CYFS Faculty Affiliate Susan Swearer, a professor of school psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will lead a panel discussion of the documentary "Bully" following a free May 12 showing at Lincoln's Grand Theatre.
A limited number of free tickets will be available at the theater's box office. The film begins at 9 a.m., with doors opening at 8:15 a.m.
The discussion will be recorded and aired on government cable access channels 5 (City-TV), 10 (Health) and 21 (Educational Access).
The 98-minute documentary tells the stories of five families dealing with bullying, including two who lost children due to suicide. "Bully" is rated PG-13 for intense themes, disturbing content and strong language.
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The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools surveyed the landscape and mapped the future of early childhood research, practice and policy when it assembled the state's top minds for an April 25 summit in Lincoln, Neb.
Co-sponsored by the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, the second biennial CYFS Summit on Research in Early Childhood featured 16 presentations on early learning and development, family engagement, professional development, and the economic impacts of early intervention. Subsequent discussions about translating this research into practice and policy took place among the approximately 150 scholars, educators, interventionists and administrators in attendance.
CYFS Director Susan Sheridan and University of Nebraska President J.B. Milliken provided the summit's opening remarks. Arthur Reynolds, professor at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development, followed with a keynote address on the history of early childhood development programs implemented from birth to age 10.
Numerous CYFS faculty and affiliates also addressed studies devoted to early learning and development. Their presentations covered topics ranging from the effectiveness of early childhood reading and math initiatives to the impacts of temperament, natural environments and sleep habits on children's cognitive, academic and social functioning.
Presentations related to family engagement focused on parental involvement in several early language and literacy programs, specifically those tailored to children living in poverty and rural communities. They also summarized a family-school partnership approach designed to improve home environments and align the efforts of parents and teachers.
Researchers studying professional development addressed how coaching and mentoring influenced teachers' classroom performance. They further discussed the interactions and behaviors of professional coaches and teachers, detailing the significance of factors such as education, experience and work satisfaction.
Summit attendees also gained insights into the economic growth and cost savings that Nebraska has yielded by investing in early childhood education and programming. Additionally, those in attendance received an overview of policy implications related to these financial benefits.
The summit concluded with a panel – consisting of a researcher, two administrative practitioners and a policy expert – that offered reactions to the day's presentations and suggestions on how Nebraska's early childhood leaders should direct their future efforts.
Marjorie Kostelnik, dean of the College of Education and Human Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, provided perspectives on the summit during her closing remarks.
"It's really exciting for us to bring together all these different communities of early childhood education and all the different sectors of people who have a really keen interest and passion for [this]," said Kostelnik, also a CYFS faculty affiliate.
"Today, some of you heard research that reinforced ideas; some of you heard research that stretched your ideas; and some of you may have heard research that began to change your ideas," Kostelnik said. "And if you did, that was a good thing – because that's what this conference is about."
CYFS will post videos of the summit's opening remarks, keynote address, panel and closing remarks within the next several weeks. For more information on the summit, please visit cyfs.unl.edu/ecs/2012.
The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences will provide information on grant funding for its 2013 fiscal year when it hosts a series of webinars from May through August 2012.
The webinars, coordinated by the IES-housed National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) and National Center for Education Research (NCER), will cover topics ranging from the preparation and submission of grants to specific funding opportunities offered through IES.
To learn more and register for the webinars, click here.
CYFS Faculty Affiliate Carolyn Pope Edwards received the University of Nebraska's 2012 Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Award during the April 11 University-wide Teaching, Research and Engagement Awards Luncheon in Lincoln, Neb.
Edwards, a Willa Cather Professor in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies and Department of Psychology, was one of two recipients of the award. It recognizes a sustained record of outstanding research or creative activity of national / international significance conducted by full-time faculty members at the University of Nebraska. The annual award dates back to 1978.
NU President J.B. Milliken and NU Executive Vice President and Provost Linda Pratt presided over the awards ceremony, which also recognized winners of the Outstanding Teaching and Instructional Creativity Award and the Innovation, Development and Engagement Award.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln recently granted promotions to two faculty from the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.
Starting July 1, CYFS Research Associate Professor Gwen Nugent will receive a promotion to full Research Professor. Gina Kunz, currently a Research Assistant Professor, will officially become a Research Associate Professor.
Nugent joined CYFS in September 2004. She has more than 30 years' experience in the design, production and evaluation of mediated instruction. Nugent has also coordinated research projects focusing on the impact of technology to improve student learning, with special emphasis on multimedia instruction and online assessment.
Since joining CYFS in October 2003, Kunz has investigated the assessment and treatment of academic and behavioral difficulties in children and youth. She has specifically studied intervention approaches tailored to attention deficits and various learning disabilities.
CYFS congratulates Drs. Nugent and Kunz on their promotions and extends its gratitude for the many significant contributions they have made to the center.
Two internationally recognized faculty affiliates of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools clarified popular misconceptions about dyslexia during an April 2 Creating Connections Speaker Series presentation.
Drs. Dennis and Victoria Molfese, Chancellor's Professors at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, presented "The Brain's Role in Dyslexia: A True Story with a Happy Ending" from 3:30-5 p.m. in the Nebraska Union's Regency A Suite.
