Engaging teachers of young children in effective in-service professional development is a critical component of establishing high quality early childhood education. However, not all professional development offerings are effective in imparting new knowledge, enhancing teacher practice, or improving child outcomes, making it difficult for teachers…

Child abuse and neglect prevention is a complex field due, in part, to the diverse and numerous factors that can lead to maltreatment. As a result, prevention strategies, interventions, and initiatives must address multiple issues and rely on expertise from a variety of disciplines. This literature review considers recent and multidisciplinary…

Lower socioeconomic status (SES) is widely accepted to have deleterious effects on the well-being and development of children and adolescents. However, rigorous meta-analytic methods have not been applied to determine the degree to which SES supports or limits children's and adolescents behavioural, cognitive and language development. While…

Programmatic initiatives for fathers have grown rapidly in early childhood settings during the past decade. This article reviews the research literature on attitudes about father involvement in programs, patterns of father involvement, studies about program development, outcome studies, and correlates of father involvement in programs.…

The article reviews the literature on growth and development, home environmental measures, and their interrelationships with children who are visually impaired. Noted are measures which can aid parents and educators in determining the form that early intervention strategies should take. (Author/DB)

Discusses the two theories that have contributed most to the development of the mediational approach to learning, Vygotskian sociocultural theory and Feuerstein's theory of Mediated Learning Experience. Both theories emphasize the importance of sociocultural forces in shaping a child's development and learning, and have generated a number of…

The author describes how intellectual and academic strengths develop in young children and how children's daily behavior can reveal the presence of extraordinary capability. The relationships between the emergence of advanced intellectual skills and development of physical and social competencies are discussed. The implications of children's…

A review of recent sex education literature is presented in an attempt to integrate observations and recommendations related to both program development and innovation acceptance. A Developmental Research and Utilization Model is employed to systematically guide planning, implementation, evaluation, advocacy, and institutionalization. Curriculum…

Recent years have seen a global endeavor to prioritize early childhood care and education as a foundation for later learning and development, as evidenced by the Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century (Association for Childhood Education International/World Organization for Early Childhood, 1999). Such efforts…

The two purposes of this paper are to provide the uninitiated reader with a skeletal overview of Piaget's cognitive development theory and to identify general educational implications, especially for the development of early childhood industrial arts (ECIA) programs. The "Piaget Primer" for ECIA educators overviews such topics as (1) the…

The purpose of this report is to help advance the family research program of HEW's Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) by (1) surveying and analyzing selected literature and recent research on the family and (2) drawing implications for future research program development. Chapter I attempts to conceptualize the historical…

Discusses the goals of early intervention for infants born with a cleft or craniofacial anomaly, which include facilitating feeding, counseling the family regarding expectations for growth and development, and identifying the nature and extent of family resources required. Program features of effective intervention are described. (Author/CR)

Many children and adolescents fall through the cracks of counseling systems that rely on crisis intervention. This text provides an understanding of how human development occurs and it suggests guidelines and strategies for promoting positive development. Although primarily focused for school counselors, the book could also help school…

Reviews the current state of mental health services to children, youth, and families. The development of a continuum of care coordinated across the mental and non-mental health systems that naturally occur in all children's lives may vastly improve mental health services to children, youth, and families. (Author/BJV)

Reviews literature on prenatal drug abuse to (1) estimate mothers' drug use and exposure of infants; (2) document the relationship between prenatal drug use and adverse birth outcomes; and (3) examine effects of maternal drug use on birth defects. Argues for more treatment facilities and greater prevention efforts. (SLD)