Bernard Spodek

• University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Family literacy studies have shown that the role of parental storybook reading has an impact on children’s success in school‐based literacy instruction. Storybook reading is when adults read an appropriate text to their children. This review describes studies in which parents and children engage in storybook reading. It specifically reports studies...

This study examined families’ choices of children’s literature books for joint story reading. Teachers, parents, and their children from five kindergarten classrooms participated in the study. Over a 4months period, family members joined other parents twice a week to learn and practice story reading techniques. They selected children’s literature b...

Educational programs for young children emerged reasonably early in the history of the United States of America. Its theoretical foundation was based on the thoughts and principles of various early European scholars who differed from one another in their educational theories and how they viewed experiences that would impact on young children’s educ...

This article discusses studies that provide the historical and contemporary patterns of father involvement in the USA to provide researchers with an understanding of contemporary fatherhood. It describes the historical patterns and research studies on father involvement that created methodological and conceptual challenges in conducting studies tha...

Educational programs for young children emerged reasonably early in the history of the United States of America. The movements of Child-Centered Education, the Nursery School, the Project Method, Curriculum Reform, and contemporary research have all influenced mathematics in early childhood education. The Froebelian kindergarten and the Montessori...

This review presents recent studies on Mexican American fathers in the United Sates to provide researchers with an understanding of contemporary fatherhood of Mexican American individuals. It describes the myths that create methodological and conceptual problems in conducting research studies to characterize Mexican American fathers. It also sugges...

This critical review presents studies of Mexican American fathers in the United Sates to provide researchers with an understanding of contemporary fatherhood. It describes the myths that caused methodological and conceptual problems in interpreting the results of studies on Mexican American fathers. Several common challenges and limitations in thos...

Researchers and educators have developed an interest in language development. Their studies focused on the cultural context in which language is learned and developed and its relationship to cognitive development. This article reviews the researchers’ definitions on oracy and its social facets of language learning. Specifically, it reviews studies...

The issue of the preparation of effective teachers becomes more critical for teachers of early childhood programs. It has been hypothesized that better program quality depends on better‐educated teachers. The purpose of this investigation was to explore the importance of a high level of education for all early childhood education teachers. This iss...

Studies indicate that young children’s literacy learning can be promoted in a play setting. Literacy interactions, strategies, and activities in the children’s play environment can facilitate their acquisition of literacy. In literacy‐related play experiences, children select and utilize their abilities that are essential for literacy learning in a...

Early Childhood educators, in their pursuit of the new—the innovative—too often overlook the traditions of the field. As a result, they often miss the ideologial and value basis of early childhood education programs. Only by building on the past, and understanding the past, can we come to understand the practices of the present and seek better ways...

Examines recent trends in early childhood education practice: the education of all children in inclusive classes, the management of vertical and horizontal transitions, the emergence of early childhood education and care programs, the development of school-family-community partnerships, the emphasis on language learning and emergent literacy, the i...

Developmental theories have been a resource in developing early childhood curriculum. Development is not a unified field, with a single integrated set of theories, nor does one theory or set of theories predominate. Many different competing theories exist, some dealing with only limited domains of development, and theories are perpetually being rev...

This study was designed to determine the potential effects of a family literacy intervention program. The treatment was a five-month intervention with 15 families as they engaged in playful explorations with literacy materials, first in workshops and later in their homes. The program was designed to help families enhance the play context at home to...

Culture and child development have been seen as two separate sources of early childhood curriculum. Essentially they are closely related, since culture heavily influences development. We can see the influence of culture on development. In looking at programs of early childhood education from different countries, we can also see how the culture of e...

Play has long been a significant part of early childhood education programs. How play is used in programs today, as well as how it is regarded, often relates to how play has been conceived at various times in the past. Understanding how play has been interpreted throughout history and how educators and psychologists view play today can help teacher...

"Teacher Preparation" initiates the "Yearbook in Early Childhood Education Series". This volume is designed to explore the issues that face the field regarding the nature of early childhood practice, the preparation of practitioners, and the need to address these areas as the field prepares for the future. Contemporary programmes preparing early ch...

The call for reform in early childhood education has resulted in proposals for improving the level of professionalism among early childhood practitioners and the establishment of credentialling systems. A further result has been the modification of state early childhood teacher certification. This paper argues that the integration of new knowledge...

Against the background of early attempts to establish provision for young children in China, influenced by practices imported from Japan. This paper describes the current scene in Taiwan and focusses on issues to be resolved currently.

This paper explores the requirements of certification and credentialing ‐ aspects of a process which attempts to assure that individuals who work with children satisfy basic requirements in respect of training and experience, whether as teachers or child care personnel.

This study identified appropriate sectarian content for Jewish Early Childhood education programs. Using a national sample of early childhood Jewish educators, a Delphi technique was used to identify specific elements of Jewish history and culture considered worthy to be taught to young Jewish children. Seven categories of study were identified: (1...

The expansion of early childhood Jewish education in the United States has not led to an expansion of conceptions relating to the curriculum options available for these schools. This suggests that greater efforts must be made to identify curriculum sources and to derive modern, innovative approaches to sectarian curriculum for early childhood Jewis...

With the shift from the Froebelian kindergarten to the Progressive kindergarten at the turn of the century, early childhood education became closely associated with the child development field. Child development theory was used to justify the nature of early childhood programs and often it seemed that these programs were derived from specific child...

This paper presents a profile of Chinese kindergartens. The problems discussed are related to (a) the provision of kindergarten education, (b) the only child, (c) teacher training, (d) the knowledge base of kindergarten education, and (e) reform of the kindergarten curriculum. The Chinese are reforming the kindergarten to support creativity and ind...

Discusses the history of kindergarten education in China. Describes current teacher training practices and problems in the preparation of kindergarten teachers. Problems are often related to a lack of training resources, recruitment, selection of graduates for teaching, and the present model of teaching. Reform measures for kindergarten teacher pre...

Play is an important part of the life of the young child, both at home and in school. In designing a play environment for handicapped children who are attending a preschool along with their nonhandicapped peers, the teacher needs to be aware of the needs and limitations resulting from the child's particular disability. This knowledge can be put to...