Promotion Of Children Research Articles

Πρακτικές και αντιλήψεις εκπαιδευτικών για την προώθηση του εγγραμματισμού σε πολύγλωσσα εκπαιδευτικά περιβάλλοντα: Το παράδειγμα ενός νηπιαγωγείου

The purpose of the current study is to investigate and highlight teachers’ beliefs and practices regarding the promotion of children’s literacy in a multicultural and multilingual environment. The research focuses on two kindergarten classrooms at a school located in the center of Athens. More specifically, the goals of this study were a) to compare the stated practices of the participating kindergarten teachers with their observed practices in the classroom context b) to establish whether the teachers’ theoretical orientation is consistent in practice with their adopted methods and c) to determine the extent to which those methods are adapted to the respective educational setting. The theoretical framework of the current survey follows the contemporary pedagogical approach to literacy. The following research materials are used: a) the observation and recording of teachers’ instructional practices, b) observation checklists pertaining to the students’ oral and written communication skills, completed directly by the teachers and analyzed in this research to examine the extent to which the teachers are aware of the particularities of their classes and c) semi-structured interviews that enable sound comparisons between the teachers’ convictions and instruction methods. The findings of this study show that both kindergarten teachers employ traditional methods of literacy in most of their instructional practices, even though they espouse -at least partially- modern pedagogical approaches, as revealed by the interviews. In addition, the checklists demonstrate that the teachers do not have a clear understanding of their classes’ unique characteristics, which could be one of the reasons for the observed inconsistency between teachers’ beliefs and practices.

Assessment of Social-Communicative Behaviour Problems and Expression of Emotions in Three- to Six-Year Old Children in Nursery School and Kindergarten

Developmental support and promotion of children with behavioural disorders received little attention in nursery school and kindergarten in the last years. Parents expect that their children exhibiting psychosocial deficits or problems in social-communicative competence will also get support by the said educational institutions. This requires a preliminary, but reliable and economic monitoring, estimation and evaluation of selected behaviour patterns. Therefore, we developed and validated a scale to rate social-communicative behaviour problems and expression of emotions. Factor analysis suggested two factors which corresponded to the intended measurement object and the defined taxonomy of behavioural problems (scale 1: mainly internalized behaviour; scale 2: externalized behaviour). Both internal consistency and split-half reliability proved to be good. High convergent criterion validity was found for scale 1 and still substantial, although lower, for scale 2. The rating is simple and can be performed within ten and scored within five minutes. The result is a reliable indicator for a step-by-step approach to recommend an expanded specific psycho-diagnostics, so that therapeutic interventions as well as prevention programmes for vulnerable children and appropriate social training programmes can start timely.

小学生自我调节的发展研究

为测查小学生自我调节的发展情况，采用家长评定问卷，对某小学一年级、三年级、五年级共240名学生的注意集中和抑制控制进行了为期一年的追踪测试。结果发现：1) 高年级小学生的注意集中水平更高，但抑制控制的年级差异不显著；2) 低年级小学生的抑制控制显著优于注意集中，但5-6年级小学生自我调节维度间的差异不显著；3) 随着年级的升高，抑制控制的发展稳定性逐渐增强，但注意集中发展稳定性的年级差异不显著。结论：尽管小学阶段，抑制控制的发展稳定性逐渐增强，但儿童的注意集中仍在持续发展，可见儿童自我调节的培养与促进需及早进行。 To examine the development of children’s self-regulation in elementary school, pupils of grade 1, grade 3, and grade 5 in a primary school were selected and their parents finished the tests of at-tention focusing and inhibition control for them. And there was a one-year follow-up study with the same subjects and the same tests. The results were as follows: 1) High-grade students demon-strated higher attention focusing, but there was no significant difference in grades of students’ in-hibition control; 2) Younger children’s inhibition control was better than attention focusing, but this difference was not significant in grades 5-6; 3) The developmental stability of inhibition control increased gradually with the development of grades, but there was no significant difference in grades of the developmental stability of attention focusing. Although inhibition control was rela-tively stable in elementary school, children’s attention focusing presented an increasing tendency. Therefore, the cultivation and promotion of children’s self-regulation should be done as soon as possible.

