final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 88 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 updates thank you for your continued support of the international journal of the whole child and our commitment to holistic learning and to the development of the whole child. to improve the efficiency of the journal, we have updated our submission and publication dates. the submission deadline for fall 2022 is september 30th. the submission deadline for the spring 2023 will be february 28th. the fall issues will be published in december and the spring issue will be published in may. lastly, our journal has officially moved to the apa 7th edition. we ask that all authors adhere to this edition when submitting your manuscript for review. thank you again for your continued support. we look forward to seeing you in fall 2022. final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 62 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 tech talk destination adventure: virtual field trips that won’t disappoint! nancy caukina anorth greenville university nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs at north greenville university.  she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been a teacher educator in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates.  abstract who doesn’t love going on an adventure, seeing new sights, observing rare occurrences, talking to people from far away, and experiencing new things? imagine the thrill students can have with doing things not before possible, all while deeply engaged and mastering academic standards. what about taking a trip to the louvre in france, learning about corals in the caribbean sea, investigating ecosystems in colorado, or learning about engineering by visiting an amazon fulfillment center? even if these may seem out of reach, each of these are possible via a virtual field trip. a virtual field trip (vft) can be a great way to provide unique, one-of-a-kind experiences that will captivate students and provide meaningful, standards-aligned learning activities. vft defined so, what is a virtual field trip (vft)? han (2021) describes it as a computer simulation of an actual field trip. vfts involve using a computer or digital device to explore locations, events, or real-life situations represented by images, videos, and audio. some involve augmented or virtual reality, while others utilize synchronous meetings with experts (duong, telemeco, dean, & hansen. 2022). vfts can be a live virtual tour with a guide or a video recording of a past event. some vfts were in place before the covid pandemic; however, many were developed during the pandemic as a temporary measure to engage students. many vfts are continuing to reach a larger audience and fulfill their organization's mission of increasing awareness and educating the public (han, 2021). why vft 63 there are many reasons why a virtual field trip makes sense. sometimes taking students on an actual field trip is not feasible because of logistical barriers (krawkowka, 2012). the travel, expenses, and complexities can prevent teachers from the adventure they want their students to have. vfts tend to be more cost effective especially when they are free (blachowicz & obrochta, 2011; duskin; 2021; lukes, 2014), they tend to be more accessible because physical boundaries and obstacles are not present, and there are fewer safety concerns (han, 2021; krawkowka, 2012). benefits there are benefits vfts afford students beyond overcoming boundaries and obstacles. vfts are shown to increase students’ exposure to new perspectives (duskin, 2021; hampshire, 2021; ross, 2021); are more accessible for rural students (duskin, 2021); and can increase students’ learning outcomes (galas & ketelhut, 2006; merchant et al., 2014). learning during a vft can be embedded in project-based and/or problem-based learning experiences (krawkowka, 2012). imagine students presented with a real-world problem that requires them to consult a scientist in the field, one they can ask questions virtually. imagine students then creating innovative solutions to the real-world problem and presenting that to an audience that is either meeting in person or virtually. with the use of vfts, cross-curricular connections can be made while aligning with academic standards, boosting content knowledge, sparking curiosity and interest in new things and places, connecting curriculum to real-world experiences, and improving vocabulary acquisition (lester, 2012). keep in mind when planning a virtual field trip, there are a few things to keep in mind. it is important to engage students’ senses (hearing, seeing, feeling, smelling) to enhance the experience (blachowicz & obrochta, 2011). don’t forget to identify curricular goals and connections to the standards (blachowicz & obrochta, 2011; lester, 2012). be sure to investigate resources/websites to meet the goals and standards and that will ignite student engagement and curiosity (lester, 2012). plan the progression to ensure enough time, space, and interest. be sure that the curricular goals can be accomplished (lester, 2012; hampshire, 2021). don’t forget to debrief the vft and allow time for student reflection of the learning. then determine the level of effectiveness of the experience and make notes of how to improve the experience for future vfts (lester, 2012). even though the field trip is virtual, you can make it feel like going on a real field trip by doing a few simple things, like getting permission slips, requesting bagged lunches, going over expectations, and moving to different rooms to represent different locations (lester, 2012) many vfts are free, and some come with a cost. below is a table with hyperlinks to vfts that have options like narrated videos; live, virtual guides; on-demand options, and self-guided virtual tours. included in the table are descriptions of the offerings, the costs, and notes identifying resources, age ranges, and any requirements. 64 table 1: list of virtual field trips with explanations for each virtual field trip link type costs notes the nature conservancy narrated videos free teacher guides are available with alignment to the next generation science standards. all age groups. national park service live programs, webcams, virtual tours, narrated videos, photo gallery free multimedia options, activities for different age groups, teacher portal, games and challenges. all age groups. national museum of natural history archived video webinars, ask science how, scientist spotlight, live online school webinars free. registration required for live online school programs. teaching resources available for many programs, do-it-yourself exhibits (must apply for access), multiple languages available for many programs. all age groups walking mountain science center videos, activities, crafts teacher resources with lessons and videos. early childhood middle school discovery education live and ondemand field trips free elementary high school. comes with companion guide, aligned to standards, and hands-on learning activities center for interactive learning and collaboration register for programs free to fees depending on program programs for k-12. disciplines such as music, world languages, science, social studies, the arts, and more. aligned to standards. free membership. ellis island interactive tour self-paced tour with text, images, and video free explores immigration through ellis island with an option to explore immigration from 1492 to current times museum of the revolutionary war self-paced tour with text, images, and free classroom kit and resources for grades 2-8 65 video google maps treks content provided in text, images, video, and google map images free many locations around the world to choose to explore. 360 schools images that can be viewed in vr or normally free thousands of panorama images to choose from. a couple of guided tours and how to create guided tours included. airpano video and images free for some options 360 degree videos and images from around the world virtual field trips on-demand videos and activities $6-10 for single video, $45/year for single class, $350/year schoolwide videos, activities, quizzes and worksheets for k-9 social studies, geography, life sciences, and ancient civilization lessons. world awareness children’s museum virtual and interactive led by museum educator free for preschool 6th grade. activity to complete during or after the event. aligned nys next generation learning standards. 60 minutes long for up to 30 students. san diego zoo live cams watch and learn video san diego zoo arts and crafts activities live cams and recorded videos. activities free watch various animals live in the zoo setting or recorded videos of animal interactions. free activities associated with zoo animals. oregon zoo narrated videos free lesson linked to english language arts, physical education and science. the louvre self-guided virtual tour free access to several petite galleries. louvre kids animated stories free short video stories about different art pieces google arts & images & text free options include artists, mediums, 66 culture and 360 narrated videos art movements, historic events, historical figures, etc. amazon fulfillment scheduled virtual tour free behind the scenes one hour tour using live streaming, videos, 360 degree footage and real-time q&a. registration required amazon future engineer tour scheduled virtual tour free registration required. downloadable teacher toolkit provided. aligned to csta k-12 computer science standards these are but a few of the many virtual field trips to choose from to help enhance instruction and meet curricular needs. virtual field trips are a great way to let students experience new and exciting places, people, and animals. while it takes work on the front end to design a virtual field trip that aligns to standards, sparks curiosity and wonder, and has front-loading and debriefing activities, it can be well worth the effort! 67 references blachowicz, c. l. z., obrochta, c. (2011) vocabulary visits: virtual field trips for content vocabulary development. the reading teacher, 59(3), 262-268. https://doi.org/10.1598/rt.59.3.6 duong, t., m. telemeco, c. dean, and a. hansen. 2022. piloting virtual field trips during a pandemic: developing curriculum, lessons learned, and recommendations. connected science learning 4 (2). https://www.nsta.org/connected-science-learning/connectedscience-learning-march-april-2022/piloting-virtual-field-trips duskin, h. (2021, august 18). why teachers want virtual field trips to stay. american alliance of museums. alliance blog. retrieved from https://www.aam-us.org/2021/08/18/whyteachers-want-virtual-field-trips-to-stay/ galas, c., ketelhut, d. (2006). river city, the muve. learning and leading with technology, learning and leading with technology, 33, 7, pp. 31-32 hampshire, k. (2021, april 22). virtual field trips for kids: world wide wonders. us news & world report. retrieved from https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/virtualfield-trips-for-kids-worldwide-wonders han, i. (2021). immersive virtual field trips and elementary students’ perceptions. british journal of educational technology, 52(1), 179-195. krawkowka, a. (2012). field trips as valuable learning experiences in geography courses. journal of geography, 111, 236-244. lester, l. (2012). putting rural readers on the map: strategies for rural literacy. the reading teacher, 65(6), 407-415. lukes, l. (2014). a new take on the field trip. science teacher, 81(1), 24-29. merchant, z., goetz, e. t., cifuentes, l., keeney-kennicutt, w., & davis, t. j. (2014). effectiveness of virtual reality-based instruction on students' learning outcomes in k-12 and higher education: a meta-analysis. computers & education, 70, 29–40. ross, t. (2021). virtual field trips: benefits and resources for schools. ebscopost. retrieved from https://www.ebsco.com/blogs/ebscopost/virtual-field-trips-benefits-and-resourcesschools international journal of the whold child spring 2020 96 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 ijwc updates for the new column, “emerging professional,” the ijwc editorial team invites students (undergraduate, masters, and doctoral levels) to submit papers including problem resolutions, literature reviews, and research designs (qualitative or quantitative). the topic choices remain broad with the primary focus on how this content supports all children’s holistic learning and development. ijwc editors remain committed to providing student-authors with relevant, productive and concrete feedback. importantly, a student may identify additional authors; the key factor is for the student to be “first author.” the ijwc mission remains committed to promoting an understanding of holistic learning and development for all children. in particular, ijwc editors believe by supporting student authors with modeling, feedback, and mentoring, ijwc strengthens and extends understanding, recognition, and implementation of “best practices” into the next generation of educational professionals and child advocates. how to submit a student paper in order to target the “emerging professional” column and to distinguish your paper as a “student submission,” merely identify “emerging professional” at the top of your document. in this way, the manuscript will be forwarded to the appropriate editors committed to supporting emerging scholars. if you have any questions regarding this particular process, contact tiffany.wilson@mtsu.edu see you in the 2020 ijwc fall issue! mailto:tiffany.wilson@mtsu.edu 39    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 education by the numbers donald sneada amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the interim department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. education is sometimes referred to as an investment in human capital (wolla & sullivan, 2017). how does level of education affect income? median annual earnings of full-time workers ages 24-34 by educational attainment degree annual income overall gender by race male female combined genders by race white black hispanic asian all education levels 44,880 48,000 40,000 48,930 35,350 35,650 59,470 less than high school completion 27,880 30,000 21,980 34,920 24,790 27,550 high school completions 34,880 38,890 28,980 37,410 29,730 32,080 35,570 some college, no degree 36,300 39940 31,100 37,960 34,390 35,000 38,130 associate’s degree 39,960 47900 34,020 42,730 34,780 36,190 39,620 bachelor’s degree 54,700 60,000 50,000 57,740 40,850 45,100 61,580 master’s or higher degree 64,980 79,280 59,220 63,560 53,850 59,900 80,150 this table is a summary of the annual earnings of 25-34-year-olds who work an average of 35 or more hours per week for 50 or more weeks per year. eighty percent of those with a bachelor’s or higher degree worked full time compared to 72 percent of high school completers or equivalency (ged). 40    reference national center for education statistics, united states., (2019). digest of education statistics. retrieved on october 1, 2020 from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/2019menu_tables.asp wolla, s, & sullivan, j. (2017). education, income, and wealth. page one economics. retrieved on october 1, 2020 from https://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/page1-econ/2017/   final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 39 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 40 6    introduction tiffany wilson, editor this fall issue is fully committed to providing readers with information that promotes the holistic learning and development of children. the content provides teachers, parents, and preservices candidates with several strategies to support a variety learning experiences for students inside and outside of the classroom. articles: the importance of learning through play in early childhood education: reflections on the bold beginnings report manal obedaullah alharbi, mona m. alzahrani in the article “the importance of learning through play in early childhood education: reflections on the bold beginnings report,” manal obedaullah alharbi and mona mohsen alzahrani compares two perspectives on using play while learning. the authors of “the bold beginnings” support the idea of providing a structured learning environment as the best approach to helping children in early childhood reach academic success earlier upon entering elementary school. moreover, alharbi and alzahrani explain the added benefits students receive when play is incorporated into the learning process, as it encompasses a more holistic approach to learning. pictures for reflections bubbles and balls in belize: a new perspective on play rebecca giles photographs by jim hoot “bubbles and balls in belize: a new perspective on play,” by rebecca giles, sheds light on the importance of allowing children to engage in what is already available instead of creating an environment of play that could be too restrictive. after more exposure to the different dynamics of play during her visit abroad, the experience provided a new definition of creating the best possible learning environment for young children. 7    tech talk finding flexibility with hyflex: teaching in the digital age leslie trail, stacy fields, nancy caukin with the impact that the year of 2020 has had on different areas of life, leslie trail, stacy fields, and nancy caukin draw attention and discuss changes on the delivery of education, in the article “finding flexibility with hyflex: teaching in the digital age.” the authors recognize that the challenges in delivering instructional material during the spring 2020 semester pushed teachers of all levels to seek alternative ways to teach that would continue to be engaging. in this article, trail, fields, and caukin describe the various ways that the new school year began, in terms of delivery systems. the authors further discuss the implications of one specific educational delivery service: the online and in-person blend of teaching. this modality gave name to the hyflex model because of its need for flexibility for both educators and students. the authors further describe the values of this model as well as personal experiences from the authors. etc. using children’s books to foster a growth mindset angela danley in “using children’s books to foster a growth mindset,” angela danley writes about the important role parents and educators play in promoting a growth mindset in children. danley explains that the process of fostering a growth mindset is important to begin during childhood to be best equipped with the skills to maintain a growth mindset as the child ages. danley describes the use of books as a way that parents and educators can help children foster a growth mindset. in this article, danley specifically provides “beautiful oops” by barney saltzberg and “stickley makes a mistake: a frog’s guide to trying again” by brenda s. miles as two examples of books that promote a growth mindset through resiliency. children and families: health and wellness sleep hygiene: evidence for a healthy family habit barbara whitman lancaster barbara whitman lancaster dives into the discussion surrounding sleep hygiene in the article “sleep hygiene: evidence for a healthy family habit.” in the article, lancaster describes sleep as a mystery, yet its power can revitalize and rejuvenate everyone, regardless of age. nevertheless, not practicing sleep hygiene can affect various areas of health (e.g., obesity), performance (e.g., decreased school performance), and attitude (e.g., poor behavior). even though sleep hygiene is crucial to overall health, healthcare providers often times do not discuss sleep hygiene. therefore, in this article, lancaster aims to inform the importance of sleep hygiene to parents by defining sleep hygiene, explaining overall benefits, and providing the overall process of sleep hygiene. 8    education by the numbers how does level of education affect income? donald snead in “education by the numbers,” donald snead brings awareness to the affect that level of education has on annual income. in his summary, snead reviews earnings based on various levels of educational attainment and compares the earning among gender as well as race. steam innovative and engaging approaches in a middle school science classroom: ideas to capitalize on student interest shelley wermuth in “innovative and engaging approaches in a middle school science classroom: ideas to capitalize on student interest,” author shelley wermuth shares a middle school teacher’s experience in shifting the current educational paradigm to a paradigm that is more inclusive of innovative approaches in stem education. in this article, wermuth discusses the literature supporting the move of a curriculum-centered paradigm to a student-centered paradigm. the review of the literature explores the changes in the instructional delivery, such as with the use of technology, of stem courses has provided a learning environment where students are not actively engaged in the learning process. however, a student-centered approach to stem courses highly encourages active experiences and meaningful integrations among other benefits. page turns: books for children page turn: books for children katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle sobolak, patricia crawford, maria t. genest katrina bartow katrina, carla k. meyer, michelle sobolak, patricia crawford, and maria t. genest review a collection of children’s literature. they provide literature for children of all ages aimed at various developmental areas. final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 6 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 7 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 8 6 introduction tiffany wilson, editor this spring issue is fully committed to providing readers with an abundance of information relevant toward supporting children’s holistic learning and development. in particular, authors clearly identify a variety of strategies to support creating integrated, inclusive, and holistic learning experiences both in the home and at school. articles: analyzing student achievement data: preparing teacher training candidates for leadership angela danely, karen loman, natalie tye in the first article, “analyzing student achievement data: preparing teacher candidates for leadership,” angela danley, karen loman, and natalie tye discuss the importance of ensuring teacher candidates with relevant fieldwork opportunities to analyze and apply student achievement data. the authors provide a summary of the relevant literature and highlight the rationale for research describing teacher preparation programs that use student achievement data; this topic in the research remains deficient. danley, loman, and tye conducted an action research study examining the impact of learning to analyze and interpret authentic student achievement data during their teacher preparation program. authors describe how these early field experiences better prepare teacher candidates to assume future school leadership positions. teacher perceptions of gender roles, socialization, and culture during children’s physical play dalal alanazi, rana alghamdi, adil alghamdi in the second article, “teacher perceptions of gender roles, socialization, and culture during children’s physical play,” dalal alanazi, rana alghamdi, and adil alghamdi examine how teachers enact roles that shape gendered and non-gendered play. they discuss how a child’s play can be influenced by the teacher-created environment. in order to support creating a proactive physical environment, authors describe what is meant by gender stereotyping and gender neutral. alanazi, alghamdi, and alghamdi highlight the importance of maintaining teachers’ awareness of their own personal biases. 7 classroom practices, physical activity, and the school day: a preliminary analysis monica m. brown, kathleen g. burriss, larry l. burriss & donald snead in the third article, “ teacher practices, time for physical activity, and the school day: a preliminary analysis,” monica m. brown, kathleen g. burriss, larry l. burriss, and donald snead discuss the need to include physical activity and play during the typical school day and furthermore, describe the importance of teachers’ understanding what is meant by appropriate physical activity and play opportunities. brown, burriss, burriss, and snead provide data describing the ways in which classroom teachers describe their implementation of physical activity and play during the schoolday. teacher training, recess time, and apps related to physical activity and play are also described. pictures for reflection playgrounds: think differently kathleen g. burriss photographs by larry l. burriss kathleen burriss asks readers to think differently about playgrounds. using questions, photographs, and a suggested reading list, burriss suggests ways to design holistic, inclusive, and innovative outdoor play spaces. tech talk how edtech can support social and emotional learning at school and at home nancy caukin, leslie trail, ashlee hover nancy caukin, leslie trail, and ashlee hover discuss the role of technology in supporting children’s social and emotional learning (sel). in their article, “how edtech can support social and emotional learning at school and at home,” they describe how edtech might be used as a complimentary form of sel instruction. caukin, trail, and hover provide readers with a background into the sel framework and highlight the research showing positive outcomes for the use of sel in schools. authors provide readers with instructions to implement sel in daily classroom life. finally, they include the importance of establishing edtech in conjunction with traditional learning, especially in times of school closure. etc. teacher-child interactions and dramatic play: stories from three cultures rana alghamdi, darlene demarie, dalal alanazi, adil alghamdi rana alghamdi, darlene demarie, dalal alanazi, and adil alghamdi provide readers with a discussion of the critical importance of dramatic play in the classroom as a social and academic learning tool for both teachers and children, and further describe how culture influences this interaction. in their article, “teacher-child interaction in dramatic play that enhance young children’s learning: stories from three continents and three cultures,” they define a teacher’s 8 multiple roles in facilitating dramatic play, such as planning, scaffolding, and modeling. finally, alghamdi, demarie, alanazi, and alghamdi conclude with a discussion of how dramatic play is truly holistic for children’s learning and development. children and families: health and wellness gratitude: a lifestyle worth developing barbara whitman lancaster barbara whitman lancaster, in the article, “gratitude: a lifestyle worth developing” discusses how adults are charged with the responsibility of modeling the social-emotional learning of gratitude with the goal of teaching children the power of resiliency and positive thinking. she explores reasons and benefits for becoming grateful and describes how to cultivate a habit of gratitude within families and children. education by the numbers the basics donald snead in “education by the numbers,” a new ijwc feature, donald snead provides readers with relevant numbers associated with education, children, and families. in order to initiate this new content, snead, in “the basics,” provides readers with current u.s. student demographic data and then identifies the numbers related to the education budget. numbers drive many issues related to education; this new ijwc overview intends to support discussion, motivate thinking, and consider alternatives. steam steaming ahead by challenging thinking natalie tye, sarah willard for the steam content, natalie tye and sarah willard in their article, “steaming ahead by challenging thinking,” discuss the importance of the addition of the “a” in the stem acronym to make steam. they provide a history of this movement as well as future directions, such as the inclusion of an “r” for reading. in addition, tye and willard support teachers in transitioning from rote to integrative steam teaching; they include a case study as an example. finally, they emphasize the importance for the incorporation of teaching styles that challenge students and help them to succeed in a changing world. 9 page turners: books for children maria t. genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla meyer michelle sobolak, patricia crawford editors maria t. genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla meyer, michelle sobolak, and patricia crawford identify and discuss a collection of current children’s literature. they provide educators and parents with a variety of books for early childhood, the elementary years, and adolescent readers as well. ijwc spring 2020 6 ijwc spring 2020 7 ijwc spring 2020 8 ijwc spring 2020 9 final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 121 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 education by the numbers donald sneada amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. education attainment education is one of the dominant factors in determining how developed a country is. education is essential in ending poverty, fighting inequality and injustice, and protecting the planet (schmidt, 2018). approximately 90% of americans over the age of 25 have a high school diploma, 34% have a bachelor’s degree, and 13% have an advanced degree [ (master’s professional, doctorate or combination), nces, 2021]. in the united states, education attainment is strongly correlated with income. moreover, income is often directly correlated with education attainment (world population review, 2022). those with a high school diploma and without a high school diploma had an average median income of $32,250. those with a bachelor’s ($67,300) or advanced degree ($95,200) had an average median income of $81,250. this equates to a 40% greater income than those without a postsecondary education experience (nces, 2022). higher education is struggling to enroll and retain students to graduate within five years of enrollment (nces, 2022). there are multiple factors and obstacles that determine a student’s successful completion of a higher education degree within six years of enrollment. however, parental characteristics is a strong indicator for students who enroll (transition) and remain (persistence) in a higher education institution beyond the end of their first-year enrollment. these factors or obstacles may include socio-economic status, student location, tuition cost, lack of access to affordable options, family, personal difficulties, lack of time and poor higher education experience. parental characteristics is a strong indicator of the number of students entering college and remaining in college beyond the end of their first college enrollment (fabina, 2022). 122 figure 1: transition rate to college and parental education t ra ns iti on r at e l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s d eg re e or h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s d eg re e or h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s d eg re e b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r 50% 70% 61% 80% 50% 78% 60% 80% 50% 70% 60% 80% >$50,000 < $50,000 >$20,000 < $20,000 >$6000 <$6000 parental net worth parental housing equity parental monthly income transition rate (rate at which students start college enrollment) figure 2: persistence in college and parental education pe rs is te nc e r at e l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s d eg re e or h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s d eg re e or h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s d eg re e b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr e e o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r l es s t ha n a ba ch el or ’ s de gr ee b ac he lo r’ s de gr ee o r h ig he r 78% 75% 79% 93% 77% 77% 80% 93% 80% 79% 77% 91% >$50,000 < $50,000 >$20,000 < $20,000 >$6000 <$6000 parental net worth parental housing equity parental monthly income persistence (rate at which students report college enrollment beyond first year enrollment) 123 references fabina, j. (2022). who goes and who stays? college attendance and persistence by parental characteristics. retrieved from https://www.census.gov/content/dam/census/newsroom/presskits/2022/paa/who%20goes%20and%20who%20stays%20college%20attendance%20 and%20persistence%20by%20parental%20characteristics.pdf on november 21, 2022. u.s. census bureau. schmidt, e. (2018). postsecondary enrollment before, during, and since the great depression. retrieved from http://www.education.org on november 21, 2022. u.s. department of education, national center for education statistics (2021). retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/fast facts on november 21, 2022. u.s. department of education, national center for education statistics (2022) quick stats. retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/datalab/quickstats. world population review. educational attainment by state 2022. retrieved from https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/educational-attainment-by-state on november 21, 2022. 53 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 pictures for reflection sandra j. stonea auniversity of northern arizona dr. sandra j. stone is professor emeritus at northern arizona university. she is an author, speaker, and international multiage education consultant. 54 about twins twins, unique and similar – oh, the marvel of it all. consider the fact that twins represent only about 3% of the population. the amazing journey of a set of identical twins begins with one single egg, which splits during fertilization into two eggs with the same genes. having the same genetic makeup is why identical twins have similar hair and eye color, height, and build. most often, identical twins also share the same family environment, which means they also have a similar background. even though identical twins come from the same fertilized egg, they are not completely the same because of genetic variations within each developing egg. examining twin’s dna show differences at various points in their genomes. while quite similar, each twin is uniquely different. identical twins are known to have different tastes in friends, music, and hobbies. twins, though genetically alike, are still two different, unique individuals with their own personal interests. although some think that twins have a telepathic bond, there is no evidence that this type of bond really exists. twins’ minds may be similar but they are not linked together. twins, who are separated at birth, though, often have similar interests such as reading the same books and participating in similar hobbies and household routines. just as amazing, fraternal twins come from two separate fertilized eggs at the same time of conception. fraternal twins each inherit a different set of genes. these twins’ genes are no more alike than other siblings in a family even though they may look quite similar. fraternal twins can be the same sex or opposite sex. fraternal twins may or may not look similar in appearance. male/female twins, of course, develop uniquely across gender lines. fraternal twins are more likely to have different personalities than identical pairs, but still share many personality traits. whether identical or fraternal, twins begin a journey of innate friendship from the womb into adulthood. twins are aware of each other from infancy, but babies, in general, even twins, don’t begin to really interact with one another until around age one. in normal child development, children first play alongside each other in solitary play, then side-by-side in parallel play. 55 eventually, around age 3, they move on to social play with each other. twins are the same in this development. while the bond begins at birth, as twins begin to play with each other, the lifelong friendship begins. with friendship being an important part of early child development, twins have the advantage of a built-in playmate. twins have the unique opportunity to share their social world together. because of this, twins are often more socially aware and more socially confident than children who are not twins. twins, early on, learn how to negotiate, share, take turns, and express their thoughts and feelings with each other. the daily give-and-take with twins becomes a fulfilling friendship of first friends and then best friends a friendship which provides each other with support and care. this is very different from a single child’s experience, even with siblings. each twin has a lifelong relationship with his or her twin of the same age. eventually, twins take these personal social skills into a wider range of friendships with children outside the family. interestingly, one-egg twins share more outside friendships with others than two-egg twins, suggesting that similar genetic relatedness may contribute to having the same mutual friends. same friends may also choose the one-egg twins more often because they have similar personality characteristics. along this amazing journey for twins, moving from childhood into adulthood, it is important to note that being a twin does not overshadow each person’s individual identity or sense of self – each is unique, yet similar. as adult twins grow older, it is truly together, friends for life. the marvel is that twins enjoy this special, unique bond and identity of being part of a twin pair for a lifetime. 56 references boutwell, b. (2017, november 7). the truth about twins. retrieved august 30, 2019 from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/201711/the-truth-about-twins?eml casselman, a. (2008). twins’ genes are not identical. retrieved august 23, 2019 from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/identical-twins-genes-are-notidentical/?print=true how twins develop friendships. retrieved august 23, 2019 from https://christinabaglivitinglof.com/toddler-twins/how-twins-develop-friendships/ mcguire, s., & segal, n. (2013). peer network overlap in twin, sibling, and friend dyads. child development, 84(2), 500-511. segal, n. (n. d.) twins: individual identities and common bonds. retrieved august 30, 2019 from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/twofold/201701/twins-individualidenties-and-common-bonds?eml thorpe, k. (2003). twins and friendship. twin research, 6(6), 532-535. twins: similar and unique? (2015, may 21) retrieved august 23, 2019 from https://www.leidenpsychologyblog.nl/articles/twins-similar-and-unique wheeler, m. (2004). twin science. retrieved august 23, 2019 from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/twin-science-98910961/ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/201711/the-truth-about-twins?eml https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/identical-twins-genes-are-not-identical/?print=true https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/identical-twins-genes-are-not-identical/?print=true https://christinabaglivitinglof.com/toddler-twins/how-twins-develop-friendships/ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/twofold/201701/twins-individual-identies-and-common-bonds?eml https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/twofold/201701/twins-individual-identies-and-common-bonds?eml https://www.leidenpsychologyblog.nl/articles/twins-similar-and-unique https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/twin-science-98910961/ ijwc fall 2019-full issue 53 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 54 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 55 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 56 6 introduction kathleen g. burriss, editor in order to promote all children’s holistic learning and development, this ijwc issue provides readers with descriptions of integral theoretical underpinnings, new evidence-base data, and relevant innovative pedagogical practices. in particular, authors provide teachers, parents, and pre-service candidates with numerous hands-on activities, multiple tech-based applications, and several strategies to support professional growth. this content allows teachers at all levels the opportunity to uncover deeper meanings, implement innovative strategies, and consider holistic possibilities for all 21st century children and their families. articles in the first article, “teachers in war zone education: literature review and implications,” maryam sadat sharifian and pat kennedy discuss and conceptualize the under-researched topic of war zone education. building on past research, they describe issues teachers confront as they educate children in war zones. education provides hope for resolving conflict and securing future peace. sharifian and kennedy highlight the critical role of quality care and further, discuss the importance of a teacher’s emotional well-being. they provide information for readers with a limited knowledge of the topic and discuss more in-depth issues for those seeking a deeper understanding of the concerns. in the second article, “international teacher perspectives on quality in ece: a case study,” julie chappell and judit szente, explore guidelines and perceptions regarding quality, care, and education for young children. using data collected in both the united states and finland, this comparative case study, provides readers with insights regarding the similarities and differences teachers described for high-quality early care. specifically, the researchers examined cultural and societal distinctions represented by the u.s. and finnish teachers. in particular, chappell and szente provide a voice for those teachers who enforce the high-quality standards they provide for their children and families. 7 in the third article, “developing a professional identity in a global society,” jo beth oestreich and kathleen fite provide a rationale for teachers and pre-service candidates to seek an understanding of their professional identity. in order to ensure students’ relevant and engaging learning, it is important for educators to understand how to implement effective and responsive teaching. the authors believe developing a professional identity is crucial to ensuring best practices for all children. to support their argument, they describe the positive relationship across professional identity and teacher retention, genuine motivation, and sensitive interactions with diverse student populations. in addition to their comprehensive review of supporting research, oestreich and fite identify a variety of learning activities beneficial for teachers and learners of all ages and at all stages. pictures for reflection sandra j. stone, in her narrative, “about twins,” describes the biological origins of twins, discusses their similarities and differences, and highlights the potential for each child to become their own person. stone not only acknowledges the profound context of what it means to be a twin, but also reminds educators to dignify holistic learning and promote each child’s unique development. tech talk in “using edtech to enhance learning,” brianna donahoe, derrian rickard, hunter holden, kerra blackwell and nancy caukin provide readers with a variety of rationales and examples for using technology throughout the learning process. authors describe ways to “begin to use edtech,” “introduce the time to use edtech,” “avoid edtech as a distractor,” and finally, “how edtech supports assessment.” authors identify strategies whereby edtech frames students’ higher-order and critical thinking. additionally, authors discuss how edtech demonstrates the possibility of improving student engagement, increasing sustained attention, and designing alternative assessment. the authors believe edtech enhances learning, but does not replace the teacher. etc. in “equity audits of ethnicity in three transitional series: moving toward diverse series books for today’s young readers,” sonia m. balkaran and sherron killingsworth-roberts, provide readers with a praxis model for the etc column. recalling the aim for the etc content, authors identify effective instructional support by connecting research data with classroom best 8 practices. the authors believe it is important for children to see role models similar to their own racial and ethnic contexts. in order for teachers to ensure these types of reading experiences occur, it is critical they know how to identify and use literature featuring strong protagonists of varying races and ethnicities. employing an equity audit analysis, balkaran and killingsworthroberts describe protagonists of various multicultural backgrounds in three transitional series. additionally, they support teachers’ continued understanding and best practices by identifying relevant multicultural series books for young readers. children and families: health and wellness in their article, “dating violence in adolescent relationships,” tiffany wilson and matthew maloney discuss how adolescents undergo physical, social, and emotional changes and describe how these changes can cause an adolescent to become more vulnerable to risk-taking behaviors and exposure to violence. existing data show increasing numbers of young adolescents engaging in dating relationships. authors describe how early dating experiences may influence adolescents’ views of intimate relationships as well as frame their later behaviors in adult life. this information benefits educators, parents, and counselors. steam in their manuscript, “the potential of purposeful play: using the lens and language of crosscutting concepts to enhance the science and engineering practices of play,” criselda lozon and jacqueline grennon brooks set forth a powerful argument for implementing play into children’s learning. they recognize how playful activities naturally foster science and engineering practices; purposeful play teaches children to think critically and at a higher-order capacity. lozon and brooks identify specific strategies and particular language to help teachers begin implementing play into children’s science and engineering learning. page turners: books for children editors maria t. genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle j. sobolak and patricia a. crawford identify and discuss an array of current children’s literature. they provide educators and parents with a variety of books for early childhood, elementary years, and adolescent readers; and again, they included an opportunity to introduce children to the wonder of poetry. ijwc fall 2019-full issue 6 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 7 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 8 50    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 page turners: books for children katrina bartow jacobsa, carla k. meyerb, michelle j. sobolakc, patricia crawfordd, maria t. geneste auniversity of pittsburgh, bduquesne university, cuniversity of pittsburgh, duniversity of pittsburgh, ela roche university fish everywhere written and illustrated by britta teckentrup big picture press, 2019. isbn 9781536206258 this stunning nonfiction text brings the underwater world of fish to life! with detailed, brightly colored illustrations that frequently spread across both pages, readers are quickly engaged in the many facets of fish life, from freshwater to the salty deep sea. this book is packed with information, including labeled drawings of fish anatomy, the evolution of fish over time, the ocean food chain, and the relationship between fish and people. this is a beautifully crafted, worthwhile addition to your sea life book collection. ages 6-9. (mtg) molly mischief saves the world! written and illustrated by adam hargreaves penguin random house, 2018. isbn 9781524788049 molly mischief saves the world! is the second book in the series starring molly who loves to be mischievous. while molly loves mischief, and is quite good at it, she certainly does not like chores. when she completes her chores her family is never happy, and molly thinks there is no way to please them. she comes up with an idea to become a superhero to complete her chores in record time. not only does she complete her chores but she goes on to help the community and even saves the world. however, there is one problem...being a superhero is really just doing more chores! the bright, engaging illustrations compliment a character to whom many children can surely relate. ages 4-8. (mjs) 51    perfect written and illustrated by max amato scholastic, 2019. isbn 9780545829311 what does it mean for something to be perfect? that’s a question that this delightful book takes up by exploring the perspectives of a neat-loving eraser and a scribble-happy pencil. at first, these two seem like the most improbable of friends, disrupting each other’s efforts at every turn. but soon they find that playing together makes things even more perfect than they could have imagined. this nearly wordless picture book is not only a lovely story of compromise when playing together, but also highly engaging for young children, with illustrations that seem to jump off the page. ages 4-8. (kbj) sadie and the silver shoes written by jane godwin. illustrated by anna walker candlewick, 2019. isbn 9781536204803 sadie is the youngest of four children and hand-me-down clothes are the order of the day in her family. so, when she gets to choose brand new shoes for her very own, sadie opts for a special pair of extra special, sparkly, silver ones. she loves them so much that she wears them everywhere. all goes well until one of her shoes slips off during an outing. what will she do? a serendipitous turn of events helps sadie reunite with her shoe, and meet a new friend at the same time. this is a gentle story that honors the roles of family and friends, and speaks to the power of resilience when life seems challenging. ages 4-8. (pac) sweet dreamers written and illustrated by isabelle simler first published in english by eerdmans books for young readers, 2019. isbn 9780802855176 from the author/illustrator of plume comes another lovely book that weaves together non-fiction, poetry, and gorgeous illustrations. each page shares detailed but graphic drawings of a sleeping animal, crafted with fine lines and bright colors. these are accompanied by short poems that share details of how each animal finds its rest, including details of habitat and anatomy. the illustrations are striking on mostly dark or black backgrounds, inviting the reader to look closer at the wondrous details. in the end, the author brings it together by sharing the ways that a young girl visits these slumbering animals through her dreams. this text would be a peaceful readaloud text to help children settle down into restful or quiet activities. ages 4-8. (kbj) 52    try a little kindness written and illustrated by henry cole scholastic, 2018. isbn 9781338256413 a little kindness can go a long way! in this straightforward text, a group of animal friends encourage readers to make kindness a way of life by finding many different ways to make the world better for others. inviting others to play, sharing toys, reading to friends, feeding pets, and writing notes are just some of the ways that one can show care. the snippets in this book offer conversation starters for helping children to identify concrete ways to establish a culture of care in the classroom and home. the reassuring book could also serve as a mentor text for helping children to write and illustrate their own guidelines for spreading kindness in both pandemic times and less pressing ones. ages 3-8. (pac) we’ve got the whole world in our hands written and illustrated by rafael lópez orchard books, 2018. isbn 9781338177367 in this adaptation of the song, he’s got the whole world in his hands, author and illustrator rafael lópez creates a vibrant, colorful tale that shows how the world and all its diverse inhabitants are interconnected. woven into each page is a multi-colored ball of yarn that travels the world, flowing through the hands of many children representing the beautiful multicultural human race. readers will be delighted by the larger than life illustrations that highlight not only the children of the world, but also the many magnificent landscapes and animals within this world, as they engage with commonly known lyrics. ages 3-5. (mjs) what kind of car does a t.rex drive? written by mark lee. illustrated by brian biggs g.p putnam’s sons, 2019. isbn 9781524741235 there’s kid-friendly humor on every page in this picturebook, with hilarious details in the illustrations and dialogue that bring life to the question of how to choose the best car for each dinosaur that visits the used car dealership. with brightly colored images of larger-than-life dinosaurs, young readers will enjoy discussing why a pterodactyl might choose a convertible, or how a delivery van meets the unique needs of a triceratops. this is a perfect read-aloud for all children who love dinosaurs and transportation, as this fun book combines those interests in surprising and engaging ways. ages 3-7. (mtg) 53    dig written by a.s. king penguin books, 2019. isbn 9781101994931 winner of the 2020 michael l. printz medal, “dig”, written by a.s. king, commands the reader’s attention from page one. the story, told from the varying perspectives of five quirky teenagers, unapologetically explores the intersection of racism, white privilege, toxic masculinity and death in modern america. on first glance, the level of the text seems straightforward, but those familiar with a.s. king’s earlier work, know the story will challenge even the most advanced reader. dig will tax the reader’s conceptualization of family relationships and leave them applauding the young adult characters’ ability to learn and grow from those who came before them. in today’s world, this is an important read. ages 14+. (ckm) final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 50 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 51 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 52 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 53 53 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 pictures for reflection playgrounds: think differently kathleen g. burrissa amiddle tennessee state university, professor emeritus dr. burriss taught diversity, research, and curriculum courses in the department of elementary and special education at middle tennessee state university. she remains an advocate for children’s play, outdoor activity, and multiage learning. playground space: take a good look as adults plan children’s outdoor spaces, what initial questions do they ask? do they consider the possible range and variety of holistic experiences that promote children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical learning and development? do adults design spaces to nurture both interand intra-personal interactions (events and games to develop oral language and nonverbal cues, experiences to support and care for peers/ nature/critters, and opportunities to enjoy time for quiet and reflection alone and with others)? did adults include manufactured equipment in order for children to climb, tunnel, and grip as well as plan for natural spaces wherein children learn to appreciate, explore, and problem-solve with nature (bushes, trees, flowers, dirt)? do adults plan for active and constructive play by including wagons, tables, chairs, balls as well as building materials such as shovels, pails, wood, and blocks? do adults ensure a variety of play opportunities by providing different spaces (hard surface for wheel toys, chalk talk, and bouncing balls; mulch surface for falling and running; grassy surface for running and tumbling)? instead of ordering from a catalog, did adults consult with professionals knowledgeable in designing children’s complex, inclusive, and integrated play spaces? photo by larry l. burriss 54 do teachers prepare to integrate indoor learning with outdoor experiences (stage for language arts/dramatic play, portable tables for arts and crafts, access to water for science and play)? did adults plan for children’s capacity to challenge, problem-solve, and innovate (garden, bird feeders, variety of climbing equipment, building materials)? did adults ensure an inclusive outdoor space for all children to play and learn together? swings are fun, but for how long? why are some outdoor spaces more popular with children than others? as children begin to engage in play, they first ask, “what does this object/material do?” after some exploration and discovery, the child then asks, “what can i do with this object/material?” play is about a child’s ownership of the process; the child directs the play. this ownership involves children’s deep thinking, active exploration, and innovative application. for example, as a child considers the traditional playground swing, she asks, “what does this swing do?” with rehearsal, she comes to understand by pumping her legs forward and backward, the swing goes higher. this discovery may be pleasurable, but for how long? just as quickly, a child’s natural curiosity and desire to challenge, she will then ask, “what can i do with this swing?” this exploration of the swing’s potential for complexity may include standing, twisting, or jumping off in flight. this process of ownership is also observed as children use the traditional slide. after several times walking up the steps and sliding down the chute, the child seeks innovation. he might consider sliding down the chute on his tummy, walking up the chute, or sending toys and stones down the chute to discover which objects travels faster. if playground equipment and apparatus remain designed for a single function, children in their natural state of challenge and curiosity, will use creativity, innovation, and problem solving to expand function. photo by larry l. burriss 55 notice the rectangular shape? but what purpose does it serve? recently, while observing children at play, an eight-year-old transformed this rectangle into a popular hamburger restaurant. simply, by calling out to other players, she quickly created a long line of potential customers. the play is now more complex because the event involves ordering different foods (perspective-taking, language, role play); making money to exchange (adding, counting, vocabulary); and creating food orders (role play, language, following emerging scripts). as an adult observer, it was difficult to discern the mulch used for the pretend food from the mulch used for the pretend money; the children appeared quite clear regarding the rules (creating mulch food and money props, identifying leaders, and developing scripts). in planning for quality outdoor play space, consider the open-ended and innovative capacity when ordering equipment, incorporating nature, and planning with teachers. referring back to the rectangle, what is the function? depending on the children’s direction for the play, they may need a stage, boat, mountain or for now, a counter to order hamburgers. in other words, the rectangle becomes whatever the children require at that time to support their play. p.s. regretfully, we cannot provide readers with the rich sounds of the playground. there was laughing, giggling, yelling, and screaming. yes, children screamed as they slid, ran, and climbed. in other words, they loudly screamed because they could; if not in the playground, where else can they use their “outdoor voices”? and yes, there was also crying. a child’s missed turn on the climber, a fall and a scraped knee, or a disagreement with a peer who did not want to play resulted in tears. depending on the age/stage, children frequently resolved their issues; sometimes, a caring adult offered insight. in all instances however, the playground is a space to nurture children’s emerging sense of self and other. photo by larry l. burriss 56 this reading list supports new possibilities carter, d. (2016). a nature-based social-emotional approach to supporting young children’s holistic development in classrooms with and without walls: the social-emotional and environmental education development (seed) framework. international journal of early childhood environmental education, 4(1), 9-24. crnic, m., & kondo, m. (2019). nature rx: reemergence of pediatric nature-based therapeutic programs from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. american journal of public health, 109(10), 1371-1378. http://dx.doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2019.305204 english, c. (2019). games and ideal playgrounds, journal of the philosophy of sport, 46(3), 401-415. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/00948705.2019.1631173 matteo, g. (2019). human-nature relationships in context. experiential, psychological, and contextual dimensions that shape children’s desire to protect nature. plos one, 14(12). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0225951 mcvittie, j. (2018). sensuous and languaged learning: children’s embodied and playful connections to nature. international journal of early childhood environmental education, 6(1), 21-34. stanton-chapman, t., & schmidt, e. (2018). in search of equivalent social participation: what do caregivers of children with disabilities desire regarding inclusive recreational facilities and playgrounds? division of international special education and services, 22(2), 66-76. swank, j., & min shin, s. (2015). nature-based child-centered play therapy: an innovative counseling approach. international journal of play therapy, 24(3), 151-161. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0039127 white, r., eberstein, k., & scott, d. (2018). birds in the playground: evaluating the effectiveness of an urban environmental education project in enhancing school children’s awareness, knowledge and attitude towards local wildlife. plos one, 13(3). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0193993 ijwc spring 2020 53 ijwc spring 2020 54 ijwc spring 2020 55 95 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 page turners: books for children maria t. genesta, katrina bartow jacobsb, carla k. meyerc, michelle j. sobolakd, patricia a. crawforde ala roche college, buniversity of pittsburgh, cduquesne university, cuniversity of pittsburgh, euniversity of pittsburgh picturebooks good morning snowplow! written by deborah bruss art by lou fancher and steve johnson arthur a. levine books (scholastic), 2018. isbn 9781338089493 the hardworking snowplow is the hero of this picture book, quietly working all night long to clear the roads while the snow falls and the cars slide nearby. the illustrations contrast the bright colors of the snowplow against the various shades of blue and white of the winter night landscape. the rhyming text offers a window into the world of the snowplow and its driver, navigating the streets in a way that is both familiar to those of us who live in colder climates, engage those of us who do not, and for all, provide fascination with this winter ritual. ages 3-6. (mtg) the three little superpigs: once upon a time written and illustrated by claire evans scholastic press, 2017. isbn 97813382454486 evans’ whimsical spin on the classic tale of the three little pigs is sure to engage today’s children. in this clever spin, evans positions the pigs as aspiring superheroes. in their quest to attain this status, they move to fairyland complete with residents such as little red riding hood, a cast of grandmothers, mary and her little lambs and, of course, the big bad wolf. as the classic tale unfolds, the pigs finally attain superhero status by outwitting the wolf and gaining the new title of superpigs! children will be engaged by the connection to superheroes, the witty text, and the vivid illustrations. this text would be an excellent and lively read loud or bedtime story that would likely be requested again and again. ages 3-5. (mjs) 96 vanishing colors written by constance orbeck-nilssen illustrated by akin duzakin eerdmans books for young readers, 2017. isbn 9780802855183 orbeck-nilssen created a poignant and timely tale of a young girl and her mother who are living in a war-torn town. alone and afraid, the girl dreams of a protective bird that keeps her and her mother safe at night. the bird supports the girl in remembering how colorful and vibrant her town and life once were. most importantly, the bird gives her hope that if she and her mother stay together and never give up, there is hope for a better tomorrow and they will indeed persevere. the illustrations support the story by alternating between dark and ominous to vibrant and rich. this text provides an age appropriate gateway into the challenges that are ongoing in the world and that many refugees faced in their home countries. ages 5-9. (mjs) inside outside illustrated by anne-margot ramstein and matthias arégui candlewick, 2019. isbn 9781536205978. sometimes perspective makes all the difference! such is the case in this clever wordless concept book. each double-page spread features one page with an inside perspective, followed by a second with an outside one. for example, one page shows red ants busily moving about inside their anthill. the next page reveals an expanded view, revealing that they were oblivious to the anteater who is ready to eat them up. in some cases, the differences between the inside/outside perspectives are dramatic; in others they are more subtle. in all cases, the detailed oversized visual sequences invite readers to look again and again. an excellent book for supporting visual literacy, perspective taking, and rich text-based conversation. ages 4-8. (pac). believe: a pop-up book of possibilities written and illustrated by robert sabuda candlewick, 2019. isbn 9780763663971. with sparse text and sabuda’s characteristic solid white pop-ups, this book invites readers to dream big and set the course to live up to their potential: “when i dream of the future/ i will dream big./ when i build my life/ i will reach high”). although aimed at a young audience, it is hard to imagine that children and adults of all ages would not enjoy sabuda’s inspirational words and mesmerizing, complex paper engineering. a good choice to read with children or to share as a giftbook to mark special occasions or milestones. ages 3-8. (pac). 97 plume written and illustrated by isabelle simler eerdmans books for young readers, 2017 (english version). originally published in french under the same title in 2012. isbn 9780802854926 in exquisite detail, simler created a nearly wordless picture book that takes a close look at the plumage of various birds, ranging from the common chicken to the more exotic ibis. each page features a full illustration of the bird, the name of the bird, and a close-up illustration of the bird’s different feathers. to add whimsy, each page features the tail, paw, or head of a black cat (also featured on the cover) that is clearly intent on the birds. the end of the book brings a charming, and surprising, resolution to the cat’s interest in the feathered friends. this text would be useful to teachers looking to link science and nature to literacy, and as a bridge between fictional and nonfictional texts. ages 5-8. (kbj) where’s the baby? a spotting book written and illustrated by britta teckentrup big picture press (candlewick), 2018 elephants are trumpeting and thundering, while geese are honking and splashing their way through this colorful, engaging picture book for young readers. bursting with rhyme and sophisticated vocabulary, this spotting book encourages the reader to find the baby animal on each page. teckentraup has embedded facts about each animal within the rhymes so readers learn while they search the illustrations. this text is one of a series of spotting books by this author and would be a captivating addition to any library for young children. ages 2-5. (mtg) chapter books flights of fancy: creative inspiration from ten award-winning authors and illustrators written & illustrated by various noted authors and illustrators walker books, 2019. isbn: 9781536205367. in this profusely illustrated anthology, ten acclaimed creators of children’s books explore the inspirations and influences that guide them. each chapter is written and illustrated by a british children’s laureate. prose and illustrations provide inspiring, workable ideas for nurturing the creative potential within each reader. individual chapters could serve as an excellent mentor 98 texts for budding authors and illustrators, giving readers an opportunity to learn from the likes of michael rosen, anthony browne, lauren child, and many more. ages 10-14. (pac). poetry i see the moon: rhymes for bedtime compiled and illustrated by rosalind beardshaw nosy crow, candlewick publishing, 2017. isbn 9781536205794 with illustrations that (literally) sparkle, this peaceful book provides a collection of short poems on the theme of night and sleep. ranging from traditional lullabies to poems by authors such as robert louis stevenson, colorful illustrations adorned with silver are sure to catch the ears and eyes of even the youngest readers. this text would be a wonderful addition to a prek or kindergarten classroom for use during quiet time; it also could provide a strong mentor text for older children on how to pull together a collection of poems around a single theme or concept. ages 3-8. (kbj) graphic novels new kid written by jerry craft harpercollins, 2019. 256 pages. isbn 978-0062691194 middle schooler, jordan banks longs to attend art school where he can hone his artist abilities and pursue his first love, drawing comics. unfortunately, his parents have different plans for jordan. they enroll jordan in an elite private school in which he is one of the few students of color. the author/illustrator, jerry craft, expertly uses humor to introduce challenges such as implicit bias and microaggressions to young adolescents. craft embeds the topics neatly into the familiar topic of middle school life such as awkward first crushes, making new friends, and striving for good grades. new kid, exemplifies the graphic format using both words and illustrations to tell a compelling story that young adolescents will not only learn from, but as well enjoy. ages 8-12. (ckm) to kill a mockingbird: a graphic novel written by harper lee and fred fordham harper, 2018. 288 pages. isbn 978-0062798183 99 transforming a beloved classic like to kill a mockingbird is always a risk. fortunately, fred fordham does an excellent job using the medium to beautifully tell the story. the graphic novel stays true to the original while integrating stunning artwork that enriches the story. fordham’s version will easily satisfy the purest who originally fell in love with the print version while introducing the story to fans of the graphic medium. the graphic novel definitely deserves a place in the english curriculum alongside the original. ages 12 and up. (ckm) ijwc fall 2019-full issue 95 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 96 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 97 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 98 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 99 22    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 finding flexibility with hyflex: teaching in the digital age leslie traila, stacy fieldsb, and nancy caukinc arutherford county schools, bmiddle tennessee state university, cnorth greenville university leslie trail is an adjunct professor in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university and a high school english teacher at eagleville school. she began her career working in health care management for seven years before further putting her english degree to work as an english teacher. she loves learning ways to more effectively engage students in the classroom to move their learning forward, so her research interests generally revolve around teaching strategies. dr. stacy fields is an assistant professor in the department of elementary and special education and currently serves as the middle level coordinator. she earned her b.s. in elementary education from union university, m. ed. from lipscomb university in teaching, leading, and learning, and ph. d. from middle tennessee state university in literacy studies. dr. fields teaches undergraduate and graduate courses with a focus in middle grades literacy, assessment, and classroom management. her research interests include k-12 literacy, meta-analysis, and adolescent writing, specifically instructional strategies for english language learners. she has been awarded the clouse-elrod education research award and the herbert m. handley outstanding dissertation award for her work in ell adolescent writing research. nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs in the college of education at north greenville university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been teaching in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of selfefficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. teachers knew in the summer of 2020 that the next school year would be a new venture in education. after experiencing a rapid shift in delivery of their classes in the spring, teachers across the country sought the best ways to engage students meaningfully in a variety of modalities, knowing that shift might continue to happen in the coming year. as summer gave way to fall, teachers returned to their schools with great anticipation and a bit of uncertainty. some teachers returned to their classrooms in a virtual environment with all of their students online. others returned with all of their students in person. still others returned with a blend: 23    some students online and some students in person. for those classes that have a blend of online and in-person students at any given time, a flexible approach is needed, a hybrid-flexible or hyflex model of teaching is the answer, particularly if the students have choice in how they attend and engage in class and they have access to the necessary technology (beatty, 2019; ferrero, 2020; nave, 2020). the hyflex learning model is a combination of the hybrid learning model and a flexible learning classroom (beatty, 2014). the typical hybrid classroom combines both online (whether synchronous or asynchronous) and face-to-face learning. this model pushes students to be independent and self-directed for their own learning (cybinski & selvanathan, 2005). as students make decisions about where, when, and even how they will access instruction (a hyflex approach), they also need to develop this independent and self-directed model of learning. the hyflex model is student-centered, student-directed, multimodal, involves students in active learning in person and online, and requires full student engagement (beatty, 2019; ferrero, 2020). there are four “fundamental values” in the hyflex model: learner choice (in the modality), equivalency (in learner outcomes regardless of modality), reusability (of content and activities for the different modalities), and accessibility (to the technology and skills needed to engage; beatty, 2019; nave, 2020). this model is similar to the choice board model of instruction that teachers have been using for years. the primary difference is that the choice comes from how the instruction is delivered: in person, online synchronous, or online asynchronous delivery. through personal experience, a high school english teacher and one of the authors of this article, started teaching this fall using this model and immediately found the benefits of offering instruction in all three ways: in-person, online synchronously, and online asynchronously (see article and video of her teaching using the hyflex model at https://www.rcschools.net/apps/news/article/1298279) . she noticed that students in the classroom get the immediate benefit of in-person instruction. they are able to work in groups and are able to engage with one another. students in distance learning are able to choose how they receive instruction. she found that there is an even split in how students are approaching the instruction with some choosing to attend lessons synchronously and others choosing to attend lessons asynchronously. when students are asked why they have made these choices, some reply that they need the “in person” synchronous instruction to understand what to do and how to engage with the work. students who attend via online synchronous lessons are also able to participate in “break out” rooms with in-classroom students and “on-line” discussions in “real time” so that they still get the group work experience that happens in a classroom. students who participate in synchronous instruction generally report feeling more engaged in what is happening even in the online setting because they are present when the instruction occurs. however, students who participate in the work asynchronously are able to work at their own pace. furthermore, some high school students using asynchronous instruction have found the model allows them to work during the day and participate in school at night. some students who work in the asynchronous online environment struggle if they are not highly self-motivated to 24    ensure that videos and instruction are watched and that they are fully participating in all work. she has had to find ways to ensure engagement in videos and instruction that help these students be successful. for example, giving students access to class discussions through video recordings and through using technology tools such as playposit, an ed-tech tool which requires student engagement with the video rather than passive viewing of the video, or edpuzzle, a web-based interactive video tool that allows teachers to target specific learning objectives by cropping video. one middle school student who is learning using the hyflex model via asynchronous and synchronous participation, and who is the daughter of the english teacher/author, shared that access to teacher videos helps her better understand content because she can “rewind” and “rewatch” until she knows she has “gotten” it. by recording and sharing lessons with all students, they have access to what is being taught when they go back to review or do practice homework assignments after the class ends. when contemplating using the hyflex model, there are several things that the creator of the hyflex model, brian beatty (nave, 2020), suggests to consider. for example, ● can the objectives and learning outcomes of the course be met online? ● can the students be engaged in all three modalities (in-person, online synchronous, and online asynchronous)? ● if using the hyflex model in a university setting, does the course have to be designed like a certified online course? (not necessarily conducive to the hyflex model) if the hyflex model is chosen, it is of utmost importance to record in-person lessons for asynchronous learners. this allows them to have access to in-class discussions. all learning activities and materials need to be digitized or an equivalent made available, which benefits both online and in-person students. when in-person and online synchronous students engage in small group work, summaries can be provided and digitized for asynchronous students to enrich their experience. additionally, students working at home will need accountability to ensure that they are accessing instructions. teachers may find tools like playposit and edpuzzle, mentioned earlier, beneficial wherein they can assign videos and embed questions into the instruction so that students know that they must still watch the information being given. furthermore, in-person students need to be encouraged to engage with online content too. they, along with the online students, can post weekly in a learning journal whereby they respond to their own thread in a discussion board (nave, 2020). by encouraging in-person students to engage with online content, the teacher is able to further establish a strong classroom community so that in-person and online students still participate in sharing ideas and learning together. teaching in the hyflex environment requires advanced planning, constant preparation, a commitment to flexibility, and comparable engagement with students (beatty, 2019; ferrero, 2020; nave, 2020). students attending class in person must know that the teacher is present and working with them while also attending to the students online at the same time. all lessons and class instruction must be recorded and posted in a timely manner for the asynchronous learners. assessments must be appropriate for online and in-person learners. it may be important to rethink traditional assessments in favor of projects, student video recordings, blog posts, socratic 25    seminars, and backchannel discussions, which may already be part of the learning activities (ferrero, 2020). these assessments are performance based thus allowing demonstration of group and individual student knowledge and understanding. currently, at the university level there is little research on the effectiveness of using the hyflex model. one study suggests that when comparing students who attended mostly in person and others mostly online (all in the hyflex group), students who were in person had higher grades on homework, midterms, and final course grades, though the result was not significant (miller, risser, and griffith, 2013). however, other research found that the mode of delivery does not impact student performance (rhodes, 2020). for most primary and secondary teachers, this fall (2020) is the first encounter with options in mode of delivery, including teaching in a hyflex model, so outcomes are yet unknown, however, the evidence from post-secondary education models shows that student performance overall should not be greatly impacted either positively or negatively. still, this begs the question that if students are given choice in their mode of instruction, could they then have a greater desire and motivation to work towards success? teachers of all grade bands have entered a new world of education during the fall of 2020. technology now extends student choice not only in how they demonstrate mastery of content, but also in how they receive their content. teachers are now called upon to engage students in this new form of education to help ensure that all students have opportunities regardless of their situations and regardless of their chosen mode of instruction. while it is a challenge, it is also a great opportunity to be part of a movement that could change the face of education for the future. 26    references beatty, b. (2014). hybrid courses with flexible participation: the hyflex course design. in kyei-blankson, l. (ed.). practical applications and experiences in k-20 blended learning environments (pp. 153-177). igi global. beatty, b. j. (2019). values and principles of hybrid-flexible course design. in b. j. beatty (ed.), hybrid-flexible course design. edtech books. retrieved from https://edtechbooks.org/hyflex/hyflex_values cybinski, p., & selvanathan, s. (2005). learning experience and learning effectiveness in undergraduate statistics: modeling performance in traditional and flexible learning environments. decision sciences journal of innovative education, 3(2), 251–271. https://doi-org.ezproxy.mtsu.edu/10.1111/j.1540-4609.2005.00069.x ferrero, m.a. (july 28, 2020). hybrid flexible class: a professor’s guide to hyflex teaching. the faculty publication. retrieved from: https://medium.com/the-faculty/hyflexteaching-d1347143ef3d miller, j. b., risser, m. d., & griffiths, r. p. (2013). student choice, instructor flexibility: moving beyond the blended instructional model. issues and trends in educational technology, 1(1). retrieved from https://journals.uair.arizona.edu/index.php/itet/article/view/16464/16485 nave, l. (narrator). (summer, 2020). hyflex course design model with brian beatty. think udl [audio podcast]. retrieved from https://thinkudl.org/episodes/hyflex-course-designmodel-with-brian-beatty rhoads, d. d. (2020). traditional, online or both? a comparative study of university student learning and satisfaction between traditional and hyflex delivery modalities (publication no. 27995688) [doctoral dissertation, concordia university irvine]. pdqt open. https://media.proquest.com/media/hms/pft/2/pjuag?_s=3m6zzf5bi%2ftfp3s0t3zyf g4tocq%3d final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 22 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 23 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 24 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 25 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 26 75 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 page turners: books for children patricia a. crawforda, maria t. genestb, katrina bartow jacobsc, carla k. meyerd, michelle j. sobolake auniversity of pittsburgh, bla roche college, cuniversity of pittsburgh, dduquesne university, euniversity of pittsburgh picturebooks outside my window written by linda ashman illustrated by jamey christoph eerdmans, 2018. unpaginated. isbn 978-0802854650. a young girl gazes out her window and says, “just outside my window/ stands an old magnolia tree/and hidden in its branches/ is the tree house built for me./ what’s outside your window?” in turn, children around the globe look outside and tell what they see: crowded buildings, skinny palm trees, narrow alleys, tumbling ocean waves, the family garden, and so much more. while windows allow us to look into our own world, this book gives readers a glimpse into the worlds of others. the rhyming text and captivating illustrations celebrate the dual elements of diversity and unity that are shared by people everywhere. this book is a potentially rich match for exploring geography, culture, and perspective taking. ages 4-8. (pac) the stuff of stars written by marion dane bauer illustrated by ekua holmes candlewick, 2018. isbn 978-0-7636-7883-8 76 ekua holmes, winner of the 2019 coretta scott king illustrator award, innovatively pairs vibrant images with marian dane bauer’s poetic narrative to describe the origins of the universe. together, author and illustrator, take readers on a scientific journey from the big bang, through the formation of stars and planets, to the emergence of life on earth. the narrator speaks directly to the reader, enveloping the child into this narrative, highlighting that we are all “the stuff of stars.” this unique book is a gorgeous and engaging combination of science and art, placing the reader within the fascinating history of the universe. ages 4 and up. (mtg) a bike like sergio’s written by maribeth boelts illustrated by noah z. jones candlewick, 2016. unpaginated. isbn 978-1-5362-0295-3. ruben runs alongside as his friend sergio rides his bike around the neighborhood. out of breath, ruben feels that he is the only kid without a bike to ride, and with a child’s intuition, knows that this is unlikely to change anytime soon. surprisingly, circumstances do change, and ruben has to make an important decision. this gentle story is a window into that universal feeling of longing and belonging, as ruben wrestles with ideas of right and wrong. with engaging dialogue and simple drawings that immerse readers in ruben’s neighborhood, friends, school, and family life, this text offers a powerful invitation for adults and children to discuss issues of family, honesty, and belonging. ages 4-8. (mtg) i do not like books anymore! written and illustrated by daisy hirst candlewick, 2018. unpaginated. isbn 9781536203349. having books read to you is fun. but, as natalie discovers, learning to read is not so easy. this charming book highlights the love that natalie and her brother alphonse share in having others read to them, and chronicles natalie’s path to becoming a reader. beginning readers will see themselves in natalie as she realizes that learning to read is challenging and that the books she can read are not the adventure-filled tales her adult family members read aloud to her. bold and engaging cartoon illustrations fill the pages, as natalie realizes she can be a reader and use her imagination to write and illustrate adventure-filled tales of her own. ages 3-7. (mjs) 77 night job written by karen hesse illustrated by g. brian karas candlewick, 2018. unpaginated. isbn 9780763662387. zooming through the city on the back of dad’s motorcycle, a father and son ride off in the evening, heading toward dad’s night job as a school custodian. the text highlights the close relationship between father and son as they help each other with custodial tasks, while listening to a baseball game on the radio or shooting hoops in the school gym. karas’ illustrations surround the characters with variations of grays, complemented by pops of color in the purple lilacs and red mop bucket dad wheels throughout each panel. night job is a wonderful book that positively highlights the very common experience for many children of having a parent who works on a night shift. ages 4-8. (mtg) loving hands written by tony johnston illustrated by amy june bates candlewick, 2018. unpaginated. isbn 9780763679934. hands do so many things. they touch, comfort, create, and hold...and sometimes, they connect generations. this tender picturebook chronicles the relationship between mother and son over the course of a lifetime, showing a host of daily interactions peppered with examples of loving touch. each turn of the page moves the storyline forward, allowing readers to see a child grow into manhood and a young, expectant mother mature into old age. the poetic language and gentle watercolor images lure readers both young and old. while this book offers children, rhythm, rhyme, and an engaging storyline, it also provides adults a poignant opportunity to reflect on touchstone moments in the relationship between parent and child. ages 4 and up. (pac) storm written and illustrated by sam usher. penguin, 2018. unpaginated. isbn 9781536202823. storm is one of four books about sam, who experiences adventures with his granddad in various types of weather. a wind storm is brewing and sam and his granddad realize it is perfect weather to fly a kite. however, first they must find their kite, which leads them to reminisce 78 about many other adventures they have enjoyed together. usher’s watercolor and ink illustrations recount the pair’s many adventures and capture them flying their kite in the park as well as their whimsical flight all the way home. readers are reminded that it is not the specific adventure that matters, but rather that the adventure is shared with a loved one. ages 3-7. (mjs) i’m in charge! written by jeanne willis illustrated by jarvis candlewick, 2017. unpaginated. isbn 978-1-5362-0259-5 like many young children, little rhino believes he should make all the rules. from the moment he was born, he felt he was in charge, much to the chagrin of his parents and the other animals of the savannah. he bullies animals big and small until he meets his match in a hungry pygmy mouse. finally, someone stands up to little rhino. while the mouse is making a point about the value of sharing, a stampede of wildebeests helps little rhino see the error in his ways. this delightful text is told in rhyme and captures important life lessons: one person or animal is not the boss of others and sharing is the ultimate gift. ages 2-5. (mjs) what is given from the heart written by patricia c. mckissack illustrated by april harrison random house, 2019. unpaginated. isbn 978-0-375-83615-2 “what is given from the heart reaches the heart,” reverend dennis tells his congregation, including young james otis. this beautiful book tells the story of james otis and his mother, after the death of his father. although times are hard and the family has little, they keep a roof over their heads and support one another. for valentine’s day, their church is putting together love boxes for families who are struggling including mrs. temple and her daughter sarah, who have lost everything in a fire. james otis despairs of finding something that sarah will want, but ultimately follows his heart and creates a beautiful book for her. this moving tale demonstrates the power of community and acts of love, especially during trying times. harrison’s illustrations capture the spirit and camaraderie of this african american community, and particularly of the love and faith james otis and his mama share. this book is also particularly poignant, as it is the last work of patricia mckissack before her passing. ages 5-10. (kbj) 79 chapter books louisiana’s way home written by kate dicamillo candlewick, 2018. 227 pages. isbn 978076369463. louisiana elefante is in crisis. orphaned as a baby, she relies solely on her eccentric granny for family support. now, in the dark of night, granny is driving her away from the comfort of her florida home, beloved pets, and dearest friends--all in an effort to break a generational curse. this unwanted road trip leads louisiana to a series of events that are at once both tragic and humorous, and which cause her to ask deep questions: what is the truth about her past? what can she expect from the future? where is home? in the end, she must overcome her deepest fears and make life-changing choices. set in the 1970’s, this book is a powerful sequel to dicamillo’s raymie nightingale. ages 9-12. (pac) you don’t know everything, jilly p! written by alex gino scholastic, 2018. 234 pages. isbn 978054595624. jilly p. is an observant, intelligent middle schooler from a diverse and loving family. jilly’s favorite pastime is reading and discussing fantasy novels with an online peer group. jilly’s world is turned upside down when her baby sister is born deaf. eager to understand and explore options for her baby sister, jilly reaches out to her online friend, derek, who in addition to being a deaf, asl user is also black. jilly learns that life does not always present easy solutions, especially when the world treats different communities disparately. jilly learns the world will treat emma and derek differently; she learns how to advocate for others with whom she does not share a lived experience. ages 8-12. (ckm) resistance written by jennifer a. nielsen scholastic, 2018. isbn 9781338148473. based on actual events, author jennifer nielsen integrates a young protagonist cheya linder to tell the story of jewish resistance in poland. cheya, a jewish, teenage girl, uses her fair features 80 to become a courier for the jewish resistance. she smuggles food, documents, and even people in and out of the jewish ghettos. as conditions worsen, cheya finds herself volunteering for more perilous work until she finds herself involved in the uprising at the warsaw ghetto. this harrowing story provides a different perspective of the holocaust and creates a world that intertwines history with fictional characters to the heroic story of the jewish resistance fighters. ages 8-12. (ckm) poetry books i’ll root for you written by edward van de vendel illustrated by wolf erlbruch translated into english by david colmer. eerdmans books for young readers, 2019. isbn 9780802855015 while we often cheer on children’s athletic talents, we sometimes fail to recognize the patience, practice, and failure that lead to the successes. this book of lyrical, playful poetry accompanied by whimsical illustrations of (more or less) athletic animals reminds us to value the process as much as the goal. the book is a series of sports-oriented poems that celebrate learning from mistakes, trying one’s best, playing fair, and working as a team. while some of the poems rhyme and others do not, they all have a lively tone and pace that is sure to engage even very young readers. originally published in the netherlands, this charming book of poetry is now available for english speaking audiences. ages 5-10. (kbj) martin rising: requiem for a king written by andrea davis pinkney illustrated by brian pinkney scholastic, 2018. isbn 9780545702539 the pinkneys have again combined their lyrical and artistic talents to create a book that is simultaneously heartbreaking, uplifting, and memorable. in this collection of short poems, the author and illustrator chronicle the work and times of martin luther king, jr. beginning with an introductory poem about martin’s childhood, the book traces the fateful events of 1968, from the death of two memphis sanitation workers in february to the days following dr. king’s assassination in april. the author provides a unique perspective on this historical period, 81 describing both dr. king’s mission of non-violent protest as well as identifying some of the terrible injustices and tragedies experienced by many people at this time. combining history, non-fiction texts, and poetry, this book is an extraordinary way to engage students in understanding the incredible work and legacy of dr. martin luther king, jr. ages 8-12. (kbj) 47 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 samr: a tool for reflection for ed tech integration nancy caukina, leslie trailb amiddle tennessee state university, beagleville high school and middle tennessee state university nancy caukin, ed.d. is an assistant professor and the program coordinator for the ready2teach program in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. leslie trail is a high school english teacher at eagleville school in rutherford county, tennessee and an adjunct professor in the ready2teach program in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. she has been teaching high school english for 12 years after 7 years of business management experience. while constantly looking for ways to improve student engagement, student achievement, and student literacy, she continuously seeks to improve instruction through teaching strategies and effective use of edtech. introduction technology is a part of everyday life as digital tools and devices are ubiquitous. as schools begin to increase technology available in the classroom, it is important for teachers to consider when, how, and why technology fits into a lesson. used properly, technology is a powerful tool that can transform teaching and learning. it can be a means for collaboration, accessibility, personalization, differentiation, engagement, and innovation (us department of education, 2016). technology should never be considered the classroom “babysitter” or the busy workstation. rather, technology is used intentionally and strategically as a tool to allow students to engage meaningfully in authentic learning experiences (herrington & kervin, 2007). https://tech.ed.gov/teacherprep/ https://tech.ed.gov/teacherprep/ http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.657.1044&rep=rep1&type=pdf 48 what is and how to use the samr model one way to consider technology use in the classroom is by using the samr model (substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition). created by dr. ruben puentedura, the samr model helps teachers think about how and why they use technology and how it can help them evolve pedagogically as they grow more comfortable integrating technology into their practice (puentedura, 2016). in brief, substitution occurs when technology acts as a simple substitution with no functional change in the assignment; augmentation is a substitution that is also an improvement in function in the assignment; modification involves a significant redesign of the assignment through technology; and redefinition is when technology is used to create new tasks not possible without the technology. the samr model can be compared to a ladder with substitution on the lowest level and redefinition on the highest level. when employing technology as a substitution or an augmentation, it is considered enhancing the learning experience, whereas when at the modification or redefinition levels, it is considered as transforming the learning experience. as teachers begin thinking about technology integration into the classroom, they often have many questions about how they will effectively use technology. these questions build from the lower level of the samr model upward. for example at the substitution level, “what will i gain by replacing the task with the technology?” at the augmentation level, “does the technology add new features that improve the task?” at the modification level, “does the task significantly change with the use of technology?” at the redefinition level, “does the technology allow for creation of a new task previously inconceivable?” (brown, 2015). the levels of the samr model can be compared to the levels of bloom’s taxonomy. as one proceeds upward, the complexity increases. substitution and augmentation within the samr model align with remember, understand, and apply in bloom’s taxonomy and modification and redefinition align with analyze, evaluate, and create. figure 1 is the authors’ illustration of the samr model and its alignment with bloom’s taxonomy based on puentedura (2014) and questions based on brown (2015). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqtx2uqqvbu&t=24s https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-the-samr-model-to-ipads https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-the-samr-model-to-ipads 49 figure 1: samr model aligned with bloom’s taxonomy (puentedura, 2014) and questions to ask (brown, 2015). substitution when teachers first begin using technology in the classroom, substitution typically is the easiest application, as it does not change the nature of teaching or learning. with substitution, for example, students move from hand writing their papers to typing them in a word document or they move from reading a printed text to reading the text online. while substitution is considered the most basic form of technology integration in the classroom, it can be a valuable addition to the classroom when considered closely. the question we, as teachers, should ask is, “what will i gain by replacing the task with the technology?” consider this classroom: the teacher is instructing a group of english language arts students. the students are working in small groups to analyze the character in a text. because students have technology, students have the opportunity to make a choice. they can either analyze the character on paper or they can substitute the paper and use an online tool such as storyboardthat.com to analyze the character. similarly, in the same classroom, the teacher could ask the students to write a paper. the students may start writing on actual paper or type it in word. regardless, the teacher can require the finished paper to be submitted via word. additionally, teachers may tell students to submit their work through an online tool rather than turning in a hard copy, which adds another dimension for analyzing student work. while substitution does not alter the nature of teaching or learning, it can make the process of digitally documenting learning and providing feedback easier than through the traditional method (portnoy, 2018). in one of the author’s classrooms, she found that using the method of substituting technology for paper, thereby giving students some choice in their medium of work, proved empowering. her https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle/ https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-the-samr-model-to-ipads https://www.storyboardthat.com/ https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-02-01-how-samr-and-tech-can-help-teachers-truly-transform-assessment 50 students acknowledge that having choice helps meet their needs and engages them more in the lesson. students who struggle to get ideas down on pen and paper may feel more confident with a computer screen. however, when teachers move to solely using technology, students may begin to miss the use of pen and paper. therefore, allowing students to choose which to use gives them agency, helps engage them more in their work, and is a natural way to differentiate instruction. this still allows the substitution to occur and there may be some assignments where the teacher solely wants to substitute technology for paper. it is important to recognize that when technology is simply used to accomplish the same goal that would be accomplished otherwise, it fits into the category of substitution. we can now answer the question of “what was gained by replacing the task with technology?” in these examples? choice, as a digital platform, differentiation in instruction and assessment, and ease in providing feedback were all gained from using substitution. augmentation augmentation is substitution with an improvement in the task. in other words, the technology replaces the textbook and/or paper with abilities that a textbook and/or paper could not afford. augmentation is focused on ways that technology can improve the learning experience for the student and the teacher because functionality is present where it may otherwise not exist. the question here is, “does the technology add new features that improve the task?” consider the new features in these learning examples. teachers may ask students to apply what has been learned using a digital tool. skitch is a digital tool that allows students to take pictures with a device, mark them up, then send them. for instance, students can take pictures of objects in the environment and then they can mark or trace the geometric figures they see. students can use skitch to record observations and collect data, or pictures can be taken of an area on the school grounds that students would like to redesign and then create scale drawings from their markings on the picture. skitch can be used to capture and annotate almost anything (bindel, 2013). similarly, seesaw is another tool that allows students to interact with paper texts through taking pictures and then marking them up. students are able to respond to activities that teachers assign through drawing, annotating, recording, writing, and captioning through this tool. teachers can use this tool to track learning progress and create a portfolio of a student’s work in a variety of mediums. this improves the learning experience because the student is able to respond to the same question in a variety of ways using one tool and the teacher is able to monitor the learning progress in one platform while seeing a variety of the student’s work. flipgrid is another digital tool that can be used to augment instruction. flipgrid gives students voice in a video discussion platform. one way to use flipgrid is to have students introduce themselves to their classmates or respond to a prompt. the teacher could do this in the classroom with all the students present, but by using technology, the teacher is able to use this classroom time in a variety of ways and students are able to express their learning with different alternatives as well. another possibility is for students to video themselves reading aloud or video https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/skitch-snap-mark-up-send https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/skitch-snap-mark-up-send https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/skitch-snap-mark-up-send http://seesaw.com/ https://flipgrid.com/ 51 themselves playing their musical instrument. the teacher can leave private video feedback to each student. this also helps the teacher see the student’s growth through practice when practice occurs outside of the classroom environment. when augmentation is used by a teacher in a classroom, the product that is created changes form to give a different picture of the learning. another example of a way that augmentation could be used comes in the form of exit tickets, which are responses to a question that a student jots down on paper as they leave the room. augmentation occurs when, instead of jotting the answer to a question on paper, students use a tool such as mentimeter.com to respond to the question. the teacher can use this tool to rearrange the responses with a setting change of the tool into a word cloud to see what the students have learned from the lesson. exit tickets on paper would not allow the teacher to do this; therefore, technology is used to “offer functional improvement” because learning can be viewed differently through the tool. kahoot is another tool that can be used as an exit ticket. this platform is a fun and engaging way to formatively assess students that has many applications, including not only whole-class engagement, but individual practice as well. how did the technology add new features that improve the tasks? in these examples, a digital platform was substituted for an analog one and a new feature was added that provided new ways for students to engage with the content and each other. modification modification allows technology to be used for a significant task redesign. the question to be answered is, “does the task significantly change with the use of technology?” consider the example of flipgrid given under augmentation. students’ video responses to their peers’ video posts can be used to foster dialog on a topic outside of class, this is an example of modification. a learning experience of a single video post becomes modified when students reflect on a peer’s comments and respond with their own. students providing peer feedback on skills practice on flipgrid is another example of modification because students are now practicing not only for themselves or their teacher, but also for their peers and those peers will be using critical and analytical thinking to provide constructive feedback. students collaborating on multiple devices on a presentation in google drive or office 365 using slides, pages, docs, forms, or sheets in real time or asynchronously can be a redesign of a task where students would have worked on a presentation individually or on a single device during class time. students creating digital books using bookcreator.com to demonstrate and curate their learning allows for a significant task improvement as students move up the samr model and bloom’s taxonomy as well. the creation of flyers or posters that demonstrate understanding using canva or adobe spark can provide new features of creation not possible with poster board and markers. in fact, adobe products have a whole suite of tools that can be utilized to creatively modify learning experiences. as we consider each of these examples, we can answer the question, “does the task significantly change with the use of technology?” with a resounding yes! https://www.mentimeter.com/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/kahoot https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/google-drive https://www.office.com/ https://bookcreator.com/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/canva https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/adobe-spark https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?sq=adobe%20spark 52 redefinition redefinition is the designing of learning experiences that can only happen with the integration of technology. the question is, “does the technology allow for creation of a new task previously inconceivable?” at this level of the samr model, we are truly at the higher levels of bloom’s taxonomy. consider a multimedia project that incorporates music composed by students using garageband and video captured and then edited using imovie, or for younger students (grades 38) green screen by do-ink. these learning experiences are only possible using technology. what about virtual field trips? common sense education offers a variety of reviews on virtual field trips. patricia brown (2014) also has a list of even more virtual field trips. when it is impossible to go on a field trip, virtual field trips can only occur using technology. a skype session to a classroom on the other side of the world or a museum across the country or an interview with an author are opportunities that become available to students through redefinition. students can engage in online simulations using phet (k-12 math and science simulations), geogebra (6-12 for creating math models and simulations), walden, a game (grades 8-12-a simulation of thoreau’s experience at walden). redefinition allows the teacher to provide opportunities and learning experiences to the student in ways that were never possible before in the confines of a classroom. in these examples we can certainly answer the question, “does the technology allow for creation of a new task previously inconceivable?” in the affirmative. considerations there are a few things to keep in mind as you consider the samr model. the samr model is a reflective tool used to gauge the level of technology integration. it is not a magic bullet for learning. it is possible to have technology integration at the higher levels of the samr model, but still be at lower cognitive levels. for example, google maps is a technology that can afford certain learning opportunities that are not possible without it; however, just having students explore google maps, without a clear learning target that challenges them at the upper levels of bloom’s taxonomy, is just using bell and whistles without the proper design to promote 21st century skills and higher order thinking. additionally, technology does not have to be used simultaneously by all students at the same time. in the instance where a teacher does not have one-to-one devices, teachers can utilize technology in small groups of student rotations or can utilize the functions of a lesson with one device to several students. even without a full classroom of computers, the benefits of technology can be explored. the technology cannot replace the curriculum designer’s (you, the teacher) content and pedagogical expertise, it can only offer opportunities and options. as you begin, remember, you don’t have to change everything all at once. start with a learning experience that needs tweaking, a shot in the arm, if you will. determine a way to substitute in technology or augment the lesson by adding technology that provides a functional improvement. don’t be afraid to experiment. it is easy to get overwhelmed with the many options. start somewhere and work to get better. try one strategy, and when you feel comfortable with that strategy, add a new layer. often, the same tech tool can be used for multiple levels on the https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/garageband https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/imovie https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/green-screen-by-do-ink https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?sq=%22virtual%20field%20trips%22&searchtype=review&page=1&sort= https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?sq=%22virtual%20field%20trips%22&searchtype=review&page=1&sort= http://msedtechie.blogspot.com/2014/08/awesome-virtual-online-field-trips.html https://education.microsoft.com/skype-in-the-classroom/overview https://phet.colorado.edu/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/geogebra https://www.commonsense.org/education/game/walden-a-game https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/google-maps 53 samr model depending on how the teacher designs the instruction. keep in mind that some learning experiences are best suited for the enhancement levels (substitution and augmentation) and do not need to be “improved” to the transformational levels (modification and redefinition). have an open-mind to what could be when considering your curriculum options. follow teachers on twitter who are technology savvy. go to commonsense.org/education and read the reviews and “how to’s” on their website. be brave and have a growth mindset that allows you to constantly improve your practice through your own growth and learning. you and your students deserve it! https://www.commonsense.org/education/ 54 references bindel, a. (2013). skitch review. [common sense education]. retrieved from https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/skitch-snap-mark-up-send brown, p. (2014, august 24). awesome virtual online field trips (blog post]. retrieved from http://msedtechie.blogspot.com/2014/08/awesome-virtual-online-field-trips.html brown, p. (2015, february 6). a guide for bringing the samr model to ipads [blog post]. retrieved from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-thesamr-model-to-ipads herrington, j., & kervin, l. (2007). authentic learning supported by technology: ten suggestions and cases of integration in classrooms. educational media international, 44(3), 219-236. portnoy, l. (2018). how samr and tech can help teachers truly transform assessment. edsurge. retrieved from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-02-01-how-samr-and-tech-canhelp-teachers-truly-transform-assessment puentedura, r. (2014, september 24). samr and bloom’s taxonomy: assembling the puzzle [blog post]. retrieved from https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-andblooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle/ puentedura, r. (2016, july 12). how to apply the samr model with ruben puentedura [video file]. retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqtx2uqqvbu&t=24s us department of education (2016). future ready learning: reimagining the role of education in technology. 2016 national education technology plan. retrieved from: https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/netp17.pdf https://www.commonsense.org/education/app/skitch-snap-mark-up-send http://msedtechie.blogspot.com/2014/08/awesome-virtual-online-field-trips.html https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-the-samr-model-to-ipads https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-02-06-a-guide-for-bringing-the-samr-model-to-ipads https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-02-01-how-samr-and-tech-can-help-teachers-truly-transform-assessment https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-02-01-how-samr-and-tech-can-help-teachers-truly-transform-assessment https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/blog/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqtx2uqqvbu&t=24s https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/netp17.pdf 60 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 aces and healthcare: creating a positive future barbara lancastera, tiffany wilsonb, katie wetsellc a-cmiddle tennessee state university dr. lancaster is women’s health nurse practitioner and assistant professor at middle tennessee state university where she is delighted to teach in the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs. a registered nurse for 37 years she enjoys getting to partner with women to achieve their optimal health and well-being. dr. lancaster is a nationally certified menopause practitioner and has done research regarding the need for menopause workshops. dr. lancaster’s call is mission work where she has served both nationally and internationally and has a love for africa! her greatest joy is being a wife, mother, and grandmother. dr. wilson is an assistant professor at middle tennessee state university in the professional counseling program. prior to joining the mtsu faculty, dr. wilson worked as a licensed professional school counselor and licensed professional counselor in various clinical settings in north carolina. dr. wilson is also a national certified counselor, certified clinical trauma professional, and a board certified tele-mental health professional. with research interests in trauma and students with disabilities, dr. wilson’s goal is to help individuals connect with their inner strength and live their best life. mrs. wetsell is a pediatric nurse and primary care nurse practitioner with experience caring for children in hospital, school, and primary care settings. she is currently an assistant professor at middle tennessee state university where she teaches clinical courses in the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs. her love for children, however, is most called upon in raising four amazing children with her husband in nashville, tennessee. aces defined the adverse childhood experiences (aces) study represents a landmark in medical research which linked childhood experiences of abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction to future health outcomes. (cronholm, forke, wade, bair-merritt, davis, harkins-schwarz, pachter & fein, 2015). felitti and colleagues (1998) conducted the original aces study in a primary care 61 setting between 1995-1997 at a kaiser permenante clinic where thousands of participants revealed they had adverse childhood experiences (felitti, anda, nordenberg, willliamson, spitz, edwards, koss, & marks, 1998). this original study found a strong dose response relationship between the extent of exposure to abuse or household dysfunction during childhood and multiple risk factors for several leading causes of death in adults. these conditions included: ischemic heart disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, fractures, liver disease as well as poor self-rated health (felitti et al, 1998). felitti et al, (1998) suggested aces and adult health status is strong and cumulative. they further asserted that abuse and other potentially damaging childhood experiences contribute to the development of risk factors leading to health behaviors and lifestyle factors that affect morbidity and mortality. these behaviors they allege are the “actual” cause of death (felitti et al, 1998). purpose we have combed recent research to explore what new evidence is available in understanding the nature of adversity that children face and the impact on future health. we also sought to discover the latest guidance available for practitioners who encounter children and adults. integrating this concept into assessment will increase knowledge of trauma-informed care (tic) with the intention of building resiliency in children and adults. our goal is to keep the conversation about adverse childhood experiences current and ongoing by elevating the awareness of the impact of adversity in childhood, stressing the vitality and long-term consequences, and highlighting the possible positive outcomes when children and adults have adequate support for overcoming and coping with challenges. implications of aces when individuals are exposed an adverse childhood experiences, they can be impacted in a variety of ways including health risks, threats to safety, and community-level adverse experiences. health issues how are aces linked to these health risk behaviors and adult disease? the original researchers felt this centered on behaviors such as smoking, alcohol/drug abuse, overeating or sexual behaviors. these may be consciously or unconsciously used because they have an immediate pharmacologic or psychological benefit as coping devices when stressors of abuse, domestic violence, and family/household dysfunction are experienced (felitti et al, 1998). high levels of exposure to aces would expectedly produce anxiety, anger, and depression in children (felitti et al, 1998). these authors used the example of nicotine which has beneficial psychoactive effects that regulate mood. persons who are depressed may smoke and thus, persons exposed to aces may benefit from any ‘drug’ such as nicotine to regulate their mood (felitti et al, 1998). 62 perception of safety recent research conducted by duke (2019) sought to compare the associations between conventional aces, as defined in the original research and current guidance from the american academy of pediatrics, and the expanded measures for ace with a positive patient health questionaire-2 (phq-2), a validated initial screener for depression in adults and adolescents. conventional aces included questions addressing abuse, household dysfunction, food insecurity, and housing stability. expanded measures focused questions on perceived threats to safety and past-month experiences of bullying and harassment. survey respondents included students in 8th, 9th, and 11th grade participating in the 2016 minnesota student survey. of the 126, 868 participants, one in five had a positive phq-2 score with larger percentage of females meeting criteria than male students. all conventional measures as well as expanded measures of aces were associated with increase odds of a positive phq-2 score, with verbal/emotional abuse by a household adult being the most predictive among conventional measures and feeling unsafe at home as most predictive of the expanded measures and overall. other notable links included food insecurity with 2 or more conventional experiences, feeling unsafe going to and from school, and bullying and harassment for identifying as or being perceived as gay or lesbian with 2 or more expanded types of experiences. these findings highlight the need to continue expanding our concepts of adverse events beyond the household. children can encounter significant threats to their physical and psychological safety in their neighborhoods and schools as well. community-level adverse experiences and racial disparities thurston, bell, and induni (2018) aimed to identify the prevalence of community-level adverse experiences and intended to describe whether a difference could be noted based on racial identity. a cross sectional analysis of children aged six to 17 within a national survey of children’s health (nsch, 2011-2012), data show non-hispanic white children to have the lowest exposure to community adverse experiences, namely unfair treatment due to race/ethnicity and witnessed neighborhood violence, as well as household aces, such as poverty, loss of a caregiver through death or incarceration, or witnessed domestic violence. the second question of the study sought to understand the relationship between these events, the demographics of those surveyed, and indicators of emotional regulation. the findings indicated racism has the strongest association on the reduced likelihood of emotional regulation when the child has experienced both community and household adverse experiences. a positive association with emotional regulation was found with the covariate measure of child/parent relationship and female gender. ages under 15 years were also inversely related to emotional regulation. a statistically significant negative relationship was found with covariates two parent step parent family composition and black non-hispanic race/ethnicity. community level adverse events appear to impact minorities with greater frequency and to a great extent, especially when household adverse experiences are also present. acknowledging the impact of racism on health risks and disparities is important for both prevention and effective intervention. early and family-based interventions may be more effective in building positive 63 emotional regulation in children who experience adverse events in the community and household. positive future trauma informed care defined in 2014, the substance abuse mental health services administration (samhsa) released tip 57: trauma informed care in behavioral health services (dube, 2018). this was a result from the original aces study and the science behind the findings. within the trauma informed care (tic) principles lie an understanding of the widespread problem of trauma, its symptoms, and how to respond without further escalation and re-traumatization (dube, 2018). for example, mollard and hudson (2016) proposed that nurses who work in correctional settings implement the trauma-informed 4 e’s which aimed to: educate staff on the effects of trauma; empathize with the woman/situation; explain behaviors that can be traumatizing; and to empower women to become responsible and take control of their future health and recovery. with dube (2018) purporting that there is currently a public health crisis for which there is no vaccine or medication and that problem is trauma and stress, implementing trauma informed care services has the potential to not only change correctional settings, but any setting in which healthcare is provided. trauma-informed care in curriculum for health care professionals in order to implement, trauma-informed care practices, nurses should be educated on how to obtain a history that inquires about aces and to show sensitivity and empathy (kalmakis & chandler, 2015). to that end, strait and bolman (2017) set out to design a curriculum to help nursing students become comfortable addressing typically uncomfortable topics such as aces and to practice listening and collaboration skills. the authors sought to ultimately establish confidence in graduate health care practitioners and to increase their knowledge of aces and trauma-informed care in clinical practice. strait and bolman’s (2017) study had three objectives: 1. to implement a trauma-informed curriculum for multiple graduate programs. 2. to determine student understanding of, and willingness to address, aces. 3. assess the relationship between students voluntarily evaluating their own individual ace score and their own attitude toward ace and trauma-informed care. the authors hypothesized that the healthcare practitioner students would be more confident in understanding the clinical importance of aces and trauma-informed care as they assessed their 64 own score. they recruited 967 students from graduate health programs on two campuses: pomona, california and lebanon, oregon. the professions included the following program: doctor of osteopathy, doctor of podiatry, doctor of optometry, doctor of dental medicine, doctor of physical therapy, doctor of veterinary medicine, doctor of pharmacy, masters of science in nursing, and a masters of physician assistant. the participants attended three, two hour sessions, conducted with a proctor and divided into groups of nine. the sessions were held every other week and on the off weeks, the participants were required to perform research regarding aces topics. the authors used a multi-question digital survey administered before and after the curriculum to assess the students understanding of aces and trauma-informed care. the participant’s’ awareness of personal aces and willingness to incorporate trauma-informed care in practice was tantamount to the outcome of their study. strait and bolman (2017) concluded that the future health care practitioner students who voluntarily assessed their own ace score were significantly more likely to understand scientific and clinical findings to implement trauma-informed care in practice. strait and bolman proposed to formulate a method of instructing the next generation of health care providers on ways to prevent, recognize, and address unresolved childhood trauma (ace’s) and to inspire other training programs to do the same. strait and bolman (2017) challenged health care providers to see patients for who they really are – just like ourselvesa composite of several different circumstances. trauma-informed care in primary care settings as more nursing students and practicing nurses increase their knowledge about trauma-informed care practices, more implementation of these practices need to occur in primary care settings. purkey, patel, beckett, and mathieu (2018) set out to understand the primary care experience of women with a history of childhood trauma (aces) and chronic disease. their design was a qualitative study using directed content analysis to study 26 women that were recruited from an academic family health team in ontario, canada. the participants were > 21 years of age and had two or more non-psychiatric diagnoses. the 26 participants had an average ace score of 7.2/10 and were high users of the health care system, seeing a provider on an average of 12 times a year (purkey et al., 2018). six themes emerged as a result of this study that can be beneficial for the health care provider working with female patients with a high ace score. theme one was the importance of continuity of care as the participants shared it is hard to repeat their story over and over. theme two was provider awareness of abuse as the participants thought the providers were too busy to listen to their experiences and therefore have an awareness of their trauma. theme three revolved around the challenges of family medicine residents as the participants felt they were using them as practice patients. theme four was central to the distress of triggering events as the participants may react to particular treatments or interventions such as pap smears or touching. theme five described the characteristics of clinical staff and the office space as the participants were sensitive to the environment and whether it was welcoming or if, for example, the chairs were 65 too close together. the sixth theme highlighted engagement in care plans and the participants were somewhat divided regarding their active participation in care and their perceptions. purkey et al. (2018) concluded that understanding the effects of aces on women’s health is vital. incorporating trauma-informed care approaches by physicians can be beneficial and enrich the patient’s experience and ultimately their future health. esden (2018) sees the importance of identifying aces as an important step in providing primary care. she encouraged nurse practitioners (np) to implement trauma-informed primary care as a way to illustrate the positive effects that are gained by administering the aces questionnaire to all patients. evidence linked aces to numerous health outcomes in a dose dependent relationship (esden, 2018). evidence revealed toxic stress during childhood disrupts the nervous system development and stunts growth in the brains regions responsible for problem solving, impulse control, mood regulation, learning, and memory (esden, 2018). esden (2018) provided implications for practice. the first suggestion is interventions that focus on the primary prevention of aces are likely to have the greatest effect in reducing the detrimental effects of childhood trauma on families and communities. the second implication suggested that nps who care for adults also have the opportunity to make a significant impact in mitigating the mental and physical health effects of aces. lastly, nps, who are trauma informed, should routinely screen patients for aces and recognize the role of the childhood trauma has in the development of health risk behaviors and illness and use a patient centered approach that empowers patients to reach health goals and achieve wellness. aces has lifelong ramifications that can be alleviated with proper treatment, trusting relationships, and by nps utilizing the 4e’s of trauma informed primary care (esden, 2018). conclusion where do we in the health care community go from here? according to the 2010 morbidity & mortality weekly report by the centers for disease control (cdc), the prevalence of aces in the united states is estimated to be 60% of the population. these statistics are alarming and challenging. kalmakis and chandler (2015) and esden (2018) suggested that the lack of knowledge about how aces contributes many years later to disease represents a gap in knowledge that challenges researchers and practitioners. kalmakis and chandler (2015) discovered there are currently no guidelines for addressing aces in primary care; however, such guidelines would prove beneficial for nurse practitioners (and other healthcare providers) as a whole. nurse practitioners that are aware of the consequences of aces should use this evidence in their practice to screen patients with a history of aces, incorporate trauma informed care practices, and create an individual plan of care to follow (kalmakis & chandler, 2015). nurses are in a position to provide patients an opportunity to tell their story so they can partner with them and develop a plan of care that addresses the past so as to positively affect the patient’s future (kalmakis & chandler, 2015). 66 references centers for disease control (2010). adverse childhood experiences reported by adults-five states. morbidity and mortality weekly report, 59, 1609-1613. cronholm, p., forke, c., wade, r., bair-merritt, m., davis, m., harkins-schwarz, m., pachtel, l., & fein, j. 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(2017). consideration of personal adverse childhood experiences during implementation of trauma-informed care curriculum in graduate health programs. the permanente journal, 21, 16-61. doi:10.7812/tpp/16-061 thurston, h., bell, j., & induni, m. (2018). community-level adverse experiences and emotional regulation in children and adolescents. journal of pediatric nursing, 42, 25-33. final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 10 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 possible selves of pre-service elementary school teachers in the time of covid-19 pandemic: a sequential explanatory mixed-method study ceyhun kavrayıcıa aanadolu university, türkiye dr. ceyhun kavrayıcı is an associate professor in the field of educational administration in the faculty of education at anadolu university, türkiye. he received his ph.d. in educational administration from anadolu university. he teaches both undergraduate and graduate-level courses. his research interests include teacher identity, organizational identity and commitment, classroom management, school leadership and supervision of education. abstract possible selves theory describes how a person thinks about his or her own future potential. based on past and present self-images, understanding one’s possible self can be an incentive for one’s future behavior. social structures, cultures, identities and genders may affect the development of possible selves. one can envision a possible self that he or she would like to become or is afraid of becoming. during the covid-19 pandemic, teachers and students quickly adapted themselves to a distance teaching and learning process. this transition to an on-line venue may influence pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards teacher education and possibly modify their expectations regarding the profession. within this context, the aim of this study was to examine the possible selves of pre-service teachers in order to consider implications for their future orientations. sequential explanatory mixed-method design with a stratified purposeful sampling technique was used in the study. one hundred eighty-six junior and senior pre-service elementary school teachers constituted the quantitative strand sample of the study and thirteen of the participants were purposefully selected for the qualitative strand. findings reveal pre-service teachers indicate a high level of expected possible selves while demonstrating a low level of feared possible selves in the “uncaring teacher” and “uninspired instruction” dimensions. however, pre-service participants expressed fears about the “loss of control” dimension of feared possible selves. one of the main reasons for this fear was their on-line teaching practicum course, which provided limited experience of classroom and learning management in the time of the covid-19 pandemic. keywords: children, covid-19 pandemic, elementary education, possible selves, pre-service teachers introduction 11 the integral role of early education on the development of the “whole child” is well-established and this effect on forming children’s future is also well-accepted as critically important (bhardwaj, 2016; enciso et al., 2017; zgaga, 2005). in a safe and supportive environment, a holistic perspective nurtures children’s physical, emotional, social and intellectual development (noddings, 2005). elementary education can provide an arena for safe, challenging, and supportive learning environments. since elementary education is a crucial phase in a child’s life, it provides particular targeted roles such as enabling children to acquire cognitive, affective, and psychomotor skills (bozdogan, 2008), along with cultural-oriented and critical thinking skills. elementary education, where-in initial requirements of child development need to be met, serves as an agency in organizing social relationships and promoting independence in the early years of life. elementary school teachers, who act as facilitators in these initial stages of children’s lives, become responsible for preparing children for the future (sliskovic et al., 2017). it is critically important for teachers to create an innovative and effective learning atmosphere to assist children in discovering who they can become. since elementary school teachers become mentors and role models for their students, the teacher education program is significant for schooling systems, and thus, children’s learning. the teacher education program refers to procedures and curriculum arranged to equip pre-service candidates with the skills, behaviors, and expectations essential to successfully fulfill their school responsibilities, as well as maintain wider quality educational environments (ezer et al., 2010). additionally, teacher education programs focus on nurturing pre-service candidates’ professional identity, self-efficacy development, and self-actualization for their future-oriented work-related behaviors. literature review possible selves theory since the 1980’s, possible selves theory (markus & nurius, 1986) presents a central framework for future-oriented tendencies. possible selves theory describes how a person thinks about his or her own future potential. as identified by markus and nurius (1986), possible selves theory serves as “incentives for future behavior” based on past and present self-images (p. 955). one can envision a possible self that he or she would like to become or is afraid of becoming. generating possible selves is an opportunity for individuals to project who they will be in the future (lee & oyserman, 2008). erikson (2007) discusses how “possible selves are conceptions of ourselves in the future, including, at least to some degree, an experience of being an agent in a future situation. possible selves get vital parts of their meaning in interplay with the self-concept, which they in turn moderate, as well as from their social and cultural context” (p. 356). as also stated by oyserman and fryberg (2006), social structures, cultures, identities, and genders affect the development of possible selves. the perceived attainability is shaped by standards, interactions, and social norms as well (erikson, 2019). possible selves theory becomes an important motivational resource and links to provide motivations and imagined futures (erikson, 2018). possible selves can be regarded as positive since some appear as “expected or hoped for” selves while others can be labelled as negative since they are referred as “avoidant and feared” possible selves (oyserman & james, 2011, p. 128-129). hoped for or expected selves could 12 include health, work satisfaction, and happiness; while feared or avoidant selves might include poverty, illness, and loneliness (dunkel & anthis, 2001). when possible selves theory initially appeared, it represented a concern for social psychology (markus & nurius, 1986); however, now this theory is receiving heightened attention in educational settings. as a goal-focused theory, it provides a sense of motivation “in terms of futures to avoid or achieve” (erikson, 2019, p. 29). with colleges and universities restricting access to on-ground learning because of the covid-19 pandemic, the rapid transition from “face to face” to “online” teaching and learning resulted in stress and confusion for stakeholders involved in teacher education (dı̇lekcı̇ & limon, 2020; nasri et al., 2020). this instructional delivery transition process could alter pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards teacher education programs and may impact their expectations regarding the profession. covid-19 pandemic and teacher possible selves theory the covid-19 pandemic changed much of the social and organizational life throughout the world (kavrayici & kesim, 2021). the pandemic impacted teacher education in numerous ways. although teachers and students quickly adapted themselves to distance teaching and learning processes because of school and university mandates (carrillo & flores, 2020; kaya & dilekci, 2021), stakeholder stress/confusion occurred because of this shift to “online” instruction (dı̇lekcı̇ & limon, 2020; nasri et al., 2020). during the pandemic, teacher candidates did not experience access to children and schools; this context of instructional delivery may influence pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards teacher education programs and impact expectations regarding the profession. for example, because teaching practicum courses were implemented via on-line teaching, preservice teacher-candidates were not exposed to teaching practicum lessons including classroom management applications and practice of teaching strategies. the lack of in-person teaching experiences might be a reason why pre-service teacher-candidates may encounter difficulties later in their careers (nasri et al., 2020), affecting their identity development and selfactualization in the teaching profession. in turkey, pre-service teachers were matched with the on-line learning system of the ministry of national education called eba (education and information network); pre-service candidates attended on-line lessons delivered by teachers in the ministry of national education’s schools. as a requirement of teacher education in turkey, teacher-candidates made observations, presentations, and taught a lesson as a student teacher during covid-19. this on-line instruction may also negatively affect their classroom management competencies and teaching strategies when they later encounter face-to-face classroom interactions. since future orientations of pre-service teachers represent a critical role for educational operations, the topic of possible selves of pre-service teachers remains one of the most important research trends of teacher education in the past two decades. possible selves theory, in terms of focusing on future selves, provides an appropriate theoretical framework to examine the professional identity development of pre-service teachers; this timing represents the last stage of teacher education a critical phase from transitioning from a student to a teacher (hamman et al., 2010). 13 pre-service teachers build their future teacher selves through the opportunities they experience during their education (hong & greene, 2011). yuan (2016) states feared possible selves of preservice teachers restrain their prospective actions and sense of agency. feared possible selves of pre-service teachers include avoidances such as becoming a “boring” teacher (pellikka et al., 2020). however, positive possible selves direct pre-service teachers to make plans and develop strategies for the future (chan, 2006). expected possible selves refers to pre-service teachers striving towards becoming “caring” and “inspiring” (pellikka et al., 2020). possible selves theory is applied as a compass to understand how pre-service teachers’ future expectations, goals, and motivations develop (hamman et al., 2013). possible selves theory describes how motivated an individual is about their future selves (oyserman & markus, 1990), and it is helpful to “understand how efforts to become a certain type of teacher in the future are deeply rooted in the emerging professional identity of the present” (hamman et al., 2013, p. 308). pre-service teachers’ concerns and expectations about the future may ensure considerable information for professional development of teachers and the curriculum of teacher education. an examination of feared and expected selves of pre-service teachers helps to support positive outcomes for teacher education programs (hamman et al., 2013). thus, the emerging possible selves of preservice teachers during covid-19 become a focus of concern. moreover, an examination of possible selves of pre-service teachers provides insight regarding results of teacher education during the covid-19 on-line learning environment. within this context, the intent of the current study was to describe perceptions of pre-service teachers regarding their own possible selves. therefore, the study focuses on the following research questions: 1. what are the levels of expected and feared possible selves perception of pre-service teachers during the covid-19 learning environment? 2. what are the feelings and thoughts of pre-service elementary school teachers about their possible selves during the covid-19 learning environment? 3. to what extent could the findings of the qualitative data be used to generate a deeper perspective to evaluate possible selves of pre-service teachers during the covid-19 learning environment? methodology researchers used a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design in this study. the intention of the design is to use qualitative data to build upon quantitative results (creswell & plano clark, 2007). in explanatory sequential design, the qualitative data collection process intends to explain the results of the quantitative data in more detail (sahin & ozturk, 2019). the procedure in this design includes initially gathering survey data (rationalistic/quantitative analysis), analyzing the data, and then, conducting interviews and thereby generating narrative data for a qualitative analysis. in this second narrative data collection, the intent is to support the responses gathered in the survey phase (creswell, 2014). participants 14 the population for this study included two hundred and fifty junior and senior pre-service elementary school teachers in a university in the middle east region of turkey in the academic years of 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. stratified purposeful sampling technique was used in the study. since possible selves is a part of the teaching experience and related to hopes and expectations in the near future, the sample and population were determined according to their classification, selecting those who were closer to entering the profession. therefore, seniors who experienced both teaching practicum and school observation courses and juniors who participated only in a school observation course were included in the study. from this point of view, classes of pre-service elementary school teachers were regarded as one strand; thus, one hundred, eighty-six junior and senior pre-service elementary school teachers constituted the sample of the quantitative strand of the study. see table 1, descriptive statistics, describing the participants. table 1. descriptive statistics of the participants in quantitative strand feature variable f % gender female 139 74.7 male 47 25.3 experience of teaching practicum course yes 110 59.1 no 76 40.9 grade junior 74 39.8 senior 112 60.2 total 186 100 the participants of the qualitative strand of the study were selected using a purposive sampling technique called maximum variation sampling that “reports diverse variations and identifies common patterns” (miles & huberman, 1994, p. 28). this sampling technique includes purposeful choice of participants in a wide range of cases in order to provide variation on dimensions of interest and identify crucial common patterns among variations (patton, 2007). hence, a variety of participants in different grades, genders, and ages were provided in the qualitative phase (see table 2). table 2. participants of the qualitative phase participant gender age grade interview duration p1 male 22 junior 27.33 p2 male 21 junior 29.04 p3 male 22 junior 35.52 p4 female 24 senior 33.38 p5 male 25 senior 26.34 p6 female 21 junior 39.18 p7 female 22 senior 22.06 p8 male 24 senior 43.49 15 p9 female 25 senior 25.11 p10 female 22 junior 34.23 p11 female 23 junior 21.47 p12 female 25 senior 41.02 p13 female 23 senior 52.45 since the aim of the qualitative phase is to explain the findings in more detail (creswell & plano clark, 2017), volunteer participants were chosen from those participating in the rationalistic phase of the study. data saturation, defined as “no new themes and information are expected to be emerged from the data” (guest et al., 2006, p. 59), determined the number of the participants. for the interview (qualitative) section of the study, thirteen participants met the data saturation criterion which provided maximum outcome for the research problem. research instruments and procedures the data in the quantitative phase were gathered via the possible selves scale developed by hamman et al. (2013) and adapted to turkish by tatli-dalioglu and adiguzel (2015). the possible selves scale includes expected and feared possible selves. the expected possible selves scale includes two dimensions, “professionalism” and “learning to teach,” while the feared possible selves scale includes three dimensions identified as “uninspired instruction,” “loss of control,” and “uncaring teacher.” the scales represent a six-point likert type and both of them include nine measures. expected possible selves scale explains 68.5% of total variance and feared possible selves scale explains 75.4% of total variance. cronbach's alpha values for dimensions of the scales report as follows: professionalism (.79), learning to teach (.68), uninspired instruction (.86), loss of control (.81), and uncaring teacher (.76). for the qualitative strand of the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted via zoom online meeting software. semi-structured interviews, a commonly used data collection method, enable information-based interactions between the interviewer and interviewee. therefore, the researcher prepared fourteen questions generating from the possible selves literature and the results of the quantitative strand of the study. two field experts, academics in educational sciences with a phd degree, analyzed the fourteen interview questions; one question was eliminated from the initial draft because of irrelevance. a pilot study was conducted with one junior and one senior elementary pre-service teacher in order to determine whether the questions in the draft were useful and comprehensive. two questions were eliminated since they were difficult to interpret and comprehend. the final interview included eleven questions. data analysis surveys created in google documents were posted to pre-service elementary teachers in junior and senior grades. one hundred and ninety-four participants completed the on-line form; the researcher extracted the excel form and transferred it to spss 22.0 software. outliers in the data set and the normal distribution were checked to prepare for analysis. having applied box and whisker plots analysis, eight of the participants were detected as outliers. then, the kurtosis and skewness values were checked, and the values were within the range of ± 1, indicating normal distribution. the internal consistency coefficients for the dimensions of the scales demonstrated 16 the reliability: professionalism (α =.82), learning to teach (α = .73); uninspired instruction (α =. 84), loss of control (α = .78), and uncaring teacher (α = .79). the narrative data in the qualitative strand were organized to illuminate and explain the findings of the quantitative strand by providing more detail. interviews, implemented via zoom on-line meeting software, were recorded under the permission of participants after they filled on-line interview consent forms as an ethical requirement. the researcher took notes during the interviews and transcribed the duration of the interviews; interviews ranged from 21.47 to 43.49 minutes. having transcribed the data, one hundred and seventy-three pages were obtained. the researcher organized, categorized, and coded the transcribed narratives. another researcher listened, read, and coded the data alternatively. direct quotations were used to support and enrich the different interpretations of the data. the data of the qualitative strand were analyzed by using template analysis which intends to allow the researcher to evaluate priori themes. priori themes build on the quantitative findings from the first phase (hesse-biber, 2018). template analysis serves to help scholars to combine quantitative and qualitative data analysis (king, 2004), and can be implemented by using the themes emerging in the quantitative phase (hesse-biber, 2018). creswell (2013) and lincoln and guba (1985) identify various strategies to ensure trustworthiness in qualitative research. a number of trustworthiness strategies were utilized within this current study. first, the strategy referred to as prolonged engagement was used in which trust with interviewees during the data collection and research process was established. the second strategy was an external audit, which means a person, not involved in the research, checks and verifies the collected data and the generated codes (creswell, 2013). regarded as participant validation, member checking is another strategy employed in this study (lincoln & guba,1985). thereby, each participant was asked to check the accuracy of the transcriptions and the results of the interview. the fourth strategy was an effort to provide rich and thick descriptions as well as provide deep information (creswell, 2013). additionally, detailed descriptions and purposeful sampling were used to ensure one criteria of trustworthiness, called transferability. it is used to ensure generalizability of the qualitative findings (erlandson et al., 1993; lincoln & guba, 1985). results the results align with the “weaving approach,” which includes writing both quantitative and qualitative findings together on a concept-by-concept or theme-by-theme basis (fetters et al., 2013, p. 2142). hence, findings and discussion merge together because “the quantitative and qualitative results can easily be compared and contrasted by explaining through narrative” (hesse-biber, 2018, p. 291). first, an analysis examined the perceptions of pre-service elementary teachers on their possible selves (research question 1). descriptive statistics related to their perceptions are displayed in table 3. 17 table 3. arithmetic means and standard deviations for pre-service teachers’ possible selves measurement tool variables n sd skewness kurtosis expected possible selves (eps) professionalism 186 5.09 0.64 -.812 .918 learning to teach 186 5.24 0.50 -.305 -.571 eps (total) 186 5.18 0.48 -.197 -.858 feared possible selves (fps) uninspired instruction 186 3.15 1.53 .192 -.917 loss of control 186 3.91 1.22 -.432 -.538 uncaring teacher 186 2.74 1.29 .519 -.593 fps (total) 186 3.27 1.14 .180 -.785 as illustrated in table 3, the arithmetic mean of pre-service elementary teachers’ perception on the “professionalism” dimension was x̄ = 5.09. items in “professionalism” dimension of the scale were related to success in profession. this finding of the study reveals that professionalism is the factor of possible selves that is highly expected by pre-service elementary teachers. qualitative findings (research question 2) echo identical results and reveal the highly expected professionalism as well. data highlight pre-service teachers’ importance of professionalism and further describe their expectations. pre-service teachers believe they will be able to help their students develop positive attitudes and they will treat them fairly and equally. they also believe that they will be successful in planning and preparing lessons. interview data triangulated with numerical data; qualitative analysis building on strand one quantitative analysis supported a priori theme. the narrative quotations about “professionalism” include the following: “first of all, i love people and children. seeing the light in their eyes makes me cheerful when they learn something new. the idea of being the first to teach many things to prepare them for life… it is a great happiness.” (p2) “i am also fair in my daily life. even when i am sharing chocolate with my friends, i cut it with a knife in order to be equal and fair. being fair and equitable {is}inevitable in teaching profession. i will not care about social, cultural and economic background and status of children. they will all be equal in my classroom.” (p12) “university education that we have experienced is already on being planned. plan, plan, plan! everything belongs to this magic word. we always plan our teaching practice course and the presentations in other courses at the university." (p6) the arithmetic mean for the “learning to teach” dimension (x̄ = 5.24) was the highest one among the possible selves’ dimensions. items in the “learning to teach” dimension include collaborate with colleagues, peers, parents, and willingness to learn new methodologies. the qualitative data x 18 strand also supports the findings of this quantitative dimension revealing that “learning to teach” is particularly important to pre-service teachers. it could be deduced from the narrations that preservice teachers expect to build collaborative relationships with parents. in addition, data show pre-service teachers would also like to learn and try new methodologies; rather, than to teach with traditional models. findings in the qualitative analysis shared the same perception. preservice elementary teachers expect that they will be willing to learn new “things” from their colleagues, parents and all the shareholders that would contribute to the educational environment. in addition, they understand the need for technology much more than they did in the past, because they experienced on-line learning management systems intensively during the time of the covid-19 pandemic. pre-service teachers’ opinions, regarding the “learning to teach” a priori theme, are as follow: “i think collaboration with parents is the most important. children spend most of their time with their family. parents and teachers should proceed accordingly. i think i can achieve this. some parents can be difficult. however, with strong relationship and cooperation we can overcome these difficulties." (p4) “i want to be an effective teacher. i think i will achieve this by using different methods since we were imposed to do this during university education. i can teach students by using games effectively.” (p1) “the idea of learning from peers and experienced colleagues sounds good. i am still doing this by calling my uncle who is an experienced elementary school teacher. i call him sometimes and ask: what would you do for that kind of learning outcome? i prepared this material. do you think is it appropriate? i can do the same in initial years of the profession.” (p9) “there is a possibility of hybrid education when the pandemic is over.we have experienced a lot about distance education practices and technological applications during the covid-19 pandemic. how to make a presentation in online education? how can the materials be adapted for distance education? these experiences would be useful for us in the context of different teaching methods.” (p8) the “uncaring teacher” (x̄ = 2.74) dimension was the one which had the lowest arithmetic mean among the dimensions of feared possible selves indicating that pre-service teachers do not have fears about being uncaring in initial years of the profession. since items in the “uncaring teacher” dimension were related to being an unjust, apathetic teacher, data indicate that pre-service elementary teachers were not afraid of being an uncaring teacher. findings of the qualitative phase also supported the findings of this dimension indicating pre-service elementary teachers had self-confidence in being a caring teacher. therefore, findings demonstrate pre-service elementary teachers do not fear their capacity to show care for their students. opinions of preservice teachers describing caring or uncaring teachers are as follow: “i think they will take me as a role model. i think i use turkish properly. communication is an important factor. i pay attention to my dressing up. i am generally a happy and smiling person. that's why i will become a role model.” (p11) 19 “i am a happy person in daily life. i love kids so much. my primary school teacher also loved us very much. i am sure that i will love my students and take care of them one by one according to their individual differences. i think my classroom will be a very good family atmosphere.” (p8) “i am a person who gets on very well with children. i think they will love me. i experienced this when i was a volunteer teacher at the society volunteers foundation. i don't want to be a traditional teacher. all the learning process should be implemented with love and intrinsic motivation.” (p13) “uninspired instruction” (x̄ = 3.15) was another dimension which represented a low arithmetic mean among the dimensions of feared possible selves. since items in the dimension reflect boring and ineffective teachers, the low arithmetic mean is positive in that it implies pre-service elementary teachers would inspire their students in the instructional process. findings from the qualitative strand evidenced similarities with the findings of the first strand. the implication is that the covid-19 process provided small numbers of advantages in terms of time management and on-line learning programs in contrast to the abundance of disadvantages. hence, it is possible to deduce that pre-service elementary teachers believe that they will inspire their students in the near future. opinions of pre-service teachers describing uninspired instruction are as follow: “for example, i took “intelligence and mind games” lesson and “traditional games” lesson during the covid-19 pandemic process as a certificate from “home and school association.” i realized that i could use even the best-known “blind man's bluff” game for learning outcomes. i think we can make education and learning permanent by combining even the slightest old tradition with games.” (p10) “i don't want to be a boring teacher. i think i will achieve this. when children lose interest in the lesson, i can draw their attention by doing different activities.” (p5) “i grew up in a village, i am the only one who is about to get university degree among 12 siblings. before me, there wasn’t any family member who experienced university education. this story has inspired many people in the village and my family. i know what it is to be successful in difficult conditions. i believe i will impress my students.” (p7). one of the prominent findings related to “loss of control” (x̄ = 3.91) exhibited the highest arithmetic mean among the dimensions of feared possible selves indicating that pre-service elementary teachers demonstrate some fears about managing classroom and instruction. since items in the dimension regarding ineffective classroom and instructional management as well as losing control in managing pupils respectively, a higher arithmetic mean indicates they would experience difficulties in managing a classroom and instruction. findings of the qualitative strand underpinned the findings of quantitative data as well. according to interviews, the theme participants focused on was “loss of control” which was mainly affected by an on-line education during covid-19. they believe that experiencing an on-line teaching practicum course will affect their competencies on managing classroom and instruction negatively. consequently, it is 20 possible to suggest that pre-service elementary teachers experience doubts in their management strategies. the narrative comments describing their concerns referred to as “loss of control” are as follow: “i'm afraid of classroom management. virtual classroom management is very difficult in online education as we experienced in teaching practicum course in the time of covid-19. duration of the lessons in public schools was limited with 30 minutes. it is also important to know technology. sometimes i did screen sharing in my online teaching trial. since, children were better than me in using technology, they drew something on the screen. for example, i could not solve this problem. i do not know how i will be able to manage classroom and instruction in face-to-face education. we will not have experienced face-to-face education when we start the profession." (p4) “i had fears about classroom management before teaching practicum course experience. however, i observed my teacher very well, during teaching practicum course. if i act like her, i believe that it would be better. nevertheless, this is the course in online education because of covid-19 pandemic. i don't know how it will be in face-to-face education. that's why i still have concerns about classroom and instruction management. because we have never experienced the classroom environment in face-to-face education.” (p5) “to be honest experiencing online teaching practicum course was not satisfying. we couldn’t feel the warm atmosphere of the classroom. face-to-face teaching practice could have been better. we could have been more effective in classroom management and teaching methods. i think we will feel the lack of this experience in our professional life. we would like to start the profession with more experience." (p12) “this is my 3rd year. the idea of experiencing online teaching practicum course in next year is horrible. i would like to have my teaching practicum course face-to-face with lots of interactions with my lovely students. my lessons and presentations will be more effective in face-to-face education and i will be able to overcome my doubts about classroom and instruction management.” (p6) discussion in answering research question 3, the researcher reported the findings from both the quantitative and qualitative results by using a weaving approach and used jointinterpretation to compare results when analyzing the data. there was a convergence of data when comparing feelings of participants towards scores of possible selves. jointly interpreted report of the research represents the participants’ feelings based on each dimension and how they align with quantitative findings. when evaluating the key findings of the mixed-methods data, the researcher discovered numerous points representing various correlations from both the quantitative and the qualitative results. there was a convergence between pre-service teachers’ future expectations and possible fears scores with statements of participants during the interviews. 21 jointly interpreting quantitative and qualitative analyses reveal pre-service teachers indicate positive future orientations related to “professionalism” and “learning to teach,” as expected possible selves. they stated that they expect collaboration with colleagues, peers, parents, and a willingness to learn new methodologies that refer to the “learning to teach” dimension. another dimension evidencing the positive expectations of pre-service teachers regarding early years of the career was “professionalism” indicating self-confidence in their successful teaching profession. these current findings demonstrate congruence with the existing literature. preservice teachers evidence a high level of perception regarding their expected possible selves (tatlı-dalioglu, 2016; tavsanli & sarac, 2016; olcer, 2019). findings (ng, 2019) also reveal teachers who indicate expected selves are more likely to look for a collegial collaboration and dialogue. qualitative findings highlight high expectations of pre-service teachers on “professionalism” and “learning to teach.” they believe that they will be able to build strong and collaborative relationships with parents and colleagues when they begin the profession. they indicate high expectation in their ability to plan and use new approaches in their initial years. although they feel some personal inadequacies, they describe their experiences with new learning management systems in the time of covid-19 (zoom, microsoft teams, eba, google classroom) which enabled them to think about more technology-driven educational environment probabilities. the findings related to feared possible selves suggest pre-service teachers demonstrate no concerns about becoming uncaring teachers; this finding indicates a belief in their capacity to interact with future students with sensitivity and fairness. regarded as an indicator of an inspired teacher, traits associated with “enjoyable and effective” become important in the learning process. pre-service teachers do not express fears about being boring and ineffective at the beginning of the profession. these current findings are similar to other studies in the existing literature. for example, babanoglu (2017), tatlı-dalioglu (2016), and olcer (2019) describe how the arithmetic means of the subscales were low, indicating that pre-service teachers do not demonstrate fears regarding their becoming boring and ineffective. qualitative findings triangulated well with the quantitative data phase by indicating pre-service teachers demonstrated almost no fears of becoming “uncaring teachers” or implementing “uninspired instruction.” pre-service teachers believe they will be “effective and enjoyable” educators that will inspire their students. they think fairness and equality are crucial in order to sustain peaceful learning environments. they also indicate self-confidence in their ability to be a role model for their students with respect to physical appearances, thoughts, behaviors, and attitudes. these current results align with the research of shoyer and leshem (2016). pre-service teachers assumed good teachers should be knowledgeable, sensitive to students’ instructional and emotional needs and as well as know how to conduct effective lessons. in sum, findings related to “uninspired instruction” and “uncaring teacher” dimensions of feared possible selves, “professionalism” and “learning to teach” dimensions of expected possible selves indicate preservice teachers evidence self-confidence and positive thoughts regarding their initial years in the profession. similarly, shoyer and leshem (2016) found that pre-service teachers expressed more hopes than fears on their future orientation. their study described how out of 742 statements, 241 statements were related to fears; whereas, 501 statements were associated with hopes (shoyer & leshem, 2016). 22 however, among the feared possible selves of pre-service teachers, “loss of control,” including classroom and instructional management processes represented the main dimension of focus. as widely known, classrooms are the places where children develop themselves and build their behavior, so effective classroom management is crucial. hence, doubts and fears of pre-service teachers associated with classroom and instructional management processes regarding their initial career should be considered as integral toward their future successes with children. findings related to the “loss of control” dimension support the existing literature (babanoglu, 2017; dalioglu & adiguzel, 2016; olcer, 2019). existing research describes the fear pre-service teachers express in regard to classroom management in the initial years of the profession. the arithmetic mean of “loss of control” dimension, in this current study, is higher than the arithmetic mean reported in the babanoglu study (2017) and the olcer study (2019), indicating a higher level of pre-service teachers’ fear with respect to classroom and instructional management. this may be the result of the covid-19 process, which transferred the face-toface teacher education program to an on-line teacher education delivery. pre-service teachers, who experienced all of the courses including teaching practicum as on-line, may have developed more fears about “loss of control” in initial years of the profession. current qualitative findings emphasize the impact of covid-19 on teacher education, the process of which affected selfconfidence, fears, and expectations of pre-service teachers. pre-service teachers, in the last year of their university education, underscored the differences of experiences between the on-line teaching practicum course and the face-to-face school observation course that they practiced in their third year just before the covid-19 pandemic. they discussed how their observation course in a real school and within a classroom context was more useful than their teaching practicum course in a virtual teaching context. they believed that they felt the energy of the classroom in a real context. they were able to observe the materials and methodologies used in the lesson in detail. they could understand reactions of teachers and students, and feel the emotional atmosphere in the classroom. unlike a real context, an on-line teaching practicum was a far cry from providing the emotions and detailed practices. pre-service teachers determined that having or lacking these in-class experiences as potentially significant in their future classroom practices. these findings remain consistent with the literature indicating that previous experiences of pre-service teachers influence the roles and possible selves they imagine for future professional targets (miller & shifflet, 2016). moreover, the literature suggests experiences with feedback and close interaction in the classroom assist pre-service teachers to develop ideas to overcome existing fears and support their expectations (sallı & osam, 2018). recommendations in the light of existing and current research, the reshaping of teacher education programs, specifically targeting teaching practicum and school observation courses, becomes a priority. since the connection between theory and practice requires more practice in a real-life context (flores & gago, 2020), and teaching practices play a key role in developing pre-service teacher identity (kavrayici, 2020), quality and density of practicum/observation courses should be developed in teacher education programs. those pre-service teachers, lacking practicum experiences in a real-life context, may satisfy this genuine disparity by working in a nearby senior teacher’s classroom who can provide real experiences with children for the pre-service teacher. in-class experiences for pre-service teachers may occur just before beginning their professional teaching. this in-class experience contributes to their understanding of children’s 23 holistic learning and enhances their professional development. additionally, teachers require ongoing support in technology tools and management systems in both pre-service education and in-service training. limitations this current study evidences limitations. sample size was relatively small and focused only on pre-service elementary school teachers. future studies can be conducted on pre-service teachers enrolled in different programs and include larger samples. longitudinal studies that may examine changes of pre-service teachers’ possible selves across time can also be considered for future studies. 24 references babanoglu, m. p. 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(2005). the importance of education in social reconstruction. six years of the enhanced graz process: developments, current status and future prospects od education od south-east europe. ljubljana & wien: university od ljubljana, faculty of education. http://www.pef.uni-lj.si/ceps/knjiznica/doc/2005%20tfey%20egp-prelomdokon%c4%8dni.pdf 82 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 education by the numbers donald sneada amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is a professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. the basics most americans embrace the philosophy for u.s. education and believe it is a necessity for life (ozmon, 2012). two initial questions become: “how many students participate and what is the budget”? in the united states, the estimated cost for all related spending on public pre-k-12 education in 2019-2020 school year is $680 billion ($13,440 per student). this is seven percent of the gdp. there are approximately 50.8 million students attending public elementary, secondary and charter schools. there are 35.5 million students enrolled in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. 83 table 1: students enrolled in pre-k 8th grade there are 15.3 million students in secondary (9th grade-12th grade). 4.1 million students are enrolled in 9th grade, and typically enter high school. the demographics of public-school students, pre-k-12: white students 46.7% (23.7 million) hispanic students 27.4% (13.9 million) african american (black) students 15.2% (7.7 million) asian students 5.3% (2.7 million) american indian/alaska native students 1.0% (.5 million) pacific islander students 0.4% (.2 million) figure 1: demographics of public-school students enrolled in pre-k 12th grade references ozmon, h. a (2012). philosophical foundations of education, (ninth edition). pearson, new york, ny u.s. department of education. national center for education statistics (2019). retrieved march 6, 2020 from https://nces.ed.gov/ffastfacts pre-k, 1.4 kindergarten, 3.7 1st-8th, 30.4 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 pre-k kindergarten 1st-8th in m il li o n s students enrolled in pre-k 8th grade https://nces.ed.gov/ffastfacts ijwc spring 2020 82 ijwc spring 2020 83 84 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 steam steaming ahead by challenging thinking natalie tyea, sarah willardb a-buniversity of central missouri natalie tye is associate professor and program coordinator for early childhood education at the university of central missouri. dr. tye received her doctoral degree in educational leadership and policy analysis from the university of missouri-columbia. she taught preschool for ten years, also serving as director for eight of those years. dr. tye has taught in the university setting for 16 years, assisting and supporting student growth through a constructive approach. sarah willard is a k-5 art educator at whiteman elementary in the knob noster, missouri public school district. mrs. willard received her undergraduate in art education from the university of central missouri and m.ed. in educational theory and practice at arkansas state university. mrs. willard has taught in the visual arts classroom for 24 years. she takes a progressivist approach to education with special interest in steam, arts integration in the classroom, and challenge-based learning. introduction teaching in the u.s. is currently being driven by political bureaucracy. under the design of “common core,” the political solution to achieving equality is a pre-packaged curriculum and standardized testing where all children are provided the exact same learning experiences with the same high-stakes assessments. the expectation for teaching, learning, and assessment is “sameness.” however, considering the whole child, developmental processes, and the characteristics of a diverse society, sameness should not be the priority of the educational system. this paper showcases a different approach taken in one elementary art classroom. instead of using a pre-packaged curriculum, the teacher provided students with the opportunity to guide their own learning through steam (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) activities. the short film, alike (lara & méndez, 2016) was produced in an effort to elicit the emotional dilemma that society may face with a population who all think alike. the film follows a father and child through a personal account of how people are trained for productivity by society, highlighting how our educational system fosters alikeness for the purpose of career readiness, but 85 devalues creativity. the film warns of the coming travesty for the future of our children and society as a whole. throughout the film, the child struggles with completing worksheets and attempting to maintain creativity in his learning experiences. however, the teacher continues to insist on learning without creativity. at the same time, the father visibly sees the change in his son as each day of school passes. eventually, the child succumbs to the demand for output without creative energy, and the father realizes the damage caused by a lack of the arts in education. “is this the ideal model for teaching our future leaders, to be alike and to stifle creativity?” this paper demonstrates the need for arts-based education and provides an example of how arts can be integrated with other subjects. background the current push in education has a laser focus on teaching language arts and mathematics to better prepare our students for an ever-changing world. the concern is this initiative leaves little room for the teaching and integration of the arts. in an interview, judith ramaley, while president of the national science foundation in 2001, shared her vision and process for coining stem, standing for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (christensen, 2011). ramaley’s intent was to capture the connection between subject areas in education (christensen, 2011). her work intended to call attention to the importance of science and math in order to understand the universe using technology and engineering (christensen, 2011). this perspective started a national recognition of stem curriculum valuing a balanced education. the stem movement became a front for math and science education advocacy efforts. in 2001, no child left behind legislation intensified a need for literacy education in the classroom with consequences for schools that did not show improvement in test scores (wexler, 2018). this push for literacy education left no place for the teaching of science in the classroom. due to a lack of teacher preparation or requirement to teach in the areas of science and math, the national science foundation and science partnership identified a crisis in the school system (national academies press, 2006). it was not until no child left behind legislation in 2007, that standardized testing was expanded to include science education. prior to this time, literacy education was the highest priority in the public-school system (christensen, 2011; hallinen, 2019; wexler, 2018). for this reason, the stem initiative represented a new aspect of teaching science, technology, engineering, and math in the classroom. the steam movement with stem education taking an active role in the school system, ramaley envisioned the inclusion of arts education to broaden student learning and intensify teaching experiences (christensen, 2011). yakman (2008) first coined steam education by adding the “a” standing for “arts.” yakman’s work showcased a model for learning in the language of mathematical thinking through art education. by adding the arts into stem education, teachers were provided an avenue for allowing creativity through art, movement, and representational thinking in learning experiences. for some educators, the steam movement proved to be the needed reasoning for allowing creativity back in the classroom. now, after years of steam education, progressivists predict the incorporation of reading to be the next logical step in the stem 86 movement, using the acronym stream. many educators are already adopting these practices, adding literacy education components to stem and/or steam lessons. many educators find it to be a logical and natural inclusion in the integrated learning process. as defined by jacobs (2004), the integrated movement as exemplified by steam, involves a conscious effort to apply knowledge, principles, and/or values to more than one academic discipline simultaneously. the disciplines may be related through a central theme, issue, problem, process, topic, or experience. steam education can be viewed as a partnership between the arts and sciences. all the disciplines easily compliment and strengthen one another (christensen, 2011). building steam into teaching by blending subjects together, students make stronger connections, and meaningful learning outcomes are increased. the interplay between subjects should be fluid as one flows into the other. educators who struggle with incorporating steam instruction in their curriculum may be asked by administrators to reflect on current lesson plans and student learning outcomes for the purpose of identifying ways to incorporate other subjects that could flow smoothly together. the key to infusing steam in an already developed curriculum is not to change everything that has been planned, but to identify one specific concept and develop a plan for incorporating other subject areas into the learning experience. some teachers may find planning steam activities to be overwhelming, and the key is to start slowly. by taking integration one step at a time, the educator can find success. this may instill the confidence to attempt further integrations into teaching experiences; rather, than trying to integrate across all steam areas at once and getting lost in the process. the inclusion of the arts is only enriching when thoughtfully considered as an integral part of the learning process. educators should not just add art to check off a box; instead, educators consider the quality of every learning experience. quality steam programs include motivation, engagement, and real-world context where students apply meaningful math and science content (moore et al., 2014). steam teaching evidences inquiry-based and student-centered methods. teamwork and communication become the vehicle for students to engage in the design process in order to effectively solve engineering challenges. by providing a safe environment, students are encouraged to think critically and creatively, while given opportunities to promote a growth mindset. in order to deeply appreciate steam education initiatives, it is necessary to investigate how students are most inclined to learn. gardner (2016), focusing attention on the implications of multiple intelligences, highlighted possibilities in which to differentiate for different learners. multiple intelligences theory determines how students are able to gain and apply new information. this theory supports the magnitude to which students learn in diverse and unique ways (gardner, 2011). to use gardner’s multiple intelligence theory in teaching, educators first reflect on how they themselves learn. for example, “are educators asking students to learn in ways that would be challenging for adults?” if so, they could be unintentionally stifling the learning experience for students by limiting the delivery method. everyone has different strengths and intelligences, and 87 these differences make us unique in our contributions to society. there is no average student and not all students learn in the same ways. why should educators abandon the multiple intelligences, as some currently suggest, when it is evident that all students learn differently? many early childhood and elementary students demonstrate their natural creativity in diverse ways. they are confident and capable of creating a dance, developing a song, or designing a masterpiece through the visual arts. however, by the time these students become seniors in high school, very few will consider themselves to be creative at all (lehrer, 2012). so how can a teacher create a classroom where students are not only encouraged to think divergently, but are supported in realizing the power behind their creative ideas? creativity is not bound to a specific content area; it is the underlying opportunity within everything children learn and do. study jacobs (2004) suggested that the movement to integrate involved a conscious effort, and the american society for engineering education (moore et al., 2014) added that the context for learning must be motivating, engaging, and applicable to the real world. accordingly, some educators are taking the leap to create real-time, integrated learning experiences. this study describes one elementary art teacher from a rural school district in mid-missouri. this article follows her experience creating challenge-based learning opportunities for fourth grade students in her classroom spanning across a year of instruction, all while maintaining district curriculum requirements. after an initial year of experimental design, this educator was able to replicate the process in subsequent years. students in her classroom have benefitted from the unique integrated approach as described in the following section. sarah willard, a fourth-grade art teacher, started the year by introducing and defining the term, collaborative relief sculpture. she set project parameters through a presentation on possible color schemes, and provided her students a selection of artists available to research. students were initially tasked with individually studying an artist of their choosing and creating a digital presentation focusing on the artist, the style, and the inspiration. students were given tablets to facilitate the research process, and began to narrow down their artist preference according to style, color, and subject matter. this component of research instilled personal understanding of the artist and motivated later design elements for the project. throughout the research process, students were tasked with determining for whom the sculpture would be created, where and how it would be displayed, and the purpose for the work. students held meaningful discussions based on audience, message, and needs. some students suggested the work be displayed in the hall of their school, while others wanted to serve a greater need by donating the sculpture to a children’s hospital or community center to give hope to others. based on student discussions, mrs. willard reached out to potential clients while students continued researching concepts. upon completion of the research process, students were able to create a relief sculpture design based on the different artist’s particular elements derived from research. early in the project, students were still working individually on designs for a finished sculpture. once initial designs were sketched, students worked in teams to collaborate on the project, deciding on one of the 88 individual designs to support as a team. each team created a student design presentation utilizing the samr model (substitution, augmentation, modification, redefinition (puentedura, 2006) to enhance technology integration and support the selected design. each team shared their final presentation with the whole class for review. teams provided artist information along with their selected design concept. once all teams presented their designs, the class held an election to determine the winning design for the collaborative relief sculpture project. with a final design concept selected, the entire fourth grade class was able to begin creating the sculpture as designed. throughout the process, mrs. willard led discussions but included the winning team in the leadership and execution of the work. the class divided into groups to work on different aspects of the project, referring back to the original design throughout the process. during this final stage of the project, students were still discussing what to do with the completed sculpture. some students suggested selling and donating the money to a charity, while others suggested donating the work to an office, school, or hospital. mrs. willard gave students full rights to determine the best direction for their work. this incorporated a meaningful and empowering component to the work that is essential for student learning and growth. during these conversations, there were no definable boundaries between the teacher and students. instead, all participants worked in a collaborative group, which identified needs and wants, and then reached a desired goal. each year, mrs. willard’s fourth grade class has created a collaborative relief sculpture for a different audience and to serve a different purpose. the first year of the project, fourth graders donated a sculpture with the word hope to the children’s mercy hospital philanthropy office to give hope to children and their families. the next year, the children’s mercy hospital education department reached out to the fourth grade class to commission a sculpture as well. the final collaborative relief sculpture had a focal point on the word study. the third year of the project, fourth graders were commissioned by the university of central missouri to create a sculpture. the class created their own version of the united states flag incorporating stars and stripes into the design. the fourth year of the project resulted in a 5-foot tall gumball machine to be sold and money donated to a charity of the class’ choosing. preparing students for a changing world immersive projects like the collaborative relief sculpture foster creativity and innovation, which are necessary characteristics in a complex, changing society. preparing students for an everchanging world should not happen through traditional teaching and testing. kim (2011), after studying the effects of rote teaching and the use of standardized tests to train students’ minds, describes how this type of teaching has increased the fear of failure, and as a result, has led to decreased creativity. with standardized tests weighing so heavily on the minds of districts and administration, students are often taught to memorize content through teacher-led activities rather than student-centered experiences. this type of traditional teaching removes the natural curiosity students have for learning, stifling a deep understanding of concepts and their potential real-world applications. students often demonstrate a lack of interest in rote memorization tasks, 89 which typically precludes the meaningful exploration of topics and diminishes students’ interest and excitement for learning. to expand on this idea of creative, integrated approaches in education, consider the following example. integrating steam components in classroom teaching is just one possibility. educators should refocus their efforts to expand thinking opportunities, and help students feel confident in striving for the seemingly impossible, like reaching for the moon. “moonshot thinking” is a model created by teller (2013) involving goals that are difficult, or perhaps even impossible to achieve. it is not actually a new concept. one of the most iconic examples of moonshot thinking occurred in 1962 when president john f. kennedy announced in a television broadcast that the united states would go to the moon. he said he did not know how and he did not know when, but that it would happen. teller (2013) states it is easier to project for improving at ten times rather than ten percent in a given situation. willard, from the art classroom described above, could have supported students in improving ten percent capacity in classroom problem solving skills. instead, she pushed beyond the classroom to extend their problem-solving skills to the local community and beyond. by exceeding the goal and envisioning what appears impossible, students and adults find the internal drive for success. the hardest things to achieve are the most worthwhile. in this way, perseverance and grit are necessary traits. it is important for educators to provide opportunities for students to develop perseverance and grit for greater success now and in the future. it may be difficult to look at teaching from a steam perspective and immediately shift one’s practice to an integrated approach, but the hardest things to do, those that seem impossible, are the most worth doing. another example is challenge-based learning, a concept introduced by apple corporation under the umbrella of steam, which was designed to challenge society to take action and make a difference in the world (nichols et al., 2008). challenge-based learning, which is an extension of problem-based learning in the sense that students exceed what seems possible, is a collaborative learning experience in which teachers and students work together to learn about compelling issues, propose solutions to real problems, and take action. the approach asks students to reflect on their learning and the impact of their actions, and publish their solutions to a worldwide audience. the challenge-based learning framework emerged from the apple classrooms of tomorrow—today (acot2) project initiated in 2008 by apple, inc. to identify the essential design principles of a 21st-century learning environment (the challenge institute, 2008). challenge-based learning can possibly make implementation of creativity in the classroom more feasible. sometimes, teachers start by taking too big of steps and quickly become overwhelmed with the changes occurring in the classroom. by starting with challenge-based learning, the teacher can take steps to move students toward a more creative mindset and incorporate steam practices in their classroom. re-envisioning teaching to take the first step, the role of the teacher changes from lecturer to mentor/coach. teachers become willing to share their classroom practices, goals, and discussions with their students. mrs. willard demonstrated a willingness to share control, and the results were beneficial for 90 everyone involved. teachers can share their power with the students with whom they work by creating a vision together. every child deserves to be taught in a way that enriches their minds, unlocks their true potential and provides them with the skills to flourish in the modern world. by changing the paradigm from teacher as authoritarian to teacher as facilitator/guide, real change can occur in education. classroom teachers can start right where they are right now. substantial changes are not necessary to see meaningful results in student thinking. there are endless opportunities for changing what teachers do and how they do it. the first step is for a teacher to think about what they are teaching right now and how they can maximize the learning through content integration. perhaps the best way to begin integrating is to add a relevant technology piece or include an engineering element. from there, a teacher may begin to naturally make steam connections to their own work in the classroom. when considering lesson planning, teachers thoughtfully examine if there is a project in which they could release control and allow students to develop solutions on their own or in small groups. sometimes teachers limit their work with students by thinking small. the teacher purposefully includes elements of moonshot thinking or challengebased learning throughout project work. those learning experiences where students can experiment with solving real-world issues directly from the classroom context prove the most meaningful and relevant. allowing students to take control of their own learning will increase student motivation and engagement levels. conclusion the short film alike (lara & méndez, 2016), described previously, demonstrated the dangers of training students’ minds to conform rather than encouraging the creativity within. there are educators working diligently to ensure their students receive the opportunity to think creatively. there are other educators who want to make a change in how they teach, but are unsure where to begin. when educators determine to make a change in how teaching occurs, they may become immediately overwhelmed with the task of reinventing teaching. before getting overwhelmed in a plan to make big changes, it is necessary to consider some ways creative thinking is already built into the classroom. sometimes educators are doing more than originally realized. by starting with what is already working and is part of an overarching goal for shared learning in the classroom, educators can find ways to integrate learning across subject areas while also challenging the thinking of their students. the fear of failure and ability to teach students to embrace failure is an integral part of learning in steam education. it is important for students to see the teacher embrace failure and observe the teacher’s reaction to making a mistake. it is through example that students begin to understand the value in learning from mistakes. big thinkers transform, inspire, and challenge. 