Early childhood network, 2005.

This brochure states the mission of the Early Childhood Network along with contact names and addresses of the specialists and consultants in the Iowa Department of Education and the Iowa Area Education Agencies for the years 2005/2006.

Don't we care?: the ethics and emotional labour of early years professionalism

This paper argues that early childhood education and care (ECEC) has a legitimate aspiration to be a 'caring profession' like others such as nursing or social work, defined by a moral purpose. For example, practitioners often draw on an ethic of care as evidence of their professionalism. However, the discourse of professionalism in England completely excludes the ethical vocabulary of care. Nevertheless, it necessarily depends on gendered dispositions towards emotional labour, often promoted by training programmes as 'professional' demeanours. Taking control of the professionalisation agenda therefore requires practitioners to demonstrate a critical understanding of their practice as 'emotion work'. At the same time, reconceptualising practice within a political ethic of care may allow the workforce, and new trainees in particular, to champion 'caring' as a sustainable element of professional work, expressed not only in maternal, dyadic key-working but in advocacy for care as a social principle.

Three essays on education from the perspective of the economics of public setor

This work consists of three essays organized into chapters that seek to answer questions at first sight unrelated, but with one common denominator, which is the scarcity of public resources devoted to education, overall, especially in lower education. . The first chapter deals with the scarcity of resources devoted to education in a context of population aging. Two hypotheses were tested for Brazilian municipalities on the relationship between the aging of the population and educational expenditure. The first, already proven in the literature, is that there is an intergenerational conflict for resources and the increase of the share of elderly in the population reduces the educational expenditure. The second, proposed here for the first time, is that there should be reduction of competition for resources if there is a relationship of co-residence between young and old. The results indicated that an increase in the share of elderly reduces the educational expenditure per youth. But the results also illustrate that an increase in the share of elderly co-residing with youth (family arrangement more common in Latin American countries) raises the educational expenditure, which reflects a reduction of competition for resources between generations. The second chapter assesses the allocative efficiency of investments in Higher Education. Using the difference between first-year and last-year students��� scores from Enade aggregated by HEI as a product in the Stochastic Production Function, is possible to contribute with a new element in the literature aimed at estimating the production function of education. The results show that characteristics of institutions are the variables that best explain the performance of students, and that public institutions are more inefficient than the private ones. Finally, the third chapter presents evidence that the allocation of public resources in early childhood education is important for a better future school performance. In this chapter was calculated the effects of early childhood education on literacy scores of children attending the 2nd grade of elementary school. The results using OLS and propensity score matching show that students who started school at the ages to 5, 4, and 3 years had literacy scores between 12.22 and 19.54 points higher than the scores of those who began school at the ages 6 years or late. The results also suggest that the returns in terms of literacy scores diminish in relation to the number of years of early childhood education.

Social aspects of dental caries in the context of mother-child pairs

The relationship between mother and child in the context of oral health has traditionally been exposed by the scientific literature in microbiology, which lacks a broad and necessary discussion of health and illness seen as processes, both biological and social. Objective: Investigate the family social determinants associated with the caries history of children and the need for dental treatment (NDT) among their mothers was the objective of this study. Material and Methods: This research employed a cross-sectional study of mother-child pairs living in southern Brazil. Data collection occurred in public institutions of early childhood education. The instruments included a structured questionnaire administered to mothers and clinical oral examinations of the mothers and children. The social variables considered were marital status, maternal education, number of children, income, employment status, and frequency of visits to a dental professional. The measured outcomes were the maternal NDT and child caries history. Data were analyzed by the chi-square test (chi 2) and by discriminant analysis. Results: The final sample consisted of 272 mother-child pairs and it was found that the greatest need for treatment was among mothers with low educational level and low family income who rarely or never visited a dentist. Tooth decay was less frequent in only child, and most frequent in children of mothers with low educational attainment, and in children in lower income households who rarely or never visited the dentist. The social determinants of caries in children and of the maternal NDT were similar. It follows that the maternal NDT and caries history among children were strongly associated with maternal education (p<0.0001), household income (p<0.0001), and frequency of visits to a dental professional (0.0018). Caries history among children was also associated with number of children in the household (p<0.0001). Conclusions: The results suggest that the caries experience in children depended less on the family social variables than on the maternal NDT.