Eesti laste- ja noortekirjandus 1991–2012 by Krista Kumberg et al.

Reviewed by: Eesti laste- ja noortekirjandus 1991–2012 by Krista Kumberg et al. Katja Wiebe Translated by Nikola von Merveldt Eesti laste- ja noortekirjandus 1991–2012 (Estonian literature for children and young adults 1991–2012). Krista Kumberg, Ilona Martson, Ave Mattheus, Mari Niitra, Jaanika Palm. Tallinn: Eesti Lastekirjanduse Keskus, 2014. 317pages. ISBN: 978-9985-9198-5-9 Anyone curious about Estonian children’s literature of the last two decades should definitely consult this 317-page compendium. The overview of the literary history, which can claim to be representative, begins in 1991 (the year of Estonian independence from the crumbling Soviet Union) and ends in 2012. It is the first comprehensive and systematic study of contemporary Estonian children’s literature. Published by the Estonian Children’s Literature Centre, the most important institution for the collection, research, and promotion of children’s literature in Estonia, this volume addresses a broad group of readers—including scholars, students, and librarians as well as educators and parents; publishers should equally be interested. The five contributors to this volume are well known in the field and have helped shape Estonian children’s literature as researchers, translators, and mediators. They meticulously trace the gradual evolution of a new Estonian literary landscape and the processes leading to the reconstruction of the children’s book scene. Given the immense political and cultural transformations of the early 1990s, which also hit the book sector, the volume starts by sketching the socio-cultural context in which Estonian literature for children and young adults developed. They mark two pivotal dates: 1990 for the “collapse” and 2000 for the “blossoming” of children’s literature in Estonia. Against this backdrop, Eesti laste-ja noortekirjandus introduces realistic and fantastic fiction for children as well as non-fiction published between 1991 and 2012, arranged by reading age (“Literature for early childhood,” children’s books, and young adult literature). Realistic fiction is subdivided into the categories of gender and genre (books for girls and for boys, problem books, crime and adventure novels) and into subject groups (orphanage, school, animals). Fantastic fiction provides an overview of the genres fairytales, the absurd, and science fiction and offers genre-specific characteristics, such as the irruption of the fantastic into the supposedly “normal” world and the departure of the familiar into the unfamiliar fantastic world. Separate chapters are dedicated to the genres of poetry and drama or theatre as well as to magazines for children and young adults and to the place of children’s literature within the digital, interactive media ecology. A unique feature of this book is the strong focus on “History and childhood memories.” A long section explores how children’s literature since 1991 addresses the seven critical phases or events of Estonia’s history. The twentieth century takes center stage with topics such as Estonia’s first republic, the Second World War, the occupation, or the early and late phases of the Soviet era. Furthermore, the compendium gives statistics on the Estonian children’s book production and awards. An extensive index of authors and illustrators completes the volume, which presents an indispensable resource on Estonian literature for children and young adults of the recent past. [End Page 67] Katja Wiebe International Youth Library Copyright © 2016 Bookbird, Inc

Adult Promotion of Children’s Narratives through Participatory Prompts: Educational Implications

Adult Promotion of Children’s Narratives through Participatory Prompts: Educational Implications

Promotion with and without Learning: Effects on Student Enrollment and Dropout Behavior

Many educators and policymakers have argued for lenient grade promotion policy - even automatic promotion - in developing country settings where grade retention rates are high. The argument assumes that grade retention discourages persistence or continuation in school and that the promotion of children with lower achievement does not hamper their ability or their peers' ability to perform at the next level. Alternatively, promoting students into grades for which they are not prepared may lead to early dropout behavior. This study shows that in a sample of schools from the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan, students are promoted primarily on the basis of merit. An econometric decomposition of promotion decisions into a component that is based on merit indicators (attendance and achievement in mathematics and language) and another that is uncorrelated with those indicators allows a test of whether parental decisions to keep their child in school is influenced by merit-based or non-merit-based promotions. Results suggest that the enrollment decision is significantly influenced by whether learning has taken place, and that grade promotion that is uncorrelated with merit has a negligible impact on school continuation.