91 references christenson, j. 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(2018, april). why american students haven’t gotten better in reading in 20 years. the atlantic. doi: https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/04/-american-studentsreading/557915/ yakman, g. (2008). st∑@m education: an overview of creating a model of integrative education. pupils attitudes towards technology (patt) proceedings. retrieved from https://steamedu.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/2008-patt-publication-steam.pdf https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/as-we-may-teach-educational-technology-from-theory/id380294705 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/as-we-may-teach-educational-technology-from-theory/id380294705 https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/04/-american-students-reading/557915/ https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/04/-american-students-reading/557915/ ijwc spring 2020 84 ijwc spring 2020 85 ijwc spring 2020 86 ijwc spring 2020 87 ijwc spring 2020 88 ijwc spring 2020 89 ijwc spring 2020 90 ijwc spring 2020 91 final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 101 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 children and families: health and wellness adverse childhood experiences of elementary school students exacerbated by covid-19: a conceptual framework tyreeka williamsa, angel dowdenb anorth carolina agricultural and technical state university, bnorfolk state university tyreeka williams is a third-year doctoral candidate at north carolina a&t state university. she is currently licensed as a k-12 school counselor serving at oak ridge elementary school. her research interests include school counseling supervision and trauma informed care for immigrant and refugee students. she also teaches future counselors in training online at concordia university. tyreeka serves as a saces emerging leader for the 2022-2024 cohort. additionally, she is an active member of american counseling association (aca), north carolina school counseling association (ncsca), and serves on the executive board team of the alpha tau omega chapter of chi sigma iota. tyreeka is a tenured u.s. army soldier as well as a member of alpha kappa alpha sorority incorporated. in her spare time, she enjoys reading for leisure, spending time with her family, and doing hot yoga for relaxation. dr. angel dowden, lcmhc-s, lpc, ncc, acs is a professor and department chairperson in the department of secondary education and school leadership at norfolk state university (nsu). dr. dowden is a licensed clinical mental health counselor supervisor, nationally certified counselor, approved clinical supervisor, and licensed professional k-12 school counselor. dr. dowden earned her doctoral degree in counselor education and supervision at north carolina state university. dr. dowden has over twenty years of counseling and counselor education experience. dr. dowden’s research interests include african american populations and mental health, social justice and multicultural counseling, qualitative methodologies, and trends in school counseling. abstract prior to the covid-19 pandemic, 44% of elementary-aged students reported experiencing adverse childhood experiences, while 13% reported experiencing three or more (blodgett & lanigan, 2018). during the covid-19 pandemic, parents faced many hardships such as economic and health disparities. this resulted in an influx of reported and presumably unreported adverse childhood experiences. the most reported experience included child neglect and psychological maltreatment (sonu et al., 2021). while not seen as popular in the media and literature, the impact of psychological maltreatment is more severe than any other form of abuse (hines, 2020). this paper will discuss the current conceptual findings, legal definitions, 102 theoretical underpinnings, policy and practice implications as it relates to child neglect and psychological maltreatment of elementary-aged children. understanding adverse childhood experiences adverse childhood experiences (aces) are defined as any traumatic event that occurs to a child before the age of 18 (gilgoff, 2020). more specifically, this encompasses any event ranging in severity that disrupts the child’s physical, emotional, mental, or psychological development (kalmakis and chandler, 2014). adverse childhood experiences may include but are not limited to parental divorce or separation, exposure to violence and domestic abuse in the child’s place of residence, or exposure to alcohol and drug abuse. during the pandemic, there was a reported 54% increase in child neglect and psychological maltreatment of elementary-aged children compared to other adverse childhood experiences discussed (rapp et al., 2021). child neglect is legally recognized as “parental failure to meet a child’s basic needs” (hines, 2020). child neglect can be displayed in many different facets of the child’s life including but not limited to physical, psychological, medical, mental health, and educational neglect. while child neglect has a stand-alone definition that is legally recognized, psychological maltreatment does not (baker et al., 2021). psychological maltreatment lacks a clear and concise definition due to diverse meanings and understandings held across state lines. additionally, it is not uncommon for people to only pay attention to immediate visualized consequences such as wounds from physical abuse. however, due to the short and long-term impact of child psychological maltreatment in today’s society, states are now just beginning to concentrate on a focused definition. for now, the literature recognizes child psychological maltreatment as the following: “repeated pattern or extreme incident of caretaker behavior that thwarts the child’s basic psychological needs and convey a child is worthless, defective, damaged goods, unloved, unwanted, endangered, primarily useful in meeting another’s needs, and/or expendable (bernet, 2017). theoretical underpinnings attachment theory is the theoretical underpinning that provides an understanding of adverse childhood experiences (grady et al., 2017). bowlby (1953) outlined that how parents provide, support, and care for their children largely depicts their attachment style and impacts their ability to sustain and withhold both friendships and romantic relationships later in life. the four attachment styles recognized are secure, anxious ambivalent, disorganized and avoidant (bowlby, 1988). attachment style is largely developed from infancy through the first year of life. secure attachment style is the healthiest of the four known attachment styles, leading to healthy relationships long-term; both romantic and platonic (levy et al., 2011). the child is aware that he/she is loved, secured, and supported appropriately and healthily. anxious ambivalent attachment style insinuates an unhealthy relationship established with parents where the parents were not very attentive to the child and potentially demonstrated neglectful behaviors (meyer et al., 2001). neglectful behaviors during childhood may lead to lower self-esteem, decreased sense of self-worth, contributing to complexities in romantic relationships later on in life such as 103 validation seeking behavior. disorganized attachment style is a result of parents not being consistent in the child’s life whether it’s consistent in discipline, love, security, and support (baer & martinez, 2006). this could result in the child developing fear that their partner or friend may leave the relationship. lastly, avoidant attachment is considered the least healthiest form of attachment. avoidant attachment occurs when parents simply provide the bare minimum for their children such as housing and food; however, the parents ultimately avoid their children after basic needs are met. this form of attachment style leads to relationship misunderstanding that can result in a lack of value in maintaining significant relationships. “attachment styles provide the cognitive schemas, or working models, through which individuals perceive and relate to their worlds” (shorey & snyder, 2006). it is critical to understand that attachment style directly reflects and relates to the psychological state of functioning both in short term and long term. predictors of child neglect historically, the predictors of child neglect have been difficult to conceptualize. to establish a foundation for understanding, an ecological approach to exploring the macro, meso and microlevels of child neglect was introduced. uri bronfenbrenner (ryan, 2001) introduced an ecological (now referred to as bioecological) systems approach which highlights various systems that contribute to a child’s development. this theory emphasized the complex layers that are involved with a child’s development to including but not limited to: family, religion, school, community, culture, and more (ryan, 2001). the layers are classified into systems that influence the child, for example the biological makeup of a child is in the microsystem and community is a part of the larger exosystem. economic insecurity and poverty are the largest contributors of child neglect (hines, 2020). when parents are struggling financially to survive, a child can become a secondary or even third focus depending on the circumstance. from a macro level, substance abuse is another large contributing factor in child neglect (ondersma, 2002). a meso level assessment of the child neglect problem gleans light on the predictors of child neglect to include lack of social engagement and positive interaction of social groups. additional challenges from a meso level include the inability for children to have positive outlets which lead to increased exposure to community violence and dangerous behavior. on the other hand, microlevel assessment predictors explores the child themselves. for example, if the child is diagnosed with a mental, intellectual, or physical health disorder, unfortunately they are more prone to experiencing child neglect (cruden, 2019). given these levels, it is essential to understand that when considering child neglect, key predictors might include poverty, lack of social interaction, substance abuse, and physical, mental, and intellectual diagnoses. predictors of child psychological maltreatment child psychological maltreatment is similar to child neglect in that it encompasses a wide range of emotional, physical, and mental maltreatment. from a macro lens, in comparison to child neglect, a lack of education and low socioeconomic status also are major predictors of child psychological maltreatment (arslan et al., 2022). from an exo lens, family isolation and lack of a familial support system largely impact the mental development of a child (baker et al., 2019). 104 additionally, from a micro lens a child experiencing child psychological maltreatment is likely to experience a high level of irritability/fussy behavior (hines, 2020). consequences child neglect and psychological maltreatment provide significant consequences to the overall well-being of children. specifically, two pivotal studies were analyzed to conclusively highlight these impacts. first, hecker et al., (2019) conducted a study in tanzania on primary school students who suffered consequences from child maltreatment. the conceptual findings concluded that the association between neglect and internalizing problems showed a large and significant effect (hecker et al., 2019). the study also affirmed previous study findings that children suffering from consequences of child neglect have an increased risk of experiencing “depressive systems, peer problems, and inferior emotional regulation skills” (hecker et al., 2019). next, mwakanyamale and ndomondo (2019) conducted a study on students in both tanzania and china to assess the relationship between psychological maltreatment and stress on their selfesteem. the study concluded that there is a significant effect and confirmed that psychological maltreatment not only impacts students in the moment but has an everlasting impact on the overall functioning and well-being of primary school-aged students. as they navigate the most important developmental stages of their lives, it is imperative for children to receive counseling services to excel socio-emotionally and academically. impact of covid-19 the covid-19 pandemic significantly contributed to the increase in both unreported and reported child neglect and psychological maltreatment cases. hines (2020) highlighted income loss and unemployment as contributing factors to both child neglect and psychological maltreatment. when a parent is frustrated financially and is not meeting their basic tier 1 needs of maslow’s hierarchy, sometimes they will unintentionally or intentionally let their emotions out onto their children. the covid-19 pandemic has truly changed the landscape of the workforce. millions of people worldwide lost their jobs and subsequently millions were forced to work remotely and/or experienced reduced hours/income. this type of significant and sudden shift impacts the family dynamic, specifically during covid-19 when children were forced to remain home and complete school virtually. berube et al., (2020) assessed the fears associated with the covid-19 transition. parents immediately felt a sense of isolation and were afraid for their children to be in the house with a lack of social engagement, connectedness, loss of learning, and other consequences as a result. in addition to their fear for their children, parents fear having to navigate parenting and the social reaction to the pandemic. parents feared raising their voice, scolding or yelling at their child, and having less patience” (berube et al., 2020). unfortunately, the ongoing covid-19 pandemic persists, and parents have expressed significant exhaustion and parental burnout due to being the sole caretakers and providers for their children, which has the potential to lead to child neglect and psychological maltreatment. 105 lawson et al., (2020) conducted two regressional analyses to assess the relationship between job loss and increased psychological maltreatment for children. the results supported the hypothesis noting that parents who dealt with strife from sudden job and income loss were more likely to physically abuse or psychologically maltreat their children. in opposition, families with positive reframing coping skills were more prone to decrease this type of treatment. it is now more imperative than ever to focus on psychoeducation surrounding topics such as parental burnout during this time. ray et al., (2020) conducted a correlational study assessing the consequential effect of the increase in aces experienced by children during covid-19. n=58 students ranging in ages 512 were recruited from a local elementary school to take a questionnaire regarding their social/emotional health. the findings revealed that students who reported experiencing one or more adverse childhood experiences were more likely to have a decrease in social/emotional health and an increase in behavior problems. current trends in research self-reported cases of child neglect and psychological maltreatment decreased during the covid-19 pandemic. elementary-aged students were secluded in the house with no external outlet to share any traumatic events experienced in the home. as a result, elementary-aged students returned to the school building with a myriad of mental health concerns such as anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, and more (doom et al., 2021). it has been documented that covid-19 had a significant impact on child neglect and psychological maltreatment; however, research currently points to a decrease in referrals, largely due to children not having educational personnel involved in their home life and an inability to report. bullinger et al., (2021) highlights the drastic shift that parents were challenged with since march 2020. this implies that if child physical abuse increased as much as many child advocates warned, then it is going largely undetected by child protective services (bullinger et al., 2021). this trend in research leads to future policy implications regarding how to navigate child abuse and neglect in the case of a future pandemic or world events that forces children to be home. policy implications several policy implications could help target child abuse/neglect victims and families that display this behavior. however, instead of directing the attention towards families, it is salient to pay attention to bigger picture items such as structure, infrastructure, and systemic policy that have a trickle-down effect on how parents operate within their household. economically insecure children experience three to nine times more maltreatment than economically secure children (conrad-hiebner & byram, 2020). if unemployment, income loss, and low socioeconomic status are the leading predictors of both child neglect and psychological maltreatment, perhaps society should look at what is hindering families from achieving quality education to secure sufficient employment. infrastructure policies should be analyzed to put issues such as redlining in perspective, housing, and separation of quality education for those who are less fortunate. ultimately, a top-down approach to improving outcomes that are implications for child neglect and abuse are essential to curtailing the problem. 106 practice implications two paramount implications for improving the problem include psychoeducation and trauma informed care. psychoeducation surrounding the topic of child neglect and psychological maltreatment will be largely beneficial for targeted groups such as first-time parents. first-time parents are without a doubt at higher risk for this behavior due to their overall lack of knowledge. if counselors want to take effort in prevention strategies, the first step would be to provide the appropriate education to those who are unaware such as first-time parents ages ranging from 2028. another practice implication would be the use of trauma-informed-care with multicultural considerations when working with children who are victims of neglect and psychological maltreatment. this requires all staff of clinical practices to be trained as well as school stakeholders in the principles of trauma informed care. more so, school counselors and mental health clinicians must consider cultural backgrounds when working with client/student victims to provide the best suitable interventions and treatment plans. recommendations many studies focused on the impact of covid-19 to child neglect and psychological maltreatment were conducted in the beginning of the pandemic. it is recommended that future studies examine how statistics surrounding child victims have either decreased or increased and measure parental burnout (griffith, 2020). additionally, it is imperative for future research to explore the implications of covid-19 as it relates to child psychological maltreatment and neglect and how other contextual factors such as exposure to substance abuse, income loss or social isolation increase the likelihood of maltreatment for elementary-aged children. lastly, salient to the impact of adverse childhood experiences, it is important to examine the consequences of this influx on the long-term mental health of primary school-aged children (kathirvel, 2020). conclusion child neglect and psychological maltreatment are two leading forces of child abuse; but tend to be the least reported. from the attachment style theoretical framework, these subjects are large predictors of how an elementary-aged child will be able to form substantial and significant relationships as they matriculate into and throughout adulthood. socio-economic status, mental health disorders, and family history of abuse/neglect are all significant predictors of child neglect and psychological maltreatment. there are several policy and practice implications stemming from the current covid-19 pandemic and the lack of referrals reported. future research recommendations should focus on covid-19 policy implications. 107 references arslan, g., genç, e., yıldırım, m., tanhan, 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(2021). the intersection and dynamics between covid-19, health disparities, and adverse childhood experiences: “intersection/dynamics between covid-19, health disparities, and adverse childhood experiences.” journal of child & adolescent trauma, 14(4), 517–526. https://doi-org.ezproxy.mtsu.edu/10.1007/s40653021-00363-z 9    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 the importance of learning through play in early childhood education: reflection on the bold beginnings report manal obedaullah alharbi a, mona mohsen alzahranib aprince sattam bin abdulaziz university, saudi arabia; bking khalid university, saudi arabia manal o. alharbi is a lecturer in the early childhood education program at prince sattam bin abdulaziz university in saudi arabia. manal alharbi has worked as a kindergarten teacher in saudi arabia, and experienced training in american schools. alharbi’s research interests focus on early childhood policy, curriculum development, and play-based pedagogy. alharbi is a strong advocate of play-based instruction which, in addition to supporting academic growth, remains holistic and most appropriate for young children’s learning. alharbi currently is pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education at the university of south florida. mona m. alzahrani is a lecturer in the early childhood education program at king khalid university in saudi arabia. alzahrani has worked as a kindergarten teacher in saudi arabia, and experienced training in american schools. alzahrani’s research interests focus on children’s development, play, and parent involvement. alzahrani currently is pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education at the university of south florida. abstract in this paper, authors reflect on the implications of the report titled “bold beginnings: the reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools” (ofsted, 2017). this report is a review of curriculum for four-and five-year-old children in the united kingdom. the bold beginnings report argues for teaching young children more academic subjects, instead of introducing learning through play. the report claims when children learn more academic curriculum early without spending too much time on play, they become ready and qualified in their academic lives which in turn, makes instruction easier for their future elementary school teachers. in contrast, this paper focuses on the importance of allowing young children to learn naturally through a variety of play experiences. the authors argue play is holistic and provides children with a range of support including mental and emotional well-being, social interactions, and physical challenges. the premise for this paper underscores the critical importance that children play and learn about the world with relevance, authenticity, and developmentally appropriate opportunities. early childhood settings become an extraordinary space for this natural and 10    holistic learning to occur. after describing how play most effectively accommodates children’s unique needs and individual development, authors explain how learning through play provides children the opportunities to grow in a risk-free environment, communicate with peers, express feelings and thoughts, discover and investigate various subjects, improve social-emotional skills, develop language and vocabulary, enhance cognitive capacity, build self-esteem, prepare for life, and establish a foundation for the next stage of school. early childhood teachers can help students to do all this and more by providing learning through play. keywords: play-based learning, learning through play, academic curriculum, early childhood settings, early learning, children’s holistic development. critique of bold beginnings report bold beginnings: the reception curriculum in a sample of good and outstanding primary schools (ofsted, 2017) report highlights the importance of early learning in preparing fourto five-year-old children for an effective and supportive transition to kindergarten in the united kingdom. ofsted is the acronym for the office for standards in education, children’s services and skills whose main purpose is to regulate and inspect childcare. the majesty’s chief inspector of ofsted (2017) collected data for the period of 2016-17. the report generated data using a thematic survey, school visits, an online questionnaire, and analyzed more than 150 inspection reports of primary schools in the uk. the aim of this report was to gain a deep understanding of the curriculum and how it is implemented. ofsted used the information sources and observations of 41 school visits to compare these schools and distinguish differences in practices. this data is intended to improve the different aspects of education such as informing policy makers, advising counselors, and influencing curriculum designers, as well as impacting the global thinking about the importance of academic curriculum. the ofsted report describes the potential of using academic curricula to teach the basics of reading, writing, and mathematics to young children as well as to prepare them for life and their first year of school. according to the report, it is important for children to learn these academic skills and apply them in the early years. in addition, this report discusses how children who daily practice the academic skills demonstrate academic success in later years. furthermore, the report claims successful learning programs set their targets with appropriate academic curricula to meet children’s needs for the first year of school instruction. for example, the report suggests that teachers instruct reading through systematic phonics direct instruction and teach mathematics with a focus on children’s ability to count and compare numbers. the report states that “the ability to read, write and use numbers is fundamental. they are the building blocks for all other learning. without firm foundations in these areas, a child’s life chances can be severely restricted. the basics need to be taught – and learned – well, from the start” (ofsted, 2017, p. 10). bold beginnings emphasizes transforming learning in the early-childhood setting from freeplay, exploration, and child-guided experiences to traditional, direct instruction based on literacy, mathematical understanding, teachers’ guidance, and less play. however, an open letter signed by more than 1,850 educators believe this report should be rejected as it would have a negative effect on children and undervalues play-based approaches for children (tactyc, 2017; ward, 2018). 11    what is early childhood? are the early years an important designation of time for children to learn through play? the ministry of education in the kingdom of saudi arabia [moe] (n.d.) recognizes early childhood as a stage in which children require nursery education and learning through exploration and play; this means, teachers should prepare children, ages three to six, for entry into general education with the important foundation of play. in the united states of america, the national association for the education of young children [naeyc] (n.d.) defines early childhood as a period of time in which children go through a rapid period of development and growth. naeyc indicates that children’s brains develop quickly, so these years are essential for the foundation of children’s social skills, self-esteem, and cognitive development. moreover, heikkilä, ihalainen, and välimäki (2004) emphasize that early childhood settings are places where children spontaneously play and interact educationally. such settings promote the balanced growth, venues of learning and development, and are designed to advance children’s knowledge and realization. the online free dictionary (n.d.) defines early childhood as “the early stages of growth or development.” according to the online etymology dictionary (n.d.), the old-english word cildhad divides the word into “child and hood” and means the “state of being a child; period of life birth to puberty.” the online oxford english dictionary (n.d.) also references the oldenglish word cildhad and defines early childhood as the “state or period of being a child.” these three online dictionaries agree that early childhood is the time of being a child. theories in play the “time of being a child” is the focus of many early childhood theorists. according to mooney (2013), dewey’s, montessori’s, erikson’s, piaget’s, and vygotsky’s theories stress the importance of learning through play in early childhood settings. these theorists agree that “education should be child centered; education must be both active and interactive; and education must involve the social world of the child and the community” (mooney, 2013, p. 4). play provides all these necessary components (dewey, 1938; montessori, 2008; piaget, 1962; 1976; vygotsky, 1976). children will easily explore and learn through play in an effective way, including content skills. the most important role of children’s educational setting is to build their experiences based on their past learning and knowledge and help the students to understand the content effectively. preparing the environment for children’s learning is a vital task that every teacher in the earlychildhood setting seeks to accomplish. in a prepared and planned environment, children will learn by exploring, discovering, investigating, thinking, and using the materials in their classrooms. montessori (2008) believes that children learn effectively through sensory experiences and can develop life skills through interactive classroom opportunities. piaget (1962, 1976) emphasizes the idea that the interactions between the children and their environments create learning. piaget and montessori describe the importance of an open environment which provides a range of possibilities for children to discover and construct. piaget (1976) also stresses the importance of 12    play as an important avenue for learning (mooney, 2013). through play, children experience opportunities to become well prepared for life and fully develop in mental, physical, emotional, and social ways. furthermore, vygotsky (2004) confirms that children learn when play takes place in their journey of learning and development. vygotsky transformed the ways in which educators think and view play. play is an essential part of children’s learning in all different domains. in addition, he believes development and language remain connected and build on one another, and play assumes an integral role in children’s development and learning. he highlights in his explanation of the zone of proximal development (zpd) that teacher’s scaffold children’s learning and development through play-based learning. in this zpd, through play, teachers can support children at the first stage and then withdraw slowly so children can independently complete the task. children can go beyond their limits of their zpd with the support of the teacher through play. the importance of learning through play in early childhood education similar to the ofsted report in the uk, the early childhood curricula in the united states is making rapid changes from learning through play to following more standard curricula (miller & almon, 2009). compared to the previous curricula, the new standard curricula require children to spend more time on mathematical and literacy instruction instead of allowing children to learn these concepts through play. even with a movement toward direct academic instruction in the early years as indicated by the ofsted report, there is still a shift toward the use of play-based learning in early education in various countries (i. e., china, canada, new zealand, sweden, united arab emirates) (danniels & pyle, 2018). play-based learning understands that children learn while they play, both developmentally and academically (danniels & pyle, 2018). playing does not mean children are wasting time; at this young age, children predominately learn through play (danniels & pyle, 2018; thomas, warren, & devries, 2011). learning through play develops children’s health, imagination, social-emotional competencies, language skills, and physical capacities. moreover, children at this age are growing in all domains of development, especially their mental health. through play, teachers are able to recognize and address any developmental or health problems that children may exhibit. when children engage in complex socio-dramatic play, they have the opportunity to develop their language and social skills, empathy, imagination, self-esteem, self-control, and higher levels of thinking. aljarrah (2017) describes froebel’s and vygotsky’s claim that play is a developmental tool in children’s pre-school years, and creativity can be fostered effectively as an essential skill for life. according to aljarrah, play is the children’s business and their way of discovering the world. vygotsky (2004) states that play-based learning is necessary in early childhood in order to learn the new ideas and experiences about the world. rich experiences are necessary for adequately informing imagination. some researchers argue that this increased focus on direct instruction is developmentally inappropriate, because children are expected to learn academic content that may 13    be beyond their developmental level in a manner that does not actively engage students. pyle and danniels (2017) state that a teacher-directed focus is depriving children of stress-relieving play opportunities. through play, children also learn to read, write, and use math and science knowledge; young children learn with sensory activities and build the experiences that will help them in their lives. research supports play as effective in establishing the curriculum such as reading, writing, science, and mathematics. many existing studies demonstrate the role of play in each of these curricular areas. for example, james christie for literacy (christie, 1987, 1991; roskos & christie, 2000), constance kamii (1988, 2000) for mathematics, and brian stone (2016) for science. christie (1987) found when children play out stories in dramatic play, it increases their story comprehension. in addition, when children use symbols in play (symbolic play), it provides them with the foundational ability they will need for future reading and writing (stone & burriss, 2016). kamii (1988, 2000) understands how play helps children put things into relationships which is important for developing number sense. stone (2016) says “playing around in science presents children with opportunities to think creatively and divergently, to solve problems in innovative ways, and to develop a unique scientific identity” (p. 6). crehan (2016) explains that starting formal schooling when the children are a little older makes no lasting difference to children’s later reading ability. children need the opportunities to develop their basic knowledge gradually through rich activities, and therefore, depend on learning through playing. encouraging children to learn pre-reading and pre-math skills through play helps them develop their cognitive skills, preparing them for a new type of learning, which is an effective and reliable practice. children need to develop their individual confidence levels and understand their abilities, which they cannot achieve without playing with peers and manipulating a variety of materials. besides providing important foundations for academic learning, play elicits imagination which draws on elements of reality (diachenko, 2011; vygotsky, 2004). personality development is also important in children, ages four to five, because children develop the essential foundations in their early years for their future beliefs and knowledge. furthermore, preschool years remain foundational for children to positively shape their personality, habits, skills, and basic knowledge (kazu & i̇ş, 2018; tarman & tarman, 2011). children who develop positive self-images will become well prepared for school and life. toward supporting well-being and self-confidence, play is important in helping children to develop later life skills such as social interaction and emotional competency. crehan (2016) describes the purpose of learning through play is to provide children with the opportunities to enjoy their learning. preschool children, learning through play, assume ownership in the process, and demonstrate more confidence in their abilities and express joy while learning. thus, play is an effective, developmentally appropriate, and holistic approach for educators to implement for young children’s learning. crehan (2016) understands the important nature of learning for young children, “because children don’t do formal learning at desks in preschool or kindergarten, they learn through 14    playing” (p. 15). fourto five-year-old children are active and while learning, they are likely to move more instead of sitting and listening. children understand the content more effectively with opportunities to participate in active learning through playing and interacting with peers. children learn in everyday activities while engaging with peers and adults, sharing learning, negotiating, and building strong relationships (fasoli, wunungmurra, ecenarro, & fleet, 2010). furthermore, teachers, during playtime, indirectly encourage children in reading, writing, and mathematics. children are more likely to learn by listening, speaking, observing, and exploring during playtime than through direct instruction. teachers focus on supporting the children’s learning by asking insightful questions and discussing their answers. choice play time is a rich time for children to learn reading, writing, and mathematics. learning through play provides children at this age the opportunity to practice essential activities such as thinking, exploring, and investigating in a risk-free environment. these skills established through play will provide valuable life-long learning for children. however, it remains critical for teachers to understand how to most appropriately prepare the environment for children’s quality play experiences. kemple, oh, and porter (2015) emphasize the idea that using appropriate teaching strategies through play are fundamental in meeting children’s learning and development needs in their early years. children can play at school, home and in other community settings. however, many children may face limitations in entering some of these play settings effectively; for example, over-structured curricula activities, lack of complex materials, and sparse peer interactions. nothing can compare with the holistic, authentic, and risk-free experience of learning through play. playing at school is important because at school, children have access to materials and to their peers as playmates. furthermore, miller and almon (2009) describe how finland’s children go to a playful early childhood setting before entering first grade at age seven. they found that the experience of learning through play did not negatively affect finish children’s learning outcomes in the long-term. in fact, children in finland receive the highest scores on the program international student assessment [pisa], which is an international exam for 15-year-olds. the epistemology in children’s play, learning, and development is that young children grow quickly, and as they adapt, play experiences provide a natural and developmentally appropriate pathway for authentic learning. the more children interact with one another, the more learning experiences will occur. learning through play and hands-on activities will remain important teaching methods in early childhood. recommendations the following recommendations support children learning through play: 1. use block centers to provide opportunities for children to explore mathematics and science. for example, counting, colors, sorting, patterns, size, balance, and comparisons. 2. through dramatic play, children rehearse and explore language skills in a risk-free experience. for example, ask children to role play and act out characters from a familiar 15    story, invite children to write a script and identify characters they wish to represent, or provide children with relevant props in the family living and block centers. 3. include a variety of different writing and drawing materials in the family living, block and art centers. 4. pay attention to children’s representations. request and invite they display their products. it is important children gain their own internal sense of competence and not rely on an external evaluation. children practice/rehearse for themselves and not for the teacher’s approval. 5. provide opportunities for individual, small and large group play events. 6. ensure outdoor and nature play for exploring science and mathematics. conclusion children naturally play during most of their time in or out of the school. play is the center of children’s lives and also one of the most common ways of enjoying and exploring life. children benefit from playing in many ways; they develop their language, self-regulation, socialemotional skills, problem-solving skills, interact with others, and discover the world (dinnerstein, 2016). teachers can support children’s learning and stimulate their attention to learn from play by asking children to observe, record, ask, explore, confer, and participate. additionally, children who experience play-based learning/inquiry in the early childhood years, become more likely to sustain a higher level of engagement and motivation in later more formal learning experiences. when we challenge children to solve complex problems through play, they will benefit from these experiences, thus, these learning experiences by play will assist children to be prepared for future academic learning. using play to facilitate children’s needs is a more effective way for teachers to meet children’s naturally occurring stages of development than direct academic instruction. in order to support children successfully, it is essential to provide teachers with various ways to use play for optimal learning as well as train pre-service teachers on mastering these approaches to achieve effective learning through play. 16    references aljarrah, a. 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(2011). teachers' involvement in children's play and social interaction. ilkogretim online, 10(1). thomas, l., warren, e., & devries, e. (2011). play-based learning and intentional teaching in early childhood contexts. australasian journal of early childhood, 36(4), 69–75. vygotsky, l. s. (1976). play and its role in the mental development of the child. in j. s. bruner, a. jolly, & k. sylva (eds.), play: its role in development and evolution (pp. 537-544). basic books. vygotsky, l. s. (2004). play and its role in the mental development of the child. soviet psychology, 5, 6–18. ward, h. (2018, january 16). ofsted’s bold beginnings report is ‘flawed’ and should be scrapped, says open letter. tes. https://www.tes.com/news/ofsteds-bold-beginnings-report-flawedand-should-be-scrapped-says-open-letter final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 9 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 10 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 11 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 12 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 13 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 14 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 15 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 16 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 17 78 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 steam stream into online play groups how children adapt to play in a rapidly digitized world rebecca horracea auniversity of colorado, colorado springs rebecca horrace graduated from northern arizona university with her bachelor’s in elementary education in 2007. she earned her master’s in continuing education for elementary education from nau, as well as her reading specialist endorsement and structured english immersion endorsement in 2011. rebecca taught 3rd grade in the sierra vista unified school district in sierra vista, az. she is now a lecturer of literacy methods at university of colorado in colorado springs and homeschools her two children. rebecca is currently in her second year of her doctoral program with indiana university in the literacy, culture, and language education program. her research interests include play, literacy, and media. abstract the purpose of this article is to explore the relationship between technology integration and play from a whole child perspective, specifically through online play groups. as play continues to decline and vanish from our schools completely, the author believes we must reexamine the countless benefits of play across stream education. with current digital advancements, children will adapt to online play and continue to develop their creative and analytical skills. the author suggests that with continued support from parents and educators, children who are encouraged to have a say in what and how they learn can use online play to build a solid stream foundation. key words: online, play, play group, stream, technology, toys introduction due to the ease of accessing technology, devices such as television, tablets, and online games have become increasingly present for today’s youth. access to the ever-expanding digital frontier is changing the way in which children play, incorporating several different modes, and creating multimodal forms of play. as kress states, “multimodality can tell us what modes are used” as we question “how does it work” (2010, p. 1). the multimodal nature of play in the 79 digital world has led to increasing opportunities for children to engage in meaningfully integrated play across the subjects of stream (science, technology, reading, engineering, the arts, and mathematics). furthermore, children naturally build upon their modes, drawing from familiarity while mixing content, material, and cultural awareness to create their comfort of expression. for example, as children create a dance to music, bring in toys to spin and swing as the beat continues, and sing with all their might, they are participating in multimodal play. although multiple dominant discourses situate children’s interactions with technology as dangerous, when examining what children do with technology, those dominant assumptions become complicated and are often challenged and disrupted in the literature (gottschalk, 2019). by observing what children do with technology and media in their play, evidence suggests that they often build upon stories and create their own spin-offs with malleable characters and plot points as they incorporate media and technology into their imaginative play. in a study about “princess players,” wohlwend (2011) discusses how children use toys as text: “toys associated with children’s popular animated films or television programs encourage children to play and replay familiar scripts and character roles” (p. 79), which create limitless opportunities and elevate social boundaries based on children’s beloved media characters. as children play, they put their favorite characters above all others and even recite statements made from media as factual. this type of behavior can be described as children displaying media authoritarianism, when children give power to media for the simple fact that it is media and holds power. toys encourage play, construction, and dialogue long after the media element has ended. children have opportunities to interweave digital and non-digital modes to create their own authentic play and literary journeys. furthermore, digital integration with play presents opportunities for children to utilize scientific inquiry, engage with engineering concepts, and build logical mathematical understandings through explorations and investigations. therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between technology integration and play from a whole child perspective, specifically through online play groups. as a result, when children have the opportunity to play online with friends, they are able to utilize their imagination and creativity, creating the occasion to embark upon explorations that involve stream content through digital, imaginative play. a changing world within this new digital frontier, toys based on children’s favorite movies and television series are important artifacts that can be used to support learning and build interest in topics through the integration of technology and media. similar to a favorite stuffed animal that comforts a child at bedtime, children have developed a deep connection to these characters and stories that become part of their daily lives. technological tools and resources, including online play groups, can be used to support learning and build relationships and connections among children. for instance, when a child makes a new friend who exists only in their cyber world because they share similar interests in toys and media, it showcases the limitless potential of technological advances with regards to children’s play. adding to our already technology-driven culture, our country entered into a pandemic and forced schools to move to remote instruction, which required children to rely on computers and tablets 80 for daily educational instruction. state mandates kept playgrounds closed and limited social gatherings, forcing online classes to be the only social outlet for children. in turn, a new approach to play emerged, online play groups, where children meet with friends through online platforms sharing their toys, discussing the plot of their favorite television shows, participating in multi-house scavenger hunts, and so forth. sometimes these play groups meet when children staying online after class, when the majority of others have logged off, including their teacher. other times, parents coordinate with one another to set up specific times when children could meet to chat, share, and just be kids. these new digital play groups open a whole new “playground” for imaginative play, “providing a natural, social context for experts and novices to interact” (stone & stone, 2015, p. 13). the only difference is that it is solely online. children learn technology skills, how to navigate the internet and share their screen; they learn to engage patiently as one person speaks, perhaps making adjustments to their own toys, yet listening to the speaker’s story; they learn how to connect and play together even though they are miles apart, creating bonds, sharing jokes, and looking forward to these online play groups as much as if they were physically together. moving into digital landscapes not only has there been an increase in our media use from a young age, but the types of technological devices that we have at our fingertips is wider and continues to grow and adapt (marsh et al., 2016). children have access to televisions, smart phones, and tablet s, as well as toys that interact across several of these networks. these “smart toys” connect electronically to electronic devices and/or the internet (marsh, 2017). the digital and physical realms of play become connected through the “internet of toys” crossing virtual and physical-world boundaries (marsh, 2017). children are able to seamlessly move from non-digital to digital realities expanding their previous content knowledge and background. children have powerful imaginations, thus enabling them to move across realities in their imaginative play, whether through digital or non-digital play. many toys, such as certain small, colorful building-block sets have digital, interactive features. once a child tediously builds their block set, they scan a qr code and are able to watch their newly built toy come to life. children can then choose to interact with the app and let the digital stories and characters guide their physical play demonstrating “converged play, in which traditional play with toys converges with newer forms of digital play” (marsh, 2017, p. 2). these scenarios provide opportunities for children’s spatial reasoning, engineering concepts, and even number concepts as they follow instructions, construct their sets, and try new formats. then they are integrated with computer coding as they bring their objects to life. through these new domains of play and digital toys, new classifications of play are developing to help identify and explain the nature of children’s play. current literature has suggested, “that it is not so much the types of play that have changed as a result of new digital contexts as the nature of play” that has changed (marsh et al., 2016, pp. 1-2.). a revised framework of hughes’ (2006) taxonomy of play was adopted and reviewed by marsh et al. (2016) to include their 81 digital adaptation. the sixteen play types are included along with hughes’ definition and the researchers’ adapted definition for digital play. this is a helpful tool to show the changing ways in how children play, unchanging the types of play they demonstrate across digital and nondigital realities. 82 table 1 play types adapted definition from marsh et al. symbolic play occurs when children use a virtual object to stand for another object, e.g., an avatar’s shoe becomes a wand. rough and tumble play occurs when avatars that represent users in a digital environment touch each other playfully, e.g., bumping each other. socio-dramatic play the enactment of real-life scenarios in a digital environment that are based on personal experiences, e.g., playing house, shopping. social play play in a digital context during which rules for social interaction are constructed and employed. creative play play that enables children to explore, develop ideas and make things in a digital context. communication play play using words, songs, rhymes, poetry, etc. in a digital context. can include text messages, multimodal communication, and so on. dramatic play play in a digital context that dramatizes events in which children have not directly participated, e.g., tv shows. locomotor play virtual locomotor play involves movement in a digital context, e.g., child may play hide and seek with others in a virtual world. deep play play in digital contexts in which children encounter risky experiences or feel as though they have to fight for survival. exploratory play play in a digital context in which children explore objects, spaces, etc. through the senses in order to find out information or explore possibilities. fantasy play play in a digital context in which children can take on roles that would not occur in real life, e.g., be a superhero. imaginative play play in a digital context in which children pretend that things are otherwise. mastery play play in digital contexts in which children attempt to gain control of environments, e.g., creating a virtual world. object play play in which children explore virtual objects through vision and touch through the screen or mouse; or play with the virtual objects. role play play in a digital context in which children might take on a role beyond the personal or domestic roles associated with sociodramatic play. 83 recapitulative play play in a digital context in which children might explore history, rituals and myths and play in ways that resonate with the activities of our human ancestors. marsh et al. (2016) using the adapted digital play definitions, it is evident that the digital landscape is impacting the types of play taking place when for example, children manipulate blocks on a screen, work together with an online partner to build a city, or maneuver a camera to record a newly created science experiment to then share with friends and family through online streaming. furthermore, “mediated actions are made meaningful when they are categorized as social practices (e.g., chatting, clicking a link, scrolling, browsing) within the local network of practices valued in a particular context” (wohlwend & kargin, 2013, p. 3). children’s minds do not stop inventing, creating, and imagining when they move online; their thinking adapts to the new online environment. wohlwend and kargin’s (2013) study observing children in an afterschool program who were interested in playing online games and creating their own virtual worlds, showed the power of affinity groups—people who share the same play interests with similar goals and common materials (fernie et al., 1995). children participated in several online games, were seated in the same room, and often used their avatars to communicate. they were novice gamers and learned how to collaborate with one another to develop strategies, build creations, and play successfully in these virtual worlds. expanding on the concept of “flickering” (wohlwend, 2017) when children move in and out of real versus imagined digital landscapes, the ease of movement between realities is increasingly important to gauge a child’s digital literacy between multimodal play and different realities. into non-digital and digital play with rapid technological advances and the early introduction of media, children’s exposure to and experience across content areas (e.g., science, math, literacy) are constantly changing. children’s knowledge of utilizing technology is tested at a young age and in many cases, children are surpassing their grandparents’ tech-knowledge with their know-how of making devices function almost effortlessly. favorite cartoons and characters come to life during children’s creative games and imaginative play propelling their bonds with other children over similar interests. millennials have experienced first-hand the shift from computers only in public places and computer labs that had no internet connection to multiple devices in households that stream movies and games through wi-fi. with the change in access and normalcy of media and technology, comes changes in schools as well as children’s development and background knowledge creating a “natural bond between today’s children and technology” (plowman & mcpake, 2013, p. 28), which effects their learning, language, and play. with these transformations, positive outcomes arise as students with low or no writing abilities include themselves in productive play using dialogue from movies or a tablet to “read” a story. 84 collaboration among children supports students struggling with ideas to participate through the sharing of stories and dialogue (husbye et al., 2012). groups are formed through shared interests surrounding favorite characters or while peers exert themselves as leaders to show others how a device is worked allowing “children to deliberately and thoughtfully take up roles that interest them” (wohlwend, 2013, p.38). robots and coding are becoming part of children’s everyday education, demonstrating an understanding in the shift of technology, and showcasing the broad opportunities children have to explore integrated engineering topics. of course, “technology and media should not replace activities such as creative play, real-life exploration, physical activity, outdoor experiences, conversation, and social interaction that are important for children’s development” (naeyc & frc, 2012, p. 5), but rather become integrated into children’s play. children need the freedom to explore and discover using the familiarity of loved characters and stories drawing upon “literacies and their own identities as multimodal literacy users and media producers” (wohlwend, 2013, p.23). however, schools’ rules often create barriers to what (if any) type of media is allowed in classrooms. these “power relations in educational discourses make some materials and meanings unavailable…to say that popular media play themes are developmentally inappropriate, that children should be writing and not playing in school” (wohlwend, 2013, pp.1-2). although this type of mentality is present in many schools, children still find a way around the rules through their “hidden play.” playing a character from a show or movie, using characters to recreate stories, taking inanimate objects to use as props to reenact their favorite media, creating drawings of media characters, and pretending a cardboard box is a computer are examples of ways in which children go around the acceptable classroom and school discourse in order to bring their interests into their play. it is with this incorporation of media that unity is created among students, clubs are formed, and children choose friends based on their commonality. the nexus of practice with media familiarity and technology knowledge instills a sense of belonging and enables children to “just know how to do” certain behaviors, movements, and dialogue pertaining to their joint play (wohlwend, 2013). regardless of the rules in place, students find ways to play cooperatively on the playground with baby dolls that become princesses, using sticks as weapons, and mimicking dialogue from their favorite movies all while staying under the teacher’s radar (wohlwend, 2013). as play continues to decline and vanish from our schools completely, leading to behavioral problems and children who lack the knowledge and desire to create, explore, and imagine, we must reexamine the true benefits of play across stream, socio-emotional, and cultural development among children. removing adult views and biases from approaches meant to enrich the whole child are needed to fully understand that not all learning should or can be tested by a standardized instrument. we need to put ownership back into our children’s hands, allowing them to have a say in what and how they learn. online play groups “play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. but for children, play is serious learning. play is really the work of childhood.” -fred rogers 85 adapting to our current situation and current technological advances, we must honor children’s desires to advance their forms of play because it is after all, their true work. in doing so, we must not only acknowledge—but also encourage—online play groups as an appropriate way to meet with friends, share stories and toys, and develop meaningful relationships with peers. we need to “value the practices that play uniquely provides: improvising with new technologies and practices, inventing new uses for materials, and imagining new contexts, spaces, and possibilities” (wohlwend, 2011, p. 127). children who play with small, colorful building-block sets through online meeting platforms are able to enhance a multifaceted learning experience. if they want to share previous builds, they must figure out how to move their creation without destruction and if that occurs, how to fix it quickly to present to others. once they have their set ready to share, they use their technology skills to figure out the camera angle and the background lighting so their creation can be seen fully. after children share their builds, they converse using insider knowledge about the set itself or specific media franchise the set is modeled after. these discussions can then lead to further inquiry regarding specific sets or shows, directing children to take on further research by perusing the internet together, all while figuring out technological aspects of sharing a screen and reasoning with one another as one child guides and one child observes. after much observation and research, children may decide they want to build a set they recently saw. they build alongside one another, sometimes asking what color will be used, or asking for advice on what piece would fit nicely, building upon their social and spatial skills. after the building, children play with their creations, although miles apart, interacting with their toy artifacts and one another through the screen. it is then decided a background is needed . children jointly agree on colorful artwork and create two distinct backgrounds for their playsets. sound effects can be heard, as well as voice pitch changes as different character figures move back and forth in front of the camera to talk with their online counterpart. it is as if the screen does not matter. the children are together, and they are engrossed in playing, establishing a solid stream foundation, as elements of technology, literacy, engineering, art, and even math are present in their play. instances of play groups like the one stated above are becoming children’s “new normal” in regard to their peer interaction and play. a seamless integration of technology and media with play can be accomplished when “the use of technology and media becomes routine and transparent—when the focus of a child or educator is on the activity or exploration itself and not on the technology or media being used” (naeyc & frc, 2012, p. 8). the new technologies, media, and “internet toys” available to a vast array of children coupled with the importance of play and stream education, gives strong justification on where future opportunities are headed and how we can continue to expand on children’s science, technology, reading, engineering, art, and math development through online multimodal play. children’s creativity will continue to expand and grow with the changing eras of new toys—it is up to educators, parents, and researchers to grant children the opportunity to play without rigid restrictions and inspire imagination through all modes of play. through this adult support, children find safe spaces to “just be kids,” building on their development of lifelong friendships 86 through shared commonalities, igniting their desire to perform science experiments, play with technology, read about a favorite character, engineer with blocks and gadgets, create unique artwork, and compute mathematical equations—all in the name of play. 87 references fernie, d.e., kantor, r., & whaley, k.l. (1995). learning from classroom ethnographies: same places, different times. in j.a. hatch (ed.), qualitative research in early childhood settings (pp. 156-172). praeger. gottschalk, f. (2019). impacts of technology use on children: exploring literature on the brain, cognition, and well-being. organization for economic co-operation and development. http://www.oecd.org/officialdocuments/publicdisplaydocumentpdf/?cote=edu/wkp%2 82019%293&doclanguage=en. hughes, b. (2006). a playworker’s taxonomy of play types. playlink. husbye, n.e., buchholz, b.a., coggin, l.s., wessel-powell, c., & wohlwend, k.e. (2012). critical lessons and playful literacies: digital media in pk-2 classrooms. language arts, 90(2), 82-92. kress, g. (2010). multimodality: a social semiotic approach to contemporary communication. routledge. marsh, j. (2017). the internet of toys: a posthuman and multimodal analysis of connected play. teachers college record, 119, 1-32. marsh, j., plowman, l., yamada-rice, d., bishop, j., lahmar, j., & scott, f. (2016). digital play: a new classification. early years. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2016.1167675 national association for the education of young children & fred rogers center for early learning and children’s media (2012). technology and interactive media as tools in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. naeyc. https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globallyshared/downloads/pdfs/resources/topic s/ps_technology_web.pdf plowman, l. & mcpake, j. (2013). seven myths about young children and technology. childhood education 89 (1) 27-33. stone, s. j., & stone, b. a. (2015). play and early literacy: an analysis of kindergarten children’s scaffolding during symbolic play transformations. the international journal of holistic early learning and development, 2, 3-16. wohlwend, k. e. (2011). playing their way into literacies: reading, writing, and belonging in the early childhood classroom. teachers college press. wohlwend, k.e. (2013). literacy playshop: new literacies, popular media, and play in the early childhood classroom. teachers college press. wohlwend, k. e. (2013). playing star wars under the (teacher’s) radar: detecting kindergartners’ action texts and embodied literacies. in v.m. vasquez & j.w. wood (eds.), perspectives and provocations in early childhood education [national council of teacher of english early childhood assembly yearbook] (pp. 105-115). information age. wohlwend, k.e. (2017). chasing literacies across action texts and augmented realities: ebooks, animated apps, and pokémon go. in c. burnett, g. merchant, a. simpson, & m. walsh (eds.), the case of the ipad: mobile literacies in education (pp. 49-66). london springer. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2016.1167675 https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globallyshared/downloads/pdfs/resources/topics/ps_technology_web.pdf https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globallyshared/downloads/pdfs/resources/topics/ps_technology_web.pdf ijwc_springv42021 78 ijwc_springv42021 79 ijwc_springv42021 80 ijwc_springv42021 81 ijwc_springv42021 82 ijwc_springv42021 83 ijwc_springv42021 84 ijwc_springv42021 85 ijwc_springv42021 86 ijwc_springv42021 87 microsoft word final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 54    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 ijwc updates for the new column, “emerging professional,” the ijwc editorial team invites students (undergraduate, masters, and doctoral levels) to submit papers including problem resolutions, literature reviews, and research designs (qualitative or quantitative). the topic choices remain broad with the primary focus on how this content supports all children’s holistic learning and development. ijwc editors remain committed to providing student-authors with relevant, productive and concrete feedback. importantly, a student may identify additional authors; the key factor is for the student to be “first author.”  the ijwc mission remains committed to promoting an understanding of holistic learning and development for all children. in particular, ijwc editors believe by supporting student authors with modeling, feedback, and mentoring, ijwc strengthens and extends understanding, recognition, and implementation of “best practices” into the next generation of educational professionals and child advocates.  how to submit a student paper  in order to target the “emerging professional” column and to distinguish your paper as a “student submission,” merely identify “emerging professional” at the top of your document. in this way, the manuscript will be forwarded to the appropriate editors committed to supporting emerging scholars.  if you have any questions regarding this particular process, contact tiffany.wilson@mtsu.edu   see you in the 2021 ijwc spring issue!  38 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 tech talk the whole teacher: practicing self-care nancy caukina, leslie trailb, constance wrightc anorth greenville university, bmiddle tennessee state university, cnorth greenville university nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs at north greenville university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been a teacher educator in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. leslie trail is an adjunct professor in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university and a high school english teacher at eagleville school. she began her career working in health care management for seven years before further putting her english degree to work as an english teacher. she loves learning ways to engage students more effectively in the classroom to move their learning forward, so her research interests generally revolve around teaching strategies. constance wright, ed.d. is the dean of the college of education at north greenville university. she began her career working as an elementary education teacher and title i reading specialist before her seventeen-year career as a college professor and administrator. she has been a professor and administrator in higher education since 2004. additionally, she supervises teacher candidates in their clinical practicums. in her spare time, she enjoys hiking and exploring beautiful vistas with her family and friends. abstract at all times, and particularly during a global pandemic, teachers need to practice self -care so that they may focus on teaching the whole child. teachers are under an incredible amount of stress during the best of times, and now anxiety is at an all-time high. this tech talk article explains ways to promote self-care of the whole teacher focusing on the head, heart, and the hands (mental/cognitive; emotional/spiritual; and physical) using both tech and non-tech options. teaching is incredibly stressful, even in the best of times. according to a study conducted by the robert j. woods foundation, 46% of teachers reported having high levels of stress that impacted their health, sleep, teaching, and overall quality of life (greenburg, brown, & abenavoli, 2016). this statistic is pre-covid. as one can imagine, stress levels have multiplied during the covid 39 pandemic. stress has been compounded by school closures, a shift to online and/or hybrid teaching, quarantining, isolation, anxious students, overwhelmed parents, and lack of training and resources (luthra, 2021; macintyre, gregersen, & mercer, 2020). teachers are tired. usa today published an article on january 4, 2021, that states, “the level of stress isn’t sustainable…teachers have been operating in crisis mode since spring. by now, any surge of energy that fueled them through the pandemic’s initial months has been depleted” (luthra, 2021, para. 18). the words “new normal” and “not sustainable” are polar t o one another, yet teachers find themselves slogging between the two phrases. people who are in service professions such as teachers, find it easier to assume the role of caregiver, rather than take care of themselves (coaston, 2017). teachers are often more outward focused and because the idea of others before self takes priority for them, it becomes even more challenging and important that they engage in self -care (mindpeace, 2018). teachers and other essential workers on the frontlines of the covid -19 pandemic compose nearly half of the workforce. it is reported that 56% of american adults and 64% of frontline workers identified a connection between worry and disturbed sleep, changes in appetite, frequent headaches and stomachaches, difficulty controlling temper, increased alcohol and drug use, and worsening chronic health conditions (blau, koebe, & meyerhofer, 2020). this means that there is little respite from daily stress. still, part of being able to teach the whole child connects to being present as “whole” teachers. when we think about the whole child approach to education, we recognize that we are referring to more than educating the brain; we are concerned with the head, heart, and the hands (easton, 1997). in order to teach the whole child, we need whole teachers. whole teachers practice self care: they work on developing and protecting their own body, mind, and spirit (miller, 2010). now, more than ever, teachers need to practice self -care. facets of self-care self-care can support teachers’ resilience and improve their ability to overcome adversity and adapt to challenging situations, as required during the covid-19 pandemic (hanover research, 2020). it can prevent burnout as well as unnecessary stress (mindpeace, 2018). by focusing on a healthy diet, exercise, better sleep, meditation, and other solutions for stress relief, self -care will help teachers be on top of their game as educators, and it will ultimately benefit student success (wei, 2018). self-care can include many things. some teachers practice self -care individually; others may find additional encouragement by forming self-care support groups at work and encouraging each other to set common goals. setting aside time for activities outside of the workplace creates community and a place where teachers can release stress and help them to relax and refuel for the days ahead (nelson & gfroerer, 2015). practicing self -care allows people to be better parents, spouses, caregivers, and friends (collins, 2005). for optimal health and continued resilience, it is extremely important that teachers take care of themselves mentally, emotionally, 40 spiritually, and physically. in this article we focus on the head (mental), the heart (emotional/spiritual), and the hand s (physical). head (mental/cognitive) mental health has been important long before 2020 and the pandemic that left educators separated from students and navigating a world where teaching expectations changed overnight. however, in these days where some teachers are left teaching only to a computer and others are in a classroom full of masked faces with hybrid instruction, mental health has become even more critical to teacher efficacy and sense of well-being. in order to deal with rapid changes in both their professional and personal lives, teachers need cognitive flexibility. the ability to switch between mental processes quickly to produce desirable behaviors in response to shifting factors are hallmarks of cognitive flexibility (dejani & uddin, 2015). it’s about moving between tasks using what is learned from one task and applying it to a new situation (verdoloin, 2019). cognitive flexibility is highly beneficial to people, including teachers, as it is essential for problem-solving by being open-minded to new solution options, and helping people to be more resilient, confident, and creative (verdolin, 2019; watters, 2019). jennifer verdolin, ph.d. offers three ways to improve cognitive flexibility in her psychology today (2019) blog: 1) do routine things differently and often. for example, try new foods, drive home a different way, or exercise a different time of day. 2) pursue new challenges and experiences. s, such as learning a new language, taking up dancing, and traveling to new places. 3) meet new people to broaden exposure to different perspectives and worldviews. engaging in these activities can increase cognitive flexibility, which, for those who need to break out of routines, will improve adaptability, decrease anxiety, and stress, and broaden viewpoints (verdolin, 2019). heart (emotional/spiritual) the emotional and spiritual dimensions of a person are equated here with the heart. wanda collins, author of embracing spirituality as an element of self-care (2005) suggests that selfcare is a spiritual act. it requires self-awareness, self-love, and self-worth. spirituality compels us to make connections with others and with the creator. she outlines six strategies for self -care: 1) sabbath keeping (day of rest, time with family, time to play, and time to be still). 2) finding holy silence (praying, meditating, and reducing distractions). 3) expressing gratitude (thankfulness over entitlement, compassion over privilege, and humility over power). 4) expressing spiritual essence (keeping a prayer journal and seeking and giving forgiveness). 5) developing a sense of compassion (reaching out to those hurting, practicing kindness, and being aware of suffering). 6) embracing a principle of stewardship (giving back, serving others, and being a good steward of resources). spiritually active people are better able to cope with stress, defuse negative thoughts, have lower rates of depression, have lower incidences of suicide, are happier, and are more resilient (collins, 2005; labarbera & hetzel, 2016; ramsey, 2001). they have “[a] sense of purpose, warm belonging, trustful sharing, and increased human joy” (ramsey, 2001, p. 59). 41 hands (physical) when we think about the physical facet of self-care, we consider physical activity and exercise, sleep, as well as nutrition. physical activity and exercise. physical activity and exercise, while related, are defined differently. physical activity is any activity that requires movement and expenditure of energy, including walking, housework, leisure activities, gardening, and washing your car as examples. exercise, on the other hand, is planned, structured physical movement to improve or maintain fitness (mayo clinic, 2017). the health benefits of exercise and physical activity are well documented. they are shown to improve mood, self-esteem, and sense of well-being, and reduce anxiety. they release “feel-good” endorphins, take the mind off worries, boost confidence, improve healthy coping skills, may increase social interaction, and can reduce mortality up to 30%. regular exercise (approximately 30 minutes a day for three to five days a week) can reduce and even prevent high blood pressure, diabetes, and arthritis, as well as decrease age-related memory and cognitive decline. adults who engage in regular exercise experience fewer anxiety and depressive episodes (anderson & shivakuma, 2013; mayo clinic, 2017). increasing physical activity is as easy as starting to do what you enjoy, for example, walking, hiking, gardening, etc. consider rediscovering running, swimming, riding bikes, etc. let your doctor know your goals to increase your activity. once cleared to engage in physical activity, start small and set achievable goals. increase the level of activity over time. treat exercise as you would any important appointment and change up your physical activity to prevent boredom. it is important to identify and plan for potential obstacles, for example “i do not have enough time” do 10 minutes of activity three times a day; “the weather is not conducive” wear the correct clothing or find an indoor location; “it’s too expensive” check out low-cost recreation and community centers or walk/run in your neighborhood. it is helpful to have an accountability partner, and finally, be kind to yourself if you miss days (mayo clinic, 2017; niddk, 2017). tech tools abound in today’s society to help individuals successfully track and even share their physical exercising goals. apps such as mapmyrun and strava offer ways to track running, biking, walking, and other physical exercise options while connecting with other users for encouragement and even competition. there are many “virtual” races and team competitions that can help improve motivation as well. active.com now allows users to seek “virtual races” anywhere. by signing up for an event, participants may feel more motivated to continue regular exercise when otherwise motivation would wane. virtual races allow the user to participate and when a virtual race is a multi-day event, users also can use the race as the tracking mechanism. furthermore, even weight loss apps such as noom and weight watchers now add value to tracking exercise. it has been noted that “self-reflection is crucial to the tracking process for stress management and mental well-being” (kelley, lee, & wilcox, 2017). therefore, using a fitness tracker (such as fitbit, garmin, or apple watch) or simply using an app such as strava or myfitnesspal that allows a user to track their progress encourages self -reflection. still, it is important to realize that these tracking mechanisms can have the opposite effect as “people can be overwhelmed by their data and ashamed of what t he data reflects” (kelley, lee, https://www.mapmyrun.com/app https://www.strava.com/ https://www.active.com/ https://www.noom.com/#/ https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/activity https://www.fitbit.com/global/us/home https://explore.garmin.com/en-us/vivo-fitness/ https://www.apple.com/watch/ https://www.strava.com/ https://www.myfitnesspal.com/ 42 & wilcox, 2017, para. 9). self-awareness and knowledge of how an individual will respond to this data is key in determining if such tracking will be beneficial. what some may find incredibly helpful in tracking and reflecting on exercise may cause stress for others. it is important for individuals to not only find things that they enjoy doing in the area of exercise but also to ensure that the way in which they participate in these activities is mentally healthy as well. sleep. patrick finan, ph.d. in a johns hopkins infographic titled, sleep deprivation effects (2021), reports that people who are sleep deprived tend to have more cravings for sweet, salty, and starchy foods. if they receive less than five hours of sleep on average, they are at a 50% greater chance of being obese. they are 36% times more likely to get colorectal cancer and are nearly three times more likely to get type 2 diabetes. an increased risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, dementia, fatal accidents, and lower immunity response can also be caused by sleep deprivation. the division of sleep medicine at harvard medical school (2018) recommends seven to eight hours of sleep a night for restorative function of cells. as indicated above, lack of sleep can lead to diabetes, as well as cardiovascular disease, and impaired immune function. sleep disturbance can be caused by stress itself. while diet and physical exercise may be within the control of the individual, sleep itself both helps manage stress and also becomes disturbed when affected by stress. it is a vicious cycle wherein sleep is needed and then is disturbed by stress the very thing that requires an increase in sleep. however, there are steps that an individual can take to help increase the likelihood of getting a good night’s rest. according to the sleep foundation (2020), a strict sleep schedule, a relaxing bedroom atmosphere that is conducive to sleep, the removal of electronics from the sleep area, the reduced consumption of nicotine and caffeine near bedtime, and regular exercise are all ways to improve quality sleep even during times of stress. the sleep foundation also recommends that after 15 minutes of attempted sleep, individuals may find sleep easier to attain by getting up and moving to a different part of the living area to do something relaxing (as long as it does not include a blue screen). nutrition. you are what you eat and what you eat directly affects the function of your brain as well as your mood (selhub, 2020). when it comes to self -care, feeding your body essential nutrients is vital for optimal function and performance. what we eat affects our ability to endure mentally, physically, and spiritually. filling our bodies with clean whole foods such as lean meats, fruits, and vegetables is a great place to start. when we focus on eating clean, we are putting in the optimal fuel for our bodies. eating clean whole food has been shown to nourish the brain and protect it from oxidative stress (selhub, 2020). weight loss/ nutrition apps mentioned above, noom, myfitnesspal, and weight watchers are an excellent way to better understand the foods you are integrating into your body and to manage consumption. also, by setting small achievable goals towards making better nut ritional choices, individuals may improve stress reduction, help maintain a healthy weight, and have a more balanced life. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-effects-of-sleep-deprivation https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-effects-of-sleep-deprivation https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-effects-of-sleep-deprivation https://www.noom.com/#/ https://www.myfitnesspal.com/ https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/activity https://www.weightwatchers.com/us/activity 43 some of those goals may include meal preparation. plan one day per week to prepare your meals for the following week. include healthy snacks for those times you may feel hungry between meals. there are tremendous benefits from taking time to prepare your meals each week, and some of those benefits include stress reduction, weight loss, increased financial savings, and a balanced diet. there is power in preparation (harvard t.h. chan school of public health, 2021). other ways to bolster self care stress is inevitable. mental health will, at times, feel as though it is suffering. individuals must be aware of those times and find what works for them to cope through a difficult school year, teaching in a pandemic, or any other stressful time in life. previously mentioned strategies such as exercise, rest, and nutrition are key, but each person must find what works best for them. for some, escaping in a good book or familiar movie will be ways to destress and unwind. others, however, may find that hiking, gardening, or otherwise spending time in nature are strategies that help bolster mental health. still others may seek out spiritual awareness and meditation for dealing with stressful times. remember, just as teachers think about the whole child, they also need to think about the “whole” person when it comes to self-care. when thinking about social and emotional health (sel), what is applicable for students is also applicable for teachers. casel (collaborative for social and emotional learning) (2020a) explains five core competencies for social and emotional health that can be taught from childhood to adulthood. they are self -awareness, selfmanagement, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. in an effort to support teachers and schools during the covid pandemic casel provides resources in four key areas: 1) creating a foundation for social and emotional learning. 2) attending to the wellbeing and mutual support among adults. 3) promoting social and emotional learning for young people. 4) reflecting on how things are going and adjusting as learning occurs (2020b). casel recommends that adults foster supportive relationships with peers to assist in processing feelings, sharing challenges, and building community. thriving schools by kaiser permanente (2021) in their rise program (resilience in school environments) emphasizes the importance of supporting the social and emotional well-being of teachers for creating a positive school climate. they too recommend creating a support network among personnel, as well as brief breaks for tension relief, training in trauma-informed practices, and redesigning break rooms for teachers to promote functionality, encourage healthy eating, and promote relaxation. emotional support can come from one’s community, but it can also come from online sources. one such source is talkspace, a mobile therapy app that provides online licensed therapists through an online site or mobile app at a reported lower cost than in-person therapists. the social and emotional learning provider’s council through casel (2020c) offers this list of remote learning free sel resources. they include givethx, a practice guide for gratitude, and covid-19 stress supports for educators, a free online course for educators, as well as resources for teachers and parents to assist and support their students/children with remote learning with https://casel.org/sel-framework/ https://casel.org/resources-covid/ https://thrivingschools.kaiserpermanente.org/school-employees/social-emotional/ https://thrivingschools.kaiserpermanente.org/school-employees/breakroom/ https://try.talkspace.com/online-therapy/1?utm_source=google&utm_medium=sembrand&utm_campaign=search_google_brand_desktop_exact&utm_content=feb2020-rsa-caps&utm_term=talkspace&gclid=cj0kcqiayjobbhdcarisajg2h5f-egaavf6-dilquh_e_q9tjbs6wc7s_pi1n5p_8gzn1mmmrk3nlfgaahe0ealw_wcb https://selproviders.casel.org/sel-resources/ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ibjlves-n1zvh8opmcy4neyyfjnnwkzpj8bzin34_v8/edit https://courses.innerstrength.education/p/inner-strength-education-covid-19-stress-supports-for-teachers 44 free sel resources. additionally, there are apps such as headspace and calm that help users find ways to destress in trying times. on the other hand, for self -care, some may find the need to walk away from technology for a while and be “tech-free.” others may find that stress has become greater than what they can individually manage and may need to seek an employee assistance program or help from a licensed therapist. the key to all of these solutions is self-awareness and action towards mitigating that stress. conclusion eliminating stress for teachers has been a focus for many schools as over this past year, teachers have been asked to endure some of the most challenging times in their lives. to help with stress, some k-12 schools have implemented wellness programs for teachers that focus on the whole teacher (body, mind, and spirit) (lever, mathis, & mayworm, 2017). by acknowledging that stress is a factor in overall well-being of educators, schools have the opportunity to improve the workplace for teachers and thus facilitate better educational experiences for students. additionally, as individuals realize their own best responses to stress and times when their mental health is at risk, the ability to quickly and effectively respond becomes more manageable. sadly, stress will never disappear. mental health will always need attention. as we become focused on the “whole individual,” teachers become more able and ready to teach the “whole child.” the two 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family literacy program; latino children introduction diversity within the u.s. brings rich possibilities along with significant challenges for families, communities, and schools. many immigrant families in the u.s. experience hardships integrating into the host culture that, when ignored by communities, can affect their children’s education and indicate potential for long-lasting effects. however, when these challenges are targeted early in effective ways within communities and family education programs, possible barriers toward undermining children’s ultimate success in the u.s. can be diminished. the changing demographics in the u.s. point to the importance of schools and communities making such connections. projections from the u.s. census (2015, 2016) indicate that, by 2020, the aggregation of minority populations will form the majority of the population (i.e., a minority majority) of school-aged children, by 2044, in the u.s. population, a 95% increase in the percentage of minorities is expected, moving from 38% in 2014 to 56% by 2060 (u.s. census, 2015, 2016). changing demographics create both challenges and opportunities for communities, agencies, and schools. for example, latino families face several challenges when immigrating to the u.s.; this process effects integration into local communities, job acquisition, and involvement in their children’s education. such ongoing challenges and the possible negative repercussions influencing their children’s education will continue without targeted investments in early childhood programs (moinolmolki, gaviria-loaiza, & han, 2017). part of the challenge lies with understanding the cultural perceptions of the latino family structure. for example, regarding involvement in children’s education, for some latino families, the level of engagement remains contingent on many varied factors including parents’ employment, education level, english language resources, time of immigration to the u.s., family social support (mcwayne & melzi, 2014), poverty, parents’ inability/limited ability to communicate in english, acculturation stress, discrimination (moinolmolki et al, 2017), cultural differences (carroll, 2017), undocumented status and the resulting distrust of government programs, and a desire to maintain the heritage language and culture (karoly & gonzalez, 2011). supporting children and their families is layered, complex, and holistic. it is critical toward effective educational programs to include involvement of the whole family with an incorporation of families’ heritage language as well as the commitment of the teaching staff. programs that involve the whole family can affect family relationships, child development, sense of belonging, parent and child literacy, and parenting skills (carroll, 2017). 35 family literacy programs can help build stronger relationships to benefit the children’s development as well as reducing mothers’ sense of social isolation and increasing a parent’s sense of belonging to a community (carroll, 2017). relatedly, educating the whole family can promote a sense of self-sufficiency, enhance parent literacy and parenting skills, and provide a foundation for young children’s academic life. to that end, the early childhood education program also includes family support services, which comprise health, social support, and counseling (swick, 2009). programs that involve the whole family may also incorporate the families’ heritage language into family literacy programs, which can lead to increased parent involvement as well as children’s heritage language maintenance (wessels, 2014). the commitment of the teaching staff to developing and implementing a long-term, systematic parent involvement plan is crucial to its success and can lead to significant improvements in children’s literacy development, particularly in lower-income communities and for struggling readers (crosby, rasinski, padak, & yildirim, 2015). previous research indicates a paucity of studies on the effectiveness and sustainability of parental involvement in school-based literacy programs (crosby et al, 2015; wessels, 2014), particularly those programs related to early language and literacy development of latino children (jung et al, 2015). therefore, an exploration of interested stakeholders’ perceptions regarding implementation of an early childhood literacy program is warranted. narrative data generated from informal conversations with administrators, teachers, and parents. a holistic family literacy program (hflp) this program (hflp) serves a community in southwest florida in which immigrant families experience various challenges. in this diverse community, 96% of elementary school-aged children are designated as economically disadvantaged, the per capita income is $14,699, one third of the adult population has less than high school education and, in 72% of the homes, families speak a language other than english, predominantly spanish and haitian creole (personal communication, may 10, 2017). in order to target the educational, linguistic, and social-emotional needs of these families, hflp was established in 2004 and, since then, an extensive range of programming such as early childhood education, after school for middle and high school students, college access, english-language and parenting classes, and a food pantry are used widely by families. the overall goal for hflp is to create an educational bridge between the classroom and home, and to increase the confidence, capability, and literacy of parents. in this way, parents are able to more effectively support their children’s early development; this family support is critical to prepare children for a successful transition to school. the literacy program includes the following four components: (1) early childhood education, (2) time to teach parents to positively guide children’s learning, (3) adult education in english language, literacy, and parenting, and, (4) quality time for parents to interact with their children in literacy activities. these components emphasize the educational partnership between parents and children. 36 administrators’ views on program effects regarding hflp, three major benefits emerged from conversations with four administrators (identified as a1, a2, a3, and a4. the category-advantages included 1) kindergarten readiness, (2) belonging to community, and (3) whole family dynamics, particularly on the mother-child relationship. kindergarten readiness administrators report this hflp directly affected kindergarten readiness including children’s ability to speak english, skills for learning, and additional skills associated with social-emotional development. at hflp, children develop skills for becoming more independent and confident in kindergarten. as administrators explained, students that participate in the … program are more ready (sic) to enter kindergarten. that's been reported from the school district in the form of those readiness assessments they take. students that participated in [the program] scored higher than students that haven’t had any type of program. (…) [they also] have a higher level of self-efficacy, have stronger social skills, and emotional skills, so they know how to navigate kindergarten in that sense (a1). while a1 emphasized the local school district’s recognition of hflp in the form of achieving high scores on readiness assessments, a4 stressed the challenges the children face due to their diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. in addition, a4 described how students’ success in kindergarten meets the expected behaviors and attitudes depicted by the kindergarten readiness screening: to see that their social-emotional [skills] developed, how they are happy to be in the classroom, how they will be able to share with friends, how they are able to follow a routine (…) is one of the big goals that we have here. …they're …. independent, they can learn the english language, [and] they are able to receive the quality of education that they need (a4). moreover, to increase the children’s chances of successfully navigating kindergarten, the programs at hflp aim to increase the children’s confidence (a2). the local school district also recognized the effect of the program on kindergarteners’ academic and social-emotional skills, reached out to the program, and referred underperforming children to the summer program to prepare them for kindergarten. thus, the holistic early literacy program indicates the capacity to prepare minority students for the academic and social-emotional challenges of kindergarten. belonging to the community according to the administrators, mothers who once felt isolated due to their lack of english skills and would not leave their homes or interact with the community, developed increased confidence after participating in the program. with the adult language program’s emphasis on cooperative learning, the mothers made lifelong bonds with one another, creating a network for support and friendship that go beyond the classroom and the program itself. as one administrator noted, 37 the majority of the mothers (...) did not leave their apartments, and they didn't feel that they belonged. (...) they now feel that this is a place where they belong. (...) [the program] also helps them bond; they laugh, they play, they make new friends (a2). learning and improving the mothers’ english skills contributed to their sense of belonging to the community. their increased confidence in speaking english outside of the classroom has been demonstrated in their socialization with neighbors, reading the newspaper, and scheduling a doctor’s appointment, as well as finding employment and receiving job promotions. a3 states, “[there’s] a sense of confidence when you see our moms (...) report an increasing amount of situations where they’re using english outside of the classroom (a3).” in addition, administrators highlighted the effects of improving english skills on mothers’ employment opportunities which ultimately impacts the whole family’s life. a1 stated that, “[the mothers] have been able to gain employment, have promotions within their employment” (a1). hence, this holistic literacy program has helped mothers become more integrated in the community. whole family dynamics the administrators emphasized program impacts on whole family dynamics with husbands becoming more supportive of their wives taking part in the program. a3 noted, “there is literally a program for every single member of the family when they come here … it’s nice that we’re not looking at students necessarily just as individual units, but as the entire family as well (a3).” in addition, administrators discussed how, gradually, all family members grew to appreciate the program benefits. “with the husband seeing the growth in [their wives] and in the children, the husbands now are very supportive. in the beginning, we did have some [mothers] who’d say, ‘my husband doesn’t know i come here (a2).” considering the population served at hflp, a key contributor to the effectiveness of the program seems to be the availability to the whole family. the program offers opportunities to engage the mothers to participate in their children’s learning activities, helping them to interact as their child’s first teacher. as a3 pointed out, the mother-child bond is increased through the activities proposed in the parent-and-child-together component. administrators’ recognition of the farreaching benefits of the program included children’s academic and social kindergarten readiness, mothers’ social and economic connections to the community, and the entire families’ appreciation of the program. responses indicated a perception that the program meets families’ needs in significant ways in this diverse community. teachers’ views on program effects conversations with five teachers (identified as t1 to t5) revealed their primary beliefs regarding the effects of hflp: (1) children’s increased confidence and english skills, (2) togetherness, (3) holistic continuing effects, and (4) striving relationship with the community at large. these benefits progress for the children, mother-child relationships, the entire family, and the community. 38 children’s increased confidence and english skills. the teachers described how hflp is crucial to increasing children’s confidence regarding their social development as well as their english language skills. the teachers seemed to associate children’s increased interpersonal interaction and participation in the classroom activities with improved english language skills. for example, t2 emphasized: “[the children’s] attention span is growing… and increasingly they’re more available to focus in on the story and participate, and they’re interacting with each other longer. [also, the children’s] motor skills… and their manual dexterity is improving (t2).” another teacher noted, “the kids are happier and more confident. we’ve seen huge growth in several kids who came in very shy; now they’re able to open up, and they’re speaking english” (t5). teachers’ perceptions attribute children’s academic and social development to participation in the hflp. togetherness: meaningful interactions between mother and child teachers noted that the program provided opportunities for meaningful interactions between the children and their mothers and associated this connection to mothers’ learning more about their importance as their child’s first teacher. thus, through storybook and read aloud activities, games, interactive music and movement activities, and mother-child homework projects, the mothers engage in interaction with their children in ways that promote children’s learning. the mothers are more comfortable reading the children’s books, so i think the children feel proud of their mothers for trying to learn english… and i think that our program has helped the mothers figure out skills, games, and activities that they can do with their child that is a new relationship in the way of playing together (t1). by including mothers in classroom learning, as well as asking them to incorporate school content into home activities, the teachers promote opportunities for meaningful, educational, mother-child interactions. the teachers’ narratives described the new quality of learning in the school environment by using words such as “skills,” “games,” “activities,” “relationship,” and “play together.” the teachers’ narratives clearly described how meaningful mother-child interactions developed as a consequence of the program. the teachers also described how the program invites families to explore how to support children throughout their school life; yet, the families themselves become the children’s apprentice by learning the essential and relevant skills pertaining to life in the american community and society. thus, the mothers bring the remainder of the family to the program, as explained by t4. “[the mothers are] feeling better about their role [as a parent]…, gaining these new skills and sharing them with their partner... so that together [they] can have an impact on their child’s growth and development (t4).” in addition, according to most teachers, the program importantly benefits those mothers who are non-native english speakers, because they can learn and improve their english skills together with their children. therefore, learning is extended beyond the formal content and clearly integrated play and family time. 39 holistic continuing effects: from the program to the community teachers identified holistic continuing effects that comprise the benefits that the program had for the whole family, mostly for the mothers, including friendships that they make, the effects of their increased confidence speaking english associated with their life skills, and finally with issues related to their families’ improved nutrition. the teachers noted how the program has helped the mothers make friends with others in the program, creating a critical support system for them in and outside of the classroom. “the students [mothers] themselves become friends here... a group of friends that [is] also interested in bettering their lives and the lives of their children and i think it gives them a lot of support between themselves (t1).” teachers recognized the significance of these connections for immigrant mothers. another teacher added: one of the mothers told me that she and her husband had each lost 20 pounds since last year [because they] had the nutrition sections and she learned that [they] should be eating more vegetables and fruits and less tortillas (t1). the teachers also explained that english skills helped mothers gain confidence that affected other parts of their lives. as one teacher expressed, “[the most benefit is giving] the mothers confidence in trying to speak english and in navigating english for their life skills, [such as practicing] reading the newspaper for apartments ads… or going to the doctor and making an appointment… on the telephone (t1).” frequently, teachers expressed the families’ program experiences can be expanded beyond its initial purpose, from the individual benefits to the family to the community-at-large. concerning the community effects, the teachers explained that, by the end of the program, it is common that mothers offer to work as volunteers at hflp to help others. “a lot of moms who started in the program… become volunteers. some of them are actually getting ready to possibly work here next year, so that’s huge that they’ve been able to start out not knowing any english to wanting to be here (t5).” in other words, the teachers recognized that the effects of the program reach a holistic level, affecting social and academic connections, family nutrition, and enhanced ability to engage with the wider community in support of the family. parents’ views on program effects when the six mothers, (coded as m1m6), shared their thoughts about the program and the effects, the following three issues emerged: (1) nurturing children’s academic and social skills, (2) opportunities for quality of life, and (3) enriched parenting experiences. nurturing children’s academic and social skills most mothers noticed significant changes in their children’s learning and personal growth including emerging language and social-emotional development. as m6 noted, her daughter’s communication skills strengthened and she transformed into a more self-assured individual who was no longer timid to share her views and ideas. also pleased with her child’s personal development, m2 commented on how the opportunities to socialize with other children in the 40 early childhood program was helpful for her timid son in minimizing the pressure he felt when engaging with others. m5 described how the sense of community helped her daughter grow into an organized and ambitious student who entered kindergarten, academically prepared due to her experiences at hflp. another mother (m3) commented on her child’s academic preparedness as a result of the programs stimulating environment. in addition to their children’s academic growth, the mothers emphasized the ways they became a part of a community and could teach and learn important lifelong skills from one another. for example, m3 stated, “they [teachers and other parents at hflp] help you become a better parent.” they also mentioned an improved relationship between mother and child and the extended knowledge about childcare. opportunities for quality of life mothers noticed the growth within themselves ultimately improving their quality of life. the mothers discussed the benefits of the classes in which they are enrolled at hflp. for example, the adult english courses are a significant component in the mothers’ learning experiences. though these english classes are set up to provide a formal learning experience, m2 added that the interactive environment allows the mothers to practice their conversational english skills with one another. these mother-to-mother relationships helped to establish a support system between the mothers and contributed a sense of belongingness within the group. in addition, with the increase in english proficiency, mothers felt they gained an overall sense of confidence. mothers seemed to be enthusiastic about applying these newly developed skills to their home life. m3 shared how she has applied the knowledge she gained from the nutritional course offered at hflp into her everyday life to implement a healthier lifestyle. in addition, technology courses offered at hflp further provided mothers with an opportunity to apply their abilities to their daily lives. for example, these technology skills aided m5 in completing a 45-hour early childhood training course on her own. hflp also provided m5 the chance to grow with the program as a volunteer, eventually becoming a program employee and a member of the team. overall, the mothers felt that the additional courses offered at hflp further benefitted them through the development of important skills and opportunities. enriched parenting experiences most mothers reflected on enriched experiences and the mutual teaching and learning experience between parent and child. the mothers felt they gained an improved knowledge of childcare, a vested interest in being involved with their child’s education, and an improved relationship between parent and child. the mothers described how throughout the program, they were encouraged to interact academically with their children, and to play an active role in their children’s development. engaging their child in academic activities such as “reading as drawing” were one of the ways m3 was able to contribute to her child’s learning as well as further building her relationship with her daughter. additionally, m5 noted she gained patience as a result of the program, mentioning that she has learned to be an understanding parent who effectively communicates with her child. this parental engagement is perceived to have led to quality time and bonding between parent and child, strengthening their relationship. as these mothers were spending more quality time with their children and playing an active role in their education and seeing their child progress, they felt closer to their child. 41 discussion and recommendations the informal conversations with administrators, teachers, and parents provide data describing the numerous benefits of a holistic family literacy program. findings describe young children participating in quality early childhood experiences, mothers interacting with their children to foster growth and development, and parents enrolling in classes in english language, nutrition, child development, and even swimming and water safety. overall, these narrative data describe how stakeholders believe in the effectiveness of parental involvement in literacy programs; they perceive this programming crucial to the children’s success in their academic life. similarly to other community programs that build connections within families and relationships to the community (crosby et al, 2015), this hflp indicates the capacity to build bridges to successful educational experiences for children and career opportunities for parents in southwest florida. the administrators’, teachers,’ and parents’ views describing the gains in children’s cognitive, language, and social-emotional growth and development align with findings describing the effect of parental engagement on children’s learning outcomes (crosby et al, 2015). these gains are important for this immigrant latino community because research suggests that there is an existing, direct, and observable relationship between poverty and the academic progress of students. rooney, palaich, silverstein, and piscatelli (2017) noted that students from lower socioeconomic status might have a significant language gap compared to their more affluent counterparts, which ultimately hinders their academic success. hflp serves families which struggle with major social and financial challenges. thus, the children in this community would risk being at an academic disadvantage prior to even beginning their formal education. consequently, a holistic program, which focuses on early intervention, and targets the whole family, while promoting healthy development, is essential to enable a successful transition into formal schooling (bekman & kocak, 2013). overall, the described benefits that emerged in these conversations are aligned with bronfenbrenner’s (2005) bio-ecological model of development which highlights the influence of the family and community on children’s development. data clearly described the positive impact of a dynamic, two-way interaction between the children and the immediate and extended community. in particular, findings described how children showed an increase in academic and social growth, and, at the same time, the mothers’ improved language and technology skills. in turn, mothers’ self-confidence improved, which assisted their capacity to integrate into the community through work and engagement. this increased community participation, on the part of the mothers, builds a more proactive and inclusive community. the community, in large, and the immigrating families, in particular, grow in their physical and mental well-being. grounded in the belief in the importance of holistic learning and development, the following recommendations are made for programs targeting an immigrant community: 1. the development of a holistic family program is driven by a clear understanding of the needs of the family and the local community. in a low socio-economic immigrant community in which spanish is the dominant language, the program is built upon the recognition of the importance of the native language and culture along with the purpose of acquiring english language skills. the holistic program includes components that 42 target additional specific needs (e.g., developing kindergarten readiness, learning a new language and culture, developing skills to find a job, and providing a food pantry for families in need). 2. equal emphasis on academic and language skills and social-emotional competencies provide for both young children and parents. these skills and competencies foster one another. 3. reaching out to the family, including mothers and fathers, and engaging them in experiences with their children is an essential component of early childhood programs. these activities build strong family dynamics. 4. consider listening to other stakeholders’ perspectives regarding goals and program implementation for continuous improvement in quality early childhood learning and development. this list is not intended to be exhaustive. generating from project data, these recommendations describe ways in which to support newly immigrated children and their families as they interact in the school and community. 43 references bekman, s., & kocak, a. 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(2014). supporting english and spanish literacy through a family literacy program. school community journal, 24(2), 147-163. retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej1048612.pdf https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2013.832942 https://search.informit.com.au/documentsummary;dn=810327730807795;res=ielhss https://search.informit.com.au/documentsummary;dn=810327730807795;res=ielhss https://search.informit.com.au/documentsummary;dn=810327730807795;res=ielhss http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03004430.2015.1062374 https://www.fsw.edu/assets/pdf/soe/dean/floridaececostingoutstudyreport.pdf https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2015/demo/p25-1143.html https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2016/demo/foreign-born/cps-2016.html http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej1048612.pdf final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 28 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 parenting and education involvement of korean mothers during the covid-19 pandemic sungok reina parka, jeongae kangb aminnesota state university moorhead, billinois state university dr. sungok reina park is an associate professor of early childhood education at minnesota state university moorhead. reina has had a lifelong interest in learning from people from diverse cultural backgrounds. her international experience has included working with young children and families in the philippines, india, korea, and a highly diverse preschool in buffalo, new york. her research focus is on multicultural education, teacher preparation, and parenting and education involvement of asian families. dr. jeongae kang is an assistant professor in the department of special education at illinois state university. her research interests include preparing special education teachers by providing an authentic learning environment. her recent publication includes using preclinical field experiences in preparing preservice special education teachers. in addition, she wrote about using case learning in preparing preservice special education teachers and investigating factors for special education teachers' stress and burnout during the pandemic. abstract the covid-19 pandemic quickly forced us to adapt to a new normal. as schools switched to distance learning, parents experienced increased childcare responsibilities and were thrust into new roles as teachers at home. this unexpected shift to new roles brought extraordinary disruption that becomes more challenging for families living apart, especially korean families who represent more traditional beliefs. one of these values is to highly regard education. in this study, researchers explore the unique experiences of korean mothers who were geographically distant from their spouses during the covid-19 lockdown. through interviews with the participant mothers with school-age children, researchers explore how the covid-19 lockdown created changes in childcare and education involvement of korean mothers. introduction after shutting down for nearly two years because of covid-19, schools are just beginning to reestablish in-person learning. during the shutdown, parents became full-time caregivers, entertainers, and teachers. this transition from in-person to online schooling dramatically affected parents’ mental health because of social isolation, economic challenges, anxiety, and burnout which also often affected child well-being (lee et al., 2021). in general, these challenges for parents become greatly exacerbated for single parents with sole responsibility for parenting and education of children, family safety and health, and homeschooling (hertz et al., 2021). 29 traditionally, korean parents evidence strong beliefs in education as the tool that advances their children’s social-economic status and predicts future success. after the korean war, these strong educational beliefs enabled rapid economic and educational development in south korea (hyun et al., 2003). because of this commitment to education, south korea is currently ranked as one of the high-performing countries in education (oecd, 2017). when korean married couples choose to live apart for their children’s education, it is increasingly typical for mothers to be the primary caregivers in korean society. this case study provides insight into the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on parenting and educational experiences of korean mothers with school-age children. through a series of three interviews, these narrative data examine four korean mothers’ parenting and educational involvement during the covid-19 pandemic. literature review single mothers with school-age children during a pandemic childcare responsibilities during the pandemic indicate to be especially challenging for single mothers. family routines and parental roles and responsibilities quickly shifted in response to the social and economic changes caused by the covid-19 pandemic (lian &yoon, 2020). survey data (n = 833) suggest single mothers were impacted much more negatively by the pandemic than multi-adult households (hertz et al, 2021). these findings describe how single mothers who lived alone with children expressed extreme difficulty finding time for both childcare and responsibilities of childcare at home. education and the pandemic the academic achievement gap between single-parent and two-parent families is significantly narrower within asian as compared with american families (park, 2007). as discussed above, the high value of educational attainment within asian society and their dedicated education support may have contributed to this result. for example, a typical south korean family spends about 16% of their monthly household income on private lessons or their children’s education (yi, 2013). while various approaches to distance learning rapidly emerged during the last 20 years (singh & thurman, 2019), the covid-19 pandemic aptly demonstrated that a significant gap exists in teacher preparation related to remote teaching (trust & whalen, 2020). wohlfart et al. (2021) described how teachers primarily utilized technology for basic communication rather than productive learning. this challenge contributed to significant parental exhaustion, particularly with mothers, during the pandemic (marchetti et al., 2020). korean females are among the most educated in the world along with canada and norway (oecd, 2017; worldatlas, 2019). as curtis et al. (2022) note, korean parents, especially mothers, place great importance on children’s educational success and higher school achievement. however, korean parents also exhibit higher stress and anxiety because remote learning requires a family’s active engagement (lian & yoon, 2020). hong and colleagues 30 (2021) suggest that social support may significantly decrease the parental stress of korean immigrant families. methods research questions during the covid-19 pandemic, parents of school-age children confronted additional challenges such as increased parenting duties and education responsibilities (arowoshola, 2020). this current study explores perceptions of changes in parenting duties and educational involvement of korean mothers with school-age children during the pandemic. the guiding research questions include: (a) how were the experiences of korean mothers from three countries different during a lockdown? and (b) how has covid-19 changed the childcare and education involvement of korean mothers of school-age children? participants researchers, dami and cheri (pseudonyms), met at an online support group for korean american mothers in academia. during one session, commonly shared anxiety about childcare and parents’ educational involvement living apart from spouses while raising children became a major topic. as discussed in the literature review, korean families highly value education, and mothers are often considered the primary caregiver for their children’s education. researchers, dami and cheri, questioned how other korean mothers in similar situations were involved in education during the pandemic. using purposive sampling (suri, 2011), researchers recruited korean mothers of school-aged children who were geographically distant from their spouses. potential participants were introduced through friends and colleagues. the first author made initial contacts through email with information regarding the study. finally, additional participants were recruited: aram from toronto, canada, and bora from seoul, south korea. in addition, researchers of this study (cheri from illinois [il], usa, and dami from minnesota [mn], usa) consented to participate. pseudonyms were used to maintain participants’ information as unidentifiable. table 1 below summarizes four participants of this study. table 1 demographic information of the participants aram bora cheri dami residence toronto, canada seoul, korea il, usa mn, usa participant age 38 39 42 42 child (age, grade) son (13, grade 8) son (13, grade 6) son (9, grade 2) daughter (11, grade 6) daughter (12, grade 7) daughter (9, grade 3) 31 marriage (year) 14 14 15 16 lengths of long distance 2 years 7 years 4 years 12 years data collection and analysis data collection began after approval for the study was received from the institutional review board (irb). each participant was invited to participate in zoom interviews via email containing an irb approved consent form. each participant had three zoom interviews with two researchers. interview questions were based on seidman’s (1998) three-interview series model. interview 1 focused on life history; the context for each participants’ experience was described by asking each participant about herself in the light of the topic. in interview 2 (the details of experiences), questioning concentrated on the participants’ current lives relating to the topic. in interview 3 (reflection on meaning), the participants were asked to reflect on the meaning of their experiences. field notes were made during and immediately after each interview. the field notes further contributed to revising interview questions based on participant responses. similar/different parenting and education involvement experiences during the pandemic were analyzed. each interview lasted about an hour, and all interviews were recorded and transcribed for analysis. researchers independently conducted initial open coding to identify words, concepts, or themes that frequently appeared. then, researchers reviewed each set of coding together and conducted axial coding to reveal categories and subcategories from the collected data. codes were organized and represented in interview summary tables. results/findings preparedness for transition to lockdown immediately after the pandemic started, the educational activities of all participants changed to home-based education. all four participant mothers indicated that they quit all in-person extracurricular activities such as taekwondo, piano, playdates, and math or english lessons. aram and bora kept their children at home. cheri and dami both said that they planned to keep their children home, whether distance learning was an option or not. dami said, “i immediately prepared for homeschooling. i was not surprised when our school was locked down and began offering distance learning.” due to sudden changes, the role of the participant mothers transitioned to full time caregiver and educator. fears as a single parent during a pandemic challenges of participant mothers agree with lian et al. (2020)’s statement about high levels of stress and anxiety among korean parents due to working parents' active involvement in children's distance learning. the challenge most mentioned was “fear” as a single parent without a spouse present or family support. aram said, “when my son was sick, my mom used to help me when i was in korea. however, i have no one i can rely on now.” bora expressed, “knowing that no family help is available, i was quite frustrated with any unexpected challenge.” dami also 32 said, “i have no family or close friends here who could help in case i get covid.” cheri’s story shows how serious the anxiety was for her and her daughter. “i thought about what if i was unconscious, who would care for us? if i am sick, our life and family economy would be jeopardized. my daughter worried that her daddy would not be available if i were sick. so, i went over my contacts with her and talked about whose door she would need to knock for an emergency.” another unique fear was expressed because of being asian in foreign countries. racism against asians became another politically contrived danger during the covid-19 pandemic (lee & waters, 2021). aram stated that toronto is a diverse community and that she never felt uncomfortable as a foreigner until an outbreak of covid-19. she continued, “when the elevator door opened, people who were already in the elevator often shook hands giving signs of ‘do not board.’ i felt weird.” dami also shared her uncomfortable experience: “i noticed people were giving extra distance from us at the grocery store. it’s hard to explain but i definitely felt ‘the look.’ i felt intimidated.” mothers’ role as teachers during distance learning the common challenge all participants indicated was the lack of schools’ readiness for distance learning. aram stated, “my child never used a computer until the pandemic broke.” likewise, bora said, “my children had to learn from starting a computer.” for children to learn content through a computer device, they must rapidly become familiar with using the technology. because of this, bora had to stay with her son the whole time during class hours. she stated, “it was not only the technology issues, but more of the teachers’ limited ability to deliver content through technology.” when not clear with the content, bora helped her son with supplementary materials such as maps, photos, and even youtube and google searches. reactions suggest that there were major differences in the way school districts approached online instruction. according to aram, “an announcement was sent to families indicating teachers did not have the ability to teach online. all materials were posted on classdojo in pdf forms. students downloaded the materials, completed homework, and uploaded their works on classdojo.” aram continued, “students never received instructions on learning nor feedback on homework. my children were not motivated to complete their homework.” the impacts of teachers’ lack in technology skills during online teaching on students’ learning are well documented in previous studies (conrad & donaldson, 2011; ko & rossen, 2017; rasmitadila et al., 2020; watson, 2020). transition to distance learning for dami’s family appeared smoother than aram and bora’s transition. dami described how teachers in her school district were given extensive training in their online platform (google meets) during extended breaks. in addition, each student was given a chromebook. synchronous class meetings were held monday through friday for one hour with the classroom teacher. in the afternoon, her daughter had 30-minute small group meetings with the ell (english language learner) teacher and optional small group sessions for math support. the whole group met for friday fun day every friday for about 40 minutes. unlike the situations with aram and bora, dami’s children were more comfortable using chromebooks because they had used the devices as a part of their school curriculum prior to distance learning. dami further stated, “although there were a few times my daughter needed help when wifi got 33 disconnected, i barely found her or her teacher struggling.” similar to dami’s daughter, cheri’s daughter managed remote learning well. teachers’ readiness for online instruction and student familiarity with technology appeared to be critical variables for student learning (conrad & donaldson, 2011; ko & rossen, 2017; watson, 2020; wohlfart et al., 2021). childcare and education involvement during pandemic as lian and yoon (2020) described changes in family routines during the pandemic, the four participant mothers evidenced significantly increasing childcare and educational tasks despite existing responsibilities. bora shared her challenge, “i had to teach my two children to cook and clean while i still worked from home.” dami also stated, “people think it is easier to work from home but the truth is the opposite. i was working full time and became a 24/7 stay at home mom at the same time.” cheri also said, “there was no clear line between work and home chores. i had to work from home from early morning to late evening while taking care of my daughter.” these experiences clearly show how single parents are increasingly challenged in finding time to manage work and home with their school-age children. other research findings confirm disadvantages for single mothers due to significantly increased childcare and education responsibilities (e.g., benard & correll, 2010; hertz et al., 2021). while bora, cheri, and dami were in a similar situation having full responsibilities of work, childcare, and education, aram shared some responsibilities with her sister. she added, “my sister was a teacher in korea, so she took care of most of the education-related work while i did most of the cooking and house chores.” challenges and strategies of korean distant families bora seemed to be experiencing the highest stress and anxiety. she indicated she had no support from anyone, which considerably elevated her stress. she said, “i do all by myself-working remotely, childcare, tutoring my children, and i do all the house chores. i have no support from anyone.” she also expressed her regrets, “i wished i continued my full-time job as a teacher. i gave up my career after having a baby. since then, no one has valued my hardship as a mom and wife.” she now has a part-time job working from home. yet, her family (especially her husband’s side) disregards the value of her work. she continued, “i sacrificed myself to become a stay home mom so that my husband could keep his career.” she also shared that her husband was the primary decision-maker, even from a distance. “my husband warned us not to go outside during the lockdown. i even gave up seeing my mom and thought about seeing a mental health counselor.” her experience suggests that a single mother may need support in dealing with the pandemic as a perceived disaster while being a single parent in charge of childcare and education without family support. unlike bora, aram seemed to have a different relationship with her husband, which may have impacted her stress levels. she stated, “we have persistent communication.” in response to a question regarding what she usually talks about with her husband, she answered, “mostly about our daily routines—what we did, what we ate, where we went, and when my son challenges me, i ask my husband to talk to him.’’ aram has been independent since her marriage because her husband has always been away for his military duty which is common in south korea. she said, 34 “i got used to this life. however, dealing with emotional difficulties is challenging at times, but i can handle this. i even did fine when my husband served in the gop (general out post: in charge of outside the dmz).’’ she also showed a growth mindset by saying, “i wasn’t stressed too much thinking it will end soon. rather, i focused on enjoying playing with my boy, playing soccer, running around, you name it.” perhaps the main differences between bora and aram’s resilience were emotional support from spouses. this was especially found from the contradictory attitude of their spouses; aram’s spouse was fully supportive by listening and showing empathy, whereas bora’s spouse was found to be controlling, prioritizing income and disregarding staying home responsibilities. cheri and dami also demonstrated similar resilience regarding parenting during the pandemic. some common strategies they shared were time management and education involvement of their spouses. they seemed to quickly adapt to handling both full-time jobs and parenting during the lockdown. one strategy included a regular schedule for themselves and their children. for example, all were waking up at the same time every morning and following the daily routines respectively. their children were capable of working by themselves. cheri stated, “we plan our schedule together. my daughter follows her schedule to reach goals for the week and complete her work on her own.” likewise, dami stated, “my children have their own monthly duty chart. they put up a star when they complete each duty. duties include: gym, laundry, math, reading, journaling and music.” another strategy cheri and dami shared was to check their children’s work at frequent intervals. both help their children only when they struggle or need extra support. this contrasts with bora’s case as she stated, “i always got exhausted after helping with my sons’ study. i tutored english, math, science, and history. i even sat with my son when he practiced playing piano.” perceptions of geographical distance participants indicated different perspectives of long-distance parenting when responding to the question, “what family support would help you overcome stress, anxiety, and challenges?” aram and bora seem to bear all parenting responsibilities due to physical distance from their spouses and families. for example, aram said, “because of the physical distance, i do not expect any help from my husband or other family members.” bora added, “i really wish that my parents and husband would stay closer to support each other.” in south korea, the extended family is an important resource for parenting. bora lived with her parents to receive immediate support from her parents while her husband moved across the country because of his job duties. she was able to pursue her career, and her children did not need to transfer to another school. however, since she could not see her parents for about two years because of the covid-19 quarantine, she was especially challenged. on the other hand, cheri and dami shared how their spouses are remotely involved in children’s education. dami said, “he works very hard during the week, so i hope he will talk with them more during the weekend, at least an hour.” she also shared, “i would like to ask my husband to provide more support in math for our daughters.” cheri said, “i feel i got a pretty decent amount of support from my husband although we are living apart. during our family zoom time every evening, we debrief what happens daily, and my husband helped my daughter with 35 her homework for about a year and a half. i feel this has given much support to my daughter’s academics and also my well-being as a single mom.” discussion in this study, four korean mothers in long-distance marriages participated in a series of three interviews. participants’ experiences suggest common challenges of single parents residing in the us, south korea, and canada. how participant mothers changed their daily routines to adapt to unexpected lockdowns and their efforts to be actively involved in childcare and education during lockdowns are described. the current narrative data adds to our existing knowledge of the growing challenges of parenting and education involvement of families separated by distance. these findings also expand our understanding of the unique challenges of korean mothers raising children apart from their spouses during a pandemic. the current study also confirms the findings of the previous studies (park, 2007; hyun et al., 2003) describing how korean parents highly value education. despite unique challenges, all four participant mothers maintained high expectations for their children’s development and achievement. additionally, this study suggests what post-pandemic education might look like for long-distance families. these current data support the conclusions of singh and thurman (2019) that suggest distance teaching and learning will increase, and teachers and students will be required to become more familiar with alternate modes of education. importantly, parents in long-distance relationships need to identify new ways to share childcare responsibilities. next, korean mothers’ high value in education for their children will continue through their active involvement in childcare and education regardless of the challenges. finally, this study suggests that educational and parenting challenges brought on by the pandemic can positively affect family dynamics with support from extended family members and communities of long-distance families. the findings of this investigation provide support for multiple recommendations for post pandemic education. first, schools and teachers need to continuously improve distance teaching strategies and become more confident in better utilizing technologies. second, both parents need to share parenting duties and become more involved in education. with the technology, this may become more doable for parents physically distant from their families. families of cheri and dami are positive examples of how families might connect through video calls, reading with children, and even tutoring a child synchronously with devices. thirdly, shared understanding and emotional support may help reduce mothers’ significantly increased responsibilities in long distance marriages. with these suggestions, long-distant families and communities can make a positive difference in the lives of future global citizens. limitations this qualitative researcher-participant study included two authors as participants. they engaged in dialogue with other participants during each interview. this may have caused an internal power differential where non-researcher participant mothers might not have responded to what 36 they do rather than what they think is right to do as korean mothers. the first interview focused on building relationships and trust between participant mothers to avoid this issue. researchers may also have interpretation bias when analyzing data. this study used the triangulation method that two researchers independently completed open coding and then validated the interpretation. 37 references arowoshola, l. 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(2013). tiger moms and liberal elephants: private, supplemental education among korean-americans. society, 50(2), 190–195. final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 68 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 music and middle school literacy sally busbya aindiana university bloomington sally busby is a doctoral student in literacy, culture, and language education at indiana university bloomington. her current interests include disability studies, children's literature, and lifelong learning. she taught sixth and seventh-grade english for fifteen years. abstract this article provides beneficial strategies for using music in the middle school english classroom. despite research describing the positive effects of using music to enhance learning, there is minimal discussion on specific ways of incorporating music into lessons. music is a meaningful alternative allowing middle school students to connect with their world and, in doing so, create their own unique identities. this discussion identifies strategies whereby english teachers build upon students’ interest in music to frame engagement in critical thinking about a text including the events and characters, themes, and motifs. students learn complex literacy skills within an environment of personal motivation and multimodal approaches. keywords: music in the classroom, multimodal, literature study, critical literacy introduction middle school is a unique time in the emerging lives and identities of 12-14 year-olds. the current discussion provides an introduction to not only using music as a positive learning strategy, but as well explores ways to implement music to support students’ developing identities. the following examples of popular culture vignettes during the 2007-2008 school year focus on teacher insight and student relevance. 2007-2008, the year of “crank that (soulja boy)”: a series of vignettes the bell rings, and students file out of my 7th-grade english classroom. hundreds of students move through the hallways, stop at lockers or talk for a minute. and then one student yells out, “watch me crank it!” a few other students laugh and respond, “watch me roll!” “yua!” even more call out. 69 soulja boy released his single in september and by october, this became a daily call and response in the hallways. *** i have a baby and toddler and tons of single baby socks, broken toys, and other pieces of trash. i decide to gather hundreds of these little items and ask the students to create commercials for an object of “trash” using a propaganda technique. i have five classes, between 27 and 35 students per class. the students work in pairs or trios for the project, and in each class, at least two groups use the tune of “crank that” to write the lyrics to their catchy commercial hit. *** soulja boy’s dance for his hit song is just as catchy and becomes a part of several afterschool, hour-long dance events. jumping to the right, jumping to the left, arms outstretched and flying forward, the students move to the lyrics. during my class students review vocabulary words using an activity i call “paper bag dramatics.” each group selects a paper bag containing a random assortment of “props” that they incorporate into their skit using the week’s vocabulary words. at least one skit in each paper bag dramatics day includes an eight count of soulja boy’s dance. this relevant music is an easy way to hype/engage their audience of peers. the preceding vignettes illustrate middle schoolers' organic connections between music, learning, and identity. students work to join their interests and identity in the classroom community. a teacher’s role is to honor this work and help support the ways students share their identity while learning. relevance: self-identity and music as children move into their early teenage years, they look for ways to create a unique identity. often this identity connects to their love of particular genres of music and specific artists. my daughter, the baby of my vignettes, is now fifteen and spends at least a half an hour every evening walking around the backyard while listening to her music. it is a ritual that is just as important to her as baths or eating. music also becomes an important part of middle school students’ lives. middle school students strive to connect their music to identity, self, and other. as a middle school english teacher, i often hear students playing songs in the hallway, either on their phones or singing. some songs connect all students as “crank that” did for my students over ten years ago. many schools identify the significance of music with middle schoolers and play music throughout the intercom during the passing from class to class instead of using bells. however, classroom instructional strategies appear to use music merely as a way to transition to a different activity or in some instances, eliminate music all together. in order to learn within a classroom community, the current discussion proposes middle school english teachers invite students’ relevant and personal musical choices into the classroom. using music in supporting student identity and literacy learning 70 middle school students perceive music as a means to connect to other students their age and create unique parts of their own identity. “human beings and their social worlds are inseparable” (esteban-guitart & moll, 2014, p. 31). as well, the social worlds in which we reside help us create our evolving and fluid identity. as students interact with others in the community of learners through shared and unique interests, their individual identities form where the “identities reside on a sea of stuff and experience” (pahl & rowsell, 2010, p. 8). palmer (1998) views identity as “an evolving nexus where all the forces that constitute life converge in the mystery of the self” (p. 13). the concept of self strongly connects to identity and the work of reflecting on one’s fluid identity. philosophers identify self as a key feature of identity. for instance, while enacting identity work, foucault (1988) views the self as an imperative part of identity where he focuses on the theme of care for self and “examining [one’s] soul” (p. 26). he explains the word self can be used to “convey the notion of identity” (p. 25); therefore, the care of “self” highlights the focused action of searching for the answer to the question, “what is the plateau on which i shall find my identity?” (foucault, 1988, p.25). the concept of a plateau for personal identity work indicates the understanding of figurative travel and climbing throughout one’s life. students learn through their struggles and climbs while using this movement to rest in temporary ease while building the pieces of their identity. an effort to focus on the discovery of self can inform teachers’ praxis. teachers use students’ interests in music as part of their emerging identities; for example, to encourage literacy. identity, though somewhat stable, is on a spectrum of individual fluidity. this fluid movement connects to learning within the discourses of groups and the connection of self to others. part of an individual's identity involves defining characteristics such as the role of a student or interests such as specific songs or music. during the middle school years, students use music to demonstrate pieces of their identity based on connections to songs. often students will find commonality with other students based on music, and those branches of shared identity through a collective interest in particular lyrics, singers, or songs which help to define an individual student’s identity. music also provides a vehicle to connect page literacy to musical literacy. allowing students to learn the modes of music and the layers of musical analysis such as tone, rhythm, lyric, and melody, support a multimodal framework within the classroom. language arts, the middle school student identity, and learning successful middle school english teachers understand several significant truths regarding their students. for example, engagement is not associated with their writing abilities or their average reading levels. learning is not about grammar or academic rigor or grit. rather, the community the teacher creates frames students’ success. insightful educators understand that before students can reciprocate with respect, their teachers must demonstrate respect for them. students need a tribe; it is critical they be part of a group. they must feel loved and cherished. it is only then that middle school students can share their introspective thoughts and their emerging identities. it is then, they can explain why a particular book wrought tears or describe their difficulty in writing a paragraph. with a feeling of community support, students are less apt to become vulnerable. the community support, however, cannot end at the conclusion of a one-hour class. it is critical 71 students experience the connections among peers, interests, and teachers beyond the school walls. this means, as well, this understanding of community extends beyond traditional classroom time constraints. the work in these shared third spaces (gutiérrez, 2008) nurtures the outside group connections while adding to the funds of shared knowledge. in this way, this expansive understanding of community creates abundant opportunities for students to learn and develop (moll et al., 1992; banegas, 2020). through an understanding of this relevant and personal learning community, teachers build upon students’ diverse choices, experiences, and interests (ie. funds of pedagogies) (zipin, 2009; hedges, 2012). in order to learn within an effective classroom community, the communication among students and teachers in the “constructions of social identities” (wardhaugh & fuller, 2015, p. 9) supports the work individuals do to use fluid funds of identity (cutri et al., 2011; esteban-guitart & moll, 2014; subero et al., 2016). as wardhaugh and fuller (2015) note, “the term identity is used to invoke the interactively developed self that is multiple, fragments, and fluctuating” (p. 73). teachers harness the identities of their students while finding ways to connect academics to their interests. students’ interests in music and the connections with music relate to student identity. this relationship offers an authentic way for teachers to honor the interests and identities of students. when teachers demonstrate an understanding of personal and relevant interests, this provides a way for them to create a safe learning community for all students to engage. finding the music when considering the links among music, identity, and literacy learning, researchers describe the correlations between music instruction and students’ increased reading prowess (bolden & beach, 2021; eccles et al., 2020; powell & somerville, 2020; rautenberg, 2015). additionally, data support connecting musical instruction with gains in reading ability of children with special needs (flaugnacco, et al., 2015; schwartzberg & silverman, 2016). researchers also consider background music in the classroom. mohan and thomas (2020) discuss a positive correlation between using students’ preferred music as background music and its connection to reading comprehension, while su et al. (2017) specifically describe using mozart as background music to decrease students’ anxiety associated with learning and reading. most of the research intends to connect the positive effects of using either researcher-selected music or musical instruction with younger students, particularly pre-kindergarten to secondgraders. yoon (2018) discusses the use of popular culture within a kindergarten classroom, including songs such as “the imperial march” from star wars, and the specific strategy to employ popular culture in literacy instruction instead of bracketing popular culture into only a playtime activity. the researchers targeting older students explore connecting middle school and high school students’ interest in music to literature. whatley et al. (2020) highlight using political music as a means to teach critical literacy while kelly (2019) connects the study of hiphop music to literature. using all music 72 utilizing a wide variety of music genres in the middle school english classroom provides teachers with options to demonstrate their desire to connect with individual students’ identities. the concept of identity is more expansive than merely the middle school classroom; this concept helps to inform the choices made by teachers to reach students by offering connections to a wide range of music. this variety of music indicates the teacher and classroom community prioritize individual student identity (brown, 2006; kelly, 2019; mohan & thomas, 2020). music as a scaffold research suggests that students enjoy the most success in classrooms where teachers prioritize the passions of their students (moje et al., 2011; subero et al., 2016). using music to teach literacy concepts is a means to honor students’ interests and fluid identity work within the english classroom. since music is a common way that students define their interests, teachers can use music as a way to connect interest and identity to literary analysis, making the analysis of text more personal for each student. teachers incorporate familiar and novel songs to assist when introducing something more complex, such as using line-by-line analysis in readings, finding proof from the text to support a thesis, comparing two modes of literacy, and synthesizing the literary devices of a text. integrating music in the study of a text is a strategy to challenge students with a complex comparison of two different modes of literacy. the following example provides a robust strategy to support the multimodal forms of literacy, synthesis, and flexible thinking within the classroom. using music to support student literacy i taught 7th-grade english in a k-8 school with approximately 1200 students within a large urban district. the majority of students read close to or at grade level. between 16 and 20 students enrolled in each of my classes. the length of study/read time for each book was between four and six weeks. in order to support students’ literacy learning, my instructional strategies ensured opportunities for them to connect the relevance of the music with the identified reading. the instructional strategies included music review, visual analysis, and free-write projects. music review at least one day during the unit, a music connection day occurred. during this class period, the students and i worked together through a series of procedures to connect many genres of music to the text. the students and i called this activity “music review.” prior to the day of the “music review,” i created a playlist of twenty songs for the text. i intentionally included a wide variety of genres, tempos, instruments, lyrics, and familiarity of the songs while considering the events and characters, themes, motifs, and prior discussions we engaged as a class while reading. on the day of the music review, the students created a list of as many possible characters, events, motifs, and themes related to the identified literature. additionally, students listed their opinions 73 about the text. some students created this list throughout the unit; others waited until the day of the music review to brainstorm recalled items. the students who chose to do the latter explained that it was a way to test their memory regarding the assigned reading. after providing adequate time to compile their list, students then numbered the second sheet of paper from one to twenty, skipping five lines between each number. at this time, i played the first 60 seconds of the first song. the students could focus on any element(s) of the song including lyrics, tempo, melody, specific musical instruments, rhythm, tone, or mood to explain how this element(s) connects to one part of the text the class read. often students were able to understand this somewhat abstract assignment, at least in the beginning of the year, by my suggestion to think of this exercise as creating a movie soundtrack. after the first 60-seconds of a song-play, i ask the question, “where do you think the music would fit in a movie version of the book?” for instance, the playlist for william shakespeare’s (2004) midsummer night’s dream included usher’s (2004) song “yeah.” students might identify the high-pitched ringing bells as a reminder of the fairies or they could consider the boisterous “club music” feel of the song which might suggest to them bottom’s interaction with titania. another example is the police’s (1983) production of “every breath you take.” students may connect the lyrics, “every breath you take/every move you make/every bond you break/every step you take/i'll be watching you” to helena’s love for demetrius in act i. students discovered dozens of different ways to connect one song to the text. they used their personal experience, literary understanding, and musical literacy to make their connections. they would explain their reasons first on paper and later in conversation with other students. this provided a way for students to experience what would later be identified as textual proof. they used examples from both texts to connect these literacies (book/literature, music/lyrics) together. every year i used this strategy, my list of songs associated with each book’s playlist became longer because students began to connect songs to the books they were reading on their own. i left a pad of post-it notes on my desk specifically for students to share new song titles. examples include: “busby, you should check out akon’s (2007) ‘sorry, blame it on me’. it reminds me of anthony marston in and then there were none (christie, 2003) because he isn’t sorry about anything. and maybe if you really think about it as akon being real, then maybe walter jr. in raisin in the sun (hansberry, 1994) would fit?” i include an example playlist for midsummer night’s dream. however, these playlists often change because of student-generated suggestions or newly created productions. table 1 playlist for midsummer night's dream song title artist two ideas for possible connections the girl from ipanema amy winehouse the beginning tune or mood sounds like a wedding reception song which connects to the 3 couples’ wedding party./ based on the time period of the text, the lyrics could connect to helena or hermia based on how lysander and demetrius fall in love with each of them. 74 wake up arcade fire the beginning rhythm of the song could connect to puck’s race to get the special herb for oberon./ the song sounds joyous which is the way theseus feels about marrying hippolyta. se fue bebe the chords being played in the beginning sounds like practice which is like when bottom and the other actors practiced the play./ the singing sounds like the fairies singing to titania. beautiful liar shakira & beyonce the beginning sound sounds like a bergomask dance that bottom and the other actors offer after their play./ the two women singing about the man as a “beautiful liar” could be helena and/or hermia about demetrius and lysander’s fickle love interests. one way or another blondie the tempo of the song reflects puck’s directing of bottom throughout the play. (could be several scenes.)/ the lyrics about obsession indicate all four of the lovers as well as titania’s feelings about bottom and theseus’s feelings about hippolyta. chan chan buena vista social club the song’s mood is stealthy which is how puck acted as he spied on the lovers./ the drum beats are rhythmic like the feelings hippolyta has about the continual progression of time to her eventual wedding day. the rake’s song the decemberists the lyrics begin with “i had entered into a marriage” which connects to the three couples who marry at the end of the play./ the singer does not sound thrilled to be married which might connect to oberon since he and titania argue during most of the play. headlines drake the singer notes he receives a lot of compliments and might be changed by the number of compliments. this could be many of the characters including: any of the four lovers, puck, or bottom./ the rhythm in the background sounds like a drum beat which could connect to a soldier’s march and hippolyta’s fighting. beautiful eminem “lately i’ve been hard to reach” could focus on bottom when his friends were looking for him and couldn’t find him./ lysander is very sad in act i scene i that he cannot marry hermia. dance, dance fall out boy “she says she’s no good with words” could connect to helena’s confusion at hermia’s anger. they both struggle to understand the other./ the intensity and chaotic energy of the song could remind a listener of the chase that ensues when puck is directing the four lovers away from each other. ain’t worried about nothin french montana oberon, though amused and annoyed at times, does not seem concerned about how things will eventually work out. he is confident he will be able to correct the wrongs and make titania love him again./ the high-pitched sounds in the 75 background of the song can remind a listener of the lullaby sung by the fairies for titania. back to the middle india arie the lyrics describing a girl who is afraid of speaking “her mind” connects to helena’s feelings in the first act./ the theme of the song focuses on the theme of love within the play and the fact that both helena and hermia remained true to their loves. rise up with fists!! jenny lewis “what are you changing? who do you think you’re changing?” begins the lyrics of this song and connects to the actual donkey head puck attaches to bottom’s head. it could also identify the changes in loves./ her repetition of the lines “you can wake up” focuses on the theme of dreams that happen within the play. fade into you mazzy star this sounds like a song titania would sing for bottom while she was in love with him./ this could be the song that pyramus and thisbe whisper to each other on either side of the wall. you can’t touch this m.c. hammer these lyrics could be for either of the male lovers in response to the female lovers that they were not in love with at the time./ this could also be bottom’s theme song. he thinks very highly of himself. black tables other lives the somber piano music could connect to hippolyta’s feelings at the beginning of the play or the way the other actors feel when they cannot find bottom./ the lyrics “it’s good to see you back home” could refer to how theseus feels when the lovers, particularly his daughter hermia, return. fields of gold sting the emphasis in the lyrics of the words “remember” and “forget” can connect to the following characters: titania, bottom, the four lovers, and hippolyta./ this is a love song which relates to the theme of love within the play. marry me train the lyric “love has surely shifted” focuses on the motif of change and the theme of love in the play./ the singer is asking someone to marry him which relates to all four of the couples. the kids don’t stand a chance vampire weekend “the kids don’t stand a chance” focuses on the four lovers and their experience in the forest./ the mood of the song seems magical which connects the motif of magic in the play. soul finger the bar-keys the excited response reminds a listener of how, after their confusion had passed, the four lovers were thrilled to return to town so that they could participate in the wedding./ the excitement and trumpet trill could also imitate the excitement of bottom and his friends when they heard theseus had selected their play. 76 visual analysis. “music review” is not the only place to use music in the classroom. for instance, the students also wrote a visual analysis of a favorite music video where we studied film techniques such as camera angle and movement, lighting, and transition. then, students applied these different vocabulary words and the meanings behind the film to the lyrics of the song. the students provided an analysis of the music video by referencing the cinematic choices made and the possible reasons for these choices in connection to the lyrics and other layers of musical literacy. each class also creates a class soundtrack including both a representation of each student as well as songs indicating traits identified as important by a particular classroom of learners. incorporated as part of their final class video, students often shared with other classes as a way to demonstrate their unique attributes. free-write projects. i also use songs as a catalyst for some free writing activities. here, instead of playing only the first minute of the song, i would play an entire song, at least one time, and sometimes more than once while students take notes. these notes, doodles, or just attentive listening graduated into a “free write” assignment. students write for 10 minutes. sometimes i would offer a suggestion of genre, but more often, the students responded in a way that made personal sense to individuals. in order to expand an initial project, students used these free writes for later writing assignments as a starting point. conclusion middle school english educators experience pressure to teach reading and writing standards in traditional ways that mimic formal state-mandated tests. however, by incorporating music within the english classroom, students learn complex literacy skills within the context of interest-driven and multimodal learning activities. music harnesses another piece of student engagement as well as student identity to support literacy and emphasize the importance of the unique students within a classroom. while using a “music review” to provide a close analysis of a text, students experience ownership of not only the interpretation of the lyrics, tone, and melody, but also exhibit the ability to connect other songs to the texts read in class. the visual analysis project offers a way for students to investigate relationships between imagery and song, noting the multimodal aspects of literacy while focusing on a song directly related to their identity and interests. a teacher can continue to honor student identity and help students connect in the classroom community when creating a group playlist. finally, when a teacher uses music to support student writing, students not only have an immediate connection to the assignment because of the incorporation of music, but students also find the task of writing more comfortable. using music to highlight the individuality of middle school students allows teachers to hone in on the importance of student identity and its relationship to literacy and learning within a classroom community. multimodal assignments incorporate music and thereby, allow students to learn through interest-driven connections and personal identity while, at the same time, helping to develop students’ critical thinking. references akon. 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(2009). dark funds of knowledge, deep funds of pedagogy: exploring boundaries between lifeworlds and schools. discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education, 30(3), 317–331. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596300903037044 100 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 ijwc updates for the new column, “emerging professional,” ijwc did not receive any student submissions for review and possible publication. again, the ijwc editorial team invites students (undergraduate, masters, and doctoral levels) to submit papers including problem resolutions, literature reviews, and research designs (qualitative or quantitative). the topic choices remain broad with the primary focus on how this content supports all children’s holistic learning and development. ijwc editors remain committed to providing student-authors with relevant, productive and concrete feedback. importantly, a student may identify additional authors; the key factor is for the student to be “first author.” why is this particular ijwc feature important? the ijwc mission remains committed to promoting an understanding of holistic learning and development for all children. in particular, ijwc editors believe by supporting student authors with modeling, feedback, and mentoring, ijwc strengthens and extends understanding, recognition, and implementation of “best practices” into the next generation of educational professionals and child advocates. how to submit a student paper in order to target the “emerging professional” column and to distinguish your paper as a “student submission,” merely identify “emerging professional” at the top of your document. in this way, the manuscript will be forwarded to the appropriate editors committed to supporting emerging scholars. if you have any questions regarding this particular process, contact kburriss@mtsu.edu see you in the 2020 ijwc spring issue! final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 48 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 discussion-based pedagogy to promote to socioemotional learning and well-being among students in japan yoko kitamia, lois a. yamuchib a-buniversity of hawai‘i at mānoa yoko kitami, phd is an assistant specialist at the center on disability studies, university of hawai‘i at mānoa. she focuses on the social and emotional learning skills of japanese students and the needs of multilingual students. she is also a licensed mental health counselor in the state of hawai‘i. her interests include supporting students who are at risk, those with disabilities, as well as mental-health counselling for international students. lois a. yamauchi, phd is a professor in the department of educational psychology at the university of hawai‘i at mānoa. her research focuses on sociocultural influences on learning and the educational experiences of teachers, students, and families from indigenous and other minoritized groups. she leads the center for education, diversity, and excellence (crede), which provides professional development to educators to improve their practices for learners from culturally diverse backgrounds. abstract the japanese educational system is highly competitive and applies high stakes standardized admission testing. as this approach has led to student stress and a narrow instructional focus, the japanese government revised educational goals toward more holistic development of wellrounded citizens who are healthy, independent, creative, and work collaboratively with others. however, many teachers did not know how to promote these new goals. this study investigated japanese educators’ application of philosophy for children, a discussion-based inquiry approach that has been used to promote socioemotional learning and well-being. methods included email communications with 29 educators, analysis of japanese language documents related to the approach in japan, and observations of meetings of educators who used the method. educators applied the approach to elementary, secondary, and university settings. the approach was used to promote socioemotional learning and critical thinking among japanese children. some have used the approach to facilitate children's healing after the tōhoku earthquake and other trauma. facilitators applied the approach outside of the classroom in public settings like train stations to promote everyday citizens’ expression and understanding. the results suggest that philosophy for children has the potential to promote holistic goals for children and adults. background and rationale 49 the japanese educational system is competitive and uses standardized tests to determine secondary school placement, which in turn determines students’ college and career options (kuramoto & koizumi, 2018). such an approach is limiting and excludes broader goals of wellbeing and development (ng & wong, 2020). high-stakes testing is associated with students’ stress and high suicide rates in japan, where suicide is the primary cause of death for individuals beginning at age 10 (kawabe et al., 2016). more than 20 years ago, the ministry of education, culture, sports, science, and technology, ([mext], 1998) expressed concern about the education system’s emotional toll: excessive examination competition has emerged as educational aspirations have risen, and the problems of bullying, school refusal, and juvenile crime have become extremely serious. it cannot be denied that to date in japan, education has tended to fall into the trap of cramming knowledge into children, while neglecting the ability to learn and think for oneself (para 8). mext acknowledged the existence of hikikomori, a phenomenon where students quit going to school and shut themselves in their rooms to avoid school-related pressure. the japanese government reported that 541,000 people aged 15-39 withdrew from society, staying at home for more than six months (tajan et al., 2017). in response, the government revised its educational objectives to develop more holistic goals including: (a) creativity, independence, and responsibility; (b) collaboration, mutual respect, and contributions to local and global communities; and (c) positive attitudes toward learning, health, justice, the environment, japanese culture, and world peace (mext, 2009). however, policy makers provided little guidance to teachers who generally did not know how to implement these goals (ono, 2014). although teachers had flexibility to design their own lessons, many were unsure about how to promote these more holistic goals, particularly because they still needed to prepare students for admissions testing (ikesako & miyamoto, 2015). socioemotional learning much of the curricula for socioemotional learning (sel) in japan generated from the us. koizumi (2005) translated into japanese what the collaborative for academic, social and emotional learning (casel) published about sel. casel defines sel as processes through which students “acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions” (elias et al., 1997, p. 5). some japanese educators have used philosophy for children (p4c), a discussion-based inquiry approach designed to promote logical thinking and students' sel (brandt 1998; sharp et al., 1992). the purpose of this paper is to describe how japanese elementary, secondary, and university educators have used p4c and its effects. 