In 2021, California launched the Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) program (AB 130), requiring public schools with kindergarten to provide free, high-quality, inclusive pre-kindergarten to all four-year-olds regardless of birth date. Starting in 2022, it increased the original age-eligibility for Transitional Kindergarten (TK)--students turning five…

Engaging pre-service teachers in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) challenges offers active learning experiences that promote an understanding of the significance of STEAM in early childhood education. By integrating community, cultural, and personal assets, STEAM becomes a versatile approach with endless opportunities for…

The KidsCan ECE programme is designed to remove barriers to participation in early childhood education through the provision of raincoats, shoes, nit treatment products, lunches and snacks. Data from an evaluation of the pilot programme involved surveys and interviews with whanau and teachers. Findings showed the benefits for children's health and…

California's 2020 Master Plan for Early Learning and Care gives the state's families choice among programs and providers--private or public, subsidized or unsubsidized (if eligible), offered in schools, child care centers, and family child care homes. This landscape changed significantly with the introduction and subsequent expansion of Universal…

Although research provides ample evidence of teaching methods that facilitate students' learning of specific word meanings, the potential of instruction to impact students' general vocabulary knowledge has remained an unanswered question. This article reports on a three-year formative experiment that developed, implemented, and tested a long-term,…

Shared experiences through school-hosted events, such as family literacy events, can afford opportunities to support and extend academic learning while fostering positive home-school relationships. This article describes the importance of developing primary-grade students' literacy skills through a talent development lens and explains several ways…

Introduction: This study aimed to develop a new tablet application named the Aid for Decision-making in Occupation Choice for School (ADOC-S). It aims to assist with conducting collaborative occupation-based goal-setting by sharing decision-making with a team member (child, parent, teacher, and occupational therapist) using a consultation model of…

In 2019, Policy Studies Associates conducted an evaluation of the Free Library of Philadelphia's Literacy Enrichment Afterschool Program (LEAP), focused on identifying program strategies to support early literacy development. The recommendations that emerged from this evaluation for the Free Library can also inform the efforts of other public…

The article argues for the participation and involvement of students in developing learning spaces within higher education. In early childhood education there is a strong emphasis upon rights, democracy and planning learning through listening to young children. Taking inspiration from this, the study explores the use of participatory approaches in…

Having been involved in undergraduate and graduate student groups on four campuses, the author of this article has noticed certain characteristics commonly found in successful campus groups. These characteristics include: (1) initial and continual planning with community members; (2) active involvement by all stakeholders; and (3) evaluating the…

This resource is a revision of the teaching resource Individualized Program Plans (1995), Book 3 (ED392232) in the Programming for Students with Special Needs series. It aims to create a bridge between the product, the process and the underlying vision of Individualized Program Planning (IPP). The Standards for Special Education (Amended June…