The researchers discussed their latest findings on how the brain impacts students' reading proficiency and disability, dispelling numerous myths that have arisen in recent years. They also addressed how the brain changes in response to effective intervention approaches.
From the First Lady to Lady Gaga, many have tapped the anti-bullying expertise of CYFS Faculty Affiliate Susan Swearer. After collaborating with the presidential and the pop, she's once again assisting a more traditional demographic – parents.
Education.com, a leading reference website for parents of children and adolescents, recently asked Swearer to serve as a guest editor of its third Special Edition on Bullying at School and Online. Swearer, a professor of school psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, also acted as a guest editor for Education.com's two previous issues on bullying.
The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences has released its annual request for grant applications. Detailed information on available grants – including their requirements, award amounts and submission deadlines – can be found here.
As ever-younger children grow up with cell phones, tablet computers and photorealistic video games, a CYFS researcher has co-edited a new book designed to help educators teach students using another technology: robotics.
CYFS Research Associate Professor Gwen Nugent teamed up with three University of Nebraska researchers, including two CYFS faculty affiliates, to edit and contribute to the recently published "Robots in K-12 Education: A New Technology for Learning."
The 407-page reference book covers theoretical and instructional perspectives on robotics; the use of robotics in classroom and out-of-school settings; and the potential for student learning through robotics competitions.
Nugent co-authored two chapters on the educational value of robotics in non-classroom settings. The chapters explore the development and impact of the Geospatial and Robotic Technologies for the 21st Century project, which integrates robotics and GPS technologies into after-school programs, summer camps and 4-H clubs. In addition to summarizing the project, the chapters examine its influence on students' science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning, attitudes and workplace skills.
CYFS Faculty Affiliates Bradley Barker, associate professor with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's 4-H Youth Development, and Neal Grandgenett, professor of teacher education at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, co-edited the book. Viacheslav Adamchuk, associate professor at McGill University (Canada) and adjunct at UNL, also served as co-editor.
To purchase or learn more about the book, click here.
The Buffett Early Childhood Institute recently announced four final candidates to serve as its inaugural executive director, all of whom presented their visions for the institute during appearances at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Van Brundt Visitors Center.
Carla Peterson, associate dean for research and graduate education at Iowa State University's College of Human Sciences, provided her insights and answered questions during a Feb. 1 appearance. Peterson also serves as a professor in Iowa State University's Department of Human Development and Family Studies.
Susan Landry became the second candidate to present when she visited the UNL campus on Feb. 15. In addition to founding and directing the Children's Learning Institute at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Landry serves as Michael Matthew Knight Memorial Professor at UTHealth's Department of Pediatrics.
Ruby Takanishi, who recently concluded a 15-year tenure as president of the New York City-based Foundation for Child Development, shared her thoughts and perspectives during a Feb. 27 forum.
The series concluded with a March 8 appearance from Harolyn Belcher, an associate professor with the Department of Pediatrics at The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Belcher is also a developmental pediatrician in the Department of Neurology and Developmental Medicine at the Kennedy Krieger Institute.
The Buffett Institute will conduct multidisciplinary research, education, outreach and policy operations that seek to transform the approach to early childhood development and education in Nebraska and across the nation. It will specifically aim to improve the lives of children from birth to age 8, especially those vulnerable to the influences of poverty, abuse or challenges in development, learning or behavior.
Omaha philanthropist Susie Buffett founded the Buffett Early Childhood Institute in 2011 with a gift that The University of Nebraska has pledged to more than match, creating an endowment in excess of $100 million. The institute's multidisciplinary efforts will take place across the University of Nebraska's four campuses: Lincoln, Omaha, Kearney and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools has been named an official partner of the Buffett Institute.
An internationally recognized scholar spoke about the benefits of outdoor environments for children during a Feb. 21 presentation co-sponsored by the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.
Andrea Faber Taylor, a researcher with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Landscape and Human Health Laboratory, presented "Nature Time: Evidence for Why Kids Need It, and How to Achieve It in a Fast-Paced World" at UNL's Hardin Hall Auditorium.
Faber Taylor asserted that spending time in nature is essential for healthy development and day-to-day functioning. She referenced Attention Restoration Theory, which states that daily life demands "directed attention" that eventually saps concentration and causes mental fatigue. According to the theory, nature provides opportunities for "involuntary attention" – such as observing wildlife or watching clouds – that help restore the focus required by everyday life.
The presentation also outlined Faber Taylor's own research, highlighting studies which suggest that time spent in nature improves children's self-discipline, concentration and creativity. She further cited evidence that the outdoors can reduce the severity of symptoms in children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Children gain more from spending time in "greener" environments such as parks than in neighborhoods or downtown areas, she said.
Faber Taylor closed by recommending that families place a greater priority on nature by exploring the outdoors together on regular basis. She also expressed hope that schools, daycare centers and communities ensure that children have regular access to natural environments.
