Many studies demonstrate that detecting statistical regularities in linguistic input plays a key role in language acquisition. Yet, it is unclear to what extent statistical learning is involved in more naturalistic settings, when young children have to acquire meaningful grammatical elements. In the present study, we address these points, by…

Social scientists seeking to inform policy or public action must carefully consider how to identify effects and express inferences because actions based on invalid inferences will not yield the intended results. Recognizing the complexities and uncertainties of social science, we seek to inform inevitable debates about causal inferences by…

The growing fiscal cost of K-12 teacher pension plans and pension-induced labor market distortions have led to calls for teacher pension reforms. Dynamic structural econometric models are a useful way to analyze the fiscal and staffing consequences of current and alternative retirement plans. This article lays out the benefits of the structural…

Background: Data on children's ability to answer assessment questions correctly paints an incomplete portrait of what they know and can do mathematically; yet, it remains a common basis for program evaluation. Indeed, pre-post-assessment correctness is necessary but insufficient evidence for making inferences about learning and program…

Transition to kindergarten can be a pivotal experience for children because of its potential long-term impact on school performance. As the importance of relationships among contextual factors surrounding a child has been recognized, many schools have made efforts to establish strong ties with families in order to make kindergarten transition…

Research Findings: We evaluated the score stability of the Mathematical Quality of Instruction (MQI), an observational measure of mathematics instruction. Three raters each scored, independently, 100 video-recorded lessons taught by 20 kindergarten teachers in the spring. Using generalizability theory analyses, we decomposed the MQI's score…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between two structural factors of quality: organisation form (stable groups versus flexible groups) and staff-child ratio, in relation to interaction quality in toddler groups in Norwegian early childhood education and care (ECEC). Data were collected from 206 kindergarten groups in the…

In basic regression discontinuity (RD) designs, causal inference is limited to the local area near a single cutoff. To strengthen the generality of the RD treatment estimate, a design with multiple cutoffs along the assignment variable continuum can be applied. The availability of multiple cutoffs allows estimation of a pooled average treatment…

In basic regression discontinuity (RD) designs, causal inference is limited to the local area near a single cutoff. To strengthen the generality of the RD treatment estimate, a design with multiple cutoffs along the assignment variable continuum can be applied. The availability of multiple cutoffs allows estimation of a pooled average treatment…

The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity to explore how different modes of learning may impact student achievement. Little research has been conducted regarding how the pandemic may have affected students' reading skills. The problem addressed in this study was that the effects of varying and inconsistent learning environments for Title I K-2…

Studies on school leadership in Hong Kong have mainly focused on primary and secondary schools, with only a handful of studies looking at leadership in early childhood education. This paper aims to report the findings of a study on strategic leadership in Hong Kong's kindergartens. It discusses the challenges that Hong Kong kindergarten leaders…

This study examined young children's deception in a conflict situation. A puppet show was prepared involving a protagonist who went into hiding, an enemy who wanted to catch the protagonist, and a friend who was looking for the protagonist. In the no-conflict condition, the enemy asked the children about the location of the protagonist. In the…

The primary objective of this study is to determine the predictive effect of technology use durations of 5-6 year-old children on their social skill levels and social status. In this study, children's technology usage is restricted to the use of television, portable computers, tablets and smartphones. The sample group of the study consisted of 162…

This study describes the relationship between phonemic awareness and the reading achievement of kindergarten students. The purpose of this quantitative, time series, a two-year study was conducted to examine why some kindergarteners are not phonemically aware when leaving kindergarten and entering first grade. This study hypothesizes that…

Background: Gross motor movement is a vital part of the growing process and ultimately plays a role in a person's ability to lead a physically active life. Researchers have analyzed the different ways in which individuals develop skills. At the heart of that discussion has been gender. Most recently, researchers have focused on the differences…