Effective Design Principles in Promotion of Children's Creativity in Residential Spaces

Promoting the creativity in children is important. The focus of creativity researchers has been from psychology features to the impact of the physical environment. One of the ways to promote creativity is using the effect of natural or artificial environment to enhance the creativity in children. Literature suggests that the architecture construction is pale to influence the cultivation of creativity. This research has been performed in five steps using the survey method. According to the findings, physical environment in residential spaces affects the development of children's creativity. The present study seeks to achieve the effective design principles of residential space to promote children's creativity.

Children’s rights in Algeria: History, achievements and research evidence

This article sought to analyse the implementation and promotion of children’s rights in Algeria from a historical and contextual perspective. This analysis was backed with legislative texts and research evidence. The results indicate that during the colonial era (1830–1962), no tangible policies were sought to protect the people and their children from poverty and ignorance. But the post-colonial era witnessed a beginning of interest in the status of the children and their needs within a socialist orientation. However, the democratic shift of 1989 was accompanied with social turmoil for about 10 years. During these tragic events, the country started to adapt its national child legislation to the requirements of the international legislation since some successes have been achieved in the areas of registering new births and providing education and health-care opportunities for children. But a great deal of work is yet to be done in the areas of ensuring quality education; quality health care; efficient protection from abuse and violence in families, schools and public spaces; enhancing participation in family and school decision-making; and provisions for leisure and culture opportunities. Recommendations include the call for the Algerian government to appoint an official body to provide indicators to evaluate and monitor the protection, respect and promotion of the rights of the child nationwide and collect and combine research data. Leisure and culture opportunities and child’s participation should also be prioritised. Furthermore, the Ministry of Education should reinforce the teaching of child’s rights in official curricula, use modern information technologies and should issue compulsory measures to publicise Convention on the Rights of the Child in school spaces. The role of scientific research, mass media, non-governmental organisations and youth organisations should also be further supported.

Pre-School Children's Possibility of Enhancing Learning Motivation in the Process of Learning Violin

<p><em>Motivation has always been an essence of human actions derived from each individual’s goals, needs , interests, abilities, etc. Motivation formes from an early age, when a child starts to unerstand that something is necessary, important, and that he has to act to satisfy the need. Pre-school age group children are interested in surrounding world regarding new knowledge and skills which can be obtained and developed, therefore, by observating this age group, parent’s and/or teacher’s first steps in cognition and promotion of child’s learning motivation are taken.</em></p><p><em>Promoting children’s motivation to learn during educational process is one of the most pressing pedagogical issues, especially nowadays when child loses primary desire to learn and explore under the influence of tehnology and widely available information resources. Therefore the issue of promoting learning motivation in pre-school age was designated to reasearch, because this is the period when the foundation of the whole future</em><em> </em><em>life is laid – considering learning, defining objectives and achieving goals.</em></p><p><em>The objective of this research to explore pre-school children's possibility of enhancing learning motivation in the process of learning violin.</em></p><p> </p>

Children’s Participation in Slovene Preschools: The Teachers’ Viewpoints and Practice

This article presents part of the research performed in a project from 2008 to 2013, regarding the introduction of the Reggio Emilia approach to Slovene preschool educators. The study’s aim was to recognize the possible influence of the training—from 2009 to 2011—in this project on educators’ viewpoints and the promotion of children’s participation in practice. We believe that a potential reform of the Slovene national curriculum should establish the participation of children as one of its key principles. It seems that the two-year intensive training of educators, followed by projects in preschool practice, has been a successful step in this direction.

Parent–child relationship and adoptees’ psychological well-being in adolescence and emerging adulthood: Disentangling maternal and paternal contribution

This study focused on the parent–child relationship and children’s psychological well-being in families with internationally adopted adolescents and emerging adults. The study’s goal was twofold: (1) to analyze parent–child conflict, communicative openness in regard to adoption, and promotion of children’s volitional functioning as key aspects of parent–child relationship; and (2) to measure the relative importance of each of the above-mentioned parent–child relationship aspects in predicting adoptees’ psychological well-being. In the analyses, parent and child genders and child developmental stage (adolescence vs. emerging adulthood) were taken into account. Participants were 160 Italian international adoptees, aged between 15 and 24 years, who were asked to complete a self-report questionnaire. Results showed significant differences in the level of the quality of parent–child relationship according to parents’ gender, child’s gender and developmental stage. Additionally, mother–child relationship and fa...

