Jocelyn Dixon, Jessica Resor, Lanie Holmes, Archana V Hegde, L Suzanne Goodell, Lucía Mendez, Valerie McMillan, Virginia C Stage
{"title":"Building Professional Learning Communities in Head Start: A Mixed Methods Study on What it Takes from Teachers' Perspectives.","authors":"Jocelyn Dixon, Jessica Resor, Lanie Holmes, Archana V Hegde, L Suzanne Goodell, Lucía Mendez, Valerie McMillan, Virginia C Stage","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2025.2522894","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2025.2522894","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Professional learning communities (PLC) are a form of collaborative professional development consisting of a group of teachers that meet regularly to share ideas and problem solve teaching strategies. PLCs are widely utilized internationally in primary and secondary educational settings, but less is known about their perception and use in the early childhood environment. In this parallel mixed-methods study, we explored North Carolina Head Start preschool teachers' perceptions and experiences with PLCs, through the collection of quantitative survey data (n=168) and qualitative telephone interviews (n=11). We coded and analyzed qualitative data following a phenomenological approach and identified six qualitative themes: (1) Receiving and Providing Support; (2) Mutual Trust and Respect; (3) Structure and Organization; (4) Supervisor Involvement; (5) Learning to Teach Science and Nutrition; and (6) Barriers to PLCs. Integrating both qualitative and quantitative findings, teachers generally perceived PLCs positively but faced barriers. Teachers may lack knowledge in content areas they were interested in forming a PLC around (e.g., science, nutrition). Additional research is warranted to investigate facilitators to overcome teachers' barriers to PLCs and further examine the use and feasibility of PLCs in the Head Start environment.</p>","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"33 4","pages":"668-687"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12650122/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145640868","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}
{"title":"Re-engaging dialogue about the DAP debate: Implications for teacher education","authors":"Cristina Gillanders, Beth Blue Swadener","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2382510","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2382510","url":null,"abstract":"Published in International Journal of Early Years Education (Vol. 32, No. 3, 2024)","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"37 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176865","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}
Isabelle Swearingen, Samantha Moros, Elizabeth Schaughency, Elaine Reese
{"title":"Quality of educator-toddler conversations varies across activity settings in centre-based ECEC","authors":"Isabelle Swearingen, Samantha Moros, Elizabeth Schaughency, Elaine Reese","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2389826","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2389826","url":null,"abstract":"Research Findings: The quantity and especially the quality of language that children are exposed to in early childhood (e.g. decontextualised and conversation-eliciting language) is linked to impor...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"44 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176866","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":"The new (ab)normal: the participation of children attending preschool and elementary school during confinement","authors":"Catarina Grande, Joana Vilar, Vera Coelho","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2389825","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2389825","url":null,"abstract":"Humans’ participation positively impacts society and individuals, suggesting that children's participation in activities carried out in supportive environments promotes positive health and the deve...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"42 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176868","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–child math talk and early math interest: comparing the effects of written versus hands-on materials","authors":"Hsin-Hui Huang, Peiyi Lee","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2389820","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2389820","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigated the impact of written and hands-on teaching materials on parent–child math talk and children’s interest in mathematics. Thirty parents and their preschool children participa...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"50 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176869","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":"Preservice teachers’ perspectives of play in early childhood education","authors":"Seongmi Lim","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2389815","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2389815","url":null,"abstract":"Identifying preservice teachers’ perspectives about play and their role as a teacher in play is critical because their perspectives are related to how they organise and involve play in early childh...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"78 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176867","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":"DAP discourses: Hubris, hegemony, or heuristic for teacher education?","authors":"Rebecca S. New","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2381765","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2381765","url":null,"abstract":"This essay entails a critical review of the origins, discourses and contemporary manifestations of NAEYC’s enduring commitment to ‘developmentally appropriate practice’ (DAP); and proposes a reconc...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"88 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142176870","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":"The slow pace of reform in a time of criticism, crisis, creativity and opportunity: a call for transformative visions and actions","authors":"Marianne N. Bloch, Meredith Whye","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2383244","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2383244","url":null,"abstract":"The recently revised NAEYC position papers and the fourth edition of NAEYC’s Developmentally Appropriate Guidelines (NAEYC. 2022. Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs: S...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141937994","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":"Early childhood teacher education for social justice and equity: a systematic literature review","authors":"Sharon Ryan, Susan Grieshaber","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2378054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2378054","url":null,"abstract":"This paper reports on a systematic review of the early childhood teacher education (ECTE) literature that explores what teacher educators have been doing to shift the curriculum away from developme...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"110 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141785730","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":"A comparative analysis of early years’ programme culture in the US and Poland – advancing humanism by placing love, freedom, care and consideration for others first","authors":"Krystyna Nowak-Fabrykowski","doi":"10.1080/09669760.2024.2376056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2024.2376056","url":null,"abstract":"Building on the idea that the culture of an organisation has an extremely deep influence on the personalities, minds and identities of people who participate in it (Hofstede 2015) – we reflected on...","PeriodicalId":46866,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Early Years Education","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141611740","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}