Early Learning Standards: A Huge Problem or A Huge Possibility? Sharon L. Kagan, Ed.D. Santa Monica, CA November 19, 2005

Early Learning Standards:

A Huge Problemor

A Huge Possibility?

Sharon L. Kagan, Ed.D.

Santa Monica, CANovember 19, 2005

OverviewI. The History of Play in ECEII. The Importance of Play to DevelopmentIII. Contemporary ContextIV. Defining StandardsV. Different Types of StandardsVI. Early Learning and Development StandardsVII. Using StandardsVIII. Standards in ActionIX. Concluding Thoughts

I. The History of Playin ECE

The History of Play in ECE

The commitment to play dates back a long, long time in early childhood education

Froebel and Pestalozzi were pioneers in advocating the use of play in childrearing and education

Piaget viewed play as the mode by which children understand their experience and development

The History of Play in ECE

Since then, leading scholars in early childhood education have all recognized that play is the basis of good early childhood pedagogy and practice

Moreover, play is THE fundamental cornerstone for children’s development

II. The Importance of Play to Development

Domains of Development

About 10 years ago, the National Education Goals Panel was assigned the task of determining what the research said about the most significant domains of development for young children

Groups of scholars and teachers reviewed decades of research and hundreeds of articles and concluded that:


There are five major domains of development: Physical Health, Well-Being and Motor

Development Social and Emotional Development Approaches Toward Learning Language, Literacy and Communication Cognition and General Knowledge


Since then, these five domains have been widely accepted, and have been used for a variety of purposes

Today, we are going to use the five domains to answer two questions:


First,

How can and does

play help children’s development

progress in each of the domains?

The Importance of Play to Development Physical Health, Well-Being and Motor Development

Indoor play equipment can promote gross-motor skills Steps, balance beams, jump ropes, bean bag toss, hollow

blocks, strollers for dramatic play Outdoor play improves motor fitness Manual dexterity is enhanced by activities such as drawing

and painting, working with playdough, and constructing with Legos

Sensorimotor skill development is also enhanced through play Coordinated movement such as kicking a ball

The Importance of Play to Development

Social and Emotional Development Symbolic role taking of dramatic play provides

children opportunities to identify their own feelings and others’

Contact with playmates helps children develop cooperative, reciprocal relationships and gain mutual understanding and trust

Pretend play helps children form their personalities and develop social skills


Approaches Toward Learning This domain encompasses efforts that enable children to

approach learning tasks with confidence and zest These goals derive from a variety of efforts, many of

them involved with representation through play and the arts

Representational activity evokes major cognitive benefits Allows child to make permanent what could be fleeting Allows child to edit or perfect work Allows child to make ideas public Enables “flexible purposing” – the ability to set a goal and shift

gears when necessary


Language, Literacy and Communication Play has been found to accelerate communication Play fosters the three basic functions of language:

communication, expression, and reasoning Symbolic play is related to understanding written

language


Cognition and General Knowledge Play is the primary vehicle for concept

development and problem solving Play provides opportunities for contact with

multiple stimuli, inducing the development of categorization, generalization, and conceptual acquisition skills

Play contributes to a vast range of specific cognitive processes and to generic functioning


So, we see that PLAY does enhance children’s development in all domains…

BUT, the BIG, BIG question is:Can we maintain fidelity to all domains and play

ANDhave early learning standards?

YES, YES, YESIndeed, the ONLY way to preserve play is via

early learning standards

III. Contemporary Context

Contemporary Context

To those outside ECE, play is always suspect.

Today, there is even more concern about play, because:


Press for standards and accountability is changing education and placing more demands on student accomplishment

Emphasis is being placed on the more easily measured domains of language and cognition, at the expense of the other three domains

Focus is on getting kids academically ready for the more rigorous curriculum in K-3


The consequence is that more people have more to say about ECE,

And they are calling for more Rigor, not realizing that Play is Rigorous!!!


The problem is that they are confusing the

ENDS of ECE: [what they want children to

know and be able to do]

PROCESS of ECE: [Play]


We need to focus on both: the ends (or the standards) and the means (or the process) of early education, which is play

Play is a known given!!! Standards are unknown…so we need to turn

to them to understand them better…

IV. Defining Standards

Defining Standards

What are standards?

Statements that are used as a basis of comparison in measuring quality, value, or

quantity.

Defining Standards

Common Standards…The weight a child should achieve at

birth to be considered healthy

Defining Standards

The grades a student receives to be considered competent

Report

Card

A+

Defining Standards

The skills one demonstrates to be certified as a teacher, plumber,

doctor, driver, etc.

Defining Standards

Standards are a part of our daily life—so routine, we may not even

recognize them as standards.