50 philosophy for children one of the key features of p4c is children’s search for meaning because like everyone else, children desire a life of rich and meaningful experiences (lipman et al., 1980). rather than using textbooks to tell children what to think, p4c activities are meaning-laden: stories, games, discussions, and relationship-building. lipman created p4c after noticing that college students often lacked adequate reasoning skills. he thought that philosophical education for children could remedy this and wrote instructional novels that depicted characters discovering philosophical principles (brandt, 1998). p4c transforms the classroom environment into a community of inquiry that is logic-based, open to evidence, and assumes these processes become reflective habits (lipman et al., 1980). prerequisite conditions include participants’ mutual respect for each other, readiness to reason together, and absence of indoctrination. p4c involves discovering new possibilities by listening to and discussing issues with those who have different backgrounds and perspectives. p4c establishes a community of inquiry, encourages participation, and reduces competition. for more than 50 years, authors have published thousands of books and articles on p4c in different countries (gregory, 2011); however, most literature on p4c in japan is written in the japanese language and has not been accessible to those unable to read japanese texts. educators have adapted p4c to fit their specific needs and contexts. for example, jackson (2012) developed p4c hawai‘i, distinguishing between the “big p” of traditional academic philosophy and the “little p” of everyday philosophy. the latter reflects everyone’s natural capacity for wonder as they engage in philosophical inquiry (makaiau & miller, 2012). the p4c hawai‘i approach does not use lipman’s p4c novels. instead, children sit in a large circle, nominate topics that they are interested in discussing, and vote on what they want to discuss. the p4c facilitators emphasize intellectual and emotional safety (leng, 2020). dewey’s approach the current study was framed by dewey’s (1915) approach which emphasizes the significance of experience in learning and argued that schools should not just teach content, but also engage students in activities to learn how to live in society. dewey’s conceptualization of education focused on meaningful activity in learning and participation in a classroom democracy. dewey asserted that the school community should promote shared interests among peers. p4c connects with dewey’s (1938) ideas by emphasizing students’ investment in learning, active participation and complex understanding of subjects. the current study examined the perspectives of japanese educators and japanese language texts regarding how japanese educators have used p4c. our research questions were: (a) how have japanese educators applied p4c? and (b) what were the effects of its application on students in these settings? methods participants 51 participants included 29 elementary and middle school teachers and professors. the educators implemented p4c across japan. data sources the first author corresponded with participants through email about p4c in japan, their purposes in conducting p4c, their specific approaches, and outcomes related to its use. these email communications were conducted in japanese. in addition, we examined 103 japanese journal articles, 14 japanese books, an unpublished dissertation on p4c (tsuchiya, 2018), manuscripts submitted for publication (toyoda, 2021), 12 japanese websites, a p4c newsletter, meeting minutes of a japanese p4c organization, and a teacher’s notes about implementing the practices. in 2016 and 2017, the first author observed and took field notes at two meetings of p4c japan, an organization of educators who used the p4c hawai‘i approach. data analysis the first author coded the data regarding: (a) early historical influences of p4c in japan, (b) the approaches used, (c) who participated in the activities, (d) goals for using p4c, and (d) its effects. we triangulated results across different data sources. results introduction of p4c in japan p4c in japan originated in 1993, when ando and watanabe suggested that philosophy programs for children could improve social studies and english education in japan (tsuchiya, 2018; sakai, 2013). in 1998, osaka university (2010) established a laboratory to study philosophical education for teachers, nurses, and other community members. matsumoto (2004) and colleagues at hyogo university developed a curriculum for fifth grade students in miyazaki prefecture and used lipman’s novel, harry stottlemeier's discovery, to promote and assess children’s inferential skills. influences of p4c hawai‘i jackson’s work on p4c hawai‘i appeared to be especially influential in shaping the direction of japanese philosophical inquiry with children. with funding from the uehiro foundation, jackson and colleagues at the university of hawai‘i hosted and participated in exchanges of educators from hawai‘i, japan, and other countries, to share ideas about p4c (university of hawai‘i uehiro academy, 2013). toyoda coordinated the p4c japan-hawai‘i exchange program that provided biannual activities for teachers from japan and hawai‘i to learn about p4c hawai‘i (uehiro foundation on ethics and education, 2004). toyoda learned about p4c while she was a graduate student at the university of hawai‘i (toyoda, interview). in 2005, she introduced the p4c hawai‘i approach to japanese audiences at a workshop and began holding p4c workshops at elementary schools throughout japan. in 2010, she introduced the p4c hawai‘i approach at universities in japan. in 52 2013, toyoda introduced p4c to an elementary school in miyagi prefecture and facilitated a monthly p4c hawai‘i study group. godo (2013) observed p4c as a graduate student in hawai‘i. upon returning to japan, she was a tutor in a philosophy camp for high school students. godo was amazed that students were so honest, considered others’ questions seriously, and felt accepted. she noted that "in such a way, a camp where people are connected and freely grow through philosophy felt like a utopia to me" (godo, 2013, p. 68). formal education a group of k-12 and higher education teachers from institutions mostly in osaka created “p4c japan.” this group studied and promoted p4c hawai‘i methods by writing articles, and sharing lesson plans and other materials (p4c japan, 2018). at a 2016 meeting, a teacher shared a lesson plan and questions that it generated from students, while attendees offered feedback. as of 2019, the group discontinued their activities; however, their website remains as a resource. another group of educators created p4c in schools kansai-japan (2020), an organization that introduces and uses p4c in schools. educators at ochasho university elementary school applied a p4c approach for grades 3-6 students (tanaka, 2017). the japanese government designated ochasho and several other schools as sites to investigate the integration of critical thinking and humanities education. ochasho educators chose p4c hawai‘i as their approach. a study of p4c hawai‘i in a japanese middle school found that it positively influenced middle school students’ sel (author). a japanese language teacher applied the approach weekly, and results indicated that students learned about themselves and classmates and developed interpersonal and decision-making skills. emphasis on healing some educators used p4c in japan to facilitate healing after trauma. “clinical philosophy,” developed by washida, addresses suffering in fields including education and medicine, and promotes philosophical reflection about events in people’s lives (osaka university, 2010). in 1998, washida and colleagues initiated a course in clinical philosophy on “caring” for teachers, nurses, and other professionals. as a result, graduate students studied reclusive hikikomori students and applied p4c with high schoolers. educators used the p4c hawai’i approach to address trauma after the 2011 tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. they conducted p4c hawai‘i in an elementary school in sendai, a region affected by the disaster, and students demonstrated social and emotional expression to a degree not usually seen in other classrooms (shoji & horikoshi, 2015). one of the students whose turn it was to speak did not say anything; and yet, he did not want to pass his turn. after 30 seconds, he started expressing his thoughts. a girl with family issues who did not usually express her feelings became talkative. one student who had refused to come to school returned and participated in p4c. he told others that he enjoyed the discussion and wanted to do it again. 53 tabata (2016) explained that p4c had a counseling-like effect for students. those who participated in the sessions felt close to each other and demonstrated prosocial behaviors. an elementary school teacher shared that through p4c, she could hear the students’ “real voices” and better know how to support them. located in miyagi prefecture, another site of the 2011 earthquake, p4c miyagi aimed to help children affected by natural disasters. the group worked to implement school goals, resolve regional, school, and classroom problems, and build a learning community among educators (miyagi university, 2018). they modeled their activities on the p4c hawai‘i approach introduced by toyoda (tabata, 2016). community outreach some japanese educators have used p4c in non-school contexts. the university of tokyo promoted “philosophy for everyone.” they collaborated with schools and other organizations to hold events for people of different ages and backgrounds in locations throughout japan (kajitani, 2016). café philo (2016) sponsored philosophical conversations about everyday life among community participants. since 2005, the group has operated the philosophy café, which offered p4c discussions in public locations, such as neighborhood cafes and train stations. upon request, café philo dispatched a facilitator to create a customized dialogue for participants. for example, after viewing a movie, participants discussed their impressions of the film and the issues raised. founded in 2015, the japanese association for philosophical practice (2022) promoted practices that fostered intellectual exchange. ardacoda, a nonprofit organization in tokyo, offered workshops for children and adults interested in philosophical dialogue. its members held discussion-events in public venues, businesses, and the media. according to deputy director kono (2014), ardacoda’s p4c was flexible, but generally applied lipman's approach, using a book to stimulate dialogue. discussion in revising their nation’s educational goals, the japanese government focused on more holistic goals for students (japanese prime minister’s office, 2015). key educational objectives include developing students’ abilities to question and problem solve, understand themselves and others, demonstrate leadership and communication skills, and participate in global communities that include diverse values and viewpoints. in order to accomplish these goals, the government stated that teachers should hold high expectations for all children and promote their self-esteem and aspirations. these statements indicated that policy makers recognize that education requires the development of sel that is not assessed by standardized tests (mext, 2011). japanese policymakers were concerned about hikkikomori and high youth suicide rates (mext, 1998; tajan et al., 2017) and recognized the role that schools play in developing sel (mext, 2015). in this study, we found that japanese educators have used p4c to address these holistic goals. p4c outcomes reported in this study were similar to previous research indicating that the approach can improve sel. siddiqui et al. (2019) studied students in 16 elementary schools in england whose teachers received p4c professional development. compared to other peers, 54 students whose teachers used p4c had stronger social and emotional skills, particularly when the children lived in poverty. madrid (2008) also found that p4c was effective in engaging children and adults who lived in extreme poverty in mexico. p4c may provide a space for self-expression and sharing among those who are traumatized. using p4c with such individuals in japan may promote positive mental health in a country where such issues are often stigmatized (ando et al., 2013). ibasho and kizuna ibasho is an everyday concept with cultural nuances that has been applied to educational and clinical fields (fujiwara, 2010; obata & ito, 2001). nakamura (1998) defined ibasho as the physical and psychological space that serves as the basis of everyday activities and the creation of interpersonal relationships. it is the place where one can feel safe (toyota & okamura, 2001) and “be as one is” (ishimoto, 2009, p.7). in the current study, educators described how p4c created ibasho in the classroom by creating emotionally and intellectually safe environments for students to express their ideas and even disagree, without fear of failure or repudiation. nurturing ibasho through p4c may influence students to be more creative, productive, and happier. this is important, given that a comparison across 20 different countries found that japanese adolescents were the least happy (varkey foundation, 2017). only 28% of japanese youth, ages 15-21 reported being happy, compared to 59% across all countries. the japanese concept of kizuna (social ties) is also relevant. p4c emphasizes intellectual, social, and emotional engagement (jackson, 2019) and has the potential to build kizuna in an increasingly isolated and depersonalized japan (mext, 2018). jones (2012) suggested that schools should provide students with opportunities to express their thoughts and feelings and learn to work with others constructively. the results of this study suggest that p4c may create and maintain kizuna in a society where so many people feel isolated and also choose hikikomori and suicide in response to unhappiness. reflections on dewey dewey (1916) believed that schools should promote shared interests among peers and open communication. in his view, the ideal school was a miniature democracy in which children learned how to live in society (dewey, 1915). the results of the current study were consistent with these ideas. although we began this study focused on k-12 education, we were surprised to find examples of educators applying p4c in creative ways outside of the classroom in everyday settings like train stations (kajitani, 2016). we assume that those who participated in these community events did not experience p4c as students. that these community members were interested in participating in p4c suggests that students who experience p4c in school may be in ideal positions to use p4c throughout their lives. applying p4c in the classroom, teachers help students to think independently and critically, understand themselves and others, and work collaboratively toward mutual goals. in discussing their feelings and ideas, students listen to others who have different opinions. all of these skills are related to dewey’s goal of students’ acquiring the skills needed to comprehend what it means to be valued members of a social group. dewey (1933) believed that individuals should be able 55 to explore new ideas without judgment or bias and doing so would cultivate their interests in learning. dewey (1938) claimed that educators should encourage students to choose what they learn and explore the consequences of their actions. educators in the current study moved away from the traditional model of education, in which students passively learn what the teacher instructs. instead, students played freely with ideas among their peers and teachers without assumptions and preconceptions. limitations and future research this study was limited by review of japanese publications and websites and relatively short email correspondence with participants. using email correspondence is different from face-toface, video, or phone interviews. email is asynchronous, so we could not follow up on participants’ responses immediately or probe in ways that are possible through synchronous communication. rather, respondents had more time to reflect on our questions before they wrote back, perhaps phrasing what they wrote in ways that were socially desirable or reflecting what they thought we wanted to hear. overall, we were able to achieve a broad sketch of the ways that japanese educators were using p4c in and outside of k-12 japanese classrooms, but were limited in the amount of detail we received about particular programs and classroom interventions. finally, the information we gathered about p4c in japan was mostly from the perspectives of those who facilitated or observed the p4c sessions, rather than from the students’ and other participants. future research can contribute to this literature by focusing on japanese students’ and other participants’ perspectives of their p4c experiences and outcomes. we also suggest longitudinal studies of the effects of p4c in japan and further investigation of applications in non-school settings. 56 references ando, s., yamaguchi, s., & thornicroft, g. 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(2017). what the world’s young people think and feel: global citizenship survey. https://www.varkeyfoundation.org/media/4487/global-young-people-reportsingle-pages-new.pdf 28 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 teacher perceptions of gender roles, socialization, and culture during children’s physical play dalal alanazia, rana alghamdib, adil alghamdic a-b northern border university, saudi arabia; c university of south florida dalal alanazi, m.a., is a lecturer in the college of education at northern border university, saudi arabia. she is currently pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education from university of south florida, tampa. her research interests include children's play and gender issues. rana alghamdi is a lecturer in the early childhood education program at northern border university, saudi arabia. she has experience in teaching kindergarten in saudi arabia. her research interests focus on the role of play in learning. alghamdi is a strong advocate for children’s right to play. she is currently pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education at the university of south florida. adil alghamdi is a ph.d. student at the university of south florida. he has experience in teaching elementary and middle school students for nine years. adil also served as an assistant principal for two years. his area of interests focus on using assistive technology in special needs classrooms. abstract play involves activities promoting children’s development in physical, social, emotional, and cognitive domains (dewar, servos, bosacki, & coplan, 2013). the existing literature describes ways in which teachers’ perceptions may influence children’s emerging gender roles during physical play. this paper describes teachers’ perceptions of children’s gender roles and the relationship with physical play. a teacher’s potential influence on emerging gender roles during physical play is discussed. keywords: physical play, gender, early childhood education, preschool introduction physical play in young children’s daily activities can be defined as “any body movements produced by the skeletal muscles and that results in a substantial increase over the resting energy expenditure” (reunamo, hakala, saros, lehto, kyhälä, & valtonen, 2014, p. 32). logue and 29 harvey (2010) describe how opportunities for physical play in early schooling often contribute to children’s brain development, while improving social skills during later years. it is relevant to explore how early childhood educators can help their students to develop socially in regard to physical play and emerging gender roles. for instance, when these educators support active, physical pretend play, such as “running, chasing, climbing, playfully wrestling, grabbing, kicking, and tumbling,” they contribute positively to children’s social behavior (logue & harvey, 2010, p. 34). through socialization with their peers during play, children develop behaviors, interests, and personality traits. in addition to social experiences, children’s cultural and ethnic backgrounds effect gender role expectations (servos, dewar, bosacki, & coplan, 2016). teachers’ understanding of the ways that children’s home life influences their choice of gender roles becomes important. servos et al. (2016) found in the culture of some families, boys demonstrate empowerment as girls take on subservient roles, especially during physical play in preschool settings. it is critical teachers of young children create a range of learning environments wherein physical play affords flexibility regarding gender role learning and development. educators create environments that support both boys and girls in choices about gender that lead to opportunities for social, emotional, and cognitive growth. by achieving this goal, early childhood educators use play to help children make sense of their gender roles. thus, the purpose of this paper is to explore how preschool practitioners perceive children’s gender roles as influencing their physical play. physical play defined child’s play is an experience in socialization that supports physical, emotional, and cognitive development in boys and girls. physical play is a typical form of child’s play, occurring during the preschool years. in terms of a muscular perspective, physical play comprises movements, which are classified as gross motor skills (reunamo et al., 2014). examples of gross motor skills include running, throwing, and chasing; gross motor skills differ from fine motor skills, like writing and drawing. it is critical educators help children to achieve basic motor competence with fundamental motor skills (fms) development. reunamo et al. (2014) explain, “fms are movements intended to gain or maintain balance, transport the body from one point to another and impart force to or receive force from an object” (p. 32). through active physical play, children learn to support their physical well-being as a whole. physical social orientations physical play dictates children’s physical orientation. referring to children’s personal choices and production of activities during play, physical orientation concerns the transition of a child learning to play alone to engaging in group play (reunamo et al., 2014). physical play demonstrates the potential to improve children’s social skills. because children learn during play, they indicate capacity to build their inner selves. inner self refers to children's understanding of themselves, their needs and feelings "who they are, what they know and how they feel" (reunamo et al., 2014, p. 34). in addition, participation in physical play in early childhood education contributes to societal trends, such as safety, weight management, and active lifestyles 30 (reunamo et al., 2014). furthermore, physical play links to short and long-term consequences of social prowess or competence. according to colwell and lindsey (2015), play becomes a reflection of a child’s competence with peers and a direct cause of skill building that leads to positive relationships. play orientation affords children with the ability to perform socially. colwell and lindsey (2015) noted that some children experience “improvements in peer interaction skills following play training” (p. 497). these dynamics suggest the relationship between physical orientation and social competence among boys and girls. in play, boys and girls evidence different play preferences. for example, girls tend to engage in play activities involving soft animals and dolls; they depend on oral interaction, such as drama, while boys usually engage themselves in play activities involving aggressive play and physical interaction, such as superhero play and playing with action figure toys. colwell and lindsey (2015) suggested that the primary reason for gender segregation in children's play is the boys' orientation for dominance and competition and their preference for rough-and-tumble play. colwell and lindsey (2015) further report, “these aspects of boys’ interactions are aversive to girls, whereas boys find playing with girls less interesting than playing with other boys because girls do not respond to boys’ bids for rough-and-tumble, or competitive, play” (p. 498). by observing children’s choices for play orientations, it is possible to gather information about their social skills. this allows educators the opportunity to plan for and direct beneficial play activities that improve peer relationships among children of both genders. social characteristics and gender the gender effect influences social characteristics of physical play experiences. through observations, colwell and lindsey (2015) describe how, for some preschool children, it appeared they were more liked by their peers during same-sex physical play. additionally, teachers, who observed the children who played with same genders, tended to believe those children exhibited higher levels of social competence. these data suggest some evidence that same-sex physical play is associated with same-sex peers' acceptance; these findings indicate same-sex physical players may also improve social competence. in contrast, playing with mixed-sex peers during physical play was related to less peers' approval, which provides fewer opportunities to develop social competence (colwell & lindsey, (2005). next, it is important to discuss the issue of gender-stereotyping, which occurs frequently in the social environments of preschools. keller (1986) defined gender as “what a culture makes of sex” (p.172). gender stereotypes refer to a cultural categorization for people based on their biological sex and, consequently, assign the roles and assumptions about how they should look, interact, behave, and even play according to their sex. in chapman’s (2016) case study, data described how teachers remain instrumental in creating social environments that “do not implicitly or explicitly encourage gender stereotypes” (p. 1271). as gender is often defined as a social aspect of feminine and masculine types, it affects boys and girls in different ways. utilizing a feminist poststructuralist approach (blaise, 2005), chapman (2016) sought to determine if preschool teachers’ perceptions about gender influenced the nature of play. she described many ways teachers’ perceptions showed relevant effects on play; she declared, 31 the educators’ perceptions emerge, and are thus transferred to the children, through their program planning, resources offered, feedback provided, general interactions with other educators and the children themselves, and, most significantly, the amount of facilitating and involvement in the children’s play (p. 1280). research findings indicate that during play, there exists a relationship between social characteristics and gender roles. additionally, the literature suggests the influence of early childhood practitioners as both establishing and observing the relationship between children’s gender roles and their physical play activities. finally, studies show teachers notice how play may change due to gender roles and stereotypes (chapman, 2016). by providing a range and variety of inclusive physical play events, early childhood educators affirm children’s natural gender role learning and development. for example, preschool teachers design lessons incorporating play that focuses on the individual child, and not his or her sex (chapman, 2016). consequently, children develop and understand gender role as a result of the social environment and those individuals who participate. preschool children and gender roles in physical play environments the play spaces, such as playgrounds, provide children with opportunities for gender roles. for instance, conry-murray (2013) found children exhibited gender-atypical experiences in different educational settings, preferring to experience opposite gender roles in their activities and gender expression from what is typically a cultural expectation. this finding may also indicate how a child’s learning environment can pressure him or her to adopt traditional gender norms. moreover, the conry-murray (2013) study “examined the question of whether young children consider the context and personal preferences when judging whether people should adhere to gender norms” (p. 211). thus, preschool children balance concerns about gender roles in physical play, which hones their reasoning skills across different educational settings (conrymurray, 2013). consequently, there exists many variations in preschool boys’ and girls’ involvement in gender-typed activities. for example, one cause of variation is the social situation in which a boy or girl may play with a same-sex peer, opposite-sex peer, or interact with a teacher. this social situational variation influences the rate of children's engagement in particular activities. goble, martin, hanish, and fabes (2012) conducted a study to identify children’s gender-typed activity choices related to preschool, physical play. these researchers noticed that children’s choices reflected their gender role as well as their identity when they play with the same-sex peers or alone. this finding indicates children’s social interactions with peers and teachers help to expose them to a wide range of physical activities which involve gender-typing and gender differences. play themes by observing differences in play environments, early childhood educators can see the variety in gender-stereotype of play themes in which children engage. for example, änggård (2011) focused on children’s gendered and non-gendered play in natural play environments. ethnographic data revealed four different preschool play themes—war and superhero, family, animal, and physical. these themes reflect ways children develop their understanding of gender 32 role during play activities. for example, gender role differences appear across play themes, such as rough and tumble play (r&t). “r&t play is a form of play that is both social and locomotive, and it co-occurs with pretend play, which is parsed into two categories: thematic fantasy play and social dramatic play” (storli & sandseter, 2015, p. 2004). boys are more apt to engage in pretend roles typified by superhero play involving play fighting, jumping, and running. boys and girls display contrasting behaviors often on the playground. for instance, boys tend to react physically as opposed to verbally when compared to girls. physical behavior is then channeled into improved social competence, self-regulation, social problem solving, and trust (hart & tannock, 2018). wohlwend (2012) described critical sociocultural perspectives regarding play, literacy, and gender role as social practices. findings involving princess play, a disney-created activity that features masculine and feminine characters, (wohlwend, 2012) suggest how boys and girls practice with the princess play texts correlated to gender role expectations in children’s play. data indicate boys and girls chose to play the characters that are compatible with the cultural assumptions and show their gender construction for their gender roles as male and female. this finding leads one to compare and contrast different forms of play as well as to consider a variety of environments with differing themes. for instance, giraldo and colyar (2012) investigated gender roles within the classroom. using qualitative research, giraldo and colyar (2012) examined the effect of teachers' practices on the construction of children’s gender identities. after observing and using teachers' case studies, the researchers suggested a connection between teachers' practices and interaction, and the handling of gender-stereotyped situations. these findings indicated how teachers’ interactions affect young children in early childhood. for example, teachers who used inclusive gender language and inclusive gender practices promoted neutral teaching environments. they helped to create the impression both genders can be involved in similar activities in their classrooms. they also improved their students’ ability to express themselves freely without fear of discrimination. in contrast, teachers, who used gender-stereotyped language and interacted differently with boys and girls, supported gender segregation and stereotypes in children's interpersonal relationships and interactions with one another. importantly, play themes reflect vigorous behaviors that allow children to explore and develop gender roles. rough and tumble (r&t) play is a frequent activity among preschool-aged children, particularly with boys. this play theme enhances children’s social competencies and it provides practice for skill building (storli & hansen sandseter, 2017). many researchers find that gender roles influence both teachers and students during r&t play (colwell & lindsey, 2015; goble et al., 2012; logue & harvey, 2010). for instance, gender differences among teachers can impact the way they perceive play themes, like r&t play (storli & hansen sandseter, 2017). many studies demonstrate male teachers as more positive and as more willing to allow children to engage in r&t play than female teachers who look at this kind of play as aggressive and fostering violence (logue & harvey, 2010; sandberg & pramling-samuelsson, 2005; storli & hansen sandseter, 2017). on the other hand, children take on different gender roles based on the nature of play themes. for example, between the ages of two and six years, boys tend to engage in physical play, such 33 as r&t, and they often avoid playing with girls who engage in feminine activities, such as playing with dolls or using kitchen materials (servos et al., 2016). thus, by interacting with adults and peers representing different gender roles, preschool children learn to represent their gender identities while participating in a variety of play themes. they tend to internalize and imitate the roles the adults and same-sex peers perform during their interaction with others and bring this understanding of role into their play. play culture, gender, environments, social competence and culture play culture. the culture of play among young children affects their preferences of play type because culture permeates every human activity including play. børve and børve (2017) describe how culture is ingrained in all play activities. for instance, the culture of rural south american indian society encourages boys to play by using bows and arrows because this kind of play enhances children’s hunting skills. however, this kind of play in other cultures may be considered a form of violent play. therefore, play differs across cultures based on cultural beliefs and lifestyles. as a consequence, cultural gender assumptions and rules about how to act as a male and female effect gender roles and preferences even during play. physical environments. børve and børve (2017) focused on how physical environments influence the construction of play activities according to gender role expectations. for example, these researchers noticed that during indoor play, rooms and zones signal to the children what materials to use, what gender role is expected, and what activities should occur (børve & børve, 2017). the play culture of children is greatly affected by their physical environment. play culture is a socially constructed concept that comes about when children mingle with adults and their peers within a certain physical area. for instance, børve and børve (2017) described how boy’s play was noisy, required more attention, and used larger spaces compared to that of girls. additionally, data show the physical presence of adults and role models in the physical environment also significantly effect children’s play. therefore, children’s play practices become influenced by gender and require different physical space guidelines. social competence and gender. as children learn how to actively play in a culture that supports learning, establishes goal setting, and develops peer competence, their social abilities tend to improve. accordingly, relevant data exist describing play and gender’s effect on children’s social and peer competencies. colwell and lindsey (2015) looked carefully at how preschool children’s pretend and physical play in same-sex, opposite-sex, and mixed-sex peer settings affected their attainment of competencies. their results indicated the connection between play form and social competence is determined by the child’s sex and gender orientation. thus, a culture of play contributes to preschool children’s social development and the effects of gender role on their preferences during play. gender role and culture. gender roles and cultural norms affect the way teachers perceive play activity and gender roles among their students. data describe how children learn while adults direct them to play offering education via gendered role modeling. this is achieved when adults share cultural meanings and demonstrate cultural objects (servos et al., 2016). 34 teacher perceptions of gender role and physical play by observing young children’s gender roles, patterns, and differences, early childhood educators perceive ways to elicit student learning as a result of physical play. for example, using early childhood professionals’ understandings, ärlemalm-hagsér (2010) examined gender choreography and micro-structures. these teacher-participants represented different understandings about teaching play from gender perspectives (considering gender identities, gender schema theory; bem,1993), and “doing gender” (ärlemalm-hagsér , 2010). using early childhood professionals’ understandings, ärlemalm-hagsér (2010) noted teachers tended to focus on socio-cultural perspectives of children’s play. “doing gender” involves allowing children to explore their gender identities through activities that specify gender roles, especially on the playground. further, many teachers perceived outdoor play involves gender-neutral situations, while other teachers instruct play activities from a gender-blind perspective. gender neutral refers to the type of situations that do not classify or treat people differently according to their sex. gender-blind refers to the practices that reinforce gender inequality and gender differences. other researchers investigated how male and female preschool teachers’ perspectives about play and gender differences were alike or different. sandberg and pramlingsamuelsson (2005) observed the attitudes of preschool teachers and discussed there is a difference in the play willingness of male and female teachers. this study indicated more male teacher playfulness with young students during play than female teachers. these studies emphasize how preschool teachers share diverse perceptions as a result of their own gender roles and the gender roles of their students. cultural perspectives of gender roles also affect teacher perceptions of play and their students’ gender role behaviors. servos et al. (2016) discuss how children become exposed to gender dynamics which follow the cultural expectations of gender roles. this exposure shapes children’s attitudes and beliefs about gender expectations later in life. many researchers find that early childhood educators tend to represent unique ideas about the way preschool children react to gender role expectations during school activities, like play (chapman, 2016). granger, hanish, kornienko, and bradley (2017) discuss how most teachers’ perceptions regarding gender roles and play follow rigid cultural notions describing what constitutes masculinity and femininity. teacher perception research allows educators to not only look at their students’ behaviors, but also to consider their own attitudes about gender and culture (giraldo, & colyar, 2012). chapman (2016) asserts the critical importance for teachers to identify their own gender role biases before they can begin to transfer these values to their students. in this way, teachers view gender role as a nuanced rather than a binary construct that is dependent on multiple dimensions of identity influenced by factors like religion, sexuality, social class, and ethnicity (chapman, 2016). “building on past research suggesting that educators’ gender identities and gender orientations may play a role in how gendered issues are managed within the classroom setting,” many findings pinpoint the importance of teachers’ professional development (dewar et al., 2013, p. 381). therefore, in order to promote the well-being of children, teachers gain knowledge of how gender role expectations and cultural norms effect ongoing gender role learning and development. 35 feminist perspectives theoretical concept. from a feminist standpoint (blaise, 2005), there is a growing trend to observe early childhood education, particularly in relation to children’s play and gender role development. de lair and erwin (2000) describe how feminist perspectives offer key insights into the constructs of “race, ethnicity, social class, gender, and sexual orientation” (p. 154). as this current literature review centers on teachers’ perceptions of gender roles and physical play, applying feminist perspectives is a prudent choice. this perspective uses feminism as a philosophy in which society is male dominated, causing women to become under acknowledged and to evidence less societal power (de lair & erwin, 2000). in a classroom setting, teachers with a feminist perspective apply this perspective to instructional practices to benefit children’s views of society. it is critical to assume the idea of many voices. according to de lair and erwin (2000), these voices reflect the differences in teachers and students’ social and cultural backgrounds. when early childhood educators demonstrate feminist perspectives, they may help children to become empowered. de lair and erwin (2000) claim, feminist ideas provide a way to fill in the gaps left by the traditional curriculum, a foundation for moment-by-moment decisions in the classrooms, a unique framework for examining the influences of gender, ethnicity, language, culture, social class, and sexual orientation, and validate the affective experience of children and professionals who have experiences outside dominant culture (p. 167). thus, the factor of multiple voices espoused by feminism can inform teachers’ perceptions of their students’ activities, such as play. to be clear, the benefit of observing early childhood education data through feminist perspectives helps to illuminate gender concerns, such as inequality and male dominance. this means, teachers become responsible for forming and justifying best practice guidelines (de lair & erwin, 2000). generating from an understanding of feminist theory, the concept of patriarchy “pervades western culture, extending into the seemingly fun spaces of children’s play” (prioletta, 2019, p. 2). preschool teachers may be unaware of gender-related inequalities during play. prioletta (2019) found that relying on child development helped to adjust gendered power dynamics through a critical feminist theoretical lens. a teacher examines dominant cultural structures in preparing play environments. teachers in prioletta’s (2019) research study described how they noticed gender power imbalances during play in which girls continued to navigate boys’ domination. by considering the socializing context regarding gender role expectations, the teachers in prioletta’s study made statements, such as: “i think [the boys] are just being themselves. i think they’re just more physical. they use actions…girls are a lot softer and more mild-mannered and they’re not as aggressive as the boys are” (2019, p. 6). 36 lastly, one of the major principles of feminism is for early childhood professionals to empower their students. de lair and erwin (2000) emphasize how it is integral for preschool teachers to allow their students to express their thoughts and feelings, especially during play activities, which are impacted by the media and dominant society. hence, according to feminist views, these children begin to challenge conventional gender norms, such as boys not playing with dolls. the goal of de lair and erwin (2000) is to show the importance of meaningful, social relationships during preschool play that represents an inclusive community. in doing so, children become empowered to collaborate and share experiences in gender equitable surroundings. conclusions and implications when teachers understand the relationship between gender roles and physical play, they improve instructional activities, broaden materials, and ensure flexibility. a major implication is the determination of how to provide opportunities for effective physical play in children’s development of gender identity and orientations in a preschool context (reunamo et al., 2014). physical play provides a range of learning supporting social, physical, and cognitive experiences. the knowledge of children’s gender-typed activity preferences supports teaching practices, which empower student growth and learning (goble et al., 2012). hence, it is clearly necessary for preschool children to experience learning situations in which they “do gender,” developing gender identities and exploring gender roles without being gender stereotyped. furthermore, it is critical for future research to focus on preschool, physical activities and their effect on children’s assumptions regarding play and gender. with training and study, educators develop curriculum and instruction that improves gender equality for children on the playground. as prioletta (2019) asserts, “{the}concept of feminist pedagogic gaze may afford early learning practices and future directions for research” to develop and benefit early childhood education (p.1). 37 references änggård, e. (2011). children's gendered and non-gendered play in natural spaces. children youth and environments, 21(2), 5-33. ärlemalm‐hagsér, e. (2010). gender choreography and micro‐structures–early childhood professionals' understanding of gender roles and gender patterns in outdoor play and learning. european early childhood education research journal, 18(4), 515-525. bem, s. l. (1993). the lenses of gender. new haven, ct: yale university press. blaise, m. (2005). a feminist poststructuralist study of children "doing” gender in an urban kindergarten classroom. early childhood research quarterly, 20(1), 85– 108. børve, h. e., & børve, e. (2017). rooms with gender: physical environment and play culture in kindergarten. early child development and care, 187(5-6), 1069-1081. chapman, r. (2016). a case study of gendered play in preschools: how early childhood educators’ perceptions of gender influence children's play. early child development and care, 186(8), 1271-1284. colwell, m. j., & lindsey, e. w. (2015). preschool children’s pretend and physical play and sex of play partner: connections to peer competence. sex roles, 52(7-8), 497-509. conry-murray, c. (2013). children’s reasoning about gender-atypical preferences in different settings. journal of experimental child psychology, 115(1), 210-217. de lair, h. a., & erwin, e. (2000). working perspectives within feminism and early childhood education. contemporary issues in early childhood, 1(2), 153-170. dewar, b. a., servos, j. e., bosacki, s. l., & coplan, r. (2013). early childhood educators’ reflections on teaching practices: the role of gender and culture. reflective practice, 14(3), 381-391. giraldo, e., & colyar, j. (2012). dealing with gender in the classroom: a portrayed case study of four teachers. international journal of inclusive education, 16(1), 25-38. goble, p., martin, c. l., hanish, l. d., & fabes, r. a. (2012). children’s gender-typed activity choices across preschool social contexts. sex roles, 67(7-8), 435-451. granger, k. l., hanish, l. d., kornienko, o., & bradley, r. h. (2017). preschool teachers’ facilitation of gender-typed and gender-neutral activities during free play. sex roles, 76(7-8), 498-510. hart, j. l. & tannock, m. (2018). rough play: past, present, and potential. in p. k. smith & j. l. roopnarine (eds.), cambridge handbook of play: developmental and disciplinary perspectives (pp. 200-221). cambridge, england: cambridge university press. keller, e. f. (1986). how gender matters: or why it’s so hard for us to count past two. in j. harding (ed.), perspectives on gender and science (pp. 168–183). london: falmer. logue, m. e., & harvey, h. (2010). preschool teachers' views of active play. journal of research in childhood education, 24(1), 32-49. prioletta, j. (2019). patriarchy in the preschool classroom: examining the effects of developmental ideologies on teachers’ perspectives and practices around play and gender. contemporary issues in early childhood. doi: 1463949119831461. reunamo, j., hakala, l., saros, l., lehto, s., kyhälä, a. l., & valtonen, j. (2014). children’s physical activity in day care and preschool. early years, 34(1), 32-48. 38 sandberg, a., & pramling-samuelsson, i. (2005). an interview study of gender difference in preschool teachers’ attitudes toward children’s play. early childhood education journal, 32(5), 297-305. servos, j. e., dewar, b. a., bosacki, s. l., & coplan, r. j. (2016). canadian early childhood educators’ perceptions of young children’s gender-role play and cultural identity. journal of early childhood research, 14(3), 324-332. storli, r. & sandseter, e. b. h. (2015) preschool teachers’ perceptions of children's rough-and tumble play (r&t) in indoor and outdoor environments. early child development and care, 185(11), 1995-2009. storli, r., & hansen sandseter, e. b. (2017). gender matters: male and female ecec practitioners’ perceptions and practices regarding children's rough-and-tumble play (r&t). european early childhood education research journal, 25(6), 838-853. wohlwend, k. e. (2012). ‘are you guys girls?’: boys, identity texts, and disney princess play. journal of early childhood literacy, 12(1), 3-23. ijwc spring 2020 28 ijwc spring 2020 29 ijwc spring 2020 30 ijwc spring 2020 31 ijwc spring 2020 32 ijwc spring 2020 33 ijwc spring 2020 34 ijwc spring 2020 35 ijwc spring 2020 36 ijwc spring 2020 37 ijwc spring 2020 38 82 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 ijwc updates ijwc is now a part of the extraordinary eric database. upcoming issues the editorial team remains committed to supporting readers’ understanding of holistic, integrative, and equitable learning. in addition to primary and applied research, current technical information, and reflecting through photographs, look for continued information in children’s and families’ health and wellness, issues related to steam learning, and reviews of children’s quality literature. ijwc is exploring the potential use of video. this use of video may be included in an article, serve as a reflection component, or illustrate learning and instruction. new editorial members it is only through the research, expertise, and commitment of our new board members that we are able to expand ijwc content. each board member is a demonstrated scholar in their respective area. new editor a professional welcome to dr. katherine mangione who, as of the fall/2019 issue, will become the editor. she brings a wealth of experience, knowledge, and excitement to the ijwc editorial commitment. student scholars for the fall issue, sandra j. stone and kathleen g. burriss will continue to support the efforts of ijwc and, in particular, will edit a new section of the journal devoted specifically to student authors. within an understanding of holistic and integrative learning, the editorial board assumes responsibility to nurture and support tomorrow’s child advocates and educational leaders. in this new ijwc section “student scholars,” masters and doctoral candidates are invited to submit papers for review and possible publication consideration. 83 yearly acknowledgement each year, the ijwc editorial board recognizes one article that, in particular, profoundly supports readers’ ability to nurture children’s holistic learning and development. 2018 neuroeducation and early elementary teaching: retrospective innovation for promoting growth with students living in poverty by karyn allee-herndon and sherron killingsworth roberts 2017 gender equity in diverse curriculum content: views from primary teachers in tanzania by jessica essary and james hoot 2016 are korean early childhood teachers becoming more responsive to multicultural children? an analysis of diversity self-efficacy data from the korean institute of child care and education (kicce) survey by sungok r. park, james hoot, and hyejin shin 18    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 pictures for reflection bubbles and balls in belize: a new perspective on play rebecca gilesa, james hoot (photographs)b auniversity of south alabama, buniversity of buffalo, professor emeritus rebecca m. giles, ph.d., is a professor at the university of south alabama in mobile, al, where she teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in early childhood and elementary education. she has spoken and published widely in the areas of early education, literacy, and teacher preparation and is the author of a young writer's world: creating classrooms where authors abound (2020, exchange press). dr. james hoot, professor emeritus, university of buffalo, provided photos of an adventure playground. he was responsible for building an adventure playground in tanzania, shown in the photographs. this adventure playground was developed to support the first comprehensive school for girls in rural kitanga, tanzania. wooden structures were formed from eucalyptus trees harvested by the local community and brought to the site via water buffalos. margaret mead, a pioneering american cultural anthropologist of the 20th century and recipient of the presidential medal of freedom, once said, “if a fish were an anthropologist, the last thing it would discover would be water.” her tongue-in-cheek reference to the study of human behavior is a reminder that the familiar aspects of life are often overlooked because they seem unremarkable. in contrast, when placed in a new and unfamiliar environment, we become keenly aware of the behavior, habits, and customs different from our own. this was the case when i traveled to belize city, belize where i had the opportunity to interact with young children during a local church’s summer program. with twenty-five years of experience as an early childhood educator, i felt well-equipped to assist with all facets of planning and implementing the program including organizing groups, preparing the environment, and providing developmentally appropriate materials. not knowing exactly what to expect, i included various craft supplies and some simple gross motor toys along with the personal belongings i packed in my luggage. children explore in both natural and manmade spaces in this tanzania playground. (photo by james hoot)  19    within the first few minutes of arriving at the facility, i realized that i was in unfamiliar territory. the small, rectangular area designated for outdoor play was situated between the main building and another building so that there were walls on three sides and a chain link fence across the far, narrow end. you stepped out the door of the main building onto a narrow patch of uneven, broken cement that ran the length of the area opposite the fence and this place was also covered with an assortment of construction materials and tools currently being used to replace a wellworn tin roof during hours when the children were not present. nearby was a fruit-bearing tree, which offered very little shade in the scorching july heat. fallen fruit resembling greenish-white grenades littered the ground in various stages of decay. many had been trampled creating a squishy mess that filled the still air with a pungent odor. the hard ground had a thin, patchy layer of grass over packed dirt strewn with broken cinder blocks, trash, and other debris. broken wooden pallets and plastic garbage bags lined the periphery. a discarded metal desk and chair set in one corner. i immediately focused on the hazards and began to imagine the many possible scenarios of children playing in this space that could result in injury. i was nervous and anxious as 20+ children ages two to six years entered the space later that day, but no one tripped or fell. the rotten fruit was not used to bomb others, and the building materials did not become climbing apparatus. the children simply enjoyed being together with the blue sky overhead. in the absence of any toys or the desire to offer organized games, several adults began blowing bubbles within the children’s reach. there were excited squeals and much laughter as the children ran around chasing the floating bubbles and jumped wildly in attempts to pop them between clapping hands. soon, the children were taking turns blowing the bubbles and the fun continued with no one fighting for a turn, crying over spills, or complaining of soap in their eyes. the next day, about 50 colorful, crushproof plastic balls (the kind found in some fast food restaurant ball pits) were distributed among the children for their use in the play space. while there was a lot of carrying, some were tossed about, and others were rolled around. i noticed a boy about four years old placing his ball at the end of a discarded piece of gutter about three feet long and using his hand to push it to the other end. i joined him in this activity and demonstrated how lifting one end of the gutter off the ground would result in the ball rolling down the gutter without being propelled. he quickly located part of a brick nearby and used it to support one end of the gutter. as i walked away, he was joined by others who each placed their ball in the top of the now slanted gutter and thrilled at its journey to the other end. before long, the children were play experiences become open‐ended dramatic play. (photo by  james hoot) 20    racing the rolling balls alongside their improvised track and, then, releasing multiple balls at one time to create a parade of moving color. as the days progressed and my fearful imagining of worse case scenarios failed to occur, i began to consider the space and children playing there from a new perspective. upon closer examination, i started to see that this space i previously deemed so lacking actually possessed the core qualities of an adventure playground. it was fenced and filled with loose parts. it challenged children’s imagination and physical skills in support of constructive and manipulative play with adult oversight that never reached the point of controlling the children’s play. the children asserted independence and were keenly aware of other’s needs. limited access to elaborate materials resulted in an appreciation for the simplistic and fostered creativity in an environment where nothing was wasted. i was repeatedly reminded of children’s ability to produce enjoyable and inspired ways to play with everyday items by repurposing something often viewed as worthless into a thing of awe that could occupy their attention for an extended period of time. as the author of many articles suggesting how teachers can appropriate space and materials to create the best possible learning environments for young children, i had to stop and wonder if the typical housekeeping centers and outdoor playgrounds found in american child care and preschool facilities were not too prepared resulting in an over sanitized and, possibly, restrictive place to play. stories of children’s preference for the cardboard box over the elaborate toy it contained are legendary. similarly, children may abandon the commercial playscapes found in many parks and school playgrounds to make their own fun by playing with rocks, sticks, and sand, when permitted to do so. the many benefits of outdoor play are welldocumented, as is our understanding that many of today’s children are spending much less time outside than previous generations. while the reasons for children being inside vary and include such factors as increased exposure to electronics and involvement in numerous scheduled activities, access to adult designed playgrounds with traditional gross motor equipment should not be one of them. as i recently discovered, all children really need to play outdoors is access to it. [note: pictures of belize were not available.] children move in and out, swing, and climb in the adventure  playground. (photo by james hoot) 21    related resources: berry, e. (2018, march). in britain’s playgrounds, ‘bringing in risk’ to build resilience. the new york times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/10/world/europe/britainplaygrounds-risk.html keeler, r. (2015). the recess renaissance. the phi delta kappan, 96(8), 14-21. keeler, r. (2020). adventures in risky play: what is your yes? exchange press. kinard, timothy a. (2015). our proud heritage-playground: a historical context. young children, 7(4), 92-95. wallace, e. (2018, may). inside the rise of ‘risky’ playground design. architectural digest. https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/risky-play-design final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 18 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 19 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 20 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 21 64 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 equity audits of ethnicity in three transitional series: moving toward diverse series books for today’s young readers sonia m. balkarana, sherron killingsworth robertsb a-buniversity of central florida sonia m. balkaran serves as a 2nd-grade teacher at independence elementary school. she graduated from the burnett honors college and the college of education at the university of central florida with a degree in elementary education. she is currently a masters's student in reading education at the university of central florida. sherron roberts, professor of language arts and literacy, serves as the heintzelman literature scholar at ucf. her research examines literacy as social practice, innovative pedagogy, and literature content analyses. she has published in reading teacher, journal of teacher education, journal of research in childhood education, teaching and teacher education, reading horizons, and journal of reading education among others. abstract this manuscript explores representations of protagonists of various multicultural backgrounds in three transitional series. prior studies, such as gangi (2008) and green and hopenwasser (2017), exposed the deficiencies of multicultural literature in elementary classrooms, particularly among transitional series books. green and hopenwasser emphasize the developmental importance of equal representation in transitional books with characters of diverse ethnicities, because they act as mirrors and windows for students to learn, grow, and reflect. these studies argue that in order to allow children to see themselves and to develop a positive self-image in primary grades, it is critical for teachers to be thoughtful while choosing series books. for the purposes of this study, to explore ethnic and racial representations of protagonists with the actual demographics of third graders, researchers conducted an equity audit on three transitional series, published across different decades and commonly found in elementary classrooms. equity audit data show multicultural representations lacking. in order for children to see healthy role models who mirror their own racial and ethnic contexts, authors describe the importance of teachers choosing series with strong, diverse protagonists to include in their classroom libraries. introduction the assimilation of the multiplicity of ethnicities in american school systems has come a long way from times of segregation with much variety among its 323.1 million people. racial and ethnic enrollment in public elementary schools increased steadily from the early 2000s. from 65 2004-2014, enrollment experienced a 75% increase of hispanic, african american, pacific islander, and asian students. by 2014, less than 50% of students enrolled in elementary schools in the u.s. identified as caucasian, a 58% decrease from 2004. in 2017, the demographics of elementary students in the u.s. representing a minority background surpassed the demographics for students from caucasian backgrounds (52% of the population vs. 48% of the population), reinforcing the reality of diversity, especially within public schools (u.s. census bureau, 2018). especially now, offering elementary students books reflecting acceptance and inclusiveness is important for developing a healthy self-identity in young children. derman-sparks and edwards (2010) contend that bias is built into the institutions that serve young readers with one solution being to provide literature reflecting today’s diversity. they believe diverse characters in books can engender respect, open discussions surrounding cultural contexts, even in neighborhood schools with homogenous populations, encouraging healthy development: inequity of resources, and the biases that justify that inequity, have an enormous impact on children’s lives. it is important to remember that it is not human differences that undermine children’s development but rather unfair, hurtful treatment based upon these differences. one major dynamic of advantage and disadvantage that especially affects early childhood practice is that of the ‘visibility’ or ‘invisibility’ of certain kinds of people or cultures in a program. too many early childhood materials focus on children and families who resemble the stereotypes of american culture… (p. 3) therefore, multicultural transitional series literature with well-established ethnic protagonists allows students to explore worlds both identical and different from their own (ausdale & feagin, 2002). in particular, series books offer students opportunities to vicariously experience the world with characters across a multiplicity of books. thus, in order to identify patterns or trends, an equity audit of a three transitional series for young students was performed. comparisons across the three publication dates, ranging from 1940 to present provide interesting insights. lastly, in order to encourage positive development for young readers, authors recommend current multicultural series books for young readers. review of related literature multicultural literature is defined as “books by and about people of color and first nations.” (cooperative children’s book center [ccbc], 2019a). all children deserve to read books with underrepresented groups, including race, ethnicities, exceptionalities, and diversity outside the mainstream. multicultural books include all genres, fiction, nonfiction, all formats, as well as transitional series books for young readers. focusing on series books, green and hopenwasser (2017) describe transitional series books as straightforward, predictable, and comprehensible literature, usually for kindergarten through third grade students. children engaged with transitional series will read for pleasure as an adult (green & hopenwasser, 2017). in the last five decades, the protagonists of transitional literature moved away from the cookie-cutter mold of an anglo-saxon, suburban, american character between the ages of nine and 13 (szymusiak & sibberson, 2001). by the late 1980s, the multicultural educational movement, a push for equal rights that relates to schools and schooling (bishop, 1997, p. 2), allowed for the inclusion of diverse, complex characters in literature. according to rudine bishop (1997): protagonists in literature have slowly been socially and culturally reformed to include characters of latinos, american indians, asian americans, the disabled, gays and 66 lesbians, and the elderly; all of whom felt victimized, oppressed, or discriminated against in some way by the dominant majority. (p. 3) mirrors, windows, sliding glass doors with an influx of immigrants attending u.s. schools, it is especially important for students of all backgrounds to engage in opportunities to grow, learn, and reflect on themselves and others around them, in and out of school (tschida, ryan, & ticknor, 2014). with elementary schools in the u.s. becoming increasingly diverse, transitional series can provide a vehicle for all students to reflect upon themselves and others for healthy self-identity and growth. in fact, multicultural series literature can act as “mirrors and windows” (bishop, 1990; green & hopenwasser, 2017). exposure to literature can become a shared experience, allowing students to reflect on their own perspectives and individual backgrounds before looking at others. as children learn about themselves and others, they explore differences and similarities that allow them to learn to appreciate both their own and others’ cultures (lowery & sabis-burns, 2007). because traditionally children’s literature contained more white characters, students within this dominant culture view themselves and their lives as being “normal” and view other people of different ethnicities as “exotic” (bishop, 1997). moreover, minority students who do not see any reflections of themselves, or who see stereotypical, distorted, inaccurate, or comical depictions of themselves, may grow to view themselves of little value, stunting personal growth. in 1990, rudine sims bishop coined the term “sliding glass doors” to describe outlooks of diversity gained from children’s books, noting these fluctuating phases: books are sometimes windows, offering views of the worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange. when lighting conditions are just right however, a window can also be a mirror. these windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created or recreated by the author. (p. ix) sliding glass door books allow openings for vicarious adventures beyond their own experiences. the growing diversity in the u.s. contrasts with 73.3% of protagonists as caucasian; therefore, it is crucial these “sliding glass doors” become more frequent (ccbc, 2019b). the influence of children’s books with current demographic shifts due to the influx of immigrants and refugees (bigler, 2002), daily needs for cross-cultural understandings may be eased through available and accurate literature. what children read influences how children view themselves, and when children encounter relatable characters, their comprehension and motivation to read improve (denicolo & franquiz, 2006; lind & thomsen, 2018). when students select books that engender empathy and engagement by including characters of varied cultural backgrounds, children’s books can be used as a tool for developing personal identity and challenging stereotypes (singer & smith, 2003). at times, teachers appear inadequately prepared to mediate the unique challenges students from different cultural backgrounds daily encounter; robinson (2013) found that interactive multicultural readings encourage students’ critical responses and important identity connections between themselves and characters. more importantly, for the current study, the appeal of series for young children can result in cumulative influences that book upon book within one series can engender (greenlee, monson, & taylor, 1996). 67 statement of purpose and related methods this research intends to examine the representations of protagonists among three popular third grade transitional series. using equity audits as the analysis measure, researchers describe equity audits as “a review of inequalities within an area or of the coverage of inequality issues in a policy, program, or project, usually with recommendations as to how they can be addressed” (defined term, n.d, n.p.). similar to the equity audit administered by green and hopenwasser (2017), this research focused on the first five books of three popular third grade series to compare representations of ethnicities in each book. gangi (2008) found less than 5% of recommended series were considered multicultural. the audit was compared with current third grade demographics to compile a list of appropriate multicultural transitional series literature to promote positive development for all children. with consultation from new york times best sellers list and goodreads must-have series for ages 6-12, three transitional series published across three different time periods were chosen to be audited based on continued popularity and likelihood to be in classroom libraries. from the series in those lists, the boxcar children series by gertrude chandler warner, the bailey school kids series by debbie dadey, and franklin school friends series by claudia miller were identified to represent the changing demographics (1960-2016). published from the current decade back to the 1940s, these books also offered comparisons of similar sets of protagonists: the boxcar children (two boys and two girls), the bailey school kids (two boys and two girls), and franklin school friends (two boys and three girls). each book (of between 80 and 125 pages) contains a new plot or “adventure,” whether solving a problem or overcoming a challenge, and focused on one protagonist with all main characters involved in some aspect. these series were also chosen based on publication dates; the span in which they were written shows the changing demographic and portrayal of racial and ethnic characters. the first five boxcar children books were published between 1942 and 1960, during a time when segregation between african americans and caucasians evidenced a rise. the first five bailey school kids series books, published between 1991-1992, were written during an ongoing debate of whether genes, environment, or ethnicity caused academic gaps among races. the five franklin school friends series books were published between 2014-2016 when growing diversity was valued and sought to eradicate ongoing racial stereotypes. these series allowed many comparisons when conducting, comparing, and contrasting equity audits. early on, the researchers read and discussed 10 quick ways to analyze children’s books for racism and sexism (council for interracial books for children [cibc], 1998). also, the authors discussed scores on the harvard implicit association tests (iats) (harvard, 2011). this psychological assessment points out implicit bias in our associations. with reported only “slight automatic preferences” for each researcher, these precautions worked to keep the equity audits clear of potential bias. these equity audits appraised front covers, protagonists, family dynamics, stereotypes, ethnicity, and any secondary characters, the focused queries from cibc (1998) aide consistent, clear analysis. after reading and analyzing the 15 books (bogdan & biklen, 2007), the first author carefully recorded details and discussed findings with the second author. any discrepancies or vague wording were clarified in weekly meetings. 68 equity audit findings first, the boxcar children remains in many classroom libraries despite original publication dates of 1942-1960. this is one of the oldest and most popular series found in a third-grade classroom library (anthony, 2018). although original boxcar children (warner) ended publication in the 1960s, through scholastic, this series continues to be ghost written in 2018. however, since most third-grade libraries include these books from the original series, the equity audit was conducted, focusing on four brown-haired, caucasian protagonists. in the first book, the boxcar children, the orphaned children prove intelligent, scrappy, and self-sufficient by making a new life for themselves in a boxcar in the woods. see figure 1 for the details of analysis in regard to these four protagonists: henry (m/14): calm, hardworking, very protective of his siblings, jessie (f/12): motherly, tidy, organized, violet (f/10): sensitive, shy, skilled (at sewing), and benny (m/6): energetic, cheerful, loves everyone and everything, especially food. figure 1: compiled data sheet for the boxcar children the boxcar children by gertrude chandler warner book title: front cover: protagonist traits: family dynamics: stereotype: ethnicity: the boxcar children introduction of henry, jessie, violet, and benny alden, the main protagonists -four young, paleskinned, brownhaired children dressed in clean, brightly colored clothes, looking hurried and scared. -they are climbing into a boxcar -henry, the oldest at 14, is calm, hardworking and is very protective of his siblings -jessie, 12 years old, motherly, tidy, and organized -violet, 10 years old, sensitive, shy, and skilled at sewing -benny, 6 years old, loves food, very energetic, and cheerful -the four children are orphaned and live together for a majority of the book. -they eventually move in with grandfather at the end of the book and live with him for the rest of the series. -common stereotypes of orphans as resilient and scrappy, something the alden’s are -their grandfather is also extremely wealthy, another stereotype to orphans caucasian surprise island introduction of the alden’s cousin joe alden -four young, paleskinned, brownhaired children dressed in clean summer clothes -they are climbing out of a boat -joe alden is young, adult friendly, very into the outdoors and enjoys spending time with his cousins the children still live with their grandfather, whom joe is visiting n/a caucasian the yellow house mystery -four paleskinned, brownhaired children dressed in clean, -alice is a kind young woman who marries joe and the children still live with their wealthy grandfather n/a caucasian 69 introduction of the alden’s cousin alice, joe’s wife brightly colored clothes -henry and jessie appear older here, while benny and violet look the same becomes the alden’s cousin mystery ranch introduction of the alden’s greataunt jane alden -depicts an older jessie and violet, dressed in sweaters and long pants clearly in a western town, driving a horsedrawn carriage -at first, aunt jane is cranky, bossy, and unkind -her disposition is eventually sweet and smart, and she treats the alden’s well the children live with their aunt jane alden for a while, as she is sickly and in need of care n/a caucasian mike’s mystery -five young children dressed in clean clothes appear to be watching two dogs race one another n/a the children are once again living with their grandfather n/a caucasian the bailey school kids, the second series (1991-1992), was published at a time emphasizing multicultural education reform (banks, 1993; ladson-billings, 1995). this series features a nonstereotypical, african american protagonist and three other caucasian protagonists who whimsically experience crazy times. most libraries continue to include this series. throughout the book series, consistent characteristics of the four protagonists reveal: liza (f): the timid peacemaker, avoids hurting others; howard (m): enjoys school, a logical, level-headed, intelligent thinker; melody (f/afram): brave, competitive, athletic; and eddie (m): meanspirited (to non-friends), boisterous, dramatic. figure 2 provides the analysis for this series. figure 2: data sheet 2 for the bailey school kids the bailey school kids by debbie dadey book title: front cover: protagonist traits: family dynamics: stereotype: ethnicity: vampires don’t wear polka dots a traditional classroom setting, teacher is paleskinned, class consists of 8 children, mostly depicted as caucasian with liza: the peacemaker of the group, doesn’t like eddie’s ideas that usually result in hurting others. she’s sensitive, scared around strangers, and whimsical -liza: mother, father (plumber), and sister (high school). she also has a grandmother. howard (howie): mom, two sisters, and dad (aeronautics tech n/a caucasian africanamerican 70 blond, red, or brown hair. there is one boy and one girl with brown skin and black hair howard (howie): enjoys school, logical, level-headed and intelligent melody: brave, sporty (plays soccer) and extremely competitive eddie: comes across as mean, makes fun for believing in monsters. creates drastic plans to dismiss monsters. at the beginning of this book, the reader can clearly see melody/liza & howie/eddie are pairs of best friends. station worker) parents are divorced melody: dad (contractor), mom (lawyer), aunt, great-aunt and cousin live nearby eddie: grandmother, father, little sister. mom is deceased. he has an aunt who lives nearby. werewolves don’t go to summer camp four kids and a man are sitting around a campfire under a starry night with full moon. the man is caucasian, with brown hair, a full beard, wearing jeans and a t-shirt. two kids, a girl and boy, (liza and howie) are caucasian with blond hair. (melody), the other girl, is africanamerican with black hair. eddie, the other boy, is caucasian with red hair. they are all wearing similar clothes to the man. same as above liza: sensitive about the fact that she can’t swim same as above n/a caucasian africanamerican santa claus doesn’t mop floors -a brick hallway with a paperchain decorating the wall. a man with white beard, muscled legs, and potbelly (like same as above same as above n/a caucasian africanamerican 71 santa), mops the floor. -three kids in winter clothes (eddie, howie, and melody) are watching. eddie: red hair, caucasian -howie: blond caucasian -melody: africanam., black hair leprechauns don’t play basketball -a basketball court, (or maybe school gym). a old man with white hair, sideburns, dressed in a green bow tie, red tracksuit, and purple sweater vest is shooting backwards hoops. two girls, melody and liza, and one boy, eddie, are watching him liza: caucasian, blond hair. howie: caucasian with blond hair melody: africanamerican with black hair same as above same as above n/a caucasian africanamerican ghosts don’t eat potato chips an old attic, or upstairs room. an old, transparent looking man with white hair and mustache, dressed in a white shirt, brown suit, red bow tie, and brown hat. howie, melody, and eddie are upstairs, look shocked at howie’s floating potato chips eddie: red hair, caucasian same as above same as above caucasian africanamerican 72 howie: blond, caucasian -melody: africanam., black hair franklin school friends (2014-2016), the most recent transitional series analyzed, portrayed five protagonists: three caucasians, one african american, and one asian american. unlike the other two series, each book highlights one protagonist with a specific dilemma. along with quite distinctive outward appearances, some stereotypical portrayals are included, such as the asian american excelling academically. below, figure 3 presents details of the analyses. the protagonists’ distinguishing characteristics are kelsey green (f/8): loves reading, dislikes math, extremely competitive; annika riz (f/8/caucasian): loves math, loyal, caring friend; izzy barr (african am/f/9): talented athlete, plays softball and runs track, very friendly; simon ellis (asian am/m/8): enjoys school, excels in spelling, and wants to fit in; and cody harmon (m/9): polite, enjoys animals, and dislikes school. figure 3: data sheet for franklin school friends franklin school friends by claudia mills book title: front cover: protagonist traits: family dynamics: stereotype: protagonist ethnicity: kelsey green, reading queen pale skinned girl with brown shoulder length hair, & her nose in a book loves reading: reads during math class dislikes math -competitive dad, mom (stay at home), brother (8th gr), sister (high school) n/a caucasian annika riz, math whiz pale skinned girl with blue eyes, & long, blonde braids, filling out a sudoku page -loves math: will do sudoku during recess -will whisper math answers to her friends to help avoid humiliation dad (high school math teacher) family cook mom (tax accountant) prime (family dog) refutes the stereotype: “blonde girls are dumb,” as annika loves math, and is a math genius caucasian izzy barr, running star girl with short, curly, braided brown hair, medium brown skin, & brown eyes; running -loves sports, does track & field and softball, dad (foreman of factory) mom (hospital nurse) enforces the stereotypes that african american girls are better athletes and of absentee african american fathers african american 73 encouraging to others -hides her feelings about her dad missing her games dustin (older halfbrother) simon ellis, spelling bee champ boy with short brown hair, blue eyes, and pale skin; holding a pencil and backpack -enjoys all aspects of school, and excels in spelling -plays the violin -will do poorly on schoolwork in order to impress his friends -extremely competitive dad (very educated, plays the cello) mom (also highly educated, is an author) enforces the stereotype that asian american students are smarter and better at school subjects than others asian american cody harmon, king of pets pale skinned boy with short brown hair styled in a cowlick, & hugging a dog -dislikes school and homework -enjoys helping dad on their farm -loves animals: takes care of all pets and farm animals -polite: yes, sir dad (farmer and truck driver) mom (stay at home mom) rex (pet dog) mr. piggins (cody’s pet pig) enforces stereotype that farm children are poorly educated or dislike school caucasian comparing equity audits across three series. figure 4 compares the equity audits of ethnicities among protagonists in the boxcar children, the bailey school kids, and franklin school friends in comparison to the reality of school demographics. in boxcar children (1942), the ink illustrations are depicted as caucasian, which ignores the segregated worlds of students of color of the past and the present. in bailey school kids, one of the four protagonists is portrayed non-stereotypically as african-american, while in franklin school friends, two of the four protagonists are of different ethnicities (asian american; african american), yet characterized through stereotypes. all these books are available to children, yet the lack of diversity is apparent. 74 figure 4: protagonists and ethnicities across all series and 2017 school demographics chronological comparisons to afford chronological context for these equity audits, the demographics of each publication period is compared to the characters’ ethnicities within the series. clearly, the diversity of protagonists in transitional series does somewhat increase in concert with the reality of diverse school populations. first, figure 5 shows actual 1940s’ elementary school ethnic demographics, with only caucasian (54%) and african americans (46%) counted. students in segregated schools had no exposure in school or in literature to other ethnicities as shown in the boxcar (figure 5). 75 figure 5: the boxcar children vs. elementary school demographics (1940) next, figure 6 presents elementary school ethnic demographics in the united states in 1990s; at the time of the bailey school kids series, demographics show caucasian (53%), african american (23%), asian/pacific islander (19%), and hispanic (3%). the population slowly shifted to include more minorities. the protagonists of bailey school kids evidence more diversity than boxcar children, with one african american protagonist. the bailey school kids did not include any asian or hispanic characters, not in alignment with school demographics. figure 6: the bailey school kids vs. elementary school demographics (1990) 76 lastly, figure 7 offers elementary school ethnic demographics from 2017, at the time of the franklin school friends series, and shows increased diversity: caucasian (48%), hispanic (27%), african american (16%), asian/pacific islander (5%), with multiracial (3%) and american indian (1%) added. for the first time, five different minorities comprise the majority of u.s. students attending elementary school; caucasian students become the new minority. african american students no longer represent the largest minority; hispanic students emerge due to an influx of immigration. the increase from 3% (1990) to 27% (2017) also subsumes larger english language learners (ells). the introduction of multiracial demographics supports further evidence to include authentic multicultural literature. figure 7: franklin school friends vs. school demographics (2017) both an african american and asian american character are included in franklin school friends, yet evidencing stereotypical portrayals. also, though hispanic students are the largest minority in reality, no relatable characters were included. franklin school friends series indicate fun, yet the books are not the most relevant transitional series for sharing with students. especially considering the shift toward “minority majority,” students miss vicarious and relatable opportunities to engage with multicultural characters. figure 8 compares the protagonists in these three series against the reality of today’s diverse demographics. 77 figure 8: comparisons among all book protagonists and actual class demographics concluding remarks as the population in the u.s. continues to diversify and grow, it is essential children’s series embrace multicultural literature to include diverse characters; however, a majority of popular elementary series continue to thwart the healthy construction of identity for underrepresented students. therefore, teachers make strategic efforts to offer series books with realistic images of all ethnicities, families, communities, and cultures in order to meet the needs of today’s diverse demographics (davis, brown, liedel-rice, & soeder, 2005; tschida, ryan, & ticknor, 2014). therefore, appendix a recommends current transitional series that afford relatable, often multiracial protagonists and characters. with complex, multicultural protagonists ranging from multiracial, jewish, and pakistani-american, all students are exposed to windows, mirrors, and sliding doors to compare and contrast cultural awareness, learn to take other perspectives, and build knowledgeable understandings across cultures. children’s books, extrapolated to the cumulative effect of reading and rereading engaging series books with multicultural characters, offer the kind of relatable characters to diverse students in our classes, essential for personal identity (singer & smith, 2003; stephens, 1996), cross-cultural understandings and empathy (lowery & sabis-burns, 2007; stephens, 1996), and overall well-being (lind & thomsen, 2018; spencer & markstrom-adams, 1990; tschida et al., 2014). these developmental benefits of utilizing transitional series books are only possible when literature is shared that celebrates our wide range of diversity. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% p e rc e n ta g e o f c h a ra c te rs & s tu d e n ts types of ethnicities comparisons among book protagonists and actual class demographics book protagonists actual class demographics 78 appendix a recent multicultural transitional series for young readers get ready for gabi! (suitable for ages 7-10) protagonist: a third-grade mixed puerto rican and jewish girl who speaks spanish at home with her family, and english at school with her friends. she speaks spanglish when upset. montes, m. (2003). a crazy mixed-up spanglish day, get ready for gabi!. scholastic. montes, m. (2003). who’s that girl? get ready for gabi!. scholastic. montes, m. (2004). no more spanish! get ready for gabi!. scholastic. montes, m. (2004) please don’t go! get ready for gabi!. scholastic. sophie washington series (suitable for ages 7-12)* protagonist: a fifth-grade africanamerican girl from texas, characterized by two thick black braids sticking out of the side of her head. ellis, t. (2013). queen of the bee, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing. ellis, t. (2014). the snitch, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing first place purple dragonfly book award winner. ellis, t. (2018). things you didn’t know about sophie, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing. ellis, t. (2018). the gamer, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing. ellis, t. (2018). hurricane, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing. ellis, t. (2018). mission costa rica, sophie washington series. createspace independent publishing. jaden toussaint, the greatest (suitable for ages 5-10)* protagonist: a five-year old africanamerican boy genius from new orleans, characterized by his short stature, big brain, and even bigger afro. dumas, m. (2015). jaden toussaint the greatest episode 1: the quest for screen time. plum street press. dumas, m. (2016). jaden toussaint the greatest episode 2: the ladek invasion. plum street press. dumas, m. (2016). jaden toussaint the greatest episode 3: muffin wars. plum street press. dumas, m. (2016). jaden toussaint the greatest episode 4: attack of the swamp. plum street press. dumas, m. (2017) jaden toussaint the greatest episode 5: mission star-power. plum street press. bobby vs. girls (suitable for ages 7-10) protagonist: a shy, studious, skateboard-loving chinese-english/german/french boy who enjoys going to school and keeping to himself. yee, l. (2010). bobby vs. girls (accidentally), bobby vs. girls series. scholastic paperbacks. 79 yee, l. (2012). bobby the brave (sometimes), bobby vs. girls series. scholastic paperbacks. yasmin series! (suitable for ages 5-8) protagonist: a spirited pakistani-american second grader with a big imagination who thinks creatively and loves her family’s traditions, from her baba’s beard to her mama’s hijab. faruqi s. (2018). yasmin the explorer, yasmin series. picture window books. faruqi s. (2018). yasmin the fashionista! yasmin series. picture window books. faruqi s. (2018). yasmin the painter, yasmin series. picture window books. lola levine series (suitable for ages 8-12) protagonist: a jewish-mexican american, spanish-speaking soccer player who learns to balance her mixed-up lives at school and at home. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2016). lola levine is not mean! little brown books. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2016). lola levine drama queen. little brown books. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2016). lola levine and the ballet scheme. little brown books. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2017). lola levine meets jelly and bean. little brown books. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2017). lola levine and the vacation dream. little brown books. brown, m., & dominguez, a. (2016). lola levine is not mean! little brown books. simply sarah (suitable for ages 6-8) protagonist: a young caucasian girl who lives on a bustling new york city block and goes on crazy adventures. she meets all sorts of people from african-american, chinese, and mexican backgrounds. naylor, p. (2009) anyone can eat squid!, simply sarah. las vegas, nv: two lions. naylor, p. (2010) patches and scratches, simply sarah. las vegas, nv: two lions. naylor, p. (2012) cuckoo feathers, simply sarah. las vegas, nv: two lions. naylor, p. (2013) eating enchiladas, simply sarah. las vegas, nv: two lions. jasmine toguchi (suitable for ages 6-9) protagonist: a japanese-american girl who just wants to make mochi with her family, but they have other plans for a third-grader like her. florence, d. (2017). jasmine, toguchi, mochi queen. farrar, straus and giroux. florence, d. (2017) jasmine, toguchi, super sleuth. farrar, straus and giroux. florence, d. (2018) jasmine, toguchi, drummer girl. farrar, straus and giroux. florence, d. (2018) jasmine, toguchi, flamingo keeper. farrar, straus and giroux. *denotes transitional series that are ongoing 80 references anthony, m. (2018). popular series for 8-10 years olds. new york, ny: scholastic. retrieved from https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/book-lists-andrecommendations/series-characters-authors/popular-series-8-10-year-olds.html ausdale, d. v., & feagin, j. r. (2002). the first r: how children learn race and racism. lanham, md: rowman & littlefield. banks, j. (1993). an introduction to multicultural education. new york, ny: allyn & bacon. bigler, r. s. (2002). the use of multicultural curricula and materials to counter racism in children. journal of social issues, 55(4), 687-705. bishop, r. s. (1990). mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors. perspectives: choosing and using books for the classroom, 6(3), iix. bishop, r. s. (1997). selecting literature for a multicultural curriculum. using multiethnic literature in the k-8 classroom, 1-6. bogdan, r., & biklen, s. k. (2007). qualitative research for education: an introduction to theories and methods (5th ed.). new york, ny: pearson. cooperative children’s book center. (2019a). multicultural literature, definition. university of wisconsin-madison: ccbc. retrieved from https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/multicultural.asp cooperative children’s book center. (2019b). publishing statistics on children's books about people of color and first/native nations. retrieved from https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/pcstats.asp council for interracial books for children. (1998). 10 quick ways to analyze children’s books for racism and sexism. new york, ny: council for interracial books for children. davis, k. l., brown, b. g., liedel-rice, a., & soeder, p. (2005). experiencing diversity through children's multicultural literature. kappa delta pi record, 41(4), 176-179. defined term. (n.d.). definition of equity audit. retrieved from https://definedterm.com/equity_audit denicolo, c. p., & franquiz, m. e. (2006). “do i have to say it?”: critical encounters with multicultural children’s literature. multilingual and multicultural: changing the way we teach, 84(2), 157-170. derman-sparks, l., & edwards, j. o. (2010). anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. washington, dc: national association for the education of young children. gangi, j. m. (2008). the unbearable whiteness of literacy instruction: realizing the implications of the proficient reader research. multicultural review, 17(1), 30-35. green, k., & hopenwasser, c. b. (2017). finding characters of color in transitional chapter books. the dragon lode, 36(1), 50-56. greenlee, a. a., monson, d. l., & taylor, b. m. (1996). the lure of series books: does it affect appreciation for recommended literature. the reading teacher, 50(3), 216-225. harvard university. (2011). harvard implicit association tests (iat project implicit). retrieved from https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html ladson-billings, g. (1995). multicultural teacher education: research, policy, and practices. in j. a. banks & c. m. banks (eds.), handbook of research on multicultural education (pp. 747-759). new york: macmillan. eric: ed382738 lind, m., & thomsen, d. k. (2018). functions of personal and vicarious life stories: identity and empathy. memory, 26(5), 672-682. doi: 10.1080/09658211.2017.1395054 https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/multicultural.asp https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/pcstats.asp https://definedterm.com/equity_audit https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2017.1395054 81 lowery, r. m., & sabis-burns, d. (2007). from borders to bridges: making crossculturalconnections through multicultural literature. multicultural education, 14(4), 5054. robinson, j. a. (2013). critical approaches to multicultural children's literature in the elementary classroom: challenging pedagogies of silence. new england reading association journal, 48(2), 43-51. singer, j. y., & smith, s. a. (2003). the potential of multicultural literature: changing understanding of self and others. multicultural perspectives, 5(2), 17-23. spencer, m. b., & markstrom-adams, c. (1990). identity processes among racial and ethnic minority children in america. child development, 61(2), 290-310. stephens, j. (1996). multiculturalism in recent australian children’s fiction: (re-)constructing selves through personal and national histories. in m. machet, s. olen, & t. van der walt, (eds.), other worlds, other lives, volume 3 (pp. 1-19). pretoria, south africa: university of south africa. szymusiak, k., & sibberson, f. (2001). beyond leveled books: supporting transitional readers in grades 2-5. portland, me: stenhouse. tschida, c. m., ryan, c. l., & ticknor, a. s. (2014). building on windows and mirrors: encouraging the disruption of “single stories” through children’s literature. journal of children’s literature, 40(1), 28-30. u.s. census bureau (2018). population statistics. retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/us/pst045218 https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/us/pst045218 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 64 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 65 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 66 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 67 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 68 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 69 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 70 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 71 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 72 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 73 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 74 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 75 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 76 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 77 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 78 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 79 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 80 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 81 34    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 children and families: health and wellness sleep hygiene: evidence for a healthy family habit barbara whitman lancastera amiddle tennessee state university dr. lancaster is a women’s health nurse practitioner and assistant professor at middle tennessee state university where she is delighted to teach in the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs. a registered nurse for 37 years she enjoys getting to partner with women to achieve their optimal health and well-being. dr. lancaster is a nationally certified menopause practitioner and has done research regarding the need for menopause workshops. dr. lancaster’s call is mission work where she has served both nationally and internationally and has a love for africa! her greatest joy is being a wife, mother, and grandmother. “now i lay me down to sleep” … this is a closing thought said by many children as they get into their beds and begin their journey to sleep. sleep…it is a daily ritual or routine that humans practice throughout time. sleep is important for all ages—it is what revitalizes and rejuvenates individuals; yet, sleep is a mystery. why do we sleep? why is it important? the scientific community continues to research these questions. this article focuses on the topic of sleep hygiene including describing sleep hygiene, providing the evidence-based literature, and highlighting how sleep remains important in family life and wellness. sleep hygiene for 30 years, the national sleep foundation continues to serve as the leading expert voice in the world of sleep science and health (national sleep foundation, n.d.). sleep remains vital for our mental, emotional, and physical well-being. problems such as obesity, diabetes, poor decision making, accidents, and mood instability have been associated with not having good restorative sleep (national sleep foundation, n.d.). sleep hygiene is a term used to describe the habit of sleep and what constitutes good sleep. the authorities at the national sleep foundation describe sleep hygiene as divided into four categories: 1.) creating a sleep-inducing bedroom of comfort and relaxation. this includes a good mattress and pillow(s), clean sheets, and a cool room temperature that is suggested to be 70 degrees or less. tantamount to this sleep-inducing environment is to diminish lighting, create a quiet zone (meaning no television, radio or people noise), and to introduce a relaxing scent such as lavender. 35    2.) optimizing your sleep schedule. identify wake and sleep times that do not vary. it is imperative to have close wake and sleep times throughout the week. in other words, do not get up at 6 o’clock one morning and 10 o’clock another morning. try to maintain similar wake and sleep times. build in a healthy sleep time to your schedule. you can do this, just provide thoughtful regard to the schedule. lastly, be cautious regarding naps. the best time to take a nap, if you need one, is after lunch and for about 20 minutes. 3.) crafting a pre-bedtime ritual. poor pre-bedtime habits contribute to insomnia. winding down for approximately 30 minutes prior to bedtime is part of a healthy ritual. suggestions include enjoying quiet reading, listening to soothing music, and decreasing stimulation. prior to bedtime, lowering lighting helps to increase the hormone melatonin which aides in restful sleeping. finally, about 30 minutes prior to bedtime, disconnecting from devices is recommended. 4.) fostering pro-sleep habits during the day. our internal clocks depend on the light of day. during the day open your blinds and drapes and “let the sun shine in”. move about as much as possible. increase your physical activity. monitor your caffeine and alcohol intake. mediate how much you eat later in the day as it will be more difficult to fall asleep if your body is trying to digest a larger meal. if you are a smoker, do your best to not smoke at least one hour prior to bedtime. if you cannot fall asleep:  try some relaxing stretches.  do not try and force sleep, get out of bed if 20 minutes has passed and sit in a comfortable chair/couch and read a non-stimulating type of book/magazine. experts suggest if you are having trouble with sleeping that you keep a sleep diary and connect with a sleep specialist. to clarify healthy sleeping possibilities, the sleep foundation.org, recommends the bedroom climate consist of three main activities (three s’s):  sleep  sex (adults)  sickness when the bedroom is used for other activities, the brain becomes confused. sleep is supposed to rest the brain, so it is important the bedroom emanate tranquility. for some people, healthy sleeping practices come easier as they were raised in a family environment that cultivated this attitude. for others, it is a ritual to newly construct. bathory and tomopoulous (2017) describe how sleep problems are common in those less than five years of age. these problems are associated with decreased school performance, obesity, and poor behavior. if the child is experiencing sleep problems, then the parent(s) may as well experience negative sleep issues. thus, the entire family dynamic may suffer. sleep habits are often not discussed at routine well visits to a healthcare provider (bathory & tomopoulous, 2017). most healthcare providers including pediatricians do not receive much training regarding sleep medicine (bathory & tomopoulous, 2017). sleep patterns change throughout the course of one’s life and appear especially evident in the first five years of life (bathory & tomopoulous, 2017). it is important effective counseling regarding childhood sleep also take into account other 36    issues. for example, child/parent factors such as temperament/interaction and environmental factors such as culture, geography, and home context become powerful influencers on sleep and quality of sleep (bathory & tomopoulous, 2017). the american academy of pediatrics (n.d.) recommends parents initiate promoting sleep hygiene early on in a child’s life. this includes a sleep promoting environment and a positive bedtime routine in infancy. a peaceful setting and calming behavior go far in creating a conducive environment for sleep. lin, strong, scott, brostrom, pakpour and webb (2018), in their study regarding adolescents and a theory-based sleep hygiene intervention, found that sleep influenced the quality of life. their findings purported that sleep hygiene is associated with psychologic health because good sleep hygiene practices increased sleep quality and allowed the body and mind the ability to recover from daily physical and psychological exertion. making the bedroom more restful is part of the sleep hygiene criteria. decreasing media and noise remain vital to a restful environment. keeping bed time and wake time fairly close in time and not sleeping later on the weekends demonstrated important factors in the adolescent group. the adolescents in the study were asked to help plan improved sleep hygiene practices; thus, affording them a sense of autonomy in their structuring particular life choices. lin et al. (2018) provided adolescents with information regarding sleep and health consequences, pros and cons associated with sleep hygiene practices, strategies toward restructuring the physical environment in their bedrooms, consideration for social support, tips for action planning and problem solving, and ways to self-monitor their behaviors. the findings concluded adolescents did well in being part of the solution to ensuring positive sleep hygiene practices (lin et al., 2018). current research data suggest society indicates a fear of missing out (fomo). this includes the nocturnal use of social media which may result in sleep disturbances and may adversely affect the quality of sleep one may experience (tandon, kaur, dhir, & mantymakir, 2020). fomo is coupled with compulsive social media use (csmu). fomo is more strongly associated with csmu among the working professional. findings indicated this interaction to adversely affect the quality of sleep and undermine the brain’s ability to rest. these findings indicate the need to create interventions to reduce the deleterious impact of the social media interaction on sleep. tandon et al. (2020) describe a systematic review of literature by alonzo et al. in 2019 which concluded that poor sleep quality contributed to depression and anxiety occurring in individuals who have excessive activity with social media. it is important to maintain boundaries which include realizing the need for positive sleep hygiene practices across all seasons of life. we can learn from a traditional farmer’s schedule: a farmer went to bed when it became dark and arose when the first light of day caused the rooster to crow. these are the normal circadian rhythms that guided mankind for years. you may not live on a farm, yet, it is the time to create a healthy sleep habit within your family. healthy sleep is important for both physical and mental health; healthy sleep improves productivity and overall quality of life. everyone, from children to older adults, can benefit from better sleep, and sleep hygiene can play a key part in achieving that goal. visit the national sleep foundation as well as the sleep foundation website. turn off the television, tablet and phone. play a game as a family, take a walk after supper, and read a 37    book together. begin a positive, relaxing and tranquil bedtime ritual for the health and well-being of all family members. 38    references alonzo, r., hussain, j., anderson, k. & stranges, s. (2019). interplay between social media use, sleep quality, and mental health outcome in youth: a systematic review. sleep medicine, 64: s365. https://doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2019.11.1017. american academy of pediatrics. (n.d.), healthy sleep habits: how many hours does your child need? healthychildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/english/healthyliving/sleep/pages/healthy-sleep-habits-how-many-hours-does-your-child-need.aspx bathory, e., & tomopoulos, s. (2017). sleep regulation, physiology and development, sleep duration and patterns, and sleep hygiene in infants, toddlers, and preschool-age. current problems in pediatrics and adolescents in healthcare 47(2), 29-42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cppeds.2016.12.001. lin, c., strong, c., scott, a., brostrom, a., pakpour, a., & webb, t. (2018). a cluster randomized controlled trial of a theory-based sleep hygiene intervention for adolescents. sleep,41(11). https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsy170. national sleep foundation (n.d.). retrieved from www.sleepfoundation.org [accessed september 20-25, 2020]. tandon, a., kaur, p., dhir, a., & mantymaki, m. (2020). sleepless due to social media? investigating problematic sleep due to social media and social media sleep hygiene. computers in human behavior, 113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2020.106487. final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 34 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 35 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 36 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 37 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 38 55 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 a book review & action plan for using renata galindo’s “my new mom & me” publisher: schwarz & wade pamela kramer ertela amiddle tennessee state university dr. pamela kramer ertel is an associate professor of early childhood education at middle tennessee state university. she served as the dean of the college of education at east stroudsburg university of pa, in addition to working as a professor of education for 18 years in the department of early childhood and elementary education. dr. kramer ertel also served as president of kappa delta pi, the international honor society in education. prior to working in higher education, dr. kramer ertel was an elementary classroom teacher for nine years. book review it is challenging to find a children’s book effectively dealing with the sensitive topic of adoption; “my new mom & me” by renata galindo provides an insightful description of the fears, challenges, and joys of a child and parent as they become a new family. the characters are portrayed as animals where-in the mom is a cat and the child is rendered as a puppy. the depiction of animals as the characters is an effective strategy helping to make this book more appealing to children, while also broaching a sensitive topic in a less traumatic way. the story begins as the child arrives at a new home after being adopted. while the story includes minimal text, this book successfully illustrates the fears and concerns the child has about this new relationship. the book provides readers with a relevant portrayal of the child’s nervousness and worries, as well as including the range of positive and negative emotions that may emerge as 56 the child transitions to a new life in this family. the story poignantly shows how the child deals with the concerns about looking different from the parent while the parent assures the child that their differences make them special. the story depicts the daily activities the parent and child do together as they learn to bond and become a family. this book exhibits many positive elements. adoption is represented in a straightforward, caring, and realistic manner as the story describes the typical emotions that may evolve during these types of transitions. the illustrations well exhibit the range of characters’ emotions and as well tenderly capture their growing love and affection for one another. bibliotherapy connections this story may be sweet and simple, but the message is powerful and positive. teachers, counselors, and social workers will find this book valuable for bibliotherapy where-in books are used in a therapeutic manner. pardeck and pardeck (1987) describe how bibliotherapy is especially useful for children that have been in foster or adoptive care. bibliotherapy is often described as a three-stage process (dreyer, 1985; iaquinta & hipsky, 2006). “universalization or identification” occurs in the first stage as children come to the realization that they are not alone as they meet characters in a story that are also facing similar problems. this is comforting to children going through a crisis as they often feel no one else has ever gone through what they are experiencing. the next stage is referred to as “catharsis.” in this second stage, children make a connection with the characters that are finding a way to cope with similar problems. the third stage is identified as “insight” where-by the child increases both their self-and world understanding. this means, the experience of reading this book with a caring adult supports children’s perspective taking as well as nurtures their intrapersonal development. pardeck and pardeck (1987) suggest as children discuss stories about sensitive topics with adults, they may find possible solutions to the problems they find in their lives. this book can serve as a conversation starter between adults and children as there are many valuable lessons to be learned from this uplifting story. however, it is important to do more than merely read the story; it is critical to provide children with opportunities to process what they are hearing. “what are the children actually learning from this story?” rozalski, stewart, and miller (2010) emphasize the importance of helping children apply what they have learned to their own lives in some way. in addition to the significance of rich discussions, a variety of follow-through activities can be helpful. an adult, conferencing with a single child, may further support his or her underlying thinking. 57 action plan after introducing and reading the story, an effective strategy is to ask the child(ren) some key questions about the story. it is important that the conversations occur in a nonthreatening manner (rozalski, stewart, & miller, 2010). some suggested questions to use with this book might include: *why do you think the puppy felt nervous when arriving at his new home? *have you ever felt nervous when you did something new or different? *do some children look differently from their parents? how? is that okay? *what did the new mom do in the story to show she loved her puppy? *what do your parents do to show they love you? *what kinds of things happened in the story that made the puppy mad? *do you ever feel mad at your parents? *in the story, what kinds of things made the puppy sad? *do you ever feel sad? *what did the new mom do to help the puppy feel better? *what do your parents do for you to help you feel better? *what did the puppy learn about being a member of a family? after thoughtful and sensitive discussion, it is suggested to follow up with related activities. pardeck (1990) recommends that you allow children to express what they have learned in some type of authentic way. it is important children be able to honestly portray their feelings, whatever they may be. these are some suggested activities that might follow the discussion of this book. drawing: have the children draw a before and after picture of how the puppy felt when he first arrived at his new home and then show how he felt after getting to know his new mom. discuss how and why his feelings changed. finger paint: have the children create pictures that show different emotions experienced by the puppy (fear, anger, sadness, joy). discuss what each picture represents and be nonjudgmental about whatever feelings the child chooses to express. clay/playdough: have the children use the clay or playdough to show how they feel when they get angry or sad. then have the children use the material to show how they feel when they are happy. discuss what the children can do when they feel these strong emotions of anger or sadness. 58 puppetry: have the children act out scenes from the story using puppets. make sure you include the ending scene when there is some resolution to the challenges the puppy faced. application scenarios this book would be an excellent resource for adoptive families as it provides honesty and assurance that while forming a family has its challenges, this is all part of the natural process of becoming a family. it is not unusual for adopted children to struggle with the reality they may not physically resemble their adoptive parents; galindo masterfully navigates this concern. additionally, this book may be especially valuable for: 1) single adoptive parents as the book only represents the child and the mom; yet, the book is also useful for describing other family structures and differences. 2) families with racial differences as it effectively addresses differences in families in a simple, yet appropriate manner. 3) children and parents from non-adoptive families to help reduce the negative stereotypes and misconceptions that sometimes exist regarding adoptive families. conclusion galindo captures the heart of the reader as she shares the journey of this newly formed forever family. it provides hope, comfort, and reassurance for all those who become families through adoption. this book clearly supports the sensitive discussion of adoption. it would be used most effectively with children from three-to-seven years of age. 59 references dreyer, s. s. (1985). the bookfinder: a guide to children’s literature about the needs and problems of youth aged 2 and up. circle pines, mn: american guidance. iaquinta, a., & hipsky, s. (2006). practical bibliotherapy strategies for the inclusive elementary classroom. early childhood education journal, 34(3), 209-213. pardeck, j. t. (1990). children’s literature and child abuse. child welfare, 69(6), 83-88. pardeck, j. t., & pardeck, j. a. (1987). bibliotherapy for children in foster care and adoption. child welfare, 66(3), 269-278. rozalski, m., stewart, a., & miller, j. (2010). bibliotherapy: helping children cope with life’s challenges. kappa delta pi record, 47(1), 33-37. 64 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 etc teacher-child interactions and dramatic play: stories from three continents and three cultures rana alghamdia, darlene demarieb, dalal alanazic, adil alghamdid anorthern border university, saudi arabia, buniversity of south florida, cnorthern border university, saudi arabia, duniversity of south florida rana alghamdi is a lecturer in the early childhood education program at northern border university, in saudi arabia. she has experience in teaching kindergarten in saudi arabia. her research interests focus on the role of play in learning. alghamdi is a strong advocate for children’s right to play. she is currently pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education at the university of south florida. darlene demarie, ph.d., is a faculty member in educational psychology and the university of south florida's fulbright faculty advisor. she also is on the school board of east tampa academy in tampa, florida. she completed two fulbright scholar awards: one in south africa (2007-2009) and one in budapest, hungary (2019-2020); taught 1st grade, 2nd grade, and children with learning disabilities/behavior disorders in ohio; and was an associate professor in the psychology department at muskingum college from 1987-1998. she co-created child care centers at muskingum college and at the university of limpopo in south africa. dalal alanazi, m.a., is a lecturer in the college of education at northern border university, saudi arabia. she is currently pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education from university of south florida, tampa. her research interests include children's play and gender issues. adil alghamdi is a ph.d. student at the university of south florida in tampa. he has experience in teaching elementary and middle school students for nine years. adil worked as an assistant principal for two years. his area of interests focus on using assistive technology in special needs students’ classrooms. 65 abstract dramatic play involves children choosing roles and acting them out. teachers assume a variety of roles in providing an environment wherein children pretend to be a different people, in different roles, or even something that is not a person. the benefits of dramatic play revealed in previous research include improvements in children’s cognitive, social, and emotional development. bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory (1994; bronfenbrenner & morris, 2007) and vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (1978; 1986) frame the current discussion. children become empowered through dramatic play as they learn to consider the perspectives of their classmates, and as they negotiate and balance ideas from other children. this paper focuses on the design, development, and enhancement of dramatic play in early childhood settings in three different countries within three different continents (saudi arabia, south africa, and the united states). the authors provide stories within classrooms from these countries and describe how each situation reveals cultural differences in play, and how the new understandings impacted both the teachers and the children’s subsequent actions and thinking. conclusions describe the bi-directional benefits of play for children and teachers. keywords: dramatic play, early childhood development, cognitive and social development, teacher roles, cultural perspective cohen (2018) describes how the victorian’s dichotomy between work and play is no longer appropriate. it is noteworthy that providing optimal play experiences requires careful planning, preparation, and monitoring by adults who understand how to relate to children as well as how to enhance their learning in choice-driven play environments. when adults know strategies that ensure children experience safe and mature play (lillard et al., 2013), learning is more likely to take place. in addition, adults observe the results of their planning during children’s play to build upon and extend children’s later learning. in this scenario, teachers also become learners; especially when they are teachers of children from cultures that differ from their own. thus, optimal play experiences and learning become bi-directional. scientific evidence supports three different principles of play (hirsh-pasek, golinkoff, berk, & singer, 2009): 1) children require not only free play, but also play that is guided and facilitated by others; 2) both academic and social skills remain important, and the former does not dominate the latter; and 3) play and learning are not incompatible. after defining dramatic play, two theoretical lenses (urie bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory and lev vygotsky’s sociocultural theory) frame examples of play interactions with different trajectories due to differences in cultural contexts. subsequent sections are organized by different teacher roles in children’s dramatic play activities: planning and preparing materials for children’s play; facilitating and scaffolding children’s play; and modeling roles. in each section, stories illustrate teaching strategies used with children in three countries within three different continents. these countries (saudi arabia, south africa, and the united states) represent unique cultures. using stories, examples of how observing children’s play as well as the cyclical process that builds understanding for teachers in different cultural contexts become evident. 66 about dramatic play when engaging in dramatic play, children adopt roles and assume responsibilities for these roles in scenarios which mimic the real world and culture of children (leong & bodrova, 2012). similar to drama, different parts comprise dramatic play. as such, when children engage in dramatic play, they play a wide range of parts or roles. young children are drawn to symbolic thinking as they engage in problem solving, social learning, and writing and reading (szecsi, 2008). during the play process, children assume an imaginary role, and then, they act the part by performing tasks related to that role. for example, a common type of dramatic play observed in preschools in the united states takes place in the kitchen center. children pretend to cook using tools (e.g., a spatula) typically found in their families’ homes. children may assume the roles of different family members. those who pretend to be children in the family may ask, “what’s for dinner?” when food preparation is finished, all may sit at the small table in the center to eat the pretend food. it is important for parents and teachers to recognize the value of dramatic play. for too long people believed children’s play was inconsequential. many adults associated play only with children’s fun. in some instances, adults considered academic skill learning as “serious business” and thought learning academics was children’s “work.” through many years, researchers clearly refuted this belief by providing data showing the beneficial effects of dramatic play, especially for young children in preschool and kindergarten (demarie & bugos, 2020; hall, 2015). it is important to provide two different theoretical lenses describing how play contributes to children’s and teacher’s learning. theoretical lenses framing the benefits of children’s play urie bronfenbrenner’s bio-ecological systems theory. urie bronfenbrenner (1994; bronfenbrenner & morris, 2007) identifies many levels of environments and systems which interact with children’s characteristics and qualities and describes the impact of these interactions on their learning and development. each person has biological and genetic factors that influence how others treat them. for example, a child with physical challenges may be treated differently than a child who does not have those physical challenges. also, other factors may influence how others treat the child. for example, the way children dress may affect how others interact with them. a child whose clothes are dirty or smell probably will get different reactions from others than a child who wears the latest fashion. bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory also elaborates on how the environment has four interrelated systems: the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. each system is detailed in the sections that follow with examples from classrooms in different cultural contexts. children’s microsystems. “patterns of activities, social roles, and interpersonal relations experienced by the developing person” are part of children’s microsystems (bronfenbrenner, 1994, p. 5). these interactions take place among children and the people, places, and materials they encounter in environments where they engage, and these interactions influence the child’s learning and development directly (i. e., family, school, neighborhood). 67 the same object may elicit different play scenarios in different countries. for example, in saudi arabia, one of the authors added a blanket to the dramatic play center. she watched as the boys pretended to be men and to wear it as a “ghutra”. a ghutra is a traditional arab headdress fashioned from a piece of square, usually cotton, cloth typically worn by arab men. in a classroom in the united states, another author added a blanket to the dramatic play center on the doll bed. a girl put the doll under the blanket and kissed her good night. finally, the children in south africa used the blanket to wrap the doll babies and placed them on their backs. thus, dramatic play centers become critical areas in classrooms that provide teachers with an inside look at the children’s expressions of cultural practices. children’s mesosystems. a mesosystem is the interaction between two microsystems. the direct interaction between these systems (e.g. home, school) is important for children’s and teachers’ learning; the interactions among these microsystems (e.g. interactions among the child’s family members; home and school interactions) also impact children’s development and learning. for example, children benefit when their parents and teachers communicate with one another. for example, parent-teacher communication is demonstrated in many forms besides in person interactions. in south africa, teachers wrote in a daily journal for each child. they did this while the children were napping in the afternoon. the teacher reported something that the child did or said, or something that happened on that day. then parents had the opportunity to reply to the teacher or to ask questions in this shared journal. newsletters also were sent home monthly to parents with photographs and news. at one preschool in the united states, where technology was more available to families, teachers posted daily photos and descriptions on the website. they included photographs of children engaged with materials and with other people at the center. because accountability and standards remained important to parents of children within this particular setting, the teachers provided links to the required state standards that were demonstrated in the posted photos and text. in this way, parents referenced how play activities helped their children to achieve the florida standards for preschool education. what is interesting is that a national survey of kindergarten teachers revealed they did not consider academic skills to be the most important ways for children to be ready and successful in kindergarten (curby et al., 2017). instead, the kindergarten teachers rated the four socialemotional skills (e.g., “getting along with others”) higher than the four academic skills (e.g., “knowing upperand lower-case letters”). thus, there currently appears to be a mismatch between what parents think is the most important ways to prepare their children for kindergarten and what kindergarten teachers reported as the most important aspects of readiness for success in kindergarten. and, group dramatic play certainly enhances children’s social skills. when one of the authors visited the child development center in south africa years later, the teachers asked her to lead a parent workshop. parents had requested teachers start requiring their children to complete worksheets in order to be ready for school. at the workshop, she explained the benefits of children’s play and shared photos and videos of how alumni children, who were successful in school, had played when they were at the preschool. parents then worried less about their children’s readiness for school. 68 likewise, in saudi arabia, parents who are highly educated worry about the achievement of their children. therefore, documenting the accomplishments of children is important for helping parents to realize that children are learning and also are demonstrating mastery of key standards in the process of their playing. demarie et al. (2018) emphasize the importance of relationships within early childhood settings and provide recommended questions for parents to ask when assessing the quality of different levels of relationships inside a prospective early childhood program for their child. for questions go to https://www.apa.org/education/k12/high-five.pdf. children’s exosystems. bronfenbrenner also recognized the importance and impact of other contexts, exosystems, influencing children, but in which children might never have direct interactions (e. g., parent’s workplace). for example, although children may never go to their parents’ workplace, this system, which bronfenbrenner labeled an exosystem, can influence how much time their parents can spend with them after school and whether they have money for food, clothing, or housing. children’s macrosystems. the culture (i.e., macrosystem) in which children’s family and neighborhood are situated contribute to children’s learning. regarding learning, children who were born in a different country from the one where they are currently educated, face the challenge of being in a school that promotes different cultural values from their home country culture. for example, a child born in saudi arabia who was relocated to the united states would be shocked to see women and men working together in the same school and participating in coeducational classrooms. because males and females attend different schools in saudi arabia, this aspect of american culture would be unfamiliar. thus, communication between parents and teachers becomes essential for bridging cultural differences and for promoting understanding. importantly, children can use play to express their feelings and understandings. in addition to bronfenbrenner’s theory, lev vygotsky’s sociocultural theory provides a lens for the importance of language and culture. vygotsky also emphasizes the role of adults in enhancing children’s learning. lev vygotsky’s sociocultural theory. vygotsky (1978; 1986) believed learning took place within children’s zone of proximal development. berk (2013) defined the zone of proximal development as a “range of tasks too difficult for the child to do alone but possible with the help of adults and more skilled peers” (p. 267). in play, the meaning of words takes the place of objects, and daily oral language develops (einarsdottir, 2014). during play, learners interact in social settings and use their culture’s psychological tool, which is language. these interactions, as described by vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, stretch children’s way of thinking, a factor that helps to improve language acquisition. according to bodrova (2008), an approach based on vygotsky’s theory suggests that “young children can master necessary prerequisites of academic skills through engagement in mature make‐believe play” (p. 357). isenberg and jalongo (1997) suggest, “everyone knows that children learn from their teachers, but it literally turns education on its head to consider the other direction the many ways that teachers can and must learn from children and families” (p. 6). thus, when teachers observe https://www.apa.org/education/k12/high-five 69 children’s play, they learn about children’s culture and language, and they become better able to enhance children’s learning. like bronfenbrenner, vygotsky thought learning could not be separated from its social context (bodrova & leong, 1996). while children play with props (e.g., toys or objects), they engage in beneficial cultural practices (miller, 2011). play in classrooms provides ample opportunity for “learning as a natural by-product of involvement in tasks with adults or more competent peers” (miller, 2011, p. 175). thus, teachers remain an instrumental part of children’s play activities. examples of responsibilities of teachers are explained in the following section. different teacher responsibilities help children to build higher levels of thinking. what are the different roles of adults when children play? adults engage in multiple roles that can enhance children’s play and benefit their learning. although preparing the materials for play is an important role for adults, they also assume other key responsibilities: facilitating, role modeling, and scaffolding children’s play. and, as teachers observe children playing with the materials they prepared, they learn and plan to enhance (i.e., scaffold) children’s future play. teachers plan and prepare materials for children’s play. props remain essential for creating viable play environments in early education classrooms. props, or items used by children to make play scenarios realistic, become integral because they facilitate make-believe or dramatic play. without props, children’s play activities become less creative and productive. as gupta (2009) explains, it is possible to let children participate in projects where they design and employ props. one of the authors used a strategy to involve children in planning their dramatic play center in a saudi classroom. first, children labeled who they wanted to be. this required negotiation and compromise with other children. the author used role necklaces to help children identify what role/character their friend assumed as well as to identify their pretend role/character for others. teachers can brainstorm themes and ideas for play scenarios before they gather materials to use as props (e.g., phones or cash registers) and costumes (hall, 2015). because they handle props to make their play authentic and mature, young learners may require the assistance of their teachers. as adult role models, teachers “need to model how to use props in a symbolic way, gradually expanding the repertoire of different uses of the same object” (leong & bodrova, 2012, p. 32). for example, in the saudi classroom, the teacher may provide new and unconventional props, removing the more popular ones like plastic fried eggs. while students at higher levels may need to create new props, those in lower levels may modify their existing props to perform other functions. for instance, the teacher may request the learners to utilize the same props they used to create a dog, to come up with a dalmatian. many teaching strategies used by preschool and kindergarten teachers include making signs, building play sets from cardboard boxes, and using other materials that are symbolic representations. hence, prop usage, as a teaching strategy, improves the quality of dramatic play for children. 70 when teachers observe children playing with these props, they gain an inside look at children’s culture. this is especially true when the teacher is not a member of any of the children’s cultures (i.e., their macrosystem according to bronfenbrenner). this was the case when one of the authors co-created a child development center for two-to-six-year old children in south africa. the author brought or made many materials for the children, and then she witnessed how children engaged with those materials. she took photographs of children’s play and later learned the meaning of that play from adult members of the children’s culture. one example is detailed. an annual event in tampa, florida called gasparilla features a parade, where one can collect a multitude of free strands of beads. the author collected beads from the parade in the united states and brought them to the child development center in south africa. her “american lens” expected children, and especially females, to wear the beads as a fashion statement. however, this did not occur. instead, it was only the boys who put on the beads; then, they began to dance and chant. after observing for some time, one of the girls, who was an immigrant from a different country in africa, put strands of beads around her neck and joined the boys in dancing and chanting. the boys stopped dancing; laughing so hard, they fell to the ground. one of the boys then went to her, took her hands, and said, “if you want to dance, we can dance like this.” he proceeded to lead her in “western style dancing.” the author shared photographs of the episode, and she attempted to hum the tune she heard with someone who was a member of that culture. the woman said, “oh, yes!” she proceeded to translate the chant and told her why it was not appropriate for a girl to dance with the boys. because the girl was from a different african country, she also was not familiar with that cultural practice. episodes like this helped the author to get inside the children’s culture. it helped her to understand why some environmental conditions were expected, and how she could provide tools to help children to express their learning in culturally appropriate ways. teachers facilitate and scaffold children’s play. in a more directive role, teachers not only plan and prepare the classroom environment, they also explain and discuss lesson objectives as well as monitor and evaluate the results (leong & bodrova, 2012). facilitating children’s play. in one of the author’s classrooms in saudi arabia, the teachers prepared artifacts and materials to support children’s play related to the theme for that week, which was the bakery. the teachers placed dress-up clothes such as a chef’s hat and materials such as oil, flour, bowls and spoons in the house area. they also created a checklist to assess children for their understanding of this theme. the checklist included items such as naming the ingredients for making bread. children from the united states who entered this preschool setting probably would not be familiar with how fresh bread was made. it might be more culturally relevant for them to have a frying pan and spatula available to pretend they were making hamburgers. leong and bodrova (2012) mentioned that a teacher may need to take a role in the play to enrich it when it has become “stale” (p. 33). for example, when the children pretended that they were at a restaurant, the teacher later called to make a reservation. thus, children, framed by their 71 cultural lens, play and interact with materials and peers in particular ways. however, teachers can also engage and enhance their play without taking over in a primary role. through careful observation, teachers and children from outside the dominant culture can learn from this play. likewise, teachers may facilitate children’s play by providing a structure for their activities. often, this means that teachers, parents, or older peers act as guides, helping children to make decisions and to solve problems. for example, in the saudi classroom, if the child wanted to make bread and there was not flour at the center, the adult would ask the child what could be done to get the flour. facilitators stay outside of play areas for the most part, and they add materials and ideas only as needed or requested (jones & reynolds, 2011). teachers prepare the place and provide it with necessary materials, walk around the center, and ask the children exploratory questions to help them to expand their play and to discover resolutions. teachers support children’s ability to problem-solve during their play. scaffolding children’s play. scrafton and whitington (2015) describe scaffolding as adult support that helps children do things they cannot accomplish on their own. scaffolding is most beneficial when adults support children to access play, particularly when some of them are not actively participating. wasik and jacobi-vessels (2016) believe the critical role of adults in children's play is to scaffold the learning of children without directing the children's play. leong and bodrova (2012) mentioned that to remind children of new vocabulary, the teacher can take a secondary role such as patient or customer and make a request from the children as they act out the main role (e.g., a doctor). therefore, by assuming a role in dramatic play, teachers can scaffold children’s learning without directing the play. in a saudi arabia classroom, the author watched as a child evidenced trouble completing his tower in the block center, so he said, "i want to make a big tower as a kingdom center tower, but my tower keeps falling down." the author asked him, "why do you think the tower is not staying up?” and “what do you need to fix it?" then the child started to put all the bigger blocks on the bottom. then the author continued to ask him, "could you think of another way to make it stay up?” this illustration shows how teachers’ questions can provoke children’s thinking. critically, without explicitly telling a child what to do, the teacher’s question helps the child to solve a problem through play. answers are not simply “right” or “wrong.” instead, children experience the opportunity to try, and if that does not work, to try again, and if that does not work, they will then try again. perhaps these experiences encourage children to develop growth mindsets and to persist when they encounter future challenges (dweck, 2006). teachers as role models. while facilitators guide children from a distance, role models get in close and do the same activities as the children. they show the children what to do and how to do it. jones and reynolds (2011) described role models as frequent players who enjoy relationship building and content enrichment with their students. the reasons for entering their play are to help children get started with new or unfamiliar materials or to help them through difficult social experiences. to help children make progress in this manner, the adult models play strategies (e.g., entry), so children trust them as co-players. 72 for example, when a newcomer attends class, the teacher may want to support that child’s entry into play. while one of the authors was standing and watching the children in her saudi classroom playing at centers, she saw a child standing off to the side of the dramatic play center. the child seemed unsure about how to participate with others. the author talked to the child and pretended she was a neighbor who had come for tea. the author then sat down at the table and invited the reluctant child to serve her a tea. in the united states, for example, the week before or after thanksgiving, the teacher might ask a reluctant child if he or she would like to make a thanksgiving dinner. she would invite the child to tell what they should cook for their thanksgiving dinner. other children would be likely to join after the reluctant child decided the meal, and the teacher announced their intention. the teacher would allow the children to proceed with their own ideas for preparing the meal. as soon as teachers see the newcomer has been accepted into the play environment, they would step out of the situation and encourage the children’s play to progress. adults support children’s play and learning when they direct, facilitate, and model responsibility. leong and bodrova (2012) described “propels,” an acronym for plan, roles, props, extended time, language, and scenario. propels is a method used by early childhood educators to determine the level of mature play taking place in their classrooms. the acronym propels can be explained as follows: • planthe potential of children to think about play before it starts. • roles children playthe collection of expressions (verbal, emotional, etc.) that children make when acting out a role. • propsthe various items or objects that are used by children when playing. • extended time framethe time taken by a play activity, over and above that which has been allocated, mostly taking several hours or days. • languagethe verbal utterances made by children when playing a certain role and coordinating their actions with their counterparts. • scenariothe situation that is acted by children, which is characterized by role playing according to a given script. thus, the intention is not for teachers to direct children’s play. instead of controlling the play, they provoke children’s thinking and helping them to take the initiative to play together. a gentle question or a hint about a situation is all that is needed to help the group of children to launch their own ideas and to build upon them. supporting academic skills in dramatic play leong and bodrova (2012) declared that “mature make-believe play is an important and unique context, providing opportunities to learn not afforded by other classroom activities” (p. 34). thus, it is natural to suggest that dramatic play can be implemented to enhance and enrich curriculum and instruction (e.g., writing and literacy). writing instruction. because of dramatic play, early learners begin to appreciate the meaningfulness of the printed word. these children enjoy printing words that give their everyday 73 life purpose. peterson (2015) notes that some children, who are reluctant to write in class settings, are satisfied by printing words in the context of their play ‘worlds.’ this is true because when children write while playing, they fulfill a purpose that is meaningful to their needs. for example, a teacher encourages the children to write when they write a prescription when playing a doctor role, or reading the product packaging at a pretend drugstore, or interpreting a map while travelling. they embed literate behaviors in their play. as an instructional practice, it is important because it promotes children’s understanding of text and early writing development. peterson (2015) indicates dramatic play that involves writing benefits a culturally relevant pedagogy. children engaged in play often integrate home and cultural knowledge into their writing as they create play themes associated with their cultures. with the guidance of adults, children explore the benefits of dramatic play in the development of their writing abilities (harden, 2015). in terms of the products of writing in dramatic play sessions, functional purposes become evident. for example, ihmeideh (2015) asserts “when children engage in dramatic play activities, they experience realistic settings and functional reasons for using print” (p. 252). peterson (2015) labels the signs used in association with these play activities as ‘environmental print.’ a main function of environmental print is to provide a range and variety of contextual information for the children as they play with props in centers and/or scenarios. observers report some children create their own unique letter and word writing while they are engaged in dramatic play scenarios. for example, one of the saudi authors had a food theme one week, so all the lessons and activities that week related to food. she turned the dramatic play center into a grocery store and asked children who engaged in that center to write a shopping list. she noticed most of the shopping lists contained rice and chicken. this is because saudi’s national meal, "kabsa", consists of these ingredients. children in the united states might include items such as hot dogs and apples; whereas children in south africa might include bread and biltong (a beef jerky) in their list of items. creating lists helps children to see writing as a means, not just as an end. they begin to understand how language works. boyle and charles (2010) utilized a case study to investigate the effect of socio-dramatic play on the support of the beginning writer. they found that in writing/spelling lessons involving teacher-facilitated ‘scribing,’ young students gained early writing skills to hone as emerging writers. thus, preschool and kindergarten teachers, who develop writing instruction, always consider the utility of making play activities include functional purpose. literacy instruction. literacy instruction, complemented by dramatic play activities in early education settings, prove successful. as sharp, escalante, and anderson (2012) state, “the arts, and specifically the dramatic arts, promote increased oral language development, reading readiness, reading achievement, comprehension, and writing skills” (p. 1). consequently, dramatic play serves as a perfect medium for literacy instruction. 74 harden (2016) found that by creating literacy-linked activities in a classroom of four-tofiveyear-old children, she could create a setting of dramatic tension. this prompted the children’s active participation. moreover, the children in this study found meaning in signs and cards used in dramatic play centers designed for literacy instruction. hence, these findings show the importance of using dramatic play scenarios to pose literacy-linked activities that support children in reading, writing, and language arts. moreover, preschool and kindergarten teachers often use the environment to explore student’s literacy needs. roskos and christie (2011) describe how an environment that enriches literacy (e.g., an area for creative drama) promotes literacy behaviors in students. for instance, in the saudi classroom, the teacher places items in a model fridge, with unreal food in plastic containers. all the items that may be found in a kitchen are provided, including a bin, menus, cereal boxes, and others so that it looks like a real kitchen. the teacher then invites the children to create shopping lists in their books. the children assume family roles such as father or mother, purchase the food from the ‘center’, and begin ‘cooking’. as the children perform the activities, they learn to read and pronounce the names of the various foods. children practice by reading the menus or cereal boxes, and then writing the same items on the shopping lists. finally, the children read aloud their shopping lists as their colleagues listen. in helping children to develop concepts and language, it is critical teachers make a connection between literacy and children's life experiences (wasik & jacobi-vessels, 2016). thus, the separation between learning and play disappears. this symbolic representation is meaningful because this is truly child-initiated. implications and conclusions considering this discussion, it is highly advisable preschool and kindergarten teachers focus on strengthening the developmental domains (cognitive, social and emotional, speech and language, fine motor skill, and gross motor skill developments); this can be achieved through children’s dramatic play scenarios. when the social, cultural, and academic benefits to young minds are witnessed, more teachers might be willing to incorporate dramatic play into their daily classroom activities. furthermore, when parents, concerned about academic standards, see the benefits documented, they will also appreciate the value of dramatic play. increasing the amount of dramatic play in the early education classroom is important for building common ground between children with culturally diverse backgrounds. scrafton and whitington (2015) believe when preschoolers build meaning with peers during play, they can overcome “cultural, linguistic, racial, and religious differences between their home culture and preschool” (p. 213). knowing this, early childhood educators can develop curriculum and lessons that reflect cultural diversity during play activities. playing together, children can learn about each other culturally and socially. therefore, one of the goals of dramatic play in the classroom is improving peer 75 relationships among classmates from different backgrounds. dramatic play also improves children’s daily oral language and literacy skills. through dramatic play, teachers assume the responsibility to support children in the development of these oral language and literacy skills. as ihmeideh (2015) insists, “play allows children to build and extend their knowledge and skills as they interact with their environment, with others, and on their own” (p. 250). believing this to be true, most educators strive to support play environments where children can grow and develop on a day-to-day basis. in conclusion, the main implication of this review is that dramatic play has benefits for children’s language and skill development, and further, dramatic play supports inclusion in culturally diverse environments. also, it is important to note how well dramatic play and dramatic play centers facilitate learning in developmental domains, support writing in authentic contexts, and positively impact curriculum and instruction. when young children play, teachers and other adults realize children are learning many new skills and abilities in a meaningful context. encouraging dramatic play in early childhood serves to fortify children’s learning and development. as children play in a mature fashion, they become literate participants in an academic environment, where active and authentic learning occur. thus, the power of dramatic play supports the success of early childhood education and children’s academic skill development. teachers’ observations and subsequent actions become integral to optimize play for children’s learning and development. through dramatic play, teachers learn about children’s culture. this is especially important when that child’s culture is not one the teacher shares. therefore, learning from dramatic play is bi-directional and cyclical; and most importantly, play and learning are not opposites. 76 references berk, l. e. 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(2016). word play: scaffolding language development through child-directed play. early childhood education journal, 45, 769-776. ijwc spring 2020 64 ijwc spring 2020 65 ijwc spring 2020 66 ijwc spring 2020 67 ijwc spring 2020 68 ijwc spring 2020 69 ijwc spring 2020 70 ijwc spring 2020 71 ijwc spring 2020 72 ijwc spring 2020 73 ijwc spring 2020 74 ijwc spring 2020 75 ijwc spring 2020 76 ijwc spring 2020 77 27 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 international teacher perspectives on quality in ece: a case study julie chappella, judit szenteb auniversity of south florida, buniversity of central florida julie chappell, m.a. is a graduate teaching assistant in the college of education at the university of south florida, tampa. her former experiences include teaching in elementary, high school, voluntary prekindergarten and programs supporting children with special needs. her research interests include global and comparative education and program evaluation. she is currently pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education. dr. judit szente is professor of early childhood development and education at the university of central florida. she is passionate about global issues in early childhood and early childhood teacher education. she participated in international teaching/learning programs in bulgaria, denmark, england, ethiopia, finland, hungary, italy, japan, the united states, and co-directs study abroad programs for undergraduate and graduate students. abstract the goal of early childhood programming is to provide children with high-quality early care and to support educators’ understanding and ability to implement high-quality practices on behalf of children and their families. quality in early childhood care is an ambiguous concept, relative to various social and context-specific factors, making it difficult to define in standardized terms. a classroom teacher’s proximity to decisions in the early childhood classroom validates the need for teacher perceptions to be considered in practices regarding high-quality care. this paper presents a comparative case study that sought to explore teacher perspectives of high-quality care from two nations, finland and the united states, and examined how these perspectives differed or aligned across the influences of culture. using an interpretivist design for qualitative research methods, preschool and early year teacher participants completed pre-surveys in which they rated various indicators of quality. survey responses guided semi-structured interviews. additionally, participants discussed photographs of classroom and school activities that they felt exhibited quality. in vivo and values coding were used to analyze the interview data and generate themes in which teachers described high quality. generating from both participant groups, the analysis resulted in various themes, such as child-centered classrooms, physical environment, 28 and highly educated teachers. while language and terminology differed, teachers in finland and the united states valued similar indicators of high-quality early programs. keywords: comparative, high-quality, early years, early childhood introduction high quality early childhood education is recognized as leading to positive outcomes for children as well as economic benefits to society (nores, belfield, barnett, & schweinhart, 2005). however, scholars warn against a universal definition of high-quality early care. nearly two decades ago, dahlberg, moss and pence (1999) recognized the importance of understanding early childhood education as more than predictable and controlled, as implied by the language of quality. quality continues to be an ambiguous term, including both objective and subjective factors that are relative to values, beliefs, and needs of various stakeholders (cryer, tietze, & wessels, 2002; barros & leal, 2015). as a socially constructed concept (dahlberg et al., 1999), the term quality lacks a definitive conceptualization. by assuming a cross national investigation of teachers’ perceptions, this study aims to situate quality as a culturally and socially interpreted term while exploring possible associations or similarities among teachers’ views of high-quality early care. since measures of quality continue to be used to determine what is important in the early childhood classroom, teachers’ perceptions of quality remain essential. specifically, the focus of this paper, referred to in finland as early childhood education and care (ecec), occurs before children enter primary education, between the ages of one and six. a distinction is made between preschool teachers (teachers of pre-primary children at the age of six) and kindergarten or ecec teachers (teachers of children between the ages of one and five) (finnish national agency for education, 2018). in the united states, early childhood education (ece), most often referred to as preschool, occurs between birth and age five, after which children enter their compulsory education as kindergarteners in primary schools. the vast majority of states offer free voluntary prekindergarten for four-year-old children. the purpose of this study is to investigate components of high-quality care from the perspectives of teachers representing finland and the united states. in focusing on teachers’ perceptions, teachers become the knowledgeable experts in providing high-quality care. this study begins to describe how cultural and social factors affect and shape perceptions of high-quality care by exploring differences and similarities of teachers’ beliefs. the findings of this study begin to provide a valuable understanding of the global construction of quality from the viewpoint of educators as important stakeholders in the early childhood classroom setting. 29 research questions the following research question guided this study: (1) how do teacher perceptions of quality compare between early childhood teachers in the united states and finland? within the guiding research question, two sub-questions emerged as: (2) which aspects of quality do teachers in the united states and finland place the most value? and (3) what role, if any, does culture and society have in teacher perceptions of quality in the united states and finland? literature review conceptual framework this study seeks to understand teacher perceptions through comparative and socio-cultural perspectives. comparative education involves utilizing a critical lens to explore educational practices and policies from different countries and cultures (clarkson, 2009). the increasingly global society in which we live provides impetus for educators, researchers, and practitioners to examine not only relationships with the wider society, but as well to critically reflect on our own educational systems and practices by increasing our knowledge and understanding of systems and practices that differ. epstein (2017) explains while the field is influenced by many disciplines, the key indicator of comparative education is the desire for an understanding of global education. for this reason, the current study seeks to view comparative education through a socio-cultural lens. socio-cultural theory is grounded in the work of lev vygotsky and suggests that our interactions and experiences become largely influenced by the culture in which we live and interact with others. specifically, vygotsky’s (1980) sociocultural theory proposes it is the signs and tools in our environment that initiate social contact with others. thus, learning or internalizing, is initially an external, cultural and social activity that becomes part of the individual. it is through this lens of socio-cultural influences that the current study intends to explore teachers’ perceptions of quality care. quality in early childhood in a generally defined way, quality is considered from structural and process indicators. structural indicators include the characteristics of a classroom that can be regulated, such as staff qualifications and ratios, licensing policies, and facility and maintenance requirements. process indicators represent the everyday interactions, experiences, and relationships occurring in an early childhood environment. while structural and process indicators remain distinct, structural indicators do effect certain process indicators; for example, wages and teacher education evidence as structural indicators to influence process indicators (cassidy et al., 2005). quality as a broad concept poses difficulties in providing a universal measure of quality. quality measurement tools such as the classroom assessment scoring system (class), early 30 childhood environment rating scale – revision (ecers-r), caregiver interaction scale (cis), and the association for childhood educational international’s global guidelines assessment evaluate different facets of quality indicators. after reviewing 11 quality measurement tools with the intention of analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of each, along with the sustainability of the tools in an international context, ishmine and tayler (2014) conclude that among the tools evaluated, many lacked some of the core elements of quality to be considered important. more relevantly, the researchers note that the purpose of quality assessment measures remains critical to support and provide feedback to teachers in developing and planning curriculum and interactions (cottle & alexander, 2012; ishmine & tayler, 2014). harrist, thompson and norris (2007) evaluated parent and caregiver perspectives on the quality of childcare using formal rating methods, much like rentzou (2012) demonstrated in comparing researcher and practitioner ratings of quality. evaluations of quality, as previously mentioned, continue to be subjectively based upon the purposes and priorities of the stakeholder. woodhead (1998) called for a contextually based approach to examining quality, as “there are many different potential criteria of quality which are closely linked to beliefs about the goals and functions of programmes” (p. 11). a teacher’s obvious proximity to decisions regarding the early childhood environment underscores the critical importance of teachers’ perceptions of quality in the classroom. national contexts finland. the early childhood educational systems in finland and the united states continue to be influenced by the various structures, policies, social and cultural contexts unique to each nation. education in finland is viewed as a basic human right for all and is reflected by the nature of a free schooling, even through both vocational and university levels (kangaslahti, 2013; havu-nuutinen & niikko, 2014; finnish national agency for education, 2018). although the ministry of education and culture, oversees finish education, educational system decisions are made collaboratively between all stakeholders, including policy makers, professionals in the field of education, teachers, parents, and sometimes even students (kangaslahti, 2013). municipalities themselves remain responsible for the operating of schools; principals at each school are given the authority to manage individual schools, typically in collaboration with teachers (national center on education and the economy [ncee], 2015). at the classroom level, teachers demonstrate the freedom to construct the learning environment, choose learning materials, and set the curriculum (kangaslahti, 2013). turunen, määttä, and uusiautti (2012) discuss how curriculum is “always part of cultural and political zeitgeist of the society in which it is written; the curricula in early childhood are also tightly connected to national societal goals” (p. 586). at the time of the current study, the national curriculum guidelines on early childhood education and care served as the relevant curriculum document for ecec in finland (in finland published in finnish in 2003 and english in 2005). the purposes of the national curriculum guidelines on early childhood education and care in finland include: to provide equal opportunities for education across the country, to evidence developmental activities, and to introduce uniform principles. emphasis is placed on the child’s well-being, care and health, play, exploration, physical activities, and language 31 (national research and development center for welfare and health, 2005; havu-nuutinen & niikko, 2014). the new national core curriculum for ecec was released after study completion. while the new curriculum is considered a standard rather than a guideline, local municipalities continue to maintain authority to develop their own curricula based from the new core curriculum. kangaslahti (2013) cautions that the finnish educational system (or any other national system) cannot merely be copied into another cultural context, though it does provide an important example. the finnish ecec system is highly dependent on the cultural factors of equality, trust, and responsibility, the high quality of teachers, and the research-based pedagogy of child-centeredness and care. united states. current united states ece policy evidences historical roots beginning in the 1960s. many early childhood programs originated as a response to the war on poverty initiatives in the mid-1960s and the economic opportunity act of 1964 (winter & kelley, 2008), initially developed to target high-risk, impoverished, and economically and socially disadvantaged children. in 1989, the national educational goals 2000 introduced the goal of education as producing an improved workforce, thus highlighting the top-down need for children to be better prepared for school (winter & kelley, 2008). neuman (2015) writes about the current policy goals, including a focus on improving the quality of early childhood programs and providing equitable access to quality programs for supporting children from lower socio-economic areas. an emerging focus of early childhood programs in the united states is the idea of school readiness, preparing children for formal schooling in kindergarten, resulting in policy makers becoming more fixated on the long-term investment of early care (brooks & murray, 2018). debruin and slutzky (2016) explored the early learning standards across the different states in the u.s., noting the variance in standards alignment to age and grade level ranges. evans (2013) acknowledged the pre-primary approach to school readiness, commonly found in the united states, primarily focuses on child outcomes, standards-based models, and basic academic skills required for school. methodology design the study used a comparative case study approach to data collection and analysis. case studies become useful when a researcher seeks to investigate a particular group of individuals, program or techniques (lichtman, 2013). this study most aligns with the case study views illustrated by sharan merriam and robert stake, which assume the constructivist lens of epistemology (yazan, 2015). yazan (2015) explains both merriam and stake understand reality is constructed, multiple viewpoints exist, and researchers remain interpreters of information; researchers construct their own meaning from the findings, although merriam also acknowledges the influences of researchers views on the interpretations. following an interpretivist paradigm in design, the aim is to develop deep, comprehensive understanding of topics through multiple perspectives (mackenzie & knipe, 2006). thanh and thanh (2015) explain the interpretivist as one that values subjectivity and dismisses universal standards of human behavior and research. 32 in this study, a rich understanding of quality from two varying cultures and various individuals supports the interpretivist design. sample the inclusion criteria for teacher participants was solely limited to current classroom teachers working in an early childhood setting that taught in finland. this included kindergarten (ages birth to five) and pre-primary (age six) teachers, and in the united states this included infant, toddler and preschool teachers (ages birth to five). the three teacher participants in finland represent three different centers, each with varying local contexts, school specific goals and structures. one finnish teacher participant was from a pre-primary class within a primary school, and the other two teachers interacted with children in kindergartens with children through the age of five years of age. in the united states, both teacher participants were in preschool classrooms with children ages three and four. the two teacher participants from the u.s. were also at the same school. demographic data on the teachers were not deemed pertinent to the current study and thus not collected from participants; however, each participant was a qualified teacher with a bachelor or master’s degree in teaching the specific age group with which they worked. procedures the total number of participants in the study was five: three early years teachers residing in finland and two preschool teachers in the united states. an exemplary sampling method was used to request participation from individuals at schools and early care centers in finland connected with a partnering university through a study abroad program during the spring semester of 2016. before the program began, directors or principals were emailed study permission requests. the final sample of finnish participants included three early childhood teachers from three different centers, with two of the interviews approved for audio-recording. exemplary sampling was again used in the united states during the spring semester of 2018 as participants were also sought from a child-care center connected to the university. the center director was contacted and emailed study permission requests, along with the pre-surveys for teachers to complete ahead of time. the two interviews conducted were audio recorded. data collection in order to answer the research questions, data were collected in the form of pre-surveys, interviews, researcher notes and audio-transcriptions, and photo elicitations when available. the setting for each interview varied depending on the availability of space. in finland, two of the interviews were conducted in a space used by children during the interview (a hallway and a dining and play area). the last interview in finland was conducted in a classroom kitchen area that children were not using at the time. in the united states, both interviews were conducted in teacher workspaces. the interview lengths also varied depending on time availability and ranged from eight to 45 minutes. each teacher (representing finland and u.s.) used their teacher preparation and/or break time to complete the interview. prior to the interview, teachers completed a pre-survey in which they rated indicators of quality based on the association for childhood education international (acei) global guidelines assessment (gga). the results of the survey guided the interview questions. the pre-survey also provided space for teachers to 33 input their own indicators of high quality they felt were not included in the gga. semistructured interviews focused on the indicators rated as most important as well as any additional indicators provided by the participant. in addition, teachers in finland were given a camera and asked to walk through the center and take pictures of ideas they thought illustrated high-quality. teachers in the united states had pictures prepared for the interview session. during the interviews, the first author also jotted down notes to highlight salient points made by interviewees. these notes were added to the transcripts, but were not coded if directly redundant with other codes found in the interviewee’s transcription. it is also pertinent to note that only two of the three finnish interviews were audio recorded. the third interview was documented by note taking. for this reason, the coding of this interview only included values coding, as verbatim quotes cannot be verified. both interviews conducted with u.s. teachers were audio recorded and research notes were limited to clarifying questions. data analysis in order to answer the research questions, inductive, open coding was used to eliminate researcher preconceptions and focus on emergent concepts generated within the data (lin, 2013). to satisfy the purposes of the research, two different coding methods were used in the first cycle coding analysis. since the primary focus of the research was to understand the teacher perceptions of high-quality early childcare, in vivo coding was utilized to honor each participant’s voice and ideas (miles, huberman, & saldaña, 2014). this was particularly vital in this study as the researcher only speaks english and participants from finland spoke english as a second language. the second first cycle coding method applied was a variation of values coding, which is appropriate in studies that wish to convey a participant’s values, attitudes and beliefs. (miles et al., 2014; saldaña, 2009). however, during the values coding process, the decision was made to replace the code of ‘belief’ to ‘practice.’ this change was made during a peer and mentor evaluation session, and documented in the auditable decision trail, to provide a more accurate description and richer analysis of the photo elicitation piece of the interview that focused on aspects of the interviewee’s current practices that they perceived to display highquality. values coding in this study included attitudes (defined as participants’ thoughts or feelings about aspects of quality), values (defined as aspects of quality that participants place value), and practices (defined as activities the participants do to promote or show high-quality). after transcribing and coding the interviews (in vivo and values coding), each code was summarized into a short concept and then labeled with one of the emerging themes. results emergent themes category and theme names from each set of interviews were chosen independent of each other, and then similar categories and themes were merged. figure 1 below displays the emergent themes generated from the data analysis. eight themes, as shown in the double-sided arrow, were common between both finnish and u. s. teachers, while other themes were specific to each country. 34 figure 1. emergent themes. this figure illustrates the common and country-specific themes developed through data analysis. common emergent themes environment. the environment theme was the largest with multiple sub-categories. each of the finnish teachers commented on the importance of a flexible and adaptable environment based on children’s interests. teachers described the physical environment and materials as needing to be “inspiring,” “clean,” “secure,” and “interesting,” as well as to “motivate” and have “space.” as co-constructors of the environment, the children’s needs and interests drive the room arrangement and materials presented. as it will be discussed later, part of a teacher’s role is actively listening to children, which includes creating spaces with and for children that will engage them, lead to social interactions, and promote their well-being. the teachers from the united states highlighted predictable expectations and routines as important to the environment, and further described the physical environment itself as promoting independence. critically, the physical environment promotes children’s ability to flexibly move items about the classroom; children access resources without asking for a teacher’s assistance. interactions. child-child and teacher-child interactions were included in the final interviews. one interviewee noted that teacher-child interactions are the “basis for everything.” this is supported by other statements that teachers should “not be absent” but rather be present in their interactions with young children. one-on-one time with children is valued, despite difficulties of large classes. child-child interactions are supported by teachers that facilitate problem solving when needed. one u.s. teacher emphasized the value of nurturing teacher-child interactions in creating a foundation for later learning. pedagogy and experience. during the final interviews, participants were asked about what influenced their decision-making regarding high quality care; respondents identified education and experience. the teachers described their multiple education degrees and years of experience working with children, including the years to achieve their degrees. the term pedagogy was chosen as an emerging theme rather than education or studies, because it better captures the essence of how the teachers described their educational experiences. one interviewee elaborated that teachers should continually research, update their knowledge and apply new pedagogical knowledge to their teaching. part of this included communicating with colleagues and sharing ideas, which was included in this emergent theme. 35 child-centered. child-centeredness was a theme for both teachers from the u.s. and finland. although the term was not specifically used when discussing children, the theme was woven into aspects of the teacher’s role and the environment. for example, interviewees in finland described that teachers should “look after the child’s benefit” and that the “child is in the center” of the environment. in finland, the teachers viewed child-centeredness as the ability of children to make their own choices and make decisions about the classroom and their own learning. one interviewee stated that children “are to be the adults” in planning and creating an environment for themselves. furthermore, the furniture and materials should be child sized and appropriate for the children’s age and development. in the teacher interviews (u.s.), child-centeredness focused on the importance of listening to children’s interests in order to guide activities and support learning topics. using a project approach, one class in the u.s. chose to explore airplanes by testing paper airplanes, dramatizing plane rides, and learning about the various roles of airline employees. moreover, one of the teachers representing the u.s. explained “quality education doesn’t necessarily mean that…teachers have to own every moment.” the teacher goes on to explain that unstructured movement, play or outside time is important for children to experience. respect. while following the codes for child-centered, the word respect was repeated time and again. it became evident that a distinction would need to be made between statements that focused on applications of child-centeredness (a teacher following children’s interests in planning activities, or children’s abilities to make choices about what they want to do, as described above) and statements about valuing children’s input and their contributions to the classroom. for example, one of the teachers in the u.s. explains that children’s attempts at learning, prior knowledge and feelings should be respected. the teacher discussed how children are competent enough to make choices about who they do and do not want to hug, or how they want to be greeted in the morning. in the same sense, the finnish interviewees valued children’s agency, and commented that children should be trusted. the whole child. the emergence of the whole child was developed particularly as a subset of many of the other themes such as the teacher’s role, child-centered and the environment. as the interviewees representing finland discussed aspects of quality that were easily coded into the theme of environment, the participants also explored the ideas of supporting the child’s entire well-being with areas for rest and food, cleanliness and safety. the terms “nurture” and “wellbeing” and “emotion” were mentioned in discussing the teacher’s interactions with children, and that “the care has always been more important than the education of the teaching aspect of early childhood education.” the child’s emotional development and holistic well-being were discussed as being more important than academic knowledge and teaching. the interviewees from the u.s. discussed supporting the whole child in ways such as role-playing conflict resolution, using job charts to help children feel ownership, and making sure children have moments that are just pure and happy. teacher’s role. both the finnish and u.s. interviewees shared a variety of roles that are vital for educators. the teacher’s role was described by a finnish interviewee as “the very heart of this work comes from…the ethic and values that we have as being the…adults that raise the children 36 here;” the role encompasses the teacher’s attitude, interactions, education and knowledge, listening skills and flexibility. the teachers from finland discussed practices such as setting up the environment with the children, focusing on the “care and the nurture,” facilitating problem solving and social skills with children, listening actively and being present with them, and applying knowledge of pedagogy to the selection of classroom materials and adapting to the needs of children. the finnish participants believed teachers do not merely attain knowledge of early childhood education; rather, they possess the years of experience and understanding of how to use the e.c. knowledge in the classroom. teachers should be able to provide engaging materials and spend time with children in one-on-one sessions. another role of the teacher involves planning and incorporating cross-curricular activities that meet the needs and interests of all children. the interviewees from the u.s. mentioned roles such as modeling positive language, helping children to feel good about coming to school, guiding social and emotional learning, multitasking, using teachable moments effectively, and, “always being proactive,” to ensure that children know the expectations and can begin to self-regulate. society. the theme of society, not initially seen as a direct indicator of quality, emerged as the participants spoke about how society views teaching. in terms of providing high-quality care, it is inferred that the teachers valued their autonomy in the classroom, even though society may not. while asking about cultural influences, one of the interviewees in finland responded by describing the contrast between what teachers experience of the complexities of teaching and how she perceived society to view teaching. this participant mentioned that teachers are underappreciated and people outside of education do not know what it is like, stating, “they don’t actually know what we do here.” similarly, interviewees in the united states recognized teachers do not often receive credit for the work they do, but believe teachers remain critical to the lives and development of children. a participant from the u.s. said, “we’re trying to squeeze childhood into everything else we’re doing today.” in order to promote high-quality care, it is critical for educators to be valued and respected to demonstrate the freedom and autonomy to make decisions on behalf of the children in their classrooms. finland generated theme family. emerging solely from the finnish interviews were discussions of families and parents. the emergent theme remains simply as “family” because the more specific topics of involvement, engagement, and parental role did not align with all the statements and codes regarding families. teachers spoke slightly of the teacher’s role in meeting with families and valuing their input, but the focus was more on the child’s needs and not the family’s. two of the finnish interviewees alluded to the fact that parents are sometimes “not interested in all those things” such as the day-to-day activities and goals, or that parents are busy and don’t need to be bothered about all the details and specifics. communication with families about their child’s main goals and planning for learning is a sign of quality mentioned in the interviews. u. s. generated themes education. regarding teacher qualifications, the interviewees from the u.s. primarily focused on the need to develop highly educated individuals working with children. for the participants 37 representing the u.s., highly educated also meant teachers were life-long learners participating in continuing education and professional growth opportunities. both interviewees mentioned an article they recently read in order to keep themselves abreast of relevant research and current ideas in early childhood education. some continuing education opportunities teachers mentioned included webinars, classes, and conferences. classroom climate. one of the sub-categories of the environment evolved as a unique theme: classroom climate. this theme generated from statements reported by teachers from the united states. in quality programs, it is critical for children to feel a sense of belonging. employing teacher encouragement, identifying clear and consistent expectations, implementing activities promoting classroom families, and assigning class tasks supporting children’s empowerment and group membership frames classroom climate to develop children’s positive self-images. feelings of safety, in the sense of risk-taking, were grouped with this theme because the teachers explained that if children, “do not feel safe, they are not willing to take chances and learning is a lot of taking chances.” on the contrary, when “a child feels belonging and feels calm and safe, they are able to grow from there.” curriculum. another theme that emerged from the interviewees in the united states included the need for teachers in high-quality programs to provide children with a variety of activities to support learning. while the children’s interests may guide the activities, it is the responsibility of the teacher to plan a variety of experiences that support a child across all learning domains. as one of the u.s. interviewees explained, “children need to be given a variety of experiences…’cause there are all different type learners. they learn in different ways, so we need to give them opportunities to experience things differently.” the teachers from the u.s. stressed that not one single approach works best for all children. thus, the theme of curriculum is not an indicator of using a pre-packaged curriculum model, but rather, facilitating a variety of daily learning experiences across all domains, not forgetting the gross motor domain, experiences that are meaningful to children and their different learning styles. moreover, one interviewee emphasized play as the essential avenue for children’s learning. the teacher stated, “they have to have the building blocks before they can learn to read. and that’s all, running, jumping, playing, talking, singing. it’s got nothing to do with worksheets…” conclusions this study focuses on comparing teachers’ perceptions of high-quality early care among teachers in finland and the united states, seeking to gain insight to the cultural or societal distinctions. as a comparative case study, this research did not aim to generalize teacher perceptions across all of finland or the united states, but rather to provide a voice to the teachers who are often rigidly judged according to the high-quality standards that they provide. in a statement combining perspectives of six experienced early educators from africa, india, europe and the united states, jalongo et al. (2004) explore an earlier version of acei’s global guidelines for the education and care of young children and provide insight that supports the notion of similarities existing in our global view of high-quality early care. in much the same way, this study purports that evaluations of high-quality are not systematic across societies and nations, 38 but this study also values the multiple perspectives that comparative education research can highlight. in addressing the first research question, the analysis of interview data suggests that there are similarities between how finnish and u. s. teachers view high quality care. the attitude of each interviewee was that of excitement, passion, and respect for providing children with the best possible care. common emergent themes included child-centeredness, interactions (focused on teacher-child interactions), the teacher’s role in the classroom, pedagogy and experience of the teacher, respect for children, societal influences, respecting the child, and supporting the whole child. the second research question is addressed in highlighting the differences that existed in terminology used and emphasis on which indicators may be more important to quality. for example, in the finnish data, two teachers spoke of the need for a flexible environment, one that responds to the needs and the interests of the children. in the interviews with teachers from the u.s., the theme of environment focuses on the physical set up and promotion of independence. both the teachers from the u.s. and finland stressed the importance of putting the children first, whether that means supporting their interests in the curriculum or trusting that they can make competent choices. the last research question regarded the influences of teacher perceptions. when asked about possible influences regarding their ideas, both groups of participating teachers described education and experience as influencing their beliefs associated with high quality care and, similarly, both groups recognized and made statements describing the value of childhood. according to one teacher, “we’re trying to squeeze childhood into everything else we’re doing.” society and our way of life seem to be pushing childhood away, primarily by individuals outside the field and decision makers that “don’t actually know what we do.” the teachers felt that the early childhood profession warrants respect and appreciation adequate to justify their making decisions about their classrooms and the children they nurture. limitations qualitatively, a small-scale case study as demonstrated here, has its limitations. teachers were purposively selected as exemplar teachers and because of their connections to university programs. both nations represented are developed, white-european nations and may already represent quality standards that are similar. language was another limitation, as the researcher did not know finnish. although the finnish teachers spoke english well, it is probable that some concepts and ideas were made ambiguous in translation. it is important to also note the role of the researcher in data coding. while in vivo and values coding were selected to enhance the participant’s ideas and values, the researcher ultimately made the final decisions about the emerging themes, and as such, themes are regarded in terms of the researchers’ own vocabulary. furthermore, the emergent themes do not contain an exhaustive list of participant values of highquality. a lack of an emergent theme, for example, the theme of families discussed only by finnish teachers, is not meant to implied as devalued by teachers from the united states. 