Sensitivity analyses encompass a broad set of post-analytic techniques that are characterized as measuring the potential impact of any factor that has an effect on some output variables of a model. This research focuses on the utility of the simulated annealing algorithm to automatically identify path configurations and parameter values of omitted…

Public pressure on evaluation has influenced educational projects and national evaluation systems for many decades. This article extends the ongoing discussions in the field, offering a problematising exploration of evaluation as an educational policy phenomenon, thinking with the notion of rhythm in the analysis. Approaching educational…

We live in an increasingly worrying future, where researchers are looking at how we can create education for a sustainable world. In this study we investigate what such education could look like, especially for young students, reinforcing hope and an ability to act and come up with ideas of sustainable solutions with no obvious 'good' solution.…

This research overview outlines the catalyst for a proposed research project which stems from an interest in trauma and its effects, particularly in early childhood. It argues that there should be a stronger focus on Trauma Informed Practice in Aotearoa New Zealand, with two foci-firstly in ITE programmes, empowering graduating kaiako with the…

Given the proportion of young children experiencing disadvantages in achieving optimal health due to inequities related to race, place, and income, there is increasing attention to developing effective early childhood (EC) systems. As EC leaders embrace methods such as collective impact in driving systems change, there is a growing recognition…

In this study, various statistical indexes of agreement were calculated using empirical data from a group of evaluators (n = 45) of early childhood teachers. The group of evaluators rated ten fictitious teacher profiles using the North Carolina Teacher Evaluation Process (NCTEP) rubric. The exact and adjacent agreement percentages were calculated…

This article is based on studies carried out within the "Young children's learning" research education programme. This undertaking involved five graduate students, all recruited from the Swedish preschool system. The licentiate thesis makes up the final product of their education programme, and the focus of each candidate's licentiate…

The present research evaluated whether behavioral tasks ("direct assessments") commonly used to assess young children's social cognitive development in laboratory studies could have utility for measuring and predicting U.S. children's outcomes in educational contexts. To do so, children (N = 95; 49 boys, 46 girls; 41.05% White, 16.84%…

Arithmetic fluency is regarded as a foundational math skill, typically measured as a single construct with pencil-and-paper-based timed assessments. We introduce a tablet-based assessment of single-digit fluency that captures individual trial response times across several embedded experimental contrasts of interest. A large (n = 824) cohort of…

This systematic review aims to verify whether tools designed to assess Ayres Sensory Integration constructs take into account the basic principles of current early childhood intervention approaches, namely the family-centered approach, child and family routines, and natural contexts. This systematic review was based on a standard protocol…

This article describes the development and administration of the "Kindergarten-Second Grade (K-2) Writing Data-Based Decision Making (DBDM) Survey." The "K-2 Writing DBDM Survey" was developed to learn more about current DBDM practices specific to early writing. A total of 376 educational professionals (175 general education…

Background: Kindergartens and other preschool facilities provide preschool children with an important setting for social interactions. Social interaction supports the development of social skills in children and is associated with better subsequent performance in arithmetic. Objective: This study reviewed the literature to; (a) identify targets…

In this article, we intend to illustrate the notion, practice, and evaluation methods and results related to building an effective, efficient, and equitable early care and education (ECE) system. We point out the dominant approach, in practice and evaluation, of focusing on a single ECE program to improve ECE, propose a model of developing an ECE…

While much has been done to advance narrative assessment practice in the early years, less attention has been granted to the role of the image in this pursuit. As a consequence, the purposes, value and strategic use of images (photographs, videos, visual metaphors etc.) in foregrounding learning of young children are not well understood. This…

This study assessed the impact of structural characteristics on quality rating and improvement systems (QRIS) outcomes in an Australian national study. Data from the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) repository of National Quality Standard (NQS) ratings were used to identify long day care services that had…