Relatively little research has addressed whether conceptual frameworks of early learning generalize across different national contexts. This article reports on a cross-country measurement invariance ...analysis of the International Development and Early Learning Assessment (IDELA). The IDELA is a direct assessment tool for 3- to 6-year-old children, intended to measure Early Literacy, Early Numeracy, Motor, and Social-Emotional development. Its generalizability is evaluated using samples from 5 countries: Afghanistan (N = 2,629); Bolivia (N = 480); Ethiopia (N = 682); Uganda (N = 504); and Vietnam (N = 675). The 4-domain model of the IDELA was supported in each country, although the domains were highly correlated. Measurement invariance analysis revealed that most IDELA items do not provide a basis for comparing children's development over the 5 countries. This research supports the use of the IDELA for program evaluation and within-country monitoring purposes, but cautions against its use for international comparisons.
Drawing from a qualitative approach and through individual
pláticas
(processes of co-constructing knowledge through dialogue) as a linguistic and cultural framework, this work explored informal ...contextual factors valued by Spanish-speaking Latina mothers of children, three to five years of age and enrolled in a nonprofit California preschool. Results revealed that Latina mothers have cultural forms of knowledge which impact their children’s educational experiences and engage in direct and indirect numeracy environments. While personal math experiences and home practices differed, Latina mothers experience and navigate their children’s learning based on sociocultural aspects, influencing how they support their children’s math learning. This study drew from sociocultural learning theories that value learning embedded within meaningful learning experiences. Patterns of family learning have several implications for educational practice, especially for Latine families whose parent participation is typically not as visible as White American English-speaking parents.
This study assesses change in caregiver practices after integrating responsive care and early learning (RCEL) in nutrition and health services and community platforms in northern Ghana.
We trained ...health facility workers and community health volunteers to deliver RCEL counselling to caregivers of children under 2 years of age through existing health facilities and community groups. We assessed changes in caregivers' RCEL practices before and after the intervention with a household questionnaire and caregiver-child observations.
The study took place in Sagnarigu, Gushegu, Wa East and Mamprugu-Moagduri districts from April 2022 to March 2023. Study sites included seventy-nine child welfare clinics (CWC) at Ghana Health Service facilities and eighty village savings and loan association (VSLA) groups.
We enrolled 211 adult caregivers in the study sites who had children 0-23 months at baseline and were enrolled in a CWC or a VSLA.
We observed improvements in RCEL and infant and young child feeding practices, opportunities for early learning (e.g. access to books and playthings) in the home environment and reductions in parental stress.
This study demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating RCEL content into existing nutrition and health services. The findings can be used to develop, enhance and advocate for policies integrating RCEL into existing services and platforms in Ghana. Future research may explore the relationship between positive changes in caregiver behaviour and improvements in child development outcomes as well as strategies for enhancing paternal engagement in care practices, improving child supervision and ensuring an enabling environment.
There is evidence in school-age children that physical activity enhances cognitive performance, but experimental evidence of this relationship in early childhood is lacking. This study's aims were to ...test if active versus sedentary time differentially influences preschoolers' short-term executive functioning.
Three-to five-year-old children participated at their childcare center. Using a pre-post cross-over design, each child wore an accelerometer and was randomly assigned to a 15-minute sedentary or active condition. Following the condition, children performed in-person tasks measuring inhibitory control (Day/Night), behavioral inhibitory control (Bear/Dragon), and working memory (Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders). A subset also performed iPad based tasks (either NIH Toolbox or Early Years Toolbox). One to two weeks later, each child was re-tested after the other condition. We conducted a within-subjects comparison of outcomes and examined effect modification by gender and age.
Seventy-three children (mean age = 4.2 years, 45% girls) participated. Accelerometry confirmed 70% MVPA time for the active condition and 90% sedentary time for the sedentary condition. Inhibitory control, assessed using the Bear/Dragon task, was statistically significantly higher after the sedentary compared to the active condition (89% vs 84%, p = 0.003). When stratified by age, this difference was only seen in 3 year olds. No other significant differences by condition were noted for the cognitive assessments.
Short-term executive functioning was generally similar in preschoolers after sedentary versus physically active periods. Given the other known benefits of physical activity, active play promotion should be supported in early childhood education settings.
•Short-term Executive functioning of preschoolers was generally similar after sedentary versus active conditions.•Three year olds had higher behavioral inhibitory control after sedentary time in one task.•Ipad based executive function tasks were easy to administer and comparable to behavioral tasks.•Being active did not have short-term impact on executive functioning but research on longer term impact is needed.