39 future research this study provides a vital initial step in honoring teacher knowledge and expertise of highquality program standards. teachers from finland and the u.s. recognized their own education, experiences and ideas about pedagogy influence what they valued in the classroom. an important feature of future research would be an analysis of the content of teacher preparation programs in both nations. this would aim to enhance knowledge of cultural and societal influences mentioned by both groups of teachers. since experience was also stated as an influence, it is recommended that future studies on high-quality early care in education employ a sampling method to include a variety of teacher experience levels. acknowledgements special thanks are given to dr. david boote at the university of central florida, college of community innovation and education, for his practice and advice regarding decoding of the interview data and dr. jennifer wolgemuth at the university of south florida, college of education, for her initial feedback and refinement in reporting aspects of the research design. 40 references barros, s., & leal, t.b. (2015). parents’ and teachers’ perceptions of quality in portuguese childcare classrooms. european journal of psychology of education, 30(2), 209-226. brooks, e., & murray, j. (2018). ready, steady, learn: school readiness and children’s voices in english early childhood settings, education 3-13, 46(2), 143-156. doi:10.1080/03004279.2016.1204335 cassidy, d., hestenes, l., hansen, j., hegde, a., shim, j., & hestenes, s. (2005). revisiting the two faces of child care quality: structure and process. early education & development, 16(4), 505-520. clarkson, j. (2009). what is comparative education. in w. bignold & l. gayton (eds.), global issues and comparative education, (pp. 4-17). exeter, england: learning matters. cottle, m., & alexander, e. (2012). quality in early years settings: government, research and practitioners’ perspectives. british educational research journal, 38(4), 635-654. doi:10.1080/01411926.2011.571661 cryer, d., tietze, w., & wessels, h. (2002). parents’ perceptions of their children’s child care: a cross-national comparison. early childhood research quarterly, 17, 259-277. doi:10.1016/s0885-2006(02)00148-5 dahlberg, g., moss, p., & pence, a. (1999). beyond quality in early childhood education and care: postmodern perspectives. london, england: routledge falmer. debruin, p.a., & slutzky, c. (2016). exploring pre-k age 4 learning standards and their role in early childhood education: research and policy implications. ets research reports series, 2016(1), 1-52. epstein, e. h. (2017). is marc-antoine jullien de paris the ‘father’ of comparative education? compare: a journal of comparative and international education, 47(3), 317–331. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2016.1254542 evans, k. (2013). “school readiness”: the struggle for complexity. learning landscapes, 7(1), 171-186. finnish national agency for education. (2018). finnish education in a nutshell. retrieved from https://www.oph.fi/en/statistics-and-publications/publications/finnish-education-nutshell harrist, a. w., thompson, s. d., & norris, d. j. (2007). defining quality childcare: multiple stakeholder perspectives. early education & development, 18(2), 305–336. doi:10.1080/10409280701283106 havu-nuutinen, s., & niikko, a. (2014). finnish primary school as a learning environment for six-year-old preschool children. european early childhood education research journal, 22(5), 621-636. ishmine, k., & tayler, c. (2014). assessing quality in early childhood education and care. european journal of education, 49(2), 272-290. doi:10.1111/ejed.12043 jalongo, m., fennimore, b., pattnaik, j., laverick, d., brewster, j., & mutuku, m. (2004). blended perspectives: a global vision for high-quality early childhood education. early childhood education journal, 32(3), 143–155. https://doi.org/10.1023/b:ecej.0000048966.13626.be kangaslahti, j.k. 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(2015). three approaches to case study methods in education; yin, merriam, and stake. the qualitative report, 20(2), 134-152. ijwc fall 2019-full issue 27 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 28 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 29 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 30 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 31 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 32 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 33 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 34 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 35 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 36 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 37 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 38 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 39 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 40 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 41 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 42 9 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 reflection on practice: pre-service teachers’ reflection and intentional planning to enhance toddlers’ engagement during free play jane seok jeng lima, robyn ridgleyb a-bmiddle tennessee state university dr. jane seok jeng lim is an associate professor in the early childhood program at middle tennessee state university in murfreesboro, tennessee, usa. her research interests include the issue of bullying among underrepresented populations – refugee children; study abroad; and professional development of teachers. she was the former executive director of the association for early childhood educators (singapore) – aeces, sat on the executive board of the association for childhood education international (acei) and is the past president of tennessee acei. dr. robyn ridgley is a professor in early childhood education and interim associate dean in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. formerly, she was a classroom teacher, home visitor, and administrator in an early childhood program. her research focuses on early intervention services for young children with disabilities and strategies for supporting and improving preparation for early childhood professionals. abstract in this paper, early childhood teacher educators describe their work to provide opportunities for pre-service teacher candid ates to engage in specific practices that facilitate reflection and planning related to enhancing toddlers’ engagement during free play. the practices targeted were structured by the instructor and supported by the mentor teacher and included observation; guided written reflection; collective discussion and reflection; and intentional planning. each practice and how it was implemented and completed by the instructor and students are discussed. as a result of participating in the practices, teacher candidates identified several factors they believed impacted toddlers’ engagement during free play. they included location of centers, materials, and other people, variety of materials, adult interaction, and children’s interests, all of which aligned with prior research. implications for practice for pre-service teacher preparation programs and practicing teachers are provided. keywords: toddlers, engagement, free play, teacher preparation 10 the national association for young children (naeyc), a leading early childhood professional organization, has advocated for developmentally appropriate practices (dap) since 1986 (copple & bredekamp, 2009). naeyc’s position statement on dap states that the most powerful influences on how children learn are the teacher’s interactions and relationships with the children and how the teacher addresses classroom planning and organization of learning experiences and the environment (naeyc, 2009). in order for new teachers to be equipped to adequately support young children, pre-service preparation programs must address the multitude of teacher roles, including planning, observing, interacting, directing, scaf folding, reflecting, and ensuring optimal growth and development of young children. high quality implementation of these roles leads to teacher interactions and classroom environments that facilitate the engagement of young children in learning opportunities. toddlers’ engagement during free play engagement has been defined as the time children spend interacting in the environment in developmentally and contextually appropriate ways (mcwilliam & bailey, 1992; mcwilliam, trivette, & dunst, 1985). engagement with adults, peers, or materials must occur if children are to achieve their optimal development and learning (aguiar & mcwilliam, 2013; hooper & hallam, 2017). deeper learning occurs when children are highly engaged (singer, nederand, penninx, tajik, & boom, 2014). the global quality of the classroom has been associated with toddler engagement (hooper & hallam, 2017; ridley, mcwilliam, & oates, 2000). children in higher quality classrooms, as measured by the infant/toddler environment rating scale-revised (iters-r; harms, cryer, & clifford, 2003), tend to be engaged more than toddlers in lower quality classrooms (hooper & hallam, 2017; ridley, mcwilliam, & oates, 2000). although engagement of toddlers in classroom settings can vary widely, specific child , teacher, and classroom factors have been associated with toddler engagement (hooper & hallam, 2017). older toddlers (i.e., those closer to 36 months of age) in high quality classrooms tend to spend less time in non-engagement than younger toddlers (i.e., those closer to 14 months of age) in high quality classrooms (aguiar & mcwilliam, 2013). having peers continuously nearby encourages toddlers to engage more deeply (singer et al., 2014). teacher affective style and positive interactions have been associated with higher levels of toddler engagement (ridley, mcwilliam, & oates, 2000). when adults are nearby and engage specifically with children in back-and-forth interaction, toddlers tend to be more engaged (hooper & hallam, 2017; singer et al., 2014). when teachers use rich, interactive approaches during book reading and play, toddler engagement is higher than when teachers read without interactions or have brief interactions during play (garner-neblett et al., 2017; singer et al., 2014). specific classroom structure and activities have been associated with higher levels of toddler engagement. mealtimes and free play generally result in higher levels of engagement in toddlers (hooper & hallam, 2017). adult child ratio may be connected to toddler engagement. however, studies have produced mixed results (aguiar & mcwilliam, 2013; raspa, mcwilliam, & ridley, 2001; ridley, mcwilliam, & oates, 2000) suggesting that the actions and interactions of teachers with children may matter more than the number of teachers and children in the classroom. 11 preparing pre-service teacher candidates (ptc) supporting the development of observation and reflection skills is a critical component addressed by teacher preparation programs (council of chief state school officers, 2013). the naeyc professional standards and competencies for early childhood educators (2018) indicate that new teachers should know how to create supportive and challenging environments; use multiple approaches, strategies, and tools to support children’s learning; observe and document child learning; and use reflective and responsive practice. the field has advocated for teacher training that focuses on relationship-based practices where teachers are reflective and engage in meaningful interactions with children (degotardi, 2010; laparo, williamson, & hartfield, 2014; manlove, vazquez, & vernon-feagans, 2008; sabol & pianta, 2012). sabol and pianta (2012) believe early childhood teachers are “central agents of change” since they are integral to meaningful interactions and engagement in the toddler classroom (p. 222). if pre-service teacher candidates (ptc) become good observers, interactional partners, and reflectors, toddler engagement should occur. in order to equip ptc to provide high quality environments that include appropriate materials and arrangements, interactive and affective styles, and daily routines and structures that support and encourage toddler engagement, learning opportunities must be provided in their preparation programs that facilitate these components. the overarching purpose of this project was to provide opportunities for pre-service teachers to engage in specific practices that facilitate their reflection and planning related to enhancing toddlers’ engagement during free play. we were interested in learning more about how observations of toddlers in an early childhood program during free play would be interpreted by pre-service teacher candidates within written reflections and group discussion and used to make decisions about changes in the learning centers to enhance toddlers’ engagement. theoretical perspective two theoretical perspectives, the bioecological model and the experiential learning theory (elt) were used to guide this work. the bioecological model (bronfenbrenner & evans, 2001) suggests that interactions between a child and people, objects, or processes in the immediate environments impacts the child’s development and learning. there are four components within this system comprising the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem and macrosystem. this study focused on the first level of microsystem. according to bronfenbrenner (1977), “a microsystem is the complex relations between the developing person and environment in an immediate setting containing that person (e.g., home, school, workplace, etc.)” (p. 514). the proximal influence of the classroom environment, including teacher interactions and planning, plays a role in toddlers’ engagement. when adult-child interactions and environmental adjustments are made to encourage toddlers’ engagement, the microsystem level is enhanced. the second theoretical perspective supporting this work is the experiential learning theory (elt). this framework guided the specific opportunities used to enhance the ptcs’ learning. this learning theory suggests that learning is a process in which experiences create knowledge (kolb, boyatzis, & mainemelis, 2001). learners must understand and incorporate their 12 experiences in order for learning to occur. elt has a 4-stage learning cycle in which learners grasp experiences through concrete experience or abstract conceptualization. experiences are then transformed through reflective observation and active experimentation. by engaging in a concrete experience, individuals are prompted to observe and reflect. the reflections create abstract conceptualizations that promote action. this learning process was intentionally incorporated into specific components of this project. by providing opportunities for ptc to engage in specific practices, observations, and reflections, they acted to enhance toddlers’ engagement during play. furthermore, this project informed our practice and work with teacher candidates in higher education as we strive to ensure they are knowledgeable and skillful at identifying factors that enhance engagement in the learning environments for young children. context and participants this project took place in an undergraduate early childhood education course at a southeastern public university in the united states. ptc are required to take the course that entails working with toddlers between 12 to 36 months of age. sixteen ptc were enrolled in the course during the spring 2019 semester. the faculty instructor of the course recruited each of the 16 ptc to participate in the project using irb-approved consent procedures. fourteen ptc agreed to participate, allowing the researchers to collect and de-identify specific written work submitted as part of the practicum course. only 13 of the 14 consented ptc completed the course act ivities related to the project. of the 13 ptc, nine were white, two were hispanic, one was asian, and one was african american. all ptc were juniors or seniors majoring in early childhood education. each ptc enrolled in the class spent three hours one day per week with a group of six-to-eight toddlers enrolled in a part-day, two day per week university early childhood classroom (ec classroom). a total of 30 toddlers were enrolled during spring 2019. a mentor teacher and two-to-three ptc were present during each session in the ec classroom. in addition, all ptc enrolled in the course met as a group with the faculty instructor and mentor teacher one time per week for a two-hour seminar session. all ptc enrolled in the course had completed two child development courses and a beginning course on teaching children birth through age eight. two of the ptc also had completed a course on literacy development and instruction in early childhood and a practicum course focused on supporting preschoolers in an early childhood classroom. practices and process for implementation as part of the practicum course, ptc were responsible for determining changes, updates, and additions to the learning centers in the classroom two times during the semester. they worked in small groups during seminar sessions to make the needed changes. prior to making the changes, ptc engaged in specific practices that facilitated their learning, reflection, and planning related to enhancing toddlers’ engagement with the learning centers available during free play. the practices were structured by the instructor and supported by the mentor teacher. the four targeted practices included observation; guided written reflection; collective discussion and 13 reflection; and intentional planning. each practice and how it was implemented and completed by the students are discussed. practice 1: observation the first critical practice ptc were required to use was observation. the purpose of the observations was for the ptc to carefully watch the children in the classroom and note their movement, behaviors, and interactions during free play. ptc were given specific directions for observing and noting their observations (see appendix a). by observing, ptc were given a concrete experience that provided an opportunity for considering what they know about toddlers’ engagement and how it “looked” in the classroom. the observations also provided information about specific children’s interests or patterns related to areas of the classroom in which they spent time, people that they were near, and materials that were used . each ptc observed the children prior to each center planning seminar. practice 1 enabled the ptc to go through the process of concrete experiences through their observations and transforming their learning through their reflective observation. ptc were to learn more about the children’s interests in order to inform discussions, moving from abstract conceptualization to active experimentation in making decisions for changes in the centers. ptc observed on their scheduled practicum day during the free choice play through a one-way mirror, eliminating the possibility of the ptcs’ notetaking impacting the toddlers’ engagement. when observing, ptc observed each child for 10 consecutive minutes, noting where the child played and briefly how he/she engaged during play. each time the child moved from one center to another, the order of the stop was noted. when the observation was concluded, the ptc sketched the classroom layout with centers labeled and drew the movement path of the child from center to center noting the sequential order of the movement. this process was continued until all children present in the classroom had been observed on that given day. practice 2: guided written reflection after collecting information through observation, ptc engaged in review and reflection on the information gathered. the purpose of this practice was to encourage ptc to engage in the experiential learning theory stage in which concrete experiences are reflected upon in order to inform the active experimentation to come. ptc were asked to review all of their notes taken during the observations and the sketches drawn at the conclusion of the observations. to facilitate their individual reflections about all children’s patterns of movement and engagement during free play time, ptc were given specific prompts to guide them. they included the following. (a) what did you learn about the children’s interests in the classroom? (b) which centers were engaging and not engaging to children? (c) what recommendations about changes to the learning centers would you make? (d) what opportunities do you see for providing differentiated instruction to children in the centers? ptc individually considered and responded in writing to each of these prompts. the resulting reflection responses were brought to a designated seminar session (i.e., within one to two weeks following the observations). ptc were to use their reflections and responses to support their 14 contributions as they participated in practice 3, collective discussion and reflection. ptc also submitted their reflections to the instructor of the course who read them and responded to their ideas with written feedback about the level of detail, specific observations noted, or additional considerations for future observations and/or reflections. practice 3: collective discussion and reflection the third practice used to support ptcs’ learning related to creating environments that support toddlers’ engagement was collective discussion and reflection. the purpose of this practice was to promote a community of learners through the sharing of ideas and provide opportunities for the ptc to learn from one another, build on others’ ideas, and develop deeper knowledge and understanding about the toddlers’ interests, engagement, and movement patterns. this discussion and reflection occurred during the seminar in the toddler classroom prior to the ptc updating and planning learning centers. this was an open discussion led by the faculty instructor in which students referenced their written reflections about their observations of the children during learning centers. they shared their perspectives related to the four prompts: interests of children; specific centers that were engaging or not to specific children; recommendations for changes; and opportunities for provid ing differentiated instruction. each prompt was discussed sequentially and thoroughly until no other comments about a specific prompt were made by ptc. notes were taken on big paper so all students could see the ideas shared by others. if ptc provided limited or vague details, the instructor or mentor teacher scaffolded through follow up prompts, such as “tell me more about how you know evie was interested in blocks,” or “how would you recommend we support keshawn’s language at the sensory table?” as ptc shared details, other ptc confirmed or disputed the information shared. the discussion allowed the ptc to discover that some toddlers’ engagement, interests, and behaviors varied from day to day or were similar across days. this allowed the ptc to triangulate their data and make connections to prior learning about what influenced children’s engagement. as ptc shared details about interests, impact of peers, location of centers, or other observations, new conceptualizations and ideas were developed. the faculty instructor noted commonalities between ideas shared and recorded specific details and strategies they identified related to how learning centers could be enhanced to encourage more engagement from the children. students took pictures or took notes of this recorded information. these notes were used when the next practice was implemented. practice 4: intentional planning the final practice used to support the ptcs’ work in supporting the engagement of toddlers during free play was intentional planning. the purpose of this practice was to allow ptc to make decisions and actively experiment with implementing strategies for improving the toddlers’ engagement during free play. this practice followed the collective discussion and reflection and focused on intentionally planning the learning centers available in the classroom during free play. ptc were placed in small groups of two-to-three and assigned specific centers on which to focus. the centers assigned included reading, fine motor, math, science, dramatic play, music, and blocks. 15 during the week after the collective discussion and reflection, the small groups were to engage in an online discussion with the following prompt. “read the requirements of iters-r and relate them to the centers you are assigned . review your individual notes from your observations, your individual written reflection, and the notes from our last seminar session (i.e., collective discussion and reflection). also, review and reflect on the sketch of the classroom layout completed when observing. then, write three possible items that should be added or removed from the centers you are assigned. also, write any other changes that need to be made to the learning center to enhance the toddlers’ engagement.” on the day of the center planning seminar, ptc, the faculty instructor, and the mentor teacher met in the toddler classroom and reviewed the notes from the prior seminar that included teacher candidates’ initial ideas for enhancing the learning centers to promote the toddlers’ engagement. ptc were encouraged to share any new ideas, additional thoughts, or further observations. they were provided the plan for the day that included working with their small group to update the learning centers assigned to them. the mentor teacher provided directions about not removing materials from the centers that served as a transition or comfort items for some toddlers in the classroom. the small groups were instructed to begin their planning process by reviewing the details their small groups discussed online from the discussion prompt and to make final decisions about what should be removed or added and decide if any other changes needed to be made. they then began the work of making the needed changes in the centers. the faculty instructor and mentor teacher moved around the toddler classroom to support them by responding to questions as they worked. once all changes were made in the centers, the small group captured their thinking on the center planning form (see appendix b). they worked collaboratively to complete the details in the plan. once completed, ptc shared their plans for the learning centers verbally while their peers toured the center. the peers were encouraged to provide feedback on the contents in the center and on the plan. the plan was posted on the wall in the designated center at the end of the seminar so that ptc could visually reference it each time they worked in the classroom to be reminded of the purpose and goals of the center. circling back through the practices after the changes were made to the learning centers, ptc, children, and mentor teacher used the learning centers daily as designed for one month during free play. after a month of observing and engaging with toddlers as they played in the updated centers, ptc went through the process again implementing each of the four practices once more in order to gather information, reflect, and make decisions that resulted in revising and updating the learning centers for a second time. this process allowed the ptc to move from their abstract conceptualization of learning to transforming their learning through active experimentation. in addition, they were able to observe how their updated centers promoted engagement during the toddlers’ play. reflections from pre-service teacher candidates at the conclusion of the course, ptc were provided a reflective prompt, “what have you learned about planning centers using this process of observation and reflection to enhance the engagement of children?” to provide insight into their learning and realizations about factors that 16 impacted the toddlers’ engagement. the instructor and her researcher colleague independently read and re-read each reflection by each teacher candidate in its entirety to learn more about the ptcs’ perspectives about factors that impacted the engagement of the toddlers during free play. using an inductive coding process in which the codes were derived from the data (mason, 1996), each researcher identified codes. at mid -point during the coding process, the two researchers met to discuss the coding of the data. specific codes were shared and discussed, and consensus was reached about the codes. after both had read, re-read, and coded all the reflections, the researchers met to share and reach consensus on the coding of all the data. consensus was reached, and codes were categorized and grouped into themes collaboratively by the researchers. generally, ptc perceived there was a connection between teachers’ observing children, noting where they spent time and their preferences, and reflecting on the observations with their coteachers and toddler engagement. ptc had participated in a specific process of observing and reflecting on those observations to determine changes in centers to encourage engagement of the toddlers. three ptc noted that this experience was helpful when planning centers. one ptc suggested, “i learned so many different things” including details about children’s interests, the impact of environmental arrangement, how children play in centers, and how children’s engagement changes when the room is arranged in different ways. another ptc agreed that observing and reflecting helped her know more about the “influence the environment has on children.” furthermore, one ptc indicated that observations and data collection were “essential, the observations provided details about how to individually support children and insight into where teachers “should position themselves during the next center time.” ptc noted several components in the classroom that impacted toddlers’ engagement. they perceived location of centers, materials, and other people, variety of materials, adult interaction, and children’s interests as factors that impacted the toddlers’ engagement. location matters all ptc noted location of three environmental components impacted the engagement of toddlers within centers. they included the location of centers, mat erials, and other people. when reflecting on their learning, ptc discussed the location of centers and the importance of children being able to see the center furnishings and contents as valuable when trying to enhance engagement of the toddlers. an example provided by ptc when planning the reading center was “the reading center was in the back corner of the classroom and hidden from view behind a bookshelf;” another ptc elaborated, “if the reading center was moved to the front of the classroom, i think the children would spend a lot more time in that area.” when discussing the music center, a similar issue was noted. “the music center is on a shelf in the same space that the children have circle time after centers. the instruments are hidden from view by the teacher’s reading chair and books for small group.” ptc perceived that the location of a given center impacted children’s engagement with the center. if children could not see the center or were not regularly in that part of the classroom, children did not engage in the center as frequently. ptc noted location of materials in the center as a possible factor to toddlers engaging in a center. when considering the math center, one ptc noted that moving puzzles from the floor to a higher shelf where children could easily see and access them would increase engagement in the center. 17 ptc also believed that if the items in the music center were made more visible and placed on shelves at eye level for the toddlers, they would engage in the center more frequently. ptcs’ reflections suggested that the location of people in or near a center encouraged children to join a center. ptc noted that adults in the classroom were more likely to join a center after a child began playing there. however, children tended to play in centers in which adults were already present. in order to heighten interest in a center in which children did not regularly visit, ptc believed, when possible, adults should position themselves in the center prior to a child arriving. one ptc said this about the reading center, “since we follow the children to whichever center they go to, there is not normally an adult there unless there is a child there. if possible, ensure there is an adult ready to share books and stories with the children as they come over.” another ptc noted that children are “more motivated to investigate” when an adult was present in the center. ptc noted the power of other children playing in centers, too. ptc noted that some children engaged in more interactive play and sought out other children, while some children were “more prone to go to an area and play with other children and adults.” the location and interaction of the centers, materials and people within the microsystem impacted upon the level of engagement of the toddlers. variety of materials ptc learned that the materials included within each center are key to heightening children’s engagement in the center. varying types, challenging materials, and novel or new materials were needed to ensure children engaged in a center. ptc noted that providing various types of materials could heighten engagement of the toddlers in various centers. in the math center, one ptc noted that providing “different size and shape materials could be helpful.” providing various types of musical instruments and props, such as scarves, in the music center was suggested by multiple ptc. they also suggested including materials with various sensory aspects as a strategy for increasing engagement in centers. specifically, including materials that made noise, had lights, were various colors, and included varying textures could encourage children to engage in the science center. when focusing on some centers, ptc reflected on the challenge of the materials in the centers and suggested that challenging materials would encourage the toddlers to engage in the centers more frequently. books that included more interesting and challenging vocabulary and pictures were suggested as a strategy to encourage the children to engage. one ptc recommended materials that had a “puzzle aspect. she elaborated that the children seemed “engaged by things that they can take apart and put together.” one ptc noted how most children played parallel next to others; however, she suggested providing some materials that encouraged children to play with one another to provide opportunities for children to grow in this area. these reflective observations showcased that the ptc were also applying the theoretical concept of vygotsky’s zone of proximal development using scaffolding and transforming to active experimentation to engage the toddlers in their play. when selecting materials, ptc believed that new or novel materials often enticed the toddlers to enter and engage in a center. ptc recognized that with time, “the novelty wears off” with 18 materials and new play could be “prompted” with different materials. one ptc indicated that materials that are on the table for arrival time could be appropriate to include in centers. she suggested when toddlers were interested in the table materials that were available for a short period of time during the day, including them in a center could encourage children t o engage more frequently in a center. adult interaction ptc noted that toddlers were engaged in specific centers more frequently when adults were interacting with them by modeling how to use materials or use them in a new way and prompting children to engage with them in a center. ptc noted the power of adult interaction in encouraging toddlers to engage. one ptc wrote, “modeling can do so much for children of this age. i have noticed that they imitate movements and actions from others a lot.” later the ptc wrote, “the children go in and out of these areas a lot. this is where showing them how to use the different materials would come in handy. if they understood how to use them, then it is more likely they will play with them [rather than enter the center and leave].” ptc recognized that young children may not engage with materials that are new if they are unsure how to use the materials, therefore, adult interaction is needed. also, they acknowledged that modeling encouraged the toddlers to engage with new or novel materials. ptc realized that children may not visit a center if not encouraged to do so. they suggested inviting children to a center when children are less likely to join the center on their own. one ptc shared, “the teachers should be encouraged to draw children into less popular centers. it is likely that the children have not experienced what is in each of these centers and, therefore, do not know what the center offers.” showing children toys or materials that would “spark children’s interest” was noted as a strategy to use when prompting children to enter a center. ptc discussed how the children seemed to visit the same centers each day. by an adult prompting children to join him/her in the center, children would be more inclined to visit. one ptc summed up the power of adult interactions in relation to the toddlers’ engagement in centers, “i realized how vital it is to have adults that willingly and purposefully engage the children in questioning, exploring, and interacting with objects . . . i also realized how often children will simply watch each other or adults. this means adults should be aware of how they are presenting and modeling when they are in these spaces.” this candidate’s summation meets naeyc’s position statement on dap that the most powerful influences on how children learn are the teacher’s interactions and relationships with the children and how the teacher addresses classroom planning and organization of learning experiences and the environment (naeyc, 2009). children’s interests ptc believed including materials related to children’s preferences and removing non-preferred items would encourage the children to engage in a center. as ptc discussed what they learned about supporting toddlers’ engagement, many discussed focusing on the children’s interests. when discussing how to utilize interests to encourage toddlers’ engagement, one ptc shared, “recently, i have noticed most of the children making animal sounds a lot more frequently. the animal books would strengthen their knowledge about animals, spark their interest in books, and 19 be an interactive way to introduce the animal puppets to the children.” when considering interests, ptc identified materials that children engaged with frequently and proposed providing similar types of items in other centers as a possible strategy for encouraging engagement in different centers. similarly, ptc discussed how removing items that are not of interest to children and replacing them with preferred items could contribute to heightened engagement in a center. a ptc noted, “we can replace certain toys that do not get used with toys the children will like.” while another ptc when discussing the block center said, “the vehicles are popular, but it seems the overall novelty has worn off and new toys could prompt new play.” summary ptc identified factors that were aligned with indicators associated with global quality of early childhood classrooms (harms, cryer, & clifford, 2003; ridley, mcwilliam, & oates, 2000). specifically, considering where centers and materials were located and having a variety of materials that were novel, challenging, and interesting to children were noted as factors that may enhance toddlers’ engagement. similar to prior research, they perceived that adult and peer proximity, and adult interactions were influential in toddlers’ engagement (garner-neblett et al., 2017; hooper & hallam, 2017; singer et al., 2014). ptc applied developmentally appropriate concepts when reflecting on their observations of children and the factors that impacted their engagement. the ptc seemed to understand the influence of the organization of the learning environment, interactions that occur between adults and children, and the influence of peers (copple & bredekamp, 2009; naeyc, 2009). the specific actions taken by the adults in the classroom, related to modeling, prompting, and encouraging children to join other children in a center were seen as supportive to the toddlers. ptc saw themselves as agents that could facilitate engagement of the children (degotardi, 2010; sabol & pianta, 2012). furthermore, acknowledging and incorporating children’s interests were seen as key elements in engaging young children during free play (copple & bredekamp, 2009). implications and directions for the future there are several implications for practice and future work in early childhood preparation programs derived from this work with pre-service teacher candidates. they include purposefully designing courses that include providing time and space for implementing practices, using practices grounded in theory, and encouraging collegial collaboration. ptc were provided with the opportunity and time to observe toddlers during free play to learn more about their engagement. as a result, they identified specific factors that seemed to impact the children’s engagement that they could then alter, add, or remove to facilitate more engagement from the children. the factors they identified were aligned with quality indicators and developmentally appropriate practice providing an authentic assessment of their ability to apply these concepts. teacher preparation programs should embed authentic opportunities with guided questions for teacher candidates to observe and reflect on the children, the learning environment, and their own interactions with children. this enables teacher candidates to take the lead in applying their knowledge and skills and impacting the learning of children. practicing 20 teachers also should be provided time to observe the children in their classrooms during free play. by doing so, they can make more informed decisions about the environment, materials, and interactions. another result of provid ing opportunity and time for teacher candidates to observe and reflect on toddlers’ engagement during free play was that teacher candidates saw the impact of their presence and interactions on toddlers’ engagement. teacher preparation programs and early childhood programs for children should invest time in this process in order to provide evidence to teachers about their role in children’s engagement. by watching other adults interact with children and observing children not interacting with others, teachers will become more aware of their role in engagement. this heightened awareness could impact their practice within the classroom. teacher candidates must be provided structured opportunities to develop reflective skills (council of chief state school officers, 2013; naeyc, 2018). the structure provided within the reflective prompts encouraged the teacher candidates to individually and collectively consider aspects of the centers and identify recommendations. the prompts were straightforward and specific. observations and reflections vary in their purpose. they can provide structure to teacher candidates and ensure that they consider the aspects that are the primary focus. all the candidates’ observations and reflections impacted the environment due to the changes made in the centers after observations and reflections were completed and discussed. purposefully discussing the role of observations and subsequent reflections could have an impact on teacher candidates and practicing teachers’ acknowledgement of the value and use of the practices. purposefully designing practicum and field -based courses using a theoretical framework helps the teacher preparation program to be more grounded and intentional in the learning experiences provided. this course adopted both the bioecological and experiential learning theories to guide and inform the practices implemented . both frameworks provided specific components to consider when providing a rationale for the work and identifying practices for students to implement. the reflections and learning from the teacher candidates suggested they had an understanding of the impact of the microsystem and could use the practices with guidance and structure, while the instructor facilitated their progression through the four-stage learning cycle of the experiential learning theory. the design of this practicum course provided many opportunities for both self -reflection and collegial collaboration for teacher candidates and faculty. ptc were first asked to observe and reflect individually on the toddlers’ engagement during free play. collegial collaboration occurred when ptc discussed their observations first online in a small group, then in the seminar as a large group. finally, ptc moved to the actual implementation of updating the centers with their colleagues during seminar. this platform of transitioning from self -reflection to small group to large group collegial collaboration added depth in the learning process. intentionally including opportunities for self-reflection and collegial collaboration shows promise in enhancing the learning and development of teacher candidates and should continue to be explored. 21 for the higher education faculty, collaboration between the faculty instructor and researcher colleague brought insight into the analysis of the data. the faculty instructor was the primary researcher for the project. during the semester-long course, she observed the ptc working in the ec classroom, graded their lesson plans and other work, including the work submitted for this project, and structured the weekly seminar sessions. the second researcher was a faculty member in the early childhood education program. however, she was unfamiliar with all other teacher candidates enrolled in the current study. furthermore, she had no interaction with the teacher candidates during the project. her collaboration on this study provided an objective perspective during coding and peer consensus building and a collaborative partner with whom to reflect about the practices and data collected after the work with students was completed. as early childhood teacher preparation providers, purposeful collaboration and reflection can provide meaningful opportunities to learn together and facilitate richer and more meaningful learning experiences for our teacher candidates. ultimately, the benefactors of the process presented were the toddlers. the teacher candidates engaged in specific practices that were intended to provide a richer and more interesting environment for their free play. anecdotally, the teacher candidates saw the children engage more actively when their teachers observed them and used those observations to reflect and plan their environment. future research should focus on the impact of the practices on children’s engagement during free play. implementation of the practices presented provides a rich opportunity for teacher candidates and faculty to actively investigate and learn together. by collecting data, reflecting, and making decisions together, all parties learn more about the specific children in the classroom. the experiences provided enhance the microsystem for children and the learning for all. 22 references aguiar, c., & mcwilliam, r. a. 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(2010). high‐quality interactions with infants: relationships with early childhood practitioners’ interpretations and qualification levels in play and routine contexts. international journal of early years education, 18(1), 27–41. doi:10.1080/09669761003661253 garner-neblett, n., holochwost, s. j., gallagher, k. c, iruka, i. u., odom, s. l., & bruno, e. p. (2017). books and toddlers in childcare: under what conditions are children most engaged? child youth care forum, 46, 473-493. doi: 10.1007/s10566-017-9391-4 harms, t., cryer, d., & clifford, r. m. (2003). infant/toddler environment rating scale (rev. ed.). new york, ny: teachers college press. hooper, a., & hallam, r. (2017). exploring the relationship between global quality and group engagement in toddler child care classrooms. journal of research in childhood education, 31, 215-226. doi: 10.1080/02568543.2016.1273287 la paro, k. m., williamson, a. c., & hatfield, b. (2014) assessing quality in toddler classrooms using the class-toddler and the iters-r, early education and development, 25(6), 875-893. doi:10.1080/10409289.2014.883586 kolb, d. a., boyatzis, r. e., & mainemelis, c. (2001). experiential learning theory: previous research and new directions. in r. j. sternberg & l. zhang (eds.), perspectives on thinking, learning, and cognitive styles. (pp. 227–247). new york, ny: routledge. manlove, e. e., vazquez, a., & vernon-feagans, l. (2008). the quality of caregiving in child care: relations to teacher complexity of thinking and perceived supportiveness of the work environment. infant and child development, 17, 203–222. doi:10.1002/icd mason, j. (1996). qualitative researching. thousand oakes, ca: sage publishing. mcwilliam, r. a., & bailey, d. b. (1992). promoting engagement and mastery. in d. b. bailey & m. wolery (eds.), teaching infants and toddlers with disabilities (2nd ed.), pp. 229 256). new york, ny: merrill. mcwilliam, r. a., trivette, c. m., & dunst, c. j. (1985). behavior engagement as a measure of the efficacy of early intervention. analysis and intervention in developmental disabilities, 5(1-2), 59-71. doi.org/10.1016/s0270-4684(85)80006-9 national association for the education of young children. (2018). professional standards and competencies for early childhood educators, public draft 2. washington, dc: author. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0270-4684(85)80006-9 23 national association for the education of young children. (2009). naeyc position statement. retrieved from https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globallyshared/downloads/pdfs/resources/position-statements/psdap.pdf raspa, m. j., mcwilliam, r. a., & ridley, s. m. (2001). child care quality and children’s engagement. early education and development, 12, 209-224. doi: 10.1207/s15566935eed1202_3 ridley, s. m., mcwilliam, r. a., & oates, c. s. (2000). observed engagement as an indicator of child care program quality. early education and development, 11, 133-146. doi: 10.1207/s15566935eed1102_1 sabol, t. j., & pianta, r. c. (2012). recent trends in research on teacher-child relationships. attachment and human development, 14(3), 213–231. doi:10.1080/14616734.2012.672262 singer, e., nederand, m., penninx, l., tajik, m., & boom, j. (2014). the teacher’s role in supporting young children’s level of play engagement. early child development and care, 184, 1233-1249. doi:10.1080/03004430.2013.862530 https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/pdfs/resources/position-statements/psdap.pdf https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/pdfs/resources/position-statements/psdap.pdf 24 appendix a observation guide task: 1. observe each child for 10 consecutive minutes (please note the time start and end and if possible, time spent in each area). 2. in the table below, as the child stops at a center, note the order of the stop (first, second, third) and make a brief note about what the child does when he/she stops in the center (e.g., child engaging with materials; adults; peers, etc.). 3. on another piece of paper, draw the layout of the classroom with centers labeled and the flow of the child during the 10 minutes, from stop 1 (starting) to all other stops in sequential order. 4. at the bottom of the page, note the total number of stops for the child. name of child: time blocks dramatic music art table reading/ cozy fine motor/ science/ math sensory 25 appendix b learning center planning form component descriptive details learning standard objective assessment gathering and recording methods materials description and arrangement of environment introduction to children practice and interaction support ijwc_springv42021 9 ijwc_springv42021 10 ijwc_springv42021 11 ijwc_springv42021 12 ijwc_springv42021 13 ijwc_springv42021 14 ijwc_springv42021 15 ijwc_springv42021 16 ijwc_springv42021 17 ijwc_springv42021 18 ijwc_springv42021 19 ijwc_springv42021 20 ijwc_springv42021 21 ijwc_springv42021 22 ijwc_springv42021 23 ijwc_springv42021 24 ijwc_springv42021 25 57 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 tech talk how edtech can support social and emotional learning at school and at home nancy caukina, leslie trailb, ashlee hoverc a-cmiddle tennessee state university nancy caukin, ed.d. is an associate professor and the program coordinator for the ready2teach program in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. leslie trail is an adjunct professor in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university and a high school english teacher at eagleville school. she began her career working in health care management for seven years before further putting her english degree to work as an english teacher. she loves learning ways to more effectively engage students in the classroom to move their learning forward, so her research interests generally revolve around teaching strategies. ashlee hover, ed.d. is an assistant professor in the womack educational leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university and a former elementary school teacher. she works with pre-service and in-service teachers and serves as the program coordinator for the curriculum and instruction online master’s degree at mtsu. her research includes child development, digital learning, performance-based assessments, and teacher preparation. there is a need to move away from a narrow focus on just academic outcomes, to one that considers the long-term development and well-being of children, a whole child approach (association of supervisors and curriculum developers (ascd), 2020). when we think about teaching the whole child, we should think about providing a healthy, safe, engaging, supportive, and challenging classroom experience (the whole child, 2015). as part of educating the whole child, we need to consider children’s social and emotional learning. the collaborative for academic, social, and emotional learning (casel) defines social and emotional learning http://www.ascd.org/whole-child.aspx http://www.wholechildeducation.org/ 58 (sel) as the process in which individuals “manage emotions, set and achieve goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions” and includes a framework with five core competencies (casel – what is sel?, 2019, para. 1). what is the framework for sel? casel’s integrated framework promotes intrapersonal, interpersonal, and cognitive competence and includes five core competencies: 1) self-awareness, 2) self-management, 3) social awareness, 4) relationship skills, and 5) responsible decision-making. self-awareness is the ability to recognize one’s emotions, behaviors, and ways of thinking. it includes understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses and having a sense of optimism and confidence. self-management is the ability to regulate emotions, thoughts, and behaviors, as well as control stress and selfmotivate. it includes the ability to set and pursue goals. social awareness involves the ability to empathize and understand social and ethical norms for behavior. it includes recognizing available resources for support. relationship skills describe the ability to establish healthy relationships with diverse people. it includes using appropriate communication, cooperation, and negotiation. responsible decision-making is the ability to make good choices about social interactions, understand consequences, and consider the well-being of others (casel, 2019). what does the research say? we know that intentionally incorporating sel in schools produces positive outcomes. casel has engaged in over two decades of research into the effectiveness of sel in schools. some of the claims include, positive long-term effects on personal lives, academic outcomes, social behaviors, and the ability to reduce poverty and increase economic mobility. in addition, for every dollar invested in sel, there is an eleven-dollar return. in this video, educators and administrators discuss how implementing sel in schools has made a tremendous impact. on a larger scale, a 2011 grant-funded meta-analysis of 213 different studies written by durlak, weissberg, dymnicki, taylor, and schellinger showed that incorporating sel programs in schools had positive benefits on students’ social and emotional skills, attitudes, behaviors, and academic performance. in a 2017 follow-up meta-analysis of 82 school-based studies involving more than 97,00 kindergarten through senior high school students, taylor, oberle, durlak, and weissberg asserted that there are long-term benefits of school-based implementation of sel programs across diverse geographic contexts and age groups including social-emotional skills, attitudes, and sense of well-being. how can schools implement sel? maurice elias (2016) explains the seven steps to implement sel into schools: 1) "build a school infrastructure that can support sel”, 2) "assess how well-coordinated your school’s sel programs are", 3) "assess the school’s culture and climate", 4) "articulate shared values, themes, and essential life habits", 5) "provide consistent and ongoing opportunities for students to practice sel skills", 6) "improve faculty readiness to teach sel", and 7) "connect to those who are walking the walk." the first step, building a school infrastructure to support sel, may begin by creating a committee to set attainable goals and use planning cycles with action plans that are https://casel.org/what-is-sel/ https://casel.org/what-is-sel/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzl2ezbe4ew&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=2&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txkfndfjkwy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=4&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iflflzg_jc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=7&t=2s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmem8fjpdsc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=3&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywsspntb6oy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=5&t=0s https://casel.org/core-competencies/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=ymdp8fhvzt0&feature=emb_title https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cdev.12864 https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cdev.12864 https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implement-sel-at-your-school-elias-leverett-duffell-humphrey-stepney-ferrito 59 developed in eight-week increments of time. the second step, assessing the school’s sel programs, involves school members taking a critical look at existing programs and initiatives and making sure that there is "harmony" across the programs and that sel is used as the "integrative glue." the third step, assessing the school’s culture and climate, includes gathering and analyzing data about student, staff, and parent perspectives from surveys, walk-throughs, focus groups, and artifacts. the fourth step, articulating shared values, themes, and essential life habits, involves schools focusing on core beliefs and actions that address academic, moral, and civic development and creating mottos and mission statements that are emphasized and used every day. the fifth step, providing consistent and ongoing opportunities for students to practice sel skills, goes beyond the mere presenting of the information to practicing and reinforcing use of the skills. the sixth step, improving faculty readiness to teach sel, gives faculty the tools they need to understand the theory, literature, and pedagogy of sel and to easily incorporate sel into standards, rubrics, and mandates. the seventh step, connecting to those who are walking the walk, happens when schools or districts are connected to other schools who are actively incorporating sel. organizations and programs that can help are casel, the national association of school psychologists, second step, lions quest international, responsive classroom, open circle, social decision making/ social problem-solving, and the schools of character. how can edtech support sel? edtech can be used to support sel and provides the flexibility of learning at school, home, and elsewhere. there are a variety of free and low cost options for a range of ages that promote the competencies outlined by casel and elias’ (2016) fifth step, which is to provide consistent and ongoing opportunities for students to practice sel skills. table 1 provides a list of edtech options that support sel and align with one of the competencies outlined by casel. table 1 edtech tools that support sel and align with casel competencies sel competency app price target age description self-awareness: recognizing one’s emotions, behaviors, and ways of thinking; understanding one’s strengths and weaknesses; having a sense of optimism and confidence emotions (avokiddo) $2.99 4+ gives young children opportunities to explore feelings and emotional connections through several characters and props, activities explore the cause and effect relationship of facial expressions. emotionary (funny feelings) $1.99 4+ a great resource for children with special needs, includes descriptions of emotions and funny feelings, https://casel.org/ https://www.nasponline.org/ https://www.nasponline.org/ https://www.secondstep.org/ https://www.lions-quest.org/ https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/ https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/ https://www.open-circle.org/ https://www.researchpress.com/books/702/social-decision-makingsocial-problem-solving-sdmsps http://www.character.org/schools-of-character/ http://www.character.org/schools-of-character/ https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implement-sel-at-your-school-elias-leverett-duffell-humphrey-stepney-ferrito http://avokiddo.com/avokiddo-emotions-app/ http://avokiddo.com/avokiddo-emotions-app/ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/emotionary-by-funny-feelings/id498649064 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/emotionary-by-funny-feelings/id498649064 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/emotionary-by-funny-feelings/id498649064 60 allows users to draw an emotionary "selfie" to show how they are feeling. self-management: regulating emotions, thoughts, and behaviors; controlling stress, self-motivating; setting and pursuing goals breathe, think, do (sesame street) free 4+ teaches young children about problem-solving, self-control, planning, and time on task; players are presented with different scenarios in which a monster character must regulate his/her emotions using the breathe-thinkdo technique. gonoodle free 6-12 short physical activities that provide children with brain breaks to increase concentration and attentiveness, activities require children to cross the midline of their bodies which engages both sides of the brain. stop, breathe & think (tools for peace) free 11+ emotional check-ins and personalized recommendations for mediation, sleep, breathing, and yoga. see saw free all this service allows classroom teachers to communicate with parents and share student work. it also helps build ses by engaging students in a variety of work styles. with this program, students can demonstrate their knowledge in a variety of modes as they develop their own awareness of how they learn and communicate. social awareness: empathizing and understanding social and ethical norms for behavior touch and learn emotions (innovative mobile apps) $1.99 4+ includes photographs that represent four different feelings per page, players match verbal cues with appropriate photos to help them identify body language and understand emotions https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breathe-think-do-with-sesame/id721853597 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breathe-think-do-with-sesame/id721853597 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breathe-think-do-with-sesame/id721853597 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breathe-think-do-with-sesame/id721853597 https://www.gonoodle.com/ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id778848692 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id778848692 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id778848692 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id778848692 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id778848692 https://web.seesaw.me/ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/touch-and-learn-emotions/id451685022 61 forest stay focused (seekrtech) ios: $2; android: free 4+ productivity app; the main purpose is to teach users to stop using phones as distractions and to be socially present; the more time users spend in real-life, the more their virtual tree grows. relationship skills: establishing healthy relationships with diverse people; using appropriate communication, cooperation, and negotiation & responsible decision-making: making good choices about social interactions, understanding consequences, and considering the wellbeing of others peppy pals social skills free 4+ includes games, books, videos; animals socialize, take care of each other, solve problems, explore emotions the middle school confidential series bundle (electric eggplant) $6.99 8-14 the books/apps are designed by a teen expert, annie fox, and presented in a graphic novel sequence in which readers follow a group of seventh-grade friends as they navigate friendships, families, and school. class dojo free all this can be a school-wide or classroom teacher program that helps schools build a culture around helping students monitor their own behavior. with class dojo, teachers track the good things that students do through the day as well as concerns that teachers have about student behavior. students are able to earn points for good deeds, good work, and good behavior. managing tech certainly, edtech is an excellent resource to help teachers and parents meet the social-emotional needs of students. however, we would be remiss to think that this is the only way to meet these needs. as a matter of fact, it is important for us to balance the use of technology with more natural ways of meeting social-emotional needs of students. teachers and parents should be warned of over-using technology. technology is a tool that we can use to support other methods that we use to help build sel for students such as providing hands-on activities, outdoor learning, and creative play (wabisabi learning). https://apps.apple.com/us/app/forest-stay-focused/id866450515 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/forest-stay-focused/id866450515 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/forest-stay-focused/id866450515 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/forest-stay-focused/id866450515 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/peppy-pals-social-skills/id1457065641 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/peppy-pals-social-skills/id1457065641 http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/#http://www.middleschoolconfidential.com/ https://www.classdojo.com/ https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-critical-thinking 62 benefits of tech during times of school closure in recent days, the united states has watched county after county close its doors due to the covid-19 virus. when teachers are using edtech in their classes on an on-going basis, the transition to meeting the needs of students outside of the classroom can more easily be met. these students already know how to maneuver and access the technology, and, therefore are able to continue their learning outside of the classroom. the ability to maintain a learning schedule for children helps meet their emotional needs during times of uncertainty (cdc, 2019). if teachers have already acclimated students to using edtech on a regular basis, this need can more readily be met. as children are home during extended breaks from school, parents can support their children and their own social and emotional learning by employing these edtech applications with their children. time spent with children both face-to-face and with edtech learning tools may provide rare opportunities for productive, meaningful family time. conclusion students bring all aspects of their life to school. using knowledge of students’ social and emotional intelligences, teachers are able to create an environment where student focus, interests, and background merge with the information that they are teaching. this not only helps students grow academically, but it also creates a more well-rounded student who can apply academic knowledge to long-term learning. as teachers focus on the social and emotional learning of their students, as well as classroom and school culture, they can build meaningful relationships with their students, resulting in a stronger sense of well-being, increased self-awareness and selfmanagement, and improved behavior and academic outcomes. incorporating edtech at school and in the home can be a tool to assist teachers and parents in improving students’ social and emotional learning. https://www.cdc.gov/parents/essentials/structure/building.html 63 references association of supervisors and curriculum developers (2020). the ascd whole child approach. http://www.ascd.org/whole-child.aspx casel. (2018). the impact of social learning. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=ymdp8fhvzt0&feature=emb_t itle casel (2019). core sel competencies. https://casel.org/core-competencies/ casel. (2019). what is sel? https://casel.org/what-is-sel/ cdc. (2019). building structure. https://www.cdc.gov/parents/essentials/structure/building.html durlak, j. a., weissberg, r. p., dymnicki, a. b., taylor, r. d. & schellinger, k. b. (2011). the impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: a meta-analysis of schoolbased universal interventions. child development, 82(1): 405–432. elias, m. (2016). how to implement social and emotional learning at your school. edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implement-sel-at-your-school-elias-leverett-duffellhumphrey-stepney-ferrito taylor, r., oberle, e., durlak, j., & weissberg, r. (2017). promoting positive youth development through school-based social and emotional learning interventions: a metaanalysis of follow-up effects. child development, 88(4), 1156-1172. the whole child (2015). http://www.wholechildeducation.org/ thinktvpbs. (2019). self-awareness video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzl2ezbe4ew&list=plqsvevvi2irmthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=2&t=0s thinktvpbs. (2019). self-management. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txkfndfjkwy&list=plqsvevvi2irmthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=4&t=0s thinktvpbs. (2019). social-awareness video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iflflzg_jc&list=plqsvevvi2irmthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=7&t=2s thinktvpbs. (2019). relationship skills video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmem8fjpdsc&list=plqsvevvi2irmthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=3&t=0s thinktvpbs (2019). responsible decision-making video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywsspntb6oy&list=plqsvevvi2irmthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=5&t=0s wabisabi (nd). how messy learning helps us develop critical thinking. https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-criticalthinking watanabe-crockett, l. (2020, february 11). how messy learning helps us develop critical thinking. https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learninghelps-critical-thinking http://www.ascd.org/whole-child.aspx https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=ymdp8fhvzt0&feature=emb_title https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=37&v=ymdp8fhvzt0&feature=emb_title https://casel.org/core-competencies/ https://casel.org/what-is-sel/ https://www.cdc.gov/parents/essentials/structure/building.html https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implement-sel-at-your-school-elias-leverett-duffell-humphrey-stepney-ferrito https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implement-sel-at-your-school-elias-leverett-duffell-humphrey-stepney-ferrito http://www.wholechildeducation.org/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzl2ezbe4ew&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=2&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzl2ezbe4ew&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=2&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txkfndfjkwy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=4&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txkfndfjkwy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=4&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iflflzg_jc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=7&t=2s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iflflzg_jc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=7&t=2s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmem8fjpdsc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=3&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmem8fjpdsc&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=3&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywsspntb6oy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=5&t=0s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywsspntb6oy&list=plqsvevvi2ir-mthhdhybhgevwvsjgqbzo&index=5&t=0s https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-critical-thinking https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-critical-thinking https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-critical-thinking https://wabisabilearning.com/blogs/critical-thinking/how-messy-learning-helps-critical-thinking ijwc spring 2020 57 ijwc spring 2020 58 ijwc spring 2020 59 ijwc spring 2020 60 ijwc spring 2020 61 ijwc spring 2020 62 ijwc spring 2020 63 88 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 the potential of purposeful play: using the lens and language of crosscutting concepts to enhance the science and engineering practices of play criselda lozona, jacqueline grennon brooksb ast. margaret's episcopal school bhofstra university dr. cris lozon is the director of the early childhood school at st. margaret’s episcopal school, a preschool through grade 12 independent school in southern california serving 1,250 students. she has taught early childhood and elementary aged students in the philippines, japan, south korea, and italy for over 20 years before returning to the united states. dr. lozon advocates for keeping play in the early childhood classroom through teacher training, parent education, and sharing her expertise as a speaker at schools and national conferences. her research interests include constructivism, documentation of children’s learning through play, and the work of reggio-emilia schools. jacqueline grennon brooks is professor emerita of teaching, literacy & leadership at hofstra university. she has studied how people learn for many years as a teacher, professor, and cofounder of the long island explorium, a children’s museum of science and engineering. she consults nationally and internationally on topics of challenge-based instruction and its role in cognitive development and language acquisition and is the author of multiple publications on constructivist pedagogy, with a focus on stem education. playing enhances learning. teachers who recognize and foster the science and engineering practices of playful endeavors push the envelope of children’s thinking. play is purposeful learning, and it serves an important role in human development. researchers define play as exploratory, process oriented, intrinsically motivating, and freely chosen (lozon, 2016). the notion of tinkering, often associated with play, has underpinned forward-thinking children’s museums and science centers for decades. this creative expression enhances deep learning when supported by intentional guidance (bevan, petrich, & wilkinson, 2015). for the purposes of the current discussion, the authors found that the crosscutting concepts of the next generation science standards (ngss, 2013) provide a powerful lens and language through which to provide the type of guidance that challenges students’ thinking and enhances the natural science and engineering practices of children’s play. playing with purpose play is most often attributed to early childhood, and science and engineering most often associated with secondary education and beyond. yet, play, science, and engineering are 89 interconnected, essential ingredients of quality educational programs throughout the age span. here, the authors highlight how teachers can introduce into their pre-school and elementary school classrooms vetted “playful” curriculum that, with teacher scaffolding using crosscutting concepts, fosters the development of students’ science and engineering practices. when educators recognize the role of play, appreciate scientific reasoning, and make room for engineering, we honor the learners’ experiences as they naturally unfold across all subject areas. the science and engineering practices and the crosscutting concepts of the ngss (2013) (see figure 1), along with the voluminous research on play, inform this article. figure 1: science and engineering practices and crosscutting concepts teachers who look at children’s self-initiated play as engagement in science and engineering practices serve as mentor co-researchers with the children. teachers who intentionally create playful challenges in their classrooms serve the same role. play experiences, either child-initiated or teacher-prompted, are times when teachers can use language specific to the crosscutting concepts to narrate what they are observing and pose questions. the following sections describe two examples. from problems to practices a preschool teacher observed a 4-year old building a creature from plastic blocks using different shades of green from an assorted box of connecting plastic pieces. after the teacher's statement, "i see you built something with different green blocks, tell me about it," the child pointed out the 90 creature’s two arms, two legs, torso, and head. "it's a monster.” the teacher suggested the child draw the monster so her parents could see what she built, but they had a problem -there was no green paint. in a stem lesson on color matching in a 5th grade class, students have the same problem – no green paint. the teacher in this class also encourages science and engineering practices, and uses cross cutting concepts as the lens and language through which to scaffold children’s playful pursuit of the “perfect green.” students begin with a quest to make a solution to match the color of the character of their choice. pictures of popular, green, animated characters are on the table, and the children try to replicate the different greens. with the red, blue and yellow water available, the children get started on making their paint batches. making green? in preschools and elementary schools everywhere, young children make secondary and tertiary color pigments from primary colors. what is different here? the difference is that the teachers are intentionally and mindfully focusing children’s attention on asking questions about the shade of green, defining the problems of what colors to combine, using the colored water as a model of the face or fabric of their chosen character, carrying out their plan and documenting how many drops of each color they use, analyzing their colors as they compare to the green of the character, using the commutative and associative principles of mathematics in the natural context of drop counting (without using the terms commutative and associative), building their computational thinking (totaling their drops), and showing their evidence (their batch of green) to classmates to determine if others find their green a “perfect match.” the children’s efforts mirror science and engineering practices. students investigate concepts of scale and quantity as they add primary color volumes to create their batch of color to match the characters. this is a cross-cutting concept. these two classrooms are on a similar mission – maintaining the joyfulness and highenergy tone of real learning in structured learning settings with goals, standards, accountability, and evaluation. the authors found that the practices and concepts of ngss point the way. play can be deliberate, intentional, replicable, quantifiable science and engineering practice, and ngss helps us understand the power of play in stem learning. playful curricular challenges lessons are developed around the core ideas of ngss, with a particular focus on the practices and concepts of the ngss by crafting playful curriculum problems that are challenge-based, with design thinking and career awareness at the core. fifth grade students were engaged in a color matching challenge through science and engineering practices, as they specifically relate to core ideas in chemistry, art and math disciplines. the following represents the playful challenge: “you are a color technologist, and your role is to design a formula for the green that matches different animated characters. when the color satisfies the artist in you, hand off your formula, and ask a classmate to make a batch. does your friend agree that the formula matches the color?” the careers of technologist and artist are used in this lesson to informally plant seeds that multiple future opportunities exist, and these opportunities tap into stem interests, passions, and skills in careers that may not routinely be seen. other careers are used in other lessons, each with varying educational levels required. the task to make a specific color requires the student to engage in design thinking. the approach and procedure for making the batch generates from within the child. having a friend replicate the 91 formula mimics the scientific enterprise by validating or refuting student’s work. tracking the formula embeds math into science practices as an essential feature of the investigation. stem practices, in general, are embedded by the design of the challenge. responsive teacher language once the playful curricular challenge is in place, teachers’ responsiveness to students enriches children’s engagement, interest, actions, reasoning, creativity, and commitment within the challenge. teacher language using clear targeted questions and statements filtered through the lens of the crosscutting concepts can extend students’ current engagement in the curriculum play into intentional science and engineering practices at the leading edge of the students’ thinking. the following illustrates teacher language rooted in the crosscutting concepts through examples within the color matching challenge. • structure and function o “you thought that adding yellow would make your green brighter. but, you say it didn’t. sounds like the yellow did not function as a brightener. what is your thinking now?” • stability and change o “it sounds like you’re saying that each drop of a new color changes the old color. is that right?” • energy and matter o “the sample seems to look different to me in different light. does it to you?” • pattern o “i see that when you added a drop of yellow to blue, you made green. what do you imagine would happen if you were to add more yellow?” • cause and effect o “i see you were surprised when you added the red. what effect did the red have on your green?” • scale, proportion, and quantity; o “i see you are using counting to fill the pipette. sounds like you are using time as a measure of “how much.” i haven’t before seen this method. how did you come up with it?” • systems and system models o “you said you added too much blue, then i see that you added more yellow to your batch. getting the right green seems to be a whole system of drops of blue, yellow and red. how are you monitoring your process?” 92 a revisit the authors found that learning to use the crosscutting concepts with ease in a classroom is a journey that requires multiple examples and experiences. few have participated in learning settings rooted in these big ideas and few have had long term exposure to learning settings that invited engagement in science and engineering practices. consider two other examples, both still on the topic of pigment color. in an outdoor class of 4 5-year-olds, students were working with multiple planters filled with basil, spinach, tomatoes, and other herbs and vegetables that they planted earlier in the school year. looking at one of the tomato plants, the children noticed a creature on one of the leaves. the children had not noticed the creature before, but, as one child stated, “the worm is camouflaged.” the teacher asked, “what makes you say that?” the child confidently stated, “the worm is green on green so it’s camouflage.” the teacher speculated with the children how they would draw the creature if it was already green on green. the children wondered how they were going to make two colors of green so they could see the creature in their own drawings. the children in this class are self-defining problems (they want to create a color for the plant they are observing, but also want to create a different color green to represent the caterpillar they found camouflaged on their tomato plant), as they continue carrying out investigations (how do they make different greens and how do they draw what they want to draw). teachers can direct student engagement in further science and engineering practices at potentially more sophisticated levels (looking at the difference between leaves and leaves with creatures on them) by drawing students’ attention to measurement or quantity, a crosscutting concept, with questions such as, “could there be a little tiny bit of another color in the green of the bug?” this sort of question sets the stage for young students’ thinking about measurement, or quantity (how many drops of yellow and how many drops of blue and how many drops of another color will make that shade of green?) in a 4th grade lesson, children are also exploring pigment colors, but adding a new medium, milk, with the colors. like their younger counterparts with the caterpillars, they are also defining problems (in this case, the colors do not mix) and carrying out investigations (why don’t the colors mix). teachers can direct student engagement in further science and engineering practices at potentially more sophisticated levels (looking at distinctions in different types of milk) by drawing students’ attention to quantity with a statement such as: “does the % fat in the milk make a difference in the color mixing,” and, “what about almond milk?” literacy and numeracy development within design thinking coming back to the example of the green creature on the tomato plant, it looked like a caterpillar, and the children wondered about the kind of bug, how it got on their plant, and what else they could let it eat so it would not eat the tomato plant in their garden. the children were playing. the children were engaged in science. the children were designing their process. the teacher helped them find books about garden creatures to help identify it (research, literacy, language). the children concluded it was a caterpillar, observed it for days, and took notes wondering what would happen next (scientific thinking, literacy, language). they drew pictures on the calendar to show change across time and measured the creature periodically (mathematics, data collecting, and science). student-led questions turned into investigations, and the investigations naturally included science, art, language, writing, and mathematics. 93 these types of curriculum problems, either student-generated or teacher-generated, extend and reinforce important concepts across subject domains within a safe and nurturing, yet provocative and demanding learning environment. the approaches described here are based on the pedagogy of constructivism (brooks & brooks, 1999; brooks, 2011) and the principles of universal design for learning (pisha & coyne, 2001). both constructs anticipate a wide range and complexity of learner needs, thus, the learning spaces and tasks are flexible by design and accessible for diverse classes. this type of teaching requires a teacher to think along with the children. in conclusion play and learning go hand-in-hand. play helps us to test and symbolize our knowledge of the world, communicate an understanding, and build toward later academic learning (saracho, 2012). teachers who provide intentional opportunities for play enhance children’s learning of core ideas, as well as the development of feelings of worthiness and the skills of academic competence. playful learning with a skillful teacher inherently engages students in meaningful scientific thinking. 94 references bevan, b., petrich, m., wilkinson, k. (2014/2015). tinkering is serious play. educational leadership, 72(4) 28-33. retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educationalleadership/dec14/vol72/num04/tinkering-is-serious-play.aspx lozon, m.c. (2016). how teachers use digital documentation to assess children’s learning through play (unpublished doctoral dissertation). nova southeastern university, fort lauderdale, florida. saracho, o. (2012). an integrated play-based curriculum for young children. new york, ny: routledge. brooks, j.g. and brooks, m.g. (1999). in search of understanding: the case for constructivist classrooms. alexandria, va: ascd. brooks, j.g. (2011). big science for growing minds: constructivist classrooms for young thinkers. new york, ny: teachers college press. next generation science standards (april, 2013). retrieved october 17, 2019 from www.nextgenscience.org pisha, b., & coyne, p., (2001). smart from the start: the promise of universal design for learning. remedial and special education, 22(4), 197-203. https://doi.org/10.1177/074193250102200402 http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec14/vol72/num04/tinkering-is-serious-play.aspx http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec14/vol72/num04/tinkering-is-serious-play.aspx http://www.nextgenscience.org/ https://doi.org/10.1177%2f074193250102200402 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 88 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 89 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 90 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 91 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 92 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 93 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 94 6 introduction tiffany wilson, editor this spring issue provides readers with information related to the challenges of covid -19 and the importance of teacher self-care. moreover, this issue also provides content related to students with disabilities and the impact technology and intentional planning can have on play. the ijwc continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of children. article #1: reflection on practice: pre-service teachers’ reflection and intentional planning to enhance toddlers’ engagement during free play jane seok jeng lim, robyn ridgley in the first article, “reflection on practice: pre-service teachers’ reflection and intentional planning to enhance toddlers’ engagement during free play,” jane seok jeng lim and robyn ridgley discuss their study aimed at exploring pre-service teacher candidates’ (ptcs) observations and reflections on toddlers during free play, as well as to provide an opportunity to enhance these ptcs’ development. this study is informed by the bioecological model and experiential learning theory. for the study, ptcs observed and reflected on their observations first individually and then collectively. after doing so, ptcs intentionally planned the learning centers in the classroom followed by additional observation and reflection. ptcs’ reflections noted key elements for engagement related to location, variety of materials, and modeling by adults. article #2: motivation for participation in extracurricular school clubs for students with severe disabilities alicia pence in the second article, “motivation for participation in extracurricular school clubs for students with severe disabilities,” alicia pence discusses how students with severe disabilities are often underrepresented compared to students without disabilities in extracurricular school activities. this study seeks to examine the influencing factors of why a student with severe disabilities decides to participate or not participate in extracurricular school activities. 7 tech talk manuscript the whole teacher: practicing self-care nancy caukin, leslie trail, constance wright in the tech talk article, “the whole teacher: practicing self-care,” nancy caukin, leslie trail, and constance wright outline teacher stress, including the pandemic’s impact, the effects of stress, and the antidote of self-care. they define self-care and its importance and deconstruct it into elements they call head (mental/cognitive), heart (emotional/spiritual), and hands (physical). they then discuss additional components and resources for managing social and emotional health. etc manuscript striving from the margins during covid-19: one family's experience advocating for their middle school e-learner. s. renée jones in the etc article, “striving from the margins during covid -19: one family’s experience advocating for their middle school e-learner” s. renee jones seeks to highlight one family’s struggle to ensure their black middle schooler received a quality education during the covid 19 pandemic. black middle school students can experience various challenges and barriers related to inequities in education. it is imperative that schools work with families to mitigate adverse consequences of learning caused by covid-19 specifically for marginalized children. children & families: health and wellness manuscript instances of intimate partner violence (ipv) among the young in turkey simel parlak, azize nilgün canel the health and wellness article by simel parlak and azize nilgün canel researches the origins of emotional and intellectual processes of violence among young people in turkey. the results of the interpretative phenomenological analysis yielded three themes: childhood experiences, relationship with partner and occurrences of violence, and post-violence experience. education by the numbers donald snead in education by the numbers, donald snead brings awareness of the influence teachers have on students and society as a whole. in his summary, snead reviews various characteristics that that are often associated with student success. 8 steam manuscript stream into online play groups: how children adapt to play in a rapidly digitized world rebecca horrace in the steam article, “stream into online play groups how children adapt to play in a rapidly digitized world ,” rebecca horrace provides an understanding of the role technology and digital media have on children’s play. she describes the current digital landscape children can use for their play and argues for the integration of technology into children’s play stating that it serves as an additional avenue for play that provides enhancement not found in traditional play. finally, gives a description of how digital play looks within the context of online play groups. page turners: books for children katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle sobolak, patricia crawford, and maria t. genest katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle sobolak, patricia crawford, and maria t. genest review a collection of children’s literature. they provide literature for children of all ages aimed at various developmental areas. . emerging scholar the impact of emotional intelligence among children with disabilities and the role of professional educators and caregivers: a literature review peri munday, christan horton the emerging scholar article, “the impact of emotional intelligence among children with disabilities and the role of professional educators and caregivers: a literature review,” peri mundy and christan horton provide a literature review of the intersection of emotional intelligence, students with disabilities, and the role of professional educators and caregivers. ijwc_springv42021 6 ijwc_springv42021 7 ijwc_springv42021 8 57 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 using edtech to enhance learning brianna donahoea, derrian rickardb, hunter holdenc, kerra blackwelld, nancy caukine a-e middle tennessee state university brianna donahoe is pursuing her bachelor’s degree from middle tennessee state university, majoring in english with a minor in secondary education. derrian rickard is pursuing his bachelor’s degree from middle tennessee state university, majoring in family consumer science with a minor in secondary education. hunter holden is pursuing his bachelor’s degree from middle tennessee state university, majoring in agriculture with a minor in secondary education. kerra blackwell is pursuing her bachelor’s degree from middle tennessee state university, majoring in spanish with a minor in secondary education. nancy caukin, ed.d. is an associate professor and the program coordinator for the ready2teach program in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. allowing students to use technology in the classroom has been increasingly more popular as technology advances and becomes more ubiquitous. however, many educators wrestle several aspects of edtech, including, how to start using edtech (caukin, 2018), when to use edtech (national education technology plan [netp], 2017), how to incorporate it without creating more distractions for students (thomas, 2019), and ways that edtech can move students towards higher levels of thinking (caukin & trail, 2019). it is important for educators to provide opportunities for students to not only participate in effective and meaningful learning experiences, but also engage them, sustain their attention, and assess them in a variety of ways, all of which edtech can provide (netp, 2017). activating strategies there are many ways in which edtech can be used to engage students. one way is in an activating strategy, which allows teachers to link content to prior knowledge or build background 58 knowledge by providing them with new experiences. it is important to have an activating strategy for each lesson, so the learner has an opportunity to gain interest in the topic in a fun and interactive manner. by using edtech in an activating strategy, teachers can draw students into their lessons by using tools students are familiar with and potentially passionate about. one way to use edtech in an activating strategy is through gaming. gaming can allow students to use what they have already learned to complete informal pre-assessments in a fun and stimulating environment. for instance, the teacher can give an assignment the night before and the students go home and practice what they have been learning. the next day, using a gaming method in their activating strategy, the teacher can challenge students to apply what they learned from the assignment to the game, preparing them for the day’s objectives and expanding that skill further. the students have so much fun during the game that they do not even realize they are reinforcing their learning. one enjoyable and beneficial edtech game that can be used in the classroom is kahoot! this free, online gaming service allows teachers to make their own multiple-choice questions that can be used with low-stakes in healthy competitive environment. teachers can even create question banks (or use the ones provided), which can make future games quicker to create. there are pre-made kahoots! available for free. with a pro subscription, teachers can use the puzzle feature, slides feature for providing more content, and the polling feature. there is an image library and an advanced reports option as well. with a premium subscription, teachers can play school-sized games and use open-ended questions. polling is another approach that can be used as an activating strategy. polling gauges students’ interests and progress in real time and pre-assesses what students have learned before teaching a new concept. when using a poll, teachers can see what each student knows without singling them out. polling also promotes students’ awareness of their individual progress. because polls are anonymous, the student is able to see how they are doing with new content without feeling the pressure of getting an answer wrong. for example, as teachers introduce a new concept, they can add one or more polls at the beginning of their lesson to monitor how well the information is being absorbed. it is handy for teachers to be able to see how well students are taking in new information individually and as a whole class. teachers can monitor how well previous teaching has been understood by evaluating how students perform on the polls, as well as identify areas they should create scaffolding for during the coming lesson. wooclap is a free online site that allows teachers to create their own polls as well as multiple choice quizzes, or open-ended questions. other useful sites for polling include: poll everywhere, mentimeter, and answerpad. brainstorming can also be used as an activating strategy. it is a way that teachers can encourage students to think about what they will learn in the future. brainstorming as an activating strategy is an effective way to get students thinking about a new topic. for example, when introducing a new concept on the elements in chemistry, teachers could ask a question like “what is your favorite soda?” then, students will become excited and interested in the topic of elements without realizing it. the key is to make your activating strategy as relatable and entertaining as possible so teachers can gain students’ attention and keep it for longer than if they had just used a typical bell ringer. a useful tool for brainstorming as an activating strategy is padlet. with padlet, teachers can post an open-ended question and students can see their own responses as well as those of other students. it can be anonymous, or students can add their names to their responses. other helpful sites are: tricider and answergarden. https://kahoot.com/ https://www.wooclap.com/ https://www.polleverywhere.com/ file:///c:/users/ncaukin/dropbox%20(mtsu)/ijwc/mentimeter https://app.theanswerpad.com/ https://padlet.com/ https://www.tricider.com/ https://answergarden.ch/ 59 instruction once students’ interest has been captured through a meaningful activating strategy, online content can be made easily available through qr codes. a qr code is a matrix bar code that is scanned by any device with a camera (apple products) or with a free, downloadable qr code reader. once scanned, the qr code navigates the user to a pre-determined website. teachers can vet specific articles, videos, etc. that they want students to use during the lesson to learn online content. any website location can be used to make a qr code, even an edtech site such as kahoot!, poll everywhere, etc. making a qr code is easy, first search for a free qr code generator, copy and paste the url of the site you want a qr code for, and then paste it on any electronic document, powerpoint, etc. this form of technology can be used to enhance learning, because it saves time during transitions, so students can spend more time interacting with the material. qr codes give students easy and instant access to material and learning tools. some recommendations include: https://www.qr-code-generator.com/, https://www.qrcodemonkey.com/ , and www.the-qrcode-generator.com. another edtech tool that is helpful when enhancing student’s learning is nearpod. nearpod is a free website that allows teachers to create an interactive “powerpoint.” there is an upgraded version that teachers can pay for at a small cost that includes more options of slides and content to incorporate into presentations, but many features are available for free. all that is required to access nearpod is an email address. when creating a nearpod, teachers can import slides from presentations they already have or create new ones directly on nearpod’s website. teachers also have the choice to create slides that allow students to draw, take a quiz, interact with 3d models, practice math or science problems, visit a website, engage in a discussion board, and the list continues. when the teacher presents, they have their students visit nearpod.com on their smart device, which can be a smart phone, computer, ipad, or tablet. the students enter the code provided after the teacher makes the nearpod lesson live. the free version is teacher-paced which allows the teacher to control the slides which will keep all students on the same slide at the same time. the paid version allows for student-paced lessons, which allows students to flip through the slides and interact with the material at their own pace. another one of nearpod’s features is that the teacher can choose a student’s drawing, discussion post, etc. to display on the screen to discuss without showing the student’s name. so, for instance, if a third-grade teacher used a nearpod presentation for his or her lesson on the water cycle, the teacher could have the students draw a diagram including the 5 steps of the water cycle. then, once the drawings are submitted, the teacher can choose one to display and discuss while maintaining the student’s anonymity. nearpod is a great tool for teachers of all grades to use in their classroom to promote student engagement and incorporate technology in the classroom. a comparable resource is pear deck, which uses many of the same tools, except it uses google slides and students and teachers must have a gmail account to sign in. there are numerous free edtech apps that can be used to help students with reading (readworks, whooo’sreading, rewordify), math (geogebra, math cats, math chimp), social studies (digital civics toolkit, smithsonian’s history explorer, big history project), science (science bob, diy sun science, phet interactive simulations), writing (nanowrimo), coding (scratch), music (garageband) and other topics as well. of course, there are many edtech tools that have a fee. https://www.qr-code-generator.com/ https://www.qrcode-monkey.com/ https://www.qrcode-monkey.com/ http://www.the-qrcode-generator.com/ https://nearpod.com/?utm_expid=.ocmkzf1ss82mhh0p2a1cva.0&utm_referrer= https://www.peardeck.com/googleslides https://www.readworks.org/ https://www.whooosreading.org/ https://rewordify.com/ https://www.geogebra.org/?lang=en http://www.mathcats.com/ http://www.mathchimp.com/ https://www.digitalcivicstoolkit.org/ https://www.digitalcivicstoolkit.org/ https://historyexplorer.si.edu/ https://school.bighistoryproject.com/bhplive https://sciencebob.com/ https://www.lawrencehallofscience.org/do_science_now/science_apps_and_activities/diy_sun_science https://www.lawrencehallofscience.org/do_science_now/science_apps_and_activities/diy_sun_science https://phet.colorado.edu/ https://ywp.nanowrimo.org/ https://scratch.mit.edu/ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id408709785?ign-mpt=uo%3d4 60 assessment assessments are one of the most important parts of a lesson. it shows if students are mastering objectives and learning targets. the power of technology can be leveraged to administer assessments and analyze the data from assessments. using technology as tool for assessment can save time, resources, and streamline the process as well as provide needed differentiation and assistive tools. the edtech tools for informally assessing students during a lesson can take a cue from some of the applications discussed in the activating strategy section. for example, kahoot! is a gamelike assessment that is sure to engage students and assess them individually in a whole-class setting. nearpod offers the option to embed questions into slides that can gauge learning. using padlet, answergarden, answerpad, and mentimeter allow teachers to capture students’ thinking in the moment and make it visible to the class for further discussion and exploration. edtech can also be used for formal assessments. for example, a google form can be created that allows options for question types and embedding of images or videos. individual student answers can be viewed as well as the class as a whole. responses can be exported into a csv file and feedback can be given to individual students. socrative is a free tool for creating exit tickets in real time. it engages students and provides teachers with feedback on student mastery. quizziz is a free, self-paced way to review, assess, and engage students with single choice or multi-choice answers. quizalize is a gameshow-like edtech tool that allows teachers to create assessments and track student results (there is a fee for tracking). another helpful edtech tool for formal assessments is plicker. this free, low-tech option uses printable paper cards as “clickers” for student-responses. feedback with all the information provided on edtech tools in the classroom, an essential aspect of teaching and learning that needs to be mentioned is feedback. it is through meaningful and timely feedback that learning can be improved (wiliam, 2016). using edtech tools during an activating strategy, instruction, or assessment, teachers can provide real-time feedback to correct misconceptions, redirect, and promote deeper thinking. many of the edtech tools provide instant data on student performance and some allow teachers to provide feedback to students individually. nearpod and padlet allow teachers to give feedback to questions instantly. teachers can post or comment on each student’s comment on the padlet, which allows for a quick feedback to individual students. nearpod allows the teacher to show students’ work as artifacts of exemplary work or for common errors that can be used for whole-class instruction. it is important to note that edtech should be used to enhance instruction, not replace the teacher. it is also encouraged that teachers check school and district technology policies and are ensure their students are using technology in safe, appropriate ways. technology is growing increasingly more prevalent in today’s culture, and it is important for educators to take advantage of the hundreds of resources made available to them and their students. not only will utilizing technology influence the way educators teach, it will also increase student engagement (nept, 2017). common sense education is a helpful site that can be accessed to read reviews of many edtech tools. this site provides pros, cons, the bottom line, and reviews from teachers. you can easily search the edtech tool you want to learn more about and then access the website of the tool. https://kahoot.com/ https://nearpod.com/?utm_expid=.ocmkzf1ss82mhh0p2a1cva.0&utm_referrer= https://padlet.com/ https://answergarden.ch/ https://app.theanswerpad.com/ file:///c:/users/ncaukin/dropbox%20(mtsu)/ijwc/mentimeter https://www.google.com/forms/about/ https://socrative.com/ https://quizizz.com/ https://www.quizalize.com/ https://get.plickers.com/ https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?contenttype=reviews 61 by using edtech in the classroom, teachers may have the popular option of bring your own device (byod). students love being able to use their devices during class and teachers know they are being used for educational purposes. overall, using technology for education is extremely beneficial, not only when it comes to starting a lesson with an activating strategy, but also for instruction and assessment. using these free online tools can not only add fun to teachers’ classrooms during the activating strategy, instruction, and assessment, but also save them on material costs! resources answergarden https://answergarden.ch/ answer pad https://app.theanswerpad.com/homepage.html common sense education https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?contenttype=reviews digital civics toolkit https://www.digitalcivicstoolkit.org diy sun science https://www.lawrencehallofscience.org/do_science_now/science_apps_and_activities/diy_sun_sc ience garage band https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id408709785?ign-mpt=uo%3d4 geogebra https://www.geogebra.org/?lang=en google forms https://www.google.com/forms/about/ kahoot! https://kahoot.com/ math cats http://www.mathcats.com math chimp http://www.mathchimp.com mentimeter https://www.mentimeter.com/ nearpod https://nearpod.com/ padlet https://padlet.com/ pear deck https://www.peardeck.com/googleslides phet interactive simulations https://phet.colorado.edu plickers https://get.plickers.com poll everywhere – https://polleverywhere.com quizziz https://quizizz.com quizalize https://www.quizalize.com https://answergarden.ch/ https://app.theanswerpad.com/homepage.html https://www.commonsense.org/education/search?contenttype=reviews https://www.digitalcivicstoolkit.org/ https://www.lawrencehallofscience.org/do_science_now/science_apps_and_activities/diy_sun_science https://www.lawrencehallofscience.org/do_science_now/science_apps_and_activities/diy_sun_science https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id408709785?ign-mpt=uo%3d4 https://www.geogebra.org/?lang=en https://www.google.com/forms/about/ https://kahoot.com/ http://www.mathcats.com/ https://www.mentimeter.com/ https://nearpod.com/ https://padlet.com/ https://www.peardeck.com/googleslides https://phet.colorado.edu/ https://get.plickers.com/ https://polleverywhere.com/ https://quizizz.com/ https://www.quizalize.com/ 62 readworks https://www.readworks.org readwordify https://rewordify.com science bob https://sciencebob.com scratch https://scratch.mit.edu smithsonian’s history explorer https://historyexplorer.si.edu socrative https://socrative.com tricider https://www.tricider.com/ whooo’sreading https://www.whooosreading.org wooclap https://www.wooclap.com/ https://www.readworks.org/ https://rewordify.com/ https://sciencebob.com/ https://scratch.mit.edu/ https://historyexplorer.si.edu/ https://socrative.com/ https://www.tricider.com/ https://www.wooclap.com/ 63 references caukin, n. (2018). edtech – where do i start? international journal of the whole child, 3(2), 36-39. caukin, n. & trail, l. (2019). samr: a tool for reflection in edtech integration. international journal of the whole child, 4(1), 36-39. national education technology plan (2017). office of educational technology. retrieved from https://tech.ed.gov/netp/ thomas, c. (2019). digital distractions in the classroom: 4 ways instructional technology can help. emerging edtech. retrieved from https://www.emergingedtech.com/2019/10/digital-distractions-in-classroom-waysinstructional-technology-can-help/ wiliam, d. (2016). the secret of effective feedback. educational leadership, 73(7), 10-15. https://tech.ed.gov/netp/ https://www.emergingedtech.com/2019/10/digital-distractions-in-classroom-ways-instructional-technology-can-help/ https://www.emergingedtech.com/2019/10/digital-distractions-in-classroom-ways-instructional-technology-can-help/ ijwc fall 2019-full issue 57 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 58 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 59 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 60 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 61 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 62 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 63 34 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 1 pictures for reflection for the toddler, the world is a place of adventure, exploration, and wonder. adults provide children with a variety of risk-free opportunities to experience different materials, textures, elements, ingredients, objects, and tools. young children come to know their world by touching, manipulating, lifting, dropping, and throwing. sometimes, children experience by tasting; watchful adults are close-by to guide safe exploration. 35 through exploration, children compare. children learn the contrasting properties between grass and concrete, water and ice, and mulch and ravioli. even when children successfully use tools in their exploration, they may, at the last minute resort to the “tried and true” use of fingers. misapproximations are expected and practice is encouraged. making sure you do not lose a ravioli is a natural and positive motivation. 44 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 pictures for reflection 45 i am 10 years old: watch me grow as boys and girls grow beyond early childhood and prepare to become adolescents, they experience a wide range of emotional, social, cognitive, and physical transitions. frequently, for the 10 year old, these rapid changes leave them critically questioning, reflectively wondering, and deeply feeling. they navigate different affiliations, test their competencies, and assume a variety of roles. in order to most effectively support the emerging competencies of the 10 year old, in all instances, adults demonstrate sincere caring, responsive listening, and diligent observing. most importantly, adults acknowledge each 10-year-old is a unique individual and consequently, recognize the reality of a varying developmental continuum. this means, as much as 10 year olds want to be just like their peers and fit into a group, each 10 year old follows their own individual growth changes. ten year olds share some common characteristics. i am competent. i am knowledgeable. i am a friend. i design complex interactions. i feel close to my family. i cooperate with a group to share goals. i assert and lead. i sometimes evidence inappropriate behaviors (bullying, teasing, cruelty). i, with friends, engage in elaborate social routines/rituals. i negotiate, argue, and persuade. i demonstrate advances in my language, thinking, and concentration. i evidence physical changes. i want my privacy. i need to exert some control. i want to “fit in.” i seek independence. i demonstrate strong emotions. i am frequently hungry. i need my sleep. the 10 year-old is excited about entering the wider world and meeting different people. they ponder whether to become astronauts, ballerinas, or train engineers. adults provide 10-year-olds with choice, wonder, and opportunity; it is only when the 10-year-old experiences novel and interesting events that they may practice, rehearse, and dream their futures. 46 references: anthony, michelle (n.d.). the emotional lives of 8-10 year olds. retrieved from https://www.scholastic.com/parents/family-life/social-emotional-learning/developmentmilestones/emotional-lives-8-10-year-olds.html morin, amy (2019). 10-year-old-child development milestones. retrieved from https://www.verywellfamily.com/10-year-old-developmental-milestones-620710 morin, amanda (n.d.). developmental milestones for typical fourth and fifth graders. retrieved from https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/signssymptoms/developmental-milestones/developmental-milestones-for-typical-fourth-andfifth-graders https://www.scholastic.com/parents/family-life/social-emotional-learning/development-milestones/emotional-lives-8-10-year-olds.html https://www.scholastic.com/parents/family-life/social-emotional-learning/development-milestones/emotional-lives-8-10-year-olds.html https://www.verywellfamily.com/10-year-old-developmental-milestones-620710 https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/signs-symptoms/developmental-milestones/developmental-milestones-for-typical-fourth-and-fifth-graders https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/signs-symptoms/developmental-milestones/developmental-milestones-for-typical-fourth-and-fifth-graders https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/signs-symptoms/developmental-milestones/developmental-milestones-for-typical-fourth-and-fifth-graders 41    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 innovative and engaging approaches in a middle school science classroom: ideas to capitalize on student interest shelley wermutha amarana unified school district shelley wermuth graduated from nau with her bachelors in elementary education in 2016 and her masters in continuing education for elementary education: reading specialist from northern arizona university. shelley is in her fourth year of teaching in the marana unified school district. shelley has taught 7th grade general education science, 8th grade general education science, 8th grade gifted/talented science at tortolita middle school in tucson, arizona. currently, shelley teaches 7th grade general education science and the 7th/8th grade shark tank elective at dove mountain cstem k-8 in marana, arizona. abstract the purpose of this article is meant to provide evidence and examples from an exemplary middle school science teacher’s classroom with regard for using innovative approaches in stem education. the author of the article suggests moving from a curriculum-centered paradigm to a student-centered paradigm. strategies for integration in stem education are discussed, and include choice-based centers, project-based learning, and small group instruction. the role of standards and curriculum are addressed with an emphasis on whole child, developmental practices, and meaningful/relevant activities in science education. key words: science education, stem, integration, student-centered strategies introduction the days of worksheets and silent classrooms are over. students are no longer content with sitting passively, taking notes, and listening to a teacher lecture. a changing world and the evolving nature of stem education demand more of teachers than the traditional means of instruction. furthermore, a whole child approach is necessary as it promotes an organic, holistic education that recognizes the various needs of children beyond just the academic realm. through integration, centers, and project-based learning, students are able to experience a more meaningful, and relevant stem education that fosters engagement and caters to the different developmental levels of students. furthermore, these processes are driven by an inquiry mindset that approaches content from a constructivist paradigm and calls for learning to be situated in realistic, meaningful, and relevant settings. there are many ways that integration and projectbased learning can be used in the classroom. this paper explores the experiences and activities 42    offered in a dynamic, integrated, middle school science classroom, and how these activities foster authentic engagement and student interest in science. a brief review of literature it is necessary to be innovate in education, and as part of the process of creating more dynamic learning environments, it is necessary to review and critique traditional practices. some of the most common ways of teaching science and math (along with most other subjects) have revolved around lectures, worksheets, and textbook readings. even the gradual introduction of new technological tools and programs has not shifted the instructional methods away from these traditional practices. essentially, technology has served to create a digital arena for completing worksheets or worksheet-like tasks, which do not engage students in their learning, or take advantage of new pathways for learning through powerful technologies (wylie, 2014). additionally, according to rolheiser et al. (2019), “students crave a more active classroom environment,” and this necessitates a shift away from “traditional lecture-heavy” formats (para 1). furthermore, worksheets impede “oral language development, creativity, movement, problem-solving opportunities and the sensory experiences necessary for brain development, human interactions and friendships” (affiliated services for children & youth [ascy], n.d., p. 2). worksheets also preclude opportunities for play, inquiry, deeper conceptual development, and active scientific investigations (stone & stone, 2013). also, simple textbook readings fail to provide experiential, inquiry-based activities and they are not sufficient for conveying information in an interesting, engaging manner (foley & mcphee, 2008; mckinney, 2013; stambaugh & trank, 2010). if traditional methods are not particularly effective in the teaching of science, technology, engineering and math, then teachers must adopt different, more dynamic approaches to capture students’ interest. traditional, teacher-led, direct instruction approaches may not lead to deeper conceptual knowledge, and therefore, a more engaging, inquiry-based environment is needed for stem explorations (jong, 2019). the american association for the advancement of science recommends a more student-centered approach, rather than these traditional methods that have adversely affected students from underrepresented backgrounds especially (romero, 2016). a student-centered, whole child approach would involve active experiences, meaningful integrations, and authentic assessment (morse & allensworth, 2015). furthermore, the teacher needs to engage students through divergent pathways that foster interest, intrinsic motivation, and active experimentation and investigation (darling-hammond et al., 2019). the strategies and activities described in the following sections provide examples of how one teacher used a more student-centered, active approach in the science classroom. centers centers are utilized in the environment to capitalize on student interests, inquiries, and explorations (mccarthy, 2014). these were used in the classroom every other week, and they also provided deep integration with other subject areas. the centers included writing, reading, social studies, math/coding, art/drama/technology, and science and engineering. frequently, there would also be a play center, which offered students a place to tinker and learn science 43    through the art of play. at each center there were many (ten or more) options for the students to work and explore. each option or possibility was geared towards the larger unit of study. for example, eighth grade students explored through physics-based centers at the beginning of the year, then moved into chemistry centers, and finally biology centers. seventh graders, using the new set of science standards for arizona, worked through physics, the atmospheric cycle, the rock cycle, plate tectonics, the human body, and general biology/ecology. how the centers worked students were called individually, one-by-one, to start working on centers. the centers were choice-based, and the order for who received their first choice of centers was tracked by the teacher. each day, different students were called first to allow every student an opportunity to explore based on their interests. because of the element of choice, some students consistently chose to go to the art center and perhaps never visited the science/engineering center. this was allowed by the teacher, as the students were still exploring science through art. however, in an effort to create a healthy environment that fostered diverse explorations, the teacher also implemented a maximum number of students for each center. once the center was full, students would be asked to make another choice. the maximum number of students at a center was set at five, although that number was increased to six because of large class sizes. every student had an opportunity to explore their first choice over the course of the unit, and all students had multiple opportunities to explore through diverse pathways of learning. centers were completed collaboratively or alone. again, the students had the opportunity to choose what and how they explored while also choosing to work in groups or not. the students moved freely through the centers with no overarching due dates or number of required center visits. they also learned that if they were off task during centers, they would not be as successful as they could be within the course. while centers were happening the center environment itself was not necessarily used to teach the required curriculum. furthermore, the centers were not used in such a way that they were expected to teach the curriculum. centers were used purposefully as an exploratory, investigative environment to foster engagement with the material in a variety of ways. in order to guide the students through a more focused curriculum, the students would be called to small group instruction with the teacher while centers were taking place. the maximum number of students for small groups was set at five so the teacher could sufficiently attend to each individual’s needs during the course of the small group instructional time. the length of time for each small group was set at about five to eight minutes. this allowed the teacher to go through focused, guided instruction with the students. furthermore, the students were not grouped by ability but rather by the students’ interest in the subject. students would always rise to the occasion when they were learning about something that was meaningful to them. this was purposefully done in order to avoid the negative effects of strict ability grouping, and helped to destigmatize students’ feelings towards science. having what seemed like random small groups that changed every day helped the students to avoid comparisons with other students on the basis of their academic ability. everyone was on an equal level in this way. during small group instruction, students would have 44    one of three guided lessons: a discussion, a mini lab or activity, or a mini formative. note taking was never employed by the students, and never expected by the teacher. the days of students taking notes while listening to a teacher lecture are over. students learn best through meaningful activity, and especially when they are interested in the material. integrating the different subject areas integrating different subject areas with science is crucial for overall student learning (brand, 2020). in fact, science naturally connects with other subject areas very well. examples include reading/writing a lab report, calculating the speed/velocity/acceleration of newton’s 2nd law, or drawing observations. science is dependent upon other subject areas to function, and this expands beyond the subjects in stem or even steam. furthermore, every child learns differently. they have unique needs and background understandings. teachers can no longer expect every child to learn in the same way and at the same rate (semrud-clikeman, 2010). by using an integrated, center-based environment, students are able to explore science in ways that cater to their strengths. science may not be their best subject, but ela may be. the students can learn science through writing stories/plays, writing research papers, and writing poems. students who need more activity can explore through the science and engineering center. here, they can move around and build models without the fear of a teacher telling them to sit still in their seat and to be silent. the following sections describe specific classroom activities that promoted a high level of student engagement in science and fostered students’ interest and intrinsic motivation. the cave students were required by the arizona state standards to learn about the rock cycle and minerals. instead of having students complete a worksheet or having them read about rocks and minerals in their textbook, the teacher created a giant cave in the classroom out of one-hundred, sixtyfour-gallon, brown trash bags. black butcher paper was used to cover the windows in the room as well. when the lights were turned off, the room was nearly pitch black. routes were created within the cave, and each route was assigned a number and rocks/minerals. the students were placed in groups, and took turns exploring the different routes of the cave (they used their cell phone as a flashlight). each student had the opportunity to crawl through the cave, and when they found a rock or mineral, they would pick it up and return to their group. the students then wrote down observations about the rock or mineral that they found. after the group noted their observations, the rocks and minerals were placed back in the cave, and another member would crawl through the cave. once each group found all of the rocks/minerals in the cave, the students returned to the “camp” (another classroom) to examine their findings. at camp, they discussed similarities and differences between the different rocks and minerals. after all of the groups had finished, the teacher led a whole-group discussion to further explore and refine their findings. the students were asked to hypothesize how the rocks/minerals were formed, and they used prior knowledge and inferencing during the discussion. student responses were recorded on the board, and students had further opportunities to compare and contrast, classify, and group the rocks/minerals. once the discussion was over, the students were given the 45    names of the rock cycles and any corrections that needed to be made to the list of inferences were made. integrated physics activities: rockets and cars eighth grade students started the year by watching a video of the nasa redstone rocket tests. these were not all successful tests. students would watch as rockets blew up, perhaps ascending for a short time. some launches were successful. the students were shown these videos to demonstrate the nature of scientific and engineering endeavors, which are driven by “human curiosity and aspirations,” and sometimes result in devastating failure (next generation science standards [ngss], 2013). these videos provided a launch point for students to explore aspects of problem-solving and engineering practices, and would help them set up their own rocket experiments. first, students were asked and given time to explore and research their own studentdirected inquiries related to the videos. once the students had discussed their initial research with the whole class, the teacher facilitated a discussion about the difference between open-ended and closed-ended questions. specific attention was given to the validity of scientific questioning. in this way, students were engaged in initial authentic scientific processes as they related to physics and engineering. the students then explored newton’s 1st law of motion, which states, “an object at rest will stay at rest, and an object in motion will remain in motion, unless acted upon by an outside force.” utilizing the center approach, students were able to play with newton’s 1st law. through their play, students were able to explore the concepts in concrete ways. next, the students began their 1st law lab. this lab contained a rocket made of graph paper and a straw. the students were actively engaged in measuring distances and applying their knowledge by identifying where newton’s 1st law was taking place in the activities. the students learned about inertia, gravity, mass, and balanced/unbalanced forces. all the while, the teacher was incorporating and reviewing scientific processes like the scientific method and the nature of science. the students then took this knowledge outside and played the game, tug of war. they applied what they knew of newton’s 1st law of motion, observing the balanced/unbalanced forces. then the students calculated for net force. for newton’s 2nd law, “force equals mass times acceleration,” the students used fizzing tablets and water to calculate for mass, acceleration, and force. the students measured a film canister and filled it so that the collected mass was 10.5 grams. then the students measured how much the different sizes of tablets were in grams. the sizes for the fizzing tablets were as follows: a quarter of a tablet, half of a tablet, three-quarters of a tablet, and a full tablet. starting with the quarter of a tablet, the students opened the canister, put the tablet in, put the lid back on, flipped the canister upside down, and waited for the canister to pop off of the lid. meter sticks were taped to the wall (this was done outside) and students watched to determine the height reached by the canister, as well as the amount of time it took to reach that height. once the students tested for all of the tablet sizes, the students calculated the acceleration of the film canister. after determining acceleration, the students used the measured mass to calculate for the force of the “rocket.” 46    for newton’s 3rd law, “every action has an equal but opposite reaction,” the students created rockets made of pipe insulator, foam trays, a straw, a zip tie, and a rubber band. the pipe insulator was cut into equal pieces (12 inches long). the foam trays were also cut into three equally sized fins. the fins were hot glued onto the foam. then the straw was tied in a knot around the rubber band and placed into the foam low enough so the zip tie could be placed around the circumference of the rocket near the top. the zip tie was pulled tight enough that the rubber band could be pulled, and the straw would not come out of the foam. students did two different tests with these rockets. these were called the “thumb vs. index finger” tests, which were accomplished by firing the rocket off of their thumb and off of their index finger. the students were asked to find the average distances for these tests and note them in their data table. once the lab was over, the students wrote about how newton’s 3rd law was used during the lab. finally, the students did two more activities to measure speed and velocity. these involved “distance divided by time/distance divided by time with a given direction.” the speed lab involved miniature toy cars and poker chips. each group was given a toy car, five fake poker chips, textbooks, and rulers. the textbooks and rulers were used to make the ramp for the car. then, the students measured the mass of the car. they measured the distance and time for how long the car took to get from the top of the ramp to the farthest distance. the students then calculated the speed and determined if the mass of the car affected its speed. for velocity, the students participated in the “velocity olympics,” where they were given certain lengths that they must travel and do a certain movement for the entirety of that length (e.g. speed walking, skipping, running, hopping). the students had been placed into groups, and their teammates used a stopwatch to determine how long it took for the students to travel in a certain direction. the direction changed for each test. cars. during the second quarter of physics instruction, the students were given the goal of creating a self-powered car with common household materials. the car needed to be able to navigate a track (electrical tape on the ground in the lab section of the classroom), and if it deviated, the students, who were placed in groups, would need to start over again. the track consisted of five straights, four turns, and one hill. when it came to the turns, the students’ goal was for their car to make the turns on its own. however, if the students could not figure out a way for the car to turn on its own, they could mark the placement of the car, turn it, and put the car down so the car was facing the correct direction. furthermore, the cars needed to move on their own without the use of batteries or motors. finally, the cars could be not be bigger than a shoebox and needed to be planned and constructed in class. students used shoeboxes, chip canisters, 2-liter bottles, or flat pieces of cardboard for their designs. commonly used materials for propulsion were balloons, magnets, rubber bands, and mouse traps. once the car was built, the students tested their designs on the track, but they were not allowed to handle the car outside of the previously described rules. the students then calculated the speed of the car for each time it moved (at the end they calculated the average speed), measured using the metric system, and used their knowledge of newton’s 3 laws of motion to navigate the track. the students tested their car once, made modification, tested again, made final modifications, and completed a final test. 47    in addition to the strategies of centers and small group instruction, these activities presented multiple, integrated, active pathways for exploring the concepts of physics. the science activities were heavily integrated with math and engineering concepts, but also involved creativity, divergent thinking, problem-solving, and critical thinking. students were highly engaged and were able to make meaningful connections between the activities and the often-complex nature of the concepts. la smog the arizona science standards call for seventh graders to learn about the atmosphere and technologies that predict weather. the teacher decided to use problem-based learning to explore these topics and capitalized on student choice and interest in their planned solutions to los angeles’ air quality issues. the students were asked what they already knew about smog in los angeles. they were given time to list what they knew, and the teacher facilitated a discussion using the students’ ideas. the issues were framed as complex problems that required creative, innovative solutions. then, students were given time for authentic inquiries, which involved questioning, researching, and even hypothesizing. after the problems with la’s air quality were identified, and students had a chance to investigate through their own research and inquiry, the students discussed possible solutions as a class. their preliminary ideas were presented, and the students were then shown information about the “forest city” that china is currently constructing to combat pollution. this planned city has over 40,000 plants and is estimated to produce 900 tons of oxygen. it would lower the average air temperature by a couple degrees as well. students were given the task of utilizing some of the concepts from the “forest city” in addition to their own ideas to come up with ways to implement solutions to the la smog problem. since the students had done some initial research, it was time to put a plan in place. they were tasked with creating a solution that would reduce pollutants in la’s air, improve air quality, reduce smog, increase water vapor in the air, and reduce carbon dioxide levels. using the project approach in addition to problem-based learning, students could present this plan in many different ways including slideshows, models (on presentation boards or building a scaled model), a research paper, etc... it was up to the students to present this plan to the “governor” of california (the teacher). the teacher facilitated the planning process and asked students to begin their work. once the students had a plan, they had to determine the best way to support its implementation. guiding questions included:  how many plants will they have?  how much fertilizer/dirt is required (nitrogen cycle)?  how much water does each plant need (water cycle)?  how many plants are needed to reduce carbon dioxide levels in la (carbon cycle)? 48     what type of soil is best for the plants chosen by the students (nitrogen cycle/rock placement due to plate tectonics)? a unique and innovative aspect of this project was that the students needed to present their completed plan to the “governor” of california (the teacher) to gain support and funding for their project. the idea was that science is also interconnected with other issues including economics. the students needed to answer questions regarding their project that discussed the carbon, nitrogen, and water cycles, as well as address how they were reading carbon dioxide levels, water levels, humidity, air temperature, and pollutants in the air. after approval and “funding” for their projects, students went through a series of “days” where they had to read outputs from technology predicting the weather. they would determine if their specific plans would have any effects on the ecosystem/air quality in la. finally, the students created a project of their choice detailing their plans and solutions. this project incorporated multiple strategies including problem-based learning, the project approach, and integrated not only multiple science topics, but social studies as well. conclusions the nature of science, a changing world, and calls for innovative new approaches in stem education have led to teachers adopting new instructional strategies that foster inquiry, engagement, and meaningful, relevant activity. centers, integration and project-based learning are crucial strategies that will pique students’ interests and foster authentic engagement in a modern classroom. students engaged in these strategies were able to work through “real world” scenarios at their developmental level and at their own pace. now more than ever, it is crucial for students to expand their interests, find meaning in what they are learning about, and take control of their learning. this is especially true of stem education as teachers need to promote various pathways to explore science, integrate with other topics, develop scientific identity in their students, and promote a life-long love for science. 49    references affiliated services for children & youth. (n.d.). why don’t worksheets belong in early learning & kindergarten programs? https://ascy.ca/wpcontent/uploads/2020/03/nomoreworksheetsflyer.pdf brand, b. r. (2020). integrating science and engineering practices: outcomes from a collaborative professional development. international journal of stem education, 7(13). darling-hammond, l., flook, l., cook-harvey, c., barron, b., & osher, d. (2019). implications for educational practice of the science of learning and development. applied developmental science, 24(2), 97-140. foley, b., & mcphee, c. (2008). students’ attitudes towards science in classes using hands-on or textbook based curriculum. washington, dc: american educational research association. jong, t. (2019). moving towards engaged learning in stem domains; there is no simple answer, but clearly a road ahead. journal of computer assisted learning, 35(2), 153-167. mccarthy, j. (2014, august 25). learner interest matters: strategies for empowering student choice. edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/differentiated-instruction-learnerinterest-matters-john-mccarthy mckinney, r. (2013, may 30). moving beyond the textbook: closing the book on the textbookdependent classroom. the whole child blog. http://www.wholechildeducation.org/blog/moving-beyond-the-textbook morse, l. l., & allensworth, d. d. (2015). placing students at the center: the whole school, whole community, whole child model. the journal of school health, 85(11), 785-794. next generation science standards. (2013). appendix h – understanding the scientific enterprise: the nature of science in the next generation science standards. https://www.nextgenscience.org/sites/default/files/appendix%20h%20%20the%20nature%20of%20science%20in%20the%20next%20generation%20scienc e%20standards%204.15.13.pdf rolheiser, c., olmstead, k., & gordon, k. (2019). goodbye lecture halls, hello active learning spaces: strategies to transform your classroom into a lively, student-centered learning environment. harvard business publishing education. https://hbsp.harvard.edu/inspiringminds/goodbye-lecture-halls-hello-active-learning-spaces romero, j. d. (2016, january 29). study urges a movement away from traditional stem pipelines to embrace diversity of stem educational pathways. american association for the advancement of science. https://www.aaas.org/news/study-urges-movement-awaytraditional-stem-pipelines-embrace-diversity-stem-educational semrud-clikeman, m. (2010). research in brain function and learning: the importance of matching instruction to a child’s maturity level. american psychological association. https://www.apa.org/education/k12/brain-function stambaugh, j., & trank, c. (2010). not so simple: integrating new research into textbooks. academy of management learning and education, 9(4), 663-681. stone, s. j., & stone, b. (2013). transforming worksheets into experiences: a stepping stone to authentic, meaningful learning. childhood education in acei exchange, 89(1), e 6-8. wylie, j. (2014, december 12). a digital worksheet is still just a worksheet. jonathan wylie. https://jonathanwylie.com/2014/12/12/a-digital-worksheet-is-still-just-a-worksheet/ final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 41 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 42 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 43 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 44 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 45 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 46 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 47 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 48 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 49 92 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 page turners: books for children maria t. genesta, katrina bartow jacobsb, carla k. meyerc, michelle j. sobolakd, patricia a. crawforde ala roche college, buniversity of pittsburgh, cduquesne university, cuniversity of pittsburgh, euniversity of pittsburgh picturebooks believe: a pop-up book of possibilities written and illustrated by robert sabuda candlewick, 2019. isbn 9780763663971 with sparse text and sabuda’s characteristic solid white pop-ups, this book invites readers to dream big and set the course to live up to their potential: “when i dream of the future/ i will dream big./ when i build my life/ i will reach high”. although aimed at a young audience, it is hard to imagine that children and adults of all ages would not enjoy sabuda’s inspirational words and mesmerizing, complex paper engineering. a good choice to read with children or to share as a gift book to mark special occasions or milestones. ages 3-8. (pac) let me sleep, sheep! written by meg mckinlay illustrated by leila rudge candlewick, 2019, isbn 9781536205473 this hilarious tale of a bedtime ritual gone awry will delight young and old readers alike. the main character, amos, always counts sheep to help fall asleep, however, he never expected that the sheep would drop into his bedroom with a thud! the story continues with amos trying to create the perfect fence for the never satisfied sheep to jump over so they can complete their duties and return to their normal lives. all the work tires amos out and he finally falls asleep, leaving the sheep to frolic in his bedroom. this tale will amuse all audiences. ages 5-8. (mjs) 93 maybe tomorrow? written by charlotte agell illustrated by ana ramírez gonzález scholastic. 2019. isbn 9781338214888 this delicately rendered text highlights the feelings, particularly sadness, that we may carry with us each day. elba’s big heavy block is dragged behind her, slowing down her thinking and preventing her from leaving the park where she sits. norris, who always travels with a flock of beautiful butterflies, shows elba (and young readers) how friendship and kindness can help share the burden of the big heavy block, and maybe tomorrow, the block will become smaller and lighter. ages 4-8. (mtg) squirrel’s family tree written by beth ferry illustrated by a.n. kang scholastic. 2019. isbn 9781338187366 this book uses repetition and rhyme to describe the interdependent relationship between squirrels and the mighty oak tree: “squirrels come and squirrels go, scatter-hoarding to and fro, making sure that oak trees grow, and grow, and grow, and grow.” with dynamic illustrations of the natural world, informative text, and a “nutty facts” section at the end, squirrel’s family tree provides young readers with a realistic depiction of the life cycles of the squirrel and the oak and the centrality of the acorn through it all. ages 3-5. (mtg) waiting for chicken smith written and illustrated by david mackintosh candlewick. 2019. isbn 978i536207712 in waiting for chicken smith, text is supported by muted illustrations of a summer at the beach created by mackintosh using pen, pencil, watercolor and kraft paper. during this summer tale, the main character yearns for an old friend and recalls their many adventures on the beach. before long he is reluctantly called away for new escapades with his sister where he learns that even without his old friend there are many new adventures to be had. this story speaks to old friendships, the change that time inevitably brings and the surprise of new friendships. ages 3-8. (mjs) grumpy duck written by joyce dunbar illustrated by petr horáček candlewick. 2018. isbn 9781536204247 some days just don’t go the way we hoped. in grumpy duck, duck is dismayed to find the pond has dried up, and wanders around with a little gray cloud above her. when her friends try to 94 cheer her up, they find out how quickly grumpiness can spread from a small gray cloud to a massive black thunderhead. will they be able to break the cycle and find their good cheer again? this story, with its simple prose and bold mixed media illustrations, offers young children an opportunity to think about how our moods impact one another, and how we can turn a bad day around, if we can just find the right perspective. ages 3-8. (kbj) bear’s book written by claire freedman illustrated by alison friend templar books. 2019. isbn 9781536205718 like many aspiring authors, when bear sits down to write a story he finds that inspiration can be the hardest part. he decides to take a walk to see if he can get some good ideas started, but he keeps being interrupted by his friends. when he goes home, he finds that everyday adventures mixed with a dash of imagination can be the best beginning to any tale. bear’s book is a lovely tale of persistence, patience, and creativity. it will encourage the youngest writers among us to think about how they can use their own experiences to craft wonderful stories. ages 3-8. (kbj) young adult literature hamilton and peggy!: a revolutionary friendship written by l.m. elliot katherine tegen books, 2018. isbn 9780062671318 riding the on the wave of popularity of the hamilton musical, this well-researched, historical fiction novel tells the story of peggy, the youngest of the schuyler sisters. the story explores how the american revolution affects peggy’s with her parents, her sisters, and of course her sister’s famous suitor alexander hamilton. however, make no mistake, peggy is the heroine of this tale, and the novel highlights the often-overlooked contribution of america’s founding mothers. ages 15+. (ckm) other words for home written by jasmine warga balzer + bray, 2019 isbn 9780062747808 jasmine warga’s other words for home conveys a raw and vulnerable story told in verse. the story follows jude, a syrian girl, as she and her mother flee to the united states as syria increasingly becomes uncertain and violent. this modern-day story of immigration tells the story of one young girl's desire to start her new life in the united states while honoring the life she left behind. warga addresses the realities of racism and intolerance while telling a story of bravery and hope. ages 10-14. (ckm) 95 flights of fancy: creative inspiration from ten award-winning authors and illustrators written & illustrated by various noted authors and illustrators walker books, 2019. isbn 9781536205367 in this profusely illustrated anthology, ten acclaimed creators of children’s books explore the inspirations and influences that guide them. each chapter is written and illustrated by a british children’s laureate. prose and illustrations provide inspiring, workable ideas for nurturing the creative potential within each reader. individual chapters could serve as an excellent mentor texts for budding authors and illustrators, giving readers an opportunity to learn from the likes of michael rosen, anthony browne, lauren child and many more. ages 11+. (pac) ijwc spring 2020 92 ijwc spring 2020 93 ijwc spring 2020 94 ijwc spring 2020 95 88 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 page turners: books for children maria t. genesta, katrina bartow jacobsb, carla k. meyerc, michelle j. sobolakd, patricia a. crawford e ala roche college, buniversity of pittsburgh, cduquesne university, cuniversity of pittsburgh, euniversity of pittsburgh picturebooks the box turtle written and illustrated by vanessa roeder dial books, 2020. isbn 978-0-735-23050-7 in this charming story, the box turtle, just like many of us, is trying to gain confidence in who he is while feeling the pressure to fit in. born without a shell, this story chronicles a box turtle’s quest to find the perfect shell. along the way, the box turtle tries out many shells of ten with hilarious results. ultimately, and with a little help from his friends, he settles on the shell his parents first gave him. children will certainly be able to relate to this tale of friendship, coming to accept ourselves and learning that we do not have to always “fit in” to find happiness. ages 35. (mjs) the brain is kind of a big deal written and illustrated by nick seluk orchard books, 2019. isbn 978-1338167009 this nonfiction picture book is all about our amazing brains. seluk uses comic book style illustrations and humor to teach young readers how the brain controls everything we do from our thoughts, movements, senses, and feelings. young readers will surely be pulled in by the illustrations and humor that seluk uses to complement the text as they learn about the many functions of the brain and how it controls all other parts of the body. the sidebar graphics and text go into more detail about the brain and augment the reader’s learning. ages 6-8. (mjs) counting creatures written by julia donaldson. illustrated by sharon king-chai dial books, 2020. isbn 978-0-593-3453-0 this stunning picturebook offers a lift-the-flap counting game experience, while also introducing readers to a host of animals and their babies. as children count their way through the text, they will learn that baby sheep are called lambs, baby foxes are kits, baby hares are leverets, and so much more. in addition to these solid math and science connections, along with a predictable, yet engaging storyline, the book also offers a veritable visual playground . the colorful, profusely illustrated pages are punctuated with peek-through windows and interactive flaps, just right for 89 exploration by little fingers. this book will keep young children coming back for more, as they discover the many different layers of material within it . ages 3-8. (pac) julián at the wedding written and illustrated by jessica love candlewick press, 2020. isbn: 978-1536212389 julián, and his love of magic and make-believe, are back. in this follow-up story to julián is a mermaid, julián and his abuela are invited to a wedding, where julián meets marisol, a new friend. together the two imagine, create, and get into a bit of trouble. but through it all the truth remains that, as the text tells us, a wedding is a party for love. jessica love continues to celebrate gender diversity and equal rights in simple, loving stories that come to life with her vivid and emotional illustrations. ages 3-8. (kbj) me and my sister written and illustrated by rose robbins eerdmans, 2020. isbn 978-0-8028-5542-8 “uh-oh, here comes my sister…” this light, but insightful, picturebook offers readers a glimpse into the world of two siblings who have both similarities and differences. although the word “autism” is never used in the text, it becomes quite clear that this is the issue at hand. big brother narrates gently worded descriptions of the challenging behaviors of his sister, providing an empathetic yet realistic perspective. the tone is loving and compassionate. this text could serve as a powerful discussion starter. ages 4-8. (pac) the new neighbors written and illustrates by sarah mcintyre penguin books, 2019 (first published in the u.k. in 2018). isbn: 978-1-52478-996-1 when mr. pigeon stops by the apartment roof to tell the young bunny family that their new first floor neighbors are rats, the exuberant young rabbits rush off to tell their sister. as the bunnies bounce down the stairs to inform all the neighbors in pickle lake, excitement turns to fear and even anger as unpleasant stereotypes and rumors about rats emerge. by the time they reach the rats’ front door, nobody even wants to knock. but once the door opens, a warm welcome awaits, as the tenants realize that nobody should be judged by their appearance alone. this fast -paced tale seems simple, but reminds us all to think before we judge. ages 4-8. (kbj) saturdays are for stella written by candy wellins. illustrated by charlie eve ryan page street kids, 2020. isbn 978-1-62414-921-4 george loves saturdays because these are the days he spends with his grandma stella. he loves everything about her and the special times they share. their days are filled with fun and george knows he is loved deeply. one day, george awakes to learn that stella has passed away. in his aching grief, george mourns his grandmother and comes to hate the emptiness of saturdays. life changes when his family gets a new addition. baby stella is born! george embraces his new little sister, finding a joy and love reminiscent of that of his grandmother. suddenly, saturdays are redeemed and once again set aside for stella. this warm and poignant story highlights the power of intergenerational relationships and conveys a hopeful reassurance for even the most difficult times. ages 4-8. (pac) 90 graphic novels it’s me. (catwad #1) written and illustrated by jim benton scholastic, 2019. isbn 978-1-33856-603-1 it’s me. (catwad #1) is the first graphic novel in a new series by new york times bestselling author, jim benton. this series features two cats who are complete opposites in their outlooks on life. catwad is a pessimist who sees the world as terrible in every way. his overzealous friend, blurmp, sees the world as amazing in every way. their opposite perspectives on life make for a very amusing friendship. young or reluctant readers will find the slapstick humor engaging. the novel is presented in short chapters that make reading the full text manageable for even the most reluctant of readers. ages 8-12. (mjs) class act written and illustrated by jerry craft quill tree books, 2020. isbn 978-0062885500 on the heels of his newbery medal winning graphic novel, new kid, jerry craft again hits a homerun with the second installment of the series, class act. the graphic novel explores the opportunities afforded (or lack there off) to a student of color, drew, the main character, who comes from a poorer community in new york city and attends the elite riverdale academy day school on scholarship. using his craft, the author/illustrator continues to unabashedly address the everyday racism and microaggressions children of color face in white spaces. craft’s illustration and humorous writing style will capture the attention and respect of middle-grades readers. ages 9-14. (ckm) young adult a light in the darkness written by albert marrin albert a. knopf, 2019. isbn 978-1524701208 an exceptionally well-written and researched work, a light in the darkness, recounts the tragic fate of janus korczak and his orphans in nazi controlled poland. the author uses a unique approach to storytelling which contrasts the ideologies of hitler and korzack. marrin’s approach poignantly introduces readers to world war ii and to warsaw. the author leaves no stone unturned and unflinchingly gives testament to the horror of the holocaust through korczak’s story. the book requires critical thinking and reflection, yet is an extremely important work that illustrates how easily humans can be corrupted by hate and bigotry. ages 13+. (ckm) ijwc_springv42021 88 ijwc_springv42021 89 ijwc_springv42021 90 final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 60 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 pictures for reflection recommended toys for the playroom hannah robinsona amiddle tennessee state university dr. hannah robinson is an assistant professor at middle tennessee state university in the professional counseling program. dr. robinson earned a ph.d. in counseling at the university of north texas, specializing in play therapy. dr. robinson is a licensed professional counselor-supervisor in texas and a registered play therapist (rpt) credentialed by the association for play therapy. dr. robinson has experience counseling diverse clientele across the lifespan including children, adolescents, adults, couples, families, parents, and children, adolescent, and adult groups in community agencies, elementary and preschool schools, and private practice. furthermore, dr. robinson specializes in providing play therapy services to children who have experienced adversity and children from title 1 schools. dr. robinson’s research interests including examining the effectiveness and process of child-centered play therapy (ccpt) and child-parent relationship therapy (cprt) with marginalized communities. when working with children in counseling, it is often difficult to decide which toys to include in the playroom. landreth (2012) recommends that toys be intentionally selected instead of collected. play is a child’s universal language and toys are their words; therefore; each and every toy should be purposeful (landreth, 2012). the carefully chosen toys allow children an ability to express a full range of emotions, with toy categories including the following: real-life toys, acting-out aggressive-release toys, and toys for reactive expression and emotional release. real-life toys may include toys that can represent figures and materials in the child’s life such as puppets, dolls, vehicles, a play kitchen, a cash register, and food. acting-out aggressive release toys include toys such as a bop bag, play guns, and a shark. finally, toys for reactive expression and emotional release may include paints, sand, and play doh. with these toys in the playroom, the therapist is able to establish a positive relationship with the child in which the child can express a wide range of feelings, explore real-life experiences, test limits, develop a positive self-image, develop self-understanding, and develop self-control (landreth, 2012). further recommendations for specific toys to include in your playroom as well as detailed information regarding structuring your playroom can be found in landreth (2012). 61 references landreth, g. l. (2012). play therapy: the art of the relationship (2nd ed.). new york, ny: routledge. 27    international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 2 foster a growth mindset in children using two books: “beautiful oops” by barney saltzberg and “stickley makes a mistake: a frog’s guide to trying again” by brenda s. miles angela danleya auniversity of central missouri dr. angela danley is an associate professor of elementary and early childhood education at the university of central missouri. she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses. additionally, she supervises teacher candidates in the clinical practicum. abstract this article provides early childhood educators and parents information on the importance of teaching students about growth mindset. assisting children at a young age about how their mistakes can help them grow is necessary so they can view setbacks as opportunities to accomplish goals. through using read alouds, early educators to help young children make personal connections to the characters and the theme of the story. through the read alouds connected to growth mindset, the educator can promote discussion, provide writing opportunities, and help students develop personal goals. introduction growth mindset is important to develop at a young age so children can begin looking at challenges as opportunities instead of obstacles. children with a growth mindset “interpret setbacks, challenges, and effort as effective approaches to improving their ability, intelligence, and experience” (zeng, hou, peng, 2016, p. 2). assisting children at a young age that they can take their mistakes to become resilient people is necessary, so they do not develop a fixed mindset or feel defeated or a sense of failure at something they wanted to accomplish. children who perceive effort as important are said to have a growth mindset (hochanadel & finamore, 2015). when children develop a growth mindset along with passion to persevere, it promotes goal setting and achieving those goals. there are many children’s books connected to developing a growth mindset. using read alouds connected to growth mindset provides students the opportunity to connect to the story or character. using read alouds allows the students to gain an understanding that stories can relate 28    to their own lives (reading recovery, 2019). providing children the opportunity to make these personal connections allows them to reflect and in return it is more meaningful. summary of “beautiful oops” in the book, “beautiful oops,” the author, barney saltzberg tells a story that it is okay to make mistakes. this simple picture book is filled with colorful artwork sharing a story of that when a person makes a mistake, the picture is still beautiful. his message is to help children understand that sometimes the mistakes may end up being beautiful creations. children can learn from their mistakes and become resilient learners. summary of “stickley makes a mistake: a frog’s guide to trying again” this story is about a frog named stickley who wanted to be perfect. when stickley would make a mistake, he would proclaim, “oh no!” stickley would not try again because he feared making mistakes. with the help from his grandpa, stickley learns that making mistakes is actually a good thing. stickley learns to hop up and try again. using discussions to promote conversations on resiliency “beautiful oops” and “stickley makes a mistake: a frog’s guide to trying again” are both simple read alouds, but the meaning of the stories is powerful for children. “resilience—or whether students respond positively to challenges—is crucial for success in school and in life’ (yeager & dweck, 2012, p. 1). saltzberg’s message of sharing that mistakes are okay to make connects to helping young children understand the importance of resiliency. additionally, miles’ message about trying again makes children mentally stronger because they are more willing to take risks in their learning and personal goals. these two read aloud books allow for personal one-on-one discussions or a classroom discussion of sharing personal mistakes in school and outside of school. questions for discussion when promoting discussions centered around growth mindset using these two books, it is important to consider questions that children can connect with to help them reflect on their personal experiences. the center for research on learning and teaching (2016) stated it is important to connect questions which connect to their personal lives. using these two books to promote discussion opens the door for children to use their schema. questions focused on assisting children to understand the importance of making mistakes helps them become resilient and develop a growth mindset. example of questions include, but are not limited to the following: 1. have your ever made a mistake? if so, did you become frustrated, upset, or sad? 2. how do the authors of the books help you understand that mistakes are okay? 3. how can you use your mistakes to work towards a goal? 4. did the frog remind you of yourself when it comes to making mistakes? 5. in “beautiful oops,” what did you learn about yourself? 6. how can you use your mistakes to learn about yourself? 29    these open-ended questions can be asked one-on-one or in small groups to provide the children opportunities to share their thoughts in a safe environment. promoting discussion in small groups allows those children who are hesitant in speaking in a large group an opportunity to take risks and share their voices. goal setting connection children at a young age can create goals connected to their academic learning or personal lives. communicating with children that mistakes and failures coincide with growth is important. children can use these mistakes and create a goal for self-improvement. as explained by schunk (1990), as learners work on tasks, they observe their own performances and evaluate their own progress. self-efficacy and goal setting are affected by self-observation, self-judgment, and self-reaction. when students perceive satisfactory goal progress, they feel capable of improving their skills; goal attainment, coupled with high self-efficacy, leads students to set new challenging goals. (p. 71) further, in a study completed by ames and archer (1988), they found that students who set goals and work towards those goals possess a growth mindset, especially true when teachers focused on mastering goals in the classroom. in a sense, the adult is coaching and supporting children with their goals, but ultimately setting the goal and the plan to achieve the goal is the responsibility of each child. a goal planning template is provided (appendix a). this planning sheet allows for students to write and illustrate their thoughts connected to their goal. writing connection using these two children’s books opens an opportunity for children to write their own books about making mistakes and how they overcome their mistakes in school and everyday life. they can write their own “beautiful oops” or their personal guide to overcoming obstacles, barriers, or mistakes. writing is an important part of the academic curriculum. writing can take on the form of telling a story through pictures and words. polisena (n.d) stated, “introducing and practicing writing with engaging activities in elementary school, can foster confidence and a lifelong love of writing” (para 1). providing children a purpose for writing with a meaningful connection allows them to share their story with other children and adults in the home and at school. summary developing a growth mindset at an early age can help students use their setbacks and challenges as opportunities to achieve academic and personal goals. burns (2006) stated that children enjoy sharing what they read. when the educator reads books focused on growth mindset along with asking questions to promote discussion, the children are learning to make connections to develop a growth mindset. children should be given the opportunity to share their thoughts, write about what they are thinking, and develop goals to work towards an area they want to improve and overcome. dweck (2008) affirmed that educators can successfully teach children to develop a 30    growth mindset. providing opportunities in the classroom to do this can increase engagement and performance. 31    references ames, c., & archer, j. (1988). achievement goals in the classroom: student learning strategies and motivational processes. journal of educational psychology, 80(3), 260–267. burns, b. (2006). how to teach balanced reading and writing (2nd ed.). corwin press. dweck, c.s. (2008). can personality be changed? the role of beliefs in personality and change. current directions in psychological science, 17, 391-394. hochanadel, a, & finamore, d. (2015). fixed and growth mindset in education and how grit helps students persist in the face of adversity. journal of international education research, 11(1), 47-50. polisena, j. (n.d.). importance of writing in elementary schools. demand media http://www.communicationacademy.com/wpcontent/uploads/2017/07/vr_importance_of _writing_global_post.pdf reading recovery. (2019). introduction to use schema. https://readingrecovery.clemson.edu/introduction-to-use-schema/ the center for research on learning and teaching (2016). using discussion questions effectively. http://www.crlt.umich.edu/using-discussion-questions-effectively yeager, d.s. & dweck c.s. (2012). mindsets that promote resilience: when students believe that personal characteristics can be developed. educational psychologist, 47(4), 302–314. schunk, d. h. (1990). goal setting and self-efficacy during self-regulated learning. educational psychologist, 25, 71–86. zeng, g., hou, h., & peng, k. (2016). effect of growth mindset on school engagement and psychological well-being of chinese primary and middle school students: the mediating role of resilience. frontiers in psychology, 7. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01873 32    appendix a goal setting template for children i am great at: _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ a challenge i have is: _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ i want to improve on: ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ 33    i will achieve my goal by: _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ dates to check in on my goal: _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 27 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 28 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 29 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 30 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 31 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 32 final copy ijwc 12.10.2020 33 57 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 children and families: health and wellness instances of intimate partner violence (ipv) among the young in turkey simel parlaka azize nilgün canelb aokan university, istanbul, turkey; bmarmara university, istanbul, turkey simel parlak, phd, is an assistant professor in the okan university guidance and psychological counseling science department. her research focuses on planning psycho-educational works and nation-wide programs to prevent intimate partner violence targeting conflict resolution skills, communication skills, anger management, healthy romantic relationships, and gender equality with involvement of several bodies such as family, school, non-governmental organizations, and social media. she has publications in nnational and international journals and book chapters. she is working in the field of individual and group therapy. she is interested in psychodrama, narrative therapy, supportive therapy, emdr, trauma and violence. azize nilgün canel, assoc. prof. dr. she graduated from istanbul marmara university, department of psychological counseling and guidance. she completed her phd with her thesis on family and marriage satisfaction. she began her academic career as a research assistant at istanbul university and is currently a faculty member at marmara university. she has taken part in many national and international projects, has written articles for national and international journals, and has written three books on couple and families. she took part in the preparation of the turkey's fight against addiction training program (tbm). she also has several studies on modern and postmodern therapies and creative counseling. canel is married and has one child. abstract the aim of this research was to find out the origin and emotional and intellectual process of violence among young people. interpretative phenomenological analysis method was used in the research. in-depth interviews were held with young adolescents and emerging adults that have committed violence to reveal their experiences of perpetrating violence, thoughts and sensations that could lay the groundwork for emergence of violence in this age group. the study group consisted of fifteen young adolescents and emerging adults. as a result of the interpretive phenomenological analysis using maxqda computer program, three study themes were obtained: 1) childhood experiences 2) relationship with partner and occurrence of violence, 3) post-violence experiences. according to the young adolescents and emerging adults who have committed intimate partner violence; intimate partner violence was triggered by jealousy, mistrust, uncontrolled anger, and desire to control the partner's life. 58 key words: intimate partner violence, young adolescents and emerging adults, domestic violence. intimate partner violence appears in physical, psychological, or sexual context or in the form of stalking (cdc, 2006). this research particularly discusses physical violence in dating relations. foshee et al. (2007) describe physical dating violence as scratching, slapping, pushing, biting, strangling, burning, or beating. feminist literature defines intimate partner violence as a coercive behaviour performed to gain control and power over the partner (mitchell & magdalena, 2009). the world health organization (2012) has declared that aggression has a continuing course from childhood to adolescence and from adolescence to adulthood, conducing to a permanent pattern of violence. in turkey, the adolescent profile 2008 survey has revealed that 21.2% of adolescents have perpetrated physical violence, 33.3% have perpetrated verbal violence, and 2.9% have perpetrated sexual violence (ministry directorate general of family and social research, 2010). in research conducted on university students by hatipoğlu, (2010), 94.0% (205/218) of the participants reported perpetrated violence in their previous dating relationships. in a study conducted on 3153 young adolescents and emerging adults by the association for struggle against sexual violence, it has been found that 44% of the youth have experienced dating violence (öztürk, karabulut, & sertoğlu, 2018). in turkey, dating violence is increasing daily and is also occurring among high school age youth (association for struggle against sexual violence, 2018). in the study conducted in turkey on young people by sekam (2013) it is seen that 44% of the young people have applied physical violence to their friends, siblings, partners and 60% approve of the judgments sentence of “the right of those who do not listen and follow one's nose is beaten.” (p. 201). in the 2013 youth risk behavior survey, which was conducted on 9900 students, 20.9% of the female students and 10.4% of the male students stated that they were exposed to partner violence (vagi, olsen, basile, & vivolo-kantor, 2015). in fidan and yesil’s (2018) research carried out in turkey, school girls normalized the violence they experience by referring to the social environment, the character of the partner, and their own attitude. male students consider violence they use as ownership. according to the grand national assembly of turkey parliamentary research commission (2007), when the statistics of the world and regions are examined, young people are among the disadvantaged groups affected by violence. studies show that youth violence is an ongoing and increasing problem. it is observed that the death rates related to violence are high among young people in the world. there are children who died in the 5-14 age group due to suicide and violence, and this rate increases even more in the 15-29 age group. agents encouraging dating violence have been listed as drug abuse (offenhauer & buchalter, 2011), sociodemographic structure (foshee et al., 2004), being raised in a young family, lower socio-economic level, education level of the family (foshee et al., 2009), witnessing or exposure to domestic violence (foshee et al., 2004; offenhauer & buchalter, 2011), and peer influence (chase, treboux & o’leary, 2002). in turkey, researchers (avcı & güçray, 2013; haskan, 2009; özgür, yörükoğlu & baysan-arabacı, 2011; şen, 2011), showed that young people witness or are exposed to violent acts within family besides the larger social environment, education is not sufficient, and 59 lower socio-economic level and unsatisfactory parental love and interest add to likeliness of appearance of violence. according to the world health organization (2012), the factors leading to violence in the youth period include individual (biological and psychological-behavioral), relational (family and peer influence) communal (gang, possession of arms, substance use, social integration) and social (demographic and social changes, income inequality, political and cultural) factors. violence can be figured out as it is, only by examining its roots and nature (arendt, 2006). revealing the sources and so-called justifications of violence is considered to have an important place in breaking this cycle (lucas, 2013). dating violence during youth is such an assault that it may lead to physical and psychological injury, developmental deterioration, suicide, low academic performance, drug abuse, involvement in crime, and domestic violence in later years. since young people are at a critical stage of identity development, it seems essential for future preventive studies to explore culture-specific facts as to the source of violence by means of qualitative interviews if it is intended to break the cycle of violence. it should be noted that although violence occurs everywhere in the world and in different forms and areas, it also has culture-specific aspects. this research was conducted with a phenomenological approach with the purpose of uncovering perpetration experiences of young people but also their thoughts and emotions that might have paved the way for violent acts. method in this research, interpretive phenomenological design, which is the qualitative research design used with the aim of studying in detail young adolescents’ and emerging adult’s experiences of perpetrating violence against their partners and revealing the basic characteristics that are common to some or all the participants. interpretive phenomenological research was particularly useful for this research as it allowed a detailed examination of the experience, the effect of the participant’s interpretation of the experience on her/himself, how the participants made sense of the experience, and how they form their perceptions about their personal and social worlds (jeong, & othman, 2016). in this regard, interpretive phenomenological framework seems important in obtaining information about the experiences of young individuals who perpetrated violence on their partner (smith & osborn, 2008; jeong, & othman, 2016). participants in this research, participants were selected by using criterion and snowball sampling methods among purposeful sampling methods, which allow in-depth study (creswell, 2015). the basic understanding in criterion sampling is to study all situations that meet a set of predetermined criteria. the criterion mentioned here can be set by the researcher (patton, 1990). the criteria here included perpetrate violence on the partner, signing the informed consent form for taking part in the research, and being unmarried young people from both genders. in snowball sampling, one individual is determined as a reference considering the subject of the study and 60 contact is made with other participants through this person (creswell, 2015). many of the people interviewed in this research stated that they were exposed to violence but did not perpetrate violence. during the selection of the participants, it proved relatively easy to reach the abused persons, while it was quite a challenge to access young people who have committed intimate partner violence. in addition, the latter avoided accepting their violent acts unless such acts were in police records or there were legal actions against them. it was seen that during the interviews, female participants spoke out that they acted as abusers, but male participants had difficulty uttering the same. it is thought that there is less social stigma around women perpetrating violence against men. on the other hand, the males avoided doing so because they were probably concerned about being criticised harshly for perpetrating violence on someone weaker than themselves. therefore, the researchers had difficulty in reaching the male participants. in general, due to the focus on personal experience of the individual in phenomenology, homogeneity of the study group consisting of a small number of participants allows a thorough study of circumstantial similarities and differences (chawla, 2006; smith, & osborn, 2008). the sample size was determined against these criteria in the current research. the variables related to the participants’ sociodemographic characteristics are given in the tables below . table 1. socio-demographic characteristics of the participants participant age gender education medical or psychological condition previous attempt for self-harm p1 16 female at high school difficulty in controlling anger and thus receiving psychological support slitting wrists/ suicide attempt p2 16 female at high school startled by azan (sounds of prayer calls) for one year, believing that supernatural beings are bothering her, not receiving psychological support throwing a fist on a wall, breaking her finger p3 17 male at high school none suicide attempt p4 17 female at high school none slitting wrists/ suicide attempt p5 16 male at high school none throwing a fist on a wall, breaking the little finger p6 17 female at high school was on medication for 2 years due to anger problem slitting the arms with glass 61 p7 18 female high school graduate was on medication for 2 years due to anger problem drug intake / suicide attempt at the request of her boyfriend p8 17 female at high school none none p9 24 male high school graduate none selfmutilation scars left on the body p10 24 female university graduate was on medication for 2 years due to anger control and neurologic problems drug intake/ suicide attempt p11 21 female at high school psychiatric treatment and antidepressant drugs at intervals of 2 years drug intake/ suicide attempt p12 22 male high school graduate none verbal reference to suicide but no attempt p13 23 female university graduate none none p14 23 female university graduate therapeutic support for 2 years none p15 24 female master’s degree was on medication for a short period in psychiatry clinic and therapeutic support for 2 years none it can be seen in the tables above that most of the participants have a history of psychological and psychiatric support, self-mutilation, and suicidal attempt; they are at close ages with their partner, they have not used drugs during or after the violence; and some participants have reported ending of their violent romantic relationship, while some others have reported the opposite. data collection in this research, the semi-structured interview was used as a type of interview commonly used within qualitative research. the questions were first used in a pilot study on one female and one male. as a result of the feedback obtained from the pilot study, the interview questions were revised, some items were omitted if they did not help explore the phenomenon properly. also new questions were included for valuable data on the phenomenon, the questions were put in order, and the wording of the questions was finalised by taking the opinion of a psychological counselor who specializes in domestic violence. the sample questions about the interview were as follows: 1) when you look at the violence experienced during the relationship, what happened 62 before the violence appeared? 