Faber Taylor's presentation was co-sponsored by UNL's College of Education and Human Sciences; Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies; Environmental Studies Program; and Department of Psychology. It was hosted by the CEHS Children, Families, Schools, Communities and Nature Special Interest Group.
CYFS Research Associate Professor Lisa Knoche recently addressed the importance of parental involvement in children's education during an appearance on "Moms Everyday," a regular feature of local CBS affiliate KOLN/KGIN's "10/11 News."
Knoche addressed the benefits of parental engagement and strategies for cultivating learning in the home. She also identified ways that parents can collaborate with teachers to stay informed of their children's progress in the classroom.
CYFS Doctoral Student Affiliates Amanda Witte and Kadie Dooley recently concluded their week-long visit to Hong Kong.
After catching their breath back in the States, Witte and Dooley shared their favorite memories via a blog coordinated by the College of Education and Human Sciences. Witte's and Dooley's final thoughts on the trip can be found here and here, respectively.
See the preceding story to learn about the research Witte and Dooley presented at the University of Hong Kong on Dec. 3.
Two CYFS student affiliates will present their research – and immerse themselves in an "East meets West" culture – when they depart for a week-long visit to Hong Kong on Nov. 29.
Amanda Witte and Kadie Dooley, both doctoral candidates in the Department of Educational Psychology, were among four students recently selected to present research papers at the University of Hong Kong's Postgraduate Research Conference on Dec. 3.
Witte and Dooley earned the opportunity after receiving the Hong Kong Travel Award from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln's College of Education and Human Sciences. The award aims to promote the exchange of ideas and cultivate a mutually beneficial relationship between the two universities.
Going the Extra Mile
Witte, who also serves as a CYFS project manager, will address her study of how parents help cultivate the talents of child prodigies. With the assistance of her advisor, CYFS Faculty Affiliate Kenneth Kiewra, Witte interviewed the parents of 24 children who displayed exceptional abilities in music, chess, figure skating, baton twirling, volleyball, spelling or writing. These children proceeded to win many national and world championships, including two Olympic silver medals and a Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Witte specifically asked the parents of these children about their impact on four factors previously linked to talent development: early experience, mentoring, practice and motivation. She found that parents play important roles in each of these areas.
Nearly all of the interviewed parents introduced children to their respective talents and provided a strong foundation that provided early advantages. Every child benefitted from elite coaching, which many families – when not providing it themselves – obtained by traveling great distances and making remarkable financial sacrifices.
Witte also discovered that parents spent immense time and effort managing their children's practices and competitions, wearing hats that included accountant, fundraiser, secretary, chauffeur and videographer. Moreover, most parents modeled hard work and high achievement for their children, creating home environments that stressed excellence through maximum effort and goal-setting.
While the study confirmed the importance of the four factors already associated with talent development, it also demonstrated that parents go the extra mile – sometimes literally – to facilitate these factors.
More than Child's Play
Previous research has linked recess to the development of social skills – and found that conflicts beginning there can lead to emotional, social and academic issues. Consequently, Dooley recently investigated elementary students' perceptions of playground interactions that occur during recess.
Using playground maps and open-ended questions, Dooley's study asked 301 second- through fifth-graders to identify common locations and reasons for both positive play and conflict among students. Their responses revealed that the five playground areas most cited as havens of positive play were also perceived as the sites of most conflict. Playground equipment topped both lists, while basketball and four-square courts also rated as hotspots for harmony and discord.
Dooley found that the presence of sociable friends who were having fun contributed to goodwill at the designated sites. Arguments that often sprang from students breaking rules, however, led to verbal or physical aggression in the same areas. Overall, students cited their peers' traits – rather than traditional factors such as adult supervision, overcrowding or playground characteristics – to explain the location and nature of recess interactions.
Dooley and her advisor, CYFS Faculty Affiliate Beth Doll, believe that utilizing student-marked playground maps could inform school-specific interventions to maximize positive play and minimize conflict during recess.
City by the Sight-See
Before and after visiting the University of Hong Kong, Witte and Dooley plan to fully experience its bustling metropolis – which houses 7 million people and a multitude of ancient Chinese landmarks.
"I look forward to simply exploring Hong Kong and immersing myself in the culture," said Witte. "I believe international travel is life-changing. I anticipate this experience will help me gain a better understanding of the world and my place in it."
Dooley concurred, noting that she received some intriguing tips from CYFS Faculty Affiliate and CEHS Dean Marjorie Kostelnik.
"Dean Kostelnik suggested that we take a ferry to Lantau Island, where we can eat lunch with the Buddhist monks on top of a mountain," Dooley said. "It is opportunities like this one that I am most excited about experiencing."
Witte and Dooley also conveyed their appreciation for the opportunity to present their research to an international audience – while serving as ambassadors for CEHS and UNL.
"It is our hope that our visit is just the first step of a long partnership between the University of Hong Kong and CEHS," Witte said. "Hopefully, in the near future, students from the University of Hong Kong will be able to visit us – and the student exchange will continue for years to come."
While in Hong Kong, Witte and Dooley will chronicle their experiences via a blog coordinated by CEHS. Click here to read it.
