The Collaborative Early Childhood Special Education Program provides training to students from rural and remote areas in Utah that leads to a certificate in early childhood special education. The program represents a collaborative effort between Utah State University, the University of Utah, and the Utah Office of Education. Contact with special…

The Decker Family Development Center in Barberton (Ohio) is a holistic "one-stop shop" that provides services to families who are at multiple risk. During its 5 years of operation, this center has developed a model that goes beyond cooperation into co-construction to empower stakeholders. This paper describes the center and its successes…

This study examined how children's experience of regulatable quality and teacher-child interaction differs between nonprofit and for-profit day care settings. Gender and age differences in children's day care experiences were also explored. Assessments of regulatable quality and teacher-child interaction were conducted in three for-profit and two…

Noting that many instructional routines discourage complex thought and language, a study examined how teachers and children used language in the first 3 weeks in 3 preschools. Specifically it explored how teachers talk to children, what teachers ask children to do with language, and what children say in school. The language features of…

Using data extracted from an international study, the 1988 IEA Preprimary Study Phase I, this study examined the number of hours a Nigerian child and an American child each spends with different caregiving adults on a typical day. The focus of the study was on the parents' commitment of time to child care. Results show that out of the 16 hours an…

A study examined the frequency with which males and females are represented in picture books available in preschool classrooms. Three areas were examined: pronoun usage and gender of characters; the frequency of gender-neutral pronouns and characters; and written text compared to teachers' wording when reading aloud. The study involved 11 head and…

This paper reports on the findings of an evaluation of Project Giant Step, a program funded by New York City to provide comprehensive services to all 4-year-olds in the city, beginning with low-income children who are unserved by existing programs. Both the costs and effects of Project Giant Step are examined. Effects of the program on children…

To gather information on the relationship of parent behavior during reading situations to preschool children's cognitive ability, a study of 12 female and 9 male preschool children and their parents was undertaken. Children were administered a battery of tests that measured intelligence, creativity, perceived self-competence, and language skills.…

This study examined the decision-making processes of preschool teachers in creating developmentally appropriate practices. Five teachers of 4-year-old children in 3 private schools participated; these teachers' classrooms scored high on both the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale and the Classroom Practices Inventory. A model of preschool…

A family literacy program for increasing 3- to 5-year-old children's literacy skills by educating their Mexican American parents is evaluated. Project Family Literacy--Aprendiendo, Mejorando, Educando ("Learning, Improving, Educating") (Project FLAME) is a federally funded program addressing Hispanic Americans' academic failure,…

This study was conducted to develop an anthropological understanding of the interactions between the special education system and such "Third World" peoples as Hispanics. An intensive 2-year ethnographic study followed the families of nine preschool Hispanic hearing-impaired children through the intake process at a special school for the deaf in…

Data are presented from a long-term follow-up study investigating the interplay of various factors contributing to the developmental outcome of prematurely born children. Fifty-eight low-risk pre-term Hungarian children are compared to 100 full-term children, from birth to age 6, on socioeconomic status, family climate, and intellectual…

The Carpinteria school district in California has developed a model preschool program to bring Spanish-dominant preschool children up to a level of readiness for school that compares favorably with that of English-speaking children in the same community. That goal is achieved by developing skills in four major areas: Spanish language, cognition,…

A French language program used in a Montessori school with children in preschool through junior high grades is described. The program provides language instruction in the classroom by a French specialist as well as separate French classes, a compromise between immersion and the Montessori methodology. The children are able to work independently…

Theoretical correspondences between the language and play development of young children and developmental aspects of play and speech are discussed prior to a report of a study comparing categories of cognitive complexity nested within social categories of solitary play and self speech. Participants were 36 preschool boys and girls approximately…