The early childhood education field is changing rapidly, and the theories and methods used in preschools and kindergartens--such as child-centered, hands-on learning--are now influencing the way primary school is taught. This book is designed to be a brief overview of the field of early childhood education. Chapter 1 describes the historical and…

This training manual was designed to provide information and support to Head Start teachers, staff, and parents in the area of emergent literacy. The first section, "What is Emergent Literacy and Why Should We Do It?" addresses the concept of emergent literacy, identifying six key elements: (1) learning to read and write begins very…

This Master's degree project developed a program for decreasing disruptive student behavior in order to increase the amount of on-task time in the classroom. Types and occurrences of disruptive behavior were documented over a 6-week period in two classrooms at each of two junior high schools (grades 6-8) in Illinois. Analysis of the data revealed…

This paper provides case studies in role change proceeding from description of a school-wide initiative to a teacher education methods class to individual students and their classroom teachers. All the case studies examine the changing roles of teachers, students, and professors within a climate of shared decision making, student/teacher…

This report describes the background, program implementation, student development evaluation, and recommendations of SuperStart Plus, in New York City. SuperStart Plus, a comprehensive integrated prekindergarten program that serves general education and special education children in the same classroom, is designed to provide a developmentally…

The guide integrates social studies content with English language instruction for limited-English-speaking secondary school students. It is intended for new arrivals to Arlington County (Virginia), and provides survival vocabulary and information about the community, while building on students' prior knowledge. An introductory section provides…

The guide is designed to help educators design math curricula to meet the needs of students of English as a Second Language (ESL) with limited or interrupted schooling in mathematics. It provides techniques for integrating mathematics and language teaching, especially through cooperative learning experiences, makes suggestions for inservice…

Intended for middle school instructors or teacher education students in middle school methods courses, this guide provides a practical, concise, criterion-referenced, performance-based mastery learning model for effective teaching. The guide is organized around four components: why the rationale to support the components that follow; what the…

Noting that literacy development is a social phenomenon, this book provides an account of the cultural conflicts and struggles experienced by two children from culturally different backgrounds and their teacher in a kindergarten program. The book is divided into eight chapters. The first chapter, "Introduction: History of the Struggle," introduces…

Research has shown a decline in motivation and performance for many children as they move from elementary school into middle school; however, research has also shown that the nature of motivational change on entry to middle school depends on characteristics of the learning environment in which students find themselves. This Digest outlines some…

Kindergarten marks a new beginning for parent and child, and presents challenges for parents as their child makes the transition from home to school. This handbook provides a description of what parents can expect of their child's kindergarten program in Alberta, Canada. It describes how young children learn, how learning is assessed, and how…

This practicum project sought to facilitate change in preschool teacher classroom behavior from teacher-directed practice to child-initiated practice. The goals of the practicum focused on changes that would foster child-initiated activities in order to promote healthy and holistic development, positive self-esteem, and resiliency skills in young…

The three issues of the journal on second language teacher education include these articles: "We Need More and Different Flags" (Agnes Martin); "Dealing with Timetabling on Second Language Teacher Training Courses" (Craig Thaine); "Interview with Jill Florent"; "Haiku Idea" (Tim Hahn); "The Hidden…

This digest explores the question, What types of activities and experiences should a good learning environment offer to the young child to help him grow normally and happily? Part 1 focuses on basic considerations in the development of early childhood care and education (ECCE) curricula. Four chapters concern: (1) the learning needs of the young…

The Delta Project involves an interdisciplinary team of 4 middle school teachers and their approximately 100 students working together throughout grades 6, 7, and 8 for the 1990-91, 1991-92, and 1992-93 school years in Elberton (Georgia). The relationships between the classroom structures used by the Delta Team teachers and the motivation of their…