2) if you had the chance to go back in time and go back to that day of violence, would you behave differently? 3) what would be the reason for you to behave differently? the interviews were held by the researcher face to face and voice-recorded using a digital voice recorder with the permission of the participants. informed consent was obtained from the participants approving their voluntary contribution, and the interviews lasted an average of 60 minutes. all interviews were conducted by the first author of the study at a time and place convenient for the participants. the research was carried out in the biggest city of turkey, and the participants were contacted using the researchers’ professional networks, social connections, and the participants’ recommendations. it was identified that the interviewees who perpetrated violence against t heir partner often had difficulty talking about it and tended to justify and legitimise their violent acts. another observation during the interviews was that the female participants could speak of perpetrating violence with ease unlike the males. data analysis the research data was analyzed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis (ipa) proposed by smith et al. (2009) in the maxqda program. the researchers chose ipa to understand how participants perceive the personal and social world and to provide insight into how a particular person makes sense of a particular phenomenon in a particular context. moreover, ipa brought researchers as close as possible to the perspective of participants experiencing a particular phenomenon (smith & osborn, 2008). the stages involved in the interpretive phenomenology analysis are realized in the following order (willig, 2001). the audio records of the interviews were transcribed by the researcher and transferred onto maxqda. the text obtained from each interview was read repeatedly. at the same time, the audio recordings were replayed to make sure there was agreement between the audio and written records. also, notes were made on the text of each participant. at the next stage, focus was placed on the notes and themes that were created. the themes were created for each participant separately. next, the themes obtained from all participants were listed and the ones that were compatible with the phenomenon were determined. as a result of the comparison of the themes obtained from all participants, the main themes that were seen common and reflected the experience of the participants were obtained. apart from that, the resulting main themes, sub-themes, and codes were reviewed by three independent experts who have taken qualitative research courses. they were found to be consistent at a great extent and thus finalised by the researcher following the experts’ opinions. furthermore, the researcher went through training on trauma and violence for a more fruitful analysis process. the validity of the research was provided by making exact quotations from the opinions of the participants. findings the main themes and sub-themes which were obtained from interviews are outlined in this section. 63 childhood experiences this main theme, which defines the background of the participants and social composition of the neighborhoods, emerged with three sub-themes: self-description, family relations and experiences of violence. selfdescription. this sub-theme consists of four codes: low tolerance to errors, getting angry easily, being compliant and jealous. p15: “i don’t get angry easily, but once i get angry, something too bad comes out of me…i don't remember what i did when i was angry. at that moment i can do anything, you know.” p12: “i am very jealous… i am extremely sensitive and emotional.” strangely enough, some participants described themselves as “compassionate, easy-going, too tender-hearted to hurt other living things”. yet, in the course of the interview, they said that they perpetrated violence because of not being able to keep their temper; however, they seemed to be unaware of their violent acts. family relations. this sub-theme consists of three codes: father says the last word, mother says the last word and close relation with mother but distant relation with father. it was worth noting that the participants outlined the mother as the parent, which is easy to communicate with, shouldering the household responsibility, and warmer in relations, while they overall attributed a distant figure of communication to the father. p8: “mom was good. but my father and i sometimes don't get along. because he, you know, gets mistrustful. for example, he never lets me out of the house. he's always putting pressure… yeah, but mom's not like that. she is listening to all what i tell. she's trying to understand. rather, dad is approaching with anger.” p9: “my father used to drink all the time, he always had these problems. lastly, they got divorced... well, of course, we weren’t brought up with the love of parents....” the participants stated that the last word belongs to the mother in their family. as another finding about their intrafamilial relations, they stated that the father is often away from home, and they have only weak relations with the same because of imprisonment or heavy workload of him as applicable. in the case of others, the father was reported to be an active member of the household, often having the last say. the relevant participants presented this by using expressions such as “like in all households” or “father is the breadwinner”, which suggests that such participants readily consent to this situation and do not see it as unacceptable. experiences of violence. this sub-theme consists of three codes: exculpating violence against children, exposure to domestic violence and violence in the social circle. p1: “well, there isn’t usually a calm person around me… when people around me usually fight. there is an iron stuff called knuckle ring that is put on fingers. with it, with a chopping knife, etc.” p3: “when i heard the words he said... i jumped from the desk and put down one punch. i remember it…” 64 p9: “in front of our eyes, you know 3-tined forks which are big and wide, (he) heated it up on a camp cylinder and, i can remember clearly, he put it out on my mother's belly.” as an example, physical violence against children was excused for mischief as a child and recalled by remarking, “i haven’t been exposed to that much violence, she just pulled my hair, slapped my face or something, i deserved it” (p13). in addition, it was understood that participants became eyewitnesses to violence perpetrated by the father to other family members, they were exposed to violence from the mother and father during childhood, and they do not have warm or close kinship relations. moreover, it was inferred that violence perpetrated by the father to other members of the family (mother or sibling) was widespread in the families of the participants. the participants tended to normalise violence, underestimate it with expressions like “not something extreme”, and exhibit the same attitude regarding violence against their social circle with comments like “just for fun to deliberately hurt (others)”. relationship with partner and occurrence of violence this main theme, which focuses on the experiences before and during violence emerged with four sub-themes: internal factors that trigger violence, external factors that trigger violence, description of the act of violence, and violence fantasies. internal factors that trigger violence. this sub-theme consists of four codes: anger, jealousy and desire to control, disappointment and self-protected. basically, participants had difficulty managing their anger. they reported a heavy desire for hurting the other, but they resorted to physical violence because they could not perform it in speech, as they were unable to express themselves verbally. p7: i wanted him to suffer. because i was suffering tremendously at the time ... but i couldn't upset him with my words ... so i acted that way ... i think people resort to violence when they are helpless. i see i can't do anything with words. nothing. … it is the way i do when i cannot do it by speaking.” p4: “i'm being beaten, you know, my body, and i have a say on my own body. he can't simply touch me. if he touches me, i will touch him, too. i have to protect myself.” it was seen that intervention in the partner's clothing and behaviours was perceived as normal and jealousy was taken as a sign of strong emotions and an indicator of love. love was described to be correlative of intervention in the partner’s life, keeping her/him under control, jealousy, and owning. p11: “it's wrong. the wrong thing is that he goes with girls. why does he go? i am not going with men, why is he going with the opposite sex?” p14: “at that moment, i wanted to beat him. i wanted to rub his head against the wall. i was extremely angry at that moment. i was too jealous.” anger and inability to control anger seem to have considerably triggered violence among the participants in this research. the participants were seen not to remember the moment just before 65 the occurrence of violence and there are missed moments including emotions, thoughts, and behaviors during the violent acts. it was predominantly said, “i do not know what i was talking about, i do not remember what i did, i just passed out”. in short, it was found that they felt intense anger and could not think of anything other than harming and hurting the other person. based on their statements like “nervous breakdown, passing out” and their failure to identify the cause of the anger in some cases, it was concluded that they failed to keep their nerves under control. external factors that trigger violence. this sub-theme consists of four codes: physical violence perpetrated by partner, frustration, boredom of quarrels and being cheated. in participants, partner’s behavioural patterns and cheating were noted as external triggers of violence. p10: he kept me waiting for an hour and then i was angry, and he would accept it normally. that was what triggered me... and that's when he voiced that it was ridiculous for him to be angry, it’s triggering me... after saying that i was exaggerating ... i said that everything is permissible…” as one exception, physical violence and psychological pressure exerted by the partner were found to be an outstanding variable for some participants unlike the others. p6: “i hardly ever hit him because if i hit him, the result is usually too big against me. my arm was quite bruised for a while… i stopped seeing my boyfriend. then he came and beat me (laughing)” it is inferred that violence was not a one-time occurrence, the abused persons were exposed to violence in different times and places. they justified the violence with the partner’s family problems, so they tried to sympathise with the partner, and they expected the violence to gradually disappear. it was understood that the partners intervened in the participants’ everyday life, clothing, and behaviours; they made them feel valueless, they did not recognise their right to decide for their own life, and they tried to keep the participants’ life under control. it was added that physical and psychological violence by their partner somehow motivated them to apply physical violence, too. p5: “oh, jealousy. texting someone else, talking with her/him. you know, as i love her so much, i don’t talk to anyone else, she says she loves me very much but talking with others. it made me mad...” it can be deduced that cheating and lies were recurrent throughout the relationship and the young people who have committed intimate partner violence resorted to violence as the last choice in readiness for coming of the relationship to an end . the participants attempted to rationalise the violent acts by saying “how come does he do that although i love him?” (p2) in addition, intolerance and violence were noticed when a new romantic relationship was started by the other party, with the fear of rumours even when the romantic relationship discussed here had ended earlier. description of the act of violence. this sub-theme consists of four codes: not describing the act as violent, physical violence, self-destructive behaviour, and self-defence. when the participants’ 66 statements were examined, they tended to recall the anger they experienced at that moment rather than the act, and they had difficulty in remembering their feelings and thoughts experienced at that moment. there was a lack of awareness of violence and self-destructive behaviours that took place. p1: “there i started hitting him. because i was hurt. i slapped him and kicked him. i mean i hit a lot in that way. i had a stick with me, and i hit with the stick. you know i wasn’t able to satisfy my anger...” moreover, the participants seemed not to develop insight about the violence they perpetrated, and they did not call it violence. p8: “no, i am usually quite against fighting, so i can't beat… i used to shout or hit. okay, i’ve pushed but i haven’t beaten anyone at the extent of hurting a lot…” apart from these, most of the participants reportedly exhibited self -destructive acts at the time of anger, especially punching the wall in anger. p2: “but i realise later that i have already hit the wall. i notice it after my hand swells like this.” violence fantasies. this sub-theme consists of two codes: wishing to kill and dreaming of harming more. p1: “at that moment, i just wanted her/him to die. i said, god, kill her/him so that s/he can't go out with anyone except for me. suppose that s/he is dead, and i am done. i wished that s/he cannot to go out with someone else than me.” p8: “…i wanted to scream. i wanted to beat him to death. i was getting so mad.” p10: i wished if i had had a knife at that moment, i could have stabbed the knife. because i went blind.” post-violence experiences this main theme focuses on perception after perpetrated violence, emerged with three subthemes: perception of others’ judgement, perception regarding the consequence of the violence and perception of violence. perception of others’ judgement. this sub-theme consists of two codes: positive impression and negative impression. p4: “if one watched it all along, he would think i was doing self-defence, but he would wonder why we went that far. why we had to fight. you know, in general, those who fight outside are lovers or something like that.” participants believe that men perpetrating violence against women would be judged unfavorably by others because of perpetrating violence to someone weaker than them. participants expect some people to approve the violence and others to reject it. again, the majority of the participants were found to expect others to have a negative judgement of them and consider them as insane. p9: “they would think i was a weak person. i'm hitting the girl after all.” 67 perception regarding the consequence of the violence. this sub-theme consists of two codes: persisting in certain behaviours and wish of changing certain behaviours. participants insisted on their violent behavior as long as the reasons did not change. the participants grounded their violent acts on their partner’s certain behaviours and intense affection felt for her/him. p5: “…you know the other side must have thought, look at what he did, what sort of a man he is. he hits someone weaker than himself. but that thought is not right for that moment, i believe, because it is a girl, why should i beat unless she does something (bad)? because i love (her) so much. i used to in fact.” again, the interviewees explained that they wanted to stop their violent acts on the grounds that violence is not remedial at all. they indicated their preference for negotiation and listening to the other party rather than violence. nevertheless, though intention for changing that behavior was reported by both groups, they sound ed unsure about being able to control their anger. p7: “i left my course after that incidence because my friends there saw that and so on. that’s why… and my mother figured out. mom got angry with me. that's why i didn't have to experience these. i mean if i had known then what i know now, i wouldn't have done such a thing.” perception of violence. this sub-theme consists of three codes: incapability, can be used depending on the situation, it arises anywhere and suddenly. looking at the statements of the interviewees, violence was commonly interpreted as incapability, harmful, and arising from desperateness. p13: “i don't think it makes anyone superior or anything like that. what would you gain when you hurt a person? i believe that's even more incapable. i don't think it's power, i think it's desperation.” some of the participants said, “there is something like that at school. no one can harm whoever is powerful” (p4). it suggests that such participants recognise violence as an instrument for behavioural change specific to the surrounding conditions. it was also stressed that violence can break out suddenly and, in any place, and that violence exists in every sphere of life. p5: “i've been exposed to violence at home, just occasionally, not so much albeit. i compare it to the family because i’ve seen a few times. because it happens in every family. i don't think it never happens. actually, violence is the world, so i tell you. because there is violence in the parliament. it's in place in school. it's in place in the family. it is in place among friends. even in nature. it is even in place among animals.” as another finding, some of the participants, referred to the provoking part played by the other party in occurrence of violence as understood from the statement “they similarly provoke people. this is how violence takes place” (p12). it was implied that violence breaks out as a result of provocation. 68 it is assumed that violence is enjoyed as a means of higher status in their schools and violence is functional for social acknowledgement. it is equally noteworthy that the woman was referred to as the weaker person in the generalisation about not perpetrating violence to a weaker person. discussion in this research, three major themes were obtained, and the results were discussed associatively. the first main theme of the study “childhood experiences” describes how anger was evident as a part of self-description in participants. anger was described as a trait which is not a behavior that needs to be corrected. another interesting finding is that low tolerance was exhibited against errors and jealousy emerged as an important construct in the case of anger. anger was termed as a feeling aroused by the other party’s provocation and no responsibility was taken by the participants in this regard. on the one hand, the participants did not see being angry as a mistake; on the other hand, they sounded unaware that they perpetrated violence, or they were reserved to disclose such facts. in a research study carried out on those perpetrating intimate violence, wilkins (2011) found that the young people who have committed intimate partner violence considered themselves non-violent. there is also evidence in the literature that lower self -esteem increases bullying and aggressive acts (paulson, coombs & landsverk, 1990; russell & hudson, 1992). drawing on the reported views, it was understood that negative attributions such as being angry, jealous and their behaviours are overshadowed by such perception being manifested in perpetrating intimate partner violence. in terms of family relationships, establishing a closer relationship with the mother while the father is in distance appeared as one of the most visible common characteristics of the participants in our case. in a research conducted by the t.r. ministry of family and social policies (2013), intrafamilial ill-communication has been noted as an important area of problem. it is a widely accepted fact that the father is liable for the household subsistence. due to his working hours and working regime, he is often the secluded member of the family. while close and intimate relationships are established with the mother, the father often embodies authority offering only a distant relationship. similar results were obtained in the present research. as inherent in traditional gender roles; while the mother is considered responsible for rearing children and taking charge of the house, the father oversees maintaining the livelihood of the family and assumes the role of a remote communicator who avoids sharing his feelings. if an individual experiences affectionate relationships with family members during childhood, secure attachment takes place. on the contrary, domestic relationships based on denial or rejection give rise to avoidance as a style of attachment. in the middle, those who experience a blend of denying and loving relationship with their parents adopt the style of anxious and unstable attachment (hazan & shaver, 1987). our findings revealed broken intrafamilial relations and distant non-family relations, frequent appointment of the mother as the model parent, searching for a figure of affection outside the family because of the lack of domestic affection, and existence of intrafamilial problems and violence. the participants in this research might have adopted the anxious-unstable attachment style due to the reasons in the literature as mentioned above. therefore, they might have been tied to their partners with intense fear of loss 69 and preoccupied attachment, and such attachment might be the driver of the jealousy and violence. although participants remarked that domestic violence does not exist in their families; they continued the interviews by mentioning violent happenings, they underestimated and excused violence they were exposed to during their childhood, and they accepted it as a deserved punishment for their misbehaviour. in other research conducted on the agents of intimate partner violence, violence by parents has also been dealt with tolerance (barış, 2015; watt, 2011). the fact that the participants regard parents’ violence as a means of discipline or rearing children seems to pave the way for them to take violence in the same way. the findings of this research showed that the participants were exposed to domestic violence, they witnessed domestic violence, such violence was mostly perpetrated by the father, and violence is commonplace in their social circle. similarly, previous research studies have asserted that violent individuals experienced domestic violence considerably (barış, 2015; haskan, 2009; şen, 2011), the father was the family member that perpetrated violence more often than any other (şen, 2011; t.r ministry of family and social policy, 2013), witnessing violence in the social circle increased incidence of violence (avcı & güçray, 2013; özgür, yörükoğlu & baysan-arabacı, 2011; şen, 2011), and dating violence occurs in part due to the presence of violence in the social circle, school and peer relationships (chase, treboux & o’leary, 2002; offenhauer & buchalter, 2011). much in the same vein, we found out that the interviewees perpetrated violence to solve their problems with their partner. they said, “only if i can talk or i can express myself, i won’t do it”, and that violence was seen as a path to social recognition. the second main theme of the study, relationship with partner and occurrence of violence, proved the domain where expectations from partner and disappointment breed a hostile meaning loaded on the partner, ultimately being a vital agent in incidence of violence. like in previous studies (avcı, & yıldırım, 2014; berkowitz, 1990; eatough, smith, & shaw, 2008; watt, 2011), the young people who have committed intimate partner violence in our research were convinced to apply violence by a blend of numerous components including anger, jealousy and desire to keep the other under control, disappointment, desire to protect oneself, intention to end the relationship, incapability of expressing oneself verbally, psychological violence by partner, frustration, weariness of quarrels, lies, and being cheated. according to dewall et al. (2012), behaviours become vulnerable to the impact of scenarios, beliefs, expectations, attributions, and observational learning. specifically, hostile attribution onto the other party plays a remarkable instrumental role in occurrence of violence. there are some studies showing that romantic affairs founded on owning the other person and altruistic and passionate love are associated w ith negative emotions, and these features constitute a substantial predictor of the end of the relationship (bugay & tezer, 2008; lee, 1973). hazan and shaver (1987) studied projection of attachment styles on adults and found out that adults who developed anxious-unstable attachment were worried about being let down by their partners, they were jealous and went through ups and downs throughout the romantic affair. in addition, among participants who confessed perpetrating violence to protect themselves, a positive attitude towards dating violence was noted 70 like in the previous research (eatough, smith, & shaw, 2008; hatipoğlu, 2010; yumuşak, 2013). the literature suggests that individuals apt to perpetrate violence exhibited higher levels of loneliness but weaker social support networks (avcı & yıldırım, 2014). some of the participants here initially approached their partner as a source of affection, which is supposed to originate in family; they experienced intense feelings of happiness but showed signs of depression including difficulty in eating and sleeping upon ending of the relationship. apart from that, the participants perpetrated violence so abruptly that they could hardly remember that moment and they almost experienced loss of consciousness. accord ing to some participants, the harshness of quarrel sometimes reached a higher level soon leading to complete loss of control. but in some cases, violent acts were planned beforehand. as for the participants, they regard it as a given right to steer the partner’s life and actions and to interfere with her/his life. this finding seems to be consistent with many other research studies (hyden, 2005; yumuşak, 2013). they further hold the other party’s attitude and behaviours responsible for the breaking out of violence. love was described as an equivalence of intervention in the partner's life, controlling her/him, jealousy, and owning her/him. it proved as a marked reasoning among participants that they were expecting to be exposed to violence as a response to their certain acts and they deserved it just because they kept acting in the same way. loue (2001) argues that in evolutionary psychology, if the principal value in a community is obedience and children are expected to behave accordingly, obedience might come into view as a major value in intimate relationships alike. in that context, violence can be abused to maintain obedience. given that the child's unconditional obedience to parents and adults prevails as an established cultural behaviour in the whole nation, this phenomenon may significantly account for occurrence of violence. in this research, participants did not show tendency to regard certain acts of them as a sign of violence. consistently, other research conducted indicated that the agents of intimate partner violence were ready to underestimate their violent acts (flinck & paavilainen, 2008; i̇lhan, 1992; foshee, et al., 2007; watt, 2011). it is an interesting finding that the participants condemn others for violence, but they display poor discernment in identifying their own violent acts. the interviewees stated that anger did not fade away despite their perpetrating violence and they found themselves dreaming of further hurting the partner as a reaction to the intense anger. the adolescents even indicated their wish for the death of the partner/killing her/him beyond hurting. it seems that an individual transforms her/his anger at both parties into dreaming of murdering the partner when s/he cannot manage the relationship embedding mutual violence. the third main theme of the study was noted as post-violent experiences. participants articulated concern about being criticised harshly for perpetrating violence on someone weaker than themselves. moreover, although both groups mentioned their wish for stopping violent behaviours, they were not confident about controlling their anger. in a study by eatough et al. (2008), participants reported experiencing a flow of multiple feelings rather than one single feeling following the embodiment of anger. the justifications were given as being cheated, jealousy presented as an indicator of intense love, lack of explanation by the partner, provocation 71 by partner, and being treated unjustly. it was added that intense love might cause violence even though such reaction should be ideally avoided. the participants shared views about violence. they hold the view that violence is a sign of incapability, it is detrimental, and it replaces the right reaction as a remedy to desperation. according to the report by the the grand national assembly of turkey parliamentary research commission (2007), young people resort to violence because they are unable to solve problems they face in any other way. the current research also showed that the participants perceived violence as a scene of incapability or weakness; still, they hinted at sustaining violent acts and associated emergence of violence with provocation by the other party. according to our participants, violence can be used to gain power and respect, or discipline someone else. support in the literature exists that reflect violence is not disdained for the sake of enforcing discipline (şahin, dişsiz, sömek, & dinç, 2008). this study examined how violence is exercised as a means of higher status and social acknowledgement in school and social life, respectively. it is particularly interesting that the woman is placed in the target when referring to not abusing violence against a weaker person in that the woman is considered as a weak or vulnerable entity. there is an argument that if violence is to be performed, it should be between the members of the same sex. the participants regarded abusing women as a sign of weakness but a sign of power in the case of perpetrating violence against men. this perception nurtures gender inequality and is based on perceived difference of power (dökmen, 2012). limitations the limitations of the research are as follows. the purposive sample for this study came from within the largest city in turkey. the participants were also well educated, and participant characteristics may vary depending on the level of education. limited numbers of male participants were reached. also, it has been observed that women express their violence experience more easily and men have difficulty in expressing this. therefore, the responses of male participants to the interview questions may have differed. conclusion and implication violence was legitimised and justified from the participants’ point of view in our research. in addition to this, acceptability and abusability of violence is introduced by an incentive perception which argues that violence can be performed as an instrument of discipline like in all areas of life and it can be a well-deserved punishment for certain behaviours. as another aspect worth noting, the male participants spoke too discreetly about their violent acts at the beginning of the interviews owing to the fact that abusing a weaker person has negative connotations in society; however, females sounded more relaxed in the role of perpetrator. based on the data obtained here, it is proposed to investigate the perceptual loadings that determine acceptance levels of the agents of intimate partner violence in future research. it is also recommended to plan psychoeducational trainings on conflict resolution skills, communication skills, anger management, healthy relationships, and gender equality in governmental and non-governmental organizations. when we look at the international programs on intimate partner violence (ipv) in adolescents, examples are seen at the national scale and studies are tailored to particularly assess those 72 programs. in turkey, also, it seems crucial to design nationwide programs to prevent intimate partner violence. also, it is seen that most of the women participants in adolescence are exposed to violence and use violence to protect themselves. the participants stated that they need psychological support. for this reason, it is recommended to establish mental health units that will support violence prevention. 73 references arendt, h. 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(2011). phenomenology of perpetrators of intimate partner violence. (doctoral dissertation). university of maryland, united states. umi number: 3490307 wilkins, c. t. (2011). making sense of violence: a qualitative study of men who have been violent towards female partners. (doctoral dissertation). new york university. new york. willig, c. (2001). introducing qualitative research in psychology. adventures in theory and method. open university press yumuşak, a. (2013). üniversite öğrencilerinin flört şiddetine yönelik tutumları, toplumsal cinsiyetçilik ve narsisistik kişilik özellikleri arasındaki ilişki (yüksek lisans tezi) gaziosmanpaşa üniversitesi, tokat. http://hdl.handle.net/11543/2783 ijwc_springv42021 57 ijwc_springv42021 58 ijwc_springv42021 59 ijwc_springv42021 60 ijwc_springv42021 61 ijwc_springv42021 62 ijwc_springv42021 63 ijwc_springv42021 64 ijwc_springv42021 65 ijwc_springv42021 66 ijwc_springv42021 67 ijwc_springv42021 68 ijwc_springv42021 69 ijwc_springv42021 70 ijwc_springv42021 71 ijwc_springv42021 72 ijwc_springv42021 73 ijwc_springv42021 74 ijwc_springv42021 75 kathy 38 panama moments hilary nelson hilary nelson is currently teaching at the marin preparatory school in san francisco, california. her reflections on teaching in a multiage school in panama highlight the roles choice, interest, and project based learning have in exploratory, experiential learning. an amazing thing has been happening: our students are exhibiting spontaneous, uninhibited cooperative learning through play. when we let children figure things out on their own, something magical appears, without adult instruction. and the results are always uncertain— thank goodness. every morning, when i set out the familiar centers for my students to work at, i am usually met with questions. “what do i do here?” but last week, when i set out some small pieces of watercolor paper and paints, something completely different happened. though there was no assignment, my students proceeded to take matters into their own hands and created things that were important to them. “where does the blue star go on the panama flag?” lorenzo inquired. he was busy recreating the flag of his native country and doing remarkably well. “the blue one goes here and the red one goes here,” nuria advised, as she pointed out with complete accuracy where each star should go. i was astounded. 39 “i want to do a kandinsky painting,” sienna stated as she began to create bold lines and overlapping shapes in true wassily style. whoa! kandinsky? kandinsky inspired watercolor painting on another day, every student decided to create a center to run and successfully manage during recess time and beyond. instant enterprise. we had two dentist offices, both offering free service to those who needed a check up. the girls decided to create a “relaxation center” and eventually expanded to a “tattoo center.” each business thrived, allowing productive group work, intense brainstorming sessions and even, at times, compromise. school is organic, alive, constantly evolving, ebbing and flowing with investigation and entrepreneurial learning. and ours has a strong, steady current. kids write their own curriculum without knowing it. math skills to be learned: graphing, ordering operations, and adding. coincidentally, they were on alistair and dash’s schedules as they were busy with their clipboards, “just checking things off out there, making sure everything is good.” it was. inspection results: pass. science was on the agenda as the group went outside to lift up a huge rock using a simple machine: a lever. “ms. hilary, if we put this wooden plank here, place it under the rock and sit on the other end, it lifts it up!” the boys exclaimed. physics lesson: pass. simon is busy working on books, making chapters and creating words. “ms. hilary, how do you write, ‘mystery’?” i offer the spelling and he carefully writes it in his journal. “simon, what will this story be about?” my curiosity was insatiable. “you’ll see, ms. hilary.” his mysterious response sounded eerily like something i say to the kids when i want to explain a concept to the whole group rather than an individual. we all know that kids are capable of imaginative play, but being in an environment of supportive, collaborative peers encourages everything that we need them to learn: how to get 40 along, lift each other up, work together and create something bigger than themselves. during this time of extreme self-motivated play, i’m reminded of something that progressive educator francis w. parker said, “watch the child, watch his attitude of attention. is it spontaneous? is the light of pleasure in his eyes? is interest the motive which controls him?” attention, spontaneity, pleasure, and interest: pass. yes, interest does drive and motivate these children and no idea is off limits. “ms. hilary, do you want to get a tattoo at the tattoo center?” yes, yes i do. i’ll take one of mila’s fictional ‘hexagooligan’ designs and a black heart (the new ‘it’ tattoo, apparently). i’ll pay tomorrow after yago prints off the rest of his new currency. the currency of this play is learning progress, executive function, and business management. but don’t tell the kids. they think they’re just having fun at an extended recess. 41 42 43 correction draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.30.21 6 introduction tiffany wilson, editor this fall issue provides readers with an array of information that includes challenges of covid19 and instructional practices that support diverse student populations. the ijwc continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of children. article #1: designing clothing patterns to promote fine motor skills: a research and development project usep kustiawan, rosyi damayani t. maningtyas, arda purnama putra, ayu asmah this article discusses the importance of children in their early childhood to learn and engage in activities that develop their fine motor skills. the specific activity presented in this article is designing clothing patterns. this activity allows students to experience sewing as an effective instructional medium for developing their fine motor skills. further, this article discusses the importance of product development and methods when designing these types of experiences for young children. article #2: developing children’s resilience to overcome recent challenges mona moshen alzahrani this article discusses the topic of resilience and the importance of resilience within individuals’ lives. mona moshen alzahrani examines the construct of resilience and strategies for building resilience in young children. these strategies include social interactions, problem solving, sharing, positive care/interaction, and spiritual life. further, the article discusses risk factors and protective factors, research on the topic of resilience, and how to improve children’s resilience in and outside of the school setting through activities such as building strong relationships with children, learning from experience, discussing the bright side of experiences, self-enhancement, and labeling emotions and laughter. tech talk manuscript elearning for k-12: challenges and solutions nancy caukin, lori vinson in the tech talk article, “elearning for k-12: challenges and solutions,” nancy caukin and lori vinson discuss the technology challenges of the covid-19 pandemic that many teachers and parents experienced when teaching and learning transitioned to remote options due to school closures. the article details the lack of teaching knowledge, inequity of technology and materials, and misbehavior and explores suggested solutions while considering the whole-child approach of integrating social and emotional learning and mindfulness. 7 children & families: health and wellness the intersection of trauma, mental health, and academic performance among school-aged youth quiteya walker, nykeisha grant, chantel johnson, carolyn rollins in the children & families: health and wellness article, “the intersection of trauma, mental health, and academic performance among school-aged youth, quiteya walker, nykeisha grant, chantel johnson, carolyn rollins detail the negative impact the covid-19 pandemic has inflicted upon school-aged youth. this article explores how school-age youth are experiencing mental health issues and increased violence. moreover, this article further discusses the need for k-12 schools to understand how poor mental health and increased violence is having a negative effect on the academic performance of school-age youth. education by the numbers donald snead the data provided by donald snead in “education by the numbers” discusses the importance of teachers and their role in public schools. he further addresses the characteristics of public-school teachers by instructional level and on the basis of sex. steam manuscript stem content vs. a sense of wonder and joy of learning: it shouldn’t have to be a choice william stone william stone wrote a reflective article about how stem programs should include traits such as creativity, wonder, curiosity, and imagination when it comes to scientific processes over the typical rigid structure. he gives examples of scientists and inventors that went above this ridged structure and dared to use their creative curiosity and imagination to explore the world with wonder. some of these scientists and inventors include richard feynman, leonardo da vinci, and lonnie johnson. further, stone discusses the genius hour and ideas for encouraging creativity, wonder, and imagination in stem programs for students. page turners: books for children katrina bartow, carla k. meyer, michelle sobolak, patricia crawford, and maria t. genest in this article, different children’s books are listed with descriptive summaries on each one. the books include bonaparte plays ball, facing fear, here we are: book of numbers, if you come to earth, me and my sister, moon camp, no reading allowed: the worst read-aloud book ever, ship in a bottle, and rules of wolves. emerging scholar the utilization of instructional coaches on the impact of student achievement and teacher instructional practices in reading and math in grades three through eight laurie offutt and donald snead 8 laurie offutt and donald snead conduct a study on how instructional coaches and teacher instructional practices can help to increase student achievement in subjects such as reading and math for third through eighth grade students. they define instructional coaching and discuss professional development and student achievement before introducing the study. they detail the proposed research question, theoretical framework, methods, participants, data collection, data analysis, and the summary of findings within their article. the study results revealed that the utilization of instructional coaches increased scores in all sub-groups one year after the implementation, however, they found that the increase was not maintained in all subgroups such as english language learners and students with disabilities. lastly, they discuss future implications and limitations of utilizing instructional coaches. “productive struggle” as an effective strategy in elementary math classrooms sara r. daily sara r. daily’s article discusses an instructional strategy called productive struggle. this strategy helps students to gain a deeper understanding of mathematics through their own thinking and reasoning. one of the purposes of this strategy is to help students who find math difficult to work towards developing a deeper understanding to where they become more confident in their abilities to think deeply, gain understanding, and be independent problem solvers. further, she includes a discussion of different theories such as lev vygotsky’s theory of zone of proximal development and brousseau’s theory of didactical situations that are found within the productive struggle research. she closes out her article with information on the benefits, ways to teach it, what it looks like in the classroom, and the potential challenges this strategy faces. multiple intelligence in a center based environment kaitlyn m. arns kaitlyn m. arns’s article goes in depth about howard gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences and describes the nine main multiple intelligences that exist in humans. further, arns describes how to use the theory of multiple intelligences in the classroom, selfdetermination theory, and the importance of play and inquiry to activate multiple intelligences. to close out the article arns presents how to incorporate multiple intelligence theory into classroom practice through the creation of student-centered environments and using centers in the classroom. she also provides effective methods of assessment teachers can use in incorporating this theory into their teaching practices. 67 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 from theory to practice: building leadership opportunities through virtual reality science expeditions kaitlin petersona, brian andrew stoneb a-bnorthern arizona university kaitlin peterson is a practicing teacher at mountain charter school in flagstaff, az. she was a dual certification student with a degree in elementary and special education. kaitlin took a significant interest in the use of virtual reality in her methods courses at the university, used them in her student teaching, and has provided professional development training in the use of vr. her interests include child-centered practice, technology integration, and child development. dr. brian a. stone is a senior lecturer at northern arizona university. he teaches elementary science and social studies methods courses for undergraduates. he is the director for the professional development school program at nau, and also runs faculty-led study abroad programs to australia, new zealand, ireland, and the u.k. with a specific focus on integrated curriculum and multiage education. dr. stone's research interests include child-centered educational practices, inquiry-based learning, constructivism, and play. abstract the authors of this paper discuss the use of virtual reality (vr) as a tool for building meaningful connections in science education across different grade levels. the authors elaborate on their experiences with using vr in teacher training programs, in practicum and student teaching experiences, and in providing a professional development workshop on how to use vr in science classrooms. with adequate preparation and training, teacher candidates can become leaders in their schools with regard for building more interactive steam-based programs that utilize cutting-edge technologies like vr and ar (augmented reality). furthermore, the benefits of using vr in the classroom are discussed. these include whole-child benefits such as opportunities for meaningful social interaction, student-led inquiry, intrinsically motivated exploration and investigation, meaningful integration with other subjects, and substantial student engagement. vr expeditions provide a high level of cognitive, social, and physical activity that 68 can supplement any form of instruction, and help students make lasting connections to the material. the use of virtual reality (vr) as an instructional tool is increasing across the globe. teachers are just beginning to tap the potential of this constantly evolving resource, as cameras, hardware, software, and programs are continually improving. vr is defined as a “near reality,” computergenerated, three-dimensional environment (virtual reality society, 2017). often, it takes the form of a 360 degree picture that students can view through a headset with the practical effect of making people think they are really experiencing that view. multiple companies have developed vr and ar (augmented reality) programs for educational use. within this emerging market, the research, and subsequent training of teacher candidates has been scarce. therefore, it is the purpose of this article to investigate and describe the use of vr in a teacher-training program, and the subsequent use of the technology in practicum classrooms, student teaching experiences, and even in a professional development workshop for a local school. ultimately, the initial use of the technology has provided significant insight into its potential and multiple observed benefits are described. it is important to note that this paper describes the use and benefits of vr as it relates to science education, and steam integration. however, vr expeditions are not limited to science, as there are multiple connections with social studies and the arts. current literature the literature on the use of vr in the elementary classroom is still emerging, and the literature on its use in teacher training programs is scarce (nussli & oh, 2016; guzzetti & stockrocki, 2013). however, the potential for vr as an instructional tool is undeniable. lisichenko (2016) states that the “adoption of vr has brought the promise of unique and effective methods of instruction” (p. 159). furthermore, hinrichs and wankel (2011) suggest that virtual learning is transformational. some studies have emphasized vr as an effective tool to build students’ content understandings (fernandez, 2017; zantua, 2017). vr is immersive, and helps students build abstract understandings (curcio, dipace, & norlund, 2016; hwang & hu, 2013). much of the research that has been done is through small-scale case studies. however, the research so far is promising. for example, in a case study conducted at an elementary school in florida in connection with the angari foundation (a non-profit marine and environmental organization), students were able to learn about corals and reef ecosystems through vr. based on the study, students were observed to be highly engaged, posed meaningful questions, made relevant connections, and acquired a strong command of content knowledge through their vr investigations (classvr, 2018). students then went on a field trip to the florida keys and were readily able to make coral identifications from their prior vr work. virtual reality is a rapidly emerging technology, and is on the cusp of widespread use in the american education system. wankel and blessinger (2012) suggest that advancements in this technology as well as other interactive interfaces are “transforming the way we teach and learn and those advancements are refining our views of what it means to learn” (p. 3). the use of vr has the potential to be such a transformative experience for children that a number of companies and developers are working on integrating this technology into the classroom as a mainstay of 69 educational practice (immersive vr education, unimersiv, google expeditions, alchemy vr, discovery vr, zspace, curiscope, woofbertvr, classvr, etc.). hinrichs and wankel (2011) suggest that this development is helping students navigate the learning experience by “building the physical world inside the virtual world, and bringing the virtual world outside to the physical world” (p. xiii). in other words, this technology can seamlessly integrate with teaching practices and content in the elementary classroom. hansman (2016) reports that vr “boosts student engagement” (para. 3), and that students can build content understandings through “visiting” the great barrier reef, as an example (para. 1). teachers can connect the experience to learning objectives and standards. the recommendation is to build immersive environments in which students can build their understanding, develop inquiry and collaboration, and learn across the affective, behavioral, and cognitive domains (wankel & blessinger, 2012). the vr platform can also be an important resource to teach children about environmental issues and social justice as it can “expose people, from school-aged kids on up, to large-scale, global issues that are hard to grasp if they can’t see them for themselves” (hansman, 2016, para. 11). from theory: teacher training on vr in science methods courses teacher candidates were introduced to vr in their science methods courses at the university, and had the opportunity to use the technology as an instructional tool in their practicum experiences. the training consisted of vr tours of several different places, including: the taj mahal, the international space station, and the jordan river. during each tour, the levels of engagement, interest, and discovery became evident as the teachers in training were walking around the classroom with the vr goggles glued to their eyes, waiting for the next scene to be shown and asking to visit more places. teacher candidates were first given the opportunity to experience vr through the eyes of students, and were then taught how to utilize the technology to take students on their own vr tours. this training consisted of the following: setting up a router and an internal network, connecting the student devices (phones) and the teacher device (tablet) to the router, downloading a vr expedition, and guiding the tour through the tablet. for the teacher candidates, this technology was inspiring and eye-opening. many had never heard of vr or its use in the classroom. however, teacher candidates were intrigued and eager for opportunities to utilize this technology in a practicum setting. the first-hand experience that they received indicated how powerful these learning experiences could be. to practice: vr in practicum and student teaching experiences teacher candidates in science methods courses at the university were given the option of using vr as a tool to teach science content through their varied practicum experiences in k-8 classrooms. students used the platform to teach content ranging from space to landfills (environmental education). all vr practicum activities were supervised, and the benefits of the instructional tool were immediately evident. it is important to note that the evidence gathered was only observational/anecdotal. however, the students were highly engaged with the content. engagement was observed across cognitive, social, and physical realms. students in k-8 classrooms became involved in interest-driven, student-directed inquiry, posing questions to 70 peers and to the teacher candidates leading the expeditions. furthermore, students were highly social during vr activities, comparing observations with each other, and sharing vr headsets. imaginary play was common, and students engaged socially in their play. they would make comments like, “ahh, the shark is going to eat us, swim away!” this was in response to an ocean creatures vr expedition, as an example. finally, students were moving around the classroom, “walking” through their digital, virtual environments. they would reach out and try to touch virtual objects in front of them. the cognitive, social, and physical engagement was evident across grade levels. teacher candidates became proficient with the technology, and mentioned they would feel comfortable using the technology in any setting going forward. furthermore, most teacher candidates mentioned that they viewed vr as a necessary or helpful instructional tool. mentor teachers across the local district where vr was used in practicum experiences mentioned how they would also like to have access to the technology, and how they would use it regularly as an instructional tool. the following reflects the experiences of a female teacher candidate. throughout the course of her student teaching, she led two vr tours with her first grade students. the first graders had expressed an interest in learning about the ocean and prior to the vr tour they had watched “finding nemo” in class. this interest sparked the first tour, which was “a journey along the great barrier reef.” among some of the pre-expedition questions and comments from the students were the following: “i have virtual reality at home, will it be like the cardboard ones?” “i’ve heard of virtual reality before!” “will we be able to see sharks in the ocean?” “will we see dolphins and turtles?” the candidate prepared the students for vr use by telling them they need to use the goggles responsibly. she explained to the students that it is a privilege to use vr and that they should be treated with respect and care. the candidate practiced using goggles with the students by asking them to form circles with their hands and pretend that their hands were goggles. they practiced picking the goggles up with two hands and setting them down gently. they practiced taking turns, sharing with their table partners, and handing the goggles off to another student. the particular vr set that was utilized contained ten goggles, and the classroom had twenty-two students, so they were required to share. this meant that there were eight pairs of students sharing and two groups of three students sharing. after initial preparations to use vr, the students' excitement level was encouraging to see. their eyes lit up as they formed into groups and were given the goggles. the first grade students began their journey along the great barrier reef, as the first scene appeared in their goggles with coral reefs and schools of fish, their excitement was evident through their apparent laughter and 71 jumping up and down. exclamations such as: “woah,” “awesome,” and “this is so cool,” were heard throughout the classroom. the students began to walk around and attempt to touch objects as they were “swimming through the sea.” the next scene depicted manta rays, before telling the students the name of the animal shown, the teacher candidate allowed for the students to explore the scene and make predictions to one another about the animal. the teacher candidate did not have to prompt the students as it was a natural process for the students to make predictions, connections, and ask questions. after they had been given time to look around, make predictions of their own, and talk with their classmates, the teacher candidate answered their questions and told them that the animal they were viewing was a manta ray. the students repeatedly asked, “are we going to see a shark?” though they were very hopeful that they would see a shark, there were only dolphins, turtles, potato cod fish, and more manta rays. however, their interest in sharks represented an opportunity for future exploration and inquiry. after the expedition was over, one student asked the teacher candidate if she could, “please do the next one on volcanoes?” other students asked, “when will we get to use these again?” their eager attitudes reflected the value of the learning experience that they were given. throughout the expedition, the students were fully engaged. there were no behavior issues and no students “off task.” the vr tour was truly centered on the whole-child. the first grade students were making predictions and speaking to one another about their explorations as well as the plants and animals that they were seeing. the discovery process was natural, exciting, and inspiring for them. they could not wait for the next scene to pop up and they excelled at sharing with their partners. sharing is a fundamental skill that can be difficult for many children and even some adults, however, the first graders mastered this skill during the vr tour. they looked around and explored the current scene, and then allowed for their partner to do the same without being asked. students even went home to tell their parents and siblings about their experiences, as the following day, the teacher candidate had siblings of students in her class coming up to her and asking, “when are we going to use the vr goggles in my class?” this experience allowed for students to be social with one another as they explored and learned about the great barrier reef. the vr experience also allowed for the students to inquire and discover. the students were excited to tell their friends in the class what they were seeing and to ask questions. not only were students asking questions, but they were making connections, observing, and building meaningful understandings throughout their journey along the great barrier reef. this process and the observed benefits also occurred in the students' next tour. at the time, they were learning about penguins and antarctica which catalyzed the expedition. students were making predictions about what types of penguins and seals they were seeing. they were also trying to figure out whether people live in antarctica or not. the tour included port lockroy, an outpost on goudier island in the antarctic peninsula, which is open to visitors during the summer. due to the fact that the students saw boats, cruise ships, and a house, it was natural for them to inquire about people living in antarctica. the tour also showed volcanic peaks, which catered to students' previous interest. one scene in the tour depicted leopard seals, and they were enthralled with the size of the animal. at the end of the day, students were still discussing 72 new things they learned from the vr expedition. a few students stated, “i never knew that they were called leopard seals, i thought they were called lion seals.” students also stated that they had never heard of gentoo penguins (the penguins featured in one vr scene) before, because they had only learned about rockhopper penguins. these tours activated their prior knowledge, and allowed them to make predictions, connections, and discoveries, while encouraging intrinsically motivated inquiry. along with fostering social and cognitive activity, vr expeditions also emphasize physical movement. the students were actively engaged, moving around the classroom, and walking through their virtual worlds. vr tours allow for the students to be fully engaged in a topic. during vr, students learn, discover, and inquire about what they are seeing. they discuss what they are seeing with their peers and ask questions. they also walk around and even attempt to touch the objects that they are seeing. students were excited to be using the technology and they felt like “big kids” because they were trusted with it. at least temporarily, they mastered the art of sharing and were very responsible. vr allowed the students to truly feel like they were on the great barrier reef and in antarctica. professional development following the second vr tour, the teacher candidate was approached by the principal of the school and asked if she would be willing to give a demonstration on vr. the teacher candidate gave this demonstration to every teacher at the school during a staff meeting. she took them on the same tour to the great barrier reef as the first grade students. the professional development workshop consisted of a brief demonstration on how to set up the vr expeditions. then, the candidate took the teachers on the expedition, showing them first-hand how powerful the learning experience could be for all ages. they were almost as excited as the first graders, exclaiming how “their students would love to use this.” the teacher candidate went around to each of the teachers, and showed them what it looked like from the perspective of the expedition leader, using the guide tablet. they were able to see how to lead an expedition as well as experience the expedition through the vr goggles. during the demonstration, teachers asked questions about what types of tours they could take with their students. the candidate explained that vr expeditions consist of multiple genres. even the spanish teacher asked if there was anything she would be able to utilize, and the candidate showed her direct possibilities using the vr platform. the teachers were eager to utilize vr in their classrooms and asked the teacher candidate if she would be willing to help them find expeditions and teach them, individually, how to set up and guide a tour. the teachers recognized the benefits of the vr during the demonstration and were willing and eager to use them in their classrooms. whole-child benefits of vr as mentioned in the literature and in the anecdotal/observational use of vr in practicum experiences, student teaching, and in professional development, the use of vr has several childcentered benefits in the classroom that foster engagement, concept development, and understanding of material. these benefits are evident across whole-child realms such as cognitive/academic, social, and physical. students engaged in vr activities were observed to 73 inquire, play, interact with the content and with others in meaningful ways, and make personal connections. classes were highly social, with students interacting with multiple peers as they experienced new places or content through their expeditions. vr also promoted physical movement and students were observed to be moving constantly, walking around the room, or trying to touch objects in virtual space. conclusions as vr and ar continue to develop, entire virtual worlds will open for students to explore. the technology will soon be in mainstream use, and will develop to the point that students can fully interact with their virtual world through the use of haptic gloves, motion sensors, and eyetracking cameras. the virtual reality society (2017) explains that “we can expect to see many more innovative uses for the technology in the future and perhaps a fundamental way in which we communicate and work” (para. 15). imagine if children could manipulate a cell in virtual space, or pull apart geologic layers. the potential for use in schools is endless. as the educational landscape shifts towards a more technologically-integrated classroom, teachers need to be prepared to use technologies like vr. so far, the benefits have been evident in pioneering classrooms, including whole-child benefits across cognitive, social, and physical realms. if teacher-training programs can utilize this technology in methods courses and prepare students for using the technology in their future classrooms, then teacher candidates can be at the forefront of a technological revolution in schools. 74 references classvr. (2018). geography & science vr case study: ocean: coral reefs. retrieved from http://www.classvr.com/geography-science-generation-ocean-coral-reefs-student-age-11/ curcio, i. d. d., dipace, a., & norlund, a. (2016). virtual realities and education. research on education and media, 8(2), 60-68. fernandez, m. (2017). augmented-virtual reality: how to improve education systems. higher learning research communications, 7(1). guzzetti, b. j., & stockrocki, m. (2013). teaching and learning in a virtual world. e-learning and digital media, 10(3), 242-259. hansman, h. (2016). how can schools use virtual reality? smithsonian.com. retrieved from: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-can-schools-use-virtual-reality180957974/ hinrichs, r., & wankel, c. (eds.). (2011). transforming virtual world learning: cutting-edge technologies in education (vol. 4). bingley, uk: emerald. hwang, w. y., & hu, s. s. (2013). analysis of peer learning behaviors using multiple representations in virtual reality and their impacts on geometry problem solving. computers & education, 62, 308– 319. lisichenko, r. (2016). issues surrounding the use of virtual reality in geographic education. the geography teacher, 12(4), 159-166. nussli, n.c., & oh, k. (2016). a systematic, inquiry-based 7-step virtual worlds teacher training. e-learning and digital media, 12, 502-529. virtual reality society. (2017). what is virtual reality? retrieved from https://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/what-is-virtual-reality.html wankel, c., & blessinger, p. (2012). increasing student engagement and retention using immersive interfaces: virtual worlds, gaming, and simulation: cutting-edge technologies in higher education (vol. 6c), bingley, uk: emerald. zantua, l.s. (2017). utilization of virtual reality content in grade 6 social studies using affordable virtual reality technology. asia pacific journal of multidisciplinary research, 5(2), 1-10. http://www.classvr.com/geography-science-generation-ocean-coral-reefs-student-age-11/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-can-schools-use-virtual-reality-180957974/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/how-can-schools-use-virtual-reality-180957974/ https://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/what-is-virtual-reality.html 16 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 1 literacy and education as correlates to national stability and human development larry l. burrissª ªmiddle tennessee state university dr. larry l. burriss, b.a., m.a., m.a., ph.d., j.d., ltcol usaf, is a professor in the college of media and entertainment at middle tennessee state university. he is a strong advocate for first amendment freedoms and particularly interested in issues related to media and national security. abstract statistical analysis of existing databases across nearly 200 countries dealing with national/human development (2 databases) and literacy/education policy (4 databases) shows high correlation between literacy and national development. correlations were highest between national literacy scores and human/national development. correlations were lowest, indeed in some cases slightly negative, when comparing percentage of gross national product spent on education with literacy and education. the analyses indicate countries with higher literacy and better education policies tend to have improved human development and national stability. money spent on education seemed not to be a deciding factor. key words education policy human development literacy national development 17 1. background as with so many other aspects of western thought, current theories of the role of education in national and social development can be traced in almost a straight line from aristotle through john stuart mill (neither of whom, it should be noted, can really be considered “educational theorists”) and on to john dewey. for aristotle, education was part of the political process. indeed, aristotle believed one could not be a good citizen without a proper education, and his stress on the importance of education is a major theme in both the nicomachean ethics and the politics. both works provide practical details for establishing national and individual models for education. said lee (2001, p. 165), “simply speaking, in the nicomachean ethics, aristotle stressed the hellenic ideals of moderation that became the center of realist axiology, while his politics, like plato's republic, observed that a reciprocal relationship existed between the good human being and the good citizen.” admittedly, aristotle would leave control of education in the hands of the state. however, his word for “education,” paideia, means more than simply teaching and learning. for aristotle, education dealt with the ethical, social, and political life of the community, and extended to both children and adults: “now [men] become good and excellent through three things. these three things are nature (phusis), habit (ethos), and reason (logos)…what remains at this point is the work of education” (lord, 1984, p. 218). in other words, true virtue (what is good for the individual and what is good for the state) is dependent on nature, habit, and reason, and these are, in turn, dependent on education. “in brief, the doctrines of education in good habits run through aristotle's thinking in the ethics and politics, and they are the means for the actualization of an individual and criteria for building an ideal state through education” (lee, p. 167). moving ahead by several centuries, enlightenment philosopher john stuart mill, in 1859, noted the importance of education for not only one’s personal growth, but also for the growth of society as well: it still remains unrecognized, that to bring a child into existence without a fair prospect of being able, not only to provide food for its body, but instruction and training for its mind, is a moral crime, both against the unfortunate offspring and against society. . . . . [t]he peculiar training of a citizen, the practical part of the political education of a free people, [is in] taking them out of the narrow circle of personal and family selfishness, and accustoming them to the comprehension of joint interests, the management of joint concerns—habituating them to act from public or semipublic motives, and guide their conduct by aims which unite instead of isolating them from one another. still later, in the 20th century, john dewey said in 1939, democracy is the faith that the process of experience is more important than any special result attained, so that special results achieved are of ultimate value only as they are used to enrich and order the ongoing process. since the process of experience is capable of being educative, faith in democracy is all one with faith in experience and education. all ends and values that are cut off from the ongoing process become arrests, fixations. they strive to fixate what has been gained instead of using it to open the road and point the way to new and better experiences. 18 2. methodology for this project, pre-existing databases were used to compare societies and factors related to literacy and education. these included two measures of stability and freedom, and four measures related to education. the description of these databases will also serve to operationally define stability and literacy. * national stability data came from the fund for peace (2014) fragile state index. using 12 social, economic, political, and military indicators, the fund for peace ranked 178 states in order of their vulnerability to violent internal conflict and societal deterioration. the index scores are based on data from more than 12,000 publicly available sources. in addition to its index, the fund for peace divided its 178-nation list into four groups, based on the degree of instability: alert, warning, moderate, and sustainable. it should be noted that the fund for peace does not define these terms in words, but rather uses composite numerical scores to group nations into stability/instability categories. * a second measure of national stability came from the polity iv project (marshall and jagers, 2007) which measures levels of democracy and authoritarianism. the polity iv project . . . cod[es] the authority characteristics of states in the world system for purposes of comparative, quantitative analysis....the polity project has proven its value to researchers across the years, becoming the most widely used resource for monitoring regime change as well as for studying the effects of regime authority. data on literacy and education also came from four existing databases: * the cia world factbook (2014) provided information on literacy levels. there are no universal definitions and standards of literacy [but] all rates are based on the most common definition the ability to read and write at a specified age. . . . information on literacy, while not a perfect measure of educational results, is probably the most easily available and valid for international comparisons. low levels of literacy, and education in general, can impede the economic development of a country in the current rapidly changing, technology-driven world. * the second measure of education came from the united nations statistics division (2014), and is called school life expectancy. school life expectancy is defined as the total number of years of schooling which a child of a certain age can expect to receive in the future, assuming that the probability of his or her being enrolled in school at any particular age is equal to the current enrolment ratio for that age. purpose : this indicator shows the overall level of development of an educational system in terms of the number of years of education that a child can expect to achieve (united nations, 2014). * data for public expenditure on education also came from the united nations, and is simply the amount of money spent on education as a percentage of the gross domestic product. it should be noted that nation-state scores and the public expenditure on education are indices created by their respective organizations, and represent “real life” only to the extent that the underlying measures are valid and reliable. in all cases, because the data used in this project have been used in previously 19 published research, and in many cases collected by internationally recognized research agencies, the present author considers them both valid and reliable. * data for corruption in national education systems came from the global corruption report: education issued by the watchdog group transparency international (2013). [c]orruption ruins lives and obstructs attempts at social and economic development. this is particularly true for the education sector. education gives young minds form and shape and transmits vital knowledge – a process that shapes the societies in which we live. it is therefore essential that education services are not hindered and distorted by corruption. (p. xiii) 3. results as can be seen in table 1, national stability and human development measures are highly correlated with measures of literacy and how much time students spend in school. interestingly, the amount of money nations spend on education seems to be unrelated to the stability and human development. perhaps this shows that the absolute amount of money spent on education is less important than how the money is spent. in addition, the table shows that as education system corruption increases, stability, human development, and polity all decrease, although the strongest negative relationship was to national stability. table 1 also includes salkind’s (2000, p. 96) descriptors of correlation coefficients. pearson product moment correlations national development indices and education/literacy measures literacy index school life expectancy public expenditure on education education system corruption stability r = 0.655 r = 0.815 r = 0.340 r = -0.651 p < 0.001 p < 0.001 p < 0.001 p < 0.001 m s w s polity r = 0.329 r = 0.449 r = 0.223 r = -0.196 p < 0.001 p < 0.001 p = 0.022 p = 0.120 w m w vw each cell shows the correlation coefficient, the probability, and salkind’s strength of relationship descriptor (v = very strong, s = strong, m = moderate, w = weak, vw = very weak) table 1 using the fund for peace fragile state index descriptors that divide the 178-nation list into four groups (alert, warning, moderate, and sustainable), two sets of analyses were run. first, simple average scores for each of the sustainability groups within the four education measures were computed (table 2), using the two sets of analysis of variance, against the averages shown in table 2. then, using these averages, two sets of analysis of variance were run (table 3 and table 4) comparing the two stability measures against the four education scales. these data show significant differences among the four stability groups within the two levels of stability, further validating the strong connections between the stability and education components. 20 average scores national stability levels compared across education-related scales (literacy, school life expectancy, school system corruption, public expenditure on education) avg. n literacy average score (index range = 21.8-99.9) alert 44.400 2 warning 54.218 11 moderate 78.185 105 sustainable 96.510 50 school life expectancy average score (index range =3.00-20.00 ) alert 4.00 1 warning 7.11 9 moderate 10.42 98 sustainable 14.96 48 public expenditure on education average score (index range = 0.60-9.99) alert 4.300 1 warning 2.00 1 moderate 4.412 66 sustainable 5.191 46 education system corruption average score (index range = 2.00-4.00) alert -0 warning 3.40 1 moderate 3.29 33 sustainable 2.55 31 table 2 21 analysis of variance educational factors with national stability sum of squares df mean square f sig. literacy between groups 25093.489 9 2788.165 10.443 p < 0.001 within groups 44053.457 165 266.991 total 69146.945 174 school life expectancy between groups 1055.044 9 117.227 17.703 p < 0.001 within groups 1013.152 153 6.622 total 2068.196 162 public expenditure on education between groups 31.390 7 4.484 1.517 p = 0.169 within groups 325.167 110 2.956 total 356.557 117 education system corruption between groups 10.158 3 3.386 12.838 p < 0.001 within groups 16.353 62 0.264 total 25.510 65 stability groups: 1 – alert 2 – warning 3 – moderate 4 – sustainable table 3 22 analysis of variance educational factors with polity sum of squares df mean square f sig. literacy between groups 29913.181 20 1495.659 6.068 p < 0.001 within groups 32043.160 130 246.486 total 69146.945 150 school life expectancy between groups 1012.396 20 50.620 6.900 p < 0.001 within groups 895.059 122 6.622 total 1907.455 142 public expenditure on education between groups 108.908 17 6.406 2.759 p = 0.001 within groups 202.014 87 2.322 total 310.922 104 education system corruption between groups 11.300 11 1.027 4.380 p < 0.001 within groups 12.197 52 0.235 total 23.496 63 stability groups: 1 – alert 2 – warning 3 – moderate 4 – sustainable table 4 4. discussion how, then, do we explain the relationship between the status of the nation-state and education? let us look at each of the measures in turn. stability. as noted earlier, the stability index was created by the fund for peace and represents how unstable (vulnerable to internal upheaval) a country is. as can be seen in both the correlations and f-scores, there is a direct relationship between education and national stability. why might this be? after all, education can, in itself, be a destabilizing influence. an educated person will be more likely to point out flaws in the government, and thus upset the people. an educated population, however, can also provide a check on run-away government, and can give the population a feeling of participating in the system, thus lowering the potential for violent change. polity. 23 the polity iv project measured authoritarianism and democracy across nations, and the correlations between polity and education factors were the strongest in this study. as with national stability, education and literacy is most closely associated with democracy and the ability of the population to participate in government. obviously, an authoritarian government, which sees itself as having all of the answers to societal problems, will be less likely to tolerate a highly educated population. human development. this united nations -funded index measures how much choice and participation the people have in their government. this index showed the weakest relationship with education, although the results were still significant. why might that be? the universal declaration on human rights (united nations, 1948), contains three sections that may prove contradictory: * article 12 prohibits “attacks upon . . . honor and reputation. everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such . . . attacks.” * article 19 states “everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression . . . and to seek, receive and impart information . . . through any media. . . . “ * article 26 says “everyone has the right to education [which] shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and . . . fundamental freedoms.” some nations, nevertheless, claim that the exchange of ideas undermines national sovereignty. for example, “principles for organizing satellite broadcast and television transmission and reception in the arab region,” calls on arab league members to restrict satellite transmissions that “negatively affect social peace, national unity, public morals,” or which “defame leaders, or national and religious symbols” (human rights watch, 2008). the u.n. is thus faced with perhaps conflicting goals: protecting human rights while at the same time not infringing on national sovereignty. in balancing these competing interests, it makes sense that the world body may take a less absolutist view of the value of education and the exchange of ideas than do organizations that openly espouse the absolute value of education as, among other attributes, the exchange of ideas. this would tend to lower national education scores which would then be reflected in a weakened relationship between human development and education. this notion is further confirmed if we compare the three national development scores, which showed the united nations’ score had a weaker correlation with polity and stability than did polity and stability between themselves. at this point, we can conclude that there is a strong positive relationship between each set of variables (measures of national development and measures of education and literacy). however, we must be careful and not assume there is a causative relationship. indeed, there are two possible directions for causal ordering: national stability leads to more literacy, or higher levels of literacy lead to national stability. without an analysis of long-term historical trends, the direction of the causal ordering is impossible to determine. future research can certainly investigate how polity and literacy work together, and what other factors such as press freedom, economics, and political structure contribute to the relationship. there is also the very pragmatic issue of how to apply this information: should nations with high scores in the areas of polity and humanistic development make efforts to encourage education in an attempt to 24 influence democratic movements in totalitarian countries, or should those same countries try to influence totalitarian governments in an attempt to encourage literacy? or can both efforts be carried out simultaneously? or is it even the place of countries with a tradition of valuing human worth and dignity to try to influence those which place less value on these ideas? indeed, the answers to these questions may themselves be secondary to the process of the debate itself. 25 references central intelligence agency. 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(1859). on liberty. at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/34901/34901-h/34901-h.htm salkind, n.j. 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6 assessment (council of chief state school officers, 2011). analyzing student data indicates a direct relationship to teacher leadership (killion et al., 2016). background and action research setting in the teacher preparation program at a midwest regional university, the school-university partnerships represent a critical component of the clinical experience. teacher candidates (tcs) are placed in a variety of school districts from rural, suburban, and urban communities during their first semester as a senior. the elementary and early childhood programs place tcs in the field beginning in their junior year, where tcs receive classroom support from the university supervisor and the cooperating teacher through observation and feedback. once a week, tcs provide small group lessons and one-on-one instruction with students while in the field placement. tcs gain experience administering english language arts assessments such as running records (fluency, decoding, comprehension), sight words, and writing. after the junior year, the tcs transition into senior coursework. during the senior year, teacher candidates participate in a combination of field placement (two days) and coursework (once a week). tcs implement whole group assessments and data informed lessons in mathematics, english language arts, and in science or social studies. this first semester senior experience provides a smooth transition into student teaching wherein the university supervisor releases responsibility to the mentor teachers. in order to meet the needs of students in the classroom, the clinical experience allows tcs to reflect on what they learned, the outcome of the lesson including evidence of student learning, and how teacher candidates can improve in their instruction. for this action research, tcs were given an assignment on teaching a writing lesson followed by administering a writing prompt. this assignment charged the candidates to analyze the students’ writing to determine next steps in their teaching. although candidates in the course completed the required assignment, it involved collaborating with their cooperating teachers on the writing lesson and prompt. this collaboration piece is important for planning and ensuring each candidate follows the individual school pacing guide. the two teacher candidates, who provided a narrative for the purpose of this action research, completed their practicum in two midwest suburban schools. 12 literature review analyzing student achievement data, kindergarten through twelfth grade, provides educators with information to support adjusting their instruction to the individual needs of students (hamer, 2014). it remains critical for tcs to evidence the ability to transfer their skills and knowledge associated with analyzing achievement data to their future classrooms. it is also important to prepare teacher candidates to use student achievement data to inform instructional decisions. harrrison and killion (2007) contend although teachers have access to achievement data, they do not often use it to drive instruction. providing authentic and meaningful opportunities to analyze student achievement data prepares teacher candidates to become effective leaders in the contemporary classrooms. analyzing student achievement data to meet the academic needs of the students can be an overwhelming task. teachers already access student data through classroom and district assessments, with the expectation they use results to inform instruction (deluca & lam, 2014). it is important for teachers to “own” their data in order to make sense of the results. morrrison (2008-2009) stated, “if teachers are ever to use data powerfully, they must become the coaches, helping themselves and colleagues draw on data to guide student learning, find answers to important questions, and analyze and reflect together on teaching practice” (para 3). it is through this process that teachers take on another role of leader, by strengthening grade level teams and adding to overall school success. morrison also affirmed teachers become self-coaches in analyzing their data if administrators and teacher leaders promote three essential components: ● realize that data include more than end-of-year standardized test scores. ● view collecting data as a way to investigate the many questions about students, teaching practices, and learning that arise for any committed teacher. ● talk with one another about what data reveal and how to build on those revelations (para 4). killion (2008) coached and suggested key questions for teachers to analyze student achievement data: 1) what is this assessment measuring? 2) what are the characteristics of the students involved in the assessment? 3) what type of assessment was used? 4) what type of conclusions can be drawn from this type of assessment? 5) how many students were assessed? (p. 8). when teachers become more cognizant of the data, they confront and make informed instructional decisions. once teachers become self-coaches mining the data, they can engage in collaborative conversations, focusing on improving teaching and learning. as the national board for professional teaching standards (nbpts) (2014) affirms, “teacher leadership is no longer optional. it is important for student learning…” (p. 1). there is limited research on preparing teacher candidates to analyze achievement data. this current project contributes to the literature for teacher education programming connected to analyzing student achievement data. additionally, this manuscript allows for teacher education 13 programs to consider the importance for field embedded course assignments to focus on collecting achievement data related to literacy or other content areas in order to help prepare tcs as classroom leaders. in order to support diversified student learning, this discussion describes the importance of preparing tcs for the classroom by using data to drive instruction. it is the belief that when teachers enter the walls of their classrooms, they are teacher leaders with the responsibility of the varied teacher leader roles, including analyzing student achievement data. action research process this action research described the need to prepare tcs for the classroom and also illustrated their capacity to become teacher leaders. the questions guiding the action research include: 1) how has analyzing achievement data prepared two teacher candidates for their future career as a classroom teacher leader? 2) how has the program prepared a classroom teacher to take on a leadership role in the school? this action research focused on teacher candidates transitioning into the future teacher leadership role. the two tcs highlighted in this action research implemented a writing lesson, collected authentic student work from the lesson, and analyzed the results. the assignment protocol is provided (see table 1). table 1 protocol for teaching and scoring the writing prompt: before and after activities before teaching the lesson and giving writing prompt 1. choose two focus students. these focus students should have different learning needs. please provide an overview of the two focus students and the entire class (student characteristics and contextual factors). (at least 3 paragraphs: 1 per focus student and the entire class. 600-900 words) 2. what modifications or accommodations will you make for your two focus students and why? (100-150 words) 3. describe the writing activity and why you selected that activity. (100-150 words) 14 after teaching and giving the writing prompt after the lesson and writing prompt, you will analyze assessment evidence to explain progress and achievement towards learning objectives demonstrated by your whole class, subgroups of students, and individual students. 1. whole class: in this section, describe and summarize the learning of the class based off your pre-assessment scores (the class set of the first draft of writing). ● what were the learning goals and the objective(s) of your lesson? ● provide the qualitative data (the results of your pre-assessment scores (first draft of the students’ writing). ○ writing scores should be placed in a table and graph to represent the student scores. ○ summarize what the table and graph inform you about your students’ learning (i.e., the number of students who met the criterion based off the rubric). what evidence did you gather about the students’ writing scores towards writing to the prompt or writing skill? ● based off the writing score, what are 3-4 writing strategies you could work on with your class as a whole? ● (600 words maximum + tables, images, etc.) 2. focus students: include an example of the two focus students’ work (writing and rubric). looking at the two focus students you selected with different learning needs and who need different types of accommodations and modifications: ● explain why it is important to understand the learning of these particular students. ● use what you know about the students and also the scores from the writing and their writing sample to draw conclusions about the extent to which these students attained the learning objectives from the writing lesson and prompt. use samples of the students’ work to support your answer. (250300 word limit per student) ● based off the writing scores, what are 3-4 writing strategies that you could work on with your focus students [3-4 per student and strategies that you 15 could work on with your focus students (these should not be identical strategies)]. 3. reflection and self -evaluation: ● if you taught this lesson again, what would you change? why would you change it? what is your evidence that it needs changing? ● what did you learn from teaching this lesson that will make you a more effective teacher? results teacher candidate #1 personal narrative writing prompt results for this writing prompt assignment, tc #1 chose to have her second grade students focus on what they were thankful for while incorporating writing with detail, using complete sentences, and handwriting. after implementing the lesson, the tc released her students to write their narrative. she collected student writing and analyzed the results by displaying the scores in a graph (see figure 1 below). additionally, she developed next steps and writing activities for future instruction for whole class as well as focus for particular students. due to confidentiality of the focus students, only her results and analysis for the whole group are provided. figure 1 16 after scoring the students’ writing based off the use of the rubric (see table 2), tc#1 found her students struggled with accomplishing the expectations set for them. after assessing the students’ writing, she found there were a small number of students who scored in the exemplary section of the rubric. six out of the 18 students scored in the exemplary section of the rubric. the majority of scores were in the developing portion of the rubric. table 2 second grade narrative writing rubric beginning 1 developing 2 accomplished 3 exemplary 4 score topic key word(s) near beginning main idea or topic in first sentence sufficient main idea or topic sentence interesting, wellstated main idea/topic sentence words related words or ideas mentioned some key words or related ideas included as details with meaning key related words and ideas used as details with meaning key related words and ideas used correctly; defined for reader; interesting choice of words sentences sentence fragments mostly complete sentences complete sentences complete sentences; variety punctuation some punctuation most sentences have punctuation correct punctuation correct punctuation and variety capital letters upper and lowercase letters are not distinguished uses upper and lower case letters begins sentences with upper case correct use of case for beginning or sentence, names, etc. 17 spelling many spelling errors some spelling errors few spelling errors no spelling errors handwriting hard to read; not well formed mostly legible well-formed letters neat, easy to read, well formed based on student scores, tc#1 stated that writing strategies could be done in small groups or mini-lessons. for students who were in the accomplished to exemplary categories, tc#1 wrote, “i would challenge them to expand on their details by adding more descriptive words to their writing. i would have them explore the questions “who, what, where, when, and why” in their writings to add as much detail as possible.” tc#1 also reflected that students could work on revising their own writing without direct help from the teacher, or work in pairs. for the developing stage of writing, tc#1 stated the following activity would focus on providing student examples of writing with detail. “students could highlight the topic sentence and the detail in the writing example.” this would allow the students to see an exemplary example of what writing with what detail looks like. for the beginning stage of writing, tc#1 wrote how she could work in small groups and provide topic sentences and examples of supporting detail sentences. students could take supporting detail sentences and sort them into the appropriate topic sentence. teacher candidate #2 personal narrative writing prompt results for tc#2’s writing lesson, his fourth grade students developed a personal narrative. students brainstormed ideas before beginning writing, which focused on the topic of their choice and on the structure of the paper, including a topic sentence, transitions, and a conclusion. the use of grammar and punctuation were also part of the writing expectations. the tc collected student writing and analyzed the results by displaying the scores in a graph (see figure 2). further, he developed next steps and writing activities for his two focus students and for the whole class. due to confidentiality of the focus students, only his results and analysis for the whole group are provided. 18 figure 2 the data tc#2 collected from the personal narrative writing samples provided him insights on his teaching. tc#2 scored his 4th grade students’ narrative writing using a rubric from studylib (2018) (see table 3). when scoring his students’ writing, he discussed how three students scored an equivalent of a 3.5. six students scored an equivalent of 3 and seven students scored a 2.5. out of the 19 students, approximately 47% scored a three or higher, while 43% of the students scored below a 3. tc#2 wrote in his reflection, “data revealed to me that the students were split on how to organize and develop a narrative piece of writing.” 19 table 3 fourth grade narrative writing rubric 4th grade narrative writing *this is a snapshot of the 4th grade writing expectations as cited in studylib (2018). the original rubric can be found at this link: https://studylib.net/doc/14318054/rubric-for-narrative-writing—fourth-grade overall the writer wrote the important part of an event bit by bit and took out unimportant parts. lead the writer wrote a beginning in which he showed what was happening and where, getting readers into the world of the story. transitions the writer showed how much time went by with words and phrases that mark time such as just then and suddenly (to show when things happened quickly) or after a while and a little later (to show when a little time passed). ending the writer wrote an ending that connected to the beginning or the middle of the story. the writer used action, dialogue, or feeling to bring the story to a close. organization the writer used paragraphs to separate the different parts or times of the story or to show when a new character was speaking. elaboration the writer added more to the heart of the story, including not only actions and dialogue but also thoughts and feelings. https://studylib.net/doc/14318054/rubric-for-narrative-writing%e2%80%94fourth-grade 20 craft the writer showed why characters did what they did by including their thinking. the writer made some parts of the story go quickly, some slowly. the writer included precise and sometimes sensory details and used figurative language (simile, metaphor, personification) to bring the story to life. the writer used a storytelling voice and conveyed the emotion or tone of the story through descriptions, phrases, dialogues, and thoughts. spelling the writer used what he knew about word families and spelling rules to help him spell and edit. he used the word wall and dictionaries when needed. punctuation when writing long, complex sentences, the writer used commas to make them clear and correct. from the data tc#2 collected, he discovered several different strategies that could be used with the whole group. the first strategy he suggested was the use of small group instruction. tc#2 wrote, “i would use grouping because some of the students seemed to have a hard time organizing their thoughts individually.” the second strategy he discussed was whole group instruction with explicit teaching. he also stated, “i felt as though i provided limited instruction as to what important details should be mentioned in a narrative story.” the third strategy that tc#2 discussed was giving the students the opportunity to revise their first copy. he also suggested that conferencing would be implemented to help them improve on their writing. tc#2 did state that he had limited time to administer the writing prompt after his lesson and he did not have the opportunity to conference with each student within the allotted time frame. 21 teacher candidates’ personal experience on analyzing student achievement data teacher candidate # 1. this candidate is a caucasian female, currently completing her student teaching in a larger suburban school district. during her first semester senior year coursework and field placements, faculty were already noticing future leadership potential through her ability to use data to make informed decisions. upon completion of this work, tc#1 provided a narrative depicting her data analysis process. after completing the writing data analysis, tc#1 wrote, “i am more prepared and equipped for my future classroom. for my writing analysis, i chose for my students to write about what they were thankful for. students listened to a read aloud, while getting the opportunity to answer questions based on the book. they then completed a graphic organizer, listing out six things they were thankful for. once completed, students moved on to the writing portion of the lesson. the students had to choose one of their topics from their graphic organizer and expand upon it in their writing. once completed, i scored and analyzed the data of the whole class, but more specifically for two students with different learning needs within the classroom. through this process, i have learned how to evaluate my students’ work to improve their learning through accommodations and modifications. by analyzing students’ work, they [my students] will be able to make larger strides in their learning and writing skills, by reaching their full potential.” additionally, she wrote, “before completing the writing analysis, i was making educated guesses with my accommodations and modifications. i was basing my information off of observations and not facts or evidence. this meant my accommodations and modifications did not have a constant success rate, was not being implemented properly, or implemented with the wrong students. through the analysis of my students, i was able to give them the appropriate accommodation and modification to fit their needs because of the factual evidence i gained. analyzing the students’ work allowed me to pinpoint exactly what they were struggling with in their writings, compare it to other classmates’ work, and implement the correct accommodations and modifications. as a classroom teacher, this means i am allowing my students to learn in the best circumstances possible for their growth. this allows my students to also be given accurate accommodations and modifications to learn the best way their brain knows how, giving them the largest improvement in their writing skills in a shorter amount of time. there is a variation of learning and skill within a classroom and that will be the case when i have a classroom of my own.” “it is my goal to have my students reach their full potential on an individual level. students reaching their full potential looks different for every student. going into a classroom of my own, i know i am prepared as a teacher leader to facilitate and analyze all my students properly to implement the appropriate lessons, accommodations and modifications. this makes me feel confident that i am giving my students the best learning environment for themselves and their needs by allowing them to reach their full potential.” 22 teacher candidate #2. this candidate is a caucasian male, who completed his student teaching in a smaller suburban school district. after completing the work in this first semester senior experience, this student expressed interest in possibly pursuing a role as principal at a later point in his career. upon completion of this work, tc#2 provided a narrative depicting his data analysis process. “during my senior semester in spring 2018, i completed the writing prompt assignment. before completing the writing prompt with a group of 4th graders, i was not exactly sure what to expect from a 4th grade writer. i chose for the students to write narrative pieces so i could get an idea of each student and their imagination. i found that each student can vary in their writing ability especially when giving details within a narrative. although after grading each narrative according to a 4-point rubric (provided by the classroom teacher), i noticed that there were quite a few students falling in between the 2 and 3 category. grading each narrative was quite difficult for me as well as time consuming. however, i feel that all the time and effort i put into grading paid off immensely. due to the fact i am student teaching in the same grade i administered the writing prompt with last spring, i have a better idea of what a proficient 4th grade narrative looks like compared to an exemplary narrative. having a baseline set of writing to take into my student teaching was beneficial when working with the students on writing.” he further wrote, “as far as the data analysis project goes, i think that by having the opportunity to create such an extensive project really helped as far as reading student data in my student teaching semester. going into student teaching, i was not sure how much student data i would have access to, but i soon found out that i had access to quite a bit. analyzing student data can be difficult at times without having the right tools in hand, but i will say it is helpful knowing what each student is excelling/struggling with. working with student data last spring, i have learned that a lot goes into planning and executing learning strategies to help each student. as a student teacher, i have worked with data in math and ela which has given me an insight as to how each student’s performance affects them in the classroom. student data is everything when working to improve student performance in any subject. the most important thing when using student data is all about how the teacher is able to read the data and how that teacher uses it for the benefit of the students.” tc#2 also discussed how this project connected to teacher leadership. “i feel as a first-year teacher it is important to bring any and all ideas to the grade level team/school, especially if those ideas are in regards to improving a student’s education. being able to read student data correctly can provide the teacher with various options on how to improve a given student within the content area they struggle. having the opportunity to work with student data while in college classes and during student teaching has prepared me to be able to read data correctly and determine the best approach to help students. once i have my own classroom of students, i feel as though i can bring my knowledge of reading data and help any student thrive in their educational career.” 23 a former teacher candidate who is now in a teacher leader role this former candidate is a caucasian female, who completed her student teaching in an urban school district where she was later hired. as a former candidate, this classroom teacher was already displaying leadership characteristics. she developed a strong understanding of how to use student achievement data to make informed instructional decisions. now a second-year classroom teacher, she provided a narrative depicting her experience with the data analysis process and her transition to a more active leadership role based on her understanding of data and the analysis for student learning (personal communication. december 11, 2018). the second-year teacher wrote, “as a 2017 graduate of this midwestern university and 2nd grade teacher in my second year of teaching at the elementary school under the leadership of my principal, i feel exceedingly fortunate for the experiences i have had in my professional career thus far. being a part of the midwestern university elementary education clinical pathway program was the first opportunity for my success as an educator. through this program, i was able to partake in active, authentic learning. beginning my junior year, i was placed in urban, suburban and rural classrooms. during my time in those placements, i had the opportunity to not only observe veteran teachers but lead small group lessons and co-teach alongside mentor teachers. i truly believe these experiences quickly and efficiently prepared me for my career.” “i was fortunate enough to work in the elementary building with my current principal and my cooperating mentor teacher for 1 ½ years for my required practicum before graduating. during this time, i was able to familiarize myself with the district and school policies, procedures, curriculum, students and their powerful data analyzation process. when i was hired on as a second grade teacher at this midwestern urban elementary school, i felt more than adequately prepared to embark on my first year as an elementary teacher.” the former candidate discussed how the experiences helped her become a data team leader. “in my first year of teaching, i taught on the same grade level team as my cooperating teacher, whose role then changed to being my mentor. my principal provided advice, support, and a familiarity that was comforting. i held the role of data review team leader for my grade level my first year. having observed the school’s data review process previously, i was prepared to administer assessments, gather data, set student goals and have weekly conversations with my team to plan and drive our instruction.” “as i go through my second year of teaching, i feel confident and excited to take on the role of being a mentor to a teacher candidate from this midwestern university. my experiences with the university, and at the elementary school has equipped me to evolve into a teacher leadership role. i look forward to sharing instructional strategies and classroom management techniques with a future teacher. i am eager to show them my passion for data analysis and help them see how purposeful planning can truly lead to student achievement.” 24 a principal's perspective on how analyzing student achievement data has prepared the teacher candidate for the classroom this principal is a caucasian female, working in an urban school district who partners with the university clinical program. she has been an educator for 16 years and has served as a principal for five years. this principal has witnessed growth from the above-mentioned teacher candidate from her junior year to her second year as a classroom teacher. she played an integral role in hiring this teacher as well. this principal (personal communication, december 8, 2018) provided her perspective on the transition into teacher leadership. the school principal wrote, “i have had the great opportunity of working collaboratively with the midwestern university, since 2014. currently, my building is hosting our third group of juniors who will loop into their senior block at the elementary school, and who will hopefully student teach with us. since starting our partnership, hiring high-quality, classroom-ready teachers has become easy. i have found that the teacher candidates from the midwestern university, who spend time in my building, are better prepared to start their teaching career, compared to their peers who graduated from other universities. the teacher candidates can analyze student achievement data and collaboratively make decisions about instruction based on those data. they can contribute to planning and have meaningful conversations about teaching and learning. the graduates from this midwestern university i have hired, who spent time during their junior and senior blocks, have transitioned into teacher leaders in my building more quickly than their peers.” the principal also stated. “teachers who are teacher leaders have applied for and been intentionally selected to serve in that capacity. teacher leaders attend additional professional development provided by the district, as well as professional development i provide. they help plan and implement all building-level professional development. additionally, they serve as mentors to new teachers. the mentor role includes coaching, observing and providing feedback, and being observed by their mentee. this happens at least once per quarter, or more if requested. i expect all teachers to be professional and on their "a" game, however, teacher leaders exemplify what i expect from all staff.” discussion when reviewing the writing prompt data analysis from tc#1 and tc#2, both teacher candidates were able to organize their student data in a graph and were able to interpret the results to make informed instructional decisions. opportunities for teacher candidates to analyze student achievement data prepare them for a classroom position as well as a teacher leader role. from the experiences in the coursework, tcs can transfer what they learned about the importance of assessments and data analysis and carry this into their future teaching career. these early experiences with data analysis allow the tcs to connect their learning to the school district’s data cycle. once in a permanent teaching position, tcs with early experiences working with authentic data, find it easier to transition to leadership roles. it is through the authentic process of data collection and not “fake” data provided in the university classroom, that allows tcs the opportunity to dissect and process results in a meaningful way. by collecting and analyzing data 25 for the purpose of driving instruction, tcs see and understand the value placed on assessment through their lesson implementation and planning of next steps based on data they collect. tcs are able to adapt teaching and rely on strategies to support learning based on evidence rather than trial and error. these authentic experiences working with data, along with the support of university instructors and cooperating teachers prepare tcs for future career leadership roles and best teaching practices. based on reflections from the former tc in her second year of teaching, it is clear to see how the early preparation and support from university instructors and cooperating teachers provide relevant and appropriate opportunities to work with data, preparing tcs for an active role in leadership. by collecting data and learning the steps with appropriate supports, tcs gain personal understanding of the data collection and analysis process as well as develop artifacts from their work to review later in their own classrooms. these artifacts serve as reminders of how they learned the process and can guide future data analysis. these tcs can then feel confident in their first years of teaching and assume the role of teacher leader earlier and more efficiently than their peers without these purposeful experiences. when principals hire new teachers, they feel confident knowing the teacher candidate was provided opportunities to analyze student achievement data and to generate instructional decisions from the collected data. limitations limitations to this action research included a small sample size. another limitation was the time each of the two candidates were in the field, which was two days a week. each tc was given one or two days to complete their writing prompt with the students. increased focus is sought on preparing teacher candidates to analyze the data to take it to the next level, which is immersing tcs on how to differentiate instruction to meet the needs of diverse learners. implications for practice/next steps in considering next steps, it is important to follow tcs through the junior semester into the student teaching experience where they have the continued opportunity to use a reliable assessment tool. this step is essential in order to determine the growth through time that the tcs may have gained in their understanding of how to analyze student achievement data. comparing tcs’ growth for two-to-three years would provide insights on teacher candidates’ ability to analyze student data while also allowing the college instructor to use the results to tailor the instruction. creating other opportunities for tcs to analyze student achievement data across the content areas, such as math, would be of additional value. to extend on this research study where tcs focus on a small unit of instruction, a benefit for the program and tcs, would be to provide the opportunity to teach a full unit of study in a content area such as math or communication arts prior to student teaching. this would benefit the tcs because they would pre-assess and post-assess the skills taught. providing the tcs this opportunity could help those who find it challenging to interpret and analyze student data. in return, this field experience would afford the college instructors, mentoring teachers, and principals the opportunities to work side-by-side with the tcs to ensure preparation for student teaching and career leadership. 26 conclusion preparing new teachers for the classroom is no small task. from the time teacher candidates begin their junior to their senior levels, college instructors cover several areas: classroom and behavior management, instructional strategies, lesson and unit plan development, understanding the purpose of assessments, writing assessments, and analyzing student achievement data, which all connect to support emerging classroom teacher leadership. xu and patmor (2012) stated, “developing teacher leadership skills in both in service and pre-service teachers is important enough to sustain school improvement and student achievement that it must be actively incorporated into training programs for those… preparing to teach” (p. 4). in some regards, the college instructor is the instructional coach each semester who has a responsibility to continuously reflect and provide course modules to develop effective teacher candidates who are ready to assume the role of classroom teacher leader. the work of preparing tcs to analyze student achievement is typically done in isolation. authentic experiences embedded in field placements remain necessary for active and purposeful learning. the partnerships with each school district and the schools within each district remain critical to the program outcomes, ensuring that all tcs receive support at all levels of their learning. the most beneficial learning occurs when tcs are immersed in the field working side by side with mentoring teachers who are willing and able to help prepare them for becoming teacher leaders who can use achievement data to meet the needs of students in the classroom. 27 references council of chief state school officers (2011). interstate teacher assessment and support consortium (intasc) model core teaching standards: a resource for state dialogue. washington, 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(2016). a systematic approach to elevating teacher leadership. learning forward: the professional learning association. oxford, oh. retrieved from: https://learningforward.org/docs/default-source/pdf/a-systemic-approach-to-elevating-tea cher-leadership.pdf. lewis, d., madison-harris, r., muoneke, a., & times, c. (2010). using data to guide instruction and improve student learning. sedl, 22(2). retrieved from http://www.sedl.org/pubs/sedl-letter/v22n02/using-data.html. morrison, j. (december 2008/january 2009). why teachers must be data experts, 66(4). educational leadership. retrieved from: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec08/vol66/num04/why-teach ers-must-be-data-experts.aspx national association of elementary school principals (naesp) (2011). using student achievement data to support instructional decision making student assessment. white paper published by national association of elementary school principals. retrieved from: https://www.connectnow.us/communications/content/documents/doc_naespstudent%20achievement_blue.pdf national board for professional teaching standards (nbpts) (2014). the teacher leadership competencies. retrieved from: https://www.nbpts.org/wp-content/uploads/teacher_leadership_competencies_final.pdf studylib (2018). rubric for narrative writing fourth grade. retrieved from https://studylib.net/doc/14318054/rubric-for-narrative-writing%e2%80%94fourth-grade. xu, y., & patmor, g. (2012). fostering leadership skills in pre-service teachers. international journal of teaching and learning in higher education, 24(2), 252-256. retrieved from http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/. issn 1812-9129. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ej1078652.pdf https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2014/10/15/08hamer.h34.html https://learningforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/feb08-issue.pdf https://learningforward.org/docs/default-source/pdf/a-systemic-approach-to-elevating-teacher-leadership.pdf https://learningforward.org/docs/default-source/pdf/a-systemic-approach-to-elevating-teacher-leadership.pdf http://www.sedl.org/pubs/sedl-letter/v22n02/using-data.html http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec08/vol66/num04/why-teach http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec08/vol66/num04/why-teach https://www.connectnow.us/communications/content/documents/doc_naesp-student%20achievement_blue.pdf https://www.connectnow.us/communications/content/documents/doc_naesp-student%20achievement_blue.pdf https://www.nbpts.org/wp-content/uploads/teacher_leadership_competencies_final.pdf https://studylib.net/doc/14318054/rubric-for-narrative-writing%e2%80%94fourth-grade ijwc spring 2020 10 ijwc spring 2020 11 ijwc spring 2020 12 ijwc spring 2020 13 ijwc spring 2020 14 ijwc spring 2020 15 ijwc spring 2020 16 ijwc spring 2020 17 ijwc spring 2020 18 ijwc spring 2020 19 ijwc spring 2020 20 ijwc spring 2020 21 ijwc spring 2020 22 ijwc spring 2020 23 ijwc spring 2020 24 ijwc spring 2020 25 ijwc spring 2020 26 ijwc spring 2020 27 final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 39 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 implementing phonological awareness in saudi arabia kindergartens riham alsultana aprince sattam bin abdulaziz university riham alsultan is a lecturer at prince sattam bin abdulaziz university in the early childhood education department. she has worked as a kindergarten teacher at the kingdom american international school in saudi arabia, riyadh. alsultan currently is pursuing her doctorate in early childhood education at university of alabama at birmingham. alsultan’s interests research areas focus on literacy in early childhood, children’s literature, development reading, policy and practice in early literacy. abstract phonological awareness (pa) is a word that has recently gained currency in the field of early literacy instruction. there is a large corpus of research on how to teach pa to young language learners. in spite of these relevant data, there is a dearth of literacy information on pa in arabic, especially targeting saudi students. the focus of this discussion is to describe how to introduce phonological awareness activities into the curriculum to benefit kindergarten-aged arabic speakers in saudi arabia. in addition, this research review describes pa abilities and the significance of rhymes, rhythms, and syllables. finally, this paper will also provide examples illustrating how saudi teachers may use the holistic language theory (i.e., whole language approach) to implement pa through the use of games, songs, and storyboards comprised of rhymes, rhythms, and syllables. the implications suggest pa is essential for young saudi learners’ mastery of reading, speaking, and learning arabic. keywords: arabic phonological awareness, rhythm, syllables, rhymes, kindergarten students, whole language theory, saudi arabia literacy skills. background a strong oral tradition serves as the foundation of children’s reading and writing abilities (almehrizi et al., 2020). phonological awareness (pa) promotes oral heritage and emphasizes the need of providing children with powerful oral experiences. a strong pa foundation is especially significant in the early years of schooling and this importance cannot be overstated. pa is crucial because it equips students with the linguistic foundation essential to read and write fluently. a child's phonological awareness is a basic skill for learning to read. as a result, fostering phonological awareness in young children can help with developing reading proficiency. literacy development requires a solid understanding of phonology since written 40 words are identical to their spoken equivalents. the capacities to read or to transform spoken words into written ones depend on the reader's familiarity with the spoken sounds represented by individual letters and by letter combinations (spelling). for long-term retention, listening to speech is essential for learning letter-sound relationships, combining sounds to interpret words, and "mapping" words onto a visual lexicon. the four stages in the growth of phonological awareness include: phoneme, onset-rime, syllable, and word recognition (ehri, 2022). understanding the importance of phonological awareness is congruent with the goals of education; the focus is on improving upon students' linguistic proficiency by developing their phonological awareness. research into enhancing students' phonological awareness is particularly useful in ensuring positive growth among primary school students (antonio & santillan, 2020; peng et al., 2022). not only is literacy development supported by phonemic awareness, but according to antonio and santillan (2020), a stronger sense of self-worth results from children’s ability to talk, read, and write which phonological awareness facilitates. throughout the arab world, the reading skills of arabic students become a matter of concern for educators and parents (shendy, 2019). in order to impact their students' reading levels, teachers understand the potential of phonological awareness through the delivery of high-quality reading instruction, which includes the use of pa. current research focuses on the importance of developing phonological awareness and phoneme separation in young arabic speakers (almehrizi et al., 2020; asadi & abu-rabia, 2019; layes et al., 2019). some of the arabic findings describe how detecting the beginning sound of a word and spotting rhyme oddity were significantly simpler for youngsters to do than phoneme segmentation and deletion of syllables in arabic words. the results from arabic studies are corroborated by those from data of the english language, showing that longer syllables remain easier to learn compared to shorter ones. for example, the word ‘banana’ is relatively easier for children to learn as compared to ‘very’ even though it has a longer number of syllables. issues surrounding pa become even more difficult for arabic speaking kindergarten children in saudi arabia. according to (shendy, 2019), arabic is a dialect that is defined by diglossia, which renders a challenge for beginning readers. the term "diglossia" describes a situation in which two distinct forms of the same dialect coexist within a given speech community. typically, one variety is the prestigious form of the literary language, while the other is the everyday language used by the majority of the people. there is a significant linguistic difference between the two forms of the language. this disparity makes it difficult for new learners to grasp certain components of the language such as writing, reading, vocabulary and most importantly, pa (shendy, 2019). as a consequence of diglossia, implementing phonological awareness among kindergarten students in saudi arabia remains a challenge. thus, this discussion explores the importance of phonological awareness and how to teach pa through the use of rhythm, rhyme, and syllables in saudi arabia. according to holistic language theory, classrooms represent places where each student is regarded as a unique individual; teachers and students both actively participate in the learning process (clay, 2015; doyle, 2018; morrow, 2011; piaget, 1950; sriastuti & masing, 2022). many advocates of holistic 41 language learning argue fluency in a dialect develops organically in the course of daily life. the use of rhythm, rhymes and syllables provide this natural learning context (sayakhan & bradley, 2019). the whole language approach also supports the use of rhythm, rhymes and syllables in implementing phonological awareness and is an example of holistic language and literacy learning (geekie et al., 1999; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998). targeted questions the following questions constitute the particular inquiry to which this discussion responds. these questions remain crucial to a systematic review of the literature and aid in providing kindergarten teachers with strategies for best pa classroom practices. • what is phonological awareness? • how can one use phonological awareness in saudi kindergarten classrooms, specifically in the arabic language? • what are phonological awareness skills? rationale this discussion supports the saudi arabian ministry of education and saudi arabian teachers in implementing phonological awareness in kindergarten. despite the abundance of instruments testing phonological awareness in other languages, there remains a paucity of research concerning how to implement pa in arabic, the native language of almost 401 million people. teaching how to speak a language begins with building, growing, and strengthening the learner's sound system before introducing other aspects of the language such as letters. consequently, the primary objective of teachers working with young children in the early stages of language development is to enable students to actively manage the various sounds of the language by rhyming, merging, segmenting, inserting, and removing syllables. successful teachers of arabic with young children in saudi demonstrate the ability to effectively employ phonetic awareness strategies to support children’s emerging reading and spelling proficiency. what is phonological awareness? many people believe that decoding phonemes is the first step in the reading process. however, children become reading-ready well before they have a firm grasp on the idea that letters represent sounds. learning phonological awareness is the first step in developing a fluent lexicon or word list (ciesielski & creaghead, 2020). the capacity to detect and alter the spoken components of words and phrases is what we refer to as phonological awareness. some examples of such abilities include recognizing rhyming words, playing with alliteration, breaking down a phrase into component parts, distinguishing syllables, and mixing and splitting onset-rimes. phonemic awareness is the highest level, yet it is also the one that takes the longest to develop. phonemic awareness is the capacity to recognize, consider, and manipulate independent sounds (phonemes) of spoken words (ehri, 2022). this includes activities such as fusing sounds together to form new words, breaking down words into their component sounds, and omitting and rearranging linguistic elements. 42 phonological awareness (pa) is a sequence of abilities that progress across time and remain essential for both spelling and reading proficiency given that they are fundamental for learning to interpret and pronounce written words (antonio & santillan, 2020). phonological awareness (pa) becomes extremely important during the first few years of school, particularly in kindergarten. this method of language acquisition, along with other forms of linguistic development such as stories, rhymes, and songs, is typically incorporated into the curriculum of early childhood settings on a daily basis. children will eventually develop the ability to generate rhythms on their own. additionally, they learn to break phrases into their component sounds, and then, into their syllables. pa is an understanding that can be quickly and easily attained by the majority of children. before starting kindergarten, approximately 75% of children have already developed strong prereading and pre-writing skills (dimova et al., 2020). however, the 25% of children across all demographics who demonstrate difficulty mastering these skills require explicit instruction in order to improve their ability to do so. students who demonstrate a strong understanding of phonology are significantly more likely to develop into proficient readers, whereas students who do not evidence this level of understanding indicate greater difficulty with the reading process (dimova et al., 2020). literacy outcomes may be predicted with greater accuracy with pa than with other factors such as intelligence, socioeconomic background, and vocabulary awareness (ciesielski & creaghead, 2020). children who struggle with pa may have a reading disability such as dyslexia. children who have dyslexia may benefit from specialized instruction in phonemic awareness and wordbuilding (dimova et al., 2020). many children who struggle to read later in life might benefit greatly from more explicit instruction in pa during these developmental years. pa training assists with problematic decoders of any grade, particularly those who show signs of difficulty mixing or segregating phonemes (dimova et al., 2020). how can one use phonological awareness in saudi kindergarten classrooms, specifically in the arabic language? several ways exist to use or implement phonological awareness in arabic speaking saudi kindergartens. the holistic learning theory (geekie et al., 1997; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998) is recommended to saudi teachers when implementing pa while teaching the language of arabic to kindergarteners. in the whole language approach (goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998), language is not learned by rehearsing its individual elements; rather, real-life and relevant use and application are recommended (riyanton et al., 2021). many who advocate for the whole language approach to learning pa stress the importance of the term "natural" in regard to delivering the concept (geekie et al., 1997; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998). literacy, in their view, is learned in a similar way as spoken language (geekie et al., 1997; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998). those who support the use of holistic learning theory believe it is most effective when classroom instruction reinforces organic interactions and mastery of the native tongue. educators highlight students’ achievements while, at the same time, document students’ expanding progress in literacy skills. holistic language educators believe learning is a communal activity from which all children may 43 benefit (riyanton et al., 2021). additionally, teachers consider themselves similar to their students as they also continue to learn. borrowing from the theoretical frameworks of whole language theory (geekie et al., 1997; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998), pa can be used in saudi kindergarten classrooms through the use of natural concepts relatable to the children. examples include the use of storyboards, rhythms, and rhymes (ehri, 2022). for example, young readers learn best through images and other visuals. storyboards are a group of pictures that tell a short story. storyboards promote children’s pa development as educators devise a wide range of visually engaging pictures. rhyming songs such as “twinkle, twinkle, little star” or “baa, baa, black sheep” help children identify syllabic patterns in words (morrow, 2011). poetry, such as “humpty dumpty,” introduces children not only to language but also to rhyme as well. holistic learning affords flexibility and creativity in the classroom. teachers can create rhyming songs and poetry. it is important the songs be sung in arabic and also be fun and rich with saudi culture. when the kindergarten children recite these songs, they naturally construct phonological awareness as the whole language theory describes (geekie et al., 1997; goodman, 1997, 2014). when teaching youngsters arabic in saudi arabia, games involving clapping along with the "rhythm" helps with syllable identification. encouraging children to jump or bounce on each syllable also invites participation. what are phonological awareness skills? phonological awareness refers to a wide range of skills and understandings about the building blocks of language and the phonetic symbols that comprise words (almehrizi et al., 2020). it seems sensible to start with phonological awareness practices and conclude with phonemic awareness. phonemic aware students can separate out particular sounds in speech, mix and combine them, and manipulate them in various ways. phonological awareness is honed and refined to become phonemic awareness. it is simpler to retain new information if it can be related to what the student already knows. in order to develop phonological awareness, it is important for students to focus on the relationship between written letters and their corresponding phonemes. when children become able to "sound out" each word using only the letters they see, they are well on their way to becoming proficient readers. if a particular student attains this understanding of self-awareness, they indicate a solid starting point for developing their reading and vocabulary comprehension. the primary skills within an understanding of phonological awareness include: syllabification, onset-rime, rhymes, and alliteration, and phonemic awareness. i. onset-rime there are two elements to an onset rime. an onset is the first audible sound in a word that is made when a word is spoken out loud. when the beginning is taken out of a word, what's left is called the rime. onset-rime segmentation refers to the process of dividing the phrase into its constituent parts. the letter "a" in the word "akbar" serves as the onset, while the letters "bar" serves as the rime. understanding word families through onset and rime instruction provides a solid groundwork for beginning readers. it is critical for students to comprehend onset and rime 44 as they read in order to effectively decode words. if children can learn to read with the aid of chunking and blending, comprehending what they read will become easier if it is also embedded within the context of using “meaning” to guide their reading endeavors; reading is the act of “making meaning” not simply the act of decoding words (geekie et al.,1997; goodman, 1997, 2014; turbill & cambourne, 1998). ii. syllabification the ability to syllabify means that one is able to count the number of syllables contained in a word while spoken aloud. in order to assist students in remembering the syllables that make the word, teachers instruct children to "clap out" after each syllable of a word as it is spoken aloud. combining syllables, as well as adding, removing, and replacing them, are all part of the process of syllabification. this is in addition to the process of breaking down words into their individual syllables. reading fluency and spelling accuracy are both impacted by students' ability to decipher words quickly, which can be facilitated by teaching students how to break words down into syllables. teaching students how to break words down into syllables can help students improve their reading fluency and spelling accuracy (wells, 2019). iii. rhymes and alliteration in order to develop phonological awareness, the first and most important step is to learn to recognize phonological patterns. some examples of these patterns include word combinations that rhyme or share an ending. alliteration, on the other hand, is the term used to describe a situation in which two or more words share the same beginning sound. take, for instance, the words 'cat,' 'cart,' and 'khat.' reading to children and listening to them recite well-known nursery rhymes and fairytales is an excellent way to demonstrate the efficacy of the strategy of using repetition of simple sounds to help develop phonological awareness in children (sayakhan & bradley, 2019). iv. phonemic awareness the two concepts, phonemic awareness and phonological awareness, frequently become confused. understanding phonemes, the smallest component of speech (duncan, 2018), is the focus of phonemic awareness. understanding the phonetics of language is a process that occurs in several steps. it all begins with the child learning to identify one sound among all the others in a word. after this initial step, children begin combining distinct phonemes into a unified whole. assuming mastery of the prerequisite skills, the student will be able to alter phonemes. students can create new words by modifying existing ones by adding, removing, or exchanging their sounds. typically, the first two years of school are devoted to teaching students skills for phonemic awareness (mostly first grade and kindergarten). rhyming, sound matching, and word mixing are some of the common types of simple oral activities in which kindergarteners participate. during the first grade, students participate in activities that require a higher level of phonemic awareness. these activities place an emphasis on the blending of sounds, such as mixing sounds like "bbb-aaaa-dddd," or separating the sounds contained within a word. it also involves rearranging phonemes, such as changing the sound that comes at the beginning of a word to another. all of these are instances of manipulating phonemes. for example, in the word 45 ‘banana,’ children can isolate the first sound /b/ and add sounds /a/ and /d/ to it to come up with the word ‘bad.’ conclusion this discussion describes implications for future research and practice as it sheds light on the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of arabic language kindergarten school teachers with respect to pa. contributing to the expanding body of literature analyzing the implementation of pa on saudi kindergarten readers' proficiency in arabic, this discussion provides significant and practical relevance for fostering the necessary pa skills in order for teachers to support students' literacy levels in arabic. in particular, the content stresses the need to continuously educate and train arabic language instructors in the field of pa. additionally, this review highlights the need for arabic education to prioritize providing teachers with the time and flexibility to individualize students' unique learning styles by including more holistic learning experiences that build students' competency in pa abilities. finally, it is important to create arabic-language pa assessment tools through an understanding of holistic learning theory; then, teachers can monitor and support each child’s pa development. assessments include observations, individual conferences, anecdotal notes, and portfolios. in contrast with traditional forms, these assessments serve to collect a range of individual and relevant data to support children’s ongoing literacy development. in congruence with the natural context of pa within holistic learning theory, it is critical assessments as well be relevant, natural, and holistic. 46 references almehrizi, r. s., al barwani, t. a., el shourbagi, s., al mahrouqi, b., al mandhari, r., al sinani, y., al-kiyoumi, a., & al zameli, a. (2020). a phonological awareness test in arabic language for young learners: validation study. international journal of applied linguistics and english literature, 9(6), 58-66. http://journals.aiac.org.au/index.php/ijalel/article/view/6453 antonio, m. b., & santillan, j. p. (2020). use of phono-graphix™ method to improve the phonological awareness skills of a student with reading difficulty. universal journal of educational research, 8(12), 6706-6714. https://www.academia.edu/download/65110213/ujer35_19520618.pdf asadi, i. a., & abu-rabia, s. (2019). the impact of the position of phonemes and lexical status on phonological awareness in the diglossic arabic language. journal of psycholinguistic research, 48(5), 1051-1062. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10936-019-09646-x ciesielski, e. j., & creaghead, n. a. 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(2018). language and reading: the role of morpheme and phoneme awareness. current developmental disorders reports, 5(4), 226-234. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40474-018-0153-2 ehri, l. c. (2022). what teachers need to know and do to teach letter–sounds, phonemic awareness, word reading, and phonics. the reading teacher, 76(1), 53-61. https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/trtr.2095 geekie, p., cambourne, b., & fitzsimmons, p. (1999). understanding literacy development. trentham books. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed436779 goodman, k. s. (1997). whole language: the whole story. in encyclopedia of language and education (pp. 87-97). springer, dordrecht. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-011-4533-6_9 goodman, k. (2014). what’s whole in whole language in the 21st century. garn press. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed300777 layes, s., lalonde, r., & rebai, m. 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(2021). whole language as a language learning approach. journal of english education. http://www.ieomsociety.org/singapore2021/papers/679.pdf sayakhan, n. i., & bradley, d. h. (2019). a nursery rhymes as a vehicle for teaching english as a foreign language. journal of university of raparin, 6(1), 44-55. http://journal.uor.edu.krd/index.php/jur/article/view/7 shendy, r. (2019). the limitations of reading to young children in literary arabic: the unspoken struggle with arabic diglossia. theory and practice in language studies, 9(2), 123-130. http://www.academypublication.com/issues2/tpls/vol09/02/01.pdf sriastuti, l., & masing, m. (2022). application of jean piaget’s cognitive learning theory in early childhood education. soko guru: jurnal ilmu pendidikan, 2(1), 14-22. http://ejurnal.politeknikpratama.ac.id/index.php/sokoguru/article/view/101 turbill, j., & cambourne, b. (1998). the changing face of whole language. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed437632 wells, j. c. (2019). syllabification and allophony. in practical english phonetics and phonology (pp. 274-283). routledge. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429490392-27/syllabificationallophony-wells final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 73 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 education by the numbers donald sneada amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the interim department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. several factors contribute to student success and achievement. students’ attendance has been shown to affect students’ success in school (hanson, 2020). however, it appears that less attention is given to how teacher absentees affect student success (hanson, 2020). research shows that teachers are the most important in school factor for student learning (hanson, 2020). teacher attendance is directly related to student achievement. for example, miller, murnane, and willett (2008) assessed that 10 additional days of teacher absences reduced achievement in mathematics of fourth grade students by 3.2% of a standard deviation. moreover, they found that 10 days of teacher absences resulted in some students’ designation in the state proficiency system to be lowered (miller, murnane, & willett, 2008). this data suggests teachers’ absences can lead to learning loss for students. what does the numbers say about teacher absences? teacher absences reasons percentages sick leave 52% personal leave 23% professional leave 18% other 7% categorizing teacher absences based on 187 working days/year chronically absent 18 or more days (22days average) 10% frequent 11-17 days/year 25% moderate 4-10 days/year 47% excellent 0-3 days/year 18% 74 references clotfelter, c. t., ladd, h. f., & vigdor, j. l. (2009). are teacher absences worth worrying about in the united states. education finance and policy 4(2), 115-149. hansen, m., & quintero, d. (2020). we should be focusing on absenteeism among teachers, not just students. brooking institution. retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brown-center-chalkboard/2020/01/27/we-should-befocusing-on-absenteeism-among-teachers-not-just-students/ retrieved on may 6, 2022. miller, r. t., murnane, r. j., & willett, j.b. (2008). do teacher absences impact student achievement? longitudinal evidence from one urban school district. educational evaluation and policy analysis, 30(2), 181-200. retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w13356.pdf miller, r. t., murnane, r. j., & willett, j.b. (2008). do worker absences affect productivity? the case of teachers. international labor review, 147(1)71-89. retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1564-913x.2008.00024x final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 109 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 steam steam education and the whole child: examining policy and barriers rachael pearsona aphoenix arizona school district rachael pearson is an elementary school teacher in phoenix, arizona. she is currently in her seventh year of teaching, all in third grade. she received her undergraduate degree from northern arizona university (nau) in elementary education, with a certificate in early childhood education, and a spanish minor. she also holds a master's degree from nau in elementary education with a k-8 reading emphasis as well as a second master's degree from boston college in educational leadership & policy. rachael has served on various school and district wide committees including one focusing on diversity and equity initiatives. she is also a play ambassador for the genius of play which is part of the toy association. in her free time, rachael enjoys hiking, traveling, cooking, and spending time with family and friends. abstract whole child education nurtures five tenets of the child to ensure they are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged during their time at school. steam programs coincide with the whole child approach as it allows them to expand their critical thinking and problem-solving skills, build their social-emotional needs, and be prepared for the 21st century workforce. steam programs are designed to emphasize inquiry and an interdisciplinary approach that reflects the tenets of the whole child paradigm. much of the research that has been done in steam and whole child education pushes for further implementation of high-quality programs in schools so students can learn in a way that best fits their needs. however, there are many barriers and funding issues that preclude schools from the full implementation of high-quality, whole child steam programs that foster equity and accessibility especially for marginalized populations. these barriers and suggestions for overcoming them are discussed through a policy lens so curriculum can be flexible and more interdisciplinary and so that students have multiple opportunities to be nurtured in their creativity. keywords: steam, stem, play, inquiry, policy, whole child introduction steam programs have taken off in the past few years and have gained popularity due to the cross-curricular nature and hands-on experiences provided to students. in return, students are learning 21st century skills that are equipping and preparing them for the future, which would include increased engagement and employment in stem fields. students' passions and interests 110 can be fostered when they are meaningfully engaged in steam education, and elements of the whole child are nurtured if the implementation of steam instruction is of high-quality. numerous benefits arise when students can actively explore their own interests rather than passively receiving content that is required through a narrow, isolated, discrete and noncontextualized curriculum. skills include problem solving, empathy, critical thinking, persistence, and confidence. teachers can become a facilitator and guide students in their learning. when these traits are woven together with content areas and learning is situated “within a context that is authentic to student questions” (schumacher, 1995, p. 76), students will build on their competencies and skills. the purpose of this work is to explore whole child steam programs through a policy lens and to expose any barriers that prevent steam education from being used to its fullest extent in schools. furthermore, practical strategies are provided to promote high-quality steam education that can be implemented with confidence due to the numerous benefits it provides to children. policymakers and educators see the importance of steam education, especially as it relates to elements of the whole child, but state and federal funding barriers often preclude schools from adopting these types of programs. substantial evidence from the literature supports the many, and varied benefits that children develop through meaningful steam engagement, but the path to accessibility and training teachers is paramount so all children regardless of socioeconomic status can have the opportunity to participate in an inquiry-based environment. relevant background and literature steam (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) evolved from the stem framework which has similar benefits and continues to increase in its usage across the united states. steam education was created so students could meet the needs of a 21st century economy and skillset after graduation (ste(a)m truck, 2020). despite quality steam program development, the traditional education system is lagging and has not evolved for the better over many decades even with educators and policymakers advocating for reform efforts to better serve students. this is especially true for students of color who have been historically underrepresented in steam fields and have not had the same access as their white counterparts in schools across the country. the research literature clearly provides evidence for the importance of steam education and its various benefits. when students are exposed to steam from an early age, they are more likely to enter a steam field during college (ste(a)m truck, 2020). steam allows for integration “in multiple disciplines in ways that preserve their individual integrity” (dell’erba, 2019, p. 2). through an interdisciplinary approach, teachers can allow students to explore and inquire while still meeting learning goals and state standards. in a study where literacy and math were integrated, the results showed a positive impact on cognitive development with an increase in skills in both subject areas (the institute for arts integration and steam, 2022). students can reflect meaningfully on collaborating with their peers and the work produced which simultaneously requires them to reflect “through new experiences and perspectives” (dell’erba, 2019, p. 2). 111 children’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills increase dramatically through meaningful, integrated steam programs. students are afforded the opportunities to be able to see different viewpoints, think divergently, and relate their learning to real-world contexts. in other words, steam programs improve students’ abilities to innovate, think and operate independently, and connect their knowledge through daily activities (widya, 2019, p. 1). steam programs also foster problem-solving when students utilize the scientific or engineering design process. furthermore, students use their critical thinking and problem-solving skills to prioritize tasks and demonstrate understanding through various means. creativity also increases and knowledge is gained through real-world situations when students apply problem-solving skills when there are multiple solutions. steam education also expands on skills students already have such as social-emotional learning (sel). students collaborate and are able to build empathy, motivation, engagement, perseverance, and regulate emotions. this all helps students adjust their emotions in relation to others’ actions and feelings (dell’erba, 2019, p. 2) which are needed for 21st century workplaces. all these steam skills are built through high-quality instruction and planning that is authentic and relevant to students. students are the ones who are identifying the problems that will “occur at the natural intersections between the arts and stem fields” (dell’erba, 2019, p. 2). through this, the national art education association (2022) asserts in their position statement that “steam education encourages creativity and innovation and problem-solving” (2022). the steam framework was based on the premise of preparing children for the job market and to close the gender gap even between ethnic groups. it is apparent that steam education benefits the child for years to come, but the paucity of implementation in schools due to barriers and funding demonstrates that these benefits to the whole child are severely lacking. steam history stem education was introduced to place a greater emphasis on math and science education in the united states in the 1980s (breiner et al., 2012, p. 4). after a nation at risk was released, the american association for the advancement of science intended to help students become more literate in math, science, and technology. more programs proceeded, but in 2001 the national science foundation (nsf) created smet which eventually changed names to stem. the nation adopted this program at various levels as it became a “focus for educational reform and renewed global competitiveness for the united states” (breiner et al., 2012, p. 4). the focus of stem was to draw attention to the respective fields and to retain people working in those fields to continue research and innovation for the 21st century. stem jobs will continue to play a crucial role in helping the economy grow and be competitive with other industries in the future (ste(a)m truck, 2020). when race to the top was introduced in 2011, more federal funds were invested into stem education as the government was increasing accountability efforts for schools to invest in helping students achieve 21st century skills. four years later in 2015, the every student succeeds act (essa) was signed by president obama so educators could “create hands-on learning experiences with a focus on higher-order thinking skills” (chandler, 2018, p. 21). this new direction was to establish a well-rounded educational experience for students. steam began earlier in 2006 as the brainchild of georgette yakman (flocchini, 2022), but it began 112 increasing in popularity through the mid 2000s and leading up to the passing of essa. an arts integration in the program allows educators to help students be creative and see connections across discipline areas through hands-on experiences. the arts can include music, dance, drama, and visual art. some would also argue that the arts include the humanities as well, which could provide real-world contexts for stem explorations. arts education enhances a child’s learning and not only makes learning more enjoyable, but their engagement is higher. steam education is implemented through an interdisciplinary approach so that subjects are no longer taught in isolation and connections can be made. high quality programs can improve educational outcomes for students and prepare them for their future in a workplace that requires 21st century skills (ste(a)m truck, 2020). students with steam experience will have better preparedness once they graduate high school and will have many opportunities to apply their knowledge in higher education and through their career. steam benefits on the whole child steam education has numerous benefits on whole child education; however, the current educational system doesn’t recognize nor prioritize the importance these connections have on child development. whole child education places a child’s developmental needs at the forefront so that “every child reaches their fullest potential” (learning policy institute, 2022) in and outside of school by deepening their educational experiences. additionally, it is important to keep in mind that when students are engaged in steam education, it is the job of the educator to ensure that they “design thinking as a means for individual learning, social responsibility, and creative problem solving” (rolling, 2016, p. 4) so that students can utilize their critical thinking and problem-solving skills while taking initiative in their learning when engaged with an engineering design process. the association of supervision and curriculum development (ascd, 2022) has five tenets that reflect the whole child approach to promote development in all children, including: healthiness, safety, engagement, support, and ensuring that children are challenged. each of these tenets will be analyzed in how it best supports steam education in the whole child. healthy ascd (2022) defines healthy as students going to school each day healthy and learning how to live healthy lifestyles. at first glance, it may appear that steam education does not tie directly to this tenet. however, both physical and mental health can be interwoven with the steam framework. perhaps students could undertake scientific investigations into health-related issues that directly benefit them. furthermore, children need social-emotional support and opportunities for healthy development. providing steam education in a whole child approach in conjunction with social-emotional learning (sel) has significant value for students. since steam utilizes an active approach, teachers can aid students by building sel into their steam experiences. these may include collaboration, reworking problem-solving approaches, and managing processes (larmand, 2022). additionally, teachers can “promote students developing character traits” as students are developing empathy and building relationships with peers (larmand, 2022) while learning how to be effective communicators. 113 steam education also links to promoting a growth mindset in children, which is “based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts” (dweck, 2021). this approach is also taught to children as “the power of yet!” which teaches children that “you’re on a learning curve” (dweck, 2021). by adding the word ‘yet,’ it gives children more confidence and shows them how to persevere through difficult tasks while simultaneously shifting their mindset. when children participate in steam, they are pushed outside of their comfort zone and will become resilient when positive praise is used. children are also taught soft skills such as the importance of failure in the process of learning and how to try again, which can cause a shift in their mindset and abilities. self-confidence is another important trait that can be taught through steam education and is applicable in any curricular environment while setting students up for success. the experiences children are given in steam build upon and enhance their sel while simultaneously caring for their mental health. safe ascd (2022) explains safe as students who are physically and emotionally ready to learn in a safe environment. most of the characteristics of this tenet from the whole child approach also apply to the tenet of being healthy. in a steam classroom, it is imperative that children feel safe not only physically, but also emotionally and mentally. steam is designed in a way that children will encounter mistakes and make errors that require them to try again. even the “perfect” child will fear failure, but it is the job of the teacher to create a space for children to practice trial and error; otherwise, they may “not take the academic risks necessary for lifelong learning” (aglio et al., 2019). a steam classroom allows for students to experience failure as a part of the learning process, but also allows them to take risks in a safe environment. furthermore, steam programs can and should adjust for the child’s individual learning needs based on what the child is experiencing in an inquiry-based environment. steam allows different groups of students to be able to work together across various skill levels which brings out their individual strengths and “challeng[es] them in a non-threatening environment to meet higher levels of critical thinking” (overby, 2011, p. 109). this helps students feel safe to make mistakes and trust their peers in the inquiry process if they are collaborating in a group. when student collaboration takes place, it “emphasizes students’ selfgovernance of their interactions” and helps “articulate their ideas and engage in a disciplined social process of inquiry” (pederson & liu, 2003, p. 59), which aligns with the whole child and constructivist approaches to education. lastly, as teachers build relationships with students, they are also building trust which will allow students to feel more comfortable talking to their teacher about anything. by providing a safe and welcoming learning environment that is studentcentered, students will thrive in their learning. engaged ascd (2022) defines the third tenant, engaged, as actively learning, and connecting that learning to the school and the greater community. “traditional” educational systems have operated by forcing students to passively receive information using worksheets, lectures, and assessments which correspond with lower engagement. according to bloom’s taxonomy, this 114 would be considered a lower level of thinking that requires students to regurgitate their oftenmemorized knowledge. conversely, steam education allows for authentic engagement as students can develop their own perspectives and views while being supported in them (the institute for arts, 2022). to create a learner-centered, engaging learning environment, teachers need to create a curriculum that is integrated across subject areas and disciplines. however, this curriculum needs to be thoughtfully constructed while utilizing student questions and interests. it must also be relevant to today’s world. the institute for arts integration and steam (2022) suggests that when students are engaged in steam learning in an authentic manner, “students must be allotted the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge in a variety of ways,” which will help them utilize higher order thinking skills on bloom’s taxonomy as well. students can be more engaged in steam programs through a variety of products or materials, allowing diverse perspectives, role-playing, and creating games or competitions (the institute for arts integration and steam, 2022). when students have autonomy over their learning and can follow their interests, not only are they more engaged, but they are also asked to “think and learn on their own'' while also “link[ing]… content with real life” (hong, 2017, p. 96). steam education also expands students’ views to encompass current problems and may encourage them to take action to find a resolution. this in turn, “invites students to seek deeper learning by connecting students and their lives to local communities and communities around the world through educational experiences in the sciences and arts” (chandler, 2018, p. 24). this will help children become problem solvers and critical thinkers at an early age while providing them with a drive to learn, and it will help them create relationships with community members. supported the fifth tenant of ascd (2022) acts to ensure children feel supported and can access their own learning through adults who are caring and qualified. this tenant includes crossover with other tenants including a child feeling safe and engaged in their learning. since steam education is inquiry-based and child-centered, it is imperative the child feels supported in their learning through the personalized curriculum that is implemented by teachers. for this to be successful, steam education must move “the teacher from the center of learning to the role of facilitator” (chandler, 2018, p. 25). when the learning environment is studentcentered, the teacher can deepen student knowledge through inquiry solely from the child’s interests and experiences. the teacher can then guide the student in exploring the current topic(s) further and finding similar ones as well. whether steam education takes place through free play or during a more structured time, it promotes and builds social-emotional learning skills. during free play time, a child will make discoveries that will prompt further investigations and/or find relationships between topics (teacher time, 2022). however, it is essential that teachers help students understand what they are learning by scaffolding content. by doing so, a child will feel safe to make mistakes in their learning but also realize the teacher is there to help guide them. when teachers prompt children in their learning and ask questions, model, or give examples, they are helping children “develop their own 115 understanding of the world,” and are helping “walk [them] through increasingly complex ways of thinking” (teacher time, 2022). teachers help children reinforce previously held knowledge and correct any misconceptions they may have which lets students learn more than they would on their own. scaffolding can also include individualizing instruction, materials, defining vocabulary, or reducing the number of steps in a task so all children can participate at their level. challenged the last tenant of ascd (2022) is for a child to be challenged academically so they are prepared for a future career and are also able to apply critical thinking skills. steam education provides students with the opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of a topic in various ways rather than sitting down for a traditional paper and pencil assessment. some of these assessments include observations, projects, presentations, reflections and more. assessments such as these “enable students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in ways that are authentic, meaningful, and appropriately challenging” (chandler, 2018, p. 26). again, students will feel challenged as they make connections to solve real world problems when they are engaged and feel supported in their learning. not only are students challenged in demonstrating their knowledge, but steam education also prepares students for 21st century skills. steam education helps children build their skills in technology and media, literacy, productivity, flexibility, social skills, and communication (national inventors, 2022). skills such as these “are transferable to other real-life contexts, such as post-secondary education and the workforce” (bertrand and namukasa, 2020, pg. 46). students can take the skills they learned in one grade level and apply it to the next grade or in another context. steam also prepares students for careers in science, technology, engineering, arts, or math. teachers must recognize the importance and benefits that steam education provides. these benefits would include students’ learned skills that can be applied to real-life situations since “learning is best conceived as a process” (bertrand and namukasa, 2020, p. 54). policy barriers & practical solutions to steam steam education aligns with the whole child approach as it provides students with numerous benefits and skills. policymakers have pushed for steam to be implemented in education due to its importance. however, schools must overcome challenges to implementing high quality steam programs including a lack of funding and prohibitive local and state policies. three major barriers to incorporating steam education and to making learning more student-centered are described below. funding steam programs steam programs are now funded through the every student succeeds act of 2015. the language in this law was reworded to include the arts and music and not just the core subject areas. this ensures funding is “used to support educational opportunities through a variety of subjects” (the institute for arts integration and steam, 2022). funding for art and music education comes under title i, ii, and iv as well as grants. the bill also includes programs such as the assistance for arts education which provides funding for disadvantaged students as well 116 as professional development and training for teachers. states have also provided funding for steam programs by either designating this in their per pupil formula or funding a certain number of positions. states have also set up grant programs to be used toward steam implementation. other organizations also have grant programs available for schools and educators to apply for funding. despite these main funding sources, there still is not enough to go around and fully support steam education. policymakers and stakeholders need to urge the states to clarify and increase funding pathways regarding the use of funds and how they can be used for steam activities (dell’erba, 2019, p. 9). this can help title i schools expand educational opportunities for disadvantaged students and allow these students to have access to the effectiveness of steam programs (success story, 2017). curriculum and time restraints many schools are bound to teach to the state standards as well as the curriculum that is adopted by the district. little to no flexibility is given and teachers often find themselves teaching to a scripted curriculum and teaching to the tests. states and districts may not be fully implementing steam education due to the lack of clarity on how the national arts, science, and math standards can be integrated in steam. additionally, there is no common assessment on steam education which limits or prevents schools from using instructional time in this area (dell'erba, 2019, p. 7). schools also run short on time and the capacity to run steam programs in an effective manner. if steam is utilized in school, the benefits won’t be reaped immediately as “steam skills are hard to acquire with just one experience and require ongoing exposure” (dell'erba, 2019, p. 7). steam requires teachers to collaborate and plan amongst subject areas and grade levels. any open times that teachers must plan are usually taken by other professional development opportunities or meetings. key stakeholders who interact with policy need to advocate for supporting teachers and students by producing higher-quality instruction. educational leaders will need to examine the instructional minutes set forth by the district and allot proper planning time for teachers and instructional time for students to engage in projects. furthermore, state and school leaders can create a framework that allows for assessments and schedule adjustments to ensure there is adequate planning across content areas and grade levels (dell'erba, 2019, p. 8). scripted curriculum programs also need to be analyzed to allow for more student-centered learning that aligns with students’ interests and is also developmentally appropriate. if curriculum is unable to be adjusted, policymakers need to advocate for units to be aligned to real-life scenarios and include projects that can expand across other curricular areas. this will allow for students to still benefit from building problem-solving, critical thinking, and divergent thinking skills to be a global thinker. lack of steam preparation for teachers teachers often feel a need to keep up with new practices and those who have been in the field for a while may not know how beneficial steam is for children. with many acronyms in education, steam is one more to learn, but there is not a shared definition or language of what 117 it entails. teachers also may not be aware of the benefits that steam provides to students or how to implement the program effectively through science, technology, engineering, arts, or music integration across other subject areas. dell'erba (2019) also discusses how a lack of steam implementation is more common amongst elementary educators as teacher preparation programs don’t widely include arts integrated practices (p. 9). states and districts also struggle to find time to inform teachers of new content in professional development meetings which undermines student learning. this leads to teachers' feelings of self-confidence and self-efficacy dropping as teachers tend to continue teaching in their usual ways and find it hard to adopt new practices. to better support teachers, policymakers and educational leaders will need to create time for highly effective professional development surrounding steam education. implementation will need to be carried out over a long time so that teachers have the confidence to begin and continue the program on their own. teachers will be changing their pedagogy, attitudes, and fidelity to the program when utilizing arts integration which contributes in a positive way to student outcomes (dell’erba, 2022, p. 6). universities will need to examine their teacher preparation programs to include steam classes for preservice teachers to build the prerequisite knowledge and skills to teach steam. states will also need to analyze their teacher licensure requirements to require teachers to have either a steam certification, arts integration class, or professional development encompassing a steam field. by updating policies, states and districts will show their commitment to steam education and ensure qualified teachers are carrying out the program with the support they need. even with the plethora of research on the benefits of steam education, policymakers and educational leaders are still finding themselves pushing for change so that students are wellprepared for the 21st century. more research on steam education needs to be conducted so the data collected can be used to inform program evaluation and allocate more funding to steam in the future. manageable solutions to start policies at the district, state, and local level will take time before they can be changed. however, there are current solutions that teachers can implement until steam education becomes a priority including carrying out small scale projects in the classroom. when teachers start small with steam and are consistent in allowing students to explore, a grass-roots movement could allow steam to be more widely accepted in schools. teachers can use materials they have in their classrooms, ask for donations from families or outside businesses or organizations, and continue to make a list of needed items during the school year. if teachers are unsure of where to start with steam, they can invite professionals in the field to speak to the students and provide a hands-on activity for them. even just by using steam vocabulary and reading literacy books, it will help expose students to various topics (teacher time, 2022). one of the most positive things teachers can do is to ask students what they want to learn. from here, teachers can plan around student interests and let them take control. engagement will increase and the teacher can fully dive into shifting their pedagogy and practice. conclusion 118 steam education and the whole child approach complement each other in promoting healthy development for the child. both approaches advocate for developmentally appropriate practices for the child in an inquiry-based environment where curiosity and essential cognitive skills are developed through cross-curricular disciplines. furthermore, steam engages with the five tenets of the whole child to ensure they are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged. not only do students benefit from steam, but teachers also learn from them, and a trusting relationship is built between both parties. policies and barriers may hamper schools from adopting steam, but the evidence is clear that students benefit greatly from exploring new possibilities in other discipline areas while using divergent thinking skills. when students are participating in steam education they become “wide-awake” to possibilities and problems around them, and that excitement will carry with them as they go through life (greene, 1995). 119 references aglio, j., & lucas, c. 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(2022). whole child education. learning policy institute. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/issue/whole-child-education national art education association. (2022, june). naea position statement on steam education. national art education association. https://www.arteducators.org/advocacypolicy/articles/552-naea-position-statement-on-steam-education national inventors hall of fame. (2022). what is the value of stem education? https://www.invent.org/blog/trends-stem/value-stem-education overby, kimberly. (2011). student-centered learning. essai, 9(32), 109-112. https://dc.cod.edu/essai/vol9/iss1/32 pedersen, s., & liu, m. (2003). teachers’ beliefs about issues in the implementation of a student-centered learning environment. educational technology research and development, 51(2), 57–76. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02504526 rolling, j. h. (2016). reinventing the steam engine for art + design education. art education, 69(4), 4–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/00043125.2016.1176848 120 schumacher, d. h. (1995). five levels of curriculum integration defined, refined, and described. research in middle level education, 18(3), 73–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/10825541.1995.11670055 ste(a)m truck. (2020, august 3). the history and importance of steam education. ste(a)m truck. https://www.steamtruck.org/blog/steam-education-history-importance success story: california title i arts initiative. (2017, june 1). education commission of the states. https://www.aep-arts.org/wp-content/uploads/success_stories_titlei_final_10.25.17.pdf teacher time. (2022). steam understanding steam and how children use it. https://childcareta.