ERIC Number: EJ1319808
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-3920
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
A Complex Systems Network Approach to Quantifying Peer Effects: Evidence from Ghanaian Preprimary Classrooms
Wolf, Sharon; Gonzalez Canche, Manuel S.; Coe, Kristen
Child Development, v92 n6 e1242-e1259 Nov-Dec 2021
Research on classroom peer effects has focused nearly exclusively on high-income countries and on academic skills. Little is known about peer effects in low-income countries and whether effects differ under different educational environments (e.g., teacher-directed versus child-centered, conditions of concentrated advantage or disadvantage). Based on a data set of Ghanaian preprimary classrooms in the Greater Accra Region collected in the 2015-2016 school year, we use complex system networks with multilevel modeling to study the presence and magnitude of peer effects. Results corroborated small statistically significant effects on academic and nonacademic skills (d = 0.06-0.10). Peer effects on literacy were larger for children in public schools, who are relatively more disadvantaged than their private school counterparts. Teacher-directivity intensity did not moderate peer effects.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Child Development, Peer Relationship, Low Income Groups, Teaching Methods, Preschool Education, Literacy, Public Schools, Disadvantaged, Private Schools, Systems Approach, Networks, Comparative Analysis, Academic Achievement
Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www-wiley-com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-us
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Ghana
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A