Affiliates of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools showcased their recent and ongoing studies during the Nov. 12 College of Education and Human Sciences Student Research Conference.
The conference, held throughout Teachers College and Mabel Lee Halls, gave students a forum to unveil research papers and project posters among their CEHS peers and mentors. Jon Pedersen, CEHS associate dean for research and CYFS faculty affiliate, provided the conference's opening remarks.
Amanda Witte, CYFS project director and doctoral student affiliate in educational psychology, presented a paper titled "Parenting Talent: A Qualitative Investigation of the Role Parents Play in Talent Development." CYFS Doctoral Affiliate Kadie Dooley, also in educational psychology, discussed the paper "Assessing Elementary Students' Perception of Recess: Where Kids Get Along, Where Kids Don't Get Along, and Why." Witte and Dooley recently received the Hong Kong Travel Award, affording them the opportunity to present these papers at the University of Hong Kong on Dec. 3.
Numerous other CYFS graduate and undergraduate student affiliates also participated in the conference. Yanjie Long, a graduate student in child, youth and family studies, presented a research paper titled "The Impact of Parental Involvement on Preschool Children's Later Language Development in Low-Income Hispanic English Language Learners." In addition, 11 CYFS student affiliates and 3 personnel exhibited posters at the conference. (For a full list of CYFS exhibitors and their posters, click here.)
CYFS Faculty Affiliate Christine Marvin attended the poster session and thought students took full advantage of the opportunity to improve their presentation skills.
"I was impressed with the many who saw this as an opportunity to learn from [fellow] students and faculty members in attendance. I think the conference offers an opportunity to develop a professional voice and work through the process of taking an outsider's perspective on their work," Marvin said. "There was great dialogue, and the poster session room was a buzz of conversation for a number of hours."
Marvin noted that the conference's scale specifically suits the needs of up-and-coming researchers.
"It provides our students a safe environment for their dress rehearsal before sharing their work at a state, regional or national level," she said. "From what I saw Saturday in the poster sessions, we have some who will be more than ready for that opportunity."
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Classrooms missing roofs and walls. Children lacking access to basic education. Teachers using tarp as chalkboards.
And, amidst it all, the indomitable spirit of people working to improve each other's lives.
CYFS Director Susan Sheridan encountered these dual realities during a recent mission to La Montagne (mawn-TYN'), Haiti, a beautiful but historically poor mountainside community devastated by a 2010 earthquake.
From late September through early October, Sheridan met with leaders of La Montagne schools and a local association committed to improving the educational prospects of Haitian youth. Their collective resolve in the face of such poverty left an indelible impression.
"La Montagne is a very spirited, inspirational place," Sheridan said. "There is both hope and desperation; extreme poverty and glimmers of opportunity. Relative to the standards of life as we know it, conditions in La Montagne might seem destitute and unfathomable. Yet, there is a strong drive among educators, clergy and caregivers to improve the quality of life for the people of La Montagne, and that is very contagious. Most people work without pay but still assume responsibility for their fellow person. The sentiment is clear: Perseverance and hard work will begin to make an impact."
Sheridan traveled to the country with Friends of the Children, a group that provides biannual medical and dental care in La Montagne. The Wisconsin-based nonprofit organization has treated the sick and injured since 1998.
Sheridan's sister Linda Underwood, a registered nurse, serves on the organization's board of directors with her husband John, an emergency department physician. In addition to treating and evaluating between 3000 and 4000 patients per mission, the team provides education and medical supplies to community health care workers and midwives.
"I became increasingly interested in joining them on a mission trip as they described their incredible experiences and extensive impact over the years," Sheridan said. "Their passion was totally captivating and drove me to want to learn firsthand about the people, culture and condition of Haiti."
Friends of the Children's work eventually inspired the founding of the Yonn Ede Lot (yawn EH'-dee lawt) Association, a fellow Wisconsin-based nonprofit organization. Yonn Ede Lot supports the efforts of La Montagne community groups to catalyze improvements in education, public health, agriculture, finance and other arenas.
Sheridan has now begun collaborating with Yonn Ede Lot – whose name means "one helping another" in the Haitian Creole language – to explore ways that CYFS can assist La Montagne's educational endeavors.
"It is hard not to want to get involved with the people and their plight," Sheridan said. "Interacting with the Haitians in the clinic, schools and their own homes immediately brings a rush of emotions, but the strongest is compassion and the desire to help."
According to Sheridan, local educational leaders in La Montagne are working to address several areas of immediate need. Because many Haitian schools receive little financial support from their government, they must charge admission fees that many families cannot afford. UNICEF recently estimated that 50 percent of Haiti's children do not attend even primary school, while 80 percent fail to reach secondary school.
This is especially true in rural areas such as La Montagne, where the headmaster of The Renaissance School described his potential students as the "poorest of the poor" Haitian children. Many of these children lack shoes, pens, notebooks and other basic supplies required by the schools.
Students who can afford to attend must sit in classrooms torn apart by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that claimed more than 200,000 lives in January 2010. The earthquake left La Montagne's schools in need of extensive structural repairs essential for the shelter and safety of their students.
