This article contains a review of eight refereed publications that addressed the topic of developmentally appropriate practice (DAP), as that is a topic presently being discussed widely both nationally and internationally. According to the most recent 2009 NAEYC publication on DAP, recommended practices are those "that result from the process of…

The number of state-funded prekindergarten programs continues to grow in the United States. The quality of these early childhood programs, however, often depends on the type of professional development provided. In this investigative study, an experimental pre-post causal-comparative research design was employed to evaluate the impact of an 8-week…

The researchers conducting this study investigated the relationship between early childhood teachers' educational levels and their beliefs about appropriate and inappropriate practices by examining the differences between lead teachers and teacher assistants in publicly funded prekindergarten classrooms. For this purpose, the researchers analyzed…

This study examined the psychometric properties of a revised measurement, the "Teacher Beliefs and Practices Survey" (TBPS), devised for teachers of three- to five-year-old children. This measure was designed to reflect the concepts of developmentally appropriate practices (DAP) as presented in the revised 1997 National Association for…

In "This We Believe," a National Middle School Association position paper revised in 1995, 12 beliefs were identified that would "clarify a vision that will guide the decisions of those responsible for determining young adolescent educational programs." Middle schools across the country have used these beliefs as guidelines.…

Young dancers, girls most particularly, are subject to subtle and not-so-subtle messages of exploitation based on sex. What are the implications for dance educators who are trying hard to advocate for dance and who are trying to encourage appropriate pedagogical practices? Due to the hegemonic pervasiveness of "objectifying" dancers for…

The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) program review process increasingly emphasizes the importance of performance-based assessment of early childhood teacher preparation programs. As part of the effort to address performance-based assessment requirements, the teacher educator program described in this study examined…