Music early learning programs (MELPs) that provide music services to parents and carers of children aged birth through 8 years are proliferating. Parents make significant financial and social ...investments in MELPs, yet little is known of their motivations and aspirations nor of the enduring outcomes of participation. This article reports the findings of an interview study with 10 parents, 1 grandparent, and 8 child former participants in a MELP program in regional Australia that investigated perceptions of MELP participation. Findings indicate that parents come from a range of musical backgrounds. Reasons and aspirations for MELP enrolment encompass developing both parents’ and children’s musical skills, providing social benefits for parent and child, exposure to musical experience, value-adding to their child’s education and expanding the family social circle. Enduring outcomes include developed music knowledge and skills, future investments, physical and emotional development, and new patterns of learning that are potentially transferable. Findings suggest that children arrive at formal schooling with a rich repertoire of music, a capacity to engage in embodied musical experience, and a set of expectations concerning their participation in music. Such knowledge holds implications for the ways in which music learning might be structured within the early childhood classroom.
Recent educational policy initiatives in Ireland have focused on improving outcomes in reading and mathematics among students, particularly those experiencing educational disadvantage. However, ...science achievement in Irish primary schools has received much less research attention, especially in the context of educational disadvantage. This article examines science achievement and its relationship to school compositional effects in primary schools at the national level, including school-average indicators of the school context, as well as examining factors associated with science achievement in three distinct categories of schools (those with high, moderate, or minor levels of educational disadvantage). The data are drawn from the Fourth grade Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015 database for Ireland. Multilevel analyses were implemented in a stepwise manner. Findings suggest the relevance of school contexts with regard to science achievement. Before including school-level contextual variables, students from ‘minor disadvantaged’ schools achieved significantly higher science scores than students from schools with ‘moderate’ or ‘high’ levels of disadvantaged. However, this difference disappears after controlling for predictors at the school level. The findings highlight the importance of the home environment, including early numeracy activities and skills before children start school. Results are discussed with regard to educational policy and educational practice in Ireland.
The purpose of this study was to report on the construct, convergent, and divergent validity of the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL), a widely used test of development for young children. The ...sample consisted of 399 children with a mean age of 3.38 years (SD = 1.14) divided into a group of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and a group of children not on the autism spectrum, with and without developmental delays. The study used the MSEL and several other measures assessing constructs relevant to the age range-including developmental skills, autism symptoms, and psychopathology symptoms-across multiple methods of assessment. Multiple-group confirmatory factor analyses revealed good overall fit and equal form of the MSEL 1-factor model across the ASD and nonspectrum groups, supporting the construct validity of the MSEL. However, neither full nor partial invariance of factor loadings was established because of the lower loadings in the ASD group compared with the nonspectrum group. Exploratory structural equation modeling revealed that other measures of developmental skills loaded together with the MSEL domain scores on a Developmental Functioning factor, supporting convergent validity of the MSEL. Divergent validity was supported by the lack of loading of MSEL domain scores on Autism Symptoms or Emotion/Behavior Problems factors. Although factor structure and loadings varied across groups, convergent and divergent validity findings were similar in the ASD and nonspectrum samples. Together, these results demonstrate evidence for the construct, convergent, and divergent validity of the MSEL using powerful data-analytic techniques.
Abstract Background/Purpose. Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) survivors may have persistent neurocognitive delays. We assessed neurodevelopmental outcomes in CDH survivors from infancy to late ...teenage years. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted on 37 CDH survivors to examine neurocognitive functioning. Overall cognitive score was tested with the Early Learning Composite (ELC) of Mullen Scales of Early Learning (n = 19), and Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (n = 18). Results ELC was 85.7 ± 16.4, lower than the expected norm of 100, P = 0.004, and 6 survivors had moderate, and 3 severe delay, which is not greater than expected in the general population (P = 0.148). FSIQ was 99.6 ± 19.1, consistent with expected norm of 100, P = 0.922, and 3 survivors had moderate and 2 severe delay, which is greater than expected (P = 0.048). Although ELC was lower than FSIQ (P = 0.024), within each testing group overall cognitive ability was not associated with participant age (ELC, P = 0.732; FSIQ, P = 0.909). Longer hospital stay was the only factor found to be consistently associated with a worse cognitive score across all participants in our cohort. Conclusions A high percentage of survivors with CDH have moderate to severe cognitive impairment suggesting that these subjects warrant early testing with implementation of therapeutic and educational interventions.
This semi-structured interview study seeks to describe Chinese teachers’ understanding and concerns about the use of play in supporting young children’s English learning. Eight English as a foreign ...language (EFL) teachers of children aged between 3 to 8 years were involved, including both local teachers and international teachers. Findings reveal that because of the unique feature of EFL learning, structured play-based learning was mainly discussed and favored by teachers. Although teachers showed an inclination of separating learning from play, they believed that play serves a supporting role in maintaining students’ interest and motivation in English learning, which is especially crucial important for young children. However, teachers are concerned that play’s benefits would be considered being neutralized when children get older from parents’ perspectives which will eventually negatively impact teachers’ teaching practices. Teachers also face the barriers of balancing the gap between child’s language abilities and cognitive development in EFL teaching. The findings and discussions raise implications for researchers and practitioners to rethink how to define play. A broader definition of play-based learning will help balance both the needs for academic teaching and the benefits of incorporating play, as well as provide implications for integrating play pedagogy in public school systems.
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