Research Findings: The classroom physical literacy environment is a malleable and domain-specific contributor to children's emergent literacy acquisition. However, what shapes the physical literacy environment remains unclear. In this study, we drew on a sample of 895 4-year-olds across 223 classrooms from the Professional Development Study and…

The study presented in this article investigates how the curriculum is implemented and transformed by teachers in mixed-age and age-homogeneous groups, the most common age-constellations in the Swedish preschool. The data was collected through groups interviews with preschool teachers. The interviews were transcribed and analysed with the support…

Research Findings: This study compared the peer interaction patterns in mixed-age and same-age Chinese preschool classrooms using videotaped behavioral observations. A total of 179 children (ages 3-6) from three mixed-age classes and three same-age classes were involved in this study. A total of 170 valid videos were obtained, including 85 videos…

Research Findings: Evidence suggests that teachers are effective at improving the social and emotional readiness of low-income children. However, few measures are available to assess teachers' use of specific social-emotional practices within their classrooms. This paper compares an observational measure of teachers' social-emotional practices,…

There is little evidence of how differentiated instruction is being implemented, if at all, in low- and middle-income contexts, which often have unique challenges such as availability of resources and large class sizes. In this paper, we present the results of a qualitative study in eight multigrade preprimary classrooms in Kenya. We used…

Grouping children of different ages in the same preschool classroom (i.e., mixed age) is widespread, but the evidence supporting this practice is mixed. A factor that may play a role in the relation between classroom age composition and child outcomes is peer skill. This study used a sample of 6,338 preschoolers (ages 3-5) to examine the influence…

Students' socioemotional skills must be well developed and should be considered as a crucial component of education. Learning that occurs in an environment that enhances social context and develops socioemotional skills is an ideal environment to ensure readiness to succeed beyond the classroom walls. Multiage classrooms may prove to be a robust…

This research was conducted in order to determine the opinions of preschool teachers on education with a mixed age group in preschool education. In the research, the case study method, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in order to examine the opinions of the teachers in detail. The study group of the research consists of 12…

The research focuses on the issue of mixed-aged children in nursery schools. The aim of the research was to find out the opinions of the nursery school teachers on the advantages and disadvantages of a heterogeneous age groups based on their practical experiences. In order to find out the opinions of the respondents, a questionnaire was…

The study examines the influence of teacher feedback in the relationship between peer rejection and student level predictors of rejection. Feedback on academic performance and social behaviour recorded during a standardised lesson was analysed for each of 36 Grade 1-3 classes (N = 709). Student social behaviour, academic achievement, and language…

The aim of this study is to determine school readiness of primary school students in mixed-age classrooms. The sample of this study, using embedded mixed method design, consists of 909 first grade students in primary school and 30 primary school teachers determined by stratified purposeful sampling method. In this study, "Primary School…

As early childhood education programming expands across the globe, there is an increased need to understand how features of these programs influence children's development. The composition of children's age within a classroom is one such feature, although it is much less studied than other features. Theoretical and empirical evidence suggests that…

In the current study, it is aimed to improve the speaking skill of primary school students instructed in a multigrade class through cartoons. The current study employed the action research design. Participants of the study are 3rd and 4th grade primary school students instructed in a multigrade class in a village school in the city of…

Educators' self-efficacy influences their practice and thus determines the quality of teaching in early childhood education and care (ECEC). This study analyzed educators' self-efficacy to teach physical education (PE) and the differences between pre-service and in-service early childhood educators. Early childhood educators (N = 381) completed a…

Using data from the Family and Child Experiences Survey 2009 Cohort (n = 1,073), this study considered the implications of mixed-age education for young children's academic achievement when they experienced continuity and/or changes in classroom age composition across two years in Head Start (at age 3 and age 4). Results from these analyses…