Computerizing Social-Emotional Assessment for School Readiness: First Steps toward an Assessment Battery for Early Childhood Settings

The transition into formal schooling is a crucial foundation that can set children on a cycle of success or failure in both academic and social domains. A child���s abilities to express healthy emotions, understand emotions of self and others, regulate emotion, attention, and behavior, make good decisions regarding social problems, and engage in a range of prosocial behaviors, all work together to promote a successful school experience. However, many children have deficits in these skills by school entry, and educators lack the requisite tools to identify, track and assess skills these children need to learn. Thus, because social-emotional learning (SEL) is so crucial, assessment tools to pinpoint children���s skills and progress are vitally necessary. Previous work by the authors and other researchers has led to the development of strong assessment tools; however, these tools are often developed solely for research use, not practitioner application. In the following, using our assessment battery as an example, we will discuss the steps necessary to adapt SEL assessment for computer-based administration and optimal utility in early childhood education programs.

An investigation of parents' and children's beliefs of early literacy acquisition from a cross -cultural perspective

It has been reported that the cultural-historical experiences of ethnic group members can play a role in the literacy beliefs of those members. Socioeconomic conditions can also influence the belief system of the groups' constituents. This study investigated parents' and children's beliefs pertaining to early literacy acquisition as related to the ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES) of the participants. The objectives were to determine (a) the differential patterns regarding emergent literacy and traditional skills approaches as they interact with ethnicity and SES and (b) the correspondence between parents and children's beliefs about literacy acquisition. ^ The study was conducted with 152 parents (38 low-income Hispanic, 38 middle-income Hispanic, 38 low-income African-American, and 38 middle-income African-American) and 36 of their 3-, 4-, or 5-year-old children (18 male and 18 female). ^ The parents were asked to check those items with which they agreed on a survey that consisted of an equal number of items from the traditional skills-based and emergent literacy orientations. These responses were used to determine the differences and interaction by ethnicity and SES. The children responded to open-ended questions related to the instruction of reading and writing skills. The parents' responses and children's answers were compared to ascertain the matching parent-child dyads by ethnicity and SES. ^ An item analysis was conducted to strengthen the internal reliability consistency coefficient of the traditional skills-based and emergent literacy scales as measured by the Cronbach Alpha. ^ A two-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) revealed a significant difference in traditional skill-based beliefs for the low-income African-American and Hispanic parents. There were no significant findings for the parents' traditional skill based or emergent literacy beliefs based on ethnicity, for the interaction between ethnicity and SES, or for the relationship between parents' and children's literacy beliefs by ethnicity and SES. ^ It can be concluded that low-income African-American and Hispanic parents believe in the traditional skills approach, indicating that these parents find it necessary for children to have sufficient school readiness skills prior to learning to read or write. In addition, the parent and child dyads had a strong tendency toward emergent literacy beliefs. ^

Measuring early childhood health : a composite index comparing Colombian departments

This paper presents a composite index of early childhood health using a multivariate statistical approach. The index shows how child health varies across Colombian departments, -administrative subdivisions-. In recent years there has been growing interest in composite indicators as an efficient analysis tool and a way of prioritizing policies. These indicators not only enable multi-dimensional phenomena to be simplified but also make it easier to measure, visualize, monitor and compare a country���s performance in particular issues. We used data collected from the Colombian Demographic and Health Survey, DHS, for 32 departments and the capital city, Bogot��, in 2005 and 2010. The variables included in the index provide a measure of three dimensions related to child health: health status, health determinants and the health system. In order to generate the weight of the variables and take into account the discrete nature of the data, we employed a principal component analysis, PCA, using polychoric correlation. From this method, five principal components were selected. The index was estimated using a weighted average of the components retained. A hierarchical cluster analysis was also carried out. We observed that the departments ranking in the lowest positions are located on the Colombian periphery. They are departments with low per capita incomes and they present critical social indicators. The results suggest that the regional disparities in child health may be associated with differences in parental characteristics, household conditions and economic development levels, which makes clear the importance of context in the study of child health in Colombia.