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/public/dtl-steam-box-booklet-1.pdf the institute for arts integration and steam. (2022). defining student engagement through steam. https://artsintegration.com/student-engagement/ the institute for arts integration and steam. (2022). how to find arts integration & steam funding. https://artsintegration.com/how-to-find-arts-integration-and-steam-funding/ the institute for arts integration and steam. (2022). what is steam education? https://artsintegration.com/what-is-steam-education-in-k-12-schools/ widya, rifandi, r., & laila rahmi, y. (2019). stem education to fulfil the 21st century demand: a literature review. journal of physics: conference series, 1317(1), 012208. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1317/1/012208 36 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 1 solar eclipse safety larry l. burrissª ªmiddle tennessee state university dr. larry l. burriss, b.a., m.a., m.a., ph.d., j.d., ltcol usaf, is a professor in the college of media and entertainment at middle tennessee state university. he is a strong advocate for first amendment freedoms and particularly interested in issues related to media and national security. here are links to the nasa and mtsu web pages related to the aug. 21, 2017 eclipse. pay particular attention to the links related to safety. https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/ http://mtsu.edu/eclipse or, do this google search: “solar eclipse” site: edu there are several safe ways to view the eclipse, and many web sites will give you important information about how to do so. but, because of the dangers involved, let’s look at what not to do: do not look directly at the sun unless you are using special “eclipse glasses” or #14 welder’s glass. looking at the sun with unprotected eyes could lead to permanent blindness. no type of regular sunglasses will protect your eyes if you look directly at the sun. do not point your camera directly at the sun unless you are using a special sun filter mounted on the camera. neutral density filters will not work. http://mtsu.edu/eclipse http://mtsu.edu/eclipse 37 do not try to hold # 14 welder’s glass in front of your camera and try to take a picture. if the glass slips out of position you could burn out the camera or your eyes. do not point your unprotected camera at the sun then look through the view finder, even if you are wearing “eclipse glasses.” you will burn out the sensor in your camera and possibly burn a hole in your glasses, leading to damage to the retina in your eye. we’re somewhat reluctant to say this, but you can look directly at the sun, but only during totality. by the way, looking at the sun wearing regular sunglasses can cause even more damage. that’s because although the glasses make the sun darker they do not block ultraviolet rays, which are what causes the damage. so you may be able to look at the sun longer without pain, but the damage will still be there. you may come across numerous web sites where the owner say they stared at the sun without damage. but they don’t tell you the whole story. yes, you can look at the sun without damage, but only within 10 minutes of sunset and sunrise when the sun is low on the horizon and the atmosphere scatters the harmful ultraviolet rays. we do not recommend doing a simple google search to find information on sun-safety. you will find too much misleading information (see the paragraph above). many colleges and universities, however, have launched eclipse-related sites, and they are easy to find: (1) go to google.com (2) in the search box put < “solar eclipse” site:edu > (without the brackets). this will take you to hundreds of university web sites related to the eclipse. 78 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 children and families: health and wellness gratitude: a lifestyle worth developing barbara whitman lancastera amiddle tennessee state university dr. lancaster is women’s health nurse practitioner and assistant professor at middle tennessee state university where she is delighted to teach in the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs. a registered nurse for 37 years she enjoys getting to partner with women to achieve their optimal health and well-being. dr. lancaster is a nationally certified menopause practitioner and has done research regarding the need for menopause workshops. dr. lancaster’s call is mission work where she has served both nationally and internationally and has a love for africa! her greatest joy is being a wife, mother, and grandmother. according to webster (1999), gratitude is the state of being grateful, thankful, a readiness to show appreciation, and a disposition to return kindness. practicing an attitude of gratitude is a habit vital, not only to an individual, but as well to families and society as a whole. as we observe our current state in society, some believe it appears attitudes of entitlement, resentment, and victimhood are evident. the purpose for this current discussion is to explore the reasons and the benefits for being grateful and furthermore, to consider ways to cultivate a habit of gratefulness in families and thus, influence our children. adams (2019) suggests we be grateful for our life and for the fact of life itself. he asserts that if we allow ourselves, we can find many reasons to be grateful (awareness to enjoy the senses (seeing, hearing, and smelling); ability to speak; capacity to feel; aptitude to learn; capacity to extend mercy; and the potential to forgive). when we look at the broader picture, we acknowledge that our lives are contingent on others; their ability to give life and love, for our language, our culture, our roots, our heritage. adams (2019) believes gratitude reflects and recognizes reality; this reality refers to the truth about our human condition that escapes the selfcentered child or narcissistic adolescent. adults learn this sense of reality with maturity and experience. frequently, individuals depend on what they receive, but not necessarily what they earned, controlled, or were entitled because of their particular merits. generating from extensive studies, adams (2019) describes gratitude as revealing itself with a positive mood, increased resiliency, better physical health, less fatigue, and more restorative sleep. gratitude lends to patience, humbleness, self-control, joy, better relationships, kindness, 79 service, and even wisdom. having an attitude of gratitude is just an overall healthy, joyful, and good decision. hussong (2017) discusses how psychologists studying gratitude clearly describe gratitude means more than saying thank you. instead gratitude requires children to use a set of socio-emotional skills. the researchers at the university of north carolina’s raising grateful children project purport that gratitude in children incorporates perspective taking, emotional knowledge, and skills that children start to develop approximately from three-to-five years of age (hussong, 2017). hussong (2017) describes four parts to the experience of gratitude: 1) what we notice in our lives for which we already recognize to be grateful. 2) how do we think about why we have been given these things? (why did i receive this?) 3) how we feel about the things we have been given? (does it make us happy?) 4) what we do to express our appreciation in return. (is there a way you want to show how you feel about receiving this?) children become able to show more gratitude as they develop and become mature. this happens as children gain cognitive skills, practice using these skills, and begin to connect the notice, think, and feel aspects of experiencing gratitude coupled with the do part of expressing gratitude (hussong, 2017). this awareness of process is tantamount to our understanding as we nurture young ones to make gratitude part of the family milieu. conversely, adams (2019) believes entitlement involves exaggerated feelings of superiority and deserving more than others. entitlement is a psychological trait that leads to unmet expectations. entitlement is the opposite of humility and gratitude and instead, seeks to foster self instead of others. adams (2019) suggests that gratitude is based in the reality of the human person and virtues of humility, wisdom, and kindness; whereas, entitlement is delusional and destructive. entitlement fosters negative traits and vices such as anger, resentment, self-righteousness, superiority, emotional fragility, and of course, ingratitude. in other words, gratitude seeks to give more where entitlement seeks to receive more; gratitude builds and entitlement destroys. reiser (2014) poses 11 suggestions for instilling true gratitude in our children. these easy-tofollow recommendations become a supportive way for families to incorporate daily practices of gratitude. reiser (2014) suggests gratitude goes beyond manners and instead, becomes a mindset and lifestyle. the 11 practices include: 1) name your blessings every day. 2) be a grateful parent (tell our children why we are grateful for them). gratitude goes beyond material things. 80 3) resist the urge to shower children with too much. it is important children learn to value and respect their possessions. 4) have children participate/collaborate when they want something. (children can use allowances or earnings to save for a wanted item.) 5) write thank you notes. some suggest writing a handwritten note is a dying art. it is important children participate in this practice. (this author requires her community/public health nursing students to sign thank you notes for all the outside speakers that come to share with the class). 6) set a good example by saying, “thank you.” no one will ever fault you for frequently saying thank you with sincerity; express appreciation. by practicing these values, our children will embrace what we practice and not merely what we speak. ask yourself, “what does your walk look like?”. 7) blessing by serving; spirituality and gratitude go hand-in-hand. reiser suggests linking gratitude with a spiritual authority. 8) encourage children to give back; better to give than to receive. for example, starting the habits of passing along children’s used toys, helping the elderly, or sharing cookies with a neighbor become powerful life lessons. 9) insist on politeness and respect. treat others with dignity and respect. it is important to treat children this way as well. (be wary of anyone who does not). be accountable for what you say and how it makes someone feel. be a role model. 10) look for teachable moments and seize those moments. connect the concept of gratitude with real life settings. 11) find the silver lining. make lemonade from a lemon…have an attitude of gratitude and let your face show it. it is critically important that children see adults modeling these behaviors. situations become more about the perspective than the actual circumstance. it is more productive to teach children to be resilient and to refocus on the positives; sometimes, it becomes easier to overlook the positive when caught up in a difficult circumstance. in other words, let us look at the positives and interact with our children to create a proactive and grateful family. 81 references adams, p. (2019). gratitude versus entitlement. the epoch times. november 7-10, 2019. the epoch times: chicago, il hussong, a. (2017). what parents neglect to teach about gratitude. greater good magazine. retrieved february 1, 2020 from https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_parents_neglect_to_teach_ about_gratitude. merriam-webster (1999). webster’s american english dictionary. federal street press springfield, ma. reiser, a. (2014). the blog. huffington post. retrieved january 30, 2020 from https://huffingtonpost.com/entry/11tips-for-instilling-true-gratitude-in-your kids!_b_4708019. ijwc spring 2020 78 ijwc spring 2020 79 ijwc spring 2020 80 ijwc spring 2020 81 microsoft word ijwc fall 2017.docx 42 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2 today’s classroom accessibility   bill burgessª amiddle tennessee state university bill burgess has worked in the field of technology for people with disabilities for the past seven years. he enjoys the challenge in finding the right solutions for classroom accessibility. he lives in murfreesboro, tn with his wife, andi, and two children, evelyn and vance. what do we, as teachers, do or think when we find out that a student with a disability will be in our class? hopefully, we celebrate the diversity that this will add to our classroom culture, but if you are unfamiliar with particular differences (hearing, vision, motor, or learning disabilities), you may be uncertain about this unknown. here are a few thoughts to support your efforts to maintain a just and equitable classroom learning environment. initially, and perhaps most importantly, an important practice is to talk with a student with a disability in the same tone and manner as you do with all other students. for example, blind and visually impaired students do not require you to slow your pace or raise the volume of your voice. if a sign-language interpreter is required, you will want to face and speak with the student and not the interpreter. if a student with a disability is struggling with a task that is easy for other students, such as opening a door, promote independence by asking the student if she or he wants help or if his or her preference is independence. all students with disabilities are not the same; interact with atypical students as individuals and not merely as disabilities. after remembering to regard basic social premises, teachers consider what different technologies might do to support students with disabilities. for example, students with a hearing impairment, might benefit from a basic room microphone, such as a redcat by lightspeed, might be adequate to boost spoken audio to intelligible levels. truly, a room microphone is a benefit for all students, and that is a point to value about many technologies for people with disabilities. if the room microphone is not sufficient, the student with a hearing disability may need a mic system that can broadcast to his or her hearing aids, such as the roger mic by phonak. it is also important to make sure that any videos presented in class have captions and any recorded audio has a transcript. recalling that students with any disability remain unique and will, therefore, vary widely within their particular population is critical. for example, students with a vision impairment differ in their ability to see and interact with class materials. a student with color blindness may just need you to avoid certain 43 color combinations when you’re creating presentations or handouts. these color combinations are determined by the type of color blindness for each individual. if ipads are used in the classroom, ios has strong accessibility features built right in. one of these is the option to present screen colors through a color filter that makes difficult colors, those that would have otherwise been difficult to differentiate, stand out for people with color blindness. for students that are legally blind but still have some vision, large print (18 pt. font or higher) that has a high color contrast might suit the need. again, ipads have software features, such as built-in screen magnification, that aid students with low vision. if students use desktops or laptops, they may require third-party software for screen magnification and/or text-to-speech synthesis. a quality product for mac and pc that performs both functions is zoomtext, but individual students might be able to achieve adequate assistance from the accessibility functions that come pre-installed on both macs and pcs. students who are blind will need some additional learning supports in your classroom. the first consideration is speaking anything that is presented visually. teachers naturally do this as they write something on the board for all students to both hear and see information; speaking aloud is effective instruction for all students. another way to ensure equal access to information is providing students a fully-accessible, digital version of class materials ahead of time or at the beginning of class. that way, students who are blind or visually impaired can use screen reading technologies, like jaws or voiceover, to gain an efficient understanding of the flow of the presentation, in addition to being able to preview any visuals that might be incorporated. once again, it is important to highlight the premise that students with a disability remain unique. depending on the particular disability, students with a mobility impairment represent a range of different needs. a popular classroom accommodation for mobility impairment is speech recognition; both macs and pcs have this built into their latest operating systems. cortana in windows is a virtual assistant that can aid students in a variety of tasks, and siri on the mac can do a similar set of functions. past these virtual assistants, though, speech recognition for document creation can be a great boon, and in that task, dragon naturallyspeaking by nuance is the most popular and arguably the most comprehensive solution, allowing students with mobility impairment the ability to control the entire operating system through speech. macs do have a dictation feature that will allow students to speak text into a document, and even google docs has an embedded dictation feature. contemporary inclusive teachers may seriously consider providing all students the power of a tool like dictation because it benefits both typical and atypical students in their learning. students that are non-verbal, having a mobility impairment or not, would not benefit from speech recognition, but there are other digital tools that can assist in classroom communication. one example of this is an augmentative and alternative communication (aac) board. the ability of an app to contain hundreds or thousands of custom aac charts allows faster and more effective communication. text prediction is another software feature that can aid students who are nonverbal. this function is present in a wide array of devices and softwares, but texthelp’s read&write is known for its focus on making this tool streamlined and powerful. speaking of read&write, the other tools in this software suite are tailored to assist students with learning disabilities. some of the features of the read&write software are:  improve reading comprehension: hear web pages and documents read aloud with a choice of natural voices 44  help students understand unfamiliar words with text and picture dictionaries  develop writing skills and confidence with word prediction  support homework and independent research with study skills tools  turn documents and web pages into mp3 files for easy listening on the move  assist english language learners and students studying a second language  accessibility features like screen masking provide extra support to students with dyslexia and other literacy challenges kurzweil 3000 is a competitor to read&write and has a set of tools that almost mirror the latter. admittedly, both of these pieces of software are expensive, but they demonstrate a significant impact on student comprehension and retention for all students in the classroom. this means, while providing specific support for students with learning disabilities, these software packages benefit typical learners, as well. this brief overview of technologies for students with disabilities provides ideas of ways in which teachers provide equivalent classroom experiences for students with disabilities. the goal is to “level the playing field” so that no student is at a disadvantage. providing access to information and the means to showcase understanding is essential. and, in the process of exploring technologies as an instructional alternative, it is discovered that all students, typical and atypical, can benefit. you are invited to follow the hyperlinks provided in this article to find out more about any particular assistive technology, and feel free to email me at william.burgess@mtsu.edu with any specific questions about their implementation. none of the solutions mentioned are the single answer, but together, they create a platform on which learners of today and tomorrow will shape the world.                         final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 6 introduction tiffany wilson, editor this fall issue provides readers with diverse perspectives on a variety of topics including the impact covid-19 had on pre-service teachers, korean mothers, and children’s social skills. moreover, this issue discusses how music can be utilized to increase literacy in the classroom, the benefits of structured and unstructured play, and recommended toys for play. the ijwc continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of the whole child. article #1: possible selves of pre-service elementary school teachers in the time of covid-19 pandemic: a sequential explanatory mixed method study ceyhun kavrayici the authors of this study utilized the possible selves theory to examine pre-service elementary school teachers’ understanding of their future potential and its effects on their future orientations. possible selves theory describes a person’s understanding of themselves in the future based on an understanding of their past and present self. the findings of this study suggest that pre-service teachers have confidence in the teaching profession (professionalism) and expect a collaborative environment (learning to teach). additionally, they are not afraid of being an uncaring or boring teacher. however, due to the limitations of online learning, they do worry about classroom management. continued development of pre-service teacher practicum/ observation as well as support in technology and management is necessary for the development of pre-service teacher skills. article #2: parenting and education involvement of korean mothers during the covid-19 pandemic sungok reina park, jeongae kang the authors of this study examined the impacts of the covid-19 pandemic on korean mothers and children who were separated from their spouses during the lockdowns. data was collected via a three-interview series model conducted over zoom. the narrative data support previous findings that education is highly valued in korean households. many participants experienced an increase in fear and anxiety around single parenthood and racism. there were varying levels of knowledge of computer usage and teachers’ abilities to deliver curriculum virtually, which led to varying experiences among participants. the relationship between long-distance spouses had varying impacts on stress and anxiety levels. in the future, it will be important for childcare responsibilities to be shared and for an increase in emotional support in long-distance relationships. 7 article #3 implementing phonological awareness in saudi arabia kindergarten riham alsultan the author provides a review of how to integrate phonological awareness into the classroom to support arabic language development in kindergarten. the importance of rhymes, rhythms, and syllables are addressed. the author recommends that language instructors should continually be educated in the use and importance of phonological awareness. additionally, it is important to prioritize a holistic approach that differentiates students’ individual needs. article #4 discussion-based pedagogy to promote socio-emotional and well-being among students in japan yoko kitami, lois a. yamauchi the authors examine the use of philosophy for children to promote socio-emotional learning and well-being in japan. philosophy for children (p4c) focuses on supporting children's search for meaning and their desires for rich and meaningful experiences. data was collected via the use of emails, analysis of documents, and observations. educators applied the p4c approach throughout the education system, at the elementary, secondary, and university levels. the findings suggest that p4c addresses the holistic needs of students, as well as the development of strong social and emotional skills and support for those who have experienced trauma. future research may consider incorporating more synchronous forms of data collection as well as the students’ perspectives. pictures for reflection recommended toys for the playroom hannah robinson the author provides a recommendation of toys teachers should include their classroom to help children express a range of emotions. tech talk manuscript destination adventure: virtual field trips that won’t disappear nancy caukin the authors explore the use of virtual field trips as a way of engaging students in standardsaligned learning experiences. virtual field trips utilize technology and augmented and virtual reality to provide students with an opportunity to explore and experience different places and events. virtual field trips afford students the chance to engage in learning when field trips are not feasible due to logistics, finances, and safety concerns. the benefits of virtual field trips include increased accessibility, exposure to new perspectives, and increased learning outcomes. finally, the authors provide a list of virtual field trips and notes, including appropriate ages, topics, and supplemental materials. 8 etc manuscript music and middle school literacy sally busby the authors provide strategies for the incorporation of music in a middle school english classroom. some strategies include using music from a variety of genres, connecting it to classroom literature (music review), using it in the background, and using it to support writing assignments. the use of music in the classroom allows students to develop critical thinking skills and make connections through their own interests and personal identity. etc manuscript post-pandemic teaching in early childhood classroom: supporting children’s social skills to enhance play experiences dawnita gallo this article provides insight into the use of play in the early childhood classroom. the author discusses social, emotional, and cognitive development associated with play, the use of play as a teaching strategy, as well as the effects post-pandemic. the author provides three scenarios outlining the use of scaffolded play with children in block play, games, and in a mud kitchen. the importance of teachers remaining aware that play belongs to the child, and they should not attempt to control their play but rather on how to gain the necessary skills to play and learn is discussed. children & families: health and wellness manuscript adverse childhood experiences of elementary school students exacerbated by covid-19: a conceptual framework tyreeka williams, angel dowden the authors of this article discuss child neglect and maltreatment in elementary school students, focusing on aces and providing recommendations and implications for practice. adverse childhood experiences (aces) are traumatic events that occur before the age of 18. through the use of attachment theory, the authors illustrate how an understanding of attachment styles both reflects and relates to one’s psychological state. through a multilevel systems analysis predictors of child neglect and maltreatment are identified. additionally, the impact of covid-19 and research trends are examined. finally, the author discusses the impact of trickle-down policies that focus on systems and infrastructure to provide families in need with support. steam manuscript steam education and the whole child: examining policy and barriers rachael pearson the authors examine the policies and barriers that impact the whole child steam approach. steam aligns with the whole child approach which recognizes and supports the developmental needs of each child through the tenets of health, safety, engagement, support, and challenge. however, barriers such as funding, curriculum and time restraints, and local and state policies hinder the success of steam programs. addressing these barriers will promote the full 9 execution of a whole child steam approach that will support divergent thinking skills, interdisciplinary learning, and excitement in children. education by the numbers donald snead the data provided by the author in “education by the numbers” discusses factors that impact education attainment. emerging professional manuscript let the games begin: why structured and unstructured play should be utilized in the classroom carleigh slater the authors of this article explore the use of play and gamification at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. the importance of free play and the use of play-based and game-based learning are discussed. the use of play and gamification can be used for learning as well as assessment using retrieval play and game practices. finally, barriers to the implementation of play and gamification in the classroom include financial resources and time availability, as well as resistance from people with a more traditional teaching approach. page turners: books for children maria genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle j. sobolak, patricia crawford in this article, different children’s books are listed with descriptive summaries on each one. the books include: a bear far from home; if you live here; pow wow day; pretty perfect kitty corn; the queen of kindergarten; remembering ethan; keeping the city going; laxmi’s mooch; firekeeper’s daughter; let’s talk about it: a teen’s guide to sex, relationships, and being a human. final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 84 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 page turners: books for children patricia crawforda, maria genestb, katrina bartowc, carla k. meyerd, carla k. meyer, michelle j. sobolake auniversity of pittsburgh, bla roche university, cuniversity of pittsburgh, dduquesne university, euniversity of pittsburgh the complete maus (books one and two) written and illustrated by art spiegelman patheon, 1996 isbn: 9780679406419 note: the page turners column typically features reviews of recently published titles. however, we are including a review of maus, published over a quarter of century ago. this review is in response to a recent challenge which resulted in the book being pulled from the curriculum in a school system. in the graphic novel world, maus, by art spiegelman, is considered one of the most influential graphic novels. winner of the pulitzer prize, maus helped the format to gain legitimacy as a format worthy of teaching and reading. maus speaks to and literally illustrates the horrors of the holocaust in graphic form making the fear, guilt, and relief experienced, by vladek spiegelman (and all survivors) tangible to the reader. the work also explores the long-term trauma experienced by children of survivors, something not many holocaust stories address. maus tells the story from a jewish perspective which is sometimes overlooked in favor of holocaust stories which prioritize the heroics of gentiles over the horror of the victims. as the world loses survivors, works like maus become even more important. their stories cannot be forgotten. maus honors these stories and should be a must read in every american classroom. ages 12+. (ckm) grandude’s green submarine written by paul mccartney illustrated by kathryn durst random house, 2021 isbn 9780593372432 in this companion text to hey grandude!, sir paul mccartney offers children another fanciful tale about a hip-hop-happening-hippy grandfather. this time, grandude and the kids are off on an adventure to find nandude. after boarding grandude’s secret new green machine, they simply follow the music: they drive, they fly, and they dive under the sea until they find 85 nandude in a special underwater ship. then, it’s time to for all to head back home again. the exciting story is accompanied by colorful, engaging illustrations. while young children probably won’t catch the language play related to the beatles’ yellow submarine, their parents and grandparents will, making it a fun read for all ages. ages 4-8. (pac) the heart of a whale written and illustrated by anna pignataro philomel, 2020 isbn 9781984836274 whale has a beautiful song that seems to reach the farthest depths of the sea. the healing sound touches many creatures as it brings cheerfulness to a sad sea urchin, offers a soothing touch to an octopus, and provides a lullaby for baby seahorses. whale is grateful this song brings so much joy to others. yet, he also realizes he finds no comfort in his own song. things change only when his beautiful sound reaches the aching heart of another lonely whale. in this dazzling picturebook, the poetic text and dreamy watercolor illustrations invite readers to consider many different aspects of care, compassion, and friendship. ages 4-8. (pac) out of a jar written and illustrated by deborah marcero putnam books, 2022 isbn 9780593326374 out of the jar provides young readers with the tale of llewellyn, a young rabbit, who struggles to deal with his many emotions. llewelleyn does not enjoy feeling strong emotions and in an effort to control his many typical emotions, he bottles them up and stores them away. unfortunately, he eventually runs out of space for his emotions and is forced to deal with them. this engaging tale shows readers that emotions are a real and normal part of life. readers see how when llewellyn deals with his emotions he is a much happier and healthier rabbit. this message should ring true for all readers and can add an important text to the pivotal discussion of helping children maintain positive mental health. ages 3-8. (mjs) outside in written by deborah underwood illustrated by cindy derby houghton mifflin harcourt publishing, 2020 isbn 9781328866829 this is a quiet book that draws you in with exquisite pencil and watercolor illustrations and lyrical prose. in outside in, we are reminded of the beauty and connection we have to the outdoors even in our modern, indoor lives. this text shares the ways that our homes, clothes, and daily routines are infinitely connected to the world of nature. it reminds us of the links between trees and chairs, and rivers and plumbing. in the end, it reminds us all to spend time outside of our homes and cars in order to explore nature in its purest form. following a young child’s interactions with nature (both indoors and out), this book delights both adults and young readers with simple moments of real connection. ages 3-8. (kbj) 86 patricia’s vision: the doctor who saved sight written by michelle lord illustrated by alleanna harris sterling children’s books, 2020 isbn 9781454931379 this lovely biography of dr. patricia bath details the inspiring true story of the first african american woman to complete a residency in ophthalmology and who would go on to dedicate her life to helping people with visual impairments around the world. young readers will enjoy learning about dr. bath’s perseverance as a leader in her field, as well as her innovative spirit! the vivid and colorful illustrations depict dr. bath at work in her labs and around the world, while the text effectively describes the nature of scientific discovery to young readers, making it an excellent read-aloud. the author has also included quotes from her own conversations with dr. bath throughout the book’s pages. it is a wonderful addition to any library, highlighting the work of a pioneer in her field. ages 5+. (mtg) the rock from the sky written and illustrated by jon klassen candlewick press, 2021 isbn 978536215625 this is another text in typical klassen style that mixes muted hue, sparse watercolor illustrations with a simple yet humorous text. this book contains five related short stories set up as chapters. the text, which is all dialogue, alternates in color to indicate which character is speaking and klassen’s typical dark yet child-appropriate humorous style shines through. a turtle, armadillo, and snake, all wearing hats of course, interact with an alien as they explore the perfect place to be and navigate spending time both alone and with others. young and old readers alike will greatly enjoy the rock from the sky. ages 5+. (mjs) that’s life! written by ame dyckman illustrated by cori doerrfeld hachette book group, 2020 isbn: 9780316485487 this is a book that urges you to grab life and live it to the fullest. in this playful, whimsical text, life is a furry little creature who is parachuted onto the doorstep of an inquisitive child. centered on the antiques of this humorous personification of life, with all its ups and downs, this text reminds us that while things rarely go as planned, they are almost always worth seeing through for the experiences. there are puns and plays on words that any adult reader will enjoy (such as life “flashing before one’s eyes” after a bath). while young children will be drawn in by the playful pictures and fast-paced prose, older children will appreciate the deeper themes of navigating the complexities that life throws at us all. ages 3-10. (kbj) 87 thesaurus has a secret written and illustrated by anya glazer katherine tegen books, 2020 isbn 9780062916051 in this charming book, thesaurus the dinosaur lives just like his other dinosaur friends, although with a much wider marvelous vocabulary! but thesaurus has a big secret about his love of words that he is nervous to share with the other dinosaurs. young readers will enjoy the simple pencil drawings and engaging story of what happens when thesaurus’ secret gets out. the text highlights the wonderful words that thesaurus uses each day, exposing readers to his wide vocabulary. this picturebook contains elements that will please both adults and children alike, from clever illustrations to dinosaur-themed book puns—one hundred and fifty million years of solitude, anyone? ages 4-8. (mtg) 19 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 developing children’s resilience and overcome recent challenges mona moshen alzahrania aking khalid university, saudi arabia mona mohsen alzahrani is a lecturer in the education department concentration early childhood education program at king khalid university, saudi arabia. mona alzahrani has worked as a kindergarten teacher in saudi arabia, and experienced training in american schools. alzahrani’s research interests focus on family engagement, child development, child resilience; play based learning, and culture sustainability. alzahrani is a strong advocate for empowering families to engage with their children education whether inside and outside schools. alzahrani is currently a candidate doctoral student in early childhood education at the university of south florida. abstract this conceptual paper begins by clarifying what resilience is, and the importance of resilience for young children. next, the resilience concept is explored from different views of scholars in the current literature along with ways to use intervention strategies, how to construct resilience in children's lives, defined both of risk factors and protective factors, and a definition of resilience research is discussed. lastly, implications for practitioners and future challenges in the area of resilience are explored. keywords: resilience, child development, early childhood, resilience research introduction the world is changing rapidly. people face many difficulties such as natural disasters, varied epidemics, and issues related to poverty; children continue to be the most often affected. for example, due to the challenges of the covid-19 pandemic, children were the most impacted, where the schools closed, and children studied at home, leading to the loss of socialization and learning from others beyond their homes (yoshikawa et al.,2020). furthermore, the playtime became less than before, where families are reducing the interactions with friends and others to avoid the prevalence covid-19; all these things influence children’s resilience and their behavior (yoshikawa et al., 2020). research on children’s resilience has increased during the last two decades. in the past, resilience research has focused on stresses, psychology, and mental health (southwick et al., 2014). childhood is the most important time stage in life. also, it is a memorable period in a person's 20 life, impacting the future. for instance, there are over one billion children that are affected by wars, and the older children may show more impact, because they are more aware about the negative impact of war in the short or long term (werner, 2012; yoshikawa et al., 2020). werner (2012) stated children who experience war commonly remember traumatic events as images, are less focused, experience insomnia, and increased nightmares. additionally, early childhood policy makers and practitioners indicate an increased interest regarding resilience as an important area of research for the benefit of children. early childhood professionals believe early intervention to help children develop resilience is a significant investment toward children's lives as they prepare for adult life. that is, an effort to identify and intervene risks in early childhood will limit the possibility to negatively undermine both a youth’s future health and resilience. hence, children’s lives are very important in many countries around the world because they relate to the economic and social well-being of families (caspi et al., 2016). in addition, the policy makers and practitioners also have an interest in child resilience to aid children to development in full and appropriate ways (caspi et al., 2016). that led resilience researchers to focus on protective factors to understand it and find treatments to disease prevention (kalisch et al., 2017). additionally, resilience research focuses on how children maintain their health in early years until they become healthy adults. resilience is very important for children’s wellness, and mental health. resilience is instinctive reaction to stress that can be found during one's existence. as it affects teenagers, youth, seniors, and the elderly on an individual basis, it is now better understood than ever before. human resilience, as we now know, is entrenched in functioning and healthy connections, it does not occur in a vacuum. human resilience takes on multidimensional aspects and interpretations as ecological processes and other systems pose fear to human. resilience promotes and improves children’s wellness in the future, where they are able to manage stress, face difficult problems, anxiety, and depression in their life (bonanno, 2004). resilience reflects the ability of the child to maintain a continuous balance (bonanno, 2004). resilience helps children to reduce the negative impact of the traumatic events on the physical, emotional, and behavioral health that could be develop and appear in adulthood. the purpose of this paper is to give teachers and practitioners an overview about the concept of resilience, and describe interventions strategies, how to construct children’s resilience, strategies to build young children’s resilience, risk factors and protective factors, and describe how teachers and practitioners in early childhood could support children to improve their resilience. defining resilience resilience is a complex concept and evolves with time. resilience is when the child is capable to deal with challenges and stresses. resilience is the ability to overcome traumas by being able to balance between the negative emotion of the traumas and calm down. resilience is a skill that children develop during the process of growth. the child can be flexible and bounce back from traumas when they develop this skill. the child has strength to withstand the traumas because children are curious, brave, and they follow their instincts. however, resilience is a relative and varied concept because it is defined differently based on differences among people. resilience is a combination of both risk factors and protective factors that influence individual people’s lives, 21 resilience influences people differently. therefore, different definitions of resilience exist. each definition focuses on an important element in the resilience construct. southwick et al. (2014) stated resilience may indicate many different meanings that depend on various perspectives, peoples, cultures, and societies. most definitions agree on several facets, such as health, adaptation, or positive attitude across a difficult time (southwick et al., 2014). research defines resilience as a stable line of health behaviour after some difficult events occur; resilient people demonstrate the ability to learn from past negative experiences, indicate a flexible capacity to adopt successful strategies, and show innovation to use varied resources to balance their life and well-being (southwick et al., 2014). leipold and greve (2009) revealed that resilience means overcoming of the challenges if that does not happen it would not be considered resilience. however, these definitions lead to the idea that resilience is not characterized by the lack of sickness or psychopathology issues, but it relates to how the person overcome the traumas (southwick et al., 2014). southwick et al. (2014) believe developing resilience requires a variety of resources in order to enhance the capacity within each person for resilience. such potential resources may include families, schools, cultures, and communities. therefore, resilience might be enhanced in several stages such as individual, family, community, and culture (southwick et al., 2014) luthar et al. (2000) define resilience as a dynamic system of adaptation to meet difficulties in context. luthar et al. (2000) indicate resilience research is vital because it provides understanding toward developing intervention strategies that lead to enhance resilience. luther et al. (2000) discuss important factors in describing a child's evolving capacity for resilience. critically, a child uses experience to adapt and enhance new events in life. for example, children can learn multiple skills that help them to adapt with the hardship and challenges around them (yoshikawa et al., 2020). there are many intervention strategies for young children. early childhood practitioners could build a program that includes many elements of intervention strategies, such as free play, relaxing, learning new skills, spending more time with their parents, teaching children multiple social skills, including negotiation and interaction skills while they play, self-control, problem-solving, and emotional awareness (alvord & grados, 2005; smokowski, 1998). resilience construct southwick et al. (2014) describe how many aspects including mental aptitude, cultural background, genetic coding, demographic factors, and social influence determine resilience. these determinants aid researchers in their further understanding of the resilience construct but remain as a small part of the resilience research (southwick et al., 2014). moreover, determinants of resilience can be different based on the challenges and the environments confronted by each person (southwick et al., 2014). for example, consider the determinants differently influencing a child’s capacity for resilience as contrasted between a child who is homeless with a child who had a positive environment and lost their parents. the capacity of a homeless child is less than a child who had lived in a positive environment. the homeless child is missing safety, selfreinforcement, relationship with adult, and less adaption, while the other child has a higher 22 capacity for resilience because they developed many social skills by interactions with other adults, their parents, siblings, and peers (cutuli & herbers, 2014). additionally, the evidence associated by resilience shows that using varied abilities and incorporating different strategies to mediate challenges indicate developing resilience (southwick et al., 2014). for example, when the person is able to be flexible and uses problem solving strategies to face challenges incorporates two abilities to face challenges and overcome it. studies state the capacity for resilience is filtered through different factors; an emerging capacity to evidence resilient behaviour builds across time through experiencing life events and interacting with family and diverse others. ungar et al. (2013) describe how bronfenbrenner’s biosocial ecological systems of human development may aid researchers to understand the development of resilience. bronfenbrenner's biosocial ecological system is a set of complex interactions that occur between the individual, the environment, and a particular society (ungar et al., 2013). bronfenbrenner’s ecological model helps researchers to predict children’s social and physical ecologies and understand their unique challenges (ungar et al., 2013). practitioners and teachers realize how this system can help to construct the children's capacity for resilience, especially the individual resilience. the intricate multipart biosocial ecological systems support the development of resilience. bronfenbrenner’s ecological model includes many systems. for instance, microsystems represent relations and roles and meso-systems include interactions, such as families, schools, and religious communities. exo-systems include social interactions that influence child development indirectly such as through the environment (the place of parents' job). macro-system includes social and cultural values and chrono-system cover the change over time (ungar et al., 2013). bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory is helping us to understand the processes that contribute to build children’s resilience (ungar et al., 2013). strategies for building resilience in young children social interaction. werner (1995) describes how resilience can be built through children’s interaction with their teachers and friends. teachers play an important role in supporting children to develop resilience. for example, teachers can be great models for children, where they teach children to control their emotions, discuss ways to manage their emotions, give children opportunity to choose, share and discuss their good and bad experiences with peers, express their feelings, and opinions (nolan et al., 2014). problem solving. werner (1995) highlights how the ability to be resilient can be fostered through problem-solving as having children interpret and apply their past experiences and talents. for example, in 1966, there were six boys who went on a fishing trip, then suddenly met a huge storm which shipwrecked their ship and pulled them to a deserted island located in the pacific ocean (bregman, 2020). these six boys were using their past experiences to survive. they worked in two groups, and they drew up a list for garden, kitchen, and guard duty (bregman, 2020). they also started their day with prayer, singing, and one of these boys called "kolo" created a guitar, and he played it to help his friends raise their spirits (bregman, 2020, p. 5). they were eating fish, coconuts, and some birds in the beginning, then they were drinking the 23 blood and eating the meat, all these skills where learned it from their old experiences had helped them to survive (bregman, 2020). sharing. werner (1995) declares that using individual talents and sharing with friends their interests and hobbies lead children to raise their capacity for resilience. for instance, the example of the lost children on the deserted island highlights sharing talents and interests, such as singing and praying together. both are simple interactions; however, the children felt more connected with one another and consequently, raised their well-being (bregman, 2020). positive care/interaction. additionally, werner (1995) believes positive care and the proactive interaction between children and adults evidence a significant aspect to assist children toward building resilience. therefore, children who live in positive environments with supportive and caring interactions build capacities for resilience as contrasted with children who confront challenges without support, resulting in a diminished ability to demonstrate resilience. spiritual life. supporting the spiritual aspect of life is important for children and adults. bregman (2020) describes children spending time singing and praying. werner (1995) believes that in addition to children interacting with people, spirituality/religion enrich their balance between hope and reality. it is crucial for children to face varied challenges; this requires suitable and adequate coping reactions (leipold & greve, 2009). leipold and greve (2009) discuss how the development of resilience varies and depends on how children manage stress and overcome challenges. the successful mediation of difficulties and the management of stress depend on a child’s abilities to adapt and successfully navigate new problems in life. risk factors and protective factors southwick et al. (2014) describe children possessing different abilities and protective factors at each developmental level. southwick et al. (2014) indicate children start their first interaction with family, school, friends, or other people, generating from these complexities relationships with others in the whole ecological system. that means we could not study resilience of an individual, without the study of the family, community, and culture which belong to it. therefore, southwick et al. (2014) confirm the resilience must be studied through the collaborative efforts of many experts who study resilience from different domains such as, "engineering, ecological, biological, individual, family, organizational and cultural resilience" (southwick et al., 2014, p. 11). southwick et al. (2014) believe children recognize problems and difficulties. as they grow older, children become more aware and understanding of different events (southwick et al., 2014). in a diminished social environment, werner (1993) cautions risk factors arise. werner (1993) identifies one or more risk factors including stress, parental alcoholism, poverty, chronic disagreement, parents with mental health issues, and mental illness. therefore, these children experiencing a range of risk factors remain more likely to face problems in their life especially if they grow up in negative environments. in contrast, the protective factors include positive relationships with parents or caregivers, positive interactions with other people, positive self 24 control behaviours, ability to assume responsibility, resourcefulness to solve-problems, capacity to share interests with friends or family members, willingness to participate in activities with friends, and ability to adopt healthy habits (werner, 1993). these protective factors assist children to develop their resilience, and they become supplementary to support children’s ability to overcome future challenges. this means, children are more apt to recover after experiencing hardships (werner, 1993). resilience research in the recent years, the resilience inquiry was focused on three important aspects: what are resilience qualities, how does resilience process, and when does innate resilience appear (richardson, 2002). resilience research went through several stages (fleming & ledogar, 2008). the first focus of resilience research was on the individual. after that, the psychologists recognized that there are many outside factors that might affect a child's resilience (fleming & ledogar, 2008). next, the psychologists were starting to study whole communities, such as family, culture, and social economy (fleming & ledogar, 2008). the psychologists and researchers were paying attention to understand how risk factors and protective factors interact together to support relative resilience in children (fleming & ledogar, 2008). researchers realize that resilience is considered as different because each case has an especial setting, age, and domain (fleming & ledogar, 2008). the work on determinates of resilience in empirical studies enriched children's resilience; also, it supported children to enhance their resilience in many aspects (southwick et al., 2014). improve children's resilience inside and outside the school teachers and early childhood practitioners can support children’s capacity toward resilience during learning whether inside or outside the school. however, parents play an important role in supporting children’s capacity of resilience. build a strong relationship with children. children need to be interactive with others. teachers must spend enough time with each child. also, they must show care about children by supporting them while they pass through difficult times and ask them if they need help. children need to feel they are surrounded by a strong connection from the adult. positive relationships with adults helps children to learn and develop their resilience skills (ungar et al., 2013). southwick et al. (2014) mentioned parents have an important role to foster children’s resilience in the early years. learn from experience. teachers can encourage children to think about their negative and positive experiences as important moments that teach them, even if those experiences happened inside or outside the classroom (bonanno, 2004). discuss the bright side in each experience. teachers can discuss what is the positive side in each experience, whether it negative or positive (bonanno, 2004). 25 self-enhancement. teachers can support children to improve their resilience by selfenhancement by giving them an opportunity to express their feelings, reduce negative emotions, and calm down in stressful moments by mindfulness practice (bonanno, 2004). label emotions, and laughter: teacher and parents can tell the child that people can pass through different experiences and feel different emotions, such as sadness, anxiety, stress, jealousy, and frustration. teachers and parents can also tell the child that it is normal to feel one of them as reactions to the events, but you have to learn how to calm down and control it (bonanno, 2004). bonanno (2004) mentioned that a person who laughs and smiles while they are talking, show more resilience toward traumas in the next few years after a tragedy. conclusion in sum, resilience is a relative concept. this means, the capacity for developing resilience varies among children. influenced by culture, economy level, and community, it is important for both researchers and practitioners to consider the child in a holistic perspective. resilience research shows various views (luthar et al., 2000). the resilience research presents a different interpretation based on the different perspectives. there is no global validity to follow through in interpreting the resilience research (luthar et al., 2000) however, what is known is that in order to develop a capacity for resilience, it is critical that adults provide children with trusting and caring interactions and help those children have numerous risk-free opportunities to rehearse adaptations, use different resources, and practice problem-solving (southwick et al., 2014). 26 references alvord, m. k., & grados, j. j. 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(1998). prevention and intervention strategies for promoting resilience in disadvantaged children. social service review, 72(3), 337-364., southwick, s. m., bonanno, g. a., masten, a. s., panter-brick, c., & yehuda, r. (2014). resilience definitions, theory, and challenges: interdisciplinary perspectives. european journal of psychotraumatology, 5(1), 25338. ungar, m., ghazinour, m., & richter, j. (2013). annual research review: what is resilience within the social ecology of human development? journal of child psychology and psychiatry, 54(4), 348-366. werner, e. (1995). resilience in development. american psychological society. new york, ny: cambridge university press, 81 – 85. werner, e. e. (1993). risk, resilience, and recovery: perspectives from the kauai longitudinal study. development and psychopathology, 5(4), 503-515. werner, e. e. (2012). children and war: risk, resilience, and recovery. development and psychopathology, 24(2), 553. yoshikawa, h., wuermli, a. j., britto, p. r., dreyer, b., leckman, j. f., lye, s. j., & stein, a. (2020). effects of the global coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic on early childhood development: short-and long-term risks and mitigating program and policy actions. the journal of pediatrics, 223, 188-193. final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 19 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 20 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 21 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 22 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 23 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 24 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 25 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 26 final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 5 introduction tiffany wilson, editor this spring issue provides readers with an array of information that includes social and emotional learning, supporting students with learning disabilities, problem-based learning, and a male’s perspective of working in early childhood education. the ijwc continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of the whole child. article #1: pre-kindergarten teacher’s perceptions of social and emotional learning hillary polchow liesch, karen morrison, rebecca giles the authors of this article conducted a study to investigate sel perceptions of prekindergarten teachers in an american urban, public preschool serving predominantly black students. though the results were statistically non-significant, the findings of the current pilot study have important and practical implications for implementing sel in prekindergarten. findings suggest that regardless of position and educational level, both veteran and novice early childhood teachers could benefit from explicit sel training and adequate time and opportunity to become confident in providing effective social and emotional learning in their early childhood classrooms. article #2: using children’s literature as a model for problem-based learning katherine mangione, shannon harmon this article discusses how problem-based learning (or pbl) is a teaching style that pairs beautifully with science and social studies. the authors detail how pbl allows students to drive their learning while providing autonomy to choose topics or issues that interest them. it scaffolds the development of desirable 21st century skills: collaboration, critical thinking, communication, creativity, flexibility, and higher levels of cognitive thinking. using pbl can assist teachers and students in understanding the process and knowing where their work is taking them. this manuscript utilizes the children’s book spring after spring: how rachel carson inspired the environmental movement by stephanie roth sisson (2018) and design thinking as a guide for implementing problem-based learning with elementary level learners. article #3 one male student teacher’s perception and experiences of student teaching in an infant group care setting jeesun jung, eugene geist this qualitative case study explores in-depth how one male student teacher reflected on his care practice with infants and how he described his experiences of working with female mentor 6 teachers. the authors used the teacher’s daily journal entries, four individual interviews, and weekly team planning meetings as data sources. the data was collected over 15-week period. findings revealed that the teacher’s caring sense gradually evolved through care practice and that he brought in his authenticity as a teacher, not just as a male teacher, while confronting with and critically reflecting upon himself as a teacher. also, the weekly team planning meetings helped him build relationships with the female mentor teachers. he positively reflected upon his experiences of collaborative teaching. implications of the findings are discussed in terms of male students in early childhood teacher education programs. article #4 parent reports of executive functions in students with learning disability lisa morin, jane roitsch, annemarie horn the authors of this study examined the results of the behavior rating inventory of executive function (brief-2) (gioia et al., 2015) reported by parents of children with specific learning disability (ld) and/or other comorbid disabilities. ld is most notably associated with comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd) (alloway & stein, 2014; westby &watson, 2004; willcutt et al., 2013). a total of 43 parents completed the brief-2 rating scale. findings suggested children with ld and adhd display greater challenges with inhibition, working memory, planning, along with greater challenges in organization and metacognition. parents of children with ld reported their children have greater levels of executive function difficulties in comparison to children with ld who do not have a secondary diagnosis of adhd. tech talk manuscript make it visible: video record teaching and learning leslie trail, nancy caukin in the tech talk article, “make it visible: video record teaching and learning,” the authors discuss how video recording offers realistic views of teacher practices because it captures the truth of classroom instruction. while teachers may find video instruction daunting at the onset, it offers a way to look at what is actually happening in the classroom and then make adjustments. this article discusses the benefits of video recording for both students and teachers. children & families: health and wellness a family systems approach to addressing depression in children william feck in the children & families: health and wellness article, “a family systems approach to addressing depression in children,” the author discusses how structural family systems theory can be an effective approach to address depression symptoms in children. 7 education by the numbers donald snead the data provided by the author in “education by the numbers” discusses how teacher absences can significantly impact student achievement. steam manuscript holistic identity development in steam brian stone the author discusses how a broader conceptualization of identity in steam can influence the creation or progression of steam curriculum, environments, and programs to support the unique, organic construction of a child’s identity development across multiple disciplines. he further provides additional information for creating optimal conditions for holistic steam identity development utilizing an intersectional approach, developing meaningful integrated and relevant real-world exploration, utilizing inquiry interest, and play, using a flexible curriculum that allows for divergence and creativity. page turners: books for children patricia crawford, maria genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle j. sobolak in this article, different children’s books are listed with descriptive summaries on each one. the books include the complete maus, the grandude green submarine, the heart of a whale, out of a jar, outside in, patricia’s vision: the doctor who saved sight, the rock from the sky, that’s life! thesaurus has a secret. 47 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 etc striving from the margins during covid-19: one family's experience advocating for their middle school e-learner. s. renée jonesa amiddle tennessee state university s. renée jones, ph.d., works as an assistant professor for integrated studies at middle tennessee state university. her primary research centers her on adults in higher education with specific foci on 1) equity and access, 2) incivility in higher education, 3) experiences of older adult students and 4) doctoral studies. abstract in order for children to succeed, access to quality education is an imperative. education can be used as a means of changing or challenging the problems of the world. many countries support with legal force the notion of education as a human right . covid-19 brings to the surface and spotlights a history of educational inequities in the united states. this article highlights one family’s struggle to ensure their middle schooler receives a quality education. in spite of covid 19, the marginalization that is a daily part of a black child’s life should not impede the educational progress of the student. middle school can be a challenging time for many students and can be fraught with additional struggles or barriers for marginalized children. it is incumbent upon school systems to work with families to mitigate the adverse consequences of learning during covid-19; in particular, for a marginalized child, the costs could be catastrophic and far reaching. introduction during the spring of 2020, public schools across the united states closed temporarily due to the pandemic as social distancing was encouraged to prevent the spread of the covid -19 virus (viner et al., 2020). the sudden shift from face-to-face instruction to remote instruction, as noted by cohen and kupferschmidt (2020), left many schools, teachers and family members ill prepared for this challenge. this change forced family members into a role of learning facilitators, a role many were ill equipped to implement. according to selwyn et al. (2011), some family members see remote education as an additional burden for them to bear. taxpayers depend on public school systems to deliver quality education to their children. being compelled to take on what may seem like most of the burden for educating their children can be extremely challenging for many families, especially when accustomed to entrusting this responsibility to the school systems. who is responsible for providing quality education to america’s students? 48 education as a human right the right to education is not part of the united states constitution or bill of rights as penned in the late 1700s. after existing for more than 200 years, this right to an education is still missing from the constitution (the constitution: how did it happen, n.d.). according to lindseth (n.d.), the responsibility of education is provided to the states by the tenth amendment; the fourteenth amendment targets equality in education. mandating the right to education using the constitution has been denied by the u.s. supreme court. according to lawler (2018), not only does the united states fail to grant the right to education through the constitution but does not support international law governing the right to education. lawler (2018) goes on to suggest that the united states is not equal to other countries in placing value on the right to education and supporting this standard with legal force. lawler (2018) points out that the three international documents that affirm the right to education include the universal declaration of human rights (udhr); the convention on the rights of the child; and the international covenant on economic, social and cultural rights (icescr), with the udhr widely accepted as accustomed international law (digital record of the udhr). the united states, along with 47 other countries, signed the udhr when adopted in 1948, with article 26 setting forth guidelines for education. article 26 states that everyone has a right to free elementary and fundamental education and that education must be compulsory (united nations, 1948). even though these standards are not legally binding, the international community expects the united states to adhere to these customary standards (lawler, 2018). although the united states signed the convention on the right of the child in 1995, it has yet to be ratified. therefore, there is no legal obligation to follow the standards contained within the treaty. the icescr provides legal force to standards in the udhr. this treaty was signed by the united states in 1977, but again, failed to be ratified (icescr, 1966). other countries acknowledged education is a right and included this right in their constitutions and ratified treaties governing this right (lawler, 2018). lawler (2018) argues in order to provide every child with the right to success, a federal right to education is needed, one that can be enforced through the federal court system. this sentiment was echoed in brown v. board of education when chief justice warren implied that it is not reasonable to believe that a child would be able to succeed without the opportunity to be educated (brown v. board of education, 1954). additionally, nelson mandela said, “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” (cited in chitsamatanga & rembe, 2020, p. 99). transitioning to middle school successfully transitioning from elementary to middle school is a key component to academic success. however, as crockett et al. (1989) point out, there are limited studies indicating that students blossom during this transition. instead, the literature describes this period as being a time of stress for many students. developmental changes evidenced links to the stress experienced during this period (chung et al., 1998; crockett et al., 1989). moreover, alspaugh (1998) suggests a link between poor educational outcomes and the transition to middle school. 49 after transitioning to middle school, girls tend to experience psychological stress while boys indicate a significant decrease in academic achievement (chung et al., 1998). elias (2001) posits that a difference in the middle school environment could contribute to the stress experienced when transitioning from elementary to middle school. for example, the middle schooler does not spend the day with a primary set of students nor a single teacher. instead, students move to different classes hourly, experiencing different sets of behavioral and academic expectations. further, students may be required to take notes, study independently, and make new friends (alspaugh, 1998). and all these school challenges occur at a similar time when children experience significant developmental changes. during early adolescence, students attempt to understand their varied experiences in school whether there is ease or difficulty in their academic and social lives, and, additionally, attempt to determine how these events impact who they become in the future (oyserman & james, 2009). students report that they are not as engaged in schoolwork and expend less effort during adolescence. this lack of engagement and effort can result in poor academic progress (barber & olsen, 2004; roeser et al., 1999; seidman et al., 1994). fiske et al. (2007) discuss the negative stereotypes regarding the potential of low income and minoritized students; these students remain at higher risk for these negative behaviors. marginalized students it is not a new phenomenon for black students to experience obstacles to receiving a good and equitable education (diemer et al., 2016). as noted by o’connor, et al. (2007), research tends to focus on the disparities in educational outcomes instead of examining the context of family and community and does not offer ways to improve the achievement of black students. some barriers confronting black students include attending low achieving schools, accessing few community resources, living in poverty, and experiencing limited social and community opportunities. another important barrier generates from teachers, as black students can be negatively impacted by teachers who hold racial biases (lumpkin, 2008). teachers maintain a critical role toward supporting the success of students. because young people can be easily influenced, teachers serve as a significant educational guide for students. history is replete with examples of the barriers that black females face that are different from black males or white females because of their double marginality of race and gender (ford et al., 2018). this double marginality impacts black females on many levels, including educational, social, and economic. some of these barriers include institutional and structural barriers along with stereotypes, (greenberger et al., 2014) and may involve exclusion based on race and class (evans-winters & esposito, 2010). antonio et al. (2004) and tam and bassett (2004) suggest that diversity within the school system aligns with the mission of schools by affording the opportunity for young people t o grow cognitively which leads to learning and achievement. increased racial and ethnic diversity can lead to a more positive attitude concerning a greater connection to school according to goldsmith 50 (2004) while also promoting fewer feelings of isolation and maltreatment (benner, 2011; seaton and yip, 2009). however, as schools become more segregated racially and ethnically, they are increasingly more segregated based on socio-economic status which leads to students who are low-income and who are minoritized racially and ethnically experiencing a dual disadvantage (crosnoe, 2005). when gender is taken into consideration, these students experience a triple disadvantage. there is evidence that the achievement gap is increasing along income levels and racial lines (reardon, 2013). moreover, fryer and levitt (2004) and rothstein and wozny (2013) point to evidence that the primary contributor to the achievement gap is the differences in race regarding socioeconomic status. although the united states spent between 10 and 20 billion dollars on head start and nutrition programs for children during 1990 to 2000, the achievement gap remains (barton & coley, 2010). according to alexander (2012), there are other sociological challenges such as few opportunities in early childhood education, the economic and social capacity of communities, and social forces that disrupt the structure of the black family as possible factors for the sociological issues experienced by students. moynihan and barton (1965) discuss how these factors can maintain the disparity in the achievement gap. the disparities in achievement start prior to the child beginning elementary school which aligns with research focused on how subpar early childhood education impacts low -income children’s preparedness for school (lee & burkum, 2002; duncan & magnuson 2005; duncan et al., 1994). even though low-income students are half the student population, they are 28 percent of the first grade students who are top achievers (wyner et al., 2007). economic barriers confronted by lowincome students impede their achievement from the beginning of their formal education. moreover, during their elementary and high school years, low-income students do not become high achievers as frequently as students from upper economic levels. efforts to make educational opportunities equal have not been successful in reducing the educational disparity as anticipated (hung et al., 2020). because the increase in spending is ineffective, it is critical that united states educators consider targeting inequality outside the classroom as an underlying issue. in addition to considering other inequalities, acknowledging the societal challenges that lead to achievement gaps provide a more complete picture of the lack of equity in education. equity in education during covid according to giannini (2020), in mid -april 2020, 191 government shutdowns of schools in the k-12 system affected more than a billion students. such closures were implemented in schools across the united states as an approach for containing the spread of the covid-19 virus. li, harries, and ross (2020) reported that school-aged children across the united states were negatively impacted by the covid-19 pandemic with low-income students and others as most at risk for adverse effects to their well-being and education. students belonging to more than one at-risk group, to include racially and ethnically minoritized groups, position them at even greater risk of learning and basic needs deficits during this time. 51 having schools closed long-term can result in negative consequences for students, more so for those who are already disadvantaged. significant learning deficits can take place when remote learning is used for long periods, as many low-income families may not have access to a computer in the home. additionally, many students may experience food insecurity without access to free and reduced meals at school (bauer, 2020). using the covid impact survey, bauer (2020) also notes that 34.5 percent of the households with children und er 18 experienced food insecurity as of the end of april 2020. data reveal these high rates of food insecurity are not comparable in contemporary time. moreover, parents who work not only depend on schools to educate their children but also as a resource f or childcare. attending school provides children with opportunities for socialization and to participate in physical activity (li et al., 2020). schools also provide students with other services such as speech therapy and mental health counseling. closing schools can prohibit access to many muchneeded services but may also prevent the reporting of child abuse. in late march, half of the victims receiving assistance from the rape, abuse and incest national network were reported as minors, which never occurred in prior data (faden et al., 2020). balancing these types of equity concerns against the possible spread of the virus can be a major decision-making challenge for families. our family’s experiences with e-learning during covid-19: a personal reflection for fall 2020, it was decided that the middle school student in our family would not attend in person classes. so, we joined the many families that opted for e-learning to keep everyone safe from covid-19. unfortunately, this option was laden with problems. because most of the family members work during school hours, our student’s learning environment was her grandparent’s home, a grandparent who was not prepared to assist our e-learner in the online environment or troubleshoot technology issues. on august 24, our middle schooler reached out to her principal in email using the school’s learning management system and expressed confusion and a lack of understanding of what to do. there was no response from the principal to the request for help. in another email exchange between our middle schooler and one of the teachers, a request for help with the course content was made. this teacher used capitalized words in her response, indicating she was “yelling” at the student for not attending class via zoom. our middle schooler informed the teacher of the problems with gaining access to the platform. however, the teacher ignored this and told the student that access to the platform was required. regrettably, these email exchanges were not discovered by our family until approximately two months later. the teacher was confronted about the inappropriate “yelling” and tone in the emails; the teacher apologized indicating that frustration played a role in the response. when electing to participate in the e-learning option at this school, our family was led to believe that there would be minimal differences in direct instruction for those who were e-learners and those in the physical classroom, as all students would meet with their teachers each day. however, we discovered that this claim was not realized by the students using remote learning. 52 the teachers working with our middle schooler did not hold class via zoom on a daily basis. consequently, our student struggled and failed in providing self -instruction. moreover, the new platform, heralded better and more student friendly, did not substantiate these claims. the bulk of the assignments were uploaded as pdf documents; this did not allow for many students without access to special software or a fillable document to access them. for our student , the pdf documents became an unnecessary barrier; a more accessible alternative could have been used such as word documents. once we discovered that our middle schooler was failing many courses and had low grades in others, the family decided that attend ing class face-to-face would be the better option, essentially forcing the choice between the potential health risks for several family members and the education of our student. unfortunately making the change from e-learning to face-to-face instruction was not a simple endeavor. one family member personally visited the school to ask when our student could switch to face-to-face instruction and was told that the school would contact parents in the upcoming weeks. this information was never communicated to our family. therefore, another family member contacted the principal, who said that the district had to approve an e-learner’s return to the classroom environment. hence, a call was placed to the school district office resulting in more promises being made about allowing our student to return to face-to-face instruction. while these decisions were being made, our middle schooler continued struggling to perform in the online environment. after numerous visits and phone calls to the school and the district, our middle schooler was allowed to attend face-to-face instruction. unfortunately, this change did not happen before our student either failed or received low grades for the first quarter of school. although the principal insisted that progress reports were sent to the family via email, the principal later admitted that no reports were sent for our student. with the first quarter in the rear-view mirror, our family committed to taking a more assertive approach to our middle schooler’s education. access to the school’s portal allowed consistent monitoring of grades. additionally, teachers were encouraged to contact the family if there were any issues with our student. frequent contact with teachers now showed the school that our student is not without support and the earlier treatment our middle schooler received during the first quarter is no longer acceptable. the same teacher who earlier “yelled” online at our student needed to be confronted, again. this teacher continued to require our middle schooler to do online work even after being informed that the student did not have consistent access to a computer or the internet. and even though the teacher knew how much our student struggled to complete work as an elearner, the teacher gave grade recovery work to do online. these frequent battles against the marginalization of our student were exhausting but a vital necessity. discussion as crockett et al. (1989) noted, middle school child ren are in a period of transition, some on the cusp of being a teenager and everything that comes with this developmental period. added to this challenging period has been the difficulties of attending school during the covid -19 53 pandemic. for our family, navigating the school system’s bureaucracy and experiencing the school’s lack of concern for the success of our middle schooler were disappointing. taxpayers trust school systems with their most precious gifts, their children, and based on the outcome of the first quarter for our middle schooler, our family’s trust was not honored. teachers and administrators ignored cries for help, “yelled” at our student, and shifted blame. it is hard to delineate the number of ways in which our middle schooler experienced educational harm. we had to apply pressure for the school to lay out a plan to mitigate the damage done to our student’s educational progress and to remediate the knowledge deficits that may have impact beyond the current grade level. the family informed the administration that our expectation moving forward would be that teachers must do everything in their power to help our middle schooler make up the knowledge missed because of the school’s failure to provide appropriate instruction, as anything less was wholly unacceptable. in the future, the family would take on a more proactive and intrusive role in our middle schooler’s educational progress. it was imperative that our family forge a productive relationship with all stakeholders for the benefit of our student. it is paramount that schools are aware of, and are sensitive to, the challenges that marginalized students are experiencing while attending school during covid -19 and avoid placing unnecessary obstacles to their academic success. schools can lessen some of these barriers by providing an online environment that is engaging and supportive with built -in flexibility (garbe et al., 2020). developing relationships with parents in addition to students, teachers can aid school systems in understanding the family struggles early and seek ways to assist them before the student fails a quarter or semester. accessibility for parents can be improved by increasing their knowledge of content and pedagogical practices. another way to target accessibility is to assign learning coaches for students to guide them through the learning process as well as to help them complete assignments. borup (2016) suggests the use of scaffolding for students in the virtual environment. some of these scaffolds (garbe et al., 2020) include helping students create and maintain schedules, providing encouragement to students, and implementing appropriate instruction. it is a most critical responsibility school systems bear in educating youths during the unprecedented and fluid covid -19 situation. however, these systems must not allow the learning of our children to become casualties of the times. everything must be done to mitigate knowledge deficits that are a result of thousands of students engaging in self -instruction. while families also have a responsibility to help their children with their education, teachers, administrators, and districts cannot abdicate their obligation to provide quality, equitable and accessible education to all students. to do so, will result in catastrophic consequences for our children and our society. working with families instead of against them will be crucial in ensuring the success of all students, but especially those already marginalized by a system that may not be supportive of their unique needs. 54 references alexander, m. 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education by the numbers donald snead a amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the interim department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. it is not difficult to hear or engage in a debate on the influence that a celebrity, politician, or an athlete have in society. however, outside of the immediate home environment, a teacher is the most influential person in the life of a person. they act as role models and offer guidance to our children. teachers are the backbone of society. teachers are the people responsible for social and economic development of a society. what do we know about teachers in our public schools? according to the most reliable data, there are approximately 3.7 million (3.2 million public and 0.5 million private) full-time and part-time elementary and secondary school teachers in the united states. teacher characteristics are often associated with other variables related to student’s success. reference unauthored (2021). the importance of teachers in our society. merrimack college. retrieved on march 18, 2021, from https://online.merrimack.edu/importance-of-teachers/ u.s. department of education, national center for education statistics, (2020). characteristics of public and private elementary and secondary school teachers in the united states. retrieved on march 18, 2021, from https://nces.edu.gov/pubs2020/2020142rev.pdf https://online.merrimack.edu/importance-of-teachers/ https://nces.edu.gov/pubs2020/2020142rev.pdf 77 teacher characteristics: public and private elementary and secondary school teachers table 1: percentage distribution of teachers percent of teachers by race/ethnicity type of schools hispanic, regardless of race white, nonhispanic black or african american, nonhispanic asian, nonhispanic native hawaiian pacific islander, nonhispanic american indian, alaska native, nonhispanic two or more races, nonhispanic all schools 9.1 80.0 6.3 2.2 0.2 0.5 1.7 all public schools 9.3 79.3 6.7 2.1 0.2 0.5 1.8 traditional 9.0 80.0 6.5 2.1 0.2 0.5 1.7 charter 15.6 68.0 10.4 3.0 0.4 0.4 2.3 community type city 14.0 68.5 11.8 3.1 0.2 0.3 2.1 suburban 9.8 79.6 5.5 2.7 0.3 0.3 1.8 town 5.8 86.8 3.7 0.9 0.3 0.9 1.7 rural 3.8 89.7 3.6 0.5 0.1 1.0 1.3 private 97.2 85.1 3.2 2.7 0.1 0.3 1.3 community types city 8.0 80.9 4.9 3.8 0.2 0.2 1.9 suburban 8.2 85.8 2.4 2.3 0.2 1.0 town 3.3 92.5 # # # # 1.1 rural 3.1 93.8 1.2 0.8 # # 0.6 # no credible data note: teachers include both full-time and part-time teachers ijwc_springv42021 76 ijwc_springv42021 77 82 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 dating violence in adolescent relationships tiffany wilsona, matthew maloneyb a-bmiddle tennessee state university dr. tiffany wilson is an assistant professor and the school counseling program coordinator in the professional counseling program at middle tennessee state university. prior to joining the mtsu faculty, dr. wilson worked as a licensed professional school counselor and a licensed professional counselor in various clinical settings in north carolina. with research interest in trauma and students with disabilities, dr. wilson's goal is to help individuals connect with their inner strength and live their best life. matthew maloney is currently pursuing his ed.s in clinical mental health counseling at middle tennessee state university. he is currently the vice president elect of the mu tau upsilon chapter of chi sigma iota, the professional counseling honor society. prior to this, he worked in clinical trials at vanderbilt university with children and adults with neurodevelopmental disorders. in his free time, he enjoys practicing meditation, tai chi, and qigong, and hiking in nature. adolescence during the adolescent developmental stage, an individual begins to experience various physical, social, and emotional changes. at times, the effect of these various changes can cause an adolescent to become more vulnerable to risk taking behaviors and exposure to violence. additionally, adolescents also begin to explore relationships outside of their family of origin including developing relationships with peers and pursuing dating relationships. according to sutherland (2011), one in five adolescents reported having a boyfriend or girlfriend in the fifth grade and more than half of a group of sixth graders surveyed reported having a girlfriend or boyfriend within the last three months. these data reveal a significant number of adolescents become involved in dating relationships. with such a high number of adolescents in dating relationships, it is important to understand how these early dating experiences may influence shaping their views of intimate relationships and their behavior in future adult intimate relationships (sutherland, 2011). dating violence defined dating violence is an epidemic that is growing exponentially among the adolescent age group. dating violence is a pattern of coercive behaviors used by adolescents to control their partners. 83 these coercive behaviors include physical assault, sexual assault, abuse, ascendancy, degradation, intimidation, possessiveness, blaming, and the minimization of feelings (scheiman & zeoli, 2003). moreover, these behaviors can also include emotional, psychological, physical, and sexual abuse. various behaviors demonstrating dating violence include name-calling, bullying, intentional humiliation, and isolation from family and friends. specific physical assault behaviors can include pinching, hitting, shoving, choking, or kicking. examples of sexual abuse behaviors can include nonconsensual sex or attempted penetration, unsolicited nonpenetrative sexual contact, and reproductive coercion or sabotage. lastly, behaviors of dating violence can include noncontact behaviors such as verbal abuse or verbal harassment (sutherland, 2011). prevalence of adolescent dating violence within adolescent relationships, statistics describing dating violence vary across age groups and different types of dating violence. according to taylor and mumford (2014), 69% of adolescents ages 12-18 reported experiencing some form of intimate partner violence, while 63% reported perpetration. both in terms of perpetration and victimization, psychological abuse evidenced the highest reported form. another 18% of adolescents reported being victims of sexual or physical abuse, while 12% reported perpetration. taylor and mumford (2014) found no gender differences for victimization rates of any form of dating violence, but their findings indicated perpetration rates of physical dating violence to be different for males and females, with 9% for males and 15% for females, respectively. additionally, their findings described adolescents aged 15 to 18 evidencing higher rates of both victimization and perpetration regardless of type of violence as compared to adolescents ages 12 to 14. in studying the psychological impact of dating violence in adolescent research, findings indicate 61% of adolescents experienced accusations of flirting, threats to end the relationship, jealous behavior, excessive tracking of victim, hostile tones, or insulting behavior (taylor & mumford, 2014). conversely, 10% reported experiencing serious threats or physical violence. finally, 20.5% of female adolescents ages 15-18 reported victimization of sexual abuse, while their male counterparts reported 18.2%. these statistics illustrate many adolescents indicate a high risk of becoming a victim or perpetrator of violence in an adolescent dating relationship (taylor & mumford, 2014). causes of adolescent dating violence with a growing number of adolescents experiencing dating violence, it is imperative to understand the various causations of this type of violence. significant reasons related to adolescent dating violence within dating relationships include childhood family violence experiences, social networking sites, and influences from media outlets. childhood family violence & exposure to intimate partner violence a significant risk factor for adolescent dating violence is a history of family violence. adolescents who experienced family violence during their childhood reflect these experiences in partner relationships in various ways. for both males and females, exposure to intimate partner violence between parents indicates as a predictor of dating violence in future relationships (latzman, vivolo-kantor, niolon, & ghazarian, 2015). additionally, being victims of violence within previous relationships coupled with experiencing aggression and violence from their parents increased the rates of dating violence (laporte, jiang, pepler, & chamberland, 2011). another major risk factor for dating violence is if an adolescent experienced callous discipline from both parents. lastly, for adolescents who grew up in troubled and dysfunctional homes, 84 they may have been provided limited opportunities to learn how to appropriately work through problems within an intimate relationship. by experiencing these various forms of family violence and family chaos, the results can lead to detrimental outcomes for adolescents within dating relationships (laporte et al., 2011). social networking sites the current state of technology within our society indicates tremendous potential to shape how adolescents interact with each other, particularly in dating relationships. cell phones, texting, facebook, twitter, instagram, and teenage focused apps such as snapchat, kik, and tiktok, allow adolescents several avenues to remain in constant contact with one another. these social networking modalities can potentially provide relationship partners the opportunity to stalk, control, and monitor the social media footprint of their partner. according to a popular social networking sight, 51% of girls reported feeling pressure from boys to send sexual messages or pictures while 18% of adolescent boys reported the same type of pressure from girls (sutherland, 2011). in another study, reed, tolman, and ward (2017) found that 53.8% of adolescents experienced digital monitoring/controlling behaviors by a partner. moreover, 46.3% of adolescents experienced “digital direct aggression” behaviors such as being sent a threatening online message. although, both genders experienced digital dating violence, girls experienced more psychological distress. finally, stonard, bowen, walker, and price (2017) also reported monitoring/controlling behaviors among adolescents in relationships. considering the powerful influence technology exerts among adolescents, it is imperative to understand how social media can impact the behaviors, ideas, and attitudes of adolescents toward relationships and, in doing so, help perpetuate the dating violence so many adolescents experience. media in addition to an adolescent’s history of childhood family violence and the influence of social networking sites, the media outlets also play a significant role in shaping the attitudes and behaviors of adolescents in partner relationships. various forms of media specifically target the adolescent age group such as television, movies, and music. for adolescent girls who fantasize about romantic relationships, many look to these media outlets to learn how to love, how to be loved, how to date, and what romantic relationships should look like. unfortunately, some of the messages about adolescent relationships presented in media outlets endorse a message of love and violence mixed together (collins & carmody, 2011). with so many adolescent girls believing violent behaviors is a standard in romantic relationships, they can potentially accept violence as their partner’s love language. with this twisted message being received and accepted by young girls, it is essential to understand the social message adolescents continue to receive from media outlets about dating relationships (bonomi et al., 2014). for example, movies such as the twilight series and the fifty shades of grey series present a love story between adolescents and young adults. though the main characters fall happily in love together at the end of the movie, the course of the relationship is filled with various forms of violence that the female partner in the relationship accepts in order to appease her partner. for adolescents still developing a sense of self as well as learning how to function in a relationship, the messages received from these movies can severely and negatively impact how they view and behave in dating relationships during their adolescent and adulthood years (bonomi et al., 2014; collins & carmody, 2011). 85 outcomes of adolescent intimate partner violence for adolescents engaging in dating relationships where violence is present, they experience a higher risk for several negative outcomes. these negative outcomes can include developing poor risk management skills and life-long health consequences (howard, debnam, & wang, 2013). for both males and females, dating violence showed an association with increased depression, suicidal behavior, and substance abuse (martz, jameson, & page, 2016). additional negative outcomes also included eating disorders, poor academic performance, and injuries requiring medical attention (wincentak, connolly, & card, 2017). another harmful outcome of adolescent dating violence is an increase of participation in sexual risky behaviors. this increase of sexual risky behaviors includes participating in intercourse at a very young age, not using a condom or some form of protection during intercourse, and experiencing a high number of sexual partners. moreover, an increase of sexually risky behaviors could also potentially lead to unplanned pregnancies or sexually transmitted infections (stis) such as the human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) (alleyne-green, grinnell-davis, clark, quinn, & cryer-coupet, 2016; howard et al., 2013; martz et al., 2016). dating violence in adolescent dating relationships can also lead to negative emotional states and create a foundation of maladaptive relationship patterns of abuse in future adult intimate relationships (howard et al., 2013). interventions and preventions several programs help to curtail the number of adolescents involved in dating violent relationships. to increase awareness of adolescent dating violence, the 2010 congress acknowledged february as teen dating violence awareness and prevention month. the government continues to show support for this issue by using the 17th anniversary of the passage of the violence against women's act to initiate the "1 is 2 many" campaign. this initiative specifically focuses on organizing youth to help create and identify ways to prevent violence in adolescent dating relationships (howard et al., 2013). in addition to the federal government participation, many state governments now require school districts to provide an educational curriculum for violence prevention. as of 2018, 22 states implemented legislation requiring education on adolescent dating violence and another three states incorporated dating violence curriculum into related education programs without having explicit laws passed regarding it (cascardi, king, rector, & delpozzo, 2018). with the majority of adolescents spending a preponderance of their time in the school setting, it is imperative for school personnel to understand the signs, implications, and resources for adolescent dating violence. this includes educating the school personnel on the physical, emotional, social, and academic impact of dating violence and how to recognize these signs. moreover, it is critical to inform school personnel on how to address imminent danger or concrete threats of danger. additionally, school administration should consider implementing adolescent dating relationship curriculum such as safe dates (sutherland, 2011) within the health education courses in middle school and in high school. in order to strengthen the efficacy of this curriculum, school districts invite community and advocacy groups along with university research experts that focus on dating violence among adolescents to participate in the design and execution of the curriculum. partnering with local organizations and universities assists in validating the purpose and rigor of the curriculum within the school district (howard et al., 2013). 86 another major intervention created to help increase the awareness of violence in adolescent relationship is the choose respect campaign. created by the centers for disease control and prevention (2015), this program focuses on adolescents aged 11 to 14 years old and uses various modalities of media to encourage messages of positive relationships. despite the usefulness and their importance in decreasing the amount of violence within adolescent dating relationships, the very populations they seek to help, frequently overlook the programs (howard et al., 2013). the center for disease control and prevention (2015) also released an online training known as dating matters, which is designed to identify risk factors and prevent dating violence among teens (centers for disease control prevention, 2015; tharp, 2012). implications for counselors for counselors who work with adolescents involved in violent dating relationships, it is important they screen for a family violence history and assess for current violence in the adolescent’s life. it is also critical counselors remain knowledgeable of what to look for when an adolescent is involved in a relationship filled with violence and abuse. possible signs include somatic complaints, distress when the relationship is discussed, a loss of interest in activities, and making excuses for their partner's behavior (sutherland, 2011). lastly, it is essential for counselors to familiarize themselves with community resources such as shelters and employment agencies to help victims of dating violence receive the additional resources, as they need to safely remove themselves from the violent relationship. as adolescents continue to experience dating violence within their relationships, it is imperative for counselors to understand how past family violent histories, the various media outlets, and the numerous intervention programs can help shape the dating and relationship views of adolescents. 87 references alleyne-green, b., grinnell-davis, c., clark, t. t., quinn, c. r., & cryer-coupet, q. r. (2016). father involvement, dating violence, and sexual risk behaviors among a national sample of adolescent females. journal of interpersonal violence, 31(5), 810–830. retrieved from doi:10.1177/0886260514556762 bonomi, a. e., nemeth, j. m., altenburger, l. e., anderson, m. l., snyder, a., & dotto, i. (2014). fiction or not? fifty shades is associated with health risks in adolescent and young adult females. journal of women’s health, 23(9), 720–728. retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2014.4782 cascardi, m., king, c. m., rector, d., & delpozzo, j. (2018). school-based bullying and teen dating violence prevention laws: overlapping or distinct? journal of interpersonal violence, 33(21), 3267–3297. centers for disease control prevention. (2015). dating matters: strategies to promote healthy teen relationships. retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/datingmatters/index.ht ml collins, v. & carmody, d. (2011). deadly love: images of dating violence in the "twilight saga". journal of women and social work, 26(4), 382-394. howard, d., debnam, k., & wang, m. (2013). ten-year trends in physical dating violence victimization among us adolescent females. journal of school health, 83(6), 389-399. laporte, l., jiang, d., pepler, d., & chamberland, c. (2011). the relationship between adolescents' experience of family violence and dating violence. youth & society, 43(1), 3-27. latzman, n. e., vivolo-kantor, a. m., niolon, p. h., & ghazarian, s. r. (2015). predicting adolescent dating violence perpetration: role of exposure to intimate partner violence and parenting practices. american journal of preventive medicine, 49(3), 476-482. martz, d. m., jameson, j. p., & page, a. d. (2016). psychological health and academic success in rural appalachian adolescents exposed to physical and sexual interpersonal violence. american journal of orthopsychiatry, 86(5), 594–601. reed, l., tolman, r., & ward, l. (2017). gender matters: experiences and consequences of digital dating abuse victimization in adolescent dating relationships. journal of adolescence, 59(2017), 79-89. scheiman, l. & zeoli, a. (2003). adolescent’s experiences of dating and intimate partner violence: “once is enough”. journal of midwifery women’s health, 48(3), 226-228. stonard, k. e., bowen, e., walker, k., & price, s. a. (2017). “they’ll always find a way to get to you”: technology use in adolescent romantic relationships and its role in dating violence and abuse. journal of interpersonal violence, 32(14), 2083. sutherland, m. (2011). implications for violence in adolescent dating experiences. journal of obstetric, gynecologic, & neonatal nursing, 40, 225-234. taylor, b. g., & mumford, e. a. (2014). a national descriptive portrait of adolescent relationship abuse: results from the national survey on teen relationships and intimate violence. journal of interpersonal violence, 31(6), 963–988. tharp, a. t. (2012). dating matters™: the next generation of teen dating violence prevention. prevention science: the official journal of the society for prevention research, 13(4), 398–401. doi:10.1007/s11121-012-0307-0 wincentak, k., connolly, j., & card, n. (2017). teen dating violence: a meta-analytic review of prevalence rates. psychology of violence, 7(2), 224–241. https://doi-org.bunchproxy.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/0886260514556762 https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2014.4782 https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/datingmatters/index.html https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/intimatepartnerviolence/datingmatters/index.html https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0307-0 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 82 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 83 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 84 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 85 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 86 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 87 9 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 teachers in war zone education: literature review and implications maryam sadat sharifiana, pat kennedyb a-bjames madison university maryam sharifian is an assistant professor at james madison university, college of education. dr. sharifian received her undergraduate and graduate degree in school counseling from tehran university in iran. after completing her phd in early childhood education from suny at buffalo. dr. sharifian targets educational issues relating to children and teachers in areas of armed conflict (providing for their well-being and supporting resilience strategies). in addition, she has worked with children of undocumented afghan immigrants, schoolgirls in rural tanzania and street children in iran. patricia kennedy is the director of the college of education’s young children’s program, a lab school located on the campus of james madison university. ms. kennedy received her undergraduate in special education from madison college and m.ed. in reading education from james madison university. ms. kennedy supports educational issues regarding trauma informed care, resiliency, and mindfulness. abstract teaching is traditionally considered one of the most stressful of occupations. lack of experience, training, and working with children with behavior problems represent variables shown to increase teachers’ stress. research also demonstrates teachers’ stress can reduce their performance and also might lead to negative attitudes (greenglass & burke, 2003). the magnitude of concerns of teachers in war zones, however, greatly exceeds those typically discussed. identification of psychological needs of teachers and students during crises is necessary in order to minimize future teaching and learning challenges (sommers, 2002). during war, teachers and children both struggle through immense trauma. in this time of enhanced struggles, it is critical teachers concern themselves with effectively managing classrooms of often-traumatized children who have a right to a quality education (brody & baum, 2007). in the past, few studies however, focused specifically upon the emotional well-being and difficulties of teachers in war zones (sumner, 2005; ramos, 2010, sharifian, 2017). this is clearly the case in describing syrian teachers working and living inside the war zone. keywords: primary teachers, resilience, war zone, syria 10 introduction in june 2012, the united nations proclaimed that syria was in a civil war (bbc news, 2012). syria currently is known as the world's largest producer of both internally displaced people and refugees (usa for united nations high commission for refugees [usa for unhcr], n.d.). currently, 13.1 million syrians are still in need of humanitarian assistance within syria (united nations high commission for refugees [unhcr], 2018). of these, about 6.6 million lost their homes and are currently internally displaced persons (idp). in addition, 5.6 million syrians were forced to flee their home to neighboring countries. more than half of these refugees are children (world vision, 2018). a history of war prevails in the middle east. if this history of continuing armed conflict is to diminish for future generations, it will most likely come about through education. sommer (2002), describes how access to education is extremely difficult in wartime. during war, the education of children is generally given a low priority. this low priority comes at a time when the needs of children (e.g. trauma from abuse, and psychological/emotional challenges) exhibit the greatest intensity. if education is the best hope for resolving conflict and enabling future peace, high quality education is most needed in war zones. yet, little is known about the quality of education in war zone schools. the education of children in war zones: the syrian context articles 28 and 29 of the convention on the rights of the child (crc) describes education as an essential right for all children even during the times of emergencies (committee on the rights of the child, 2008). dryden-peterson (2011) suggests education is directly related to improving the quality of life for all people of the world. education can lead to “poverty reduction, holding promises of stability, economic growth, and better lives for children, families, and communities” (dryden-peterson, 2011, p.8). postponing or neglecting to provide education for children during crises is not only counter-productive, but is also likely to lead to delay achievement of sustainability (global education monitoring report team unesco, 2015). education, however, is seldom a priority in war zones. sommers (2002) reported a large majority of waraffected children in their home country and those who have obtained refuge in neighboring countries are deprived of education mandated by the convention on the rights of the child (crc). this is clearly the case in syria. prior to the conflict, education was an important (and free) part of syrian society. there, “more than 90% of primary school-aged children were enrolled – one of the highest rates in the middle east” (save the children, 2013, p. 12). war, however, has affected all aspects of syrian lives and education is no exception (united nation children’s fund [unicef], 2018). under international humanitarian law, targeting and attacking schools remain strictly prohibited (united nations office of the special representative of the secretary for children and armed conflict, n.d.). in spite of this international prohibition, however, unicef reported that most of syria’s schools have been destroyed, damaged, or transformed into shelters. throughout the war, the syrian army used schools to harbor combatants which made schools prime targets for attack (save the children, 2013). 11 the unicef (2018) reported more than 2 million children inside syria are out of school in 2016-17. likewise, nearly 700,000 registered school-age children living in refugee camps outside of syria (turkey, lebanon, egypt, jordan, & iraq) did not enroll for school (unicef, 2018). in addition to the possibility of bombing at any time, students and teachers going to school are beset with many other dangers such as the fear of being abducted, raped, stepping on landmines or being caught in crossfire. because of these serious challenges, increasing numbers of fearful families chose to not send their children to school (bush & saltarelli, 2000). yet, research suggests that attending schools in times of war actually lessens the psychological damage caused by the many horrors of war. safety should be a basic principle for all schools (dryden-peterson, 2011). safety alone, however, does not necessarily lead to high quality education. a clear example of this is education in refugee camps. where schools are available, refugee children study in a relatively safe environment. research, however, suggests that children in refugee camps suffer from a disturbingly low quality of education. indeed, the outcomes of students’ learning are not even close to the education of children outside the camps. for instance, dryden-peterson (2011) found that among eritrean refugees in ethiopia, less than 6% of refugee children had reached benchmark reading fluency by grade 4” (p. 6). in addition to a plethora of disputes described earlier, perhaps the most significant of all challenges to quality education in refugee camps, is securing a cadre of qualified teachers (sommers, 2002). critically. it is such qualified teachers that provide the greatest potential for creating a future generation of citizens who can find ways of solving problems without war (miller & affolter, 2002). thus, war zone education is inherently an act of peace building, a commitment to peace education. teachers in war zones buchanan, casbergue, and baumgartner (2010) suggest that in addition to family and community, teachers play a critical role in children’s mental health following war trauma. indeed, buchanan et al. (2010) state that considering the lack of adequate support services to address the mental health of children, teachers may have the most potential to improve the mental health of disaster-affected communities. stead (1940) comments: teachers have a great and difficult duty in wartime. more than any other section of the community they are the guardians of the future. for when armies melt away and the noise of battle dies down, it will be the products of the school who will have to repair the damage done. and this duty of the teachers involves a jealous guardianship of the proper function of schools and education (p. 102). similarly, winthrop and kirk (2008) suggest that re-building society by educating children after conflict was an important role of teachers in sierra leone and ethiopia. likewise, sommers (2002) suggests that the impact of teachers during crisis is even more critical than during peacetime. in addition to teaching and educating, teachers promote and foster the physical, social and psychosocial development of children. aside from parents, de berry et al. (2003) suggest teachers remain the most trusted adults in children’s lives and because of this, they can have a major impact upon the child even in the absence of educational materials. 12 being a teacher (even during peacetime) is no easy task. teachers face many daily challenges at school and in classrooms. stressors reported by teachers include: lacking professional resources, interacting with students with behavioral difficulties, overcrowding in classrooms, overloading in work responsibilities, wanting of administrative support, ongoing conflicts in work environments, missing staff communication, and diminishing of parent-teacher professional support (lambert, o’donnell, kusherman, & mccarthy, 2006; betoret, 2006; younghusband, 2005; & ullrich, 2009). dealing with such challenges cause significant levels of teacher burnout (betoret, 2006). the magnitude of concerns of teachers in war zones, however, greatly exceeds those sited above. for example, wa-mbaleka (2013) identifies seven major educational challenges for teachers working with children in war zones including “disparities in access to financial support; large numbers of learners; few educational facilities; limited opportunities for teacher preparation; restricted choices for curriculum selection; minimal access to marketable skills, and negative attitudes towards female education ” (p.34 ) . thus, teachers in war zones encounter many more challenges likely to contribute to greatly expanded teacher burnout at a time when they are most needed to be at their best (sommor, 2002). during armed conflict, teachers encounter children experiencing greatly heightened psychological demands. research suggests that school-based interventions through teachers are practical and achievable methods for the reduction and prevention of the symptoms of war trauma in children (werner, 2005). however, securing high quality teachers capable of adequately addressing psychological demands of children in war areas is made even more difficult by the many personal challenges of teachers. given the tenuous status of wartime governments and greatly decreased support from ngo’s, for example, teachers who are willing to risk their lives to educate children in war zones most often perform this critical service with no compensation. further, dryden-peterson (2011) suggests that teachers in war areas regularly teach overcrowded classrooms often exceeding ratios of one teacher to seventy students. moreover, such teachers in war zones are likely to be severely untrained. refugee camp teacher training generally includes about 10 days of training. a limited number of teachers receive even this minimal training. in addition, machel (1996) suggests that teacher performance generally declines greatly during wartime. this is often because they, too, may have been subjected to savagery, injury, trauma and/or sexual abuse for being a teacher. teachers’ mental health is an important factor that can affect their teaching performance and the quality of education that children receive in emergency situations (seyle, widyatmoko, & silver, 2013). it may also impact teachers’ emotional exhaustion and burnout. because of these additional stressors, ramos (2010) recommends it is critical for researchers to study the impact of trauma, burnout and resilience in quality of teachers in war zone schools. trauma in war zone teachers war is a powerful source of enduring psychological disturbance. it involves an extensive range of violent and traumatic experiences, including the immediate threat of death and/or disfigurement, physical injury, witnessing injury and/or death of others, and involvement in 13 injuring or killing both combatants and civilians (weathers, litz, & keane, 1995). for some, war includes witnessing/participating in atrocities, as well as undergoing rape, capture, and prisonerofwar experiences such as confinement, torture, and extreme physical deprivation. the impact of such traumatic experiences can affect all aspects of human lives. these traumas, in turn, can produce a variety of symptoms and disorders. according to the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th edition (dsm-iv), post traumatic stress disorder (ptsd) is a condition emerging from “exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violation” (american psychiatric association, 2013). the united nations high commission for refugees (2011) reports ptsd is the most common mental illness among those from war zones. symptoms of ptsd in children after experiencing war trauma become illustrated in numerous investigations (morgos, worden, & gupta, 2007; ursano & shaw, 2007; elbert, schauer, schauer, hirth, & neuner, 2009). these studies consistently suggest that more than half of children exposed to war exhibit ptsd symptoms (allwood, dolan, & husain, 2002). furthermore, war trauma not only affects the current health conditions of children, but their future education may also be severely affected by these experiences (berson & baggerly, 2009). research also emerges regarding trauma in adults. studies suggest the military population with experience of war demonstrates a high rate of ptsd (vasterling et al., 2010; kaiser, 2012). additional trauma research conducted with refugees demonstrates connections. for example, bojic, njoku, & priebe (2015) performed a meta-analysis of long-term mental health of waraffected refugees comparing results from 29 different studies. they found that the prevalence of anxiety, depression and ptsd were significant in the refugee population. this study further indicated that prevalence range of ptsd was between (4.4-86%). özer, şirin, & oppedal (2013) investigated war experiences and mental health of 311 children ages nine-18 in the islahiye refugee camp in turkey. findings describe how 74 % of children experienced loss of a family member, 60% exhibited symptoms of depression, 45% indicated ptsd, 22% demonstrated aggression, and 65% evidenced psychosomatic symptoms. furthermore, al-shagran, khasawneh, ahmed, & jarrah (2015) studied 155 syrian refugees living in a jordanian refugee camp and found that rate of ptsd was higher in: females, those with greater than high school diploma (𝑝 < .02), those married (𝑝 < .05), those who experienced first-hand trauma, those physically hurt (𝑝 < .000), those who had observed family member(s) being physically hurt (𝑝 < .000), loss of a family member, and those exposed to traumatic events (𝑝 < .000). research is evident in the context of social ecology, the impact of caregiver’s’ mental health on children’s trauma in war zone and refugee populations (betancourt, yudron, wheaton, & smithfawzi, 2012; van ee, kleber, & mooren, 2012). in a longitudinal study of 1,362 caregivers and children ages11-16 in two settings in afghanistan, researchers described a significant association between caregiver’s’ mental health and children’s mental health outcomes. results suggested that outcomes in posttraumatic stress, depression, psychiatric difficulties, and prosocial strength were significantly correlated with their caregivers’ mental health (panter-brick, grimon, & eggerman, 2014). caregivers with better mental health, were increasing the possibility of higher mental health in children. a similar pattern was revealed between maternal post-traumatic stress 14 symptoms and an infant’s developmental and psychological problems and parent-child interactions for refugees in netherlands (van ee, kleber, & mooren, 2012). as caregivers, teachers may also have an important role in supporting children who have experienced violence and trauma (baker & cunningham, 2009). in a study of teachers’ experiences in refugee camps, wa-mbaleka (2013) found that 89% of teachers expressed their concern about traumatic experiences of their students in refugee or internally displace person (idp) camps. similarly, the role of teachers as support systems for children in traumatic environments is highlighted in school intervention studies (berger, pat-horenczyk, & gelkopf, 2007; ehntholt, smith, & yule, 2005; alisic, bus, dulack, pennings, & splinter, 2012). for example, researchers examined posttraumatic symptoms (pts) and anxiety levels of children in northern israel to investigate the impact of teachers’ training in building resilience intervention (bri) of students. in this study, teachers received 12 hours of training to learn how to increase resilience in themselves and their students. participants included 524 students with pts and 490 students with anxiety issues in grades 4 and 6 from 4 schools. subjects were divided into 2 groups of control and into 2 groups of intervention. the results indicate that students’ pts and anxiety decreased significantly in the intervention group compared to the control group (𝑝 <0.005). researchers concluded that teacher training in interventions focused on enhancing resilience to war trauma may help reduce pts and anxiety in students with war and terror experience. this study also reported significantly (p < 0.001) higher pts and anxiety levels in females, younger age children, and those having a longer history of trauma (baum et al., 2013). teaching is traditionally considered one of the most stressful of occupations. lack of experience, training, and working with children with behavior problems are variables shown to increase teacher stress. research also demonstrates that stress in teachers can reduce teachers’ performance and also might lead to negative attitudes (greenglass & burke, 2003). for example, rogers (1997) studied how teachers during the nicaragua conflict perceived effects of the war on their professional roles. the researcher interviewed twelve educators who were teaching during the time of war and postwar and asked them to use auto photographic techniques and take twelve pictures to portray the critical features of their current life. then, dividing the pictures into three categories (related to the war, to professional role, and both), results of the interviews and photographs showed teachers perceived a loss of a future, violation of potential, failed expectations, incomprehensibility, disconnection, and uncertainty. yet, these teachers remained committed to “the profession, to students, to improvement of the profession and to the concept of peace” (rogers, 1997, p. iv). research also indicates that during war teachers themselves may suffer from trauma. for instance, potts (2010) examined the relationship between community violence, ptsd and forgiveness in 193 salvadorian teachers living in a high violence area in san salvador as well as rural areas. el salvador was involved in a civil war from 1980 to 1992 and still suffers from high community violence. the researcher implemented 16 hours workshops in managing aspects of burnout, ptsd, and self-care for participants in high violence communities. using bivariate onetailed pearson correlation, findings describe a significant positive, albeit rather low, relationship 15 between ptsd and community violence (r =0.19, 𝑝 = 0.01) and negative relationship between forgiveness and ptsd (r = 0.25, 𝑝 = 0.000). ptsd also demonstrates significant reverse correlation with forgiveness (𝛽 = −. 542, 𝑝 < 0.01). however, forgiveness as a moderator did not show a significant relationship with ptsd and community violence. similarly, linscott (2010) studied the association among community violence, ptsd and fatalism in salvadorian educators. of the 193 participants, 65.8% identified as female and 32.6% identified as male. samples participated in free training workshops to learn about vicarious trauma and self-care in working in high violence areas. of those, 19.9% suffered from a high level of ptsd and 28.8% reported symptoms of ptsd. the study found a significant relationship between community violence and higher levels of ptsd in teachers (𝑝 <0.001). no significant correlation between fatalism and other variables evidenced. likewise, wolmer, laor & yazgan (2003) found that after crises, teachers may suffer from severe post-traumatic stress, depression and grief. therefore, teachers might not be able or even interested in continuing working with students who experienced traumatic stress. trauma and emotional dysfunction in teachers during and after war may significantly impact teachers’ emotional exhaustion and burnout (ramos, 2010). therefore, in addition to problems of obtaining qualified teacher candidates described above, the likely presence of psychological trauma creates additional challenges to providing children with greatest need of high-quality teachers (sommers, 2002). although research is beginning to investigate the association between ptsd and burnout in occupations related to human communication associated to health, education, and social services during crises, there is minimal research specifically investigating the psychological health of teachers in war zones. burnout in war zone teachers burnout in teachers is a major concern in education (chang, 2009; maslach, schaufeli, & leiter, 2001; van tonder & williams, 2009). van tonder and williams (2009), state “burnout has become a crucial issue for all institutions that aim to produce quality products and services on a sustainable basis and to remain innovative in an increasingly competitive environment” (van tonder and williams, 2009, p.1). according to u.s. department of education’s national center for education statistics (nces), for example, 8% of 3,377,900 teachers of public schools in usa left their job during 2011-2012 (national center for education statistics [nces], 2014). in addition, ingersoll & smith (2004) suggest that burnout is a major concern in novice teachers since around 50% of them leave the profession early in their career. moreover, teaching disadvantaged and special needs children demands even greater time and effort both inside and outside the classroom, which often leads to even greater burnout (brown & roloff, 2011). chubbuck & zembylas (2008) describe how inner-city teachers often face challenges such as violence, lack of learning materials, students with emotional disorders, and a poor quality of learning environment. for example, standish (2014) assessed the burnout and resilience of black secondary school teachers in innercity public schools. thirteen black secondary school teachers (grades 9-12) in inner-city schools of district of columbia participated in in-depth interviews in this qualitative study. the entire population (100%) of participants suggested that 16 professional development is a potentially powerful source for nurturing resilience. more than 92.3% of participants further indicated that professional development is inadequate, 92.3% irrelevant, and 76.9% a waste of time and resources. in addition, all teachers (100%) expressed that the competitive environment at school was another variable relating to teacher burnout. participants (92.3%) also claimed that decisions and policies were often not in favor of students as the most important stakeholders. findings of this study also suggest that the dc innercity public school setting does not help teachers to foster resilience. nevertheless, teachers indicate that factors that assist them in developing resilience include: their relationship with god or a higher power (92.3%); their relationship with themselves (92.3%); their relationships with friends and family (86.1%); and their relationships with students (92.3%) (standish, 2014). results of a study of teachers working with aids children suggest that teachers suffered symptoms of burnout, stress, exhaustion, and sadness. consequently, teachers started to leave their job or lost their zeal for this work (lucas, 2007). ramos (2010) studied the association between emotional exhaustion using the maslach burnout inventory (mbi), vicarious trauma by community violence checklist (cvc), and self-care checklist in a sample of 110 salvadorian teachers. results of the study suggest a significant correlation between teachers’ vicarious trauma and emotional exhaustion (r =. 38, p = .01). in addition, data show a significant correlation between lower levels of self-care practices and emotional exhaustion (r = .38, p = .01). the researcher recommends future research examine self-care's possible moderating effects on emotional exhaustion in teachers reporting high levels of vicarious trauma. bobek (2002) also suggests that challenging conditions related to the teaching profession require that teachers represent high levels of resilience. therefore, to prevent teacher burnout there are suggestions such as “significant adult relationships; a sense of personal responsibility; social and problem solving skills; a sense of competence, expectations and goals, confidence, a sense of humor; and a sense of accomplishment” (bobek, 2002, p. 202). teachers in war zones encounter perhaps the most vulnerable of all children who have suffered from an entire cauldron of traumatic experiences. it is no surprise that research is beginning to demonstrate a major ptsd impact on the cognitive and emotional behavior of children. specifically, findings regarding war-related trauma indicate to negatively affect children’s intelligence, cognition, memory, and attention (allwood et al., 2002; qouta, punamӓki, miller, & el sarraj, 2008a; qouta, punamäki, miller, & el sarraj, 2008b). in addition, some of the educational obstacles and challenges that children face in war zone’s (strekalova and hoot (2008)) include: exposure to traumatic experiences, new language challenges, impact of culture on identity, resistance of parents to allowing children to go to school, discrimination challenges, and socio-economic status. sharifian (2017), in her study on 70 syrian primary teachers working inside the war zone, investigated the burnout level of teachers via maslach burnout inventory educator survey format (mbi-es). the one-way anova analysis found a statistically significant main effect for teachers’ training and emotional exhaustion (burnout subscale), f (2, 67) = 0.76, p < 0.01. this suggests educators with teacher training (m = 23.62) experienced greater emotional exhaustion than teachers without teacher training (m = 15.15). data revealed no significant 17 differences between teacher training with depersonalization, and personal accomplishment (burnout subscale). given the aforementioned factors, nations envisioning a future citizenry who solve problems without war are left to determine how to create and retain a cadre of highly competent and resilient teachers (patterson, collins, & abbott, 2004) who can overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges. yet, research data guiding nations in how to do this is, for the most part, silent--especially in the middle east. resilience in war zone teachers people often react differently to traumatic events in their lives. some show psychological traumatic symptoms (e.g, ptsd), while others appear resilient to these events (winter, brown and goins, 2015); still others, remain not as severely affected (bojic et al., 2015). bonanno, westphal & mancini (2011), however, found that a major explanation for the differences in response to the same traumatic event was a variable called resilience. bonanno (2004) defined resilience as: the ability of adults in otherwise normal circumstances who are exposed to an isolated and potentially highly disruptive event, such as the death of a close relation or a violent or lifethreatening situation, to maintain relatively stable, healthy levels of psychological and physical functioning (p. 20). similarly, connor & davidson (2003) suggest, “resilience embodies the personal qualities that enable one to thrive in the face of adversity” (p. 76). fostering resilience depends on a variety of factors. goins (2015) classified factors affecting resilience as personality, environmental factors, previous stressors, agency and self-efficacy, priori beliefs and worldviews, faith and spirituality, acculturation skills, and the physical environment. there is a growing body of resilience research with subjects involved in armed conflict. besser, weinberg, zeigler-hill, & neria (2014), for example, explored the impact of intrapersonal (i.e., levels of hope, optimism, and self-esteem) and interpersonal sources (i.e., levels of support from family, friends, and significant others) upon resilience in treating ptsd symptoms and dissociative experiences in times of war. researchers recruited 140 non-clinical female participants from the ongoing israel war in gaza. these researchers measured participants optimism by using the life orientation test-revised, hope by trait hope scale, self-esteem by the rosenberg self-esteem scale, perceived social support by multidimensional scale of perceived social support, ptsd by ptsd checklist-civilian version, and dissociative experiences by dissociative experiences scale. through structural equation modeling and data analysis, researchers reported a significant relationship between intrapersonal resilience and interpersonal resilience (r = 0.42, t = 3.41, p < 0.001) in addition to a significant relationship with acute anxiety symptoms (β = −0.52, t = −2.92, p < 0.003 and β = −0.40, t = −2.55, p < 0.01). these data indicate resilient sources of support for people in war zones can serve as a deterrent from negative psychological outcomes such as ptsd. 18 findings also describe resilience in children during war. for example, punamäki, qouta, miller, & el-sarraj (2011) studied resilience in palestinian children in gaza. researchers recruited 640 children ages six-16 years-of-age for the study. researchers measured a number of related demographic variables of both children and their families. these variables included: parent’s education, family income, place of residency and family size, traumatic events, emotional and conduct disorders, resilience classification, parental mental health, parenting practices, school performance, physical health and cognitive-emotional functioning, and anteand perinatal problems. findings suggest that 23% of children evidenced high degrees of resilience. the study also found significant positive parental mental health (p< .002 mothers and p < .003 fathers), supportive parenting practices (t = 2.87, p < .001), and cognitive functioning (t = 5.87, p< .001) for the resilient group. researchers concluded that school performance and physical health of resilient children were higher than less resilient children (punamäki, qouta, miller, & el-sarraj, 2011). groves (1997) asserted that early childhood teachers and educators may exhibit an important role in recognizing and supporting resilience in children living with violence and conflict. furthermore, teachers can provide a nurturing environment through constancy, stable schedules, and creating a curriculum to support children (baker & cunningham, 2009). however, when enmeshed in war environments, nurturing the above skills becomes much more challenging for teachers given variations in resilience. for people who have experienced war and potentially trauma, resilience is an important factor in preparing them to move on to a healthy and successful future. despite these many challenges, however, gu & day (2007) describe how many teachers continue to develop their professional skills and maintain their commitment and their teaching effectiveness—i.e. resilience. perhaps the mitigating variable here may be teacher resilience which henderson & milstein (2003) suggest can help teachers “bounce back from negative life experiences and become stronger in the process of overcoming them” (p.2). likewise, bobek (2002) suggests that “a teacher’s resilience is enhanced when he is capable of assessing adverse situations, recognizing options for coping, and arriving at appropriate resolutions” (p. 202). being a resilient teacher, then, is an important factor for developing resilient students who count on their teachers as a “role model” (henderson & milstein, 2003). resilience also allows educators to overcome many challenges of the teaching occupation. for example, brunetti (2006) studied 13 teachers with more than 12 years’ experience in innercity schools. the researcher utilized semi structured and in-depth interviews. results suggest that important variables relating to teacher resilience included: teachers’ love of students, their professional and personal job satisfaction, and the support they received from school leaders and administrators. additionally, researchers studied teachers’ resilience with teachers in disadvantaged schools of australia. howard and johnson (2004), interviewed 10 teachers who were identified at-risk of burnout and stress, but they maintained their resilience by successful coping. teachers in these schools faced a variety of challenges such as violent student behavior, students with experienced significant trauma (e.g., abuse/ neglect), lack of student motivation as well as lack of support 19 from administrators and colleagues. further findings described resilient teachers to possess coping skills that included a sense of agency (opposite of helplessness) i.e., these teachers believed their ability to overcome obstacles, they expressed strong group support (i.e., they evidenced a strong social network outside of school such as family and/or friends who provided support, and they felt competent through a sense of achievement (producing to their success of making change in children lives and their professional ability). an emerging body of research suggests teachers can play an important role in assisting children in overcoming symptoms of post war trauma such as ptsd and anxiety by developing resilience in their students (wolmer, laor, dedeoglu, siev, & yazgan, 2005; baum et al, 2013). however, little is known about the actual resilience of teachers in active war zones--especially in the middle east. sharifian’s (2017) study of resilience of 70 primary teachers inside the syria war zone suggested that sense of personal accomplishment, faith and spirituality, and teacher training programs remain necessary to not only prepare teachers to increase their resilience, but also promote the sense of purpose and belongings in crisis circumstances. brody & baum (2007) studied the resilience of 2 kindergarten teachers in israel. using richardson’s resilience theory to inform their investigation, researchers found each teacher individually developed coping resilience strategies in communication with their students during the ongoing war and terror. the personal strategy of the first teacher was implementing direct discussion with her students about traumatic experiences of war in their daily lives. she asserts that children are capable of understanding war. the second teacher applied the opposite strategy and avoided any direct discussions regarding traumatic events. this teacher felt that preventing discussion of traumatic experiences at school would make school a much-needed space for comfort. instead, she focused on enhancing self-esteem, promoting self-efficacy, and nurturing optimism in children by teaching decision-making skills, meeting achievable tasks, and teaching prayer; these strategies assist children to be resilient. to investigate the hypothesis that greater resilience would result in less teacher-burnout during the war time, sharifian (2017) utilized pearson correlations to measure possible relations among all three burnout subscales (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment) and resilience. the results described how only the burnout subscale of personal accomplishment represented a significant positive correlation with resilience (r=0.50, p ≤ 0.001). this suggests teachers with higher levels of personal accomplishment demonstrated higher levels of resilience. according to the mbi-es, higher personal accomplishment indicates lower burnout; therefore, the positive correlation between personal accomplishment and resilience found that higher resilience resulted in less teacher burnout. in addition, to measure the relation between burnout and trauma, pearson correlations were calculated. correlations among trauma and burnout subscales suggested that trauma had a significant negative correlation (r=-0.39, p < 0.001) with personal accomplishment. this indicates teachers with higher trauma levels showed lower personal accomplishment. however, emotional exhaustion revealed no statistically significant relation with trauma (r=0.261, p < 0.1). nurturing resilience in wartime, however, is not easily achieved. war trauma presents more challenging conditions for teachers that demand even greater resiliency to maintain quality 20 teaching and supporting students in such an environment. however, teacher resilience in war zone research receives minimal attention compared to research in more stable teaching environments (brody & baum, 2007). conclusion a major conclusion of the research on teachers in conflict areas involves the trauma and burnout struggles confronted by these courageous teachers in crisis. there is a potential role that resilience might play in decreasing trauma and burnout levels of teachers in active war zones. the issue remains how the teacher education profession might address assisting our international colleagues in conflict in increasing their capacity toward resilience. teacher training programs remain necessary to not only prepare teachers to increase their resilience, but also promote their sense of purpose and belonging in crisis circumstances. it is important for research to consider conducting studies regarding the influence of training and workshops to improve resilience and coping strategies of teachers in war zones. 21 references al-shagran, h., khasawneh, o., ahmed, a. k., jarrah, a. 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(umi no.305375400) https://www.worldvision.org/refugees-news-stories/syrian-refugee-crisis-facts ijwc fall 2019-full issue 9 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 10 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 11 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 12 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 13 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 14 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 15 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 16 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 17 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 18 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 19 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 20 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 21 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 22 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 23 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 24 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 25 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 26 38 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 1 pictures for reflection playing in the snow and much more: what do you see in the photographs? if you say you see children playing in the snow, you are correct, but take a closer look. do you see the children planning, organizing, and communicating? do you see the children physically committed, intellectually strategic, and emotionally engaged? playing in the snow provides children with a range of opportunities to experience, explore, and enjoy cold weather. snow play can be as an individual, as a small group or as a larger organized team; the snow is for all ages, stages, and varied skill levels. building snow villages, ice skating, cross and down-hill skiing, ice sculpturing, ice fishing, snow shoe walking, and ice hockey playing provide a diverse range of children with choices, challenges, and cold noses. as children learn to adapt and enjoy their environment, they as well develop a respect for the natural world. this regard for nature allows children to grow in empathy and therefore better enable their stewardship of our planet (hoot & szente, 2010). where do our children first realize this deep and profound insight, appreciating that they are an integral part of nature? this relationship with a winter world may begin when, as a very young child, they stick out their tongue and catch their first and most beautiful snowflake. table 1: major term definition table 2: demographic information of numerical variables of cross-national couples table 3: demographic information of categorical variables of cross-national couples table 4: interview participants demographic information final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 58 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 tech talk make it visible: video record teaching and learning leslie traila, nancy caukinb amiddle tennessee state university, bnorth greenville university leslie trail is a doctoral student and an adjunct professor in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university and an instructional coach at eagleville school. she began her career working in health care management for seven years before further putting her english degree to work as an english teacher. she loves learning ways to engage students more effectively in the classroom to move their learning forward, so her research interests generally revolve around teaching strategies. nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs at north greenville university.  she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been a teacher educator in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates.  abstract life for students and teachers has proven to be quite unpredictable, whether an unexpected absence, extended illness, outbreaks of communicable diseases, or even inclement weather (johnson, 2021). continuing instruction despite these issues is consequential for student learning. even with planned absences (students or teachers), intentional continuation of the learning trajectory can help students from falling behind. additionally, teachers need tools to help them reflect and grow in their instructional practices. video recording offers realistic views of teacher practices because it captures the truth of classroom instruction. while teachers may find video instruction daunting at the onset, it offers them a way to look at what is actually happening in the classroom and then make adjustments. for this reason, the use of video recording has a myriad of benefits to both the student and the teacher. benefits to students video recorded lessons provide students with the ability to make up missed classes, control when and where they learn the content, and review material in preparation for assessments. benefits include improved study habits, increased learning outcomes, and even improved affective and cognitive attitudes towards video recordings (kay, 2012; rae & mccarthy, 2017). student learning increases when students have the ability to hit the rewind button and revisit teacher 59 instruction. students can control how many times they watch the teacher model information and how quickly by pausing and rewinding what is being said (karp & gallagher, 2019). at the beginning of this school year, the daughter of one author of this article expressed concern over returning to in-person learning where videos were no longer the norm. she shared that the ability to rewind videos is what helped her master content in the previous year. in order to combat that problem this year, the student is using online videos to bolster instruction but has noted that teacher made videos are more helpful because they reflect what happened in the classroom. students can learn information at their own pace by using teacher-created videos. when a student needs to revisit or gain extra practice, having the classroom video proves helpful. dham (2021) explains, “video-based learning provides the students with an opportunity to learn the subject at their convenience in the most effective way” (para. 1) . students who can return to instruction are able to pace their learning. this is beneficial to the accelerated student as well as the student who needs additional help. furthermore, while schools are no longer closing their doors and moving to quarantine status, there will always be student absences. when students are absent, without video, there is no way to fully provide instruction that takes place in the classroom. however, when students are provided the video of the lesson as it occurred, there is the added benefit of teacher modeling and student discussion that would otherwise be missed (leban, 2020). video presentation is central to the concept behind the flipped classroom. the flipped classroom is one in which students get the information necessary for class as homework and then practice the skills with the teacher in person. video presentation of information is one way that the flipped classroom becomes an effective means of teaching. the flipped classroom began with two chemistry teachers, bergmann and sam, who explain that it models instruction where the students “need to be physically present” for teachers to “help them when they are struggling” (schaffhauser, 2009, para. 4). students watch video of instruction at home and then work through models and practice in the classroom where the teacher can assist. bergmann and sams (2012) advocate for teachers to create their own videos rather than using curated videos in order to reach the needs of their students and note that making videos takes time, saying teachers should “allow 30 minutes to make a 10-minute video” and may need to realize that the video does not have to be “perfect” (para. 7). teacher-created videos are powerful because they represent information that the individual teacher knows his/her students need. these videos are presented by the student’s actual teacher rather than someone that is unknown online. benefits to teachers video representation of classroom instruction is not only beneficial to the students but is also beneficial to the teachers (knight, 2018). when teachers go back and watch videos of themselves teaching live in class, they are able to observe how they engage in the material and how they engage with the students because the “best way to learn about how we teach is to watch how we teach” (knight, 2018, p. 38). sometimes, the vision of instruction does not match the image the teacher holds in his/her mind. when teachers take time to watch class in action, they see where the learning is taking place. sometimes, it is revealed that within the lesson, the teacher is not seeing “learning they had only seen teaching” (hattie, 2012, p. 138). in order for classwork to be effective, the teacher should be able to see student mastery of concepts through 60 the lesson and not only evidence of instruction. using videos can help teachers see the broader context of the classroom and students as they engage in learning. it presents a view not always seen in real time, which can be enlightening to the teacher as they reflect on the teaching and learning. the use of classroom videos provides a powerful tool for professional development as well (knight, 2018). when teachers agree to work together on a lesson, teach the lesson in their classrooms and video part of the lesson, and then share those videos, teachers have the opportunity to participate in meaningful conversations about their instruction (knight, 2018). when teachers gather to watch these videos, it is important that they “watch the impact of a teacher teaching” (hattie and zierer, 2017, p. 55). this becomes even more meaningful because “a peek into the past” (chen, 2003) allows teachers to see students' responses and feedback after the fact. since teachers cannot always see all students, recording can allow them to see later what they could not see in real time, thus a peek into their practices as a teacher reveals new meanings for their teaching practices. teachers can then share with each other to build “a common dialogue about teaching and impact” (hattie and zierer, 2017, p. 55). this builds a powerful answer to the question “what do we want students to learn?” (dufour et al, 2016, p. 36) because the answer to the question is now visible through the video. furthermore, as teachers view videos of their work in the classroom, they tend to “find themselves reflecting deeply on their practice” (yaffe, 2015, p. 38). this deeper reflection has the potential to lead to greater teacher growth. considerations there are several things to consider when recording your lessons. if recording a live lesson, there may be privacy issues as well as sound and video quality issues (johnson, 2021). student privacy is legislated through the 1974 federal education and rights privacy act and “requires all student related records be safeguarded to ensure student privacy” (walker, 2021, p. 7). teachers should give students the option not to be part of the video (walker, 2021) and should partner with administration to ensure adherence to ferpa laws. additionally, students may feel less open to share questions in their learning process with the knowledge that the camera is on them (supiano, 2018). teachers should consider not only how the video will be used (for student publication or personal use) but also where the video will be published. teachers should work with school officials to ensure adherence to “policies, practices, and responsibilities” in relation to video, posting, and student privacy (walker, 2021, p. 10). privacy concerns are not limited to the student; teachers also may have concerns over the release of videos of their teaching when errors are made or discipline is addressed (supiano, 2018). therefore, teachers, administrators, instructional coaches, and professional learning communities should set ground rules on how videos will be discussed and used together. teachers may also feel threatened by sharing video of their work with other instructional leaders such as coaches or with members of their professional learning communities for fear of judgment and critique (vedder-weiss et al, 2019). this fear of critique may limit their willingness to share the video which could also mitigate the benefits that are obtained from using video tools. 61 tools teachers may choose to use a variety of tools in the classroom to help make videos accessible to students. perhaps one of the easiest tools is the use of a tripod and a cell phone to video the classroom. for individual teacher viewing, this is an effective means of recording. while the video will be still (static), this is a low-cost way to capture a lesson. teachers could upload the video to youtube, making it cloud-based and accessible on any device. teachers may also use tools such as zoom, screencastify and screen-cast-o-matic to capture the projected screen, recording of the lecture, and discussion in the classroom. in order to ensure that the video is private and not accessible outside of where the teachers share it, teachers set privacy settings (recommended to private or unlisted) when uploading the video. some learning management systems include video capture tools, for example, blackboard collaborate. this online tool can be used as a virtual classroom, but also allows teachers to capture a video recording of the lesson, including whatever documents are presented on the computer. goreact is a cloud-based video platform that is useful for video recording any performance, including teaching. it is feebased and allows for time-stamped feedback, thus is a useful tool for professional development and personal reflection. to capture the teacher as he/she moves about the classroom, a dynamic video recording, using a swivl, a robotic platform with accompanying software, can be purchased. another way that teachers can share video with students is through nearpod, playposit, and edpuzzle. each of these online programs allows the teacher to embed questions for students to answer while viewing the teacher-made video thus bolstering student engagement. teachers can share the link to the video with students through their school’s classroom management system (cms) or, in the absence of a cms, through email or google drive. conclusion the use of videos in the classroom is a powerful tool for the student and the teacher. it is an opportunity for both student and teacher to learn and grow. while it can be seen as one more thing that teachers need to do, it can also be done simply. teachers do not have to create separate videos for recorded lessons to be able to be utilized. teachers can make the videos of the class in “real-time”, which enables students to have the benefit of using video instruction, and it can provide feedback to the teacher of their instruction. in 2020-2021, video instruction was a requirement to ensure that students did not fall behind during pandemic teaching. in 2022, it is no longer a requirement, but it should be the norm in every classroom to help all students learn and all teachers grow. 62 references bergmann, j., & sams, a. (2012). before you flip, consider this. phi delta kappan, 94(2), 25– 25. https://doi.org/10.1177/003172171209400206 chen, m. (2003). visualizing the pulse of a classroom. proceedings of the eleventh acm international conference on multimedia multimedia '03. https://doi.org/10.1145/957013.957130 dham, k. (2021.). video-based learning: the new normal. bw education. http://bweducation.businessworld.in/article/video-based-learning-the-new-normal/1506-2021-393139/ dufour, r., dufour, r. b., eaker, r. e., many, t. w., & mattos, m. (2016). learning by doing: a handbook for professional learning communities at work. solution tree press. hattie, j. (2012). visible learning for teachers. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203181522 hattie, j., & zierer, k. (2017). 10 mindframes for visible learning teaching for success. taylor and francis group. routledge. johnson, s. 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(2017). the impact of vodcast utilization upon student learning of physiology by first year graduate to entry medicine students. the journal of the scholarship of teaching and learning, 2(17), 1-23. schaffhauser, d. (2009, august 1). the vod couple: high school chemistry teachers aaron sams and jonathan bergmann have overturned conventional classroom instruction by using video podcasts to form the root of a new learning model. the journal (technological horizons in education), 36(7), 19. supiano, b. (2018, august 3). what happens in the classroom no longer stays in the classroom. what does that mean for teaching? chronicle of higher education, 64(39), 1. vedder-weiss, d., segal, a., & lefstein, a. (2019). teacher face-work in discussions of video recorded classroom practice: constraining or catalyzing opportunities to learn? journal of teacher education, 70(5), 538–551. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487119841895 walker, h. m. 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(2015). a clearer view of the classroom. district administration, 51(5), 36-40. 43 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 2 developing a professional identity in a global society jo beth oestreicha, kathleen fiteb a-btexas state university jo beth oestreich is a senior lecturer in the department of curriculum and instruction. her primary focus is geographic literacy education; she leads workshops in collaboration with many educational outreach centers and universities. dr. kathleen fite is a professor of education at texas state university. her career has focused on development and learning across the lifespan and professional development. she is a child advocate, consultant, writer, and researcher with an international as well as national platform. for decades, teacher attrition continues as a global concern; more teachers leave the profession than enter, especially among beginning teachers (dassa & derose, 2017). research targeting the development of teacher identity describes how it transacts with teacher retention, motivation, and learning in diverse cultural and social contexts. these findings provide insight regarding successful pedagogical practices (schutz, hong, & cross-frances, 2018; anspal, eisenchmide, & lofstrom, 2011). developing a professional identity as a teacher is a dynamic, complex, and ongoing process (chang-kredl & kingsley, 2014; ivanova & skara-minecāne, 2016). in teacher preparation programs, preservice students facilitate the development of their professional identity by focusing on why they want to become a teacher, why they think they will be effective, and how they can cultivate a culturally responsive classroom for their students (muhammad, 2017). pre-service teachers facilitate a social, cultural, and global identity as they prepare children of diverse backgrounds as well as native learners to explore their roles in the macro and global societies (lerseth, 2013; chong, ling, & chuan, 2011). additionally, preservice teacher candidates develop a geographic identity as they learn about the homelands of their students. this is important because this history shapes the identities of children and their families. thus, in developing a professional identity, because teachers take the time to know themselves and their motivations, they become better able to frame the learning of their diverse students to meet the challenges of the global community. 44 background and definitions for the purposes of this discussion, teacher professional identity refers to “the beliefs, values, and commitments an individual holds toward being a teacher (as distinct from another professional) and being a particular type of teacher (e.g. an urban teacher, a beginning teacher, a good teacher, an english teacher, etc.)” (hsieh, 2010, p. 1). beijaard, meijer, and verloop (2004) reviewed research based on teachers’ professional identity. the authors organized their findings into three categories described as professional identity formation, characteristics of teachers’ professional identity, and professional identities represented through teachers’ stories. other terms used in this discussion include the following: global identity is a “consciousness of an international society or global community transcending national boundaries, without necessarily negating the importance of state, nation, or domestic society” (shinohara, 2004). global society “can be described as one which has overgrown the tendency to pull apart and has embraced a new culture of sharing and networking with people from all different backgrounds, mindsets, cultures, religions and other differences that in the past were used as excuses to keep us separated” (enotes, 2011). geographic identity refers to “an individual or group’s sense of attachment to the country, region, city, or village in which they live” (oxford reference, 2019). the term, “cultural identity” describes “the identity or feeling of belonging to a group. it is a part of a person’s self-conception and self-perception and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct culture” (wikipedia, 2019). the goal to develop professional identity supports pre-service teachers’ capacity to connect with their personal attributes and further, to determine how they will transition into their future role as a teacher of diverse students (geographically, culturally, economically, socially). ultimately, these future teachers facilitate their students as they become citizens of a global society. the following content describes the process as it interfaces with the opportunity to grow more informed socially and culturally sensitive teachers (oestreich & fite, 2019). texas public schools as a result of the changing demographics in texas, pre-service teachers, entering the field, work with students who represent demographics (culturally, ethnically, and economically), which are varied and often apart from their own experiences. public school students in texas represent a diverse population, culturally and ethnically, ranking second to california (arguello, 2018). maxwell (2014) reported findings from the national center for education statistics, a 50.3% projected increase in varying degrees of latino and asian-americans in public schools. these population shifts occurred in california, florida, new york and texas, and in many communities throughout the united states (maxwell, 2014). to illustrate this demographic shift 45 in texas, refer to the following table, which reflects 2018-2019 student enrollment in texas public schools: ethnicity student count american indian or alaska nat 20,414 asian 242,657 black or african american 685,775 hispanic/latino 2,854,590 native hawaiian/other pacific 8,271 two or more races 129,904 white 1,490,299 state total 5,431,910 source: texas education agency (2019, march 13) interestingly, additional data gleaned from the texas education agency (2019, march 13) on 2018-2019 school enrollment data, reflect not only a growing student population, but also a change in numbers of diverse students. for example, data extracted from the 2008-2009 school year showed 4,749,571 students enrolled in texas public schools (texas education agency, 2019, july). current data reveal student enrollment in 2018-2019 increased to 5,431,910 students. additionally, within the student enrollment data, students identified as english language learners (ell) grew 16.9% in 2008-2009 school year to 19.4% in the 2018-2019 school term (texas education agency, 2019, july). these data evidence the shift in classroom communities in the state of texas. furthermore, changes in texas classrooms demonstrate not only cultural shifts, but as well increases in servicing economically disadvantaged students, i.e. 25% increase from the 2008-2009 to 2018-2019 enrollment period (texas education agency, 2019, july). moreover, growth in texas schools as compared nationally increased by 17.1 percent between 2005-2015, more than six times the increase in the united states (2.7%) beyond the same time period (texas education agency, 2019). 46 one of support; it provides both teachers and students support as they acknowledge the changing demographics, supports students developing more positive attitudes toward the broadening expanse of diversity in their surroundings, and supports students’ ability to interact in a global arena (sadker & zittleman, 2018; hanvey, 1982). engaging in a multicultural curriculum can help teachers develop a broad, more global sensitivity, understanding, and identity with the community of learners they serve. today, it is common for teachers to work with students from ethnicities and cultures different from their own. many parents of these students are first generation immigrants to the united states. thus, the experiences brought to a classroom may represent intranational and international values and mores. looking beyond the classrooms of yesterday, the contemporary teacher, through use of the internet, other tools and media, integrate an expanse of different cultural, social, and ethnic values and practices. in a seminal article, hanvey (1982) states “…global perspective is not a quantum, something you either have or don’t have” (p. 162). he references this perspective: the recognition or awareness on the part of the individual that he or she has a view of the world that is not universally shared, that this view of the world has been and continues to be shaped by influences that often escape conscious detection, and that others have views of the world that are profoundly different from one’s own. (p. 162) many individuals attempt to assume a global lens, for “most people in the world, direct experience beyond the local community is infrequent—or nonexistent” (hanvey, 1982, p. 163). hanvey (1982) also stated, “direct experience is not the way that contemporary peoples learn about their world” (p. 163). many people do not travel abroad and experience firsthand different world cultures; thus, teachers explore other ways to develop global competencies. ark and liebtag (2017) described global competencies as including opportunities to connect with one’s ancestry and culture, demonstrate intercultural competence, and bridge global to the local. ark and liebtag’s (2017) online piece included a table created by u.s. department of education entitled framework for developing global and cultural competencies to advance equity, excellence and economic competitiveness: developing professional identity using a multicultural curriculum frames teachers’ understanding of the changes diverse students bring to the rich tapestry of the classroom community; strategic learning experiences intend to assist preservice teachers in their evolving professional identity. multicultural programming is 47 source: international affairs office, u.s. department of education (2017). https://sites.ed.gov/international/global-and-cultural-competency/ these competencies extend from the ancestry of the students in classrooms, be they first generation or later. developing a perspective, of who “we” are, who “we” are in our environment, and who “we” are in a larger context by creating a cross-cultural perspective, helps students and teachers overcome the limitations of a more narrowed lens. in our evolving society, teachers become strategic in supporting students with a range of language needs. combined with content knowledge, multicultural programming, and an ethos of caring and sensitivity, these attributes foster community building; thus, children require teachers with strong professional identities. it is time for “schools to address and infuse global awareness into curriculum and instruction” (burnouf, 2004, p. 1). geography helps shape identity. therefore, there is a direct relationship between geography and identity. people develop their identity according to the region and climate conditions in which they live. geographic conditions shape people’s view of life, the values they share, and the https://sites.ed.gov/international/global-and-cultural-competency/ 48 expectations they establish. karasu, i̇bret, and recepoğlu (2017) believe living in the same geographic conditions allows for the forming of human communities and the sharing of common social memories. reflective exercises can help pre-service teachers make the transition between their existing personal identity and their emerging professional identity, especially one with a “bigger than self” lens that encourages having an understanding of students with less common backgrounds and cultures. bukor (2015) stated “analysis of teachers’ personal life experiences and their impact on teaching can lead to a holistic understanding of the dominant influences on the development of their teacher identity” (p. 305). korthagen (2004) identified several examples of reflection exercises used in different pre-service programs. examples included pope and denicolo’s (2001) personal biography exercise called “river of experience” and clandinin’s (1992) and mclean’s (1999) use of students exchanging stories. korthagen’s (2004) examples include students reflecting on positive and negative role models encountered during their elementary and secondary school experiences; creating a life path (i.e. timeline of important events and influential people); and creating students’ geo-bio footprint (oestreich & fite. 2019). in another example, all about me, preservice teachers provide a power point and/or oral introduction about themselves. a bio-geo blast is a brief geo-biography describing preservice teachers’ global experiences (include domestic/international photographs) and describes how these travels led to understandings of their role as global educators. essays describing, “why i want to teach” also are important. this descriptive or visual representation provides a rationale for pre-service teachers deciding to become teachers. they share this insight with other preservice students. the information includes individuals (teachers, church congregants, family) who influenced their career path and also identifies those who claimed the candidate “had a gift to teach others.” preservice teachers can be encouraged to find out about the journeys of their own families by interviewing the oldest living member; preservice teachers can also learn about their students by visiting with firstand secondgeneration relatives of the children in their classroom. for example, one exercise that can be used is an autobiography wherein students present a notebook or digital storybook of their lives to share with a small group of peers in order to explore commonalities and differences. students are encouraged to bring to class an artifact that represents their culture or a keepsake from their travels. these often have rich cultural roots such as mementos from a student’s quinceañera, a hispanic tradition which celebrates a girl’s fifteenth birthday and coming of age (blum, 2005). other examples might include photographs from a bat mitzvah, a religious ceremony for jewish girls turning twelve years old and recognized as an adult, or a bar mitzvah, a religious celebration of jewish boys turning thirteen years old (pelaia, 2019). additional examples include the sharing of souvenirs or pictures from a remote, impoverished area where students traveled to volunteer with a church or other group. the dialogue among the peer group is rich with opportunities for participants to ask questions and learn about and from one another. presentations can be in the format of digital powerpoints or traditional notebooks or scrapbooks. later, artifacts can be added to these projects. the project may represent an individual’s continual growth or may serve as a collaborative work for all students to contribute as representative of the classroom community. other stories can be told 49 and imaged about these travels including what they found or perceptions of what they think about the area or country. for example, students may include narratives and descriptions regarding the landscape, traditions, or challenges. another helpful activity is “my life in a bag,” wherein students fill a bag with a designated number of artifacts representing their culture or family history and tell about the item, its sentiment, value, or meaning. pen pals are another option. pre-service teachers may have pen pals themselves or encourage their students to adopt a pen pal so they can learn about life in areas quite different from their own (i.e. education, family structure, government, society, and landscape and environmental issues). another activity is a matching game, whereby artifacts are secretly placed in a container and then positioned in front of a group of students whose charge is to “match” the item with whom they think brought it and the meaning they interpret. a biomuseum provides students an opportunity to identify five artifacts with a description reflective of their family history. as students visit the bio-museum, this provides students with an opportunity to critically determine what information is most important for them to share with others. this is an important exercise for students to reflect upon how museums determine what they exhibit. there are numerous activities that build geographic identity. for example, a study of rice provides a range of learning opportunities to expand students’ understanding of the world and its people. researching the origins of rice, the ways in which it is grown, cultivated, and shipped to different markets illustrate the global community at work. students and their families feel comfortable to share culture-rich stories to others in the class. preservice candidates benefit from connecting with their personal and public lives, what they know, people they met, places they traveled, various foods they tasted, music they enjoyed, and artifacts they received or purchased as they learn to bridge their experiences with their students’ own experiences. preservice teachers reflect on who they are, how their own experiences shaped their thinking, and how they interact and learn about their students; critical reflections help in creating a sense of class community. classrooms, filled with diverse individuals with unique experiences, prove to provide rich and meaningful learning experiences for both the teacher and the students. as pre-service teachers incorporate culturally responsive activities and cultivate and embrace their diverse student classrooms, they continue developing their professional personal, global, geographic, and cultural identity. in order to create a culturally responsive community, it is imperative teachers know about their own personal history and culture as well as to learn about the varied cultural attributes their students bring to the classroom. ark and liebtag (2017) describe how cultures, once residing halfway around the globe, now live just down the block. students meet the world first-hand in their classrooms. in order to prepare and reduce attrition rates of pre-service teachers, it is important to provide preservice teachers with a framework of global curricula, and training on multi-faceted cultural perspectives. chuck palahniuk (1999) suggests that nothing of a person is an original. he believes each of us is the combined experience of all past interactions. 50 additionally, for the purpose of this current discussion, the classroom teacher remains a powerful influence for children as they move forward into an expanding world of difference. in order to promote and nurture diverse students’ holistic learning and development, it is essential contemporary classroom teachers understand their sense of professional identity. 51 references anspal, t., eisenschmide, e., & lofstrom, e. 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(2017, december). geography and identity. (coğrafya ve kimlik), 96. retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321703704 korthagen, f. (2004). in search of the essence of a good teacher: towards a more holistic approach in teacher education. teaching and teacher education, 20, 77-97. lerseth, k. (2013). identity development among pre-service teacher candidates. (doctoral dissertation). graduate theses and dissertations, iowa state university. retrieved from:https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/13200/ maxwell, l. (2014, december 2014). u.s. school enrollment hits majority minority milestone. education digest, 80(40), 27-33. retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.libproxy.txstate.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=1f8160d7ba81-4471-8fc0-0f46b2589759%40pdc-v-sessmgr06 mclean, s.v. (1999). becoming a teacher: the person in the process. in r.p. lipka, & t.m. brinthaupt (eds.), the role of self in teacher development (pp. 55-91). albany, ny: state university of new york press. muhammad, a. (2017). being a teacher: developing self-efficacy and teacher identity through selfreflective techniques in teacher education programs. journal of education and practice, 8 (34), 7-14. oestreich, j., & fite, k. (november, 2019). capturing your global intelligence: engaging your emerging global professional identity. ncss/ncge/tcss conference, austin, texas. oxford reference. (2019). geographic identity. retrieved from https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110810104955832 palahniuk, c. (1999, september 17). invisible monsters. new york, ny: w.w. norton & company, inc. pelaia, a. (2019, january 30). becoming a bat mitzvah. retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/becoming-a-bat-mitzvah-2076838 pope, m., & denicolo, p. (2001). transformative education. london, england: whurr. sadker, d., & zittleman, k. (2018). teachers, schools, and society: a brief introduction to education (5th ed). new york, ny: mcgraw hill. schutz, p., hong, j., & cross-francis, d. (eds). (2018). research on teacher identity: introduction to mapping challenges and innovations. available from https://link-springercom.libproxy.txstate.edu/content/pdf/10.1007%2f978-3-319-93836-3.pdf . shinohara, h. 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(2019). cultural identity. retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cultural_identity https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321703704 https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/13200/ http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.libproxy.txstate.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=1f8160d7-ba81-4471-8fc0-0f46b2589759%40pdc-v-sessmgr06 http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.libproxy.txstate.