Defining StandardsWhy are standards important?

• Lend precision to vague constructs• Help to clarify what we want to achieve• Provide an opportunity to build consensus• Establish a base for measurement• Can produce more equitable outcomes• Can advance an agenda like school readiness

BUT…

There are many different kinds of standards related to

school readiness.

V. Different Types of Standards

Different Types of Standards I. II. III.

IV. V. VI.

Early Learning & Development Teacher Standards Program/School Standards Standards

Social Indicators Access to Services Systemic Effectiveness

Example: Four-year-old children will be able to state name, where they live, parents’ names, and siblings’ names.

Note: These are usually manifest in children’s behavior or discourse.

I. Defines what children should know and be able to do.

Early Learning & Development Standards

Example: All teachers should know how to assess their students’ competence and report such findings to parents.

Note: These are usually the basis for teacher preparation programs.

II. Defines what teachers should know and do to advance their students’ learning.

Teacher Standards

Example: Every program will have indoor and outdoor space.

Example: Every program will have appropriate developmental materials for children.

Example: Every program will welcome families.

III. Defines the nature of the program or school.

Program/School Standards

Example: The percentage of children who live in poverty.

Example: The percentage of children who are born malnourished.

Note: These are usually phrased in terms of risk factors.

IV. Defines the nature of the social context in which the child exists (family and community conditions).

Social Indicators

Example: The percentage of children who have access to high-quality child development programs.

Example: The percentage of children who have developmental screenings upon entry to preschool programs.

Note: These are usually defined for a geographic catchment, area, city, town, or neighborhood.

V. Defines the nature and amount of children who have access to diverse services. Access to Services

VI. Defines the degree to which elements or disparate services work together.

Example: The cost savings that are realized when programs buy supplies jointly.

Note: This is the least well-developed area, and is often quite problematic for nations and states with highly diverse delivery systems.

System Effectiveness

Different Types of Standards

We are focusing on Bucket One:

Early Learning & Development Standards:

Standards that specify what children know and can do

I.

VI. Early Learning and Development Standards

Early Learning & Development Standards

Statements of expectation for “what children should know

and be able to do”

Returning to the NEGP Domains and the Second Question:

Physical Health, Well-Being, and Motor Development

Social & Emotional Development Approaches Toward Learning Language, Literacy & Communication Cognition and General Knowledge

What are examples of standards?

Physical and Motor Development

Run around obstacles and corners Walk up and down stairs, alternating feet,

without assistance Throw and catch large balls Kick ball forward

By age four, children will be able to…

Social & Emotional Development

Take turns and share with peers to have fun playing together

Show understanding of the consequences of own actions on others

Describe how own actions make others feel and behave

Show empathy for hurt child



Approaches Toward Learning

Invent new activities or games Use imagination to create a variety of ideas Make up words, songs, or stories Express ideas through art, construction,

movement, or music Engage in pretend play

Language, Literacy & Communication

Speak clearly enough to be understood by most listeners

Use multiple-word sentence(s) to communicate needs, ideas, actions, and/or feelings

Repeat works or ideas to be sure information is communicated

Draw a picture with objects and people to communicate an idea or event with assistance


Cognition and General Knowledge

Explore various ways to solve a problem and select one option

Seek assistance from another child or an adult to solve problems

Modify actions based on new information and experiences


VII. Using Standards

Early Learning &

Development Standards

Improve Instruction

Improve Public

Knowledge of Children’s

Development

Evaluate Programs Improve

Parenting Skills and Behaviors

Improve Diagnostic Screening

Monitor National Progress

Improve Teacher

Preparation

Your Standards are the BASIS for Many Diverse

Uses:

Some of the Uses Directly Benefit Individuals

Improve parenting Improve diagnostic screening Improve teacher preparation Improve instruction

Improve InstructionIm

prov

e D

iagn

osti

c S

cree

nin

g Improve

Paren

ting

Skills

Benefits Individuals!

Improve Teacher Preparation

Some of the Uses Directly Benefit the Total Population

Improve the public knowledge of child development

Evaluate programs Monitor national progress

Public KnowledgeN

atio

nal

M

onit

orin

g Program

E

valuation

Benefits Total Population!

Teacher Preparation

Improve

InstructionIm

pro

ve

Dia

gnos

tic

Scr

een

ing

Imp

rove P

arentin

g Sk

ills

Public KnowledgeN

atio

nal

M

onit

orin

g Program

E

valuation

Provide, for the first time, an integrated approach!

The beauty of the standards is that we are creating an integrated approach to

school readiness!!!

