300:410:01 Fall, 2012
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
Learning and Development in a Social Context 05:300:410:01 3 Credits Dr. Susan Golbeck Associate Professor Department of Educational Psychology, GSE Phone: 732 932 7496 x8323 Office Hours: Mondays, 4:00 ‐ 5:00 Tuesdays, 1:00 ‐ 2:00 Mode of Instruction ___ Lecture _X_Seminar ___ Hybrid ___ Online ___ Other
Email address:
[email protected]
10 Seminary Pl CAC Rm _322__ Pre‐req: 830:331 (Infant & Child Dev) For students in P‐3/Elementary Cert Only Permission required: __ No X Yes Office of Academic Services, GSE, Rm 114
Learning goals: 1. Students will have an understanding of the principles of human development as evidenced in cognition, social, emotional and physical development. 2. Students will understand how these principles apply to children’s functioning in real world environments especially in schools and homes. 3. Students will develop the skills for observing children in classrooms and everyday social contexts. 4. Students will evidence an understanding of how children’s development, is influenced by social and cultural factors. 5. Students will acquire the skills to think critically about resources on child development that are available to practitioners and parents Course catalog description: This is an advanced course in child development for prospective teachers with a focus on learning and development during the preschool, kindergarten and the primary years. Children’s social and emotional development as well emerging cognitive skills in language, representation and problem solving are examined from a cognitive‐ developmental‐ecological framework. Students will integrate theory and research with observations of children in classrooms and community contexts. Required Textbooks:
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300:410:01 Fall, 2012
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
Howes, C. & Ritchie, S. (2002). A matter of trust: Connecting teachers and learners in early childhood classrooms. New York: Teachers College Press. (Paperback) ISBN 0‐8077‐ 4264‐3 Paley, V. (1992). You can’t say You can’t play. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press. (paperback) ISBN 0‐674‐96590‐6‐90000. Weiss, H., Kreider, H.,Lopez, M. & Chatman, C. (Eds.) (2010). Preparing educators to involve families: From theory to practice, 2nd ed., Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. (Paperback). ISBN: 978‐1‐4129‐7437‐0.
Grading policy: All assignments are due on the date posted in the syllabus unless special arrangements have been with the instructor beforehand. Major assignments should be written in APA Style. They should be submitted in both a hard copy and electronically. Please be sure your name is on all your work. If assignments are turned in late, the grade may be lowered. You are expected to make weekly entries into the discussion on the class website. You should make at least three posts during the week. These should include at least one new question or comment and at least one response to a classmate. The comments need to be posted before class. You are expected to come to class. There will be a sign in sheet. If you miss more than two weeks of class, your grade may be lowered. Assignments, readings, lecture notes and online discussion will be posted on the course website: It is not acceptable to submit a paper that you wrote for another class. If you have a continuing interest in a topic, speak to the instructor about appropriate strategies to build upon your knowledge. Assignments: Weekly posts on the discussion board on the class website. These should reflect your thoughtful reactions to the reading as well as your classmates’ ideas. You are expected to make at least three posts a week. You should respond to others and you should also initiate a discussion. 10% of final grade. Students will complete a major project. The project is a plan or design for a family involvement program. The plan will include a research based rationale that clearly articulates goals for the setting along with a justification for the design in terms of principles in human development. Further details about this will be provided in class. Topics must be approved in advance, no later than 2
300:410:01 Fall, 2012
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
October 15. The final document is due at the last class, December 12. The last two class periods will include student presentations of the projects. Students presenting on December 5 may turn in the completed, written product on December 12. 40% of final grade. Students will prepare written critiques of two research articles. The research articles to be evaluated are listed on the syllabus. Everyone in the class will read the article and the student who has written the critique will also lead a discussion. Guidelines for the written critique will be discussed in class and posted on the class website. Details will be worked out during the first and second weeks of class. Each critique is worth 10 points. Together, this will be 20% of the grade. There will be one in class exam on November 12. This will be an “open book” essay exam and it will draw upon readings and class presentation topics. 30% of final grade.
Policy on Academic Integrity Please refer to the Policy on Academic Integrity for Undergraduate and Graduate Students at http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu. I will follow the policy strictly. Care, respect and integrity in written and classroom exchanges. All written work, including postings on the class website should be proofread for clarity, spelling, grammatical errors and the like. Outside sources should be referenced appropriately (either APA or Chicago style is acceptable). Please use language that is appropriate for the classroom setting and maintain a professional tone in both your Sakai postings and classroom discussions. Please do your own work and cite your sources. For more details, go to: http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/integrity.shtml#I. Attendance Policy You are expected to be in class. We want your informed and thoughtful participation in class discussions. This is a small class and we will all notice if you are not there. There will be a sign in sheet at every class meeting. The University has a policy on student absences. Students are responsible for reporting health and other emergence absences (much like they do as employees after they graduate). The system generates automatic e‐mails to faculty teaching the students. Please use the absence reporting website https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/ to indicate the date and reason for your absence. An e‐mail is automatically sent to me. Web site: There is a class website on Sakai‐‐
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300:410:01 Fall, 2012
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
Course Schedule
Date Sept 10 Class 1 Sept 17 Class 2
Sept 24 Class 3
Topic Introduction About the class… Children’s play: Play and children’s learning Contrasting perspectives: across cultural contexts. Reading research Infancy and toddlerhood: Social interaction and play Why is play so important for children’s cognitive, social and emotional development during early childhood? What IS play in childhood? How does it seem to change over the early and middle elementary school years? What are the most important points for teachers of young children to keep in mind about play? These are questions for today and the next 3 classes.