After witnessing these conditions – and meeting so many Haitians working to overcome them – Sheridan immediately began asking how she could help.
"I don't feel sorry for the Haitian people," Sheridan said. "Rather, I feel compelled to help them meet their own goals. With my own privilege comes responsibility, and that feeling is overwhelming when spending time in a place like La Montagne."
For information on how you can make a difference in La Montagne, please visit cyfs.unl.edu/haiti.
The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools will commence its 2011-2012 Research Methodology Series with a presentation from CYFS Statistics and Measurement Consultant Frances Chumney.
Chumney will present "Data Collection via Video: An Introduction to Software for Coding Research Videos" Friday, Nov. 18, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in 242 Mabel Lee Hall.
The presentation will outline the advantages and challenges of collecting data from video recordings, along with important considerations in the development of coding schemes for video data collection. In addition to summarizing some of the most common and flexible software available, Chumney will demonstrate select software using examples from real research data.
The entire Research Methodology Series is free and requires no registration. For more information on all six of the upcoming Research Methodology Series presentations, please see the document below.
The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools recently enhanced its staff by adding three new members.
Marj McKinty and Sarah Giles joined the center's Office Management and Support team, while Rebecca Fulkerson became the newest member ofthe CYFS Grant Management and Support unit.
As the CYFS office supervisor, McKinty provides clerical assistance, schedules meetings, disseminates center-related information, organizes grant proposal submissions, and supports the center's internal operations.
Giles was named the CYFS outreach coordinator. In addition to coordinating daily training and other activities, she arranges site selection, contract negotiation, transportation and lodging for academic conferences.
In her role as a post-award grant specialist, Fulkerson is responsible for initiating, analyzing and reconciling monthly budget and expenditure reports for the principal investigators of CYFS research projects.
CYFS welcomes these new team members and thanks them for supporting the center's efforts to improve the welfare of children, youth, families and schools.
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln recently presented the 2011 Outstanding Postdoc Award to Ji Hoon Ryoo, a postdoctoral research associate with the CYFS-housed National Center for Research on Rural Education (R2Ed).
The award recognizes exceptional postdoctoral scholars for their comprehensive efforts in research, teaching, mentoring, innovation and service to UNL or the community. Ryoo received the honor during the Nov. 2 UNL Research Fair. He was nominated by mentor James Bovaird, director of the CYFS Statistics and Research Methodology Unit and associate professor with UNL's Department of Educational Psychology.
Ryoo earned his doctorate in quantitative methods in education from the University of Minnesota's Department of Educational Psychology in June 2010. Since joining R2Ed in August 2010, he has applied his expertise in psychometrics, longitudinal modeling and educational evaluation as a methodologist and data analyst on numerous research projects.
Ryoo has published three peer-reviewed journal articles in the last year, including a solely authored paper in the top-tier journal Multivariate Behavioral Research. As a postdoctoral researcher, he has also presented eight papers at numerous conferences, including the International Meeting of the Psychometric Society and the 2011 Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association.
In late 2010, Ryoo presented on the concept of longitudinal measurement invariance as part of the CYFS Research Methodology Series. During the spring 2012 semester, he will teach a longitudinal data analysis course for the Department of Educational Psychology.
Ryoo expressed gratitude for the professional guidance provided by Bovaird, CYFS Director Susan Sheridan and CYFS Research Assistant Professor Greg Welch, who also endorsed Ryoo's nomination.
"Personally, this award is a milestone indicating a starting point for my research career," Ryoo said. "But it would not have been possible without tremendous support from my mentors, as well as other members of CYFS. I ascribe this honor to all of them and thank them for that support."
Welch noted that Ryoo's stellar performance should herald even greater achievements down the line.
"The sky is the limit for Ji Hoon, and he has demonstrated this through his work in the center," Welch said. "He is the epitome of what a postdoctoral researcher should be."
Conventional wisdom says that people get what they pay for – but a new study suggests that money goes only so far when it comes to finding quality child care.
The study, led by CYFS Faculty Affiliates Julia Torquati and Helen Raikes, examined whether family income, education level and other factors predicted the actual and parent-perceived quality of 359 Midwestern child care programs.
Torquati and her colleagues found that child care programs serving middle- and high-income families offered better services than those chosen primarily by low-income parents. However, the researchers also concluded that programs serving predominantly poor families likewise outperformed their low-income counterparts. Moreover, they found no differences in the quality of child care selected by poor versus middle- and high-income parents.
The authors believe these findings may reflect that low-income families – defined in the study as those between 100 and 200 percent of the federal poverty line – often fail to qualify for government-supported programs offered to those below that line.
In light of research linking child care with cognitive and social-emotional development, Torquati and her colleagues believe policymakers should consider changes that would eliminate this existing blind spot for low-income families.
"Providing some kind of financial incentive to parents for selecting quality care is one way do that, whether it's within or outside the current subsidy system," Torquati said. "Some economists have also talked about the fact that child care expenses are [tax-]deductible, but that this benefit mainly falls to the middle class. Is there a way we could instead use all of those funds to [enhance] quality for all child care sectors? Right now, there is this huge population that doesn't really benefit at all."
