Eager to learn : educating our preschoolers

Clearly babies come into the world remarkably receptive to its wonders. Their alertness to sights, sounds, and even abstract concepts makes them inquisitive explorers--and learners--every waking minute. Well before formal schooling begins, children's early experiences lay the foundations for their later social behavior, emotional regulation, and literacy. Yet, for a variety of reasons, far too little attention is given to the quality of these crucial years. Outmoded theories, outdated facts, and undersized budgets all play a part in the uneven quality of early childhood programs throughout our country. What will it take to provide better early education and care for our children between the ages of two and five? Eager to Learn explores this crucial question, synthesizing the newest research findings on how young children learn and the impact of early learning. Key discoveries in how young children learn are reviewed in language accessible to parents as well as educators: findings about the interplay of biology and environment, variations in learning among individuals and children from different social and economic groups, and the importance of health, safety, nutrition and interpersonal warmth to early learning. Perhaps most significant, the book documents how very early in life learning really begins. Valuable conclusions and recommendations are presented in the areas of the teacher-child relationship, the organization and content of curriculum, meeting the needs of those children most at risk of school failure, teacher preparation, assessment of teaching and learning, and more. The book discusses: \* Evidence for competing theories, models, and approaches in the field and a hard look at some day-to-day practices and activities generally used in preschool. \* The role of the teacher, the importance of peer interactions, and other relationships in the child's life. \* Learning needs of minority children, children with disabilities, and other special groups. \* Approaches to assessing young children's learning for the purposes of policy decisions, diagnosis of educational difficulties, and instructional planning. \* Preparation and continuing development of teachers. Eager to Learn presents a comprehensive, coherent picture of early childhood learning, along with a clear path toward improving this important stage of life for all children. This volume contains the report of research carried out at the request of the US Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement, the National Research Council (which was responsible for this publication), and the Office of Special Education programs, among others. Many of the papers were first delivered at a workshop at the National Academy of Science in April 1999. The findings of the report are summarized in an initial chapter; subsequent chapters report on the topics of the science of learning, individual and cultural variations and their effect on learning, an assessment of preschool programs in the US, curriculum and pedagogy, standardized assessment, teacher training, and program and practice standards. Each chapter is supported with statistics and references to other studies. A comprehensive bibliography is included Cover -1 Front Matter 2 Preface 8 Contents 12 Tables, Boxes, and Figures 15 Executive Summary 22 1 Introduction 44 2 What Does the Science of Learning Contribute to Early Childhood Pedagogy? 58 3 The Importance of Individual and Cultural Variations 80 4 Preschool Program Quality 149 5 Curriculum and Pedagogy: The What and the How of Early Childhood Education 203 6 Assessment in Early Childhood Education 254 7 The Preparation of Early Childhood Professionals 282 8 Program and Practice Standards 298 9 Findings, Conclusions, and Recommendations 327 Appendix: Scientific Evidence 344 References 354 Biographical Sketches 424 Index 436 Annotation "Eager to Learn" presents a comprehensive, coherent picture of early childhood learning, along with a clear path toward improving this important stage in children's lives. New findings about the interplay of biology and environment, socioeconomic variations in learning, and the importance of health and nutrition are revealed Committee On Early Childhood Pedagogy, Commission On Behavioral And Social Sciences And Education, National Research Council ; Barbara T. Bowman, M. Suzanne Donovan, And M. Susan Burns, Editors. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 333-402) And Index.