveness of male proactive and reactive aggression with a nested longitudinal experimental interventionAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 2 2010Edward D. Barker Abstract An experimental preventive intervention nested into a longitudinal study was used to test the developmental distinctiveness of proactive and reactive aggression. The randomized multimodal preventive intervention targeted a subsample of boys rated disruptive by their teachers. These boys were initially part of a sample of 895 boys, followed from kindergarten to 17 years of age. Semiparametric analyses of developmental trajectories for self-reported proactive and reactive aggression (between 13 and 17 years of age) indicated three trajectories for each type of aggression that varied in size and shape (Low, Moderate, and High Peaking). Intent-to-treat comparisons between the boys in the prevention group and the control group confirmed that the preventive intervention between 7 and 9 years of age, which included parenting skills and social skills training, could impact the development of reactive more than proactive aggression. The intervention effect identified in reactive aggression was related to a reduction in self-reported coercive parenting. The importance of these results for the distinction between subtypes of aggressive behaviors and the value of longitudinal-experimental studies from early childhood onward is discussed. Aggr. Behav. 36:127,140, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] How neighborhoods matter for rural and urban children's language and cognitive development at kindergarten and Grade 4,JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2010Jennifer E.V. Lloyd The authors took a population-based approach to testing how commonly studied neighborhood socioeconomic conditions are associated with the language and cognitive outcomes of residentially stable rural and urban children tracked from kindergarten (ages 5,6) to Grade 4 (ages 9,10). Child-level kindergarten Early Development Instrument (EDI) data were probabilistically linked to scores on Grade 4's Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA), 4 years later, and to socioeconomic data describing the children's residential neighborhoods. Multilevel analyses were performed for a study population of 5,022 children residing in 105 neighborhoods across British Columbia, Canada: 635 children in 20 rural neighborhoods and 4,825 children in 85 urban neighborhoods. Concentrated immigration consistently predicted better child outcomes. Moreover, the determinants of children's language and cognitive outcomes analyzed cross-sectionally differed from the determinants of outcomes analyzed longitudinally. Furthermore, there were notable differences in the extent of the relationship between neighborhood socioeconomic conditions and rural and urban children's outcomes over time. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Aggressive and prosocial children's emotion attributions and moral reasoningAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 1 2009Tina Malti Abstract Aggressive and prosocial children's emotion attributions and moral reasoning were investigated. Participants were 235 kindergarten children (M=6.2 years) and 136 elementary-school children (M=7.6 years) who were selected as aggressive or prosocial based on (kindergarten) teacher ratings. The children were asked to evaluate hypothetical rule violations, attribute emotions they would feel in the role of the victimizer, and justify their responses. Compared with younger prosocial children, younger aggressive children attributed fewer negative emotions and were more likely to provide sanction-oriented justifications when evaluating rule violations negatively. Furthermore, age-, gender- and context-effects in moral development occurred. The context-effects included both effects of transgression type (i.e., prosocial morality vs. fairness) on emotion attributions and moral reasoning and the effects of the context of moral evaluation and emotion attribution on moral reasoning. Findings are discussed in terms of the role of emotion attributions and moral reasoning as antecedents of children's aggressive and prosocial behavior. Aggr. Behav. 35:90,102, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Long-term effects of computer training of phonological awareness in kindergartenJOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 1 2005Eliane Segers Abstract The present study examined the long-term effects of a computer intervention for the development of phonological awareness in Dutch kindergartners. Native Dutch and immigrant children worked with the software 15 min/week during one school year. Following a pretest , interim test , post-test , retention test design, the effects on rhyming, phonemic segmentation, auditory blending, and grapheme knowledge were assessed. The intervention showed significant immediate effects on rhyming and grapheme knowledge. The time spent on the computer games also correlated with the learning gains for the experimental group. In the first grade, retention effects were demonstrated after 4 months of formal reading education. [source] Awareness of toddlers' initial cognitive experiences with virtual realityJOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 4 2001D. Passig Abstract In this study Virtual Reality technology was used to simulate a toddler's first few days' experiences in daycare and improve the caregiver's understanding of their state of mind. The virtual worlds were developed in accordance with toddlers' way of thinking and from their cognitive and visual viewpoint. The aim of the research was to investigate whether the caregiver's awareness to the cognitive experiences that toddlers undergo in their first days in kindergarten improves through a VR simulation of toddlers' worlds. Six cognitive elements of toddlers were simulated: object constancy; trial and error; perspective of height; perspective of things; egocentricity and imagination. The participants in this study were 40 (female) caregivers who work with infants aged 6 months to 4 years in private daycare. The findings indicate that experiencing a virtual world that reflects the real world of children improves the caregiver's awareness to the cognitive experiences that toddlers undergo in their first days in a kindergarten or daycare. [source] Identifying Children with Dental Care Needs: Evaluation of a Targeted School-based Dental Screening ProgramJOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH DENTISTRY, Issue 2 2004David Locker BDS Abstract Objectives: It has been suggested that changes in the distribution of dental caries mean that targeting high-risk groups can maximize the cost effectiveness of dental health programs. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of a targeted school-based dental screening program in terms of the proportion of children with dental care needs it identified. Methods: The target population was all children in junior and senior kindergarten and grades 2, 4, 6, and 8 who attended schools in four Ontario communities. The study was conducted in a random sample of 38 schools stratified according to caries risk. Universal screening was implemented in these schools. The parents of all children identified as having dental care needs were sent a short questionnaire to document the sociodemographic and family characteristics of these children. Children with needs were divided into two groups: those who would and who would not have been identified had the targeted program been implemented. The characteristics of the two groups were compared. Results: Overall, 21.0 percent of the target population were identified as needing dental care, with 7.4 percent needing urgent care. The targeted program would have identified 43.5 percent of those with dental care needs and 58.0 percent of those with urgent needs. There were substantial differences across the four communities in the proportions identified by the targeted program. Identification rates were lowest when the difference in prevalence of need between the high- and low-risk groups was small and where the low-risk group was large in relation to the high-risk group. The targeted program was more effective at identifying children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Of those with needs who lived in households receiving government income support, 59.0 percent of those with needs and 80.1 percent of those with urgent needs would be identified. Conclusions: The targeted program was most effective at identifying children with dental care needs from disadvantaged backgrounds. However, any improvements in cost effectiveness achieved by targeting must be balanced against inequities in access to public health care resources. [source] Motivation for learning science in kindergarten: Is there a gender gap and does integrated inquiry and literacy instruction make a differenceJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 2 2009Helen Patrick Abstract We investigated whether kindergarten girls' and boys' (N,=,162) motivation for science (perceived competence and liking) differed. Children were ethnically and linguistically diverse, primarily from low-income families, and attended one of three schools. One school offered a typical kindergarten science experience. Kindergarteners in the other two schools participated in the Scientific Literacy Project (SLP),a program based on a conceptually coherent sequence of integrated science inquiry and literacy activities. SLP lasted either 5 or 10 weeks. Regardless of sex, both groups of SLP children had greater motivation for science than children who had only the regular science experience. Moreover, children receiving 10 weeks of SLP reported greater science competence than those who received 5 weeks. Boys in regular classrooms reported liking science more than did girls, however there was no sex difference for SLP children. These results are supported by interview data accessing children's ideas about science. The findings suggest that early meaningful participation in science is likely to promote girls' and boys' motivation for science. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 46: 166,191, 2009 [source] Eye-rollers, risk-takers, and turn sharks: Target students in a professional science education programJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 8 2006Sonya N. Martin In classrooms from kindergarten to graduate school, researchers have identified target students as students who monopolize material and human resources. Classroom structures that privilege the voice and actions of target students can cause divisive social dynamics that may generate cliques. This study focuses on the emergence of target students, the formation of cliques, and professors' efforts to mediate teacher learning in a Master of Science in Chemistry Education (MSCE) program by structuring the classroom environment to enhance nontarget students' agency. Specifically, we sought to answer the following question: What strategies could help college science professors enact more equitable teaching structures in their classrooms so that target students and cliques become less of an issue in classroom interactions? The implications for professional education programs in science and mathematics include the need for professors to consider the role and contribution of target students to the learning environment, the need to structure an equitable learning environment, and the need to foster critical reflection upon classroom interactions between students and instructors. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 43: 819,851, 2006 [source] Views of nature of science questionnaire: Toward valid and meaningful assessment of learners' conceptions of nature of scienceJOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 6 2002Norm G. Lederman Helping students develop informed views of nature of science (NOS) has been and continues to be a central goal for kindergarten through Grade 12 (K,12) science education. Since the early 1960s, major efforts have been undertaken to enhance K,12 students and science teachers' NOS views. However, the crucial component of assessing learners' NOS views remains an issue in research on NOS. This article aims to (a) trace the development of a new open-ended instrument, the Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire (VNOS), which in conjunction with individual interviews aims to provide meaningful assessments of learners' NOS views; (b) outline the NOS framework that underlies the development of the VNOS; (c) present evidence regarding the validity of the VNOS; (d) elucidate the use of the VNOS and associated interviews, and the range of NOS aspects that it aims to assess; and (e) discuss the usefulness of rich descriptive NOS profiles that the VNOS provides in research related to teaching and learning about NOS. The VNOS comes in response to some calls within the science education community to go back to developing standardized forced-choice paper and pencil NOS assessment instruments designed for mass administrations to large samples. We believe that these calls ignore much of what was learned from research on teaching and learning about NOS over the past 30 years. The present state of this line of research necessitates a focus on individual classroom interventions aimed at enhancing learners' NOS views, rather than on mass assessments aimed at describing or evaluating students' beliefs. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 39: 497,521, 2002 [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||