TY - JOUR
T1 - Examining variation in the quality of instructional interaction across teacher-directed activities in head start classrooms
AU - Kook, Janna Fuccillo
AU - Greenfield, Daryl B.
N1 - Funding Information:
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was supported by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) of the Administration of Children and Families through a Head Start Graduate Student Research Grant (90YR0036) and by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education through the Predoctoral Training Program (R305C050052). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of OPRE or IES.
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2020.
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - High-quality instructional interaction, in which teachers engage children in conversations that support the development of higher order thinking skills, conceptual understanding, and advanced language skills, is associated with positive outcomes for preschool children. Classrooms serving low-income preschoolers tend to have lower levels of this kind of instruction and yet research suggests that it may be particularly important for these children. The aim of this study was to examine variation in the quality of instructional interactions in Head Start classrooms across different types of teacher-directed activities. Twenty-four Head Start classrooms were observed across four activity types (circle time, math activities, science activities, and storybook reading), and quality of instructional interaction was assessed using the Instructional Support domain of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System. Science activities and storybook reading were associated with higher quality instructional interaction compared with circle time, controlling for teacher characteristics and classroom contextual factors. Math activities were not associated with higher quality instructional interaction compared with circle time. Science and storybook reading may be natural entry points for supporting higher quality instructional interaction in Head Start classrooms.
AB - High-quality instructional interaction, in which teachers engage children in conversations that support the development of higher order thinking skills, conceptual understanding, and advanced language skills, is associated with positive outcomes for preschool children. Classrooms serving low-income preschoolers tend to have lower levels of this kind of instruction and yet research suggests that it may be particularly important for these children. The aim of this study was to examine variation in the quality of instructional interactions in Head Start classrooms across different types of teacher-directed activities. Twenty-four Head Start classrooms were observed across four activity types (circle time, math activities, science activities, and storybook reading), and quality of instructional interaction was assessed using the Instructional Support domain of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System. Science activities and storybook reading were associated with higher quality instructional interaction compared with circle time, controlling for teacher characteristics and classroom contextual factors. Math activities were not associated with higher quality instructional interaction compared with circle time. Science and storybook reading may be natural entry points for supporting higher quality instructional interaction in Head Start classrooms.
KW - early childhood education
KW - early learning
KW - early years practitioners
KW - science
KW - talk and interaction
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85088956357&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85088956357&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1476718X20942956
DO - 10.1177/1476718X20942956
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85088956357
JO - Journal of Early Childhood Research
JF - Journal of Early Childhood Research
SN - 1476-718X
ER -