Assignment Paley, V. (1992). You can’t say you can’t play. pp 3 ‐134. Farver & Lee‐Shinn (2000). Acculturation and Korean‐ American children’s social and play behavior. Social Development, 9(3), 316 ‐ 336 ** Howes & Ritchie. Part I Understanding attachment organizations I the classroom. (pp. 11 ‐ 47) Bruner, J. and V. Sherwood. (1976). Early rule structure: The case of “Peek‐a‐boo” Reprinted in M. Gauvain (ed.) Readings in Child Development. (pp 73‐78). Baumer,S., Ferholt, B. & Lecusay, R. (2005). Promoting narrative competence through adult‐child joint pretense: Lessons from Scandanavian educational practice of playworld. Cognitive Development, 20, 576‐590. ** Zero to Three (2004). Temperament in early childhood. A primer for the perplexed. (
[email protected]) Chemtob, Nomura, Rajendran, Yehuda, Schwartz & Abramovitz (2010). Impact of maternal posttraumatic stress disorder and depression following exposure to the September 11 attacks on preschool children’s behavior. Child Development, 81(4), 1129‐1141. ** ECSE
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300:410:01 Fall, 2012
Oct 1 Class 4
Oct 8 Class 5
Oct 15 Class 6
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
The preschool years: Play and symbolic processes. Social development & early collaborations On pretend play
Howes & Ritchie, Part II. Teacher behaviors and classroom organizations that foster trusting child‐teacher relationships. Vygotsky, L. The role of play in development. In Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes, pp. 92‐104. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Krafft, K. & Berk, L. (1998). Private speech in two preschools: Significance of open ended activities and make‐ believe play for verbal self‐regulation. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 13(4), 637‐658. ** Davis‐Unger, A.C.(2008). Development of teaching skills and relationships to theory of mind in preschoolers. Journal of Cognition & Development, 9, 26‐45. ** Representations as tools of thought Executive Functions (EF’s) Building the brain’s “air traffic control” system: How early in early childhood. experiences shape the development of executive function. What are they and why Working paper 11. National Forum on Early childhood Policy and Programs. Center for the Developing Child at Harvard. are they important? (2010). Does play help build them? Diamond, A. & Lee, K. (2011). Interventions shown to aid Self regulation, attention, executive function in children 4 to 12 years old. Science, 333, 959‐ 963 (2011). ** reflection, control, brain development. Lilliard & Else‐Ouest (2008). Evaluating Montessori education. Science, 1893‐1894. ** Klahr The elementary school Howes & Ritchie Part III. The teacher, the child and the years. New cognitive whole classroom of children: Creation and preservation of competencies. the community. (pp‐101 ‐ 146.) Play today: Many kinds of Riley, J. & Jones, R. (2010). Acknowledging learning through games and new play in the primary grades. Childhood Education, 86, 146‐ challenges. 156. Settings for play 5
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Oct 22 Class 7
Oct 29 Class 8
Nov 5 Class 9
Nov 12 Class 10
Understanding the families you encounter: Not everyone is like you. What difference does that make? Understanding the connections between school, community, family and the child. Talking about cases. More on children’s thinking.
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
Weiss et al (2010) Section I (pp. 1‐24)
Weiss et al. (2010) Preparing educators to involve families: From theory to practice. Section II: The meso system. Section III. The exosystem. (pp.25‐60) Trionfi & Reese (2009) A good story…. Child Development, 80(4), 1301‐1313. ** Taylor, Carlson, Maring, Gerow & Charley (2004). The characteristics and correlates of fantasy in school age children: Imaginary companions, impersonation and social understanding. Developmental Psychology 40, 1173‐1187** Building bridges with Weiss et al. (2010). Section IV: The macro system. Section families. V, The chronosystem. (remainder of book) Expanding social worlds Trost, Ward & Senso (2010). Effects of child care policy and environment on physical activity. Medical Science: Sports A close look at the settings Exercise, 42(3), 520 ‐ 525. ** around us Children & families with Christenson, S. L. (1999). Families and schools: Rights, special needs responsibilities, resources and relationships. In Pianta & Cox (eds.), The transition to kindergarten. Pp. 143‐177.. Brookes Publishing Co. Howes, Guerra, Fuligni, Zucker, Lee, Obregon & Spivak (2011) Classsroom dimensions predicte early peer interaction when children are diverse in ethnicity, race and home language. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 26, 399‐408. ** ECSE EXAM OPEN BOOK (in class)
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300:410:01 Fall, 2012
Nov 19 Class 11
Nov 26 Class 12 Dec 5 Class 13 Dec 12 Class 14
The child and family in a social context: Ways for schools and families to connect THANKSGIVING DAY Contexts for learning & development: A comprehensive view Student projects & discussion Student projects & discussion
S. Golbeck Dept of Educational Psychology, GSE
Project discussions. Catch up on research reports. TBA
November 22 Working with community resources. Assignment tba Discussion of projects in class. The role of the early childhood educator. Best practices and resources for teachers. Discussion of projects‐‐ Child development in the community: Issues for families & policy makers
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