Learning from assessment: Improving the use of child assessment data in early childhood programs

The importance of the earliest years of life has been recognized throughout history. Many philosophers and religious leaders have commented on the power of early experiences to affect the rest of a child's life. Early education leaders sometimes provided manuals and other materials to assist parents in educating their children at home, but schools for children under six are a very recent phenomenon. During the twentieth century, education for young children under six has become increasingly common, but this level of education is still not an integral part of most school systems. Perhaps the twenty-first century will see the development of seamless early childhood programs, preschool through third grade.

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Promoting Community in Early Childhood Programs: A Comparison of Two Programs

Early Childhood Education Journal ◽

10.1007/s10643-010-0391-3 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 38 (2) ◽

pp. 87-94 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

James P. Comer ◽

Michael Ben-Avie

Keyword(s):

Early Childhood ◽

Early Childhood Programs

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Approaches to Parent-Teacher Relationships in U.S. Early Childhood Programs during the Twentieth Century

Journal of Education ◽

10.1177/002205749517700306 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 177 (3) ◽

pp. 71-94 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Douglas R. Powell ◽

Karen E. Diamond

Keyword(s):

Twentieth Century ◽

Early Childhood ◽

Civil Rights Movement ◽

Parent Education ◽

Children With Disabilities ◽

Industrial Revolution ◽

Child Rearing ◽

Early Childhood Programs ◽

Teacher Relationships ◽

The 1960S

The nature of parent-teacher relationships in early childhood programs, including interventions for children with disabilities, is examined within a sociopolitical context across five eras of the twentieth century. Two general approaches are discerned: practices that view parents as learners in need of expert information and advice about child rearing, prevalent through the 1950s, and strategies involving parents as partners with educators in program decision-making, which began to surface in the 1960s. Attention is given to the influence of the Parent Teacher Association in the early 1900s as a response to societal changes stemming from the Industrial Revolution; contributions of the child study movement of the 1920s to parent education activities; effects of the Great Depression on ideas and practices related to individuals with disabilities; the growth of parent advocacy on behalf of children with disabilities; and the influence of the civil rights movement of the 1960s and widespread demographic changes of the 1970s on parent-teacher relationships. Current issues in forming and sustaining parent-teacher partnerships in early childhood programs are identified.

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