{"title":"Social capital investment in social justice: How parents shape socioeconomic diversity within early childhood programs","authors":"Rachel Demma","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221083412","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221083412","url":null,"abstract":"To better understand how parent choice and program participation fosters socioeconomic diversity within community early learning programs, this in-depth case study examined two high-quality, socioeconomically diverse community early education program sites operating in Baltimore City. Key findings of this study include, (1) Despite their shared belief in its value and benefit, parents across the income continuum did not explicitly seek out enrollment in socioeconomically diverse early care and learning programs; (2) Within the two selected program sites, program recruitment and engagement approaches were neither explicit nor refined enough to appeal universally to parents across varying economic backgrounds; and (3) Parents may struggle against their own class-based social identities and internalized value systems in enacting the choice of program that drive the development of socioeconomically diverse settings.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"293 - 306"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45740239","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Parent agency in promoting child learning: Family perceptions of focusing on family strengths during early childhood assessment and planning practices","authors":"Bonnie Keilty, C. Trivette, Jennifer Gillespie","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221083420","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221083420","url":null,"abstract":"Identifying family strengths is central to early childhood practices. Moving beyond identification to exploring and explicitly applying those strengths can evolve strengths-based and family capacity-building practices. Assessment and planning processes that focus on the strategies families use to help their child learn can give agency to families in this parenting role. This exploratory study examined the perspectives of seven families who participated in an early intervention assessment-to-planning approach that sought to uncover, understand, and utilize the strategies families used to help their child learn and their appraisals of those strategies. Family responses during qualitative interviews were analyzed into three themes: (1) naturalistic observations yield naturalistic understandings, (2) practices that honor family strengths and family fit, and (3) self-discovery and self-affirmation. Implications for evolving family capacity-building approaches are discussed.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"397 - 412"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49287888","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Parental perceived stress and its consequences on early social-emotional child development during COVID-19 pandemic","authors":"J. Dillmann, Özlem Sensoy, G. Schwarzer","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221083423","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221083423","url":null,"abstract":"In 2020, the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, and the resulting highly infectious disease COVID-19 led to restrictions based on the principal of social distancing to curb the spread of the virus among the population and to prevent an overload of health system capacities. These restrictions changed the daily lives of young children and parents dramatically. In a German questionnaire study, we aimed to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the magnitude of stress in parent-child systems and on social-emotional child development. Our sample consisted of 90 (39 male, 51 female) children (M = 17.2 months, SD = 9.7 months) aged 7–12 months (n = 38), 13–24 months (n = 31) and 25–38 months (n = 21). Parental stress was measured using the German version of the Parenting Stress Index, namely Eltern-Belastungs-Inventar. Additionally, social-emotional child development was measured using the Social-Emotional Questionnaire of the Bayley-III. Our findings show that parents experienced more stress during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany compared to norms. Parental perceived stress was higher in parents of older children than younger ones. Interestingly, social-emotional child behavior scores significantly decreased with children’s increasing age. Moreover, higher parental stress was associated with lower values of social-emotional child behavior. Our findings provide important novel data on parental perceived stress and social-emotional child development during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, further research investigating the long-term consequences of the pandemic is needed.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"524 - 538"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43905332","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Strong conceptual knowledge developed through home reading experiences prior to school","authors":"B. Raban","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221083413","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221083413","url":null,"abstract":"Studies of early reading in the home indicate the relevance of these experiences for young children’s later reading development when they start school. The study reported here followed twenty children through 2 years prior to starting school and assessed their reading progress at the start of school. Audio/tape-recordings of their home experiences were collected in some detail, at random during whole days and transcripts of the audio/tape-recordings were reviewed for instances of reading experiences. In addition, parent interviews reported activities with their children, including those not captured on the audio/tape-recordings and others that took place across different days not recorded. Strong relationships were found between measures of family interest in reading and their children’s reading development when they started school. It was also found that Socioeconomic Status (SES) of family background did not necessarily determine these children’s reading development. Those children who had the opportunity to form successful understandings about reading from their home experiences, arrived at school with strong conceptual frameworks that supported their continuing reading development.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"14 9","pages":"357 - 369"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-03-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41256861","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Parents’ attitudes and unequal opportunities in early childhood development: Evidence from Eastern India","authors":"Saikat Ghosh, H. Steinberg","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221077170","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221077170","url":null,"abstract":"Early childhood development is considered a crucial component for sustainable development, and parents’ roles in this regard is unambiguously acknowledged. However, the evidence is sparsely available from developing countries like India on how parents can influence access to the early childhood development program. This study, based on an empirical footing, investigates whether parental attitude may lead to unequal opportunities in children’s access to preschools in India. The study portrays that the negative or indifferent attitude of parents predicts significantly lower access to preschools. Also, parents’ education can be held responsible for the variation in parents’ attitudes toward early education and care. A two-prong policy measure is thus suggested by educating parents on one hand and involving them in the implementation process of childhood development programs on the other.