In addition to exploring the impacts of income, the researchers also discovered links between parent education and child care quality. After surveying 1313 parents, they found that the better-educated tended to choose programs of higher quality than did those with less schooling – though they still rated even the same programs more critically.
The study, published in the journal Early Childhood Research Quarterly, also revealed that poor and low-income parents perceived more barriers to selecting high-quality child care. While many reported that distance and atypical work schedules limited their child care options, a significant proportion disclosed that they struggled simply to find affordable programs.
"They pay a much larger proportion of their income toward child care," Torquati said. "For many families, it is the second-biggest [expense] after rent or mortgage. For some of them, it's as much as 23 percent of their income, whereas it may be more like six to eight percent for [middle- and high-income] families."
Though Torquati noted that the situation has scarcely improved over the past 15 years, she remains hopeful that highlighting this prevalent issue will eventually ensure equitable care for low-income families.
"Children need advocates," Torquati said. "Sometimes their only advocates are their parents – who are working and struggling to make ends meet and take care of them. But I know that there a lot of good people working to do just that.
"I think that we're moving in the right direction – but we need to pick up the pace."
This study was co-authored by CYFS Statistics and Research Methodology Unit Director James Bovaird, UNL Associate Professor Catherine Huddleston-Casas and Concord University's Beatrice Harris. Funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration on Children, Youth and Families, along with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
Click here to view the abstract of the Early Childhood Research Quarterly article.
The Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools (CYFS) has released its annual report for the 2010 fiscal year, which ran from July 2010 through June 2011.
Titled "Realizing Potential, Reaching Beyond," the report features snapshots of the center's achievements in conducting applied research, translating that research to the field, and collaborating with partners to advance the CYFS mission.
View Annual Report: Interactive / PDF
Coaches typically develop game plans designed to achieve success on the field, court, diamond or ice. CYFS Research Associate Professor Lisa Knoche is helping to ensure that Nebraska adds "classroom" and "home" to that list.
Knoche, CYFS Consultant Sue Bainter and several graduate student affiliates offered a glimpse into their year-long evaluation of the Early Childhood Coaching Project during a Sept. 29 meeting in Lincoln, Neb. The project – developed by the Nebraska Department of Education's Early Childhood Training Center – prepares early childhood professionals who work with teachers and families to enhance young children's development.
Knoche and her colleagues provided attendees with a snapshot of Nebraska's early childhood coaching landscape, encapsulated the evaluation's preliminary findings and discussed their implications for the state's future professional development efforts.
The researchers presented survey- and interview-based results on the demographics of early childhood professionals, along with the frequency, implementation and content of the coaching they received. Knoche's team also explained how it evaluated coach-coachee interactions before summarizing the behaviors it observed during recorded training sessions. Knoche concluded the event by exploring future analyses and potential uses of the data her team has collected.
The meeting hosted more than 20 administrators, practitioners and researchers from the Nebraska Department of Education, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, the Head Start Child and Family Development Program, and other early childhood organizations.
Knoche believes the meeting will lead to important outcomes for all who participated.
"It provided an opportunity for key stakeholders to collectively engage in conversation about the significance of data for the early childhood community," Knoche said. "As researchers, we benefited from the perspectives of our research partners in interpreting findings and discussing implications, while our partners benefited by receiving data-based information on early childhood coaching practices to support children and families."
More information on the Knoche-led evaluation of the Early Childhood Coaching Project can be found here.
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An intervention approach emphasizing parental engagement and family-school partnerships improves preschool children's early language and literacy skills, according to a newly published study from the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.
The four-year study, co-authored by CYFS Director Susan Sheridan and four colleagues, found that an approach called Getting Ready improved the language, pre-reading and early writing skills of disadvantaged children enrolled in the Head Start preschool program. The study was published in the June edition of the Journal of School Psychology.
Getting Ready, which Sheridan and the study's co-authors unveiled in 2004, aims to help early childhood teachers provide parents with the skills to responsively engage their children and prepare them for school.
After receiving training in Getting Ready strategies and family-centered practices, the study's preschool teachers conducted home visits to engage parents and children over a two-year span. During these visits, teachers attempted to enhance children's development by establishing positive parent-child interactions, sharing observations, discussing goals, offering suggestions, creating home-school plans, and focusing on families' and children's strengths.
The researchers measured the impact of these efforts via reports of child outcomes from 29 Head Start teachers and assessments of 217 children aged 3 to 5. The observed language and literacy improvements were magnified among children with developmental concerns and learning disabilities, along with non-native English speakers. The intervention was even more effective for children living with multiple adults but was less impactful when those adults had health problems or limited education.
"The teachers' use of Getting Ready strategies with families is particularly salient for the most at-risk children in our sample, whom past research has shown will struggle upon school entry," said co-author and CYFS Research Associate Professor Lisa Knoche. "By enhancing already high-quality early intervention services for this most at-risk group of children, we are improving the likelihood of their success upon transition into kindergarten and throughout their educational career."