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=1f8160d7-ba81-4471-8fc0-0f46b2589759%40pdc-v-sessmgr06 https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110810104955832 https://www.learnreligions.com/becoming-a-bat-mitzvah-2076838 https://link-springer-com.libproxy.txstate.edu/content/pdf/10.1007%2f978-3-319-93836-3.pdf https://link-springer-com.libproxy.txstate.edu/content/pdf/10.1007%2f978-3-319-93836-3.pdf https://web.stanford.edu/group/peec/cgi-bin/docs/behavior/research/global%20identity%20manuscript%20final.pdf https://web.stanford.edu/group/peec/cgi-bin/docs/behavior/research/global%20identity%20manuscript%20final.pdf https://tinyurl.com/yyks6zyr https://tea.texas.gov/sites/default/files/enroll_2018-19.pdf https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/cultural_identity ijwc fall 2019-full issue 43 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 44 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 45 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 46 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 47 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 48 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 49 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 50 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 51 ijwc fall 2019-full issue 52 3 introduction the mission of the international journal of the whole child is to provide both the researcher and the practitioner communities with current data as well as to illustrate real-life examples of “best practices.” “best practices” refer to learning strategies that engage the whole child. this means each child is respected as unique in their own person and as well, regarded as members of larger communities. building upon the cognitive and affective dimensions of child development, ijwc content respects children’s creativity, problem-solving, and inquiry. in order to move forward and connect theory with practice, ijwc authorship includes researchers, community representatives, and classroom teachers. in this third publication, in addition to quality manuscripts, ijwc introduces a new section titled “tech talk.” as you recall, in the second issue, volume 1, no. 2, a new column was introduced titled “book review.” in reflecting upon the needs of the ijwc reader, the editorial team expanded this critical review to include, in addition to books, a range of technical and media information. in the future, we look forward to hearing from our readers in identifying apps, websites, youtube videos, movies, games, and other technical and media alternatives to invite children to engage in innovative learning. articles in the first article, “chinese migrant children in crisis,” yajuan xiang, miao li, and gina berridge describe the serious plight of chinese migrant children. in a search for work and an improved way of life, millions of chinese families move from rural areas to relocate in urban centers. however, because of governmental policies, migrant children cannot attend chinese public schools. in addition to the daily stress of living in over-crowded conditions, children are also undermined by governmental paperwork and systematic discrimination. authors call for equitable access to education for all chinese children. in the second article, “literacy and education as correlates to national stability and human development,” larry burriss provides a statistical analysis of existing databases across nearly 200 countries dealing with national/human development and literacy/education policy. data suggest high correlation between literacy and national development. correlations were highest between national literacy scores and human/national development; correlations were lowest when comparing percentage of gross national product spent on education with literacy and education. the analyses indicate countries 4 with higher literacy and better education policies tend to have improved human development and national stability. note how the first two articles connect and support one another on behalf of providing all children with access to an equitable education. in the third article, “music in the classroom,” heather blackburn discusses using background music as a strategy to enhance students’ learning experience. despite the fact there are minimal data in this area, she makes a convincing argument to support the relationship between music and memory. in particular, she describes the connection between music and emotion. to extend appreciation for this possibility, hyperlinks are embedded to enrich the reading experience. pictures for reflection for the toddler, the world is a place of adventure, exploration, and wonder. adults afford children with a variety of safe and risk-free opportunities to experience a range of materials in different ways. children construct their personal understandings of the world; they make meaning through their experiences. firsthand exploration is critical as young children learn to compare and contrast. what is hard and what is soft? what is hot and what is cold? what is gushy and what is sticky? when do i use a spoon and when do i use a fork? tech talk in preparation for a safe and memorable total eclipse experience this summer, larry burriss provides important information describing how to safely view the event as well as identifying strategies to create photo memories. etc. the ultimate goal of scholarly research is to improve the lives of children. as well as providing readers with theoretical arguments and research frameworks, through the etc. section, ijwc expands learning by highlighting “best practices” with relevant artifacts. hilary nelson, a multiage teacher, describes in her classroom newsletter, the integral role of play for her students. through play, their risk-free experiences with objects, language, and friendships nurture social 5 competence, emotional confidence, and intellectual inquiry. play is a powerful strategy for promoting children’s initial learning and long-term development. through her newsletters, she provides ongoing information and creates a network of play advocates with her students’ parents. 35 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 pictures for reflection as young children dress-up, they rehearse, they try on different roles. sometimes, children approximate the familiar roles of a parent, teacher or community helper; in other instances, children assume the super powers of a s/hero, and other times, they try-on the costumes, conversations, and characters from television programs and movies. in all instances, children use clothes and props to assume a different persona. young children, lacking power and authority, now fly, disappear, and save the world. adults, observing children’s fantasy role play, gain insight into children’s feelings. when children role play together, they reverse roles and practice perspectivetaking. children’s fantasy play originates from somewhere a piece of children’s literature, a movie, or the television. dress up is appropriate for children and allows them safe experimentation of dress, role, and language. providing children the time, props, and foundations for role play is healthy, fun, and contributes to children’s emerging sense of self and other. and, when a young child is not quite sure of a particular role, they may try on several roles to see what happens. 91 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 emerging scholar the impact of emotional intelligence among children with disabilities and the role of professional educators and caregivers: a literature review peri mundaya, dr. christan hortonb a-b winston salem state university peri munday is recent graduate of the may 2021 class from winston-salem state university with a degree in rehabilitation studies and a minor in biology. ms. munday has worked directly with children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, both through private, contractual services and an internship at an intermediate care facility. ms. munday strives for the best outcomes in rehabilitation practices for all persons, regardless of their ability. ms. munday has also served as a parent liaison for special education services for elementary-aged students where she has advocated for student needs and progressive outcomes for student learning using trauma-informed practices. ms. munday aspires to enter a physician assistant program and further increase her knowledge and skills in person-centered care and wellness. ms. munday's research interests include emotional intelligence practices and medical implications in rehabilitation studies. dr. christan horton is an assistant professor in the department of rehabilitation counseling at winston salem state university. dr. horton is a certified rehabilitation counselor and licensed clinical mental health counselor associate. dr. horton has experience as a mental health and disability case manager, advocate for the aging population, as well as a transitions coordinator with ncdvrs for the state of north carolina. dr. horton’s research agenda is fourfold and includes (a) trauma and trauma informed care, (b) best practices in rehabilitation education, (c) maternal mental health and disability, and (d) self -care and wellness. dr. horton earned a master of science degree in rehabilitation counseling and a doctor of philosophy in rehabilitation counseling and rehabilitation counselor education from north carolina agricultural and technical state university. dr. horton is a titan in supporting individuals to reach their maximum potential through trauma-informed practices, access, and the development of skills to promote self-advocacy and empowerment. abstract throughout the process of child development, emotions evid ence a vital role. this conceptual analysis focuses on the significant position of emotional intelligence and children with disabilities and other special needs. emotional intelligence (ei) is a concept that describes the 92 ability to recognize personal emotions and how emotions trigger behaviors. many educational settings, including kindergarten through 8th grade and post-secondary institutions, and health care facilities remain as the forerunners of 1) providing age-appropriate learning, highlighting child development, 2) training the next generation of professionals to work with individuals with disabilities, and 3) promoting continuity of care in facilities tailored to guide and promote effective growth and development for persons with disabilities. many post-secondary academic programs involve foundational ei techniques that focus on quality-based service delivery and preparing graduates for practice in diverse settings. in addition, an increasing number of graduates advance into alternative therapies such as physical or occupational therapy, speech therapy, and respiratory therapy to implement their acquired skillset to further support persons with disabilities. this premise assumes that a degree from a program that places emphasis on the foundations of ei instills graduates with an increased capacity for empathic relationships, a broad spectrum of understanding mental connections to physical conditions, and an insightful understanding of the world and how significant issues may be affecting individuals through an ei lens. keywords: emotional intelligence, disability, special needs, alternative therapies, children “emotional intelligence refers to the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and our relationships.” (goleman, 1998, p. 317) just as the significance of life, emotions remain equally important in the development of children (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). through emotions, children can think, process, and behave accordingly within the environment (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). according to gupta et al. (2020), exceptionally emotional intelligent children often have higher levels of motivation and emotional competence compared to other individuals. inter-personal relations become especially valuable when considering the aspect of emotional intelligence. the purpose of this conceptual analysis is to explore four central ideas of 1) the general concept of emotional intelligence, 2) the impact of ei on children with disabilities, 3) the benefit of emotional intelligence for educators and parents, 4) and the potential for complementary disciplines and their application of ei with children. disability care professionals in various disciplines can promote emotional regulation practices among young children and adolescents with disabilities through the foundations of ei. the current conceptual analysis considers the development of emotion regulation practices fostered by academic settings, human service professionals, and other allied health professionals. this discussion explores the benefits of emotional intelligence for the positive development of children across the diverse span of disabilities. emotional intelligence (ei) first popularized in 1990, the term emotional intelligence is described by salovey and mayer as the ability to recognize, manage and understand emotions within oneself and others (salovey & mayer, 1990). goleman (1998) suggests that 80% of an individual’s life success relies on the 93 concept of emotional intelligence, whereas iq reflects 20%. in theory, emotional intelligence is the collective blend of emotion and intelligence. ei, harmonizes individuals with the self and environment (stanescu & tasente, 2021). when an individual is emotionally intelligent, their behaviors afford the ability to effectively regulate their emotions (sekhri et al., 2017). as this concept has become increasingly studied, it is apparent that skills of emotional intelligence may serve as a foundational undertone for enhanced student academic achievement and in society, along with the skills necessary for workplace success (sekhri et al., 2017). during infancy and early childhood years, children can build social and emotional skills (bălașbaconschi & dobrican, 2020). emotional intelligence is also critical in the child’s environment (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). as children rapidly grow, they experience increased complex emotions (slusniene, 2019). feelings of happiness, satisfaction, anger, sorrow, and worry or nervousness are some of the common emotions experienced by individuals (slusniene, 2019). around the ages of five and six, children typically have the capability to label their emotions and classify the source of the emotion (slusniene, 2019). emotions often uncovered among preschool aged children are pride, guilt/shame, and embarrassment or humiliation. a specific level of development and awareness of relationships is needed for children to effectiv ely conquer challenging emotions (slusniene, 2019). attunement to another individual’s thoughts and feelings are what emotions allow us to achieve (sekhri et al., 2017). emotions gives us insight to the behaviors of others, their intentions, and the personal ability to feel emotions prompted by the emotions of others (sekhri et al., 2017). as children start to label their emotions, they begin to understand their meaning and reasons for occurring within their respective environments (slusniene, 2019). panneerselvam and sujathamalini (2014) suggests that three primary skills of emotional intelligence are 1) the effective use of emotions, 2) appropriate identification of emotions, and 3) proficient emotion regulation. when children indicate emotional intelligence, they can identify their inner emotions as well as those within relationships, in addition to the ability to effectively interpret situations (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). when children discover how to interpret the emotions of self as well as others earlier in life, the better they will effectively manage life challenges and proceed in the direction of success (gupta et al., 2020). it is suggested that children’s academic success begins and is influenced by healthy emotional development (rohaizad et al., 2014). nisa et al. (2020) indicated elementary students’ character and personality is highly impacted and developed by their level of emotional intelligence. sekhri et al. (2017) also revealed that emotional intelligence is an emerging skill necessary for elevated achievement, positive actions, and the overall enhancement of success in life. children who are in the transition-age endure many psychological changes (nisa et al., 2020). of the various changes, emotional change is the most vital. while the experiences are common and typical, they are essential to observe as many individuals operate with various levels of emotional intelligence (nisa et al., 2020). to encourage the development of social, emotional, and academic interaction and development among children during the primary academic years, it is essential for 94 communities, families, and the school system to incorporate empirical methods (payton et al., 2008). the four dimensions of emotional intelligence include 1) perceiving emotion, 2) using/reasoning with emotion, 3) understanding emotion, and 4) managing emotion (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). effectively decoding others’ emotions in pictures, faces, voices, and culture illustrate examples of perceiving emotion. reasoning with emotion involves problem solving abilities and spontaneous thinking (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). understanding emotions occurs when individuals can understand the evolution of emotions and the general understanding of emotional languages (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). lastly, the regulation or management of emotions becomes the most valuable element in emotional intelligence (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). children who can manage emotions respond properly in their state of emotion (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). sakhri et al. (2017), also highlighted that emotional intelligence produces individual capabilities that promote control of oneself. billings et al. (2014) found that academic and emotional growth is highly significant for students, their parents, and educators during the phase of pre-adolescence. in addition, the period of adolescence, which is also considered a vulnerable developmental age, often involves a period of modification within their academic settings, social environment, and familial life (mansy, halim, & wahab, 2017). with effective and appropriate supports through the periods of developmental transition and modification, emotionally intelligent children can progress to live happier, stronger, empathic lives that continue to manifest through adulthood as well (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). an additional element is that emotional intelligence has the potential to infuse elements of order and peace into ones’ lives (rohaizad & kosnin, 2014). ei in children with disabilities and child development emotional intelligence is beneficial for the positive development of children across a diverse span of disabilities. emotional intelligence is a significant factor that allows persons with disabilities to maximize their abilities which can allow them to develop a clear understanding of self and others (al-tal et al., 2017). societal integration can be mediated with the presence of ei for persons with disabilities as well as effectively managing barriers that exist (al-tal et al., 2017). children who are diagnosed with hyperactivity, learning disabilities, autism, intellectual and developmental disabilities, social difficulties, and those who are disadvantaged are situated within the classification of special needs (gupta et al., 2020). children w ho are impacted by such conditions are usually considered to have low levels of ei (gupta et al., 2020). the way children with special needs adjust and interact with their environment may rationalize the need for training in emotional intelligence (kumar, 2013). children have a unique and individual method to comprehending and navigating the outer world (gupta et al., 2020). the environment is often interpreted by senses. when individuals lack specific essential senses, the common way of adjusting or interpreting the environment is different (gupta et al., 2020). typically, individuals can follow the model of others through observation. this task is not as 95 easy for others (gupta et al., 2020). a variety of advances in resources in the past years cater to children with special needs. while these resources are specific to children with special needs, it is critical these resources also support emotional intelligence practices (kumar, 2013). a few of the challenges children with special needs experience consist of aggressive behaviors, disability frustrations, self-esteem concerns and decreased levels of motivation (kumar, 2013). kumar (2013) suggests children with special needs require motivation and empowerment to cope with their life course with a disability. emotional intelligence is significant for the internal and external quality of life of the child with special needs (kumar, 2013). emotionally intelligent children with special needs display characteristics of elevated academic motivation and success, improvements in their effective organization and problem-solving abilities, capacities to develop strong bonds, capabilities to appropriately comprehend consequences and conflict resolution, and maintain optimistic outlooks on learning (kumar, 2013). kumar (2013) describes several examples illustrating the effects of empowering children with special needs to become emotionally intelligent. table 1. below displays an overview of the outcomes highlighted by kumar (2013). table 1. outcomes of emotionally intelligent children with special needs understand their own emotions take responsibility for the excellence of their life. respect others’ emotions and to see both pleasant and unpleasant emotions as important feedback for keeping them on course. to accept the reality and face the life with positive attitude consciously choose the content of their consciousness, thinking and speaking more positively about themselves, others, and their world, thus creating an experience of greater optimism, joy, and happiness. avoid emotional hijackings, thus persisting in the face of challenges and setbacks due to their disabilities. learn how to create more “flow” or peak experiences in their lives. improve relationships through empathy for and an understanding of the emotions of others (kumar, 2013, p. 64) the concept of empathy provides a significant element when supporting the emotional intelligence of children with special needs (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). the emotional variable of empathy holds space for individuals to obtain insight into the feelings and thoughts of others (sakhri et al., 2017). for example, children with autism demonstrate challenges with social perception and grasping a general understanding of others. their focus on other areas often impedes their ability to maintain a sense of consideration for others (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). in addition to the importance for children with special needs to receive empathy training, it is equally significant to consider empathy in relation to the social behavior of individuals without disabilities towards those with disabilities as well (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). 96 feelings of belonging and inclusion become essentially important among children with special needs especially considering inclusive classrooms. given this fact, it is recommended that persons without disabilities participate in trainings that support best practices on how to effectively interact with persons with disabilities (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). this perspective is highly important in younger children, as their peers often lack an understanding of disabilities (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). bratitsis and ziannas (2015) highlight the existing disparity in the research concerning social training of persons without disabilities on the proper interaction with persons with disabilities. therefore, trainings with a focus on empathy confirm benefits in supporting both children with special needs and those without. empathy is a fundamental element of emotional intelligence and the agent of growth that can promote social interaction (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). learning disabilities. ei and the learning acquisition of children is receiving increased attention in education. two reliable indicators of achievement among all children are the presence of social and emotional skills. included within the category of “all children” are children with learning disabilities (singh, 2017). research reflects that children with learning d isabilities have lower levels of emotional intelligence (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). for example, panneerselvam & sujathamalini (2014) note common ei issues among children with learning disabilities such as how these children show difficulties with emotion expression both internal and external. more specifically, children experience the stigma associated with the emotional difficulties from anxiety, anger, frustration, etc. (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). singh (2017) indicated that children with learning disabilities may experience intense levels of frustration. frustration from the disability and low self-esteem are other challenges children with low ei encounter. these challenges can be further reflected within the academic setting, causing difficulty with calming, awareness of non-verbal cues, lack of motivation, and relationship development (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). similar challenges were also identified within the research by singh (2017) with the addition of challenges w ith children’s ability to calm oneself and interpret nonverbal cues. while these difficulties exist, parents and other support persons can play a major role in mediating the impact of experienced challenges (singh, 2017). these challenges may be offset by highlighting the child’s growth as an individual versus only emphasizing academic accomplishments. good emotional habits will be supported as well as the outlook for future success (singh, 2017). using a remedial approach, educating children with learning disabilities may be expressed as an intervention method (singh, 2017). a variety of instructional tools and strategies to mediate the difficulties experienced by the child must be incorporated. it is suggested that educators make efforts to decrease difficulty through an inclusive curriculum (singh, 2017). table 2 provides a few common strategies based on kirk (1963) to support children with learning disabilities to best conquer the challenges associated with emotional concerns. 97 table 2. strategies to overcome emotional challenges among children with learning disabilities in the academic setting identify the specific needs of the child develop yearly goals and short-term objectives determine teaching style maintain instruction at the child’s level provide extended time choose an effective reward system evaluate teaching tasks create opportunities for student success (based on kirk,1963) panneerselvam and sujathamalini (2014) emphasize how ei impacts children’s learning disabilities. employing an integrated instructional approach tailored for learning and emotions, has the potential to meet the needs of children with learning disabilities and increase their capacity for academic and life success (panneerselvam & sujathamalini, 2014). incorporating emotional learning within the academic setting, supports children with special needs to feel empowered and able to regulate emotions effectively. in academic settings, teachers intentionally incorporate strategies that promote an all-inclusive setting. seven effective strategies from panju (2008) as cited in kumar (2013) are highlighted for educators to utilize. these seven strategies are reflected within the acronym ‘elevate.’ the acronym is outlined below: • “(e) environment for learning • (l) language of emotions • (e) establishing relationships • (v) validating feelings • (a) active engagement • (t) thinking skills • (e) empower through feedback” incorporating the strategies and techniques of elevate within academic classrooms provides educators with tools to transition from the consistent position of conduct management to more meaningful interaction with student learners (kumar, 2013). emotionally intelligent classrooms reflect an environment where the educator can 1) mediate only when required, 2) ensure time is provided for students, 3) develop clear and concise objectives to distribute to students, 4) foster innovation and personal growth, and 5) incorporate laughter and fun within the classroom environment (kumar, 2013). hearing loss. in children with hearing loss, issues with their social, intellectual, emotional, and behavioral abilities may exist because of difficulties with their ability to listen which is often 98 accompanied by communication issues (yasin et al., 2012). these concerns remain also challenging and stressful for their parents/caregivers as well (pujar & patil, 2019). pujar and patil (2019) describe a significant effect identified in age, socioeconomic status, and ordinal position on emotional intelligence among children with hearing loss. compared to children categorized as typical, those with a hearing loss are at a higher risk of experiencing behavioral challenges, encountering emotional disturbance, and performing lower academically (pujar & patil, 2019). children’s inability to communicate feelings effectively to parents and other individuals ultimately impedes development of high emotional intelligence (pujar & patil, 2019). when considering the presence of bullying in the school setting and the inclusion of children with a hearing loss, emotional intelligence can assist with such issues in the academic environment (al-jawaldeh, 2012). the development of educational programs along with ei specific interventions offer families and educators the tools necessary to influence higher levels of emotional intelligence in children with a hearing loss (pujar & patil, 2019). al-tal et al. (2017) offer several recommendations for individuals with sensory disabilities in which to engage to enhance their levels of emotional intelligence. one specific recommendation is for individuals to freely express their emotions through pract ices of drawing, acting, and using music as avenues to enhance emotional intelligence (al-tal et al., 2017). it is important to offer encouragement for the ei roles family members play in helping the child as well as other natural supports. in order for individuals with sensory loss to develop feelings of security and psychological satisfaction, it is necessary to acknowledge and take account of the assistance afforded these students. this adult support provides the potential to elevate children’s levels of emotional intelligence (al-tal et al., 2017). vision loss. anxiety is highly present during adolescence among children with vision loss. during this period, adolescents navigate both developmental difficulties as well as the challenges associated with vision loss (huurre & aro, 2000, as cited in mansy et al., 2017). visual ability is a critical component to gathering information about the world. when an individual’s visual capacity is diminished, their opportunities to experience the world become restricted or eliminated (mansy et al., 2017). given the nature of vision loss, an individual may face stressors to include intense social and emotional effects that extend beyond the individual into external factors such as family and the individual’s community (mansy et al., 2017). adolescents diagnosed with vision loss may endure maladjustment, peer isolation, lack of peer communication, and low self-esteem (mansy et al., 2017). compared to peers without vision loss, those with diagnosed vision loss evidence difficulties with social interactions and indicate spending considerable amounts of time isolated (pfeiffer & pinquart, 2011). parween (2015) revealed individuals who were blind (not congenital) received higher scores on the ei scale versus those individuals whose visual loss is congenital. these results validate the importance for early intervention efforts in supporting the development of emotional intelligence earlier in life among individuals with congenital vision loss (parween, 2015). 99 emotionally intelligent educators and parenting emotionally intelligent educators. over the years, the concept of emotional intelligence has gained momentum, particularly, in education (marti et al., 2020). sakhri et al. (2017) acknowledged that educational institutions are electing to integrate the concept of emotion intelligence with the systemic intention to enhance academic and social outcomes. as it is important to promote emotional intelligence among students with disabilities, it is equally important to train emotionally intelligent educators in the classrooms. daniel goleman highlighted the need for educational settings to aim for increased development of emotional intelligence (gupta et al., 2020). according to a study by allan (2016, as cited in slusniene, 2019) it is equally significant for children to learn how to recognize, understand, and regulate emotions just as it is imperative to attain the educational goals of effective reading, writing, and mathematics. to best implement strategies and techniques to efficiently increase ei among children and adolescents, efforts toward s recruiting competent and empathic support professionals are vital. characteristics of an emotionally intelligent educator include: “infectiously optimistic, a good listener, demonstrates commitment, validates other’s feelings, and emotionally resilient” (kumar, 2013, p. 64). these characteristics are essential to develop and maintain as kumar (2013) explains emotional intelligence as a dynamic process that allows individuals to become aware of strategies to meet personal needs as well as to consider the perspectives of others. thus, such characteristics and individual skill level are significant in the academic setting. to incorporate creativity and promote student engagement and empowerment, educators consider available applications to support efforts to create social and emotional learning (sel) environments. examples of applications include: the social express, middle school confidential, if (emotional iq game), gonoodle, emotionary, avokiddo, and touch and learn emotions. weissberg et al. (2015) describe how sel interventions evidence the capability to influence the development of five competencies regarded as significant for academic and life success. the five competency areas include: 1) self -awareness, 2) self-management, 3) social awareness, 4) relationship skills, and 5) responsible decision making. previous research studies suggest the resources embedded within sel interventions promote positive development (taylor et al., 2017). to further the efforts of creating emotionally intelligent children in the academic environment, the home environment also provides a role in the development of emotional intelligence in children. emotionally intelligent parenting. to support the development of emotional intelligence in children, it is important parents coach children to formulate positive satisfactory responses to emotions in the presence of unpleasant feelings (katanani & mas'oud, 2017). katanani and mas'oud (2017) recommend avoiding punishment when their child makes a mistake as it may result in the child developing an understanding that all mistakes are treated in that manner. it is important to provide opportunities for creative expression and leisure time while focusing on positive child attributes (katanani & mas'oud, 2017). 100 of the many parenting styles, the authoritative and emotion-coaching styles remain a popular method used to boost emotional intelligence in children (segrin & flora, 2019). the authoritative parenting style allows the parents to be highly responsive to t heir children along with mild to high-level demandingness (segrin & flora, 2019). parents engage with their children and show appropriate affection. parents outline clear expectations for the child and offer rich justification for children to become aware of significant values (segrin & flora, 2019). in the emotion-coaching style, parents intentionally address negative emotions expressed by the child through acts of validation and mindfulness of the expressed emotions. next, parents use verbal communication to support the child in understanding how to best navigate the adverse emotion while, at the same time, identifying appropriate problem-solving skills to determine alternative behavioral responses (segrin & flora, 2019). research suggests that parenting styles grounded in the emotion-coaching style for a portion of the time allows children to develop increased levels of emotional intelligence and improved social functioning (segrin & flora, 2019). in addition to the academic environment tailored for younger children (e.g., k-8), other areas prove beneficial in promoting emotional intelligence. for example, a variety of academic disciplines exist at the post-secondary level responsible for training the next generation of human service professionals to provide comprehensive services grounded on targeting the whole person. emotional intelligence can be a foundational component to guide a diverse set of disciplines within their curriculum as well as other settings such as health care, counseling, and other allied health professions. the following section provides an overview of alternative disciplines and settings where incorporating emotional intelligence principles is assumed beneficial and supportive in the development of the whole child. complementary disciplines and their application of emotional intelligence interventions many disciplines, regardless of mental or physical focus, often share the common goal of individual wellness, ranging from heart health to emotional awareness. employment in the human service profession is comprised of a variety of job titles, roles, and responsibilities (oginska-bulik, 2005). a few job titles include: educators, counselors, social workers, nurses, and other human service and allied health professionals (oginska-bulik, 2005). experienced emotions clearly correlate with employment within the human services profession (oginskabulik, 2005). intrapersonal and interpersonal skills evidence two key components human service providers are expected to implement within their style of service provision (morrison, 2007). individuals providing supports within the human services and overall helping profession often experience emotionally charged work circumstances that call for the skill of emotional intelligence for personal control and regulation (leslie & davis, 2015). many academic collegiate human service programs focus on a variety of learning outcomes and objectives to best prepare students to navigate the workforce post -graduation. for example, undergraduate rehabilitation education (ure) programs focus on a variety of disabilities and other related issues and concerns. due to the various ure programs across the globe and different areas of focus, one can assume that several ure programs have embedded components that prepare students to utilize and practice ei across many professional disciplines. known 101 skills taught in ure (respective to the author’s location), specifically ei practices, enable aspiring disability care professionals to assist individuals in reaching optimal emotional and physical wellness goals. ure endeavors to meet the needs of individuals in need through advocacy, empowerment, and individually tailored supports. the goal is to support individuals to reach their maximum potential and enhance their overall quality of life. emotional intelligence is essential in supporting professionals in this role to best meet the needs of the population served . it is important to support individuals through an emotional intelligence lens. alternate disciplines such as pediatric ipc (integrated primary care) and icf-iid (intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities) care also strive to navigate clients toward a degree of wellness, both mentally and physically, thus linking all disciplines to the benefit of ei and emotion regulation practices. proficiency in ei instills graduates with an increased capacity to foster emotional regulation practices for their young clients with disabilities, their families, and the larger community. because of the relevance to the advantages of the ei curriculum and the direct correlation to emotion regulation implementation, literature that generally discusses the expectations, performances, requirements, tasks, and functions of certain disciplines remain also included within this analysis. continuing with a post-secondary context, students may matriculate into for example, an integrated pediatric primary care setting to work directly with children with disabilities. these care professionals are in a unique position to promote emotional well-being practices with their young clients, while also monitoring and treating their diagnoses. ipc involves both medical care specialists, such as physicians (mds or dos), physician assistants (pas), and family nurse practitioners (fnps), as well as behavioral health specialists. some types of behavioral health specialists working in ipc settings may include professional counselors (lpcs/lcmhcs), marriage/family therapists (lcmfts), and clinical social workers (lcsws) (reitz, fifield, & whistler, 2011). together, these providers can identify potential emotional barriers and employ a preventative emotion regulation plan (lines, 2019). children with disabilities may demonstrate increased difficulty verbalizing their feelings and emotions (genik et al., 2020), which can lead to increased stress regarding the reaction to and expression of their emotions. it is because of this stress that the promotion of emotion regulation practices be implemented in pediatric patients with disabilities. emotion regulation techniques may be taught in a myriad of ways, although some methods may prove more beneficial for some children than others. the ‘ruler’ approach, for example, may be especially advantageous for school-aged children. the ‘ruler’ approach utilizes an acronym for five key emotional skills. those skills include recognizing emotions, understanding cause and effect of emotions, labeling emotions, expressing emotions effectively, and regulating emotions (hoffmann et al., 2020). while the ruler approach is generally utilized and taught in school settings, children with disabilities may benefit from direction from a member of their health care team specializing in behavioral health. it is critical that the behavioral health specialist with experience with ei be adequately prepared to anticipate emotional needs of clients, as ei focuses on the triggering of 102 behaviors via emotions (lewis, 2004). when children, especially those living with disabilities, experience unfamiliar or unpleasant emotions and lack the ability to respond effectively, the child may become increasingly frustrated and feel misunderstood. emotion regulation skills can equip children with the tools they need to become familiar and comfortable in dealing with new emotions, and care providers in ipc settings may have one of the best opportunities to enhance a child’s life with emotion regulation skills. graduates may also seek positions in direct care facilities for those living with disabilities. some children live in intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities (icf-id). icf-id is an option for medicaid beneficiaries that allows individuals to reside in facilities that provide comprehensive and individualized care to meet all medical, behavioral, and interpersonal needs, as well as promote independence and functional skills (waldman et al., 2014). generally, children with intellectual disabilities living in icfs represent limited cognitive capacities, significantly reduced adaptive skills, and evidenced communication deficits (friedman & kalichman, 2014). due to these accompanying factors, it is understandably difficult for these individuals to cope with their emotions. berg et al. (2015) provide an analysis indicating children with disabilities become twice as likely to suffer from clinical depression in comparison with their counterparts without disabilities. children residing in icf-id settings could substantially benefit from emotion regulation practices being implemented with method s tailored to the ability-level of the individual. emotion regulation can be exceptionally difficult for children with sensory processing disorders and executive functioning delays (morin, 2021). therefore, the mode of delivery and instruction may require increased time and effort on the part of the support professional. it is important to note that approaches generally used to foster emotion regulation in other settings may not be effective or appropriate for children living in icf-id settings. there remain many areas to target before icf-id residents can reach any level of emotional awareness. supporting emotion regulation in this setting can involve providing structure and consistency, to avoid unexpected emotions (foothills academy, 2018). it may also involve modeling self/emotion regulation in guiding each child through new sensory experiences and introducing calming strategies, such as grounding activities (i.e., deep breathing, visual imagery, etc.), social supports, and mental breaks, which can consist of familiar and enjoyable tasks, such as coloring and listening to music. it may also prove beneficial to use positive reinforcement and praise. immediate and specific feedback can also evoke positive learning experiences as well as interpersonal growth. it is important for the support professional to focus not on the overall result, but rather the level of effort the child applies to recognizing and expressing their emotions (foothills academy, 2018). by implementing a safe emotional space for resident s and encouraging self-awareness in emotions, icf-id staff and behavioral support specialists can develop emotion regulation techniques using subtle, yet constructive methods. 103 implications for research and practice it is important that educators, clinicians, and other human service and health care providers consider the discussed factors within this analysis. this information may be especially beneficial when instructing individuals to communicate with students and/or clients, and in perceiving their own emotions in educational and clinical situations. the authors of the current analysis recommend future areas of research that include exploring the effect of emotional intelligence among a more diverse disability community. for example, research on emotional intelligence and physical disabilities, along with mental health may contribute greatly to the current body of knowledge. additionally, mansy et al. (2017) motioned for educational programs to be tailored to influence the development of protective factors that stimulate problem-solving abilities, positive coping mechanisms, and a realistic outlook that further motivates resiliency among both persons with and without disabilities. as continued emphasis is placed on enhancing the development of ei in children, an additional recommendation is to implement psychoeducational programs for parents and educators that highlight the challenges confronting adolescents during the entry into the adolescent period. during this time, emotional challenges can present as adolescents may be facing the pressures of finding and navigating their way within society, in addition to encountering physical and emotional changes that are influenced via puberty (peres et al., 2020). it is not only important for parents and educators to learn about adolescents’ experiences, but it remains equally important to learn techniques and skills to support and empower adolescents, along with procedures for the support persons to overcome any stressors that accompany the point of providing supports (mansy et al., 2017). the inclusion of emotional intelligence principles within curriculum will support and strengthen pedagogical aims and create a comprehensive curriculum that embodies the foundational principals of ei (parween, 2015). critically, the intentional inclusion of ei in the curriculum to enrich teaching practices to effectively meet the distinct needs of diverse students with disabilities is a primary goal (parween, 2015). this can be assumed to be effective at the postsecondary level as well. additionally, the various health care, counseling and other professional providers and practitioners offering supports to children with disabilities and other special needs can benefit from adapting practices to include more ei centered processes. conclusion the helping profession plays a major role through advocacy, empowerment, and effective strategies that bolster positive development of many individuals’ overall quality of life. emotional intelligence is a concept that has gained tremendous momentum within the helping profession and is an essential skill for many, especially children and adolescents. while it is important for professionals to acknowledge the value of the emotional intelligence of children and adolescents, children with disabilities are also a worthy focus area to promote inclusivity in strategies for academic success for all children and adolescents. the disability population is often underserved and greatly benefit from the advocacy and empowerment efforts of many human service professionals. 104 educators and other professionals within the helping profession can also benefit from personal training in emotional intelligence as they are in roles that often inspire positive child progression, success, and overall development. the trend of emotional intelligence is being identified across a range of academic disciplines and alternative settings. examples of disciplines that may benefit from ei application consist of (not an exhaustive list): schools, pediatric ipc (integrated primary care) and icf-iid (intermediate care facilities), hospitals, behavioral health agencies, counseling, and social work. as the concept is known to be addressed across various disciplines, emotional intelligence is a premier topic among many mental health professionals who work with adolescents (adibsereshki, et al., 2019). academic disciplines such as ure also provides future disability (and other alternative human service areas) generalists the skills needed for selfawareness instruction, appropriate emotional expression guidance for young clients with disabilities, emotion management, and social awareness in clinical practice settings. generally, an idea is to support the next generation of leaders to not only thrive, but also support others in their own development of positive emotional intelligence. the education system plays a vital role in supporting children and adolescents to develop positive and healthy emotional intelligence. furthermore, educators have a major charge to self reflect on their own emotional intelligence in addition to nurturing t hat of the children and adolescents they serve. emotionally intelligent educators are often able to motivate their students and enter the classroom with an enhanced understanding of their diverse students. together with families, communities, and other sources of natural supports, educators can imprint on the early childhood experiences of emotional intelligence among children and adolescents. in addition to the role of educators and other human service professionals, parental involvement may have a huge impact on bolstering positive child emotional intelligence by creating a parental/caregiver support system that concentrates on the whole child and not merely academics alone. parental responses and the overall parenting style play a role in child development of effective ei. of the many parenting styles, the authoritative and emotion-coaching styles continue as a trendy method used to enhance emotional intelligence in children (segrin & flora, 2019). overall, emotional intelligence is a critical factor in an individual’s ability to experience academic success and professional growth and accomplishments (bratitsis & ziannas, 2015). in the presence of the many societal pressures on children of all abilities, their families, the community at large, emotional intelligence is a key ingredient that has the potential to create opportunities for future success. the role of emotional intelligence in the professional development of educators, disability care workers, and other allied health and human service professionals is highly significant, particularly, how its principles translate into promoting the positive development and outlook of the whole child, especially of children with disabilities. 105 references 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(2012). emotional intelligence among deaf and hard of hearing children. the social sciences, 7(5), 679-682. https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2011/0100/p18.html https://doi.org/10.11113/jt.v67.2291 https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12439 https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12864 ijwc_springv42021 91 ijwc_springv42021 92 ijwc_springv42021 93 ijwc_springv42021 94 ijwc_springv42021 95 ijwc_springv42021 96 ijwc_springv42021 97 ijwc_springv42021 98 ijwc_springv42021 99 ijwc_springv42021 100 ijwc_springv42021 101 ijwc_springv42021 102 ijwc_springv42021 103 ijwc_springv42021 104 ijwc_springv42021 105 ijwc_springv42021 106 ijwc_springv42021 107 microsoft word ijwc fall 2017.docx 41   international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2 pictures for reflection as children grow older, they are more cognitively mature and better able to participate in group games and team sports. unlike younger children, older children understand and follow the rules, recognize their strengths, and focus on areas requiring practice. older children are better able to communicate, negotiate, and compromise. as adults support children’s participation in group games and team sports, they continue to be aware, not only of age, but stages as well. children develop differently and despite ages, some children may be more physically able, socially competent, or emotionally mature than others. adults are watchful to ensure children can participate and develop in a safe context without fear of bullying. final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 55 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 steam stem content vs. a sense of wonder and joy of learning: it shouldn’t have to be a choice william stonea alecturer (retired), science and social studies education, northern arizona university (thescienceclone@yahoo.com) william stone is a retired lecturer and taught at northern arizona university. william earned his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from arizona state university in 1968, and a master’s degree in audio visual education from arizona state university in 1972. he taught middle grades for 20 years in hawaii and arizona, worked in curriculum development for eleven years, and taught science and social studies methods courses in the college of education at northern arizona university for eight years. abstract the purpose of this reflective article is to examine how structured stem programs often fail to promote key traits that are crucial to the scientific process including creativity, wonder, curiosity, and imagination. typical stem programs are content-driven, outcome-oriented, and scripted in a curriculum-centered, teacher-directed manner. because of their rigidity, these programs often preclude more open-ended explorations that foster creative explorations in stem. the article gives examples of scientists and inventors who dared to imagine and explored the world with a sense of wonder in non-scripted, active ways. the article discusses programs like genius hour and provides suggestions for promoting creativity in stem programs. key words: stem, steam, creativity, wonder, curiosity, imagination introduction during 39 years of a career in education at both the elementary and university levels, i have discovered a significant dichotomy in science-teaching philosophy. on the one hand, science teachers have been diligently following a standardized curriculum, arguably arbitrarily set by federal, state, or local officials in order to help students cope with “an ever-changing, increasingly complex world . . .” (u.s. department of education: science, technology, engineering, and math, including computer science, n.d., para. 1). the compulsory standardized program was developed in 1996 by the national research council, simply known as the “national science education standards,” but eventually was expanded to 56 include technology, engineering, and math (stem) in 2005. in recent years, officials have added the arts and computer science to the program, now recognized, unofficially, as stem/cs. according to the united states department of education, the program is designed to prepare students to “bring knowledge and skills to solve problems, make sense of information, and know how to gather and evaluate evidence to make decisions” (u.s. department of education: science, technology, engineering, and math, including computer science, n.d., para. 1). although the compulsory curriculum has been designed to help students to become more efficient in the academic areas covered by stem/cs, some educators are concerned that the standardized curriculum does not take into consideration such non-quantitative areas such as curiosity, creativity, imagination, and a sense of wonder, and how those areas are vital for the cultivation of new ideas, as well as the implementation and development of those ideas. even adding the arts (steam) does not foster these characteristics in any meaningful way, as steam programs often are scripted, and teacher directed. science, technology, engineering, math, and computer science depend on the ability to imagine, be creative, and think outside the box to come up with hypotheses, methods of inquiry, and possible paths to solutions. in a sense, the two approaches to the teaching of stem/cs are at opposite ends of the thought spectrum: one representing a more structured approach with desired outcomes that can be identified and measured, while the other approach represents a more open-ended method that values curiosity and imagination. some educators are concerned that one approach is more focused on the content of material being taught, while others place more emphasis on the importance of developing a sense of wonder, allowing the student to dream, imagine, and be curious – not only to come up with new ideas, but also to be creative in how to solve problems and find solutions. sir ken robinson (2015) emphasizes that “a lifelong sense of curiosity is one of the greatest gifts that schools can give their students” (p. 136). can we provide this gift for our students? as a faculty member in the college of education at a state university, my goals for teaching science methods courses were three-fold: 1) to recapture the joy of learning; 2) to develop a sense of wonder; and 3) coming in a far distant third place was the content. yes, to some, placing the science content that far below the other two goals may seem to be irresponsible. let me explain. scientists and inventors who dared to imagine i have had several “heroes” in education who have greatly influenced me in my teaching career. among those are lt. col. francis parker (1837-1902); research professor and author, dr. peter gray; sir ken robinson; and alfie kohn. perhaps most influential in my career was jerome bruner (1915-2016). jerome bruner was a prolific researcher in the area of cognitive psychology and published many books relating to psychology and education. during wwii, he served on the psychological warfare division of the supreme headquarters allied expeditionary force committee under the command of general dwight d. eisenhower. furthermore, jerome bruner was one of the brightest scientific and educational minds who were 57 chosen to participate at the woods hole conference in 1959 (smith, 2002). the woods hole conference was formed in response to the soviet union’s launch of sputnik (1957), a small, artificial satellite, which orbited the earth for three weeks before its batteries died, and then falling back to earth. among the 35 people who participated at the woods hole conference were robert gagne, b.f. skinner, jerome bruner, and many other educators, scientists, corporate officers, medical doctors, and mathematicians. the woods hole conference led to the beginning of educational changes and social science reforms and was the inspiration for bruner’s 1960 book, the process of education (evans, 2011). bruner’s ideas, born out the woods hole conference, were the catalyst for major reform of the american educational system. among one of jerome bruner’s statements that has been widely quoted from his book was one that intrigued me, as a science educator: “any subject can be taught in some intellectually honest form to any child at any stage of development” (bruner, 1960, p. 12). that statement was the topic of many personal conversations with colleagues, usually resulting in no consensus of opinion, but it certainly piqued my interest. further readings led me to another statement: “content knowledge is the natural consequence of process.” i used that powerful statement for each class that i taught for eight years. during that time, i searched and searched to find the reference for bruner’s wise statement to absolutely no avail. so, sometime in 2006, i called dr. bruner at his office at new york university to ask him where i could find that reference. to be honest, i did not even know if he was still living (if so, he would have been 90 years old). to my great surprise, he answered his phone, and we had a very nice, yet brief, conversation. i asked about the statement, and to my even greater surprise, he responded with, “you are not able to find the reference to that statement because i never said that. but it is a good one, and i wish i had said that.” he went on to explain, “what i did say was, ‘knowledge is not found in the content, but in the activity of the person operating within the content domain’” (j. bruner, personal communication, 2006). the conversation with jerome bruner changed my thinking completely. and it clearly places me on the side of those educators who are more concerned with enabling students to develop their imaginations, creativity, curiosity, and to me, the most important quality of all: to instill a sense of wonder in our students. if they are free to exercise those qualities, they will become so immersed in following their own interests, the content just happens. i firmly believe you cannot stop it from happening. there are countless examples of scientists and inventors who have become famous for their contributions to society as a direct result of their passionate and creative curiosity and imagination. most of them did not reach their levels of success and notoriety by memorization and recall. according to bruner’s statement, “knowledge is not found in the content, but in the activity of the person operating within the content domain” (j. bruner, personal communication, 2006). activity within a content domain requires curiosity, imagination, and creative thinking. these important qualities are not usually found, encouraged, or valued in the standardized curricula in most schools. 58 perhaps one of the most well-known examples of a successful scientist who gained notoriety by just “messing around” was physicist, richard feynman. as a cornell professor eating in the school cafeteria, a friend tossed a plate in the air. as the plate spun around in the air, feynman noticed that the school logo in the center of the plate was spinning at a different rate than the outer edges of the plate. that piqued his curiosity, so just as he did as a child, when he would simply tinker around in his home-made lab laboratory, creating simple gadgets, motors, and photocells, feynman began to study the rotation of the plate. he had no apparent reason for doing so, other than the fact that he enjoyed it. he eventually worked out a mathematical formula that explained, through quantum electrodynamics, the wobble and rotation of the plate. the result of his “messing around” with that plate earned him the nobel prize for physics in 1965 (feynman, 1985; wasserman, 1992). in his book, surely, you’re joking, mr. feynman! (1985), feynman said, “i don’t know what’s the matter with people; they don’t learn by understanding; they learn some other way -by rote, or something. their knowledge is so fragile!” (p. 44). in regard to some of his university students, feynman figured out that they “memorized everything, but they didn’t know what anything meant . . . everything was entirely memorized, yet nothing had been translated into meaningful words” (feynman, 1985, p. 242-243). in richard feynman’s case, he acquired meaning by playing with objects and ideas, figuring out how things work and finding solutions for problems. he called it “piddling around.” perhaps the standardized stem/cs curriculum should include a section on piddling around. leonardo da vinci (1452-1519) is known for his imaginative inventions that were hundreds of years ahead of their time. he was a painter, engineer, architect, theorist, and, of course, the inventor of such futuristic creations such as an armored fighting vehicle, an adding machine, a flying machine similar to a helicopter, solar power, and the hydraulic pump, among many other inventions. leonardo was not necessarily known as a genius, as we would define it today. yet he was extremely imaginative and highly creative. he was curious about many things such as a goose’s foot, what a woodpecker’s tongue looks like, how birds fly, astronomy, geology, mechanics, and the human anatomy. as stone (2017) notes, imagination gives people the freedom to create and invent, which is a foundation for their future roles in society. leonardo da vinci was self-taught. what little schooling he had was focused on mathematics, yet he found few benefits of formal schooling, instead spending his time experimenting. he considered himself a free-thinker, and once said, “i suspect that people will say that ‘i have no book learning’ . . . but they do not know that my subjects require experience rather than the words of others” (isaacson, 2017, p. 4). for da vinci, personal experience and experimenting brought knowledge and understanding. there is also the example of a scientist who, by “messing around” with things and ideas, came up with an invention that not only earned him an obscene amount of money, but also helped him to be inducted into the alabama engineering hall of fame in 2011 (raatma, 2020; schwartz, 2018). lonnie johnson was born in alabama in 1949. as a young boy, he loved to fix things. “as far back as i can remember,” lonnie recalled, “i was interested in devices and how they worked . . .” (raatma, 2020, p. 8). lonnie mounted a lawn mower engine on a go cart and drove 59 it around his neighborhood. at one point, lonnie attempted to make rocket fuel on the stove top, but it caught fire. instead of being angry, his parents “bought him a hot plate and told him to do his experiments outside” (raatma, 2020, p. 9). the valuable lesson here is that lonnie had parents who supported him and encouraged his creativity and imagination as he experimented with various inventions. lonnie johnson continued his curiosity through high school and college at tuskegee university in alabama, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, and a master’s degree in nuclear engineering. he went on to work as a research engineer at the oak ridge national laboratory before joining the united states air force (raatma, 2020; schwartz, 2018). in 1979, at the age of 30, lonnie began working as a nuclear engineer for nasa at the jet propulsion laboratory in pasadena, california. there, he worked on numerous space missions, including the galileo mission to jupiter and the cassini mission to saturn. johnson had an extremely important job, working for nasa. yet, he never gave up on his imagination and curiosity, so on his free time, he would “mess around” with other ideas. hoping to invent a better heat pump that used water instead of freon, he created and attached a highpowered nozzle to the pump. he attached his creation to the bathroom sink, and to his great surprise, a strong stream of water shot all the way across the bathroom (raatma, 2020; schwartz, 2018). thinking of how his invention could be utilized, he came up with the idea of modifying this invention to create a children’s toy: a high-powered water gun that he named the power drencher. after several additional modifications, he came up with a new name for his creation: super soaker™. lonnie johnson, a curious child who grew up to be a mechanical and nuclear engineer, through his excitement to “mess around” with things, became the creator of the super soaker™ water gun, which he sold to hasbro corporation. that toy water gun soon became the best-selling toy in history of the united states in 1991, earning over one billion dollars in sales. even in his older life, according to raatma (2020), “johnson is always trying new things. some things work, and others don’t. he must use his imagination when inventions fail. he tries over and over until the product works” (p. 26). this article only gives a few examples of how imagination, curiosity, and creativity can lead to amazing creations and inventions. most of the examples we find are discoveries made while “messing around” outside of school, and on free time. consider what could be done in a school setting where children are free to explore their own imaginations without being constrained by a national, standardized curriculum with limited and expected outcomes. another fascinating story describes the path that led jennifer doudna from a curious child amazed by discovering interesting things about the flora (i.e., ferns) of her home in hawaii, to discovering the details of the nature of dna. doudna’s curiosity and imagination eventually led her to harvard university, where she studied the intricacies of dna. the chair of her doctoral dissertation committee and nobel prize winner, dr. jack szostak, encouraged her to study rna, 60 of which he thought would unlock the “biggest of all biological mysteries: the origins of life” (isaacson, 2021, p. 45). after receiving her doctorate in physical chemistry, doudna continued her work in one of the top rna biochemical laboratories at the university of colorado. from there, she accepted a professorship at yale university, and finally to the university of california at berkeley, where she applied her knowledge of rna as it related to viruses, such as the coronavirus. doudna and a colleague, dr. emmanuele charpentier, are credited with inventing and developing a geneediting tool called, crispr, which was a “cut and paste” tool that could, in a sense, peer into the antivirus defense system of bacteria and alter it to allow the bacteria to detect a viral attack and fight back. so how did a young girl who was so intrigued by ferns in hawaii that would curl up when you touched them, begin a path that would lead her to winning a nobel prize in chemistry? according to walter isaacson (2021) in his book, code breaker, doudna was especially curious and looked at “nature’s wonders every day, whether it be a plant that moves or a sunset that reaches with pink fingers into a sky of deep blue” (p. 5). she was always asking questions to find why things worked the way that they do. in her early years as a college student studying chemistry in california, she realized that the experiments she conducted were simply following a recipe, with strict, inflexible protocols and right answers (isaacson, 2021). there was no room for imagination, curiosity, or creativity. after a disappointing freshman year, she got a summer job in a biology lab working with a professor at the university of hawaii. as she worked with the professor, she discovered how different her lab experiments could be. “unlike in class, we didn’t know the answer we were supposed to get” (isaacson, 2021, p. 33). it was in this lab that she tasted the thrill of discovery because she had the freedom to explore her passionate curiosity. as doudna’s colleague charpentier noted, as a scientist, “i wanted to create knowledge, not just learn it” (isaacson, 2021, p. 121). as the teacher may have asked in the movie, ferris bueller’s day off, “who has ever heard of richard drew? anyone? anyone?” the response to that teacher’s boring questions in the movie are most likely the same responses that you are providing for that same question . . . silence. but i’ll bet you a whole quarter that you have heard of the product that drew came up with by just “messing around.” richard g. drew was born in minnesota in 1899. as a young man, drew played the banjo in night clubs and dance halls, which provided him enough money to enroll as an engineering student at the university of minnesota. college just wasn’t his thing, so he dropped out after just a little over a year. he enrolled in a correspondence course, studying mechanical design. using the knowledge gained from that course landed him a job at the minnesota mining and manufacturing company (3m) which made sandpaper (matchar, 2019). as a part of his job with 3m, he would deliver sandpaper to automobile shops, which used the sandpaper to smooth the finish on cars that were scheduled to be painted. at that time, the painters would use glued-on newspaper to mask off areas that were not to be painted, such as 61 windshields, mirrors, and headlights. but the problem with this method was that the glue didn’t stick to the car very well, and it kept falling off. to add to the problem, the sticky glue residue was difficult to remove. workers became very frustrated with the inefficiency of the gluing method. so, while on the job at 3m, drew began experimenting with better ways to hold the newspaper to the cars. he tried coating various materials with vegetable oil, tree gum, and many other sticky substances. one day, drew was approached by william mcknight, a company executive at 3m, and drew’s boss, who told him to “stop messing around and get back to doing his regular job” (matchar, 2019, para. 6). drew obeyed his boss’s command while at work, but on his own time, he kept “messing around,” trying to find a solution to the painter’s problem. “eventually, in 1925, he found a winning formula: crepe paper backed with cabinetmaker’s glue mixed with glycerin. but this first version of masking tape only had adhesive on the edges. when the painters used it, it fell off. they allegedly told drew to take his ‘scotch’ tape back to the drawing board, using the term to mean ‘cheap,’ a derogatory dig at stereotypical scottish thriftiness” (matchar, 2019, para. 7). after five years of refining his “masking tape,” drew received a patent on his product. the same year he invented his “scotch” masking tape, drew developed a semi-transparent tape using recently invented cellophane. however, the adhesive that he used was amber colored instead of transparent, so he continued to experiment with other materials until he came up a colorless adhesive. he also designed a machine that would apply the adhesive to the cellophane. remembering his earlier days at 3m, drew recovered the scotch name for his product: scotch tape™. “the tape was released just as america plunged into the great depression, a time when ‘mend and make do’ became a motto for many. people used scotch tape for everything from mending ripped clothing to capping milk bottles to fixing the shells of broken chicken eggs. at a time when many companies were going under, tape sales helped 3m grow into the multibillion-dollar business it is today” (matchar, 2019, para. 9). remarkedly, every year, the 3m company sells enough scotch tape™ to cover the earth’s circumference 165 times! william mcknight, drew’s boss, who told drew to “stop messing around,” eventually was promoted to the chairman of the board of directors at 3m, and finally realized that allowing researchers to spend free time experimenting with various ideas could lead to new and innovative products. mcknight then implemented a 15% rule, which allowed workers to spend 15% of their time on what he called “passion projects.” when announcing this new program, he said that it would encourage experimental doodling. he said, “if you put fences around people, you get sheep. give people the room they need” (matchar, 2019, para. 11). drew went on to invent many other products during his career at 3m. before he died, he made the statement that there is great joy in “finding something valuable in something not even sought out” (matchar, 2019, para. 12). after drew died in 1980, he was initiated into the national inventors hall of fame. 62 interestingly, 3m’s 15% rule has become the model for many other corporations, such as google and hewlett-packard (black, 2016; matchar, 2019). google says that, perhaps, 20% of their new ideas and products have come from their version of the 15% rule. art fry, the inventor of the post-it™ notes, used the 15% rule to develop that product while experimenting with a removable adhesive that would allow bookmarks to easily be removed from church hymnals (kretkowski, 1998). conclusions so, the question demands an answer: if million-dollar corporations have unbelievable success with giving their employees free time to use their imaginations, their curiosity, and their creativity to develop new and innovative ideas and products, why is our education system ignoring such opportunities for students? oh, i know what you are thinking. many schools are beginning to implement their own version of the 15% rule, which they now call “genius hour” (genius hour, 2021). the genius hour encourages teachers to provide time for students to “explore their own passions and encourages creativity in the classroom” (genius hour, 2021, para. 1). students are given time during the school day to choose their own passion projects. genius hour based their approach on google’s 20% rule. google found that employees who spent 20% of their time using curiosity and passion to create their own projects were “happier, more creative, and more productive” (heick, 2021, para. 4). would this same approach do the same for students? i think the concept of supporting students’ passion projects is a great idea, and i wish that every school would implement a similar program. so far, however, many of the schools that are currently using that program are not giving students time to be imaginative, curious, and creative to come up with their own ideas and products. rather, many schools simply use the so-called genius hour to do teacher-directed projects that have expected outcomes. for example, in the program, teachers are encouraged to facilitate “the student projects to ensure that they are on task” (genius hour, 2021, para. 5). being “on task” actually belies the title of the program and suppresses student choice and autonomy. but, i suppose, if students are free to follow their own creative ideas, the genius hour concept could be a positive step in the right direction if the priority is students’ imagination, curiosity, and creativity – not attendance to the required task. instead of implementing a school version of the 15% rule or genius hour as a separate “reward” time, why can’t we build such a program directly into the stem cs curriculum? the results just might set students on a path from just “messing around” to the next nobel prize! as previously stated, educators should be more concerned with enabling students to develop their imaginations, creativity, curiosity, and to me, the most important quality of all: to instill a sense of wonder in our students – not simply covering the standardized curriculum. if students are free to exercise those qualities, they will become so immersed in following their own interests, the content just happens. i firmly believe you cannot stop it from happening. in considering stem content versus a sense of wonder and the joy of learning: it shouldn’t have to be a choice! 63 references black, s. (2016). how the 15% rule became a stepping stone for 3m’s innovation. market realist. https://marketrealist.com/2016/06/15-rule-became-stepping-stone...hich%20form%20the%20backbone%20of%203m’s%20corporate%20culture. bruner, j. (1960). the process of education. harvard university press. evans, r. w. (2011). great minds at woods hole. in the hope for american school reform. palgrave macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230116672_4. feynman, r. p. (1985). “surely, you’re joking, mr. feynman!.” w. w. norton & company. genius hour (2021). what is genius hour? https://geniushour.com/what-is-genius-hour/. heick, t. (2021). genius hour in the classroom: 6 principles of genius hour. teachthought. https://www.teachthought.com/learning/6-principles-of-genius-hour-in-the-classroom/ isaacson, w. (2017). leonardo da vinci. simon & schuster. isaacson, w. (2021). the code breaker. simon & schuster. kretkowski, p. (1998). the 15 percent solution. business. https://www.wired.com/1998/01/the-15-percent-solution/. matchar, e. (2019). how the invention of scotch tape led to a revolution in how companies managed employees. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/howinventionscotch-tape-led-revolution-how-companies-managed-employees-180972437/ raatma, l. (2020). little explorer: lonnie johnson. capstone. robinson, k. (2015). creative schools. penguin publishing group. stone, s. j. (2017). the essential role of play in school contexts for the well-being of children. learning landscapes, 10(2), 305-318. schwartz, h. (2018). super soaker inventor: lonnie johnson. lerner publishing group. smith, m. k. (2002). jerome s. bruner and the process of education. the encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education. https://infed.org/mobi/jerome-bruner-and-theprocess-of-education/. u.s. department of education: science, technology, engineering, and math, including computer science. retrieved september 26, 2021 from https://www.ed.gov/stem wasserman, s. (1992). serious play in the classroom: how messing around can win you the nobel prize. childhood education, 68(3), 133-139. 26 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 motivation for participation in extracurricular school clubs for students with severe disabilities alicia pencea amiddle tennessee state university dr. alicia pence is an assistant professor in the department of elementary and special education. dr. pence received her ph.d. in special education from the university of illinois at urbana-champaign. her research interests are in the areas of inclusive education and professional partnerships with families. her current research investigates the beliefs and preparedness of early intervention service providers that are working with families of limited financial resources. dr. pence also supervises student teachers, while teaching courses related to professional partnerships, math, and literacy. prior to her appointment at middle tennessee state university, dr. pence taught middle school special education in kentucky for ten years where she served as a resource teacher, co-teacher, and response to intervention math specialist. ultimately, dr. pence endeavors to prepare dynamic educators while maintaining strong advocacy efforts for individuals with disabilities. the participation of students with severe disabilities in school-based extracurricular activities provides students with opportunities to experience a full inclusive school event. typically, however, students with severe disabilities remain underrepresented in extracurricular involvement as compared to their peers without disabilities (agran et al., 2017; cadwallader, et al., 2003). understanding factors influencing students’ decisions to part icipate, or not to participate, in extracurricular activities is a concept frequently investigated in the existing literature for students without disabilities; however, participating in extracurricular school events is seldom explored for students with disabilities. research highlights two factors when considering participation by students without disabilities in why these students select extracurricular school activities; these factors include individual and social-environmental motivational influences. individual factors evidence indicates that individual (or psychological) factors contribute to a student’s decision regarding whether or not to join an extracurricular activity. for example, fredricks and eccles (2002) discuss how that out of 41 students interacting in extracurricular programs focusing on athletics and/or art, students describe enjoyment as the most common reason to participate. these youth describe feelings of pleasure, fun, and satisfaction as rationales to initially interact 27 in extracurricular activities and then, refer to these same reasons to continue their participation. additional fewer common reasons cited by youth to participate in extracurricular school activities included filling their free time, gaining useful skills for future careers, as well as a release from family/school pressures. weiss and williams (2004) describe perceived competence as “…a child’s belief about his or her own ability” (p. 228). youth that join and continue participation in extracurricular activities oftentimes do so because they believe they are ‘good at it.” fredricks and eccles (2002) describe adolescents who positively perceive their ability to succeed in an activity as more likely to continue investing in the same event across time because they felt they possessed the abilities to evidence success, thus increasing their self-confidence. increased self-worth (i.e., self-esteem) also influences students’ decisions to participate in activities. bohnert, martin, and garber (2007), in examining the relationship between adolescent self-worth with activity involvement, discuss how adolescents with high levels of self -worth demonstrate more involvement in extracurricular activities during school as compared with students who did not report high levels of self-worth. their findings suggest students with high levels of self -worth tend to expect more positive gains and rewards (e.g., contact with peers, awards, and honors) from participation, which is an underlying motivation for their initial decision to become involved in activities. social-environmental factors social-environmental factors affecting participation in extracurricular activities also include the roles of parents and friendships. parental encouragement for involvement in extracurricular activities appears to increase youth participation (fletcher, et al., 2000; hueber & mancini, 2003; mahoney & stattin, 2000). through parental endorsement for participation in activities, parents send strong messages to their children about the value of involvement. parents with high expectations for their child’s success in extracurricular activities become more willing to provide access to such opportunities; thereby, parents positively impact their child’s motivation to participate (fredricks & eccles, 2004; hueber & mancini, 2003). parents’ decisions and resulting behaviors (e.g., enrolling their child for music lessons, buying sporting equipment) influence children’s interests, skills, and preferences for future activity choices. additionally, parents who value community civic engagement and demonstrate high involvement with community activities provide their children with positive role models. in turn, parents’ actions result in their children’s enhanced interaction in extracurricular participation (fletcher et al., 2000). friendship is another reason why youth choose to participate in extracurricular activities. specifically, peer relationships may assume heightened importance during adolescence as compared with earlier years of development because of the red efining nature and complexity of peer networks (savin-williams & berndt, 1990). opportunities to spend time with friends as well as make new ones indicate links to higher involvement of youth in extracurricular activities (fredricks & eccles, 2002; hueber & mancini, 2003). also, continued involvement in an extracurricular activity demonstrates an increase in the likelihood youth will develop sustained relationships with peers participating in the activity (patrick et al., 1999). 28 fostering relationships with peers evidence an influence on students’ decisions to participate in extracurricular activities. youth who identify with club members as sharing common values and interests as their own are more likely to join for membership, compared to youth who perceive club members as representing different values and interests (fredricks & eccles, 2002; patrick et al., 1999). youth may also desire to expand their social networks. for instance, patrick and colleagues (1999) assert youth perceive their involvement in activities as increasing the extent to which they could initiate contact with new peers, thus expanding their peer network. as youth create new peer relationships and nurture existing ones, they continuously improve social skills, concepts of well-being, and motivations to continue involvement in the activity. however, when youth are unable to build satisfying peer relationships within the activity, their motivation for involvement decreases as time spent with friends outside of the activity becomes more important (lovitt, et al., 1999; patrick et al., 1999). youth participating in athletics indicate greater enjoyment and intrinsic motivation for continuing involvement in the activity when they have established personal friendships with other team members (weiss & smith, 2002; weiss & williams, 2004). little is known about the motivation for students with severe disabilities to participate in extracurricular activities. limited evidence alludes to potential explanations, such as socialization with peers and skill acquisition; however, existing research for typically developing peers and youth with challenging behaviors suggest additional reasons like perceived competence, increased self-worth, and parental encouragement. there have been no empirical studies investigating motivation, extracurricular participation, and students with severe disabilities. understanding what motivates students with severe disabilities to become, and stay, involved in extracurricular activities is critical for providing evidence as to the importance of these broad school experiences. to address these gaps in the literature, a study is warranted to explore the involvement of students with severe disabilities in extracurricular activities. the purpose of this study was to investigate the motivating factors for school-aged students with severe disabilities in extracurricular school clubs. of the variety of extracurricular activities available in most public schools (e.g., choir, sports), school clubs were selected because research has shown them to be the most frequented activity for students with severe disabilities (kleinert, et al., 2007a). additionally, school clubs typically have many opportunities for students to participate and are accessible to most students in the school. to address the gaps in the literature, this study examined what motivated students to initially join school clubs and, once enrolled, describe reasons for their continued participation. method this qualitative investigation exploring the participation of students with severe disabilities in extracurricular school clubs sought to answer the research question, “what do stakeholders believe motivates students with severe disabilities to participate in school clubs?” to explore the phenomenon of motivation, in-depth interviews were conducted with parents of students with severe disabilities, school club sponsors, and special education teachers. bandura’s theory of 29 self-efficacy (see bandura, 1991) was also used to inform the design of this study as well as to explain the construct of motivation. therefore, for purposes of this research, motivation was defined as being a perspective given by an individual about the rationale, reasoning, and/or purpose for the involvement of a student with sd in a school club. three students with severe disabilities, along with their parents, school club sponsors, and special education teachers were purposefully selected to participate in this study. for this project, a student with a severe disability was defined as having extensive support needs (e.g., autism, intellectual disability) and meeting eligibility criteria for the state’s alternative assessment. extracurricular school clubs were defined broadly to include any student -interest organization that had regular scheduled meetings and were open to all students. each student participated in one school club related to either spirit, leadership, or service. three students with severe disabilities were the focal participants in this study. these students had previously identified intellectual disabilities, with one of them also having a rare neurological disorder that impacted her fine and gross motor abilities. students were receiving special education services in their local public secondary schools and ranged in ages from twelve to fifteen years. the time that students spent in school, typically involved spending most of the day in special education self-contained classrooms, while occasionally included with their peers without disabilities for elective courses (e.g., music, choir). data collection and analysis interview data were collected for three club sponsors, three special education teachers, and the parents of three students with disabilities. in total, fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted (i.e., two for each club sponsor, two for each special education teacher, and one for each parent). each interview took approximately one-hour to complete, was audio recorded, and consisted of one to two specific questions related to student motivation for (a) joining the school club, and (b) continued participation in the club. interview questions were developed based on the literature in the field and the researcher’s experience facilitating extracurricular opportunities for students with severe disabilities. interview questions were piloted with four non-participants of similar backgrounds as the research participants. subsequently, minor revisions were made to the interview questions to provide greater clarity. all interview data were analyzed using open-coding and constant comparative methods (lincoln & guba, 1985). individual interviews were coded, one at a time, by the researcher and a second coder (i.e., graduate student). both coders met multiple times to discuss and compare codes. codes were then defined and recorded in a master codebook, and interview data were analyzed again to apply the codes. these coding procedures were repeated for each set of interview data until coders agreed data reached saturation. final codes were then merged into categories which led to emerging themes that were represented across all interview data (miles, et al., 2014). measures were taken during the data collection and analysis stages to ensure trustworthiness and credibility of findings. first and second level member checking procedures were employed so 30 that participants could have many opportunities to provide feedback (e.g., clarify a response). investigator triangulation allowed for multiple perspectives from several investigators (i.e., researcher, second coder, second researcher) throughout data analysis. for example, the researcher peer debriefed during weekly meetings with a second researcher to discuss emerging codes, categories, and themes. lastly, a researcher identity journal was used consistently throughout the study. this journal provided a space for the researcher to challenge personal assumptions, perspectives, and biases. findings findings are organized by themes that emphasize commonalities across all interview data (stake, 2006). the first two themes (i.e., who you know matters, what you know matters) relate to why students initially joined clubs. although several examples of motives for students joining clubs (i.e., recruitment efforts by club members, prior experience participating in clubs, variety of extracurricular activities from which to choose, relationship with the club sponsor, adult advocated for the student) were identified, data describing the most prominent reason students with severe disabilities enrolled in extracurricular activities were used in order to engage in activities they enjoyed with their friends. the last theme (i.e., finding a niche) explains motivators that influenced students’ ongoing participation in club activities. in general, students were motivated to continue their involvement because they liked being part of a group and they were continuously encouraged to participate; identified as less frequent motives included related to having a relationship with peers outside of club activities and learning new skills. “who” you know…matters ultimately, students were motivated to take part in club activities because they perceived these events as fun activities that they could experience with someone they knew. in each case, there was at least one club member (e.g., childhood friend, peer mentor, sibling) who assumed an integral part in motivating students to join the clubs. in fact, all the students with severe disabilities who became club members evidenced pre-existing relationships with individuals/club members with whom they already felt comfortable. interestingly, two of the club members indicated relationships with typical students emphasizing providing mentoring or personal support as contrasted with reciprocated friendships. for example, one student with a severe disability that participated in a leadership club had a preexisting relationship with a club member. adult participants strongly believed that the student’s awareness of this relationship was a key motivator for her wanting to get involved in the club. the relationship between the student with a severe disability and the peer typically consisted of partaking in school activities together, like eating lunch at the same table or saying hi to each other in the hallway. this relationship did not, however, extend beyond the school day to other common social activities such as attending sleepovers or talking on the phone together. irrespective of the parity in this relationship, the peer oftentimes spoke to the student about the particular club and would frequently invite the student to attend club activities. in another case, adult participants agreed that the sibling of a student with a severe disability was a major reason for joining a spirit club. the student with severe disabilities sibling was heavily involved in the spirit club the year prior to the student showing an interest in joining. in 31 particular, the club sponsor believed that the student’s sibling frequently encouraged him to join the club, and even “drug him along [to club activities]” before he was a club member. the student’s mother also conveyed strong viewpoints about the profound role that the sibling had on her son’s eagerness to join the club by stating, “he just knew right away that he wanted to be a part of it [the club].” “what” you know… matters students’ interests, experiences, and skills influenced the types of clubs they chose to join. club selection had more to do with students’ familiarity with certain activities and knowing how to participate in the activities than their belief that a club sounded intriguing or their desire to experience something new and different. before deciding to join a club, students participated in leisure activities with their families. due to these experiences, students selected to participate in club activities at school that closely resembled their family activities. in turn, membership in familiar clubs meant that students could capitalize on previously learned skills that closely aligned with what was soon becoming an area of leisure interest. family experiences helped to cultivate a sense of curiosity and personal interest for students with severe disabilities. these experiences also afforded students with opportunities to gain skills required for participation. in one student’s case, her mother discussed how she had grown to enjoy cooking, a skill that was important for her participation in a service club. “i always try to include my daughter in everything [in the kitchen] … i think the club drew her [in] because that is what we do all the time [at home].” importantly, the student’s engagement in family cooking helped her to acquire skills (e.g., making simple measurements, following a cooking recipe) that were utilized in various club activities such as preparing and serving food at a local community center. similarly, one student participated in the spirit club and had been raised in a family environment that valued participation in community activities (e.g., sports). in fact, the student spent the majority of his childhood attending his older sibling’s basketball and football games. he was described as having a “good understanding” of the basic rules that govern common sporting events such as basketball. through his involvement in sporting events with his family, he also mastered the skill of cheering (i.e., appropriate voice inflection, use of hand signals). the student’s mother remarked on how the spirit club became a natural fit for her son, “he identifies with sports fandom because that’s what we do all the time…since he was born. i think it’s just so much a part of what we do as a family.” finding a niche students’ reasons for wanting to join clubs revolved around their desire to participate in activities they enjoyed and, sometimes, with peers that they already knew. however, their motivation for continued membership stemmed from finding their own niche, a place where they fit -in with their peers, within the larger context of their school communities. students continuously looked forward to going to club activities and “being with their friends.” on the days that clubs met, students spoke often about their excitement about upcoming club activities; while at home, clubs 32 were an important topic of conversation around the evening dinner table. one club sponsor noted, “this is her [student with severe disability] club. this is where she comes on wednesdays once a month…she doesn’t want to miss anything because she is having so much fun.” students were also committed club members who took great pride in their affiliations with the club. they demonstrated their commitment by attending many of the club meetings and events as well as signing up for volunteer activities. as one club sponsor stated, “if she [student with severe disability] signs up for an activity, i know that she will show up for it.” students w ere also perceived to have participated in more activities than many of their peers. for instance, one student with a severe disability won a selfie-stick for being one of her club’s highest sellers of raffle coupons. as students’ commitment to their clubs deepened, so did a newfound sense of pride for their schools. “i think he considers himself a lion…he’s proud of that,” the spirit club sponsor commented as she discussed how the student wore blue and grey school colors almost daily. after approximately two months of participating, students with severe disabilities became increasingly accustomed to the different types of club activities and routines. as students’ awareness for club rituals strengthened, so did their comfort as club participants. these growing positive experiences led to a greater sense of self -confidence in their own abilities to be contributing club members, fueling their motivation for continued involvement. the club sponsors took notice of the positive changes in students. the leadership club sponsor remarked on one student’s more recent involvement: “i think she feels more comfortable now…especially since she has gotten to know so many of the [club] members through the activities she came to…she doesn’t seem as shy anymore.” interestingly, the student was later nominated and elected, by her peers, for an official officer role in the club. emotional support from students’ families and individuals in the school clubs, also enabled students to find their niche. club sponsors oftentimes used phrases such as “considerate,” “tolerant of (student’s) idiosyncrasies,” “patient,” and “accepting” to describe club members without disabilities. club sponsors were also continuously reinforcing the same expectations for everyone. one club sponsor spoke extensively about her personal belief in the importance of following the basic principle of “treat everyone the same” while participating in the club. essentially, club sponsors strongly believed that each club member should be expected to attend meetings, participate in club events, and follow appropriate social norms (e.g., raising your hand before speaking, not touching other club members). in addition, encouragement from parents was paramount to students’ ongoing participation in club activities. parents ultimately placed great value in their children being involved in school activities with their peers. as one parent remarked, “i like that she is working with peers [in the service club] and getting out of that special class all day…it’s good for her.” encouragement from parents happened often. another parent reinforced the importance of extracurricular activities by telling her child, “the best part of school is being involved and getting to know the people you go to school with.” 33 discussion students with severe disabilities joined clubs for the same reasons as their peers without disabilities. youth with and without disabilities simply wanted to have fun with their friends while participating in activities they enjoyed. this f inding is supported in the existing literature on extracurricular activities (bohnert, et al., 2007; fredricks & eccles, 2002; hueber & mancini, 2003). research for typically developing students also describes these youth sometimes indicate more sophisticated reasons for deciding to join an activity, such as a desire to expand their social network (fredricks & eccles, 2002; hueber & mancini, 2003). in contrast to this literature, students with severe disabilities associated joining a club with people with w hom they had a preexisting relationship (e.g., childhood friend, sibling) and might not have perceived the opportunities to make new friends as a potential motivator. complicating the issue of expanding peer relationships is the disenfranchisement that is often experienced by students with severe disabilities. students, who are spending large amounts of time in classrooms separate from their peers, have fewer opportunities to create or maintain social networks with peers that are outside the purview of the school day. the current data substantiate the claim that having fun is an underlying motivator for joining activities, holding equal value for students with and without disabilities. however, students with severe disabilities might not be able to accurately assess their preference for certain activities because they have few experiences to compare an event, since past research has shown that students with intellectual disabilities have limited leisure time activities in which they partake (buttimer & tierney, 2005; mcguire & mcdonnell, 2008; orsmond, et al., 2004; solish, et al., 2010). moving forward, it will be imperative for students with disabilities to be provided with multiple opportunities to experience a wide range of extracurricular activities. through these experiences, students will have a deeper understanding of what having fun feels like and be better positioned to make choices about the activities in which they choose to participate. once an extracurricular activity is selected, it is important students with severe disabilities feel motivated to continue their involvement. parent encouragement remains a significant motivator for students with and without disabilities. these current data demonstrate the importance of parental encouragement for students with severe disabilities joining in extracurricular activities and support the existing research describing how parents’ high expectations for students influence the motivation of students without disabilities (fredricks & eccles, 2004; hueber & mancini, 2003). these results emphasize the important role for parents in supporting youth involvement. however, parents’ support is especially significant for students with disabilities as many will require additional efforts to participate in activities. for instance, activity buses taking children home after school might not be equipped to transport students with complex support and physical needs. as a result, students with severe disabilities may need to rely on their parents for coordinating or providing transportation. essentially, the influence of parent encouragement is far-reaching, providing important motivation for students as well as access to activities. students without disabilities continue involvement in extracurricular activities because of their positive self-concepts (i.e., high self-confidence, increased self-worth), as many of these youth 34 have a reputation for being hard workers and over achievers. as these youth maintain their involvement, their self-concepts continue to improve as they are reinforced by positive gains and benefits (e.g., improved athletic skills, increased time with peers) (bohnert et al., 2007; fredricks & eccles, 2002; weiss & williams, 2004). on the contrary, students with severe disabilities only begin to develop a positive self-concept across an extended period of time, and after their initial involvement. in part, this might result from the need for additional time and supports for students with severe disabilities to establish new club routines and interactions with peers. club facilitators become integral in aiding the improvement of self -concept for students with severe disabilities. through active, ongoing, collaboration with the special education teacher to understand effective strategies for supporting students with severe disabilities in club activities, facilitators become better positioned to create and sustain a supportive welcoming climate. as a result of these ongoing concerted efforts, students with severe disabilities will likely have greater intrinsic motivation, through improved self-concept, to continue their involvement. limitations there are limitations to this study that should be considered when interpreting findings. findings from interviews with adult participants (i.e., special education teachers, club sponsors, parents) are based on the perceptions of these individuals. although these perceptions offer important insights into the underlying motives for why students were involved in clubs, they might not be an accurate representation of views held by students themselves. for instance, the findings related to leisure preferences for students with severe disabilities consistently demonstrate the mismatch between students’ actual preferences when compared to their parents’ preferences for them (buttimer & tierney, 2005). in addition, others involved in school club activities, like peers or paraprofessionals, might represent other insights not captured in this study. implications for research and practice in order to provide an inclusive and holistic life experience for both students with and without severe disabilities, continued research examining motives for students with severe disabilities involvement in extracurricular activities is beneficial. for example, comparing factors associated with joining and participating in extracurricular programs for students with and without disabilities would support school personnel and club facilitator’s efforts. significantly, it will be imperative for future studies to include the authentic youth voice of students with disabilities. innovative methods for capturing students’ voices through artwork, collective stories, and interviews indicate potential for learning more about this topic. findings from this study also indicate critical implications for practice. foremost, it is important for special education teachers to use evaluative tools beyond preference assessments to determine leisure preferences for students with severe disabilities. for instance, affording students with opportunities to explore and try-out various extracurricular activities will be essential for helping students to establish preferred interests. secondly, it will be essential for club sponsors to maintain standards which cultivate an inclusive-shared space that consistently promotes a culture of high expectations, acceptance, and openness for every club member. to 35 help nurture club members positive self-concepts, club sponsors encourage members to share their unique qualities in the safety of the club environment where club members’ differences are seen as benefits. ultimately, a collaborative and supportive approach involving all membership in the extracurricular activity (e.g., special education teachers, club sponsors, parents, peers) becomes a necessary component to full inclusion in extracurricular opportunities for students with severe disabilities. 36 references agran, m., wojcik, a., cain, i., thoma, c., achola, e., austin, k. m., nixon, c. & tamura, r. 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(2003). participation in extracurricular activities. in m. wagner, t. w. cadwallader, & c. marder (with r. cameto, d. cardoso, n. garza, p. levine, & l. newman), life outside the classroom for youth with disabilities. a report from the national longitudinal transition study-2 (nlts2). menlo park, ca: sri international. retrieved from http://www.nlts2.org/reports/2003_04-2/nlts2_report_2003_042_complete.pdf fletcher, a. c., elder, g. h., & mekos, d. (2000). parental influences on adolescent involvement in community activities. journal of research on adolescence, 10(1), 29-48. fredricks, j. a., & eccles, j. s. (2002). children's competence and value beliefs from childhood through adolescence. developmental psychology, 38, 519-533. fredricks, j. a., & eccles, j. s. 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(1999). adolescents' commitment to developing talent: the role of peers in continuing motivation for sports and the arts. journal of youth and adolescence, 28, 741-763. savin-williams, r. c., & berndt, t. j. (1990). friendship and peer relations. in s. s. feldman & g. r. elliot (eds.), at the threshold (pp. 277-307). cambridge, ma: harvard university press. solish, a., perry, a., & minnes, p. (2010). participation of children with and without disabilities in social, recreational and leisure activities. journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities, 23, 226-236. stake, r. e. (2006). multiple case study analysis. new york, ny: the guilford press. weiss, m. r., & smith, a. l. (2002). friendship quality in youth sport: relationship to age, gender, and motivation variables. journal of sport and exercise psychology, 24, 420-437. weiss, m. r., & williams, l. (2004). the why of youth sport involvement: a developmental perspective on motivational processes. in m. weiss (ed.), developmental sport and exercise psychology: a lifespan perspective (pp. 223-268). morgantown, wv: fitness information technology. ijwc_springv42021 26 ijwc_springv42021 27 ijwc_springv42021 28 ijwc_springv42021 29 ijwc_springv42021 30 ijwc_springv42021 31 ijwc_springv42021 32 ijwc_springv42021 33 ijwc_springv42021 34 ijwc_springv42021 35 ijwc_springv42021 36 ijwc_springv42021 37 final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 34 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 one male student teacher’s perception and experiences of student teaching in an infant group care setting jessun junga, eugene geistb a-bohio state university dr. jeesun jung is an associate professor in the early childhood & elementary education program in the patton college of education at ohio university. she taught as a teacher in riverside weekday school in new york city for 5 years. she holds ed.d. in early childhood education from teachers college, columbia university. her areas of expertise include infant/toddler education and care, teacher professional development, diversity, and play of young children. dr. eugene geist is a professor in the patton college of education at ohio university. he holds the b.a. in history and a med in child development and early childhood education from the university of cincinnati. he received his ph.d. from the university of alabama at birmingham in early child development and education with a specialization in piaget’s constructivism. his areas of expertise include child development, constructivism, and the development of mathematical knowledge in young children. abstract this qualitative case study explores in-depth how one male student teacher reflected on his care practice with infants and how he described his experiences of working with female mentor teachers. the authors used the teacher’s daily journal entries, four individual interviews, and weekly team planning meetings as data sources. the data was collected over 15-week period. findings revealed that the teacher’s caring sense gradually evolved through care practice and that he brought in his authenticity as a teacher, not just as a male teacher, while confronting with and critically reflecting upon himself as a teacher. also, the weekly team planning meetings helped him build relationship with the female mentor teachers. he positively reflected upon his experiences of collaborative teaching. implication of the findings is discussed in terms of male students in early childhood teacher education programs. introduction as of 2017, female childcare workers make up 93 % of the entire workforce in the united states (u.s. bureau of labor statistics, 2017). this lack of male teachers has been globally persistent in early childhood education (ece) throughout time (drudy, 2008). as a result, there have been concerns about “gendered” (murray, 1996, p.368) childcare, suggesting that children have been 35 deprived of balanced opportunities to learn from people who represent all genders (husam et al., 2019). several studies attributed low recruitment and retention of early childhood (ec) male teachers to low salary (shpancer et al., 2019), low social status and the gendered nature of the profession (bhana & moosa, 2016), and negative societal perception of male teachers (ottaviano & persico, 2019; shpancer et al., 2019). moreover, social isolation in a female-dominated workplace is one of their concerns about working at preschools (anliak & beyazkurk, 2008). as such, male teachers in early childhood education have been marginalized as ‘others’ (mcgowan, 2016; zhang & wang, 2018). despite all the challenges, when male teachers choose to work in early childhood education settings, their motivation is grounded on their passion and love of children and teaching (anderson, 2019; pirard et al., 2015; xu, 2019). recently, researchers investigated the characteristics common to male teachers’ practice at preschools. quality male teachers are reported to share common characteristics with quality female teachers in that male teachers are child-centered, sensitive, responsive, nurturing, loving, compassionate, trustful, patient, playful, and excited about children’s learning and curiosity (bullough, 2015; carter, 2013). as the understanding of male teachers in ece has improved recently, there has been an effort to increase the number of male teachers in ec education and care. one of the ways to promote recruitment of male teachers would be to improve ec teacher education programs where prospective male teachers are trained to teach and make career decisions (nelson & shkwambi, 2010; therese & ayse, 2010; xu, 2019). male student teachers’ experiences in teacher education program historically male students’ enrollment in ece programs at colleges has been very low, indicating the need for understanding of the male students’ experiences in their programs (therese & ayes, 2010). existing studies on male students in the programs show that the students face some challenges during coursework as well as the field experiences. in ec teacher education programs where students are predominantly female, male students become a minority and deal with feelings of isolation and issues of standing out (xu, 2019), while figuring out “how to make a place for themselves” (pirard et al., 2015, p.365). furthermore, field experiences pose more complex challenges to male students. at some childcare programs and schools, male student teachers are prohibited from changing diapers or taking female children to the restroom (xu, 2019). some female teachers insist that male student teachers are incapable of caring for young children because of their gender (beyazkurk, 2006). some parents question male student teachers’ work with their children (mistry & sood, 2013) as societal bias against male teachers are still pervasive (jung, 2012). thus, male students constantly grapple with a potential suspicion and a risk of being seen as pedophiles (heikkila & hellman, 2017; joseph & wright, 2016; mistry & sood, 2015). coupled with discriminatory policy against male students, such societal misperception may only exacerbate male students’ anxiety and concerns about their behaviors during field experience. however, the challenges that male students face are rarely addressed in teacher training programs (pirard et al., 2015). male students are reported to be lack of proper guidance or support from male mentors or supervisors during student teaching (battle, 2015; heikkila & hellman, 2017; mistry & sood, 2016). consequently, male students have to deal with the challenges they face on their own. given that field experience is highly influential in students’ 36 career choice (pirard et al, 2015; heikkila & hellman, 2017), it is important to provide male students with field experiences where they are well received and connected with mentors. infant care practice in early childhood education, caring is considered critical to professionalism (brody, 2015) and expected to be a part of teachers’ attitudes and interactions with children. in particular, infant/toddler care involves teachers’ intimate physical contact with very young children (jung et al., 2021; svinth, 2018). such unique demands may present more challenges to male student teachers, making them vulnerable to societal bias against them. also, due to the scarcity of infant teachers who are males, the male student teachers in infant group care settings may experience the status of being a minority and a sense of isolation. subsequently, the challenges and conflicts that the teachers face may become more salient. however, existing studies on male student teachers’ field experiences in ece settings are very limited (heikkila & hellman, 2017) and to the best of my knowledge, there is no research on male student teachers in infant group care settings. the purpose of the present study is to explore one male ece student teacher’s views and experiences in infant group care setting during his student teaching. this study is intended to help teacher educators and professionals better understand and support male students and teachers in infant classroom. research questions are 1) how does a male student teacher perceive his care practice with infants? 2) how does a male student teacher describe his experiences of working with infants and female colleagues? method settings and participants since the focus of the study was to explore in-depth one male student teacher’s perception and experiences of working with infants and female colleagues, the present study employed a qualitative case study approach to gain an in-depth understanding of the male student teacher’s experiences (marshall & rossman, 1999). for “purposeful sampling” (merriam, 1998, p.61), john (pseudonym), a senior-year male student in an ece program at a large state university in the united states was deliberately chosen (patton, 1990). at the beginning of the study, he was in his early 20s and just started his student teaching in an infant room at a university-based child development center. he was six feet tall with a beard and humorous, and loved music, nature, and outdoor activity. he completed 20 hours of work per week over 15 weeks in the infant room. john worked with his mentor teachers, laura and amy in the room. on a weekly basis, john had one-hour team planning meetings with the mentors, where they shared their observations and experiences from the past week, addressed any issues and concerns, discussed ways to support children, and planned activities and schedules for the following week. data sources and data analysis multiple data sources were utilized, including interviews, daily reflective journal, and observations. as a non-participant observer, the researcher observed john working with infants over two days, writing field notes. the semi-structured interviews with john were conducted four times over 15 weeks, each of which lasted for 40-45 minutes and was transcribed later. 37 interview questions focused on his reflections on working with infants and his female mentor teachers and on any challenges and issues that he might face. laura and amy, his mentor teachers, were also interviewed for 45 minutes about their experiences of working with john. besides, the one-hour weekly team meetings were observed over the semester, and, in total, six meetings were videorecorded. detailed anecdotes of each meeting, which included the teachers’ dialogue verbatim, were transcribed. the observations provide information on john’s perception of his practice with the infants, as well as how he worked with his female mentor teachers. his daily journal with 66 entries was collected. john used the journal to vent his feelings and reflect on his mistakes/challenges, his pride/accomplishment, and his specific interactions with infants. thus, the journal aided in understanding of john more holistically, from his emotional responses to his significant moments in day-to-day practice, which would be difficult to reveal through observation alone. data analysis was guided by the research questions (merriam, 1998). the researcher read and reread the manuscripts of the four interviews and his journal while paying attention to how he described and reflected on his work with infants and teachers. the researcher watched the recorded weekly meetings and read the manuscripts multiple times. during this process, colorcoding was done on data and the relationship among the independent codes was written on a separate sheet. also, the researcher compared all data chronologically to see whether any emerging patterns changed over time. this process helped look closely at the context of each code and themes while merging some patterns and identify new patterns. results the findings show that, although john started with a lack of confidence in his ability to care for infants, he demonstrated capabilities of providing quality care practice, being responsive and sensitive to each infant’s needs and interest. overtime, john evolved as a caring person, being genuinely interested in delivering quality experiences for infants. although john was the only male teacher in the infant room, he perceived himself as equal to his female mentor teachers, working collaboratively and professionally with open communication. practicing a sense of caring john’s mentor teacher, laura, highly regarded his ability to care for infants. when asked about john’s work with infants, laura said, “he does really well. his language and communication with them is really good…he seems to talk to them in a caring way, but not too cutesy...and they (infants) love him!” yet, she recalled his first day, saying with smile “we were really nervous about him... during the orientation, he was like, “i don’t want to be here, and i want to get out!” he came in with more negative attitude and idea of what it was.” john said in a later interview that his lack of experience with infants made him feel overwhelmed because he “did not even know how to hold a child.” he wrote in his journal about his second day, “i'm good with kids, but not as good with babies…one girl who is particularly fussy would start crying and i would be at a loss not knowing what to do because i did not know the problem.” 38 however, under the center’s indiscriminatory gender-equal policy toward all teachers, john gained many opportunities to fully engage in the care practice such as diaper change, napping, or feeding from the first week of his student teaching. after his first try with diaper change, he referred to that day as “big day!” and positively reflected on basic care in his journal (day 4), as “complicated” but “interesting” and “easy to get in a rhythm to.” john also managed sanitaryrelated tasks such as cleaning and washing. at times, he mentioned how “draining” these tasks were, yet he perceived them as an essential part of infant group care. he wrote, “learning these routines is very important for managing the whole classroom” (day 13). through the carerelated tasks, john gained more focused one-on-one time with the infants and gradually realized a sense of responsibility for the infants, striving to meet their needs and to support their development. he wrote, “the kids are growing on me now…and i am beginning to learn each of their personalities which has greatly alleviated the struggle to [identify] the problem and help with [their developmental] goal” (day 7). throughout the first half of the semester, john was deeply concerned about each child’s emotional/physical well-being, often reflecting in his journal on details about each child’s habits, behaviors, cues, temperament, and his responses to them. in the following journal entry, he shared a sense of relief and pride when he was able to recognize an infant’s needs and ease her discomfort. “i made progress in reading what isabel (the youngest) was thinking today…she was fine for a while but eventually i noticed her acting irregularly…so i…got her bottle. by the time i had gotten the bottle…, she was crying pretty hard. since i timed it right, she spent hardly any time crying. i think this is cool because i was able to read what she wanted before she actually started crying and managed to prepare for it.” (day 11) in his later interview, john explained more about isabel’s cues: “she wasn't crying a lot, but she wasn't super happy, there was something [different about her behavior]. she was not really playing with things, she was just sitting there, she was unhappy, like not content, but it was not really a problem…for some reason i could just tell.” through trial and error in meeting each infant’s needs during care practice, he gained better understanding of each child and became more sensitive and responsive to infants’ cues. moreover, he came to value the care practice as a way to build a relationship with them. he said, “i don't want to just do the routine and stare at a baby…it is kind of a bonding thing cause it's just like them and me” (interview 4). toward the middle of the semester, he was no longer anxious about infants’ expression of stress/discomfort. observation of his practice also showed that he was very comfortable with caring for infants while being warm and nurturing in his interactions with infants. he believed that his support of individual infants would encourage them to trust him, which in turn would affect the quality of their daily experiences. he said, “when they know and trust that i can help them, they can do a lot more than they could [without this trust]” (interview 3). 39 over time, john’s interest in and concerns about individual infants became more personal. in his journal, he expressed his concerns about infants’ sickness or absences, thinking about ways to keep them happy when they return. at times, he became excited when he noted individual infant’s developmental milestones, whether small or major, hoping to see their more advanced growth before he would leave them at the end of the semester. although he started with anxiety and concern about his ability to care for infants, he came to deeply care about them. at the end of the semester when he was asked about his strength as a teacher, he answered, “i feel like i respect them, i understand them, they understand me.” feeling safe and comfortable working with female mentor teachers when asked about any challenges in working with infants as a male teacher, john pointed to one issue, “i think it is a little bit weird because, especially in schools, i have to worry about things that girl teachers don't have to worry about. [for instance] if a kid goes in a bathroom and is in there for 35 minutes, a normal teacher could just walk in, yell at him and walk out. i have to worry about what it would be thought as. there are a lot of little things like that. if you make any wrong move, it could be hammered onto you, where i don't think it would be nearly as much as if you were a female teacher. but actually, my day-to-day life working here, no, it's not a big deal for me. i think it would be cool if steve (a male teacher at the center) [were my mentor]; it would be cool to be in his room, but it didn't happen”. (interview 2) although john himself did not experience any suspicion or discriminatory treatment during student teaching, he was aware of societal perception against male teachers. therefore, he considered that having a male mentor teacher would help him because “it could be a more direct example of what i could be doing” (interview 2). in regard to working with female colleagues, john pointed to some differences in communication between him and his female colleagues. yet, he felt these were more of a personal matter and stressed commonalities that he shared with them as teachers. he said, “i’m a lot more blunt than some of the interns…[but] i don’t think there’s a gender difference in how we work.” observation of the weekly team meetings showed collaborative and professional relationship between the mentor teachers and john. during the meetings, the mentor teachers often checked in with john about how he was doing, what his concerns might be, and how they could support him. john seemed comfortable and candid with the mentor teachers, openly communicating about his concerns and asking a lot of questions without much hesitation. some of his responses were: “i just don’t know how to do it at all with a one-year old”; “is it wrong to do…?”; “how would you do that?”; “i don’t know how they’re going to respond to it…i feel like it would help to have you [laura] or amy there”; “i don’t really know what a language lesson is. can you tell me…” it also should be noted that john and the mentors at times shared casual conversation about their personal lives during the meetings. he sometimes made jokes or mimicked the infants in somewhat exaggerated ways, which made the teachers laugh, breaking up the tension of the 40 meeting. he reflected that the weekly meetings helped him build better relationship with the mentors and work better with infants. he said in the interview, “throughout the day… we have the get-the work-done type of conversations whereas in the meetings, it’s still work, but it’s not all work. there’s stories and it’s fun and you kind of get to learn the personality of each person. i feel like i know amy much better now than i did at the beginning of the year… so the meetings helped with learning the teacher as well as what to do [in class]”. his mentor teachers, both laura and amy, also considered that the meeting allowed time for them to learn about john, to build both personal and professional relationship with him, and eventually to help mentor him. for them, the meeting was not only about ‘planning schedules’ but about making space where they connected with and supported him. amy said, “i really like being with everyone at once without babies. a lot of times during the day, it’s so busy. so, it’s (the meeting) a time to settle down to make sure, especially that they (john and his peer student teacher) don’t need help with anything. i think sometimes it’s hard for them to come to us with questions. so that’s like setting a time to be able to ask questions…and to be able to check in on how they’re doing.” laura also pointed to the meeting as a space for open communication. she said, “i like the informality of it (the weekly meetings). it’s nice to get to know your people that you are working so closely with, on a more informal basis. especially with interns, i think it helps because they feel more comfortable saying anything (during the meetings) that they are struggling with or frustrated. they are more open up about those things.” furthermore, laura, who was aware of john’s initial lack of motivation and confidence in working with infants, emphasized the importance of supportive mentoring for him. she said, “i guess being understandable of their mistakes, letting them know that we anticipate them to make mistakes and that it’s okay. i always give examples of some mistakes that i had when i was an intern and my first year working here.” observation of the weekly meetings evidenced that, throughout the semester, the mentor teachers showed willingness to support john through positively responding to his ideas and incorporating them into curriculum, listening and respecting john’s reflection on infants and practice, offering knowledge and experiences to john’s questions, and accepting john’s request of help. with the mentors’ support, john actively participated in the meetings, willing to jump into discussion with the mentor teachers, provided his commentary on their reflection, and collaboratively developed curriculum for infants’ development. laura found john’s evolving positive attitude toward working with infants over time. she said, “i think that he’s seeing them as something he can benefit from. i think he does enjoy the children and having fun with them.” overall, john positively reflected on working with his two mentors, valuing open communication and collaborative teamwork. when there was a new incoming female teacher in his room, he was hopeful of working with her as well. he wrote, 41 “i liked learning from laura because she seemed very skilled at what she does. i like working with amy because she is younger and is still working out how to run a room. when problems come up, we will talk through them. i enjoy this type of collaboration so i am curious to see the type of experiences a new person will bring” (day 41). discussions male ece students have been reported to face many difficulties particularly in the field experiences. yet, the present study suggests that, within supportive environment for student teaching, the male student teacher is capable of navigating complex challenges inherent in working with the youngest group of children while evolving and growing in his practice of care/education. also, positive mentoring and open communication with mentors are essential to help him overcome some of the societal prejudice he may encounter. the findings will be further discussed in terms of male students in early childhood teacher education as follows. a caring sense evolves through care practice the findings show that john’s sense of care gradually evolved through intimate care practice. within a context where there was no discriminatory policy against male teachers, john was able to be deeply involved in a wide range of care practice, having physical contacts with the infants and dealing with the infants’ intense emotional/physical needs. meanwhile, he gradually gained a better understanding of each child, formed relationship with them, gained a strong sense of responsibility, and became genuinely interested in each infant’s well-being. once he gained a sense of caring, it was powerful enough to permeate throughout his daily practice and interactions with children. he strived to offer meaningful activities aligned with infants’ interests while being mindful of infants’ individual needs and development. commitment to children’s well-being, to education of children, and to instilling values are all types of caring in the spectrum of teaching (scurfield, 2017). unlike social prejudice against male teachers, this study evidence male teacher’s quality caregiving practice and his capability in this regard if they are given full trust and opportunities to fully focus on practicing care for infants. according to one study (bullough, 2015), a male assistant teacher at a head start program reflected that his work with children helped him become more “sensitive, gentler, even more fun” (p.17). similarly, the present study suggests that experiences of care practice in infant group care settings may influence the way male teachers perceive care and that their sense of care may be emerged from their sustained involvement in intimate care practice. aware of societal prejudice against male teachers the findings show that, even within an environment where john was provided with trust and full responsibility in the care practice, he was keenly aware of societal bias in his work. this indicates how deeply the social prejudice is pervaded across the society, including male teachers themselves. existing studies show that when male teachers are concerned about any potential of gender-related accusations against them, they become more cautious when working with children (bullough, 2015, thorpe et al., 2018; scurfield, 2017). given that infant care requires a high degree of physical contact (recchia, 2012), male teachers’ fear of societal prejudice may be 42 amplified and thus may limit the degree of their daily interactions with young children (xu, 2019), directly affecting the quality of the children’s experiences. several studies report that, out of such fear and concerns, male student teachers seek out male mentors to find creative strategies for the gender-related challenges (ottavian & persico, 2019), which is also echoed by john in the present study. therefore, it is necessary for early childhood teacher education programs to provide an opportunity prior to or during the students’ field experience that male students can connect with male teachers to seek out possible solutions and mentorship. also, shared understanding, deep empathy, and a sense of urgency regarding these issues must be established among program faculty, supervisors, mentor teachers, center/school directors, and community so that male students can practice in the field with a sense of security and confidence. supportive and relationship-based mentoring pivotal to male student teacher’s sense of belonging several studies report that male students had difficulties to seek help or recognize any challenges they might have (walker, 2018). in contrast, john, in the present study, was willing to share his concerns with his mentors and explicitly ask for their support. moreover, he valued the collaborative teamwork and open communication he had with his female mentors. these findings may be attributed to the supportive teaching context. both mentor teachers provided positive and consistent mentoring support for john, which has manifested throughout the meetings over one semester. furthermore, the findings indicate how important the regular communication and relationship between mentor teachers and student teachers is to male student teacher’s sense of trust and belongings within the female-dominant workplace. previous studies report that acceptance from teachers in the field affects male student teachers’ positive self-esteem (beyazkurk, 2006). also, collegiality and collaborative culture at workplace can be supportive to male teachers when they face challenges (jung, 2012). the present study suggests that field experiences, particularly for male students, should provide an environment where male students continuously engage in communication with their mentors to address the students’ concerns, questions, and ideas. these productive interactions may enable male students to feel a sense of belonging, while alleviating any possible sense of isolation, tension, or challenges. conclusion unique demands inherent in 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(2018). understanding male kindergarten teachers’ motivation for teaching in mainland china: a case study. journal of education for teaching, 44(4), 496499. https://doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2018.145095 1 introduction kathleen g. burriss, editor continuing the ijwc mission to promote an understanding of holistic and integrative learning, the spring issue/ 2019 provides readers with important theoretical underpinnings, relevant best practice examples, and insightful reflections to enrich the daily lives of all children. articles in the first article,” childhood remembered: reflections on the role of play for holistic education in armenia, kuwait, saudi arabia, the usa, and wales,” authors, james m. ernest, amy nicholas, shushan vardanyan, fatimah hafiz, mohammad alazemi, and dorielle dixon promote understanding of play beyond a developmental perspective and highlight the critical role of play as truly holistic. using narrative data, wherein adults reminisce childhood play experiences, ernest and colleagues underscore the integral influence of play in facilitating children’s ability to mediate emotions, determine gender roles, and form cultural connections with the past. toward creating legitimacy and establishing priority for children’s play, authors argue for a change in language. this revised narrative prioritizes play by naturally integrating relevant content into play, rather than trying to fit play into the academic schedule. this wording is not mere semantics; the authors believe altering language supports teachers’ ability to communicate the integral role of play in children’s learning and development. in the current public school arena, underscored by academic and performance benchmarks, ernest and colleagues caution how diminishing children’s opportunities to play may evidence future costs society is not yet aware. in the second article, “critically reflective leadership: defining successful growth,” robert f. reardon, kathleen fite, mike boone, and sierra sullivan frame leadership practices within an understanding of critical reflection. their purpose is to support potential leaders toward implementing most effective leadership practices. after providing several examples of leadership models, authors describe the role of reflection in determining which approach is most appropriate 2 for specific contexts and for particular followers. effective leaders regard both the goals of the institution as well as the needs of the constituents. in addition to typical administrative roles, teachers, practitioners, and parents may also serve in a variety of leadership capacities. this article bridges the link between theory and practice and provides individuals with insight toward enhancing their own and others’ leadership practices. drawing connections between holistic learning theory and real-world practice, the third article, “explorations on the benefits of a holistic family language and literacy program in a latino community: multiple perspectives,” authors, clarisse halpern, daisy gonzalez, debra giambo, and tunde szecsi, describe how an early childhood program supported children’s and families’ abilities to more effectively interact and engage in both the school and extended community. authors collected data during informal conversations with administrators, teachers, and parents and, through their analysis, describe advantages of a family language and literacy program including academic gains, positive social and emotional learning, and overall improved inclusive community-related benefits for both children and their families. clarisse and colleagues describe recommendations to support the challenges confronting newly immigrated latino families into the school and community. acknowledging the u.s. changing demographics, authors describe how, as well as diminishing children’s and families’ stress, this holistic literacy program indicates long-range positive benefits for the child, family, school, and broader community. pictures for reflection in “i am 10-years-old: watch me grow,” ijwc highlights the dramatic changes experienced by 10 year olds. with much research and media focus on early childhood and the middle school years, what is happening to children in-between as they transition into adolescence? considering the rapid emotional and physical changes, this picture for reflection focuses on the 10 year old and challenges readers to support this extraordinary time in children’s learning and development. tech talk in their article, “samr: a tool for reflection for ed tech integration,” authors nancy caukin and leslie trail, in addition to elucidating what the samr model is and how it can be used, provide practical ways to consider practice in light of this model with rich description to assist teachers to be intentional, strategic, and relevant. toward integrating technology, authors guide educators to consider the “when, how, and why” of their tech choices. 3 etc. this etc. component is responsible to directly evidence the link between current research and best practice. pamela kramer ertel, in “a book review & action plan for using renata galindo’s my new mom & me (schwarz & wade)” provides readers with not only a book summary and overview of the relevant literature describing children who are adopted, but as well includes an action plan for using this particular book. quality literature is an important resource for introducing and reinforcing sensitive and sometimes emotional issues for children. a readaloud is an excellent beginning, but kramer ertel extends practitioners’ abilities to build upon the story and generate efforts to help children decentrate and consider the different circumstance of others in respectful and caring ways. health and wellness for children and families in “aces and healthcare: creating a positive future,” authors barbara whitman lancaster, tiffany wilson, and katie wetsell discuss the severe and long-lasting implications of adverse childhood experiences (aces). these authors, in an effort to provide support and integration, describe seminal medical research linking experiences of abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction in childhood with future health outcomes. childhood trauma and early experiences of crisis evidence life-long consequences. sixty percent of the u.s. population indicate a prevalence of aces. in order to most positively support children’s holistic development, authors provide insight from the medical profession. learning from one another, child advocates from a range of disciplines can more effectively collaborate and promote children’s and families’ health and wellness. steam in this steam feature, “from theory to practice: building leadership opportunities through virtual reality science expeditions,” kaitlin peterson and brian andrew stone provide the background, motivation, and plan to prepare for virtual reality learning and teaching. significantly, authors ground their rationale for using new technologies within an understanding of children’s learning and development. twenty-first century technologies are here; it remains the responsibility of informed educators to implement current technology within an understanding of holistic and integrative learning. 4 page turners: books for children patricia a. crawford, maria t. genest, katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, and michelle j. sobolak, page turner editors, provide insightful and descriptive book reviews for a variety of children’s ages, stages, and interests. among others, books include poetry, historical context, and issues associated with children growing and experiencing personal development. ijwc updates this new feature provides readers with important journal announcements and other professional updates. 19 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 educator perceptions of student ownership and self-authorship: building a connective framework between two constructs brian j. stonea, kendra surmitisb anorthern arizona university bprescott college dr. brian a. stone is a senior lecturer at northern arizona university. he teaches elementary science and social studies methods courses for undergraduates. he is the director for the professional development school program at nau, and also runs faculty-led study abroad programs to australia, new zealand, ireland, and the u.k. with a specific focus on integrated curriculum and multiage education. dr. stone's research interests include child-centered educational practices, inquiry-based learning, constructivism, and play. dr. kendra a. surmitis is a licensed professional counselor, researcher, and counselor educator. as psychoanalytically-informed psychotherapist, she integrates insight-based therapy within a wellness counseling model that emphasizes the development of self-authorship. dr. surmitis works with a diverse range of adolescents and adults at her private practice, and is a core faculty member at prescott college. the constructs of ownership and self-authorship student ownership in k-16 education is well defined in the literature, with multiple examples of the benefits to individual students. according to fletcher (2008), “students feel connected, engaged, and meaningfully involved when they are addressing relevant issues that reflect their interests, their passions, and their identities” (para. 4). simply defined, student ownership or autonomy is an “action that is chosen; action for which one is responsible” (deci & ryan, 1987, p. 1025). scott (2009) suggests that teachers help students develop ownership in the classroom by “including students in school-decision-making processes, by ensuring that students have the opportunity to express their opinions about the way schools are run, and by creating school communities that are symbiotic” (para. 2). it is critical students actively interact in constructing the curriculum, and indeed, their own learning experiences (scott, 2009). in close relation to ownership is the developmental construct of self-authorship. baxter magolda’s (2001) concept of self-authorship is a derivative of more general cognitive developmental models, grounded in work attributed to developmentalists including piaget, kohlberg, perry, and kegan. self-authorship is a constructivist phenomenon, and is exhibited as an individual constructs or makes meaning of their relationship to the world around them. 20 specifically, self-authorship is the term describing a shift of meaning-making capacity from outside-of-self to inside-of-self. as an individual constructs self-authorship, they “integrate values, beliefs, convictions, generalizations, ideals, abstractions, interpersonal loyalties, and interpersonal states” (kegan, 1994, p. 185). achievement of self-authorship is therefore recognized in the coordination of defining identity, beliefs, and social relationships while critically considering external variables and perspectives. complete development therefore includes three elements of construction, including the intrapersonal (self), interpersonal (in relation to others), and epistemological (how we view the world) (baxter magolda, 2008). with an interrelation of ownership and self-authorship in healthy developmental processes of the individual, the authors of this study determined to qualify educator perceptions of these constructs, both in terms of assigned value and classroom manifestation. theoretical framework the theoretical framework for this research is situated in social and critical constructivism. social constructivism is defined as knowledge that is constructed individually through personal experiences as well as through social and cultural influences (schreiber and valle, 2013). critical constructivism is defined as an epistemology that is affected by socio-cultural context and aids in cultural transformation (taylor, 1996). when students possess a high level of ownership in their learning process, they will build through meaningful, relevant experiences that also connect to personal interest. in addition, the pathways for their self-authorship will be strengthened by the social-cultural allowance for freedom of choice. in other words, if peers and teachers provide opportunities for the ownership of learning experiences through personally interesting activities, students will gain a stronger internal voice. this research also draws from self-determination theory, positing that individuals have a strong psychological need to feel competent, to feel connected, and to feel autonomous (deci, 1975). methods this pilot qualitative study involved a twenty-question descriptive survey sent via email link to a small group of randomly selected teachers in the local school district from k-12 levels. it was also sent to university professors and contingent faculty in the college of education at the local university. detailed responses were received across the different levels. participants described their level of familiarity with the constructs of ownership and self-authorship. additionally, they described the importance of the constructs and their usage of such ideas in their respective classroom environments. the authors, using a compare-contrast analysis (walk, 1998), examined the descriptions of the participants, identifying four emergent themes including teacher dominance and control, teacher modeling and facilitation, personal experiences inform pedagogy and practice, and teachers value ownership and authorship. 21 results and discussion baxter magolda and king (2004) believe self-authorship represents the capacity of an individual to internally define a belief system and identity that engages in the larger world. self-authorship entails a “seat of judgement” in which an individual is able to develop a personal authority that is unhindered by external constraints or expectations (kegan & lahey, 2009). as a developmental process, individuals mature from a reliance upon external authorities to an internally-defined orientation in which one becomes the “author of one’s inner psychological life” (kegan, 1994, p. 31). ownership, as defined previously, is simply a student’s capacity for choice and selfdetermined actions within the classroom. a deep and previously unexplored connection exists between the constructs of ownership and self-authorship as many school processes, instructions, philosophies, and assessments maintain an expectation of individual reliance and dependence upon the external authority (i.e. teachers, administrators, curriculum specialists). participants’ responses indicate a perceived connection between academic effort and success. many participants expressed the importance of effort and success when asked to describe both ownership and self-authorship in their classroom and in their own educational experience. for example, one participant responded that self-authorship is manifested by “self-confidence” and success in school. the same respondent said, “i have strong self-authorship due to my successes in school.” furthermore, the participant said that if the “family respects and encourages the construct of education, then the child is likely to as well.” another stated, “i equate success in academics to success in athletics regular skills practice, learning new techniques a little at a time, following the coach’s rules and guidelines, talking to the coach if you are unhappy with your playing time, and expecting to have to work harder to get more playing time.” these responses align with a reproduction of authoritarian control and student compliance under the umbrella of academic success. responses do not mirror the constructs of ownership or selfauthorship development. teacher dominance and control participants’ responses evidenced inherent levels of teacher-control and an authoritarian mindset. the language often reflected the level of control. participants typically responded with first-person language, which was followed by a qualifier. for example, one participant wrote, “i hold my students accountable,” and “i ask what steps the student has taken to take advantage of the many resources i provide for them.” another wrote “i encourage…ownership…by asking [students] to put forth the necessary extra effort.” still another wrote, “i can provide…assignments to help students practice, but it is up to them to implement them outside of the classroom.” teachers perceived students developing ownership and self-authorship if they followed the teacher’s assignments, the teacher’s timetable, and learned to implement the teacher’s advice for success. one respondent wrote, “students develop tests” and another wrote, “i require that students attend community events…however, students can make choices about what events they want to attend (with some exceptions). with some choice comes the potential for some ownership and larger scale development of self-authorship, but it is still situated in a controlled environment with approved directions for students. for those whose views more closely aligned with the constructs of ownership and selfauthorship, the evidence for teacher-directed activity and systemic barriers was 22 substantial. from the question on barriers to ownership and self-authorship, it was evident that teachers saw control as an obstacle. “students are not granted autonomy,” one person wrote. another focused on the system and how it conditions children by saying, “i find so many students have experienced the socialization of conditioning in k-12…they may find themselves focused on grades and testing rather than learning,” and students do not focus “on assignments that are more open-ended.” the same person said, “compliance is an important construct that deters ownership and self-authorship.” teacher modeling and facilitation if ownership could properly be modeled and then facilitated by teachers, then students would be more likely to develop along the continuum of self-authorship. one teacher wrote, “my role is to model these behaviors for them…i need to approach situations with an open mind and a critical thinking lens while treating others involved with respect.” this was a common attitude expressed throughout the responses across both ownership and self-authorship questions. however, what teachers expressed as modeled ownership and self-authorship often did not match the defined constructs of those terms. personal experiences inform pedagogy and practice personal experiences inform pedagogy and teaching practice. the fourth theme revealed across responses generates from participant student-personal story narratives and the ways in which these memories inform the participants’ understanding of their approach to teaching as well as their strategies for teaching in the classroom. effectively, nearly all participants provided a written account of connected events in his or her own educational experience as a student, from which the researcher identified parallels to later participant responses concerning teaching pedagogy and practice. for example, a participant shared the following, “as an on campus student at all levels, i tended to learn as much if not more from my professors outside of the classroom. these experiences have influenced me to get to know my students.” while this participant disclosed that he did not perceive a high level of ownership or authorship in his own student experience, he recognizes that in order to meet the goals that he has set for his students (e.g. to make independent decisions), it is critical for him, as a teacher, “to know them personally”. his early experiences as a student are informing his approach to instruction and attainment of goals for his students, a shared theme across participant reflections. a related response further highlights the relationship between personal student-narratives and teaching pedagogy and practice, and the influence of shared gratitude, or the quality of being thankful, in the classroom. the participant shared the following memory of her experience as a student teacher. she wrote, “as a student teacher, i had the privilege of teaching several honors biology classes. at the conclusion of the 3 month stint, my students put together a series of notes from each member of the class. students thanked me for my positivity and faith in them. they recognized that i strove each and every day to provide them a welcoming, safe and fun classroom. this recognition has shaped my perceptions of others and my approach to education.” this particular participant’s approach to teaching mirrors her positive experience with gratitude and kindness, which she includes as one of her teaching goals, “treat others with 23 respect and kindness”, and her understanding of sociocultural impacts on the ability to facilitate ownership and authorship in young students. she writes, “the culture of the community and the individual family play a big role in ownership and self-authorship. if the family respects and encourages the construct of education, then the child is likely to as well. this will lead to both constructs.” teachers value ownership and authorship regardless of the contradictions between participants’ working definitions of ownership and self-authorship, participants overwhelmingly supported the use of ownership and self-authorship in the classroom. for the purpose of gauging perceptions of value of these constructs, participants completed a number of questions that specifically requested their perception of importance. questions followed the definition of ownership and self-authorship as provided by the associated, primary authors of the construct. the questions included: 1) how important is it that students have ownership in their educational experience, and 2) how important is it that students develop self-authorship in their educational experience? when asked about ownership in the classroom, participants marked responses ranging from “important” to “extremely important,” with six of eight selecting “extremely important.” similarly, when asked about selfauthorship in the classroom, responses ranged from “somewhat important” to “extremely important,” with six of eight selecting “extremely important.” these responses indicate a high level of perceived value of both constructs, and lends to the question of probability of student ownership and self-authorship in the participants’ classrooms. following the question of importance, and for the purpose of gauging perceptions of probability of student ownership and self-authorship in the participants’ classrooms, participants completed a number of questions that specifically requested their perceptions of likelihood. questions followed the definition of ownership and self-authorship as provided by the associated, primary authors of the construct. the questions included: 1) how likely are students to have ownership as previously defined in your classroom, and 2) how likely are students to have self-authorship as previously defined in your classroom? when asked about ownership in the classroom, participants marked responses ranging from “somewhat unlikely” to “extremely likely,” with six of eight selecting “somewhat likely.” when asked about self-authorship in the classroom, responses ranged from “somewhat unlikely” to “extremely likely,” with four of eight selecting “somewhat likely,” three selecting “extremely likely.” despite a high value, educators did not indicate positive outcomes of ownership or authorship in their specific classrooms. essentially, the data indicate teachers do not have the skill-set or knowledge base that informs the successful facilitation of student ownership and authorship. while many teachers mirror the behaviors and strategies used by their own instructors of the past, they perhaps lack strategy. these trends are strongly suggestive of an opportunity for researchers and teacher educators to directly confront this gap in knowledge. introducing these terms early in teacher preparation may support stronger familiarity, perceptions of value, and student outcomes; continued research is warranted. 24 references baxter magolda, m. (2001). a constructivist revision of the measure of epistemological reflection. journal of college student development, 42(6), 520-534. baxter magolda, m. (2008). three elements of self-authorship. journal of college student development, 49 (4), 269-284. baxter magolda, m., & king, p. (2004). learning partnerships: theory and models of practice to educate for self-authorship. sterling, va: stylus. deci, e. (1975). intrinsic motivation. new york, ny: plenum press. deci, e., & ryan, r. (1987). the support of autonomy and the control of behavior. journal of personality and social psychology, 53 (6), 1024-1037. fletcher, a. (2008). the architecture of ownership. educational leadership, 66 (3). kegan, r. (1994). in over our heads: the mental demands of modern life. cambridge, ma: harvard university press. kegan, r., & lahey, l. (2009). immunity to change: how to overcome it and unlock the potential in yourself and your organization (leadership for the common good). cambridge, ma: harvard business press. schreiber, l. m., & valle, b. e. (2013). social constructivist teaching strategies in the small group classroom. small group research, 44, 395-411. scott, j. (2009). student ownership of education: practicing democracy in schools. educ can, 49 (2). taylor, p. (1996) mythmaking and mythbreaking in the mathematics classroom. educational studies in mathematics, 31, 151-173. walk, k. (1998). how to write a comparative analysis. harvard college writing center. retrieved from https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/how-write-comparativeanalysis. ijwc journal v3n2-final 22 ijwc journal v3n2-final 23 ijwc journal v3n2-final 24 ijwc journal v3n2-final 25 ijwc journal v3n2-final 26 ijwc journal v3n2-final 27 microsoft word ijwc spring 2018.docx 39   international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 1 star parties: bringing the infinite universe into a small classroom larry l. burrissª amiddle tennessee state university dr. larry l. burriss, b.a., m.a., m.a., ph.d., j.d., ltcol usaf, is a professor in the college of media and entertainment at middle tennessee state university. he is a strong advocate for first amendment freedoms and particularly interested in issues related to media and national security. grand swirls from nasa’s hubble ©nasa 40   simulation of saturn’s rings ©nasa satellite view of the americas on earth day ©nasa 41   background as everyone knows, astronomers are nerdy guys who spend all of their evenings looking through telescopes at celestial objects with strange names. or they sit in front of computer screens staring at circles and ellipses surrounded by high-powered equations and numbers out to ten or more decimal places. that’s the image, unless you show up at one of the monthly first-friday night star parties hosted by the middle tennessee state university department of astronomy and physics. here you (yes you, with no math or science since high school) will get to talk with a real astronomer (male or female) about the origins of the universe, how we’ll go to mars, the best way to observe an eclipse (solar and lunar), the possibility of life on other planets, and the reason why most rainbows in movies are all wrong, and why phasers and blasters won’t work in space (and will rarely work on earth). with an audience ranging in age from cub scouts to octogenarians, the event offers families from the community an opportunity to join with university astronomy faculty, students and staff to view and discuss the wonders of the sky. the star parties have been presented since 1999 when dr. eric klumpe decided to try to bring the entire universe into a campus classroom. using a combination of powerpoint and hands-on demonstrations, wellmixed with a helping of often self-deprecating humor, klumpe is now joined by a number of other astronomers who bring the sky, well, down to earth in easily understood lectures and discussions. if math is not your strength, there are numerous pictures and words. if you are a bit more math-aware, an equation or two will be provided. if you want to toss out a challenge related to the effect of time and gravity on black holes and the heat death of the entire universe, well, get ready for some equations, words and theories most of us will probably never encounter. then, after about 45 minutes of handouts, demonstrations, lectures and discussions, participants can go outside for telescope time at the middle tennessee state university observatory. many amateur astronomers bring their own telescopes and share the viewing experience, and the university telescope has a camera that feeds the images to 61-inch flat panel plasma displays mounted on two outside walls of the observatory. topics “funky fizix in film” is a popular theme dr. klumpe has used for years. he explores how physics and astronomy are used in the plot of popular films. unfortunately, he usually has to conclude that the hollywood portrayal of physics and science are grossly inaccurate (fun, but wrong). recently, themes dealt with cassini’s grand finale at saturn. from black hole trivia to exotic matter, professors use technology to draw the audience into the universe as our neighborhood. participants have the opportunity to listen to the sounds of jupiter, be amazed at the rings of saturn, and consider the journeys of the mars rovers. what is most exciting about this time shared together is the willingness of star party participants to suspend their current understandings of space and time and consider the possibility of the future tomorrows. for more information, please see: https://www.mtsu.edu/observatory/star_parties.php https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/local/schools/mtsu/2017/05/03/mtsu-solar-eclipse-may-starparty/101215482/ 39 international journal of the whole child 2020, vol. 5, no. 1 teacher practices, time for physical activity, and the school day: a preliminary analysis monica browna, kathleen g. burrissb, donald sneadc, larry l. burrissd amurfreesboro city schools, b-d middle tennessee state university monica m. brown (b.s. in physical science, m.a. in curriculum and instruction (middle tennessee state university)) is a sixth grade teacher in the murfreesboro city school district. her proactive efforts to maintain an inclusive classroom community incorporate authentic problem-solving strategies, utilize relevant mathematics learning, and nurture students’ sense of respect for self and other. kathleen g. burriss (b.a. and m.ed. elementary education, ed.d. in early childhood education) taught diversity, research, and curriculum courses in the department of elementary and special education at middle tennessee state university. she remains an advocate for children’s play, outdoor activity, and multiage learning. donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is a professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. larry l. burriss (bachelor's and master's degrees in broadcast journalism, master's degree in human relations, ph.d. in communication, as well as a law degree) is a professor in the school of journalism and strategic media at middle tennessee state university where he teaches introduction to mass communication, media law, mass media & national security, and quantitative research methods. dr. burriss retired from the u.s. air force as a lieutenant colonel. abstract existing data describe the positive relationships across children’s play/physical activity, mental wellness, physical health, and intellectual success (carter, 2016; crnic & kondo, 2019; english 2019; tomporowski, davis, miller, & naglieri, 2007). this current mixed-method study identifies ways in which classroom teachers describe implementing physical activity and play 40 opportunities during a typical school day. classroom teachers (n = 511), pre-k through sixth grades, completed surveys identifying the types of play and physical activities (recess, games, movement) they implemented during the day, the time allowed for each type of experience, use of software to support the movement, and training associated with physical activity and play. data describe teachers’ pervasive use of gonoodle as an activity break during the school day. these findings support previous research demonstrating a concern for children’s outdoor recess time. implications describe how teachers’ lack of adequate training may undermine children’s developmentally appropriate physical activities and play experiences. authors discuss the potential of these data in planning for children’s long-term physical and mental health and wellbeing. keywords: physical activity, recess, play, children’s well-being, teacher planning background and introduction the premise for the current study is that appropriate physical activity and play significantly affect children’s health, wellness, and academic learning (motta, mcwilliams, schwartz, & cavera, 2012; pellegrini, 2005; tomporowski et al., 2007). in spite of the data-driven and standards-based public-school arena, ensuring appropriate physical activity and quality play remain integral for children’s holistic learning and development (motta, 2018; naspe, 2013). during the school year, children spend more than one thousand hours of their time in a classroom. these waking hours for children’s learning and development become substantive in framing how they make future choices. choosing to be inactive is a choice and leads to longterm harmful effects in adulthood (booth, roberts, thyfault, ruegsegger, & toedebusch, 2017; motta, et al., 2012). physical activity is positively holistic and evidences far more benefits than what can be seen as merely a cathartic event or as means to winning a competitive game. instead, physical activity is the natural way in which the body stimulates, supports, and changes body functions. appropriate physical activities, in combination with current nutritional guidelines, evidence the potential to nurture children's long-term health and wellness (motta et al., 2012; pellegrini, 2005; tomporowski et al., 2007). in order to provide data to plan for the implementation of appropriate physical and play activities into the daily school routine, this study identifies the range and duration of different types of physical activities used by classroom teachers and describes teachers’ practices to consistently include physical activity throughout the daily schedule. additionally, the authors consider the contributions of play for children’s learning and development and discuss how both physical activity and play remain integral in contributing to children’s holistic health and wellness. review of the literature physical activity physical activity is any movement causing muscles in the body to contract beyond what they would at rest, which is a state of inactivity (office of disease prevention and health promotion, 2016). physical activity contains two components: 1) baseline activity requires less energy and occurs in activities such as slowly walking or standing; 2) health-enhancing physical activity 41 requires more energy and is associated with events such as dancing, climbing on playground equipment, or brisk walking. when individuals exhibit a minimum of baseline activity, they are inactive and not considered as taking part in the adequate amounts of physical activity. children who take part in sixty minutes of health-enhancing physical activity a day meet the recommendations set by the office of disease prevention and health promotion (2016). health-enhancing physical activities include outdoor recess and ‘break times’ within the classroom. ‘break-times’ refer to amounts of time distributed throughout the day to allow students a change of pace from the traditional assigned academic tasks. for example, indoor breaks may include jumping jacks, running in place, or moving to a video/recording. in many instances, teachers claim children need to “get their wiggles out” and therefore ensure an outdoor recess or break-time activity during the school day. for some educators, the underlying belief is by their providing time for recess, play, or movement breaks, children release pent-up and surplus energy and become better able to return to the academic tasks with renewed focus. it is true that through physical activity, children become refreshed and more attentive in returning to school day routine; it is not because children released surplus energy. research does not provide data to support a “surplus energy theory” (evans & pellegrini, 1997). physical activity is holistic and proactive and leads to enhancing specific components of mental processing in social and cognitive development. when children engage in physical activity, such as stretching, amounts of cerebrospinal fluid in the central nervous system increase. additionally, physical activity produces neurotransmitters within the body that become natural motivators: noradrenaline and dopamine help increase retention of learned material and increase the likelihood the child will feel energized as they learn new material (jensen, 2013). one of the long-term consequences for children who do not regularly take part in physical activity is the possibility of becoming overweight or obese. childhood obesity continues to be a leading public health concern for both healthcare professionals and school personnel (burriss & harrison, 2004; center for disease control and prevention, 2018; frye, 2018). obesity rates remain at approximately 18 percent for the last ten years; 14 percent of children (ages two-tofive years of age, enrolled in the program women, infants and children (wic), represent obese categories. furthermore, findings describe how nearly one-third (31.3 percent) of children, ages 10-to-17 years, can be categorized overweight or obese; data also describe 13.9 percent of high school students as obese (center for disease control and prevention, 2018, 2019a). childhood obesity increases the risk of a multitude of preventable diseases including type 2 diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, colon cancer, and arthritis (center for disease control and prevention, 2015a, 2018, 2019a, 2019b). the combination of poor health status and lack of physical activity significantly affects a child’s long-term health and may lead to premature death (center for disease control and prevention, 2019a, 2019b). carrel and bernhardt (1996) indicate u.s. school personnel report a lack of training with regard to intervention and assert coordinating school efforts will diminish childhood obesity. physical activities include aerobic activity such as brisk walking or running. critical for children’s development, physical activity promotes muscle and bone strengthening. informed 42 adults/educators cautiously implement “age-appropriate” activities. human bodies develop at different rates depending on age and other factors. some physical activities represent higher quality and more appropriately target physiological needs of individual children than others. for example, it is important children do not take part in structured muscle-strengthening programs such as weightlifting, which places strain on muscles. instead, play activities (jungle gyms and tree climbing) build strength (centers for disease control and prevention; physical activity guidelines, 2020). in addition to supporting physical development, physical activity supports children’s mental health. mental health mental health disorders do not only affect adults but children as well. findings (motta, et al., 2012; oppizzi & umberger, 2018) describe how exercise benefits students who might suffer from ptsd, anxiety, and depression. physical activity provides benefits more so than psychotherapy and psychotropic medication because exercise is something children can engage during their natural daily activities (motta et al., 2012). during childhood, early warning signs for some conditions arise. these signs include mood, anxiety, and psychotic disorders such as depression, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorders, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia (the national institute of mental health, n.d.). children experience stressful and traumatic events which trigger emotions affecting their daily living. the national institute of mental health (n.d.) identifies warning signs including: frequently feels very angry or very worried, cannot sleep or eat, is unable to enjoy pleasurable activities, isolates and avoids social interactions, feels grief for a long time after a loss or death, uses alcohol or drugs, obsessively exercises, diets and/or binge-eats, hurts other people or destroys property, exhibits low or no energy, smokes, drinks, or uses drugs, feels as if not in control of emotions, thinks of suicide, harms self-such as cutting or burning, and/or thinks mind is controlled or out of control (p. 1). through outdoor recess, play, and movement activities, knowledgeable teachers plan times during the school day for children’s physical activity. in support of children’s holistic learning and development, it is critical educators understand the research evidence for the relationship between physical activity, play, and wellness. a variety of research studies describe the diverse ways in which physical activities positively target the whole child (burriss & burriss, 2011; carrel & bernhardt, 1996; center for disease control and prevention, 2015a, 2015b, 2018, 2019a, 2019b; donnelly, hillman, castelli, etnier, lee, et al., 2016; jensen, 2013; the national institute of mental health, n.d.). despite the multiple contributions of physical activity toward children’s holistic development, some school administrators perceive recess as lost instructional time and believe it is more important to focus on academic instruction (pellegrini, 2005). recess throughout the united states, many school districts indicate decreasing the time for outdoor recess; diminishing time for recess and physical activity negate the relationship across physical 43 activity, recess, and children’s wellness (alexander, 1999; burriss & burriss, 2011; kieff, 2001). as children continue to participate in an educational system requiring mastery skills in academics, there remains less of a focus for play and social activity. reasons given for reducing recess time include high-stakes testing, liability issues, or stranger-danger (burriss & burriss, 2011). recess provides children with opportunities and challenges not possible in the traditional indoor classroom (stone, 1993). outdoor recess allows space and equipment for children to engage in a range of different vigorous physical activities. depending on children’s ages, stages, and interests, outdoor recess promotes individual, small, and large group physical activity and play (burriss & foulks boyd, 2005). play stone (2005) suggests teachers recognize free play is unlike active or outdoor learning. free play helps develop cognitive, social, physical, and emotional skills that significantly affect the whole child. play and games encourage children to apply their social cognitive skills to the demands of the game (pellegrini, 2005). schools can be the ideal environment for inviting, encouraging, and supporting children to participate in a range of play-generated physical activity opportunities. although play activities include categories referred to as “functional, constructive, dramatic, and games with rules” (stone, 1993), for the current study, authors highlight the importance of “functional and games with rules.” functional play includes activities such as repeatedly running, jumping, or bouncing. the child moves merely for the pleasure of moving, and these gross motor activities may occur with or without interaction with objects. this play decreases as a child grows older, but when it can fully take place, children benefit with many opportunities for creative enjoyment (centers for disease control and prevention 2019a, 2019b; stone, 1993; stone, 1995). “games with rules” describe play which uses set boundaries of rules and regulations. older children can think at an advanced cognitive level, understand directions, follow sequences, and regard rules. older children can collaborate as a team-mate and know how to take turns. younger children, not cognitively mature, will evidence difficulty in games that require following directions and turn-taking. it is common and appropriate for younger children to create their own rules for invented games. for example, an entire class may join in pretending to drive race cars as they run across the playground. including sound effects, the children recreate the traditional running game of follow-the-leader (stone, 1993). additionally, children, particularly younger children, become associated with “rough and tumble” play (reed & brown, 2000). through rough and tumble play, in addition to developing emerging respect for friends and an awareness of inappropriate players, children learn how to run with friends, fall appropriately, stretch arms and legs, and safely tumble. rough and tumble play is most appropriate for children, and yet classroom teachers often perceive this play activity as inappropriate and potentially dangerous for children (pellis & pellis, 2007; reed & brown, 2000). educators, understanding what type of play is most appropriate for children’s different ages and stages, become more able to prepare, monitor, and promote quality learning experiences (frost, wortham, & reifel, 2005; stone, 1993, 2005). 44 children require adequate time to identify their play episode, choose play partners, and become physically active in their play; prior research describes at least 30 minutes essential to develop quality play experiences (christie & wardle, 1992). through quality play, teachers provide physical activity for children and simultaneously support their learning, development, and adaptive functions. play is an outlet for children; it allows them to express their feelings of happiness, worry, fear, or anxiety. play affords children with opportunities to explore complex feelings in a risk-free and emotionally safe place (stone, 1995). in addition to physical, social, and emotional benefits, findings demonstrate gains to mental functioning in children related to exercise on tasks involving the use of executive functions (tomporowski et al., 2007). working memory, mental flexibility, and self-control reflect skills of executive control. executive functions and self-regulation skills allow individuals to multitask, recall instructions, plan, and stay attentive. in order to learn these skills, children practice, rehearse, and apply the skills in a variety of situations. when developed, children and society benefit. it is crucial children participate in activities encouraging creative play and social connection. in addition to the benefits of physical activity, play experiences provide children with relevant opportunities to navigate stressful situations and assume control of their own actions (centers on the developing child: harvard university, 2016; stone, 2005). play and physical activity contribute toward children’s physical, social, emotional, and intellectual wellbeing. physical activity alternatives in addition to recess and play opportunities, teachers use apps and videos to plan for breaks and physical activity during instructional time. by using educational interactive learning apps and videos, such as gonoodle (https://www.gonoodle.com/), teachers encourage children to become active. the vice president of gonoodle believes that children are not receiving anywhere near their recommended daily sixty minutes of physical activity. teachers in knoxville, tennessee, partnered with the health insurance company, blue cross blue shield of tennessee, to launch the use of gonoodle to aid in providing both brain and physical activity breaks for children. children take part in a range of mini interactive videos, varying in length from three to five minutes requiring moderate to vigorous levels of activity. the videos also include learning materials teachers may easily incorporate into their lessons. teachers describe how this type of program helps with classroom culture; student’s seat-time diminishes, and participation increases in activities that promote engagement and focus (knoxville new sentinel, 2015). to prepare environments that most effectively support children’s holistic learning, educators plan for both physical activity and quality play experiences. informed educators understand the human body requires physical activity to learn and develop. as teachers plan their daily schedules, they intentionally find times for a range of physical activity as well as incorporate play opportunities. on behalf of learning and development, in order to maximize time and effort, it is incumbent upon educators to understand the potential range of physical activity and play events and determine how to most appropriately integrate on behalf of children’s different ages and stages. 