Acute leukemia in early childhood

Acute leukemia in early childhood is biologically and clinically distinct. The particular characteristics of this malignancy diagnosed during the first months of life have provided remarkable insights into the etiology of the disease. The pro-B, CD10 negative immunophenotype is typically found in infant acute leukemia, and the most common genetic alterations are the rearrangements of the MLL gene. In addition, the TEL/AML1 fusion gene is most frequently found in children older than 24 months. A molecular study on a Brazilian cohort (age range 0-23 months) has detected TEL/AML1+ve (N = 9), E2A/PBX1+ve (N = 4), PML/RARA+ve (N = 4), and AML1/ETO+ve (N = 2) cases. Undoubtedly, the great majority of genetic events occurring in these patients arise prenatally. The environmental exposure to damaging agents that give rise to genetic changes prenatally may be accurately determined in infants since the window of exposure is limited and known. Several studies have shown maternal exposures that may give rise to leukemogenic changes. The Brazilian Collaborative Study Group of Infant Acute Leukemia has found that mothers exposed to dipyrone, pesticides and hormones had an increased chance to give birth to babies with infant acute leukemia [OR = 1.48 (95%CI = 1.05-2.07), OR = 2.27 (95%CI = 1.56-3.31) and OR = 9.08 (95%CI = 2.95-27.96)], respectively. This review aims to summarize recent clues that have facilitated the elucidation of the biology of early childhood leukemias, with emphasis on infant acute leukemia in the Brazilian population.

A educa����o e o cuidado da crian��a: o que advogam os documentos pol��ticos do Minist��rio da Educa����o para a educa����o infantil?

Coordena����o de Aperfei��oamento de Pessoal de N��vel Superior (CAPES)

Nas trincheiras do enfrentamento: um estudo de caso: percep����es e pr��ticas docente voltadas para a crian��a v��tima de viol��ncia dom��stica

O presente trabalho traz como tema a viol��ncia dom��stica contra a crian��a, diz respeito ��s pr��ticas discursivas docentes face �� crian��a maltratada, buscando desvelar os limites e as possibilidades do enfrentamento dos maus tratos infantis dom��sticos no espa��o escolar. Para Tanto, foi realizado um estudo de caso de pr��ticas e viv��ncias de um grupo de professoras da educa����o infantil de uma unidade escolar da rede p��blica municipal de Bel��m, o qual foi desenvolvido atrav��s de entrevistas semi estruturadas, no per��odo compreendido entre Mar��o e Junho de 2009. Portanto, categorias como: inf��ncia, historicidade dos maus tratos, responsabilidades, reconhecimento, ��tica, entre tantos outros, embasaram este estudo, caracteristicamente te��rico e emp��rico. Tendo a hermen��utica como fio te��rico-metodol��gico inspirada nos princ��pios hermen��uticos do agir humano de Paul Ricouer. As an��lises das narrativas docentes indicam que em determinado contextos e circunst��ncias a responsabilidade civil perante a crian��a maltratada perde intensamente o seu sentido pr��tico normativo e somente uma responsabilidade ��tica cal��ada no reconhecimento positivo das crian��as, tem sustentado uma a����o docente de enfrentamento dos maus tratos, este que como pretendemos sinalizar s��o imprescind��veis para a constru����o de uma cultura de respeito e defesa da dignidade humana das crian��as.