The new study is the latest in a line of several that have indicated the effectiveness of the approach. Previous studies demonstrated Getting Ready's positive impacts on children's social-emotional development and teachers' practices and beliefs. According to the researchers, Getting Ready differs from other interventions by providing a model for individualized support rather than a program with fixed protocols and curricula.
"The Getting Ready strategies can be applied with virtually any home-visiting curricula," Knoche said. "Getting Ready is an approach or process to working with families that supports the parent-child interaction and the parent-teacher partnership. The fact that it is not at 'add-on' but rather an enhancement of service delivery is a strength of the model and makes it very transportable to a variety of early childhood settings."
CYFS researchers Sheridan, Knoche, Kevin Kupzyk, Carolyn Pope Edwards and Christine Marvin authored the newest study. Sheridan, Edwards, Marvin and Knoche developed the Getting Ready approach.
Funding for the study was provided by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Administration for Children and Families, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, and the Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
Click here to view the abstract of the Journal of School Psychology article. To read the abstract of a 2010 CYFS study on the social-emotional impacts of the Getting Ready intervention, click here.
Drs. Todd Glover and Lisa Knoche have been promoted to Research Associate Professors with the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.
Glover joined CYFS as a research assistant professor in 2004. He has since coordinated numerous large-scale projects aimed at improving professional development opportunities for teachers, enhancing academic and behavioral intervention programs for at-risk students, and closing the gap between educational research and practice.
Knoche has developed, implemented and evaluated prevention and intervention programs for families and children. She has focused on cultivating young children's language and literacy skills to prepare them for school, along with identifying strategies for supporting early childhood professionals. Knoche joined the Center as a project coordinator in 2004 before being promoted to research assistant professor in 2007.
CYFS is pleased to formally recognize the significant achievements of these two fine researchers and congratulates them on their promotion.
They may lack a driver's license and ride the bus to school, but students at Lincoln's Culler Middle School are using other forms of transportation to reach destinations further down the road.
With the support of the Nebraska Center for Research on CYFS, the Nebraska Transportation Center and the Mid-America Transportation Center, Culler recently concluded the first year of an after-school engineering club that illustrated how math and science make modern transportation possible. Dubbed Roads, Rails and Race Cars, the weekly club offered interactive activities that helped Culler students grasp the diverse applications of the algebra, geometry and physics they learned in class.
"I want to provide real-world experiences for the students at Culler," said Mary Herrington, a Culler science teacher who coordinated the Community Learning Center-sponsored club. "I want them to see the importance of math and science in their lives today and for the future."
To achieve this, Herrington drew upon six years of participation in the CYFS-co-directed Professional Development Math and Science Summer Technology Institute. Many of the club's lesson plans were inspired by those developed at the summer institute, which annually provides the expertise of UNL's engineering faculty to middle and high school teachers throughout Nebraska.
With these lesson plans as a foundation, UNL engineering graduate students helped Culler middle schoolers construct miniature rafts, clock traffic speed with LIDAR guns, test out GPS technology, simulate car crashes, discuss threats to traffic safety, and much more.
Herrington noted that these activities were ultimately designed to encourage students to invest in their education. Based on their response, the students seemed to do just that – while enjoying the ride along the way.
"The best part was seeing the students running down the hallway to get to the club," Herrington said, "and staying around long after the activity was over to talk with the adults."
This enthusiasm is shared by Herrington, who believes that the club – like transportation itself – can help students get from where they are to where they want to be.
"I want my students to build dreams for college and have hope that they can be successful in school," Herrington said. "This club provides a glimpse of what their future can look like if they work hard and never give up hope."
After a nationwide search, the College of Education and Human Sciences has named CYFS Faculty Affiliate Jon Pedersen its new associate dean for research. Pedersen's tenure as associate dean begins July 1.
Pedersen will be tasked with cultivating an atmosphere conducive to innovative research, promoting research and creative activity among CEHS faculty, and establishing multidisciplinary links within and outside the college. Additional responsibilities will include acting as a liaison to UNL's other colleges, working with external funding agencies, and representing CEHS' national research agenda.
Pedersen, a professor in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education, also serves as the director of science education for UNL's Center for Science, Mathematics and Computer Education.
CYFS extends its sincerest congratulations to Dr. Pedersen and wishes him success in his new role within CEHS.
Numerous CYFS affiliates recently received recognition for their exemplary contributions to research and teaching.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln bestowed the Willa Cather / Charles Bessey Professorship upon Dr. Helen Raikes, professor in the Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies. The Cather / Bessey Professorship is awarded to UNL faculty who demonstrate distinguished scholarship and creative activity.
UNL's Office of Graduate Studies conferred the Dean's Award for Excellence in Graduate Education upon Dr. Carolyn Pope Edwards, professor in the Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies and Department of Psychology. The award recognizes dedication to graduate students and commitment to excellence in graduate mentoring.
The College of Education and Human Sciences presented three CYFS faculty affiliates with awards. Dr. Michelle Rupiper, senior lecturer with the Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies, received the Donald R. and Mary Lee Swanson Award for Teaching Excellence. The college presented Dr. Tonia Durden, assistant professor in the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services, with the Pre-Professorial Research / Creative Award. Dr. Stephanie Wessels, assistant professor in the Department of Teaching, Learning and Teacher Education, received the college's Distinguished Teaching Award.