The Safe Environment for Every Kid model: promotion of children's health, development, and safety, and prevention of child neglect.

Child neglect is by far the most prevalent form of child maltreatment. There is a need to try to prevent this problem, and pediatric primary care offers an excellent opportunity. This article describes one such approach, the Safe Environment for Every Kid (SEEK) model. SEEK enables practitioners to identify and help address psychosocial problems facing many families. These include parental depression, substance abuse, major stress, intimate partner violence, harsh punishment, and food insecurity--problems that have been associated with neglect. Two large randomized, controlled trials yielded promising findings. Materials are now available to help practitioners implement this evidence-based practical model, thereby enhancing the primary care provided to children and their families.

Reflections on how Selected Shona and Ndebele Proverbs Highlight a Worldview that Promotes a Respect and/or a Violation of Children’s Rights

This paper sets out to demonstrate that though the un Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) is the most widely accepted Human Rights Convention and Zimbabwe is one of the 193 states acceding to the treaty, there are still challenges in the promotion of children’s rights. Irrespective of the fact that human rights discourse is believed to be a modern concept and its universal application is contested, this paper also demonstrates that children’s rights have always been moral imperatives for both the Shona and Ndebele of Zimbabwe since time immemorial, as shown in their proverbs. Nevertheless, it is also imperative there were some beliefs that, if considered in the modern sense of the human rights paradigm, promoted the violation of some children’s rights. The following discussion shows that children’s autonomy is not culturally a Shona or Ndebele concept, and is often not realized in these cultures even if Zimbabwe adheres to the Convention of the Child’s Rights that stipulates that the child be viewed and treated as an autonomous being. In both Shona and Ndebele traditional cultures, as expressed in their proverbs, parents have an obligation to offer protection to their children. This paper also demonstrates the cultural ambivalence in two specific aspects of child care: the beating up of children as a discipline factor and the raising up of orphans.

Psychometric Properties and Factor Structure of the Greek Version of the Preschool Learning Behavior Scale

New developments in the kindergartens in Greece have necessitated the availability of assessment tools that cover a wide range of children's skills and competencies that are related to the promotion of children's learning and development. The present study focuses on children's approaches to learning and aims to provide evidence for the Greek form of the Preschool Learning Behaviors Scale as a promising assessment tool for the Greek preschoolers. A nationally stratified sample of 398 boys and girls attending kindergarten classes provided data for the factor structure of the instrument. Two reliable and valid factors emerged describing children's motivation, determination to engage and persist in learning activities, as well as their responses toward novelty and frustration with an emphasis on attention. Upon identifying children's strengths and weaknesses when participating in learning activities, teachers could organize rich and challenging learning environments in the classroom, and design activities and intervention programs to foster children's adaptive behavior and promote later school success.

Why is history important at moments of transition? The case of ‘transformation’ of Irish child welfare via the new Child and Family Agency

This paper provides a critical commentary on researching social work in transition to make the case for why history is important at crucial moments of change. The present transition of child protection and welfare practice from a Health Services Executive Structure to an Independent Child and Family Agency (Tusla) is focused on for illustration. This development signifies a major transition of services within the country influenced by a number of factors, most notably a number of high profile cases of child abuse within institutions in the past and child deaths/neglect cases in the present. In particular, a discourse of prevention, early intervention and the promotion of children's rights are most dominant in light of a quest to purge the mistakes of the past. Supported by a history of the present approach, the author argues that while the existence of a ‘discursive shift’ typified by the establishment of an independent agency is arguably conclusive, the evidence of changes in practice, culture and underpinning analytical approaches is much more vague and complex. The paper concludes with reflections on implications for a wider European and global context and a call for the need for more critically informed approaches to history to inform present transformations.

