This article describes an online course developed and currently offered at Middle Tennessee State University. Considering the statistics of family caregivers, their needs, and students' and human service professionals' education, the author demonstrates the necessity of such courses and their benefits. The author also considers the standards for…

An evaluation of the impact of training on caregiver responsiveness was conducted to examine changes in caregiver behavior. Six infant and toddler child care caregivers were observed prior to and following a 6-hour statewide training, based on the Right from Birth series (Ramey & Ramey, 1999). This training focused on caregiver responsiveness to…

One way that child care programs can help prepare future professionals in the field is to offer opportunities for the student to gain real life experience in a program. This is where internships are indispensable. An internship will help a novice develop their skills under the watchful eye of a more seasoned mentor. With internships, not only is…

This article discusses the way in which social identities structure the learning processes of students in two subjects in the Dutch secondary school curriculum--Care and Technology. It analyses interviews with 23 students and their teachers with a view to explaining the disappointing results in these subjects in terms of breaking through gender…

Recommended early intervention practices emphasize family-centered approaches provided within natural settings through interventionist interactions with caregivers. We defined this approach as participation-based and used the Home Visiting Observation Form (HVOF) and the Natural Environments Rating Scale (NERS) to describe 50 home visits and to…

This study examined the perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes of first year college students about children, childhood, and childrearing that comprise their naive theories about children's development. Participating in the study were 122 students in the undergraduate Home Science program at the University of Baroda, India. All participants were…

This issue of the NCEDL Spotlights series announces the availability of a national directory of institutions offering programs for early childhood teachers, "The National Directory of Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Institutions," published by NCEDL and the Council for Professional Recognition. The directory contains listings for…

The Families Matter series of papers from the Harvard Family Research Project advances the concept of family-centered child care, advocating an approach to early childhood education that addresses the development of the child and family together. Grounded in family support principles, which build on family strengths and work from a community's…

Describes the work and organization of the Center, which focuses on strengthening the capacity of child care and Head Start programs to improve social and emotional outcomes for young children. Specifically examines two main activities: creation of a series of What Works Briefs and development of a set of comprehensive training modules. (SD)

Discusses the positive relationship between 4-H programs and school-age care programs, advocating the use of 4-H programs as a model for care, or as a source of care, caregiver training, or curriculum. Notes the role of the Cooperative Extension System in training and supporting school-age care providers. (JPB)

The Lawrence (Kansas) Public School District has a federally funded, three-site 21st Century Community Learning Center (including two elementary schools and one junior high school.) that offers academic, cultural, social, and recreational activities during after-school hours. Staff receives training aligned with students' diverse needs and…

Cites research indicating that few child care centers and homes provide a level of quality that fully supports children's learning and development. Offers suggestions for quality improvement, including more college training and mentoring for caregivers, improved wages, and assessment of staff perceptions about staff development. (HTH)

Observed 81 caregivers from 24 urban centers interacting with 3- to 5-year olds. Interactions were categorized into negative/positive, language facilitation, concept promotion, and caregiving and cleaning-up domains. When all positive teacher interactions were combined, found that early childhood education/child development coursework accounted…

Although effective, humane treatments exist for persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) who have challenging behaviour, little research has examined the extent to which clients receive formal, documented vs. undocumented interventions. Caregivers (of 625 persons with ID living in community and institutional residences in Ontario, Canada) were…

In large residential treatment centers for adolescent youth, program administrators and clinical staff rely on the information imparted to them by direct care staff to make appropriate decisions regarding administrative and clinical support functions so that the residents in care can receive the best treatment possible. This study was designed to…