Amanda Bleck, a CYFS doctoral student affiliate in the Department of Educational Psychology, earned the college's Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Assistant Award.
The UNL Teaching Council and UNL Parents Association also recently recognized the following CYFS faculty affiliates for their teaching efforts: Cody Hollist, Department of Children, Youth and Family Studies; Georgia Jones, Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences; Cynthia Cress Nipper, Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders; Tiffany Hogan, Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders; Jim Lewis, Department of Mathematics; and Dan Hoyt, Department of Sociology.
CYFS congratulates these affiliates on their well-earned recognition and wishes them continued success.
The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services recently released several requests for grant applications. Visit http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-04-13/pdf/2011-8745.pdf for more information about these grants, which share a submission deadline of May 31.
The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences has released its annual request for grant applications. Detailed information on available grants – including their requirements, award amounts and submission deadlines – can be found at http://www.cyfs.unl.edu/eblast/ies/2012.html.
Susan Swearer, associate professor of educational psychology and CYFS faculty affiliate, participated in the White House Conference on Bullying Prevention held March 10.
Swearer was one of four national bullying experts who joined President and First Lady Obama, along with members of the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to discuss the causes, consequences and prevention of bullying. Teachers, parents and students from across the United States were also on hand to lend their perspectives.
After providing an overview of her research on the psychological influences and impacts of bullying, Swearer took part in a question-and-answer panel session before presiding over a breakout discussion.
The question-and-answer session was streamed live by the White House and can be found here.
More information on the conference can be found via news releases from the Office of University Communications and the White House.
Sandra Plata-Potter wants to help first-generation Latino parents give their preschoolers a head start on literacy – and the resources to keep pace with their peers.
The CYFS doctoral student affiliate is collaborating with Faculty Affiliates Lisa Knoche and Helen Raikes to determine whether Latino parents' engagement in a Head Start project encourages them to become more involved in literacy-related activities with their children. The researchers are also examining whether these home-based activities bolster children's "emergent literacy" – the knowledge and skills that serve as foundations for reading and writing.
Plata-Potter's study, which will become the basis for her dissertation, is employing both in-depth interviews and survey questionnaires to garner insights from Latino immigrant families living in a rural Midwestern community. Each participating family was previously involved in both the Head Start program and Rural Language and Literacy Connections, a study directed by Knoche and Raikes.
The current study will have Plata-Potter interviewing approximately 30 families and conducting secondary analyses of Rural LLC data from 142 families. Her efforts are being funded by a two-year Head Start Graduate Student Research Award from the Administration for Children, Youth and Families.
According to Plata-Potter, much of the motivation behind these efforts sprang from prior research on emergent literacy – research which has found that Latino dual-language learners often fall behind native English speakers before entering kindergarten.
"When children don't start kindergarten with those skills, they lag behind their peers and it's pretty much a [process of] trying to catch up throughout elementary school," Plata-Potter said. "But they tend to not always catch up, so they need those emergent skills before they start kindergarten."
Based on previous experience interviewing Latino parents as a Rural LLC research assistant, Plata-Potter believes this well-documented gap may be a byproduct of differences in cultural attitudes toward early education.
"[Latino parents] want their child to succeed and they know that education is important, but they know how to approach it from their perspective, from their lens," Plata-Potter said. "It's not that they don't care as much – it's that they come from a [school of thought] that the teacher knows best, and so they will send their children to school to learn. So when [their children] start school, they are at a deficit; they go in with peers who know how to write their name, who know the colors and might … know letters of the alphabet."
In order to assess the hypothesized connection between parental Head Start engagement and home involvement, Plata-Potter will review attendance records for previously held "family literacy events" – Head Start-coordinated opportunities for parents to interact with their children and learn about emergent literacy. In turn, she will interview parents about these experiences and how they translated to the home.
Plata-Potter will explore the ties between parental involvement and emergent literacy outcomes by reviewing "family literacy portfolios," which encapsulate the parent-child activities – including reading, writing and goal-setting – that occurred in the home. Plata-Potter plans to review these portfolios with parents and children as a means of understanding how their beliefs and attitudes influenced their efforts. The impact of these practices will be assessed by measuring children's alphabet knowledge, word and rhyme awareness, vocabulary, and a variety of other emergent literacy indicators.
The answers to these questions are especially significant within the context of rural communities, Plata-Potter noted, such as the one that houses her study's Latino families.
"By the year 2025, the Latino population will be one of the biggest in rural America. They're moving away from the big cities and into rural America, which changes the whole picture," said Plata-Potter, whose Puerto Rican parents raised her in New York City.
Along with its rural focus, Plata-Potter is optimistic that the study's in-depth interviews and portfolio discussions will yield unique insights into how Latino families incorporate new emergent literacy philosophies and knowledge into their existing beliefs and practices.
"I want to know why – 'Why did they do this in a certain way?' – so that it can inform us [about] how to work with them in the future," Plata-Potter said, "and contribute to evolving their thinking about reading to children and literacy in the home."