The role of early childhood education programmes in the promotion of child and adolescent mental health in low- and middle-income countries

There is growing evidence that early childhood education (ECE) interventions can reduce the loss of developmental potential of disadvantaged children in low- and middle-income countries (LAMIC). Less attention has been paid to the potential of these programmes to prevent child mental health problems and promote child well-being. Peer-reviewed journal articles describing controlled evaluations of ECE interventions in LAMIC were reviewed to identify studies with child mental health outcomes. Studies with proximal outcomes for child mental health including caregiver practices and caregiver mental health were also reviewed. Of 63 studies identified, 21 (33.33%) included child mental health outcomes; 12 of 16 studies with short-term measures showed benefits; 6 studies included a longer-term follow-up and all found benefits; 25 studies included caregiver outcomes: consistent benefits were found for caregiver practices (21 studies) and 6 of 9 studies that measured caregiver mental health reported benefits. Gains to child mental health may be most likely when ECE interventions include three main elements: (i) activities to increase child skills including cognition, language, self-regulation and social-emotional competence; (ii) training caregivers in the skills required to provide a cognitively stimulating and emotionally supportive environment; and (iii) attention to the caregivers' mental health, motivation and self-efficacy. Recommendations for the design and implementation of programmes are provided. ECE interventions are an important component of mental health prevention and promotion in LAMIC, and promoting child and caregiver well-being is a fundamental aspect of interventions to improve child development.

SOME REMARKS ON THE NEW AMENDMENTS TO THE PROCEDURE OF THE ADOPTION’S INSTITUTION

AbstractAdoption is one of the most important measures to protect children in need, namelythat category of children who are deprived of parental care, loss due to various reasons. If achild in need cannot be maintained or reinstated in his natural family, state authorities musthave an alternative measure of protection: guardianship, special protective measuresprovided by Law no. 272/2004 on the protection and promotion of children's rights(placement, emergency placement or specialized supervision) or adoption, regulated by Lawno. 273/2004.This paper aims to critically analyze the Adoption of the new rules, with specialregard to the adoption’s administrative and judicial proceedings.

Promoting children's public participation in policy-making through achievement-oriented education

This theoretical paper looked at the possibility of incorporating the social learning concept of achievement-oriented behaviour in promoting children's public participation in policy-making in the educational system. The paper highlighted how the concepts of public participation and achievement-oriented education could be used in the governance of the educational system in South Africa. The paper explored concepts such as goal-directed behaviour, achievement standards, achievement beliefs, and how the educational system could use the concepts in the promotion of children's public participation. Future studies could focus on the empirical relationship between achievement-oriented behaviour and child involvement in participatory democracy in the governance of the educational system in South Africa.

Factors and Barriers Associated with Early Adoption of Nutrition Guidelines in Alberta, Canada

To identify factors that influenced early adoption and implementation of the Alberta Nutrition Guidelines for Children and Youth (ANGCY) in schools in Alberta, Canada; and to identify healthy eating strategies that were implemented as a result of the guidelines. Barriers and facilitators were also investigated. Multiple case study design (n = 3). Semi-structured interviews and direct observations were used to collect data. Three schools in Alberta were selected for individual case studies. Eighteen key informants were interviewed from the 3 cases. To investigate how the motivation shown by school administration and stakeholders for the ANGCY influenced the early adoption and implementation of the guidelines. Content analysis was used to analyze data. Various healthy eating strategies were implemented within the 3 cases after uptake of the guidelines. Support from the school superintendent and the work of a health champion facilitated the adoption and implementation of the guidelines, whereas parents posed some barriers to the adoption and implementation of the ANGCY. This study reinforces the importance of identifying a health champion to oversee healthy eating strategies in schools, and of involving parents in the promotion of children's healthy lifestyles.

Building on the positive in children's lives: a co-participatory study on the social construction of children's sense of agency

This study is grounded on the argument that agentic experiences and their reflection in supportive social contexts are crucial protective elements mediating children's socio-emotional well-being. Drawing on the socio-cultural perspective, we investigate the ways in which agency is manifested in children's social interactions while they reflect upon their self-taken photos of positive events in their lives. The empirical data were collected with primary school children via the ‘children as co-researchers’ methodology, and were examined via a micro-level interaction analysis of video-recorded photo-reflection situations. The results illuminate interactions in which the children are constructing, maintaining and contesting the cultural practices of what it means to have agency in their social settings in and outside school. The study contributes towards a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between co-participatory practices upon positive in children's lives and the promotion of children's sense of agency that engenders their socio-emotional well-being.