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"413 - 430"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48843868","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Childminding professionalism and professionalisation in Ireland: A different story","authors":"Miriam O'Regan, Ann Marie Halpenny, N. Hayes","doi":"10.1177/1476718X221077171","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X221077171","url":null,"abstract":"This research focussed on documenting the praxis and paedagogy of paid, professional childminding (family childcare/day care) in Ireland. It explored professionalism and professionalisation among childminders in the context of the evolving understanding of professionalism in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) nationally and internationally. The research was conducted within the framework of Ecocultural Theory (ECT) on the eve of mandatory regulation of childminding against the backdrop of Irish ECEC policy. A mixed method approach was adopted, using the Ecocultural Family Interview for Childminders (EFICh), including participants’ photographs, case study surveys, researcher field notes and holistic ratings. We present findings related to childminder professionalism and professionalisation, highlighting its significant differences from centre-based provision. It is vital to understand childminding as an ecocultural adaptation to create a stable family niche, relationally and economically. It helps to explain childminders’ approach to just-in-time training as adult learners, their desire for public recognition of childminding’s differences and unique value, and their need for supportive supervision in their family home ahead of annual inspection. Imposed professionalism is rejected in favour of a participatory approach sensitive to agentic childminders’ professional development. To support and develop professional 21st century childminding, Ireland requires a tailored regulatory system specific to childminding.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"307 - 321"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46029052","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How parents spent time at home with their preschool-aged children during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020","authors":"Aysenur Duran, E. Ömeroğlu","doi":"10.1177/1476718X211059906","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X211059906","url":null,"abstract":"The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been seen in more than 120 countries, including Turkey, which took public health measures to reduce the spread of the novel virus. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the Turkish education system, where schools closed indefinitely on March 16, 2020, due to the pandemic. School closures immediately changed the lives of Turkish children and their parents, as children started to spend more time with their families at home during this pandemic. This article addresses how parents spent time with their children at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how their feelings changed during this time. Purposive sampling was used to select 25 parents whose children in preschool education during the spring semester of 2020. This study used qualitative methods, collecting data through a semi-structured interview form. Interviews were conducted over the telephone because of the social distancing guidelines during the pandemic. Results from the interviews show that parents engaged in several different types of activities with their children at home during the pandemic. Parents’ reflections detailed how they noticed behavioral, psychological, socialization, and school-based impacts on their children during the pandemic period. Besides, findings indicate that parents generally experienced negative feelings and effects due to the pandemic. Results are discussed in terms of the effects of the pandemic on the lives of parents and their young children.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"13 - 26"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49407509","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Making everyday meanings visible: Investigating the use of multimodal map texts to articulate young children’s perspectives","authors":"S. J. Gowers","doi":"10.1177/1476718X211062750","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X211062750","url":null,"abstract":"The use of multimodal approaches to articulate young children’s perspectives are evident in a wide range of recent research. This paper explores the creation of multimodal map-texts as a strategy to engage with young children and articulate their perspectives. It describes the development of a flexible map-based approach that was used in home, early years and community settings with children aged 4 to 5 years in England. Illustrative examples are included in which children represented and shared their views on the image-based texts they encountered within their everyday lives through the creation of a multimodal map-text. In this approach to research, children are viewed as competent message creators whose engagements encompass a range of modes and media. Consideration was given to young children’s multimodal meaning-making practices throughout the act of mapping, as well as the resulting text. Taking this approach revealed knowledge, perspectives and contextual information which may otherwise have been overlooked. The paper concludes by identifying the contribution that children’s map-texts can make when building a picture of young children’s experiences, and appraises the advantages and limitations of map-making as a strategy for engaging with young children in research.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"259 - 273"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47182203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Kindergarten children’s perceptions of the social unrest in Hong Kong","authors":"Caroline Cohrssen, N. Rao, P. Kapai, P. G. Londe","doi":"10.1177/1476718X211062728","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X211062728","url":null,"abstract":"Hong Kong experienced a period of significant social unrest, marked by protests, from June 2019 to February 2020. Media coverage was pervasive. In July 2020, children aged from 5 to 6 years attending kindergartens in areas both directly and less directly impacted by the protests were asked to draw and talk about what had taken place during the social unrest. Thematic analysis of children’s drawings demonstrates the extent of their awareness and understanding and suggests that children perceived both protestors and police as angry and demonstrating aggression. Many children were critical of police conduct and saw protestors as needing protection from the police. Children around the world have been exposed to protest movements in recent times. The implications for parents, teachers and schools are discussed.","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"20 1","pages":"242 - 258"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46236428","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Bernardita Munoz-Chereau, Lynn Ang, Julie Dockrell, Laura Outhwaite, Claire Heffernan
{"title":"Measuring early child development across low and middle-income countries: A systematic review.","authors":"Bernardita Munoz-Chereau, Lynn Ang, Julie Dockrell, Laura Outhwaite, Claire Heffernan","doi":"10.1177/1476718X211020031","DOIUrl":"10.1177/1476718X211020031","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Sustainable Development Goals mandate that by 2030, all children should have access to quality early child development opportunities, healthcare and pre-primary education. Yet validated measures of ECD in low and middle income countries (LMICs) are rare. To address this gap, a Systematic Review (SR) of measures available to profile the development of children between the ages of 0-5 years in LMICs was undertaken. Drawing on education, psychology and health databases, we identified reliable, valid or measures adapted for use in LMICs for either assessments of children's development or their learning environments. The inclusion criteria were (1) peer reviewed papers published between January 2009 and May 2019; (2) assessment tools used to measure cognitive/language development or the early years or home environment in at least one LMIC; (3) report of the psychometric properties (validity and reliability) of the tool, and/or description of the cultural adaptability/translation process undertaken before applying it to a LMIC. Two hundred and forty-nine available records published in the last decade in peer-review journals and nine relevant systematic literature reviews were identified. Fifty-seven records were qualitatively synthesised based on their psychometric properties and cultural adaptation. Forty-three tools were reviewed utilising 12 criteria. Five elements of analysis present in Tables 2 and 3 (study, population tested, validity, reliability and cultural adaptability/translation) focused on the tools' psychometric properties and previous application in LMICs. A further seven dimensions outlined in Tables 4 and 5 identified specific characteristics of the tools from target age, administration method, domains, battery, accessibility, language and country/institution. We suggest these 12 key considerations for the selection of measurement tools that are applicable to effectively assess ECD in LMICs.</p>","PeriodicalId":46652,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Childhood Research","volume":"19 1","pages":"443-470"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12160078/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44702406","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}