Pr��ticas pedag��gicas na educa����o infantil: a constru����o do sentido da escola para as crian��as

Coordena����o de Aperfei��oamento de Pessoal de N��vel Superior (CAPES)

A concep����o de trabalho na educa����o b��sica: caminhos para a forma����o da juventude no Instituto Federal de Educa����o, Ci��ncia e Tecnologia do Cear��

In 2008 two laws that changed the didactic- pedagogic and administrative organization of vocational schools were enacted: the Law 11.741/2008, which incorporated the Technical Professional Education for the Middle Level to Basic Education; and Law 11.892/2008,which has transformed Agrotechnical Schools, the CEFET 's and some technical schools linked to universities into Colleges of Education, Science and Technology (IFs). These institutions have been operating at all levels and types of education provided in the Law of Directives and Bases of National Education number 9394/1996, with the exception of Early Childhood Education. Vocational and training schools, which gave origin to the IFs,have historically restricted youth education to teaching professional techniques, but due to the reformist laws, they were led to revise their conceptions of work and education. Thus, the goal of this article is to analyze the concepts of Basic Education and work that permeate these laws and the organization of educational work at IFCE. Have these laws been promoting a rupture with the history of vocational education in the country? Have the IFs been accomplishing a teaching job in addition to technical training? The choice for these questions was motivated by two main reasons: a) Vocational Education in the aforementioned institutions have traditionally been restricted to the quali���cation of the labor force for learning a technical profession, without relating it to issues that concern basic education; b) The Reform of Basic Education, from 1990 to 2013, was conducted in the context of capital's structural crisis and aimed to adapt the educational system to the demands of productive sectors. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to explain the contradictions that exist in project of formation of the working class, in the context of a con���ictual society divided into classes, a situation that alienates the youth to live this time forever.

The Acting in Group of Teachers as Possibility of Resignification of the Interpretation about the Writing Language

Front of the possibility of acting with the teachers who teach in schools of Early Childhood Education for children aged six years, about the re-siginification of the understanding of writing language and of the importance of the child in this age group establish a positive relationship with this mode of language, was developed in 2011, a project linked to the Teaching of UNESP titled ���Depathologization learning of the writing and inclusive education: reflections and actions of the teacher of Early Childhood Education���. This project aims to identification of the actions, in the classroom, of the patologization and subsequent implementation of actions depathologization writing by teachers��� actions, considering the increasingly early systematization of formal education of this kind of language in kindergarten. To this end, procedures that characterize the collaborative methodology are adopted. Throughout the methodological course, the engagement of the teachers, of the coordination and of the direction was valued, which seemed to favor both the formation, as the maintenance of the group, were very important aspects to ensure the interaction between its members and the common interest in the reflection about the topic in question. This paper focuses attention on whether thematic axes highlight during the initial survey of the expectations of teachers subsequently addressed in theoretical and reflective meetings leading up to identification of actions the patologization and/or of the proposition of the actions despatologizadoras of the learning of the writing, and in what refers to the way they are addressed.

Objetos l��dicos disponibilizados ��s crian��as de 3 a 5 anos: o que encontramos na educa����o infantil?

The goal of this research is to identify and describe the recreational objects, or toys, children���s play and games offered by teachers from a public municipal school of early childhood education in Pederneiras, a city located inland S��o Paulo State. The research has started with a retrospective look of the childhood concept and of the recreational objects with in the classical era till the modernity, what has allowed to identify how to play was in history and what is its relation with education. In order to understand how the recreational objects have been seen at school we have made a survey of the oficial Brazilian documents related to the childhood education. The benchmark survey has allowed the organization of a half structured questionnaire and the Kobayashi studies (2009, 2011), was the mean used to identify and classify the recreational objects found at school. The data collected in the benchmark survey in the field remark and by the questionnaire have permitted to identify here recreational objects available by teachers in early childhood education of 3 to 5 years old children at the school mentioned and what they think about the theme, on the other hand the studies performed have allowed us to analyse the adaptation and validity of the recreational objects already found