Standards

Consider Your Standards as a Bank

Improve Instruction

Improve Parenting Skills

Improve Diagnostic Screening

Improve Teacher Preparation

Evaluate Programs

Monitor National Programs

Improve Public Knowledge of Children’s Development

Standards Bank

Possible Use I

□ Used as an observation guide for children’s progress□ Can aggregate results into a class profile□ Can use as the base for planning class activities

and tailoring them to children’s needs□ When used to improve instruction, we:

Use items from all domains Use with all children Conduct the observations at least 2 or 3 times a year

Improve Instruction

Possible Use II

□ Use as the basis for pedagogical activities and the development of learning materials to be used in the home□ Help parents better understand realistic expectations

for children and their progress□ When we use standards for this purpose, we usually

Use items from all domains Use as a guide

Improve Parenting Skills and Behaviors

Possible Use III

□ Use as the basis for public service announcements

□ Use to train media reporters□ Use to inform policy makers□ Use to inform public at large□ When we use standards for this purpose, we

Don’t use all of them Pick those that are most clear to the public

Improve Public Knowledge

Possible Use IV

□ Use standards as the basis for developing screening tools

Can use to screen large numbers of children for learning or behavioral status

Screening is always followed by more detailed assessments

Diagnostic Screening Tool

Possible Use V

□ Use to train teachers of young children what they should be exposing children to

□ Could establish modules around the domains□ Use standards to develop teacher certification

criteria that specify what teachers should know and do

□ Use as the basis for revamping teacher education

Improve Teacher Preparation and Certification

Possible Use VI

Become basis for data collection instruments that assess child outcomes

Collect data on program variables (e.g., group size, teacher quality) and relate to child outcomes

Use to make decisions about effectiveness of programs

Program Evaluation

Possible Use VII

□ Collect national data on performance of children to tell how the nation’s children as a whole are doing

Don’t need data on all children Don’t need all items – can matrix sample Don’t need it annually

National Monitoring

VIII. Standards in Action: What do Teachers and

Parents Think?

Pilot Project on Standards-Driven Instruction

Part of the Head Start Improvement Efforts Selected eight demonstration efforts to be

implemented and evaluated Teachers College was awarded one of the

grants and worked with teachers and parents in several communities to implement a new approach to classroom instruction


Teachers received lots of support Teachers conducted child assessments Teachers used the data from the child

assessments to plan their programs Teachers reassessed the children periodically Teachers adjusted their classrooms to

accommodate children’s learning needs, AND

ALL THE WHILE, THE CHILDREN PLAYED


Results: Teacher Practices Teachers are better able to connect observation

data to specific developmental tasks, and use this data to improve curriculum, teaching practices, and communication to parents Before: “This child has no interest in science and

math areas.” After: “I have to plan different activities and

experiences to draw his interest to these areas. “


Results: Teacher Practices Teachers better understand the developmental

domains, focus more on the whole child to meet their individual needs Before: A teacher’s key focus was on a child’s

social-emotional, challenging behaviors. After: The teacher can now recognize the child’s

many “can do” abilities in all developmental domains.


Results: Teacher Practices Project provided validation as professionals

“The classroom became a community with purpose. The project made us have purpose - know ‘why’ we're doing it.”

“It helped us learn how to run a better classroom. How to communicate better. How to work with the individual child better.”


Results: Teacher Practices Assessments gave teachers new ways to help children

learn “From observing we find out what the child knows, and what

can be completed and accomplished by the child. From the anecdotal notes we find out what the child has learned, what they need, and how we can help the child.”

“We can see where the child is, and where they need help, where without the assessments we might have overlooked something. It shows us things we may not have thought of. It shows us what way we can go. It gives us better insight into the things.”


75

80

85

90

95

Intervention Control

FallSpring

3456789

10


FallSpring

Results: Child School Readiness Children are demonstrating significantly greater gains in

several areas, including:

5

10

15


FallSpring

– Dictation (early writing skills)

– Sustained Attention (staying on task)

– Letter Knowledge (letter naming and identification)

Note: Results are based on t-tests of change scores. Reported differences in gains are significant at p<.05.

IX. Concluding Thoughts

Concluding Thoughts You have a right to be concerned about standards –

they represent a different way of doing things The present push is to use them in the wrong way

and to make them too narrow By understanding standards, their potential, and

how to link them to play, we can: Improve quality of our teaching Improve outcomes for kids Improve parents’ understanding of early childhood Improve policy makers’ understanding of our work and its

importance

Concluding Thoughts

Done well, and we CAN do it well, standards and play are the best combination for ECE

It’s not an either/or; it’s a BOTH

Documents

Early Learning Standards: A Huge Problem or A Huge Possibility? Sharon L. Kagan, Ed.D. Santa Monica, CA November 19, 2005