45 method this mixed-method study asked classroom teachers to describe how often and in what ways they planned for physical activity during a typical school day. specific research questions identified times in the school day set aside for recess, play, and physical movement activities. rationalistic survey data and open-ended narratives describe teachers’ practices and times allowed for different physical activity experiences. participants and instruments teachers in three school districts (23 schools) in an urban area in the southeastern united states received a 13-item survey. central offices for each district forwarded the surveys to individual schools whereby school-staff disseminated surveys to individual teacher’s mailboxes. a cover letter explained the researchers would return to the school to collect the anonymous completed surveys. in addition to the school districts, researchers distributed surveys to teachers enrolled in graduate courses at a university in an urban area in the southeastern united states. researchers distributed 867 surveys, with a 58.9% return rate (n=511). analysis researchers used descriptive statistics to establish an initial baseline to describe how teachers incorporated physical activity and play during the school day. data described additional ways teachers identified other forms of physical activity. using the spss 22.0 statistical package, results provided frequencies and categories; a constantcomparative approach (lecompte & preissle,1993) interpreted teachers’ open-ended narratives. for the qualitative analysis, two researchers independently read the teachers’ open-ended responses and identified participants’ similarities. then, they jointly read the responses and discussed and shared coding strategies and, using participants’ phrases, identified category names. finally, researchers read through the narratives to identify discrepancies. for this last layer of analysis, researchers compared the quantitative analyses and narrative data sets to discover any inconsistencies. results and discussion participants included teachers in grades k – sixth. teachers included both male and female with an age range from 21 to 53+ as indicated in table 1. table 1: grade level by teacher gender, and teacher grade level by age grade level gender age kindergarten primary first male female other total 21-31 32-52 53+ total 1 79 3 83 0 16 - 16 1 71 - 72 29 48 5 82 6 7 3 16 22 42 7 71 46 second third fourth fifth sixth other total 4 75 - 79 4 72 - 76 5 52 1 58 2 48 - 50 1 6 - 7 2 8 33 43 20 427 37 484 33 37 8 78 40 31 6 77 19 37 2 58 11 34 4 49 1 5 1 7 1 5 1 7 162 246 37 447 the following data in table 2 revealed participants reported a range of planned daily physical activities. teachers’ data generated the following categories: (a) physical activity (n=376), (b) games (n=96), (c) play (n=6), and (d) other (n=76). table 2: types of physical activity as described by teachers physical activity play games other 376 6 96 76 table note: these numbers total more than n= 511 due to multiple responses. in categorizing the hundreds of teachers’ responses identifying the types of breaks allowed for children during a typical school day, “physical activity” occurred 67.9 % of the time, but “play” only 1.1 %. these data clearly indicate classroom teachers do not consider play as potential for children’s physical activity. it is true not all play suggests physical activity, but an understanding of play does identify play as a viable alternative for physical activity (running, some games, jump ropes, some ball activity). it is interesting to note that of the 359 written responses, 182 (50.6 %) referred to gonoodle. this level of descriptions of using gonoodle may indicate some confusion regarding the definition of “physical activity.” the exploratory parameters of the current study did not provide 47 a way in which researchers may identify teachers’ gonoodle preferences. for this reason, it is uncertain whether the gonoodle videos used by teachers involved vigorous physical activity (jumping, dancing, kickboxing) or, in contrast, provided children with minimal to moderate movement. a concern regarding minimal activity is not to negate the potential use of some gonoodle videos as “brain breaks” from the routine, but a caution is that not all videos contribute to the 60 minutes of daily vigorous physical activity as recommended by the center for disease control and prevention (2019a). additionally, it is critical to understand indoor physical activity breaks do not substitute for outdoor recess. while it is true one indoor basketball game may substitute for an outdoor basketball game, the premise for the current study is to consider play as a viable alternative for physical activity. this means, toward promoting physical activity, an understanding of the relationship across play, recess, and free choice becomes critical. recess outdoor recess provides children with experiences not possible in the indoor classroom (burriss & foulks boyd, 2005). four hundred and sixty-nine teachers reported recess as a part of the traditional school day. despite the existing literature supporting the importance of children’s recess (alexander, 1999; burriss & burriss, 2011; kieff, 2001; pellegrini, 2005), the current findings indicate authors’ concern regarding teachers’ understanding of the relationship across space and equipment provided for recess, targeted activities during recess, and time allowed for recess activities. data in table 3 identifying recess occurred, on average, 6.14 times per week, with an average of 21.4 minutes per recess event. table 3: average number of recess breaks and times categories average breaks number of breaks average time 6.14/week 21.4 minutes/recess period influencing these results, 17 teachers reported 15 weekly recess breaks. while 15 recess events per week may be possible, researchers challenge these particular 17 data entries. toward an understanding of the holistic benefits for children, it is important to consider not merely the number of recess events per week, but as well the average amount of time per recess event. existing literature evidences children require adequate time (30 minutes) (christie & wardle, 1992) to establish play schemes such as making rules, establishing procedures, identifying leaders, and creating roles. finally, the current study did not ask teachers to describe the options provided for children during their recess time. in addition to number of times and duration for each recess event, it is important to consider the variety of different spaces, range of complex materials, and potential surfaces provided for children’s flexible, inclusive, and innovative physical activity and play. children need time to develop their scripts and games; providing multiple recess breaks with minimal time (15 minutes) does not maximize children’s physical 48 health and well-being. once again, it is important to recall the purpose and population of the current study. authors contend for younger and elementary aged children, the parameters defining physical activity should include play and recess and not be restricted to organized games such as soccer, basketball, or volleyball. teacher knowledge. table 4: teachers indicating specialized training (n=197) specialized training number of participants (percentages) yes no 83 (42.2) 114 (57.8) advanced knowledge regarding physical activity and play becomes necessary in order for teachers to plan appropriate and holistic learning experiences. toward successful implementation, teachers’ understanding of how to design and use the outdoors is critical. the natural environment includes bushes, trees, flowers, dirt, and grass; the constructed environment may include climbing/sliding equipment, benches/tables, or a gazebo/stage. these current data evidence in table 4 only 42.2 % of teachers reporting some prior training regarding physical activity; teachers’ reports represent a wide range of training. additionally, findings show 57.8% of teachers reported their receiving no training regarding physical activity. for those participants who reported some prior training associated with physical activity (42.2 %), it is important to consider the range of differences in types of training. for example, some teachers included a university course while others noted in-service or workshop sessions. in spite of school districts providing teachers with professional development in the areas of mathematics, literacy, and technology, what of physical activity and play? of course, it would be imperative to explore what this training would look like. would it be merely how to play various games, or would it involve children’s physical development? this type of in-service support would ensure teachers extend their ability to secure children’s safe and effective physical activity and play opportunities. advanced knowledge is integral when supervising physical activity. the authors suggest, as is the case with other disciplines (math, literacy, science) that teachers engage in many and continuous in-service trainings regarding physical activity and play. it is critical teachers exhibit current knowledge in their understanding in addition to understanding the most appropriate ways to incorporate physical activity and play, educators remain aware of the support and encouragement they provide. bullying, gender bias, and rejection during physical activity and play can cause emotional issues with children, and lead to low self-esteem. informed educators know how to support their students, so they plan physical activity and play as positive experiences rich with the potential for exploration and growth. the goal is for physical activity and play to be platforms to nurture children’s health, wellness, and life success. 49 physical education physical education (pe) is a component of the curriculum and requires physical movement. teachers (n = 460) described pe as offered on average 2.5 times per week with an average of 42.8 minutes per session. considering the time required to transition to the gym, provide directions, and organize and distribute materials, these 42.8 minutes do not ensure this pe time is committed to vigorous physical activity. to support children’s need for vigorous physical activity, it is important to consider, in addition to pe, other ways to create movement opportunities. games the games category showed a 17.33% of teachers used games as physical activity. as exploratory data, this category does not specifically describe what kinds of games teachers used to provide for physical activity. for example, some teachers listed a desk-top game as a break. this activity may be an appropriate brain break from the regular school routine, but does not provide children with vigorous physical activity. furthermore, considering the primary ages of the children, the importance of recess and free play become affirmed and structured games diminish. conclusion the findings support previous research demonstrating a concern for children’s physical activity in schools. findings also indicate the lack of adequate teacher training which may undermine children’s developmentally appropriate physical activities and play experiences. future research one area of future research would be a study focusing specifically on teachers’ use of gonoodle. a study would allow researchers to more accurately identify and describe the range of this popular alternative. “what gonoodle spots are used and why?” “what do teachers believe is gained by using the gonoodle videos?” current data show teachers widely use the gonoodle as a physical activity break alternative. however, for physical activity breaks to truly help children, it is critical for teachers to understand the relationship between physical activity and children’s development. in other words, merely using gonoodle once or twice a day is not systematically integrating physical activity on behalf of children’s holistic learning. “why are some gonoodle exercises more appropriate for some children’s ages than others? “how often should different gonoodle videos be implemented?” while the gonoodle alternative may be enjoyable, it is not the panacea for children’s need for play and physical activity. additionally, future research exploring teachers’ training/education in the areas of physical activity and play is important. further research on this training deficit highlights the need for inservice support. children’s health and wellness remain vulnerable without an understanding of quality play and appropriate physical activity. since children spend most of their day in the school environment, it appears reasonable for educators to assume responsibility to include time for physical activity and play. implementing time for recess is still problematic. current data suggest inconsistency 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(2007). exercise and children’s intelligence, cognition, and academic achievement. educational psychology review, 20(2), 111-131. http://www.cdc.gov/features/childhoodobesity/index.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10jqm6mkjcq http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.81012 http://nlm.nih.gov/books/nbk201493 https://health.gov./pa%20guidelines/children.aspx https://nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health/index.shtml https://nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health/index.shtml ijwc spring 2020 39 ijwc spring 2020 40 ijwc spring 2020 41 ijwc spring 2020 42 ijwc spring 2020 43 ijwc spring 2020 44 ijwc spring 2020 45 ijwc spring 2020 46 ijwc spring 2020 47 ijwc spring 2020 48 ijwc spring 2020 49 ijwc spring 2020 50 ijwc spring 2020 51 ijwc spring 2020 52 6 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 1 chinese migrant children in crisis yajuan xiangª, miao lib, and gina berridgec auniversity of southern indiana, assistant professor, bshandong university, lecturer, cuniversity of indiana, associate professor with the increasing population of chinese migrant children in china and the call for addressing educational equity and revising education goals on behalf of the whole child, research indicates that those children experience various challenges regarding their education and well-being including unequal access to education, low quality of education, discrimination, social anxiety, and depression. thus, this article explores institutional-, school-, and family-level factors to understand how migration might create threats for chinese migrant children. it is believed that government, community, school, and family have unintentionally formed an intertwined and complex dynamic where the development and education of migrant children is compromised. it is the authors’ hope to raise awareness to the academic and practical arenas of both the educational plight and living conditions of chinese migrant children. introduction throughout the past decades, as china experienced a rapid economic ascent as a global supplier of cheap labor as well as labor intensive production (liu & zhu, 2011), it experienced the most unprecedented rural-to-urban migration. “made in china” is a popular label today as the chinese foreign trade production rate leads the way on the global stage and accounts for 70% of the employment rate in china (pergolini, 2009). to meet the country’s annual demand for production, forty million factory positions are filled with migrant workers. along with those migrant workers, findings estimate that 35.81 million migrant children and youth now reside in chinese cities (federation, a. c. w. s., 2013). migration is a complex social process which forces migrant children into crisis situations. migrant children’s educational opportunities, psychological well-being, and social and emotional development are often subjected to serious challenges (chan, et al., 2009). recent research findings indicated that compared with urban children, migrant children have unequal opportunities to receive quality schooling and are more likely to develop negative self-perceptions and lower academic competence. additionally, chinese migrant children experience psychological problems such as shyness, anxiety, depression, and nervousness (kwong, 2011; lu & zhou, 2013; wang, 2006; wong, chang, & he, 2009). in order to understand how migration negatively contributes to the educational and developmental growth of chinese migrant children, institutional, school, and family factors are explored. 7 risk factors institutional factors due to existing policy restrictions, migrant workers and their children are considered as temporary residents in chinese cities (chan & buckingham, 2008). these low income workers are not qualified for access to local benefits like education, medical care, and other welfare efforts (li & zhao, 2015). more strikingly, a large portion of poor migrant children are deprived of legal rights to equal access to urban public education which is subsidized by the state (wang, 2006). therefore, seeking schooling opportunities becomes a battle between migrant families and state policies. in this conflict, migrant families are restricted by the household registration system (or hukou) which has brought extreme emotional distress to both parents and children (li, 2015). in china, the hukou is the main state instrument used to manage this rapid influx of rural-urban migration. in the 1950s, hukou was implemented to “differentiate residential groups as a means to control population movement and mobility and to shape state developmental priorities” (cheng & selden, 1994, p. 644). in accordance with this system, based on “socio-economic eligibility” and “residential location,” all chinese people are categorized into four hukou types which follow along two dimensions: agricultural or non agricultural, and local or non-local hukou (chan & buckingham, 2008, p. 587). individuals registered under the agricultural category are expected to survive by their own labor in the fields; non-agricultural individuals are entitled to governmental ‘cradle to grave’ benefits resulting in urban residents seemingly more superior to their rural counterparts (kuang & liu, 2012). to maintain control over rural-to-urban migration, each citizen is required to register at his or her permanent residence. “one’s hukou status was inherited from one’s mother and was thus predetermined” (zhang, zheng, liu, zhao & sun, 2014, p.54). institutionally, people are regarded as legal residents only in their places of registration, that is, where their hukou is registered. according to wang (2006), all citizens were then given a geographical area with an associated social and identity status. migrant workers, defined as agricultural, are then denied many of the social benefits associated with urban residency and therefore, become segregated from urban populations. consequently, migrant families and their children are negatively perceived by the indigenous urban residents, and subsequently, maltreated at work (kuang & liu, 2012). because of this designation, as local and non-local agricultural hukou holders, migrant children are regarded as rural people. thus, a vast majority is excluded from the better urban public schools and attend low-quality migrant schools (wang, 2006). unfortunately, there remains a small portion of children who simply have no school to attend. they “run wild” in vegetable plots, “romp” beside their parents’ stalls or play in dingy and rowdy street corners “ (han, 2004, p. 34). in most cases, village-, fellow-, townsmanand acquaintance-based networks play a crucial role in providing information to poor migrant populations regarding school choices (li, 2015). this aggravates migrant children’s segregation, both residential and social, from the mainstream society. in addition, migrant families live in poor villages inside the city (cheng zhong cun) or urban ghettos (li, 2015). because of their limited transportation options, migrant families have no choice but to send their children to the nearest schools which are economically disadvantaged with unqualified teachers and few resources (li & zhao, 2015; wang, 2006). as a result, migrant children begin to develop an “us versus them” mentality which can create a widening gap between migrant populations and urbanites (li, 2015). another institutional constraint concerning the education of migrant children involves violation of china’s population control policies. from the initial implementation of the “one child policy” in 1979 to the transformation of the “two child policy” in 2015, children of migrant families who violate these 8 policies cannot register hukou either in their rural hometowns or cities (duan & yang, 2008). this means, if not appropriately identified, it is impossible for migrant children to attend public schools (hu & szente, 2009). the hukou system is one of the major tools of social control employed by the state. even if migrant families plan to return to rural hometowns for their children’s formal schooling, as undocumented children, their lack of hukou status as well hinders the admission to rural public schools (hu & szente, 2009). in addition, one’s hukou status is associated closely with students’ school register (xueji). without a school register, migrant children find it difficult to advance in the regular chinese education system. not only do such policy restrictions create substantial difficulties to migrant children’s education, but the process of seeking school access is also complex, stressful, and overwhelming to both migrant children and their parents (li et al., 2010; wang, 2006; xie, 2010). media stories describe how public schools often suspect migrant children of being developmentally disadvantaged and use this label as an excuse to deny school attendance (“ce zhi shang ru xue”, 2012). acknowledging the deeply-held value of “saving face,” both parents and children are humiliated and embarrassed in front of others when their children are suspected of being at risk (kwong, 2011). such an experience is likely to result in tremendous trauma on children’s development of self-confidence and positive self-image. many children share similar experiences and have witnessed their parents beg school authorities for their admission (“nong min gong zi di xue xiao kun jing”, 2016). in an extreme case, a child describes her plan of dropping out of school in order to prevent her father from kneeling again before school principals (li, 2015). for the few children who successfully attend public schools, their enrollments are temporary and their academic achievement is not considered in formal school rankings in order to protect the reputation of the schools (han, 2010). as a result, these practices most likely lead to discrimination, low self-esteem, and social anxiety among migrant children (lin et al., 2009; wang, 2006). generally, many migrant children choose to attend privately-run migrant schools (chen & feng, 2013; gao et al., 2015). however, such schools are considered as unstable and of low quality which undermine children’s well-being (goodburn, 2009; wang, 2006). according to lu & zhou (2013), these schools are also increasing in order to meet the greater numbers of arriving migrant children. for example, in 2007, more than 300 privately-run migrant schools have catered to 170,000 migrant students in beijing. migrant schools with school-home adjacency, flexible schedule, and tuition waiver opportunity become the preference among migrant families (goodburn, 2009; ming, 2009). in spite of their popularity, however, migrant schools do not have a clear standing in the chinese educational system and have complicated relationships with local governments (gao et al., 2015). in 2006, for example, the beijing city government began a campaign to close 239 migrant schools and leave nearly 100,000 children without education (“clashes after china school closed”, 2007). the most recent closure in beijing happened in 2011 when 24 migrant schools were eliminated and more than 14,000 children were forced to drop out (jiang, 2011). these schools continue to experience frequent suspension and closures because of health or safety concerns. the instability of these schools is ambiguous and threatens the healthy development of children (kwong, 2004). factors of schools, teachers, and peers migrant schools with affordable tuition, flexible schedules, and close-to-home locations are popular among migrant families. however, they are generally low-quality in terms of school buildings, teaching materials and teacher quality (wong et al., 2009; han, 2004). although these programs charge a relatively lower tuition, it can still be a major burden on already financially strapped migrant families. besides 300 yuan tuition per month, migrant schools also charge extra fees, such as for books, uniforms, technology, and heating, as well as other miscellaneous fees (han, 2004). this number has increased in the past decade. in migrant families, the per capita income is about 3072 yuan per month, and the living expenses 9 take 32.9% of monthly income per capita (national bureau of statistics of the people’s republic of china, 2016). on top of these expenses, to support at least one child’s education in migrant school is challenging. even if a migrant family is able to send their child(ren) to a migrant school, the low-quality atmosphere and learning climate may have a negative impact on migrant children’s development (guo, yao, & yang, 2005; chen, wang, & wang, 2009). based on kwong (2004), in beijing, more than 65% of migrant teachers have no education-related qualifications nor prior teaching experiences. rather, before becoming educators, most teachers have been construction workers, cooks, farmers, and general laborers. teachers often feel limited and consider their teaching position as a temporary job until another opens in the city (kwong, 2004). as a result, most of these teachers have negative attitudes toward work as well as lower expectations of migrant children. consequently, they demonstrate impatience and use harsh discipline techniques to maintain classroom order (wong et al., 2009). according to wong, et al. (2009), such teacher discipline harms teacher-student relationships and increases children’s depression, and social anxiety. this results in lower academic aspirations and may even promote a deep hatred of schooling. in a few cases, migrant schools have even been cited as being directly responsible for the deaths of children through unsafe environments and/or physically abusive practices (hu & szente, 2009). generally, migrant schools have enormously large class sizes which can also result in unsafe and unfriendly learning environments (li et al., 2010). han (2004) describes how it is common for more than three children to share a two-student desk, and many classrooms are packed with more than 60 students. one classroom contained an astounding 84 students. needless to say, large class sizes result in children not receiving the appropriate attention for their academic learning and development (guo, yao, & yang, 2005; han, 2004). peer relationships are another contributor of migrant children’s social emotional distress. migrant communities are generally segregated at the edge of the city (li & zhao, 2015), thus there are rare opportunities for migrant children to interact with urban counterparts (jiang et al., 2008). therefore, most migrant children form stereotypical perceptions of urbanites, such as believing they are arrogant, generally well-to-do, mean spirited, and snobbish (wang, 2006). those who attend public schools frequently experience unsatisfactory interactions with urbanites, leading to their even stronger sense of marginalization, social exclusion, frequent academic anxieties, hostility, and lower self-esteem (wong, chang, he, & wu, 2010). ou (2008) found these children to be insecure, possessing poor social skills, learning difficulties, and deep feelings of loneliness. because of these difficulties, migrant children are often exposed to widespread discrimination and ostracism (xie, 2010; wang, 2006). kwong (2011) recounted some disappointing stories about migrant children in recent studies. he reported that even if migrant children do attend an urban school, urban teachers and children belittle them for their lack of confidence, out-of-dated clothing, communication difficulties, poor academic performance, socio economic disadvantages, and heavily-accented regional dialect. migrant children tend to have a strong sense of inferiority in social comparisons with their urban peers (li, 2015; wang, 2006). xiong (2010) described how some children feel embarrassed to identify their neighborhood or their parents’ temporary low-paying jobs and are inclined to upgrade their parents’ work; for example, children describe tailors as clothes designers. migrant children frequently reject their urban teachers’ requests for home visits. xiong goes on to report that ironically, migrant children often express a sense of superiority over those who were left behind in rural hometowns while they continue to be discriminated by urbanites. in urban schools, migrant children are frequently mocked and bullied by urban peers and are given less attention and guidance from teachers (wang, 2006). migrant children are not allowed to take part in 10 district-wide standardized examinations in cities, and their homework and exams are often not officially graded and recorded (nyland et al., 2011). because of this discrimination, migrant children are reluctant to attend urban public schools and eventually transfer to migrant schools (wang, 2006; li et al., 2010). recent studies suggest that migrant children express a preference for making friends with their migrant peers. this gives migrant children a feeling of belonging which, in turn, creates a wider social gap between rural migrant children and urban children (ming, 2009). risk factors of home and family most children share circular migration experiences between their rural hometowns and cities where their parents are employed (liu & zhu, 2011). this experience can further complicate the development of migrant children. jeellyman & spencer (2008) found that high levels of residential mobility have a negative impact on early childhood and subsequent social-emotional development. their study indicated that high mobility is associated with greater sibling conflicts, increased aggression, property offences, and poor emotional adjustment. many children travel back and forth because of parents’ job change or failure of adjustment in either place (li & zhao, 2015; li et al., 2010). others are left behind in the countryside with grandparents, other caregivers, or simply left unsupervised for long periods of time (liu & zhu, 2011). sometimes, migrant parents are able to visit their children in the countryside during major holidays; however, some parents do not go back for years because of financial constraints (huang & yang, 2013). liu & zhu (2011) discuss how this separation from parents “causes discomfort, low self esteem, and social isolation in many of these children” (p. 455) and “as the period of separation lengthens, estrangement between parents and children grows” (p. 456). for many migrant children, this “left behind” experience is a period of time filled with loneliness, unhealthy behaviors, hardships, inferiority complexes, family conflicts, and a lack of parental care and supervision (gao et al., 2010; zhao, et al., 2014). liu (2012) reported that these children experience psychological problems such as phobias, anxiety, impulsivity, and conduct disorder and often become juvenile delinquents at an early age while others suffer from years of sexual abuse because of neglect from the adults who are supposed to care for them. moreover, limited parental support for migrant children lowers self-esteem and establishes a stronger level of academic anxiety (zhao, et al., 2014). a group of researchers (demarry et al., 2005) reported that quality parental support is a significant predictor of student’s capacity to deal with stress, anxiety and loss of control. however, most migrant parents have only middle school education and work long hours (national bureau of statistics of the people’s republic of china, 2016). this leaves parents little time to focus on their children’s education and psychological well-being. also, “because parents of migrant children may be too busy to deliver adequate care to the children, let alone time to play with them, many migrant children feel bored with urban life and are unhappy” (liu & zhu, 2011, p. 450). in chinese culture, academic excellence is highly valued as an important avenue to success (chen & wong, 2014). like most chinese parents, migrant parents want their children to receive a quality education. yet, for migrant workers, financial and personal academic resources are at a serious disadvantage. it is obvious that this unmatched expectation versus resource availability places a great deal of pressure on parents and their children and further adds hardship on the relationship between the parents and their children (li et al., 2010). additionally, most migrant parents are viewed as conservative and strongly expect their children to obey their commands and directives. this authoritarian parenting style shared among chinese parents has negative effects on children’s well-being and parent-child relationships (pong, et al., 2010; wong et al., 2009; chan, et al., 2009). 11 a poor physical family environment further challenges children’s development. with the real estate boom, chinese migrant families are either forced to move to urban ghettos, or reside in low-income neighborhoods inside the cities. according to li (2015), these families live in dingy shacks, for example, around the trash dumps, beside public lavatories or inside gas stations; in most cases, all family members share one room which serves as a combination of bedroom and living room with a gas burner outside the room as the kitchen area. wu’s findings (2004) describe migrant housing and explain, on average, migrant housing is about 7.8 m2 per capita usage. further, 69% of migrant families have no access to bathroom facilities and 71% have no kitchen inside their dwellings. rather, migrants often share public water and latrine facilities with people from neighboring streets. overcrowding is a shared characteristic of migrant housing. a growing body of research supports the notion that children who live in crowded homes tend to display higher levels of psychological distress and behavior problems at school; further, parents from chronically overcrowded homes tend to be less responsive to their children and more likely to use punitive parenting and verbal reprimands (evans, 2006). discussion in the past two decades, china has witnessed a rapid increase in the number of migrant children from rural to urban areas. the influx of migrant children and related welfare issues created an unprecedented challenge to china. the government took a wide range of initiatives to improve the education equity and well-being of migrant children. in 2004 and 2005, the ministry of finance issued two circulars to regulate arbitrary collections of educational fees. both circulars stated that migrant children should be entitled to the same rights as the locals, and schools shall not collect temporary student fees and school selection fees (xie, 2012). this initiative was strengthened by two other circulars issued by the state council, ministry of finance, and national development and reform in 2008; moreover, these circulars urged local government to admit migrant students who fulfill local criteria to state-run public schools and provide adequate educational funds for migrant children (xie, 2012). in 2006, the compulsory education law was revised and stipulates the following for migrant children’s education: for a school-age child and juvenile whose parents are working or dwelling at a place other than their permanent residence, if he/she receives compulsory education at the place where his/her parents or other statutory guardians are working or dwelling, the local people’s government shall provide him/her with equal conditions for receiving compulsory education. the concrete measures shall be formulated by the provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government. (compulsory education law of the people’s republic of china, 2006) national outline for mediumand long-term educational reform and development (2010-2020) issued in 2010 further set the needs of equal access to education among migrant children as a main goal for education reform in china. although the government took positive initiatives, the implementation of such policies is arduous. the above central policies all stipulated that migrant children should have equal rights to education as locals in the area they reside, but they should meet certain requirements which varied by different regional governments according to their specific conditions. using beijing as an example, migrant families are asked to provide five certificates (temporary living permit, certified proof of address, certified labor contract, certificate of no potential familial guardian reside in the place of origin, and registry of the entire family’s household permanent residency) in order to apply for public schools (yu, 2013). however, obtaining the five certificates consumes time and effort and, in many instances, is impossible for migrant parents. for example, most of migrant parents work in small family-operated businesses, such as running food stalls; there is no place for them to attain a certified labor contract (han, 2010). 12 the disparities of educational resources between urbanites and migrant children are deeply rooted in the hukou-based administrative system. kuang & liu (2012) describe how the chinese hukou system is a cause for institutional discrimination against rural-to-urban migrants. this discrimination then filters down to the children which creates an environment of stereotyping and prejudice with unequal access to educational opportunities for children born to these migrant workers. in china, local governments finance compulsory education by calculating the number of school-age children registered in the local area. since migrant children are registered in their rural hometown, urban public schools were challenged to accommodate migrant children under the existing capacity. for those fortunate enough to attend either public or migrant schools, low-quality learning support and unfriendly relationships with teachers and peers have contributed to lower self-esteem, loneliness, depression, and anxiety. conclusion clearly, while the education and health care for urban children continue to improve, the efforts to secure the rights of migrant children with relevant services continues to decline. it is evident that factors of policy, school, and family together create an intertwined and complex dynamic where the development and education of migrant children are compromised. the education and well-being of migrant children will have serious consequences for global economic realignment. perhaps, the greatest problem facing all migrant families in china is the potential magnitude of its effects on the future of china and its people— for better, or, for worse. in order for changes to begin, a national system of implementation of existing equality laws, explicit monitoring and enforcement of these laws is urgently needed. beginning at the community level, people’s perceptions need to change so migrant children are regarded as valued citizens with strong abilities to learn. this need to change is dramatic. it is our hope that with this article, the voice of chinese migrant children and migrant children in other socio-contexts can be heard by more educators, and resources can be allocated to better the education and well-being of migrant children. 13 references ce zhi shang ruxue: xiao xue lao shi huai yi nong min gong hai zi zhi shang di [test iq for school enrollment: elementary teacher suspects mental retardation of migrant children. 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(2011). china’s returned migrant children: experiences of separation and adaption. the asia pacific journal of anthropology, 12(5), pp. 445-461. lu, y. & zhou, h. (2013). academic achievement and loneliness of migrant children in china: school segregation and segmented assimilation. comparative education review, 57(1), 85-116. ming, h. h. (2009). growing up in the urban shadow: realities and dreams of migrant workers’ children in beijing and shanghai. unpublished ph.d. dissertation, harvard university. national bureau of statistics of the people’s republic of china. (2016). 2015 nian nong min gong jian ce diao cha bao gao [2015 migrant worker investigation report]. beijing, china nong min gong zi di xue xiao kun jing: yi bian ru xue nan, yi bian sheng yuan huang [challenges of migrant schools: insufficient paperwork and low enrollment]. (2016, october 19). retrieved from http://learning.sohu.com/20161019/n470622457.shtml nyland, b., nyland, c. & zhang, y. (2011). preschool provision and children of migrants in beijing. asia pacific journal of education, 31(1), 77-89. ou, y. f. (2008). xueling qian chengshi liudong ertong de xinli jiankang [on urban mobile preschooler’s mental health education]. studies in preschool education, 157(1), 69-71. pergolini, j. (2009). china's problem children: migrant labor in the world's factory. the humanist, 69(6), 29. pong, s., johnston, j., & chen, v. (2010). authoritarian parenting and asian adolescent school performance: insights from the us and taiwan. international journal of behavioral development.34 (1), 62-72. wang, l. (2006). the urban chinese education system and the marginality of migrant children. in v. l. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0%2c8599%2c2093175%2c00.html http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/08/01/in-rural-china-a-generation-left-behind.html http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/08/01/in-rural-china-a-generation-left-behind.html http://learning.sohu.com/20161019/n470622457.shtml 15 fong & r. murphy (eds.), chinese citizenship: views from the margins (pp. 27-40). london and new york: routledge. wong, d. f. k., chang, y., & he, x. (2009). correlates of psychological wellbeing of children of migrant workers in shanghai, china. social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 44(10), 815-824. wong, d. f. k., chang, y., he, x., & wu, q. (2010). the protective functions of relationships, social support and self-esteem in the life satisfaction of children of migrant workers in shanghai, china. international journal of social psychiatry, 56(2), 143-157. wu, w., (2004). sources of migrant housing disadvantage in urban china. environment and planning a, 36, 1285-1304. xie, c. (2012). wo guo liu dong er tong jiao yu zheng ce yan jin de li lun fen xi [an theoretical analysis of the involution of educational policies for chinese migrant children]. educational science research, 5, 14-19 xie, b. (2010). rural-urban migration and education of migrant children in their place of residence. zhongguo jiaoyu xuebao (china education studies), 5, 16-18. xiong, y. (2010). chengshihua de haizi: nongmingong zinv de chengxiang renzhi yu shenfen yishi urbanized children: identity production and political socialization of children of migrant peasant workers]. shanghai, china: shanghai renmin chubanshe (renmin press of shanghai). yu, m. (2013). the politics, practices, and possibilities of migrant children schools in contemporary china (doctoral dissertation, the university of wisconsinmadison). zhang, x. x., zheng, j., liu, l., zhao, x., & sun, x. m. (2014). the effect of group boundary permeability on intergroup prejudice: the case of rural-to-urban migrants in china. journal of pacific rim psychology, 8(02), 53-61. zhao, x., chen, j., chen, m. c., lv, x. l., jiang, y. h., & sun, y. h. (2014). left‐behind children in rural china experience higher levels of anxiety and poorer living conditions. acta paediatrica, 103(6), 665-670 microsoft word ijwc fall 2017.docx 45 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2 the nitty, gritty of sand play rebecca m. gilesª, karyn w. tunksb ªuniversity of south alabama buniversity of south alabama dr. rebecca giles is professor of elementary and early childhood education at the university of south alabama in mobile, al. she has spoken and published widely on a wide variety of topics including emergent literacy, writing with young children, and teacher preparation. dr. karyn tunks is professor of early childhood and elementary education at the university of south alabama. her areas of professional interest include designing environments for play/learning and using children’s literature to support emergent literacy. according to maria montessori, “there is only one substance that the modern child is allowed to handle quite freely, and that is sand” (montessori, 1967, p. 168). sand is accessible throughout the world and is one of the few granular materials that does not readily decompose. as an open-ended, sensory motor activity, sand play is highly compatible with the explorative, imaginative nature of young children and well-suited for promoting the fun and expansive learning that embodies childhood. at eighteen months, alex explores the sensation of sand as she digs with her feet. 46 a popular view of play as a frivolous pursuit has resulted in a rigorous academic curriculum and absence of sand tables in many of today’s preschool classrooms as well as the removal of sand boxes on playgrounds. the reasons given for not offering sand play include “children misbehave at the sand table” and “it makes too much of a mess.” such superficial objections overlook the immense value of sand play. during sand play children learn by exploring and manipulating their surroundings. according to constructivist theory (piaget, 1945), children intuitively interact with materials to build a conceptual understanding of their world that gradually becomes increasingly complex through continued interactions. the more exposure a child has with a play material, such as sand, the more adept they become at interacting with the material. three-year-old abby observes moist sand drop as she shakes it from her plastic shovel. sand play promotes physical, cognitive, language, and social-emotional abilities, including fine and large motor skills, cooperative building, sharing, and pretending (jarrett, french-lee, bulunuz, & bulunz, 2010). further, as children make and test hypotheses about sand’s physical properties, cognitive development is enhanced through increased knowledge of the scientific process (kieff & casbergue, 2000) and mathematical thinking and problem solving are improved (west & cox, 2001). improved physical development results from children grasping and manipulating various objects to dig, scoop, pour, smooth, mold, and shape sand. children’s language and literacy development is facilitated during sand play as they engage in conversations with peers, hear context specific vocabulary used in meaningful situations, and observe adults recording their thoughts and experiences in print. children practice the social-emotional skills of sharing, caring, cooperating, and negotiating as they learn to accept the views of others and show respect for their creations. 47 adults extend children’s play by stimulating, directing, and supporting children’s development and learning by providing the experiences that each child needs (naeyc, 2009). adults can support children’s sand play by offering time, space, and materials that broaden the possibilities of imaginative scenarios or prompt spontaneous inquiries. at four, michael gathers moist sand into a mound, possibly attempting to recreate the bucketmold tower nearby. sand play can occur in various forms either inside or out. small tubs of sand are ideal for a single child and can be grouped together in close proximity to encourage interaction among children with clear boundaries for each individual. large shallow containers, like under-the-bed storage boxes or a wading pool, can be used to encourage cooperative play among small groups. placing sand containers near walls or other borders gives definition to the space allotted for sand play. a tile floor or nonporous surface is preferred but not required. a protective covering, such as a tarp or plastic shower curtain, can be positioned under sand containers on a table top or the ground to help contain spills and safeguard flooring. a broom and dustpan or hand held vacuum cleaner should also be available to children for ease of cleanup (wellhousen & crowther, 2004). sand for outside play can be placed in containers, wooden boxes, sunken pits or simply piled on the ground. for indoor and outdoor sand play, proximity to a water source is a plus (work, 2002), and covering the sand when not in use is highly recommended. a lightweight mesh cover that lets in water, air, and light provides best overall health and cleanliness of outside sand areas (keeler, 2014). regardless of location, only sand labeled as “sterilized” or “washed and screened” should be used for children’s play. 48 while sand itself is intrinsically appealing, children’s interest in sand play and the challenges it offers can be continuously maintained by adding a variety of interesting accessories. from common household items to crafts supplies and objects from nature, there are numerous possibilities (see textbox). the best options are those that can be used for multiple purposes allowing children to incorporate them into their play in ways that reflect and represent their knowledge and experience (goldhaber, lipson, sortino, & daniels, 1996). by rotating the selection of toys and accompaniments, clutter is avoided while choice remains. plastic easter eggs find a new purpose during sand play. adding water to sand creates a new dimension. wet sand, which has the ideal consistency for molding, sculpting, and building, is an irresistible material for play (mechling, 2016). allowing children to mix sand and water often increases the length of time they are engaged in play compared to their play in areas were the two mediums are kept separate (jarrett, french-lee, bulunuz, & bulunz, 2010). sand – dry or wet, inside or out – is a medium with so much potential for fun and learning that it cannot be ignored! 49 accessories kitchen utensils forks, spoons, spatulas, slotted turner, solid turner, serrated spoons, wooden spoons, potato mashers, whisks, strainers, funnels, measuring spoons and cups, pie servers, pasta fork, honey server, tongs, ice cream scoop, baster, steeping ball or tea infuser, and rolling pins non-breakable dishes pitchers, cups, mugs, saucers, plates, cereal bowls and mixing bowls cookware pots, pans, kettles, muffin tins, cookie sheets, and pie plates plastics storage containers, assorted lids, colanders, scoops, shovels, molds, cookie cutters, sieves, colanders, buckets, and pails gardening supplies hand tools, gloves, plastic flower pots, and watering cans craft supplies latch hook canvas, plastic flowers, jewels, beads, glitter, sequins, yarn, string, pipe cleaners (chenille sticks), tongue depressors, popsicle sticks, empty spools cloth scraps, buttons, and paint brushes small toys wooden blocks, marbles, plastic animals, assorted vehicles, dollhouse furniture, model train railroad accessories, magnetic letters, natural items stones, small rocks, shells, sticks, twigs, pieces of bamboo, bark, leaves, flowers, acorns, nuts, seeds, seed pods, feathers, and pine cones recycled materials paper towel and toilet paper rolls, berry baskets, net bags from potatoes or citrus fruit, egg cartons, empty spice bottles, corrugated cardboard, pieces of foil, packing peanuts, milk jugs, and 2-liter bottles miscellaneous back scratchers, large plastic combs, spray bottles, easter eggs, aquarium gravel and net, shaving cream, pieces of pvc pipe, ping pong balls, small tiles, plastic tubing, straws, and toothpicks 50 references goldhaber, j., lipson, m., sortino, s., & daniels, p. (1996). books in the sand box? markers in the blocks? expanding the child's world of literacy. childhood education 73(2), 8891. jarrett, o., french-lee, s., bulunuz, n., & bulunz, m. (2010). play in the sandpit a university and a child-care center collaborate in facilitated-action research. the american journal of play, 3(2), 221-237. keeler, r. (2014). sand, sand, sand. exchange (19460406), (216), 84-85. kieff, j. e., & casbergue, r. m. (2000). playful learning and teaching: integrating play into preschool and primary programs. boston, ma: allyn & bacon. mechling, j. (2016) sandwork. the american journal of play, 9(1), 19-40. montessori, m. (1967). the absorbent mind. new york: holt, rinehart and winston. translated from italian by claude a. claremont. national association for the education of young children (2009). developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. position statement. washington, dc: naeyc. retrieved from https://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/position%20statement%20web. pdf piaget, j. (1945). play, dreams, and imitation in childhood. new york: norton. wellhousen, k. & crowther, i. (2004). creating effective learning environments. delmar learning: clifton park, ny. west, s., & cox, a. (2001). sand and water play: simple, creative activities for young children. beltsville, md: gryphon house. work, b. (ed). (2002). learning through the eyes of a child: a guide to best teaching practices in early education. raleigh, nc: north carolina state department of public instruction, raleigh. eric document reproduction service no. ed472193. 40 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 family literacy events: a framework for teacher candidates terri tharpa amiddle tennessee state university terri tharp is an associate professor in the department of elementary and special education at middle tennessee state university. her research interests include family literacy, academic advising, and professional learning communities. introduction and background trelease (2013) believes that a “nation that does not read much does not know much and therefore is more likely to make poor choices in the home, the marketplace, the jury box, and the voting booth” (p. xxvi). literacy continues to be an essential must for individual and community well-being. families represent a crucial role in the literacy development of their children, and family involvement is associated with numerous benefits for children, families, schools, and communities (chance, 2010; livingston & wirt, 2003). in addition to research findings describing how family perceptions of reading frame literacy practices, data also support the proactive influence of parents as children’s initial literacy models (larocque, kleiman, & darling, 2011; u.s. department of education, 2001). yet, teacher candidates, as they newly prepare to enter the educational profession, may not always understand this integral connection between classroom and family learning (falk-ross, beilfuss, & orem, 2010). consequently, in order to establish the groundwork for the significance of family literacy and further, to provide teacher candidates with a framework toward building this critical relationship between families and schools, this discussion describes how a genuine need exists for university coursework to include a variety of relevant experiential service-learning opportunities. in particular, in our increasingly diverse and complex school learning communities, ensuring teacher candidates participate in “real schools with real families” is integral toward building positive family school relationships. toward establishing networking on behalf of children and families, collaborative planning for family literacy events is a viable alternative to connect families, local schools, university colleagues, and community agencies. contemporary teachers, viewing each family as an asset, honor and extend children’s current literacy learning. in order to foster optimal literacy learning experiences for all children, teachers respect children’s unique and personal contexts including cultural, socio-economic, ethnic, ability, and language differences. 41 in planning a family literacy event, it is important for the university to communicate collaboratively with both local elementary schools and community agencies. interactions during family literacy events include immersing teacher candidates in real-world professional development, building relationships between teacher and families, and connecting families with relevant community agencies. funding and support practitioners evidence a key role in identifying partners and resources to plan and implement family literacy events. community organizations such as read to succeed, books from birth, and the children’s reading foundation support schools by providing books, volunteers, and resources. business sponsors may provide meals, volunteers, and/or financial support. parentteacher organizations or school district resources also provide assistance. funding for meals, books, and materials often become available through both university public service and community-based grants. in collaboration with university faculty, teacher candidates and classroom teachers identify different grant resources to support family literacy programs. an initial starting place is to look at public service grants provided by local universities. additionally, community-based grants also provide possibilities for funding. importantly, identify funding that specifically describes the needs of the school and children you wish to support. writing the proposal: important to know most successfully written grants include the following six major components: 1) target group to be served 2) location 3) rationale 4) objectives 5) estimate of funds 6) evaluation. target group. perhaps, the most critical first-step is to identify the target group. this means, “who will this funding immediately serve?” once the children and families become intentionally identified, the remaining components will naturally follow. ask yourself: will it be a school wide event (often the case for a title 1 school) or a specific population such as english new language (enl) learners? grant writers consider: why am i identifying this particular group? what is the purpose for the event? what are the outcomes the school intends to achieve? how can an evaluation inform teachers’ instruction and children’s learning? location. in identifying a school to support, questions to consider include: 42 where is the most critical need in your service area? are there local schools requesting assistance in the area of family literacy and community involvement? are there title 1 schools that barely miss this designation and lack the funds to support a family literacy event? rationale justification. the rationale/justification is the “why” of the family literacy event. for this component, it is important the grant writers know truly knowtheir population. additionally, identifying existing research to support their funding claims is beneficial. for example, in justifying the importance of the family literacy event, a key component includes describing how and why each participating child receives a copy of one of the featured books to own and take home. regarding the take-home book, contrary to appearing as merely a door prize, research clearly demonstrates the critical importance of providing children access to literature; family engagement remains as a critical concern in literacy education (international literacy association, 2018). identifying objectives. when identifying objectives, write as an advocate for the family. be consistent describing advocating the importance of family literacy; objectives support families’ emerging understanding of how to implement best literacy practices in the home. estimating funds. funding depends on the numbers of children and families to be served. scholastic is an extraordinary resource to purchase books in large quantities at reasonable prices. also, book companies such as barnes & noble will often give discounts for such events, and local literacy agencies represent access to different book outlets who can offer reduced prices on many titles. evaluation. importantly, evaluation originates with school personnel and families. classroom teachers and family members become involved in the assessment as a process and thereby, ensure facilitating their particular school needs. university faculty members assist in designing the questions, collecting the information, and analyzing the data. the evaluation process, however, is unique to each school community; university faculty remain as support personnel. the teacher candidate critical to the current discussion is a consideration of the importance of teacher candidates’ emerging awareness of the relationship across the classroom, family, and community. in meeting the needs and abilities of a diverse student population, in order to be effective, the contemporary teacher builds upon and extends from children’s home literacy experiences. involving teacher candidates in a range of family literacy events provides real-life opportunities for preparing teachers to understand effective instruction is not about a lesson plan, but instead about relationship-building. helping teacher candidates to deeply reflect upon the range of experiences occurring during family literacy events provides abundant professional development. through meaningful interactions, reflective papers, and critical discussions, teacher candidates 43 begin to understand that genuine learning is supported by the family in the home; teachers and families collaborate and become partners in children’s learning. as a teacher education instructional strategy, providing teacher candidates with this grant-writing family literacy framework, describes not only the importance of establishing this schoolcommunity connection, but as well provides emerging teachers with strategies to maintain and extend this integral school-home relationship. the aim of the grant becomes two-fold: to improve children’s and families’ literacy as well as to establish a school-home rapport. but, all schools, all children, and all communities are not the same. “what specific needs and issues do i consider that most clearly represent the unique characteristics of this school-home connection?” providing this ability to personalize the particular school-home connection significantly enhances the grant proposal. teacher candidates and the process collaborating with building principals, literacy coaches, and university faculty represent a team approach for writing a grant. after the grant funding is secured, teacher candidates also become instrumental in the process of implementation. the following example illustrates a framework for implementation. first, identify a theme and a featured book (s). then, under the supervision of the university faculty, teacher candidates work together to organize, plan, and lead literacy activities. the literacy activities follow a cross curricular focus incorporating social studies, art, science, music, and math which relate to the featured book (s). featured books include both fiction and informational texts; activities may include graphing favorite foods to reader’s theatre to making slime to creating journals! examples of featured books include: grace for president (dipucchio, 2012), math curse (scieszka and smith, 1995), the three ninja pigs (schwartz, 2012), and fiction/non-fiction selections from the magic tree house series. additionally, community organizations supply a meal /snack for families to enjoy, provide information at a community resources table, and identify volunteers to assist with check-in and family photo opportunities. guided by the leadership of the teacher candidates, families participate together in the literacy activities including an interactive read aloud. this capacity to interact, communicate and share becomes the essence of family literacy learning. each participating child receives a personal copy of the featured book (s) for them to keep and enjoy as well as any materials used during the learning activities. this take-home aspect is a critical component of the family literacy event; research clearly evidences book ownership is a lasting and positive impact on children’s achievement (selmawit & washington, 2013). 44 conclusion in addition to fostering the importance of children’s literacy learning and engaging teacher candidates’ civic responsibility, family literacy events also evidence supporting the local schools, partner universities, and nearby community agencies. through family literacy events, the local schools interact and build relationships with their children’s families, university programs network and support local schools, and community agencies become visible and accessible to families. in other words, family literacy events become a win-win-win-win-win for all participants – the families, local schools, community agencies, and teacher candidates, but above all, the children benefit. importantly, as teacher candidates move forward in their chosen profession, they begin to acquire the knowledge, skill, and personal experience to effectively become a partner in grant funding and as well understand how to be supportive in the literacy event implementation and subsequent evaluation. in all regards, teacher candidates become more effective practitioners as they follow through and extend this collaborative role as they become classroom teachers. providing teacher candidates with a range of opportunities to collaborate in grant-writing as well as to participate in family literacy events, allow first-hand experience regarding the personal and integral connection between classroom learning and family learning. 45 references chance, r. (2010). family literacy programs – opportunities and possibilities. teacher librarian, 37 (5), 8-12. dipucchio, k. (2012) grace for president. disney-hyperion. falk-ross, f., beilfuss, s., & orem, s. (2010). seeking parental input on children’s literacy programs: factoring in diversity. journal of reading education, 35 (2), 22-28. international literacy association (2018). what’s hot in literacy report. newark, de. larocque, m., kleiman, i., & darling, s. (2011). parental involvement: the missing link in school achievement. preventing school failure, 55 (3), 115-122. livingston, a., & wirt, j. (2003). the condition of education in brief (nces2003-068). washington, dc: u.s. department of education, national center for educational statistics. schwartz, c. (2012). the three ninja pigs. g.p. putnam's sons books for young readers scieszka, j. & smith, l. (1995). math curse. viking press. selmawit, t., & washington, p. (2013). book ownership and young children’s learning. childhood education, 89 (3), 165-172. trelease, j. (2013). the read-aloud handbook. usa: penguin books. u.s. department of education. (2001). the longitudinal evaluation of school change and performance in title i schools, volume 1: executive summary. washington, dc: author. ijwc journal v3n2-final 43 ijwc journal v3n2-final 44 ijwc journal v3n2-final 45 ijwc journal v3n2-final 46 ijwc journal v3n2-final 47 ijwc journal v3n2-final 48 v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 6 introduction this spring issue provides readers with diverse and holistic perspectives on a variety of topics including the parent involvement in early childhood education and community in online early childhood programs. moreover, this issue discusses face masks and student engagement, cyber safety, and the utilization of games in telemental health with children. the ijwc continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of the whole child. article #1: parent involvement in early childhood education: exploring cultural beliefs and practices through the figured worlds approach to support learning success for all children hyunjin kim and susan trostle brand the authors of this article explore the impact of parent involvement in early childhood education in korea. the work is grounded in the figured worlds approach which states that people’s worldview is impacted by their culture, values, and communities. context is provided for deeper understanding of cultural practices and values, language and communication, and strategies for understanding diverse groups. the author identified many implications for educators such as incorporating traditions, eliminating bias, and supporting learning through a growth mindset. finally, the findings suggest future research could explore intersectionality, innovative family engagement, as well as policy changes and community partnerships. article #2: the importance of community in a fully online program: establishing equity, inclusion, and access with nontraditional students in an early childhood licensure program maryam sadat sharifian, chelsey bollinger, shin ji kang, jordan perlish, madison masters this mixed method study examined nontraditional preservice teachers’ perception of community in an online bachelors’ program. previous research supports the idea that nontraditional students face a variety of barriers in higher education including but not limited to feelings of comfortability and financial concerns. this study utilized the community of practice theory to best understand participants’ experiences. the findings suggest that most of the participants in this online program felt they received support when transitioning into the program in addition to feeling connected to others while in the program. finally, it is important that preservice teacher programs make meaningful efforts to create a sense of community and culture within the program, disseminate information that provides support to students transitioning, and continually establish opportunities for professional development for faculty. 7 article #3: facial masks and student engagement in early childhood and exceptional student education classrooms anna frahm, judit szente, sherron killingsworth roberts the authors of this paper examine whether wearing masking affects student engagement in both early childhood education (ece) and education of students with exceptionalities (ese). covid19 greatly impacted education as schools moved to a virtual format and instruction was split between in person and virtual modes. the authors discuss the specific impacts on individuals with exceptionalities such as inability see visual language cues and social and emotional components of language. additionally, the use of masks greatly impacted behavior and social and emotional engagement in the classroom as well as interfering with lipreading and literacy. the use of transparent masks and their reduction of barriers is discussed. finally, the authors suggest opportunities for future research, such as the impacts of different face masks with or without a remote microphone. article #4: the representation of differing abilities in children’s literature: a local analysis jaimee l. hartenstein, klaire brumbaugh, julianna holguin, adriatik likcani the authors explored representation of disability in one hundred children’s books. in this study a content analysis methodology was used to identify the portrayal of medical conditions listed by the ada in books that are most frequently checked out for ages 0 to 6 years old. the results suggest that library displays and communications better showcase and share books that are representative as well as, more books that have characters with disabilities in primary roles. finally, the implications of the results suggest that representation is important as it increases the desire to read and contributes to the development of positive self-esteem. pictures for reflection the office cris lozon the author describes how children used toys, collaboration, and play to create an office space. tech talk cyber safety efforts for children: are they working? what can we do? nancy caukin the author of this article examines the current data regarding internet usage by children. they discuss a variety of measures that intend to create safer internet access including the children’s online privacy protection rule (coppa), the internet protection act (cipa), and the age appropriate design code. the author goes on to discuss areas where protection can be improved such as the use of prevention education and parent involvement. finally, additional internet safety resources are provided. 8 children & families: health and wellness games in telemental health with children and adolescents jo weaver, jacqueline swank, shatoi scott, tonya davis the authors of this study explore the use of games in telemental health services with both children and adolescents, focusing specifically on how live video, telemental health interactions contribute to the reduction of barriers in terms of access to mental health services. game play, the use of games in counseling to foster engagement and connection, may be done through a variety of ways including but not limited to, board games, card games, art games, and physical games. modifications can be made to these games that allow them to be played virtually such as through the use of an online medium (website game, virtual or whiteboard). additionally, the provider can incorporate talking points throughout the games, certain colors mean sharing about a specific emotion, or specific actions (sinking a ship) means sharing something about yourself. finally, it is important to bear in mind the providers’ technology abilities, hippa, privacy, and safety with using web-based platforms. steam learning doesn’t stem from worksheets: why stem learning starts beyond paper and pencils tasks rebecca horrace, brian stone the authors of this article explore the use of worksheets in stem classrooms. this is viewed through the specific lens of a whole-child, constructivist approach, which suggests that learning is an active process where learners are challenged, and problems are solved through exploration and play. worksheets create an environment where learners are seeking the answers from the teacher as opposed to creating space where students initiate learning. the authors discuss the national science teaching associations three-dimensional teaching which supports learning through real world applications, engagement that moves from curiosity to interest to reason, and exploration of science, driven by student interest. furthermore, allowing learners to truly play will help develop a sense of ownership throughout their learning. finally, the current educational practices that rely heavily on worksheets are doing a disservice to learners and the environment. moving towards activities that support investigation, experience, and student driven learning will create learners who ask questions and seek answers all around them. education by the numbers considering retention in the light of the covid-19 pandemic sandra stone the data provided by the author in “education by the numbers” discusses retention after the covid-19 pandemic. page turners: books for children katrina bartow jacobs, carla k. meyer, michelle j. sobolak, patricia crawford, maria genest in this article, different children’s books are listed with descriptive summaries on each one. the books include: a blue kind of day; most perfect you; the world’s best class plant; yoshi: sea 9 turtle genius; the hill we climb: an inaugural poem for the country; mrs. peanuckle’s earth alphabet; a spark in the dark; school trip: a graphic novel (the new kid book 3); sharks: a mighty bite-y history; and squished. 9 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 designing clothing patterns to promote fine motor skills: a research and development project usep kustiawana, rosyi damayani t. maningtyasb, arda purnama putrac, ayu asmahd a-dstate university of malang, indonesia usep kustiawan is a lecturer at the department of primary school and preschool education, faculty of education, state university of malang, indonesia. he is currently teaching various courses to undergraduate and graduate students. rosyi damayani t. maningtyas is a lecturer in the department of early childhood teacher education. she currently teaches courses related to emotion and social development of early childhood, and statistics for undergraduates. her research relates to personal and social development based on intrapersonal and interpersonal intelligence. arda purnama putra is a lecturer in the department of elementary school teacher education. he currently teaches courses related to it-based learning media for undergraduates. his research relates to instructional media and the use of ict in education. ayu asmah is a lecturer at the department of teacher education early childhood education, faculty of education, university of pgri kanjuruhan malang. she is currently teaching various courses to undergraduate students. abstract early childhood provides an opportunity for teachers to stimulate, guide, nurture, and plan learning experiences that are helpful in supporting children's abilities and skills. presently, there is a need for more and varied experiences that are attractive and engaging for children. in this project, teachers provide learning experiences to nurture children’s emerging abilities in fine motor skills. the purpose of this exploratory research and development project is to effectively design clothing patterns in order for children to engage in simple sewing experiences as an effective instructional medium for developing children’s fine motor skills. in addition, it is important to consider the product development as well as the method when designing experiences for young children. keywords: clothing patterns, simple sewing, early childhood fine motor skills 10 introduction early childhood educators plan strategies to stimulate, guide, nurture, and provide young children with learning experiences to promote their developing abilities and skills. the age of birth-through-eight years is referred to as the golden age where all areas of development lead to children’s maturity, one of which is the area of physical motor development (barnett et. al., 2016; febrianta, 2016). the early childhood years provide important opportunities for children to grow in all areas of child development (kustiawan, 2017). children’s developmental areas include religious and moral values, socio-emotional dimensions, cognitive abilities, physical-motor skills (gross and fine motor, physical health capacities), and language and artistic aspects. the many aspects of child development, however, cannot be separated out as independent because these areas influence one another. for example, the development of children's body muscles appears when they perform various activities that hone their motor skills. in the early years, children evidence improved skills such as bouncing a ball, jumping on one and two legs, and going up and down stairs (febrianta, 2016). yet, the combination of children’s physical activity as well as a physical skill set contributes to children’s intellectual abilities such as creativity and imagination (sujiono et.al., 2014). thus, children remain complex individuals. every aspect of a child’s development is interconnected. motor skills become a component of the developmental aspect. every aspect of development affects other aspects to form an individual entity, so that developments that occur in the motor aspect automatically affect other areas of development, including creativity which is part of mental development. the existing literature indicates a positive and significant correlation between perceptual motor development and individual creativity; motor activity can be a means to stimulate creativity (shahbazia & tahmasebi, 2011). in addition to fostering intellectual capacity, linearly, the increase in physical abilities in kindergarten children can increase physical motor activity. for example, when a child develops the skill to jump, he or she proceeds to jump more often. the consequences of learning to jump increases a child’s jumping activity. in addition, jumping more frequently optimizes the child to become a better and more skilled jumper. children’s physical motor development cannot be understated or ignored as it affects children’s later lives as adults. physical motor development is also closely related to motor intelligence in children. early childhood physical motor development is defined as the development of elements of maturity and control of body movements in children (larson et al., 2014). physical motor development affects children’s lives directly and indirectly. fitriani (2007) describes physical development as growth and changes occurring in the human body. human physical development occurs following the cephalocaudal principle, namely that the head and upper part of the body develop first so that the upper part appears larger than the lower part (merriam-webster, 2021). according to aghnaita (2014), physical development is the growth and changes that occur in a person’s body across time. it is the foundation for progress to the next developmental level. when the physical body is developing well, it allows children to further develop their physical 11 skills and enables children to explore the environment without adult help. physical development also determines a child's skills in movement. physical motor development is divided into gross and fine motor skills. yamin and sanan (2010) believe children's gross motor skills develop according to the child's age. this means adults cannot compel children's motor growth. for example, children, age six months, cannot sit alone and, therefore, the child is not obliged to sit independently in a chair. some activities clearly support children's gross motor skills development including walking up and down stairs as well as playing in tunnels. meanwhile, fine motor skills represent the ability to develop the motion of the fingers, especially the index and thumb (holding, grasping, tearing, and cutting). additionally, fine motor skills include the use of tools for work and the incorporation of small objects or control of results (such as typing and sewing) (surianti, 2012). thus, children’s physical development including gross and fine motor skills evidence different characteristics. the use of appropriate learning methods in kindergarten can support children’s progressive motor development. however, the opposite can occur. if children find the methods and materials provided by the teacher less attractive, they may quickly become bored and lose interest in the learning experience. the appearance of symptoms of children’s boredom can be caused by different factors. in order to invite and engage children’s interest, it is critical teachers vary methods/materials and create attractive instructional theory/models. additionally, if a teacher’s implementation is passive, not allowing for active involvement, children become less likely to participate. alternatively, learning methods/materials that engage children’s interest and involve playfulness develop children’s imagination and thinking; children experience the freedom to think and explore. it is important for teachers to showcase creative and innovative learning methods. teachers often choose enjoyable instructional methods around a specific learning theme (purnamasari et al., 2014). kustiawan (2013) argues in learning activities, children enjoy repetition, so teachers often intentionally plan learning that uses materials that involve repetitive movement. learning materials that are theme related, such as sewing clothing, support and stimulate children’s sustained interest and engaged attention. thus, students, motivated by their thoughts and feelings in the process, become better able to achieve learning goals (kustiawan, 2017). the choice of particular learning methods and materials become integral in children expressing and creating unique ideas as well as using their imaginations in works that are meaningful and personally relevant (rismayanti, 2013). therefore, it becomes critical for early childhood practitioners to intentionally plan motivating and engaging instruction as well as support children’s use of learning methods and materials that promote their physical development, including fine motor skills. 12 the research and development project in order to investigate the viability of the method and materials for sewing clothing as an interest engagement for children, thus impacting their fine motor development, authors initiated this current research and development (r&d) project. the authors developed a clothing pattern design to be used by children in three kindergartens in the bandulan village, sukun district, malang city, indonesia during the covid-19 pandemic. the purpose of the project was to create a workable and interesting clothing design that was easy to use and would support children’s emerging fine motor skillset. this research and development project resulted in the product "learning methods design for clothing patterns" to be used in simple sewing experiences that can develop fine motor skills for young children. clothing pattern design learning methods is the development of clothing patterns which are usually made of thick yellow cartons (deluang) and typically the size of human clothing. for this project, the design was modified and reduced in size. mini dress patterns were made from duplex paper, decorated using wrapping paper and sewn together using ribbon as thread. the result of this activity is the formation of mini-sized 2-dimensional clothes made of paper. this action research demonstrates the process of developing clothing patterns and the methods adapted to create usable tools to meet children’s individual needs. the products developed include clothing patterns in the form of shirt and trouser as well as hat, bag, and shoe patterns made of thick duplex paper covered with wrapping paper. the decorative motifs are adjusted to the shape of the clothing pattern. the tools for sewing are cloth ribbons of various colors and threading ribbon adjusted for differently sized patterns. this clothing pattern is two-dimensional in shape which is used as a medium for learning how to sew simple clothes according to the learning themes in kindergarten institutions. this is in line with the opinion of sudjana and rivai (2010) who suggest learning methods are not an additional function, but a tool to create effective learning. thus, instructional methods are an integral part of the overall learning context. this means, it is important for teachers to consider learning methods/materials as a critical element in effective instruction. learning methods/materials are designed and made to be used as an attractive and interactive early childhood tool. simple sewing methods/materials support the development of children's fine motor skills. this is in accordance with hasanah (2019) who believes educational experience is a form of a learning activity as carried out using particular methods or tools. children’s educational experiences become strategically designed for the purpose of improving a developmental aspect. sukmaningrum (2015) describes how the increase in fine motor skills of children improve when sewing activities are implemented. schools and teachers can provide a crucial role in promoting children’s physical development (sukmawati, 2018). the authors field tested the clothing product with young children, and made changes as needed. the research and development (r&d) protocols (borg & gall, 1983; rahimah & 13 izzaty, 2018) were used to measure the product effectiveness. the authors identified the steps that were most appropriate for the covid-19 pandemic parameters. the steps included: 1) reviewing literature and classroom observations; 2) planning, which included defining skills, goals, and determining teaching sequences; 3) developing forms for the initial dress pattern product which would be evaluated by experts; 4) conducting a small group trial with a class of four to six children due to the pandemic; 5) revising the initial sewing product according to experts’ suggestions during the first trial group; 6) implementing a larger group trial with six to ten children; 7) making product revisions based on suggestions from the second field test. results the clothing pattern product developed in this research and development (r&d) project was designed to support fine motor skills in young children by using the method and materials of children engaged in simple sewing skills. the following summarizes the findings and indicates the experts’ evaluation, results of small group trials, and findings of field trials (large groups). first, reviews from the experts were used as the basis for making an initial revision to the pattern design of the clothing product. the review was conducted by three experts, namely one early childhood learning expert, one early childhood learning media expert, and one early childhood physical-motoric expert. the purpose of the expert reviews determined the suitability of the product being developed with existing needs in the field. experts’ evaluation. from the overall response from the experts’ evaluation of the eligibility criteria, 86.80% concluded that the simple sewing pattern was determined to be “very” valid or suitable for use. small group trial. the results of the small group trials on the initial product clothing patterns for learning simple sewing were obtained from observations regarding aspects of convenience, attractiveness, and child safety. classroom teachers implemented the trial using a clothing pattern for simple sewing learning. the participants consisted of four to six children. figure 1 small group trial activities in kindergarten class b, bandulan village, sukun district, malang city 14 figure 2 small group trial activities in kindergarten class b, bandulan village, sukun district, malang city based on observational data, 77.33% of the children using the clothing pattern design appeared to be able to easily use the pattern; it was convenient for the children to use. for the attractiveness aspect, 80% of children indicated interest in using the clothing pattern design. for the safety aspect, 100% of children were able to safely use the clothing pattern design. based on the overall data from the small group trial results, 84.44% of the children appeared to find the clothing pattern design suitable for use by young children. thus, it can be said that the clothing pattern in learning simple sewing is suitable for developing the fine motor skills of young children, and researchers can proceed to the field trial stage (large group). field trials. the results of field trials (large groups) on the initial product of clothing patterns for learning simple sewing were obtained from observations about aspects of convenience, attractiveness, and child safety by the class teacher in three groups of children which consisted of six to ten children in each group of young children in the bandulan sub-district, sukun subdistrict, malang city. in the attractiveness aspect, 93.33% of children were interested in using the clothing pattern design. in the safety aspect, 100% of children were found to safely use the clothing design when sewing. based on the overall data from the results of field trials (large groups) 91.10% of the children sewing with the clothing pattern met the criteria to indicate that the clothing pattern design was “very” valid or “very” suitable for use in developing fine motor skills in early childhood. 15 figure 3 field trial activities in kindergarten class b, bandulan village, sukun district, malang city figure 4 field trial activities in kindergarten class b, bandulan village, sukun district, malang city discussion for the purposes of this research and development (r&d) project, the product in the form of clothing pattern design learning methods demonstrates a fairly long process. the process begins from initial research, making product designs until the final product is completed which requires several revisions from early childhood experts and then followed through by both small and large group field trials. this process is critically important because each step will determine the validity of the research findings in the planning process and provide direction and guidance in the product development process. accuracy in product design is a determinant of effectiveness in developing fine motor skills in early childhood. every revision given by the experts is the basis for the high quality of the product being developed. each of these research processes is important to be thoroughly followed in order to ensure the quality of the final product. based on the results of preliminary research, a product design for the development of children's fine motor skills in learning simple sewing was compiled in the form of a learning method for clothing pattern design. early childhood expert data provided the following suggestions including: minimize the size of the clothing pattern design in order to lessen completion time; check the distance between holes 16 in clothing pattern (allow for the ease with which the child can insert the cloth ribbon into the hole in the edge of the clothing pattern); modify ribbon as a substitute for needle/thread; adjust the types of decorative paper motifs that cover the clothing pattern (the paper decorative motifs to coat the dress patterns become distinguished from the paper motifs for coating pants, bag, hat, or shoe patterns), and facilitate the child’s movement by inserting the cloth ribbon into the hole so that the end of the cloth tape is wrapped (fabric ribbon is loose and easy to fold). the sewing process, which is achieved by inserting a ribbon into the holes on each edge of the pattern, is a form of eye-hand coordination exercise for children. eye-hand coordination exercise is one form of stimulation of fine motor development. the child needs to coordinate the movement of the eyeball to look right at the hole and the movement of his or her fingers to be precise in inserting the ribbon string into the hole in the paper pattern. the repetition of this movement until all the pattern holes are sewn by the ribbon is most effective in training the eyehand coordination ability, an aspect of fine motor development. not only in the sewing process, the process of making patterns is also important to note. the experience of making a personal pattern design provides children with a sense of self-confidence, which positively frames aspects of social and emotional development. the experience of making one’s own clothing pattern design can also support children's personal creativity. this is because in the process of making patterns, children develop their own ideas about what clothing patterns to make, how to decorate them to make them look beautiful, then eventually create their ideas in the form of pattern design drawings to become pattern images that are ready to be sewn. all these processes become important toward stimulating creativity. future research and development generating from the results of the current small group trials, several revisions for future r&d projects include modifying the expected pattern so it is not too large and difficult, checking the number and spacing of holes, adjusting the position of the cloth ribbon, and finally, tidying the edges of the pattern. for the sewing pattern of the garment, tie the ribbon at the end of the stitch because it may still require teacher guidance. this clothing sewing project is safe, enjoyable, and developmentally appropriate, and is offered as a choice activity for children’s engagement with fine motor skills to support their continued physical development. furthermore, authors provide this sewing experience as an example of the processes they followed as a research and development project in order to ensure a quality product in both the material and the process. when teachers choose various materials and particular instruction, it is important children’s learning outcomes are of primary regard. in addition, it is important to consider the product development as well as the method when designing experiences for young children. this r&d project becomes a tool to create effective learning for young children with the instructional method becoming an integral part of the overall learning context, interconnecting with a child’s varied aspects of development including small motor development and creativity. 17 references aghnaita, a. (2014). perkembangan fisik-motorik anak 4-5 tahun pada permendikbud no. 137 tahun (kajian konsep perkembangan anak),. al-athfal: jurnal pendidikan anak, 3(2). http://ejournal.uin-suka.ac.id/tarbiyah/alathfal barnett, l. m., salmon, j., & hesketh, k. d. (2016). more active pre-school children have better motor competence at school starting age: an observational cohort study. bmc public health. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-3742-1 borg, w. r., & gall, d. (1983). educational research. longman. febrianta, f. (2016). penerapan teori-teori pendidikan untuk anak usia dini terkait dalam pengembangkan keterampilan motorik anak. jurnal sosiohumaniora, 2(1). fitriani, r. (2007). perkembangan fisik motorik anak usia dini. jurnal golden age hamzanwadi university, 3(1). hasanah, u. (2019). penggunaan alat permainan edukatif (ape) pada taman kanak-kanak di kota metro lampung. awlady: jurnal pendidikan anak, 5(1). kustiawan, u. 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(2014). penerapan metode demonstrasi melalui kegiatan melipat kertas (origami) untuk meningkatkan perkembangan motorik halus anak. e-journal pg-paud universitas pendidikan ganesha, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.23887/paud.v2i1.3165 rahimah, f. y., & izzaty, r. e. (2018). developing picture story book media for building the self-awareness of early childhood children. jurnal obsesi. jurnal pendidikan anak usia dini, 2(2), 219. https://doi.org/10.31004/obsesi.v2i2.102 rismayanti, c. (2013). mengembangkan keterampilan gerak dasar sebagai stimulasi motorik bagi anak taman kanak-kanak melalui aktivitas jasmani. jurnal pendidikan jasmani indonesia, 9(1). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.21831/jpji.v9i1.3065 shahbazia, m., & tahmasebi, s. (2011). the survey of perceptual-motor abilities and creativity among iranian pupils. procedia social and behavioral sciences, 15, 3108–3112. https://pdf.sciencedirectassets.com/277811/1-s2.0-s1877042811x00071/1-s2.0s1877042811008007/main.pdf?x-amz-security sudjana, n. & rivai, a. (2010). media pembelajaran (1st ed.). sinar baru algesindo. 18 sujiono, b., sumantri, m. s., & chandrawati, t. (2014). hakikat perkembangan motorik anak. modul metode pengembangan fisik. sukmaningrum, i. a. (2015). mengembangkan ketrampilan fisik motorik halus anak melalui kegiatan menjahit untuk usia 5 – 6 tahun semester i tk karangrejo 03 kecamatan wungu kabupaten madiun tahun ajaran 2015/2016. at prosiding seminar nasional. final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 9 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 10 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 11 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 12 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 13 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 14 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 15 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 16 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 17 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 18 final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 135 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 page turners: books for children maria genesta, katrina bartowb, carla k. meyerc, michelle j. sobolakd, patricia crawforde ala roche university, buniversity of pittsburgh, cduquesne university, duniversity of pittsburgh, euniversity of pittsburgh a bear far from home written by susan fletcher illustrated by rebecca green anne schwartz books, 2022 isbn 978-0-593-18189-8 a snowy white polar bear lives joyfully and moves freely in frigid norway. . . until the day that everything changes. suddenly, the bear’s days of romping through snow and swimming in icy waters are over. the bear is trapped, caged, and shipped off to a foreign land; presented as a gift from the king of norway to the king of england. based on historical documents from 13th century europe, this beautifully illustrated picture book introduces young readers to the menagerie of animals, creatures from all corners of the world, that were kept at the tower of london. the poignant text points to the sad captivity faced by one bear, but fortunately, also leaves readers with a sense of hopefulness, when the king of england orders that the bear be allowed to swim and fish in the river each day. this compelling storyline has historical moorings and could serve as a powerful tool for learning about animal rights and humane education. ages 4-8. if you live here written by kate gardner illustrated by christopher silas neal balzer + bray, 2022 isbn 978-0-06-286532-8 “if you live on a train, you know everything changes.” gardner’s simple, yet beautifully written text explores what it might be like to live in many different homes, including on a train, a farm, or a submarine. readers will want to closely examine neal’s intricately detailed and amusing illustrations on each 2-page spread. the carefully chosen vocabulary invites discussion around each idea, developing knowledge of the world–why would living in a garden require patience? this picture book is enjoyable as a stand-alone text and could also launch instruction on habitats and communities. ages 4-8. 136 pow wow day written by traci sorell illustrated by madelyn goodnight charlesbridge, 2022 isbn 978-1-580-89948-2 the author, sorell, and illustrator, goodnight, are members of two different native american tribes and have created texts and illustrations that show contemporary native americans. this text meets that goal by allowing the reader to explore the beauty and meaning of a yearly pow wow while telling the story of the main character, river, who is battling an illness that keeps her from dancing this year. while she is disappointed, she remembers that the pow wow is to honor the creator, to pray for the continuance of the language and culture and also as a way to pray for healing for those like river who need it. with the support of family and friends she looks towards a brighter future when she will again play an active role in the beauty of the pow wow. this is a story of hope and perseverance set in a magnificent cultural context. ages 4-8. pretty perfect kitty corn written by shannon hale illustrated by leuyen pham abrams books for young readers, 2022 isbn 978-1-4197-5093-9 unicorn’s friends think he is positively perfect. however, perfection is hard to maintain even for a beautiful unicorn. in this new tale by the author and illustrator team of hale and pham, young readers learn about true friendship and how the gift of that friendship allows us to be loved even when we are not perfect. this story is full of descriptive vocabulary and vibrant and colorful illustrations that stand out on white pages. this book would be an excellent read aloud for classrooms and families alike as it reinforces an important life lesson: no one is perfect! ages 48. the queen of kindergarten written by derrick barnes illustrated by vanessa brantley-newton nancy paulsen books, 2022 isbn 978-0-593-11142-0 mj is excited to start kindergarten and has everything in place: hair freshly washed and braided? check! first day of school outfit? check! up on time and ready to go? check! momma tells her that she needs one more thing. as she places a tiara on mj’s head, she dubs her the queen of kindergarten and explains about all the kind, caring, and helpful things that queens do. mj embraces the challenge and goes to school ready to be an engaged learner, a classroom helper, and the thoughtful friend that her classmates need. this is a joyful book, with words and pictures that point to the power of relationships in children’s lives–on the first day of school and beyond. readers may also want to check out the king of kindergarten, an equally celebratory companion text by the same author-illustrator duo. ages 4-8. 137 remembering ethan written by lesléa newman illustrated by tracy nishimura bishop magination press, 2020 isbn 978-1-433-83113-3 this touching book on the loss of a family member captures the complexity of grief as well as the importance of celebrating the life of a loved one who has died. sarah misses her big brother ethan and wants to talk about him and remember how he ducked his head to enter the door and carried her and the cat, buttons, under one arm like “big bags of groceries.” she doesn’t understand why she and her parents can’t talk about ethan. the engaging text and delicate illustrations of a family’s memories explores how sarah’s family navigates grief and how healing can come from connection and love—and is a worthy book for any family in a similar circumstance. ages 4-8. keeping the city going written and illustrated by brian floca atheneum/caitlyn dlouhy books, 2021 isbn: 978-1534493773 despite those of us from cities living in close proximity, the covid-19 pandemic isolated us all in ways none of us could have imagined. in spring of 2020, we learned to work, learn, and live almost exclusively from home. yet for some workers, staying home was simply not a possibility. this book by caldecott-winning brian floca is a heartfelt and beautiful appreciation to the essential workers who kept new york city running in the most critical ways. focused on how we can support one another even when kept apart, this book offers a way for young children to reflect on and make sense of the isolation that the pandemic created. however, it also shows the power of kindness, bravery, and appreciation for strangers and friends who put their lives on the line to keep us all going. with vibrant colors and simple, almost poetic writing, this book serves as a loving memory a thank you note to those we watched through our windows. ages 4-8. laxmi’s mooch written by shelly anand illustrated by nabi h. ali kokila press, 2021 isbn: 978-1984815651 young laxmi is having fun playing pretend with her friends at preschool when they suggest she should play a cat because of her “whiskers”, pointing to the hair on her upper lip. suddenly selfconscious of her facial hair, she comes home concerned about why she is different from her friends. her family talks to her about being proud of her indian american heritage, with her mother sharing the legacy of women with “mooches” the playful word they use for the hair on the upper lip. in this body-positive text for young readers, laxmi reminds us all to be proud of our heritage and the unique and beautiful bodies we all have. as laxmi reminds the reader, “it’s ok, you can look”. laxmi’s mooch is a gentle and loving reminder that what makes us unique 138 also makes us beautiful. parents and teachers of young children will appreciate this story of selfacceptance, family heritage, and celebrating ourselves for who we are. ages 4-8. books for young adults firekeeper's daughter written by angeline boulley henry holt and company, 2021 isbn: 978-1250766564 in her stunning debut novel, angeline boulley tells the story of daunis fontaine, an 18-year-old young woman. as a biracial unregistered member of the ojibwe tribe, daunis does not feel as if she fits in her hometown or in the nearby ojibwe reservation. putting her dreamed about fresh start at college on hold to care for her fragile mother, daunis finds herself navigating a secret life as an fbi informant in an investigation of a lethal new drug. the author, angelina boulley successfully writes a story that will keep younger adult readers on the edge of their seat as the heroine learns what it means to be a strong ojibwe woman. the novels provide young adult readers to learn about social justice, modern native american issues and personal growth. ages 14 and up. let’s talk about it: a teen’s guide to sex, relationships, and being a human written by erika moen and mathew nolan random house graphic, 2021 isbn: 978-1984893147 erika moen and mathew noal take on a challenging yet essential topic in their graphic novel, let’s talk about it: a teen’s guide to sex, relationships, and being a human. the book includes critical topics such as gender, consent, sexting, rejection, and more. the graphics include detailed illustrations of human genitals which may deter some readers and their adults, but this graphic novel provides much needed critical information. some readers may question the way certain concepts are covered (i.e., sexting, sexually transmitted diseases, etc.); however, with the right guidance and support from the adults in their lives, the graphic novel could serve as an important conversation starter for topics that may otherwise not be addressed. ages 14 and up. 108 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 1 updates thank you for your continued support of the international journal of the whole child and our commitment to holistic learning and to the development of the whole child . to improve the efficiency of the journal, we have updated our submission and publication dates. beginning fall 2021, submission deadlines for the fall will be september 30th. the submission deadline for the spring will be february 28th. the fall issues will be published in december and the spring issue will be published in may. lastly, our journal has officially moved to the apa 7th edition. we ask that all authors adhere to this edition when submitting your manuscript for review. thank you again for your continued support. we look forward to seeing you in fall 2021. 26 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 1 music in the classroom heather blackburn master’s student at middle tennessee state university in order to maximize children’s learning environment, this article describes how classroom teachers may introduce different types of music into the daily classroom schedule; current findings indicate music contributes to students’ learning. this discussion identifies several different kinds of music and further describes how classroom teachers and children may benefit from listening to music as background for learning. introduction music, as a universal language, surrounds us and permeates our lives. so, as educators, is it not reasonable to routinely implement music into the daily dynamic of our classrooms? typically, the content, instruction, and assessment we provide our students utilize the linguistic and mathematical arenas. yet music, with respect to listening to, learning about, and practicing, simultaneously engages both brain hemispheres (reimer, 2004; sherman, 2011). howard gardner posits that individuals represent a range of multiple intelligences (gardner, 1983; gardner, 2006). in addition to the traditional references to linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligences, gardner as well describes bodily kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic, existential, and musical as inherent capacities. children with musical intelligence are skilled with the ability to appreciate and produce rhythm, timbre, and pitch; as well, they have a great appreciation for the various forms of musical expressiveness (gardner & hatch, 1989). children tend to learn more effectively when there is music in the background, when the teacher speaks rhythmically, and when lessons are turned into lyrics. as educators, by incorporating music into our classrooms, we are creating another possibility for our children to be comfortable and learn. for this current discussion, music in the general education curriculum is defined as usage in any way to enhance a lesson or usage as background music in the general education classroom. this does not include activities in the music classroom or outside music lessons. the purpose of this discussion is to consider how background music may contribute to children’s learning. music and physiology sherman (2011) reports listening to music increases blood flow to the brain. when we listen to music, multiple parts of the brain are active at one time. using mri machines, researchers discovered that as subjects listened to and processed the music, multiple parts of the brain were activated concurrently, 27 rather than in one predominant area. this processing of the music and sound was happening simultaneously. when engaging in musical activities, either as a novice or a professional, both brain hemispheres are activated along with cerebral cortex activity and memory retrieval (reimer, 2004; sherman, 2011; wilkinson, 2013). the physiology of the brain, while having seemingly central locations for certain mental and physical functions, is quite individual and diverse. these individual differences can be demonstrated in many ways. for example, it is probable that different life experiences will cause different developments in the brain (reimer, 2004). whether one likes to admit it or not, music has a physical effect on our bodies as well as our emotions. many people like to exercise to up-tempo music in order to help drive them forward to complete their workout. in yoga classes, however, one will find the music to be more peaceful and serene. this is because of how we uniquely respond physically or emotionally to the music to which we listen. findings demonstrate that music with a faster tempo causes an increase in a participant’s blood pressure as well as a rise in the heart and breathing rates. in contrast, listening to slower music evidences a lowering of breathing and heart rates (trappe, 2012). baroque music, whose tempo averages around 60 beats per minute (the relaxed pulse of a healthy heart), regulates heart rhythm and blood pressure and lowers cortisol levels (wilkinson, 2013). could this be a reason why we drive a bit faster when listening to music with an increased tempo or why, in a spa, in order to relax, we hear music that is soft and with a slower tempo? in other words, music and behavior are related and music choices may not be incidental, but made intentionally to evoke a particular response. currently, music is used therapeutically in the treatment of different diseases. data describe how music therapy contributes to an individual’s well-being by lowering anxiety levels, decreasing blood pressures, and diminishing heart rates. music therapy is also shown to help reduce the risk of future events such as heart attack and death (trappe, 2012). stress is an everyday part of life. we experience stress in our homes, work, and school settings. even the youngest child can experience stress. it is the ways in which we handle stress that determine possible harm to our bodies. prolonged periods of stress can cause gastro-intestinal (gi) problems, high blood pressure issues, headaches, sleep disturbances, and fatigue behaviors. emotionally, because of stress, one could have outbursts of anger, anxiety, and depression. this physiological response includes the release of the stress hormone, cortisol (yehuda, 2011). findings indicate listening to music can help lower the amount of cortisol released in stressful situations (yehuda, 2011). a musical piece in a major (happy) key lowered the levels more than those in a minor (sad) key. this same study showed that techno music actually increases the cortisol level. on the other hand, pleasant music leads to the release of dopamine and serotonin in the brain, both of which are regarded as “good mood” hormones. music also affects brain waves. two types of brain waves are alpha and theta. alpha waves appear during relaxation and theta waves appear during deep relaxation. music, of a specific tempo (50-80 beats per minute), can help to stabilize mental, physical, and emotional rhythms and lead students into the alpha brain wave state. the alpha brain wave is a state of relaxation, deep concentration, and focus during which large amounts of information can be more easily processed (brewer, 1995). some commercial interests believe that people can focus their attention on a particular rhythmic stimulus long enough as to reach a different level of awareness (transparent corporation, 2015). https://youtu.be/ufbaknfygfw https://youtu.be/2rtznll0wss https://youtu.be/jjnyezlnb3e?t=2h16m58s https://youtu.be/-4ktei0xrcs https://youtu.be/ho9rzjlsyyy 28 music: feeling and thinking music affects the human body and can influence emotions. if you are feeling gloomy, what music might you listen to in order to uplift your outlook? for me, listening to motown or broadway works well to adjust my attitude. studies indicate that the use of background music in the classroom lowers teacher’s anxiety and increases students’ attentiveness (can background music help learning?, 2008). when our stress levels are high, we are unable to concentrate and make intelligent and informed choices. music helps to reduce stress by lowering cortisol levels, the hormone released in stressful situations (yehuda, 2011). music also has the power to move us to action. the civil rights movement inspired songs like “we shall overcome” and “we shall not be moved.” similarly, during the revolutionary and vietnam wars, people used music to rally around and articulate anti-war sentiments (“yankee doodle” by dr. richard shuckburgh; “ballad of the green berets” by robin moore and staff sgt. barry sadler; and “america” by samuel francis smith). when you hear a song from your childhood or youth, the music takes you back to another place in time. does a particular song motivate you to smile? in contrast to happy feelings, does hearing some music/song cause you to remember a sad event? listening to music allows us to revisit experiences and feelings many years in the past. how is this memory recall possible? alzheimer’s patients can recall memories from years past when an old familiar song is heard. this is because music uses both hemispheres of the brain. music creates brain activity many other methods, like conversation, cannot achieve (sherman, 2011). music and content when considering an ethnicity or culture, music is always one of the topics discussed. music and the arts is an important part of cultures across the world. for example, polka music is an inherent part of german culture, as is lederhosen and oktoberfest. mexico is known for their mariachi bands, ireland for celtic music, and the pentatonic, or five-note, scale gives eastern music a distinct sound. in addition to new orleans as the birthplace of jazz, the united states is also home to gospel and rock and roll. music provides a window into the history, culture, and ethnicity of a country. music provides a window into the history, culture, and ethnicity of a people. our goal, as educators, is to enable our students to become critical, reflective, and informed citizens. to this purpose, we teach critical thinking in science, math, literature, and the arts. as we introduce our students to the cultures of the world, we support their understanding of how to relate to these differences. as mr. glenn holland says, “i guess you can cut the arts as much as you want, gene. sooner or later, these kids aren’t going to have anything to read or write about.” (mr. holland’s opus, 1995). in other words, it is the arts that make us human and unique and music is integral to our human capacity. music and schools regarding using music in schools, a local teacher uses isochronal music in his classroom on a consistent basis (f. smith, personal communication, september 2016). isochronal tones are singular tones being turned on and off rapidly which are then overlaid onto a music track. isochronal tones can be played through speakers. binaural auditory beats must have two tones in each ear and require the use of headphones. websites tout that isochronal music can help increase cognition and focus and can increase emotional stability and motivation or energy (transparent corporation, 2015). if this were true, then listening to music with isochronal or binaural beats would prove to be an effective study aid. other than https://youtu.be/6sijsnts7fs https://youtu.be/tqwi_urjd2i https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03mgyvfzaak https://youtu.be/vtykjjj2oc0 https://youtu.be/vtykjjj2oc0 https://youtu.be/vtykjjj2oc0 https://youtu.be/duvoetgvvyu https://youtu.be/m5wjjvse_be https://youtu.be/emroeo_4jiy?t=3m5s https://youtu.be/klve7_2ueq8 https://youtu.be/jiwuq6uhmqg?t=1h57m15s https://youtu.be/mvlvkzr6jbc?t=2m44s https://youtu.be/r8jlz4d3f7s?t=38m16s https://youtu.be/knuoged9qeo 29 websites promoting material for purchase, minimal research can be found to prove the validity of using isochronal music as a study aid. however, this particular teacher finds that his students are more focused and remain calmer on the days it is playing. he also finds that he, as the teacher, is more focused while listening to this type of music (f. smith, personal communication, september 2016). kennel, taylor, lyon, & bourguignon (2010) conducted research on 20 participants with adhd ranging in age from eight-21 to see if binaural auditory beats (babs) would increase their attentiveness. students were given various tests, some while listening to music with babs while the control group was provided with a similar audio cd that did not contain babs. there was minimal evidence to prove that babs have any effect on students’ attentiveness. however, parents and adolescents in both groups noted less inattentiveness in homework assignments during the study and requested a cd for personal use. despite the lack of significant findings, it appears listening to the soothing background music was perceived as a positive experience. “there exists a serious lack of understanding, in education, of the importance of music in neurological and emotional development and learning” (wilkinson, 2013, p. 29). this lack of understanding, in most instances, is the reason why funding for music and the arts, in general, is the first to experience diminished budgeted resources. with an improved understanding of the relationship between music and thinking and feeling, educators may more effectively meet the needs of many more of their students. wilkinson (2013) describes how in one scenario, music was played to ‘at-risk’ students during an art class. previously, these students held their emotions inside and were reluctant to express their feelings artistically, let alone verbally. while listening to the music during art class, these students appeared more able to freely express their feelings through their artwork. the music seemed to allow a gentle release of tension in a non-aggressive way (wilkinson, 2013). whether to release tension or to improve moods, people generally listen to music for its emotional effect. a song from years long past can remind the listener of teenage heartbreak or quiet joy. songs with moving lyrics or moving music itself can bring the listener to tears. a commonly held view is that music acquires its emotional meaning from association with consequential events (krumhansl, 2002). often, a listener will connect musical pieces with a specific moment in his or her life. a person’s emotional response to music can be said to be a function of both the music and the individual (daly et al, 2015). due to differing individual responses to external stimuli under the same conditions, emotions are highly subjective (bhatti, majid, anwar, & khan, 2016). the human range of emotions is generated from a basic set of emotions which is not a set standard; brain scientists and psychology experts propose different models which include happy, sad, joy, anger, and fear. because of the subjective quality of our emotions, it is impossible to truly know how a student will react or be affected by the music an educator chooses to use in his or her classroom. however, through music, the aesthetic exposure we present to our students may have the potential to develop within them a sense of emotional and empathic well-being. just as music effects our bodies’ physiological responses and our emotions, music can also have an effect on our students’ learning. music simultaneously stimulates both the left and the right sides of the brain (wilkinson, 2013). additionally, music also stimulates the limbic system, which is responsible for long term memory. findings demonstrate how students learned three-to-five times faster than normal when background music was played while learning new material (wilkinson, 2013). studies describe the effects of playing “background” music in the classroom (can background music help learning?, 2008; savan, 1999). background music is music that is heard but not actively registered by the brain. music which captures the listener’s attention is no longer functioning as background music 30 (savan, 1999). background music helps to lower teacher anxiety, raise student involvement, and student productivity (can background music help learning?, 2008). in a study done at moseley secondary school in birmingham (uk), two different science classes with the same teacher were observed both with and without playing background music during the lesson. dr. penny upton, a psychologist, observed the students and the teacher. she described how, before the background music was playing, students were fidgeting and the girls were more focused than the boys, who were just chatting. once the music began to play, she noticed that the fidgeting ceased and the boys began to focus on their work. she also discussed how there was less anxiety and stress on the part of the teacher (can background music help learning?, 2008). one element shared by many studies is the importance of the volume and genre of music chosen to be background (cantor, 2013; dolegui, 2013; hallam, price, & katsarou, 2002). as the brain processes, cognitive function is impaired when the brain is trying to focus on the lyrics of a song as well as understand new material. students are less able to focus on their work if the music is familiar or contains lyrics. findings indicate it is calming, relaxing music that has a benefit on cognitive function (hallam et al., 2002). hallam et al. (2002) found the calming and relaxing music helped students to complete more mathematics problems as well as remember more missing words from sentences. participating students interviewed in the study at moseley described the music as soothing and relaxing the mind. in addition to background music helping with concentration, students also identified motivation as a benefit (can background music help learning?, 2008). the entire brain is involved when listening to or making music (sherman, 2011). passive listening does not make one smarter, but it does help to increase attentiveness. just as important, if not more, as the genre, or style, of music is the volume of the music being played. true background music is played at a volume so as to not require the teacher to raise his voice when speaking with the students. louder music distracts students from their work. it has a negative effect on their memory and leads to a lower level of pro-social behavior (hallam et al., 2002). savan (1999) describes how ten 11-12-year-old boys with emotional-behavioral disorder (ebd) saw an improvement not only in their work and attention span, but also in their behavior when background music was introduced. the students were played selections of mozart’s orchestral music during five 40-minute science classes. data recorded drops in blood pressures and decreases in heart rates and body temperatures as well as noting improvements in behavior and attentiveness. these physiological improvements caused an increase in co-ordination which may in turn have helped to decrease the students’ frustration levels and allowed them more self-control. music is demonstrated to be a useful learning tool, not only as background music, but as an active instructional alternative (lum, 2008). lum (2008) interviewed singaporean mother-tongue teachers about their use of music in their classrooms. one of the teachers is an avid musician and strives to share her love of music with her students and often plays background music of her choosing while her students do seatwork. another of the teachers interviewed uses songs in her lessons to help teach vocabulary words. she noticed that her students paid more attention and were more interested in a lesson when she introduced a song. teaching students songs that go along with a lesson is an effective way to incorporate music into the general education classroom. for example, during her unit on plant and animal cells, an area teacher introduces her students to the “cell rap.” her former students of years past can still sing this rap that https://youtu.be/wn4czzujh1w?t=2h30m4s https://youtu.be/-zafjkbmpa8 31 helps them to remember the make-up of both plant and animal cells (b. tuverson, personal communication, october 2016). music reinforces memory. one of the most important reasons to include music in the classroom is that “using music for learning makes the process much more fun and interesting!” (brewer, 1995, p.1). brewer provides several benefits to using music in the classroom which include facilitating a multisensory experience, establishing a positive learning state, creating a desired atmosphere, and energizing learning activities. the musical influences of the mother-tongue teachers in the lum (2008) study played a major role in their use of music in their classrooms. devi shares her love of music with her students and encourages her students with musical backgrounds to perform at school assemblies to share the indian culture they study with other students. the musical influences of teachers will naturally transfer into their classrooms. music is a part of who we are as human beings. allowing these influences to enter the classroom, will allow our students to know more about us and relate to us as people and not merely “the teacher.” as children share their favorite music with one another and the teacher uses music in lessons and as instructional background, music can play an integral role in relationship building in the classroom community (wolpert-gawron, 2014). a teacher can use music in many ways and for different reasons in his or her classroom. it can be used as an aid to teach vocabulary (lum, 2008; wolpert-gawron, 2014; brewer, 1995), to supplement history lessons (antepenko, 2008), and to serve as writing prompts (antepenko, 2008; brewer, 1995; wolpert gawron, 2014). conclusion as contemporary educators, we daily interact with a range of students’ cultural, ethnic, language, and ability differences. admittedly, there is no “single learning alternative” that is effective for all children. yet, it appears that music may offer the classroom teacher with a least expensive, least intrusive, and most inclusionary tool to assist in their learning. using music as background for learning is nonthreatening and suggests a potential for establishing a “safe and comfortable” context for all children to learn. so, give music a try in your classroom and don’t forget to ask your students how they are feeling and thinking about the music. 32 references antepenko, a. 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(2012). music and medicine: the effects of music on the human being. applied cardiopulmonary pathophysiology, 16, 133-142. wilkinson, i. (2013). let there be music: making a case for using music in schools to enhance relationships and readiness for learning. canadian music educator, 55(1), 28-31. wolpert-gawron, h. (2014). 8 ways to use music in the language arts classroom. edutopia. retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/using-music-strategies-language-arts classroom-heather-wolpert-gawron yehuda, n. (2011). music and stress. journal of adult development,18, 85-94. doi:10.1007/s10804-010-9117 http://www.edutopia.org/blog/using-music-strategies-language-artsfinal draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 67 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 emerging scholar the utilization of instructional coaches on the impact of student achievement and teacher instructional practices in reading and math in grades three through eight laurie offutta, donald sneadb a-bmiddle tennessee state university laurie offutt is the coordinator of instructional effectiveness and assessment for murfreesboro city schools. prior to being appointed to this position, laurie served as principal of reevesrogers elementary. laurie received bachelor’s degree from western kentucky university, her masters, educational specialist, and doctorate degrees from middle tennessee state university. donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the interim department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. abstract instructional coaches may assist teachers in their continued learning by providing embedded professional development in areas of need. in this study, most sub-groups in the school district realized increases in proficiency levels in math and reading after the implementation of instructional coaches. some sub-groups evidenced significant rates of improvement; however, english language learners demonstrated lower levels of achievement in both math and reading throughout the year. both math and reading proficiency levels remain still low and even with instructional coaches in all schools, student achievement did not reach 50%. these findings suggest that the implementation of instructional coaches did not significantly impact student achievement scores, nor did the implementation of instructional coaches improve teachers’ instructional practices. problems with the successful implementation of instructional coaches are described in an effort to increase the positive impact of instructional coaches in the future. background school districts face increased pressure each year to increase student achievement. beginning with the publication of a nation at risk (1983) to the every student succeeds act (2015), public schools remain challenged to increase student achievement and close educational gaps in student subgroups. today’s administrators remain tasked with managing a school building as well as 68 serving as an instructional leader. past solutions for improving student achievement focused on professional development and teacher evaluation models. professional development, while intended to be an opportunity for professional growth, often is designed as one day sessions and frequently becomes “disconnected from deep curriculum and learning, fragmented, and noncumulative” (ball & cohen, 1999, pp. 3-4). the delivery format as well as the lack of follow through to ensure teachers implement learned strategies into classroom practices, remain as areas of disparity in the traditional professional development model. follow through and delivery format are critical in order to increase both students’ achievement and teachers’ content knowledge (knight, 2005). data demonstrate teacher evaluation models do not yield higher student achievement scores as desired after states revamped teacher evaluation formats (dynarski, 2016). with the increasing high stakes accountability and the desire to deliver quality education, school districts continue to implement instructional coaches as a means to improve students’ achievement scores. instructional coaches, tasked with increasing teachers’ knowledge of best practices, target the goal to increase students’ achievement scores (knight, 2005). instructional coaching instructional coaching, developed in the early 1980s, responded to school districts’ efforts to meet the on-going demand for support for teachers who “needed to learn how to meet the mandated, more stringent standards for student learning” (neumerski, 2012, p. 322). with the inception of instructional coaches, the professional development model shifted and transformed. schools began to hire instructional coaches to support teachers in their classrooms during the school year by creating collaborative cultures wherein teachers requested on-demand professional development opportunities, participated in co-teaching with content experts, engaged in reflective feedback conversations, and committed to strong collaborative relationships (cohen & ball, 1999). knight (2007) describes collaboration as a necessary component for instructional coaching. in order for reflection to occur on teacher practices, it is essential conversations occur. collaborative teams, engaged in creating norms in which they operate, begin meaningful conversations about student achievement and instructional effectiveness. when this culture exists, instructional coaching becomes impactful. sparks (2008) describes non-collaborative teams as not prepared, not focused, and not positive. sparks (2008) further discusses when collaborative teams engage in creating norms, they structure a work environment that is student focused; otherwise, it is difficult to resolve issues. successful teams focus, define roles and responsibilities, structure and set processes, and evidence positive behaviors and relationships (sparks, 2008). with the creation and implementation of norms, members of collaborative teams help teachers remain focused and engaged and then take risks. norms are not created as “rules;” they are designed “to ensure that teams develop shared knowledge of how collaboratively developed team norms are an effective tool for enhanced team effectiveness” (eaker & keating, 2012, p. 113). the processes of collaborating involve teams deciding norms; these decisions drive teachers’ work and provide a chance to negotiate and define particular practices for the ongoing collaboration (dufour et al., 2006). these norms enable collaborative teams to create the desired work environment. risks for teachers can be intimidating because a weakness could be exposed. this is when instructional coaching can be impactful. instructional coaches are seen as proactively becoming 69 partners in school communities and not perceived as evaluators (knight, 2007). transparent communication establishes effective partnerships when teachers become aware of vulnerability in their instruction requiring revision. the dialogue in a professional learning community meeting can be the beginning point of a collaboration between a teacher and an instructional coach. effective communication exists between an instructional coach and a teacher; in this way, the meaning of the message is not distorted because, perceived as a partner, it is more likely the teacher receives the meaning as non-threatening (knight, 2007). in order for instructional coaches to motivate a positive impact on improving teachers’ instructional practices, a trusting relationship is established. as partners, instructional coaches work with teachers and leadership teams to improve instructional practices with the aim to improve student achievement (dufour et al., 2006). as instructional coaching increases in practice, it is critical for administrators to identify coaches who exemplify effective teaching as well (knight, 2005). effective instructional coaches, as well as effective teachers, understand demonstrated classroom strategies and work side-by-side with teachers and administrators without evaluation. knight (2005, 2007) describes how it is critically important for instructional coaches to truly believe in teachers while working deeply with them, side by side, in order to improve their instruction and affect student achievement. research findings indicate coaching increases teachers’ willingness to implement new instructional strategies and practices (showers & joyce, 1996). as teachers improve their knowledge and instructional practices, the desired effect is to increase student achievement. professional development and student achievement in the past, the traditional approach for professional development is for teachers to enroll in sessions, attend, implement the new practices, and supposedly indicate an increase in student learning. yet, data demonstrates this traditional professional development model fails to yield higher student achievement scores (ball & cohen, 1999). a particular problem with this traditional model is teachers remain restricted to participating only in district sessions and learning remains passive (ball & cohen, 1999). additionally, school districts often fail to equip teachers with the necessary tools and equipment required for effective implementation (guskey, 2014). another difficulty is for teachers to choose areas in which they truly require revised learning. the traditional professional development model indicates a 10% implementation rate (bush, 1984). with such a low level of implementation of practices learned, the question becomes, “why do school systems continue this ineffective method of professional development?” this traditional “sit and receive” model is no longer an effective practice if the goal is to impact student achievement. with the immense pressure for schools to perform at high levels, school leaders seek to change professional development delivery and support new initiatives in order for teachers to not feel overwhelmed by changes that are poorly planned and not well supported (knight, 2007). in order to positively affect student achievement, it is critical professional development programs include job-embedded follow up for a sustained period of time, identify a specific focus, and frame active teacher learning (darling-hammond et al., 2009). incorporating instructional coaches in 70 schools identifies relevant content, provides support for implementation, and ensures immediate feedback. another disparity with the traditional professional development model is frequently there is no clear and targeted purpose. those in charge of developing the professional development content often negate the essential element; the process of the session is completed with no focus on the end results (guskey, 2014). planners often prepare the necessary scope of the work and provide materials for the session but never touch on or evaluate the desired session outcomes. it is critical professional development focuses on student outcomes; designing professional development learning based on student success goals which drives professional development decisions (guskey, 2014). another issue related to traditional professional development is the lack of follow up after teachers complete sessions. follow up is rarely a goal of school districts. the problem with this lack of follow-up is there is no school district accountability to ensure student achievement is increasing as a consequence of the professional development. instructional coaching generates from teachers’ requests; this approach supports teacher effectiveness which, in turn, influences student achievement. it is important to acknowledge that not only administrators become instructional leaders. it is the administrator’s responsibility to create a culture of trust and collaboration in schools. when this culture of trust and respect is created, embedded follow up of professional development practices further extends educators’ experiences. as a component in the traditional administrator’s evaluation, the post conference allows administrators to offer instructional advice and suggest professional development to strengthen teachers’ practices. these administrative suggestions may, in reality, create a negative perception of professional development, as teachers perceive it as punishment for performing negatively in areas of performance (tschannen-moran, b. & tschannen-moran, m., 2011). in contrast, using the instructional coach model, evaluation and professional development remain apart (showers & joyce, 1996). as administrators work to improve classroom instruction and implement instructional coaches to facilitate teachers’ understanding of effective instructional practices, the evaluation and coaching cycles for teachers remain as two different processes. the desire to increase student achievement prompted states to reevaluate and rewrite teacher evaluation models (hill & grossman, 2013). policy makers encroached upon teacher evaluation models. the results do not become a framework for improvement; rather, the feedback becomes a tool used for termination (hill & grossman, 2013). the failures of the evaluation models remain embedded into current state and district practices, thus only adding to an unchanging and ineffective process. administrators, observing teachers, may not be knowledgeable in all content areas. additionally, they may only observe a few times each evaluation cycle (hill & grossman, 2013). how effective is an evaluation model that requires an administrator to observe three hours of the approximately 1,260 hours an educator teaches each school year? many current evaluation models do not provide for a complete and comprehensive representation of a teacher’s effectiveness. 71 in 2009, 15,000 teachers in 12 school districts in the u.s. completed a survey regarding feedback given from teacher evaluations. three-quarters of the teachers reported not receiving any areas of identified improvement on their evaluation results; almost half of the teachers who did report their evaluation identified an area of improvement received no subsequent support for improving in the deficit area (weisberg et al., 2009). another evaluation model that researchers describe as ineffective is value added (vam). the vam model is based on the belief that, regardless of anything else, the gains students make on standardized tests relate to a teachers’ effectiveness. this measure is based on a given assessment and assumes that no other influences affect the student’s performance (darlinghammond et al., 2012). vam models do not consider curriculum, adequate instructional time and materials, home life, individual student needs, prior teachers and schools, and specific tests used to generate the score (darling-hammond et al., 2012). in the past decade, many states revamped the teacher evaluation systems with the purpose to create a more rigorous evaluation model with the intent to increase student achievement (dynarski, 2016). however, when national assessment of educational progress (naep) student scores from 10 years ago compare with current student scores, the test results do not match the effectiveness level scores teachers receive which generate from the revamped evaluation models. for example, in 2009, teacher effectiveness scores, based on state teacher evaluation models, included: florida 98%, new york 95%, and michigan 98% of teachers identified effective (dynarski, 2016). in 2016, the department of education websites for florida, new york, and michigan, reported the following percentages for teachers identified as effective based on the evaluation models: florida 97%, new york 97%, and michigan 98%: however, the proficiency scores for the three states include: florida, grades 3-8, 52.6% proficient; new york, grades 3-8, 38% proficient; and michigan, grades 3-8, 45% proficient (dynarski, 2016). evaluation models include checklists for what is observed in the classroom; most models fail to examine students’ learning (dynarski, 2016). in order to meet federal and state reforms, school districts have utilized instructional coaches as a tool to help teachers improve instructional practices to positively impact student achievement. this study examines the effects of the utilization of instructional coaches. purpose of study the purpose of the current study is to determine if teacher instructional practices and utilization of instructional coaches support districts and schools to increase student achievement scores. while in the past, professional development and teacher evaluation models intended to increase student achievement, the field is currently studying the impact of embedded follow up with the utilization of instructional coaches. the research remains limited on what constitutes, “high quality coaching professional development” (cobb & jackson, 2011, p. 9). in order for teachers to begin utilizing best classroom practices, instructional coaches help classroom teachers engage in high-quality and embedded feedback as well as guide in reflective feedback (cobb & jackson, 2011). research indicates professional learning from sessions is more likely to be sustained across time when instructional coaches and instructional leaders work 72 with teachers to ensure that investigative pedagogies and enactment pedagogies become active in teachers’ practices to ensure content knowledge growth and increased student achievement (cobb & jackson, 2011). school districts and individual schools continue to struggle with accountability and the demand for increasing student achievement for all students. in order to support professional development and provide embedded follow up with teachers to ensure effective implementation of school and district initiatives, the instructional coach model warrants investigation. with professional coaches as support, teachers use effective and research-based instructional practices to improve delivery. the utilization of instructional coaches also allows for the professional development and evaluation processes to remain separate. research questions this study examines the effects of teachers’ instructional practices and utilization of instructional coaches on student achievement scores in order to clarify if teachers’ utilization of instructional coaches can assist schools in creating effective instructional coaching programs with the intent to improve student achievement. research questions include: 1. does the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach increase the instructional practices in reading in third through eighth grades? 2. does the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach increase instructional practices in math in third through eighth grades? 3. does instructional coaching impact student tnready achievement in math in third through eighth grades? 4. does instructional coaching impact student tnready achievement in reading in third through eighth grades? theoretical framework situated learning theory connects how learning occurs in school communities with effective implementations of instructional coaches (smith, 2003/2009). knight (2007) describes instructional coaches as “a partnership,” with teachers, “built around the core principles of equality, choice, voice, dialogue, reflection, praxis, and reciprocity” (p. 24). the foundational beliefs framing instructional coaching become what lave and wenger (as cited in smith, 2003/2009) describe as, “communities of practice” (para. 5). lave and wenger (as cited in smith, 2003/2009) believe learning is social and occurs in daily life. the use of embedded professional development by instructional coaches illustrates the point of situated learning theory. relationships with one another that nurture within schools when the community works together as a whole for things that matter have a positive culture (lave & wenger as cited in smith, 2003/2009). communities of practice begin when the school community engages together with the instructional coach facilitating their learning. this journey of learning together builds trust and binds the community (smith, 2003/2009; tschannen-moran, b. &tschannen-moran, m., 2011). lave and wenger (as cited in smith, 2003/2009) believe learning is based on relationships between people and the relationships help create meaningful exchanges. situated learning theory is rooted in the belief that learning is both personal and 73 social. for educators, learning is social, taking place in both their classroom and school communities (borko, 2004). guskey (1986) explains the need for a new model for professional development in education. he believes a new pathway reflecting on instructional practices would support teachers’ understanding of their students’ ongoing learning. in order to promote student achievement, feedback on instruction may also support teachers’ understanding. furthermore, change can be challenging for teachers, and to ensure teachers receive regular feedback on student learning, it is recommended continual support and follow up be provided teachers after initial trainings (guskey, 1986). situated learning, making learning a community partnership with the direction of an instructional coach, allows these necessary changes to occur in a safe and supportive environment. communities of practice allow teacher learning to continue daily; learning is an ongoing process together with colleagues. when changes occur in teacher practices, teachers grow together as a community. the changes are trustful, community-based, and relevant, and positively impact school’s effectiveness (smith, 2003/2009). methods this study used a non-experimental, quantitative causal-comparative design and used the tennessee comprehensive assessment program (tcap) scores of students in grades 3 through 8 to first examine if the use of instructional coaches indicates an effect on student math and reading achievement scores. causal-comparative studies are done when no manipulation to a variable occurs and when no experimental designs become implemented. a comparative study approach is appropriate (van dalen, 1979). in this non-experimental study design, the researcher is not manipulating any variables that may alter the findings. the study analyzed student proficiency rates a year prior to the implementation of instructional coaches and three years after the implementation to explain the effects on the proficiency rates across time on tcap test scores in math and reading and also to determine if gains were maintained after implementation. the researcher sought to discover a rate of change between the percentages of proficient students on tcap math and reading tests for four years. examining the rate of change of proficiency allowed the researcher to identify increases or decreases of proficiency levels during the implementation of instructional coaches and years following implementation. the rate of change is the percentage of change at which a variable change across time. proficiency is defined at which a student is meeting the target projection of grade level or above mastery. secondly, a correlational study was conducted with the survey administered to teachers in third through eighth grades. the correlation was to examine the instructional practices implemented in classrooms by teachers to the number of times a teacher utilized an instructional coach in their school. the purpose was to determine any correlations to the increase of instructional practices used by teachers and the frequency of utilization of instructional coaches in grades 3 through 8. 74 participants six schools in the school system serving 3,579 students in grades pre-school through eighth in a small-size urban school district in the southeastern u.s. participated. the participants include all of the 91 teachers, grades 3 through 8, in the six schools. two middle schools serve 1,143 students and four elementary schools include pre-k through fifth grades with 2,436 students. most of the students in the school system are represented by sub-groups identified by the state department of education. based on the subgroups identified by the state, 91.8% of the students are in an identified subgroup. student ethnic groups were comprised on asian (1.6%), black or african american (18.8%), hispanic or latino (14.4%), native american or alaskan (0.3%), native hawaiian or pacific islander (0.3%), and white (64.6%). specific student groups included: black, hispanic, native american (33.5%), economically disadvantaged (37.2%), students with disabilities (5.3%), english language learners (13%), students in foster care (0.1%), homeless (1.3%), and migrant (0.2%). student gender was 50.7% male and 49.3% female. teacher demographics showed 80% female, 8.8% male, and 2% no data recorded. teacher ethnicity included american indian or alaskan native (1.1%), black or african american (1.1%), white (95.6 %) and other no data given (2.2%). teacher years of experience had the following range: 0-3 years (11%), 4-6 years (16.5%), 7-10 years (12.1%), 11-15 years (17.6%), and 16+ years (40.7%). teacher pathway to licensure accounted for 22% with a master’s in education – undergraduate degree in non-education field, 66% with traditional undergraduate degree in education, and 4.4% with alternative licensure. a survey adapted from the wisconsin center for educational research’s survey of instructional practices teacher survey grades k-12 mathematics and english (blank, 2009) was used. the survey, in its entirety, included 412 questions and targeted grades k-12. the survey was divided into different sections such as demographics of the classroom to instructional practices. data collection student data in this study were gathered from the tennessee comprehensive program (tcap). student data consisted of tcap results for math and reading from the state achievement test administrations from the following years: 2009-2010, year of implementation of instructional coaches, 2010-2011, year after implementation of instructional coaches, and the 2011-2012 and 2016-2017 school years. test administrations were based on the state allowable accommodations for students. the survey on teachers’ instructional practices was sent to every third through eighth grade teacher in the school district. the survey consisted of selected questions from the wisconsin center for educational research survey. for the current study, the teacher instructional practices survey was used to collect teacher perception data on utilizing instructional coaches and instructional practices. 75 a correlational test on the teacher survey and a percent of change test was performed to determine if there was an increase or a decrease in state assessment scores. tests checked for statistically significant results at the p =.05 level for the research questions. in the percent of change tests, utilizing proficiency data from grades 3 through 8 in reading and math, data demonstrate the percentages in terms of student proficiency. the percentages reported represent the percent of students scoring in the proficient bands of advanced and proficient, and mastered and on-track. data for this study was analyzed using a pc computer version of ibm’s spss statistical software and excel. data analysis data was analyzed for the following research questions (rq): rq 1. instructional coaching and reading practices. does the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach increase instructional practices in reading in grades 3 through 8? when analyzing the data from correlations from the survey for questions regarding reading, approximately half of the questions showed a positive correlation and half indicated a negative correlation. no questions regarding reading and the number of times using an instructional coach resulted in a significant correlation. the following reading instructional practices show negative correlations: supporting arguments with evidence r = (-.005), n = 88, p = (.966), exploring language arts content with technology r = (-.040), n = 90, p = (.709), responding creatively to texts r = (-.042), n = 91, p = (.689), and making predictions and hypothesis r = (-.008), n = 88, p = (.942). these instructional strategies indicate direct links to the state standards on which students’ assessment occur. the survey questions link to reading multiple texts, analyzing multiple texts, and generating a written text based on the texts read and analyzed. these are all higher order levels of thinking and analyzing for students to perform. these negative correlations could be the result of the instructional coach only providing surface levels coaching; it is desirable to implement a more rigorous form of a teaching model or of a co-teaching approach with teachers. there could also be a resistance to coaching from the teachers, or the particular instructional coach is not as effective to facilitate teachers on how to instruct on a more rigorous level to move students to higher levels of learning. the instructional practices that revealed negative correlations indicate practices that remain essential to teach many of the state content standards set forth by the department of education that create the proficiency standards for students r = (-.138), n= 88, p = (.195) as shown in table 1. in order for students to be proficient (on grade level) students demonstrate mastery of the content standards on the state assessment. there is no statistical significance in the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach and the increase of instructional practices in reading in third through eighth grade. rq 2. instructional practices and math practices. does the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach increase instructional practices in math in third through eighth grade? 76 when analyzing the data from the correlations from the survey, data demonstrate seven negative correlations between math practices and number of times an instructional coach utilized by a teacher, but findings evidenced no statistical significance. integration of math r = (-.070), n = 89, p = (.508), teaching with manipulatives r = (-.012), n = 87, p = (.914), reasoning mathematically r = (-.126), n = 84, p = (.246), applying mathematical concepts to the real world r = (-.034), n = 86, p = (.755), making predictions or hypothesis r = (-.022), n = 89, p = (.834), and assessing credibility and relevance of mathematical precision r = (-.053), n = 85, p = (.624). these math practices represent high level instructional strategies recognized by the national council of teachers of mathematics. it is essential students master these practices in order to demonstrate proficiency on the state assessment. the positive correlations, shown in table 1, include instructional strategies, but not higher order levels of math practices. again, it is important to analyze instructional coaches’ effectiveness and interactions with teachers in order to determine coaching effectiveness in classrooms. there is no statistical significance in the frequency of interactions with an instructional coach and the increase of instructional practices in math in third through eighth grade. table 1 correlations for number of times teachers used an instructional coach question rs df p i integrate math with other subjects -.070 89 .508 i integrate reading with other subjects .205 89 .051 i teach my students problem solving strategies .004 89 .943 i teach math with manipulatives -.012 87 .914 i develop students; communication skills in expressing mathematical concepts and procedures -.096 84 .378 i teach students to reason mathematically and to evaluate mathematical claims -.126 84 .246 my students solve word problems from a textbook or worksheet .003 86 .977 my students explain their reasoning or thinking in solving a problem by using several sentences orally or in writing .063 88 .556 my students apply mathematical concepts to real-world problems -.034 86 .755 my students make predictions and/or generate hypotheses -.022 89 .834 my students analyze data to make inferences or draw conclusions .073 88 .491 77 my students assess the accuracy, credibility, and/or relevance of mathematical precision -.053 85 .624 my students work with manipulatives to understand mathematical concepts .009 84 .937 my students collect, summarize, and/or analyze information or data from multiple sources -.026 89 .803 my students listen to the teacher explain or observe the demonstration of modeling of english, language arts, the reading and writing process .011 87 .922 my students present or demonstrate to others .109 88 .305 my students work individually on language arts and reading assignments .033 87 .755 my students participate in whole group discussion about language arts and literature .033 86 .701 my students engage in a writing process to support arguments with evidence -.005 86 .966 my students use computers or other technology to learn, practice, or explore language arts content -.040 88 .709 my students work on a project in which group members engage in peer revision and editing .093 88 .382 my students explain their reasoning or thinking in solving a problem by using several sentences orally or in writing .009 89 .933 my students respond creatively to texts -.042 89 .689 my students make predictions and can generate hypotheses -.008 88 .942 my students can analyze text information to make inferences or draw conclusion .043 87 .687 my state content standards influence my instruction -.138 88 .195 my district's pacing guide influences my instruction .022 88 .839 the district textbook and instructional materials influence my instruction .162 88 .128 state test results influence my instruction -.201 88 .057 district test results influence my instruction -.121 88 .258 78 i have many opportunities to learn new instructional practices with mathematics .049 83 .654 i have many opportunities to learn new instructional practices for reading .246 86 .021 how many years have you taught -.117 87 .275 rq 3. does instructional coaching have an impact on student tnready achievement in math in third through eighth grades? examining the proficiency scores of math in grades 3 through 8 shows increases and declines in scores in particular subgroups. see table 2. the largest increase in proficiency gains show for the english language learner subgroup and the students with disabilities versus non-disabilities. both sub-groups evidenced gains in proficiency levels in math. in the 2011-2012 school year, the second year of implementation of instructional coaches, data reveal an increase in proficiency in ethnic subgroups versus all, economically disadvantaged versus non-economically disadvantaged students, and students with disabilities versus non-disabilities. data indicated a decline that year in the english language learner subgroup. in 2016, data showed an increase in ethnic groups versus all and english language learners versus non-english language learners, and students with disabilities versus non-disabilities. these scores represent the test years (2010-2011, 2011-2012, and 2016-2017) versus the year before implementation (2009-2010). when analyzing the proficiency percentages from year to year, decreases in proficiency rates become evident. in the 2010-2011 versus 2011-2012 school years, english language learners versus non-english language learners indicated the only subgroup to decline in proficiency. in the 2011-2012 versus 2016-2017 school years, english language learners versus non-english language learners subgroup demonstrated the only subgroup to increase. all other subgroups evidenced drastic declines in proficiency levels. when analyzing the proficiency percentages from year to year, decreases in proficiency rates become evident. in the 2010-2011 versus 20112012 school years, english language learners versus non-english language learners indicated the only subgroup to decline in proficiency. in the 2011-2012 vs 2016-2017 school years, english language learners versus non-english language learners subgroup demonstrated the only subgroup to increase. all other subgroups evidenced drastic declines in proficiency levels. it appears that the independent variable, instructional coaches, did not impact student math achievement in grades 3 through 8 as measured by the tcap. table 2 math proficiency rates on tcap student sub groups 2009/2010 school year implementation 2010/ 2011 % of change 2011/ 2012 % of change 2016/ 2017 % of change ethnic subgroup vs all 21.7 28 29.03% 43.7 101.38% 30.6 40.78% 79 economically disadvantaged vs non 24 31.3 30.42% 45.6 90.00% 28.7 19.58% ell vs non ell 15.4 23.5 52.60% 21.4 38.96% 26.1 69.16% students with disabilities vs non 16.1 33.2 106.21% 36.7 127.95% 23.1 43.17% rq 4. does instructional coaching have an impact on student tnready achievement in reading in third through eighth grades? the reading proficiency percentages fluctuate in subgroups from 2009-2010 to 2016-2017. see table 3. every subgroup realized increases from the 2009-2010 school year except english language learners versus non-english language learners until the 2016-2017 school year; and all sub-groups declined in proficiency percentages. from the 2010-2011 to 2011-2012 school years, english language learners versus non-english language learners declined in proficiency. all other subgroups increased in proficiency levels. from the 2011-2012 to 2016-2017 school years, all subgroups saw significant declines in proficiency except the english language learners versus non-english language learners sub-group. it appears that the independent variable, instructional coaches, did not have an impact on student reading achievement in grades 3 through 8 as measured by the tcap. table 3 reading proficiency rates on tcap student subgroups 2009/ 2010 2010/ 2011 % of change 2011/ 2012 % of change 2016/ 2017 % of change ethnic subgroup vs all 39.5 42 6.33% 50.5 27.85% 24.9 -37.09% economically disadvantaged vs non 38.5 46 19.48% 49.6 28.83% 24.1 -37.53% ell vs nonell 10.3 29.4 185.44% 8 -22.33% 7.45 -27.67% students with disabilities vs non 23.3 41.9 79.83% 37.8 62.23% 19.1 -18.03% 80 summary of findings these findings illustrate the student state data prior to implementing instructional coaches as low. no sub-group approximated close to 50% proficient in math. the year after implementation, scores did increase in all sub-groups. this growth, however, did not maintain by all sub-groups. in the 2011-2012 school year, scores for both english language learners and students with disabilities decreased. ell diminished significantly to a level that was lower than the year before implementation of instructional coaches. this trend continued for the next few years. in the 2016-2017 school year, every sub-group decreased significantly to percentages lower than the year before implementation of instructional coaches. most sub-groups in the school district realized increases in proficiency levels in math and reading after the implementation of instructional coaches. some sub-groups evidenced significant rates of improvement; however, english language learners demonstrated lower levels of achievement in both math and reading throughout the year. both math and reading proficiency levels remain still low and even with instructional coaches in all schools, student achievement did not reach 50%. these findings suggest that the implementation of instructional coaches did not significantly impact student achievement scores, nor did the implementation of instructional coaches improve teachers’ instructional practices. discussion national reform movements have failed to significantly improve proficiency levels for students in math and reading in us schools. many schools and school districts continue struggling to achieve increases in student achievement on state level assessments. proficiency levels in math and reading remain low throughout the united states. this study is congruent with naep results. instructional coaching, when implemented and utilized effectively, may impact best practices teachers use in instruction; thus, their practices impacting student achievement. in this study, negative correlations could be the result of the instructional coach only providing surface levels coaching. there could also be a resistance to coaching from the teachers, or the particular instructional coach is not as effective to facilitate teachers to instruct on a more rigorous level to move students to higher levels of learning. instructional coaches can provide teachers with clear, concise, and effective feedback associated with instructional practices (ball & cohen, 1999; cohen & ball, 1999; defour et al., 2006; knight, 2005, 2007). this immediate feedback has the potential to facilitate students to gain higher levels of achievement. in the future, one important goal for instructional coaches is to create trusting relationships with teachers. teachers cannot view instructional coaches as evaluative or as leaders who represent the capacity to enact punitive measures when teachers indicate vulnerability as they attempt to learn new practices. rather, instructional coaches can become a tool for teachers to use in order to better their practices and build their capacity as instructional leaders in their school building. 81 another goal is to provide coaches who represent specific content knowledge in order to coach teachers in specific content areas and, thus, impact student achievement (l’allier & elish-piper, 2006). in addition to coaches building trusting relationships with teachers and providing instructional content knowledge for teachers, it is important for school districts to examine how instructional coaches are utilized. the dialogue in a professional learning community meeting may serve as the beginning point of a collaboration between a teacher and an instructional coach. current findings indicate higher-level teaching strategies that require integration and higher order thinking and problem-solving skills did not occur as strategies on which teachers and instructional coaches collaborated. these higher order skills remain essential for students to acquire proficiency on the state assessment. although utilizing instructional coaches may indicate improvements in professional development and thereby increase student achievement scores, it is incumbent school districts consider the following questions generated from this study: what did the school system do to prepare for these instructional shifts, how did instructional coaches support teachers during these changes, what professional development did schools offer, did district assessments align with the new standards to provide teachers with data to inform their instruction, and did instructional coaches receive any specialized training in specific content areas to help teachers increase student achievement? results also question what did the school system do to prepare for these instructional shifts, did teachers know how to choose appropriate texts with lexiles appropriately matched, how did instructional coaches support teachers during these changes, what writing instruction professional development did the district offer to teachers, what reading professional development did the district offer teachers, and did the district assessments align with the new standards to provide teachers with data to inform their instruction? how teachers utilize instructional coaches to improve instructional practices may help school districts support effective student learning. improved implementation of coaching strategies may assist teachers in their continued learning by providing embedded professional development and collaboration in areas of need. limitations this study evidenced several limitations. first, the study was limited to six schools in a small district with only 91 teachers participating in the survey. second, none of the current instructional coaches received their formal evaluation which described teacher effect scores and were not made available to the researcher. third, administrators’ post observation feedback was not reviewed; the researcher did not know if administrators recommended particular teachers seek help from instructional coaches for specific instructional practices. also, there was no set procedure for administrators to follow through on any collaboration between the teacher and the instructional coach based on the post observation feedback conversation. 82 fourth, the professional training of instructional coaches in this district was unknown. fifth, some teachers did not utilize the instructional coach as often as they may have needed. teachers who are struggling are not required to meet with the instructional coach a specific number of times. this allows for some teachers to not ask the instructional coach for help. because of this, some ineffective teachers may remain vulnerable until the school creates a plan of improvement for the 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(1979). understanding educational research: an introduction. new york, ny: mcgraw hill. final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 79 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 post-pandemic teaching in the early childhood classroom: supporting children’s social skills to enhance play experiences dawnita galloa aminnesota state university moorehead dawnita s. gallo is an assistant professor of elementary and early childhood education at minnesota state university moorhead where she teaches teacher preparation courses. her teaching focus is birth through pre-kindergarten, with a focus on the importance of social/emotional development. abstract some or most preschool-age children experienced 15-20 months isolated from others due to the covid pandemic. the isolation has not allowed young children the opportunity to participate in a group care setting with similarly aged peers. while the isolation was prudent to maintain the health of young children, it has not allowed children to gain the skills necessary to play with one another. children learn by doing, and they have not been able to participate in play-based interactions with others. in this article, i pose three scenarios demonstrating how teachers can intentionally scaffold young children’s interactions, thereby, furthering their social skills. introduction comments are uttered repeatedly in early childhood classrooms about how young children today do not know how to interact with one another; forgotten how to play; or simply, cannot get along in group settings. today, more than in the past, this is the reality of working with young children. the majority of children, three to five years of age, experienced some or most of 15-20 months isolated from others due to the covid pandemic. they lacked the typical social skills building opportunities (visiting for play dates, attending pre-school events, shopping, eating out, interacting during sports activities, and participating at birthday parties for family members and peers) otherwise familiar for children previous to covid-19 shut-downs. as early childhood practitioners, it is time to bring back the basics of high-quality early care and education: play-based learning with a specific emphasis on supporting growth and development of children’s social skills. teachers frequently say, “these children just do not play with one another.” the reality is, for two years, young children lacked opportunities to practice play behaviors such as entering, maintaining, and exiting a play event; rehearsing verbal and nonverbal social cues to approximate collaboration; and negotiating issues associated with conflict and/or compromise. without the advantage of a group setting to play with peers, 80 children may require additional support from observing, caring, and understanding early childhood educators. children play naturally; however, in this post pandemic era, some children may need additional support to achieve successful social interactions. the need for children to gain social skills requires teachers to tenuously balance supporting play experiences with the act of becoming intrusive which undermines the child’s capacity to experience genuine quality play. in order to ensure adults do not dominate play and further subvert children’s abilities to cooperate, create, and imagine, a review of the theoretical underpinnings for the potential of play becomes relevant. defining play: a theoretical framework dewey, montessori, erikson, piaget, and vygotsky are theorists who believe play is how young children naturally and effectively learn (mooney, 2000). extensive research studies underscore the significant importance of play (essame, 2020; karlsdottir et al., 2019; whitebread et al., 2009). yet, defining play is ambiguous; even the webster dictionary states a plethora of ways to define this phenomenon that is commonly discussed in regards to children (merriam-webster dictionary). critically, play is defined as active, dynamic, constructive, and important to the overall growth and development of young children (csikszentmihalyi & bennett, 1971; haight et al., 1999; isenberg & quisenberry, 2002). play incorporates the use of objects, often referred to simply as toys (haight et al., 1999). play is referred to as purposeless in nature and an activity voluntarily engaged in by the child (brown, 2009; smith & pellegrini, 2013-2015). others describe play as purposeful because children master necessary skills through their playful actions and interactions (miller & kuhaneck, 2008). eberle (2014) states these activities exist for the sake of playing. play is not sought out by individuals, rather it is a spontaneous, though not random, act that does not discredit the power the child has, while still acknowledging rule making and breaking. eberle also cautions readers to not forget that a person cannot remove the where, when, and with whom that had previously been identified as part of the definition. eberle went on to identify six elements that make up the basis for play: ● anticipation: meaning that play begins with a tension, which is pleasurable, as an original storyline is created in a predictable way. ● surprise: which is characterized by the sounds of laughter when an incongruity occurs in the play. ● curiosity: the anticipation leads an individual to wonder, which leads to discovery of something new or novel. ● pleasure: not only an incentive to begin or continue to play, but also is a defining element that must be present for the act to be defined as play. ● understanding: which leads to an increased capacity for one to express empathy and insight into another person’s emotions or motives. these understandings ultimately lead to the development of “theory of mind” (the developed ability to understand how one generates their thoughts). ● strength: within our minds and our bodies, by improving physical abilities, increases our mental capacities, and deepens one’s understanding of the social world around them. 81 ● poise: or a sense of balance, in which the child displays grace, self-assurance, ease, fun, achievement, and whim. smith and pellegrini (2013-2015) indicate that the process of play is far more beneficial to the child’s learning than is the end point of that play. additionally, they explain that flexibility in the use and combination of tools must be present and the act must be filled with laughter and positivity on behalf of the children, for the act to be called play. bodrova and leong (2007) share how according to vygotsky (1967), play involves an imaginary situation, during which the child acts out a role, which follows a set of predetermined rules for those roles, and incorporates social interaction with others. learning through play the connection between play and learning is supported and emphasized by the national association for the education of young children (naeyc), which has long espoused the belief that children learn through play, using the statement, “early years are learning years” (naeyc, n.d., para 1) as its registered trademark. in 2009, naeyc issued a position statement emphasizing the importance of play and its connection to learning stating, “play is an important vehicle for children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development, as well as a reflection of their development” (copple & bredekamp, 2009, p. 14). play describes the work conducted by children. in 2020, naeyc released the fourth edition of the developmentally appropriate practices in early childhood programs in which the six principles of play are outlined. the third principle states, “play promotes joyful learning that fosters self-regulation, language, cognitive and social competencies as well as content knowledge across disciplines” (copple & bredekamp, 2020, p. xxxiii). this same document indicates that play includes the following types of interaction: self-directed, guided, solitary, parallel, social, cooperative, onlooker, object, fantasy, physical, constructive, and games with rules. research demonstrates all mammals engage in spontaneous acts of play (brown, 2009; smith & pellegrini, 2013-2015). brown found, while observing animals in their natural habitat, that many engaged in playful behaviors with one another. they shared an example about witnessing a grizzly bear, exhibiting signs of malnourishment, who playfully interacted with a sled dog rather than satisfying his hunger. the physical characteristics exhibited by both animals identified the actions as play. this playful interaction occurred for a length of time each day and through the course of several days. upon examining the brains of mammals engaged in playful behavior, researchers found them to be structurally different from brains of mammals not engaged in playful interactions (brown, 2009). for instance, the brains of mammals engaged in frequent and ongoing instances of play were physically larger than mammals not engaged in frequent play. particular areas of the brain that showed significant differences included the amygdala (which allows expression of emotion), cerebellum (which allows for control in movement and balance), and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (which allows for faster decision-making abilities). additionally, in higher functioning animals, play led to the development of secondary emotions (e.g., empathy or sympathy) and a greater ability to participate in complex social interactions (brown, 2009). 82 research demonstrates play impacts all areas of a child’s growth and development. playful behavior begins with a young infant using solitary actions (i.e., shaking a rattle) and progresses to a child playing alongside another child with increasing levels of interaction and cooperation (ahn & filipenko, 2007; bulotsky-shearer et al., 2012; hoffman & russ, 2012; piaget, 1959; russ & kaugars, 2001; saltz et al., 1977; vygotsky, 1967). by the end of the preschool years (children who have not entered kindergarten), typically developing children are interacting with one another, collaboratively creating elaborate play schemes leading to themes (fromberg, 2002). this elaborate play scheme is evident as children choose a play theme (such as playing restaurant). together, children determine the necessary props (i.e., table, chairs, menu, dishes, food, etc.) and go on to create a storyline (for instance, two moms taking their children out to eat pizza). the children work together to assign roles to one another and gather the necessary tools (toys). finally, the children play out the story line. each of these steps involves the children practicing specific skills. the children must remember what was involved when they went on a recent trip to a restaurant. they will use letters and numbers as they create a menu. the children need to problem-solve and use conflict resolution skills as they negotiate various decisions. language and communication skills become necessary as they carry out a back-and-forth conversation during planning and play. finally, storytelling skills are important so the child’s story has a beginning, middle, and end. the children will use these and a number of other skills as their story unfolds, which will lead to successful learning. each time they engage in any type of play, various skills become stronger. isenberg and quisenberry (2002) found children’s play increased the neural connections within their brains. they reported that the more active a child's brain, the more neural connections found within that brain, and those connections become permanent more quickly in active brains. brown (2009) reported that when children used more than one piece of information (coming from separate neural connectors in the brain), new ideas or solutions resulted, along with new neural connectors. this describes how learning occurs. play is the primary source of development in young children (vygotsky, 1967). isenberg and quisenberry (2002) discuss how no teacheror parent-planned activity could substitute for the learning that occurs during child-led play. samuelsson and carlsson (2008) describe how learning occurs simultaneously with play. hedges (2014) concludes children must be active in their learning and describes how children learned to understand their world most effectively by their active participation in play. the simple act of playing allows children to practice challenges while risking minimal consequences (brown, 2009). tahmores (2011) stated children seek solutions to help them overcome difficulties during instances of play. almon (2013), cofounder of the alliance for childhood, reports children express themselves best through play experiences when they practice new roles or work through incidents encountered in their everyday routine. vygotsky believes play promotes growth and learning specifically in the areas of cognitive, social, and emotional development (scharer, 2017). piaget (1976) describes how children, during interaction with objects and others, construct new knowledge. piaget referred to 83 assimilation and accommodation to explain this constructive phenomena, i.e., when children encounter new information, objects, or situations they assimilate the new information into existing understandings and thereby, construct new meaning. this constant interaction with objects and diverse others ensures growth in the child’s learning. thus, play is any activity in which a child voluntarily engages, which leads to learning new information or furthering the development of skills. bodrova and leong (2007) describe how piaget and vygotsky believe children gain skills and knowledge by their active participation in their own learning. they describe how children construct an understanding of various principles and concepts by interacting (i.e., playing) with equipment, materials, and/or individuals in their environment. piaget (1959) and vygotsky (1967) describe how children further construct their knowledge by continued active involvement with objects and others. several studies examined the topic of what children learn through play. interestingly, when describing their own play, children in kindergarten do not separate the act of play from the learning that occurs (samuelsson & carlsson, 2008). children discuss what they learn from their play as they talk about their play scheme, but they do not attribute learning new skills or knowledge to the act of playing itself (samuelsson & carlsson, 2008). leong and bodrova (2012) report improvement in all areas of development when a child is actively engaged in welldeveloped play. cognitive learning/language development piaget (1959) defines cognitive development as children's ability to learn new skills, knowledge, and/or abilities. he describes how children make these particular types of gains by testing rules, concepts, and experimenting in their environment. language development is an important part of cognitive learning because it is often through language that children can gain new knowledge as they interact with materials, equipment, and people in their environment. play allows a child to test rules and properties that may seem illogical or irrational (csikszentmihalyi & bennett, 1971; hurwitz, 2002). bruner (1972) describes how children play to test ideas and rules with minimal consequences. children use play to help them learn to live responsibly in the world around them (tahmores, 2011). pretend play saracho (2002a; 2002b) reports that pretend play leads to increased cognitive skills. as children become preschoolers, they use instances of pretend play to help them learn to group and categorize objects (saracho, 2002a; saracho, 2002b). additionally, sutherland and friedman (2013) report that as children engage in pretend play utilizing toy dogs, they begin to categorize the dogs based on similarities and differences in size and color. hoffman and russ (2012) conclude pretend play leads children to exhibit increased instances of divergent thinking. they also describe children who display a wide range of emotions during 84 their pretend play are better able to generate more solutions when they encounter problems in their play than children who do not demonstrate as many emotions. saltz et al. (1977) provided disadvantaged preschool-age children with opportunities to engage in pretend play activities based on everyday experiences or field trips (e.g., going to a grocery store or a doctor’s visit) or on special outings (e.g., field trips to a fire station or zoo). saltz et al. (1977) describe how these children’s iq test scores increased following their play experiences. the children could sequence events and identify reality from fiction more accurately, control their impulsive behaviors, and show an increase in empathetic behaviors toward their peers following their play experiences (saltz et al., 1977). theory of mind/metacognition one important component of cognitive learning is the development of theory of mind. theory of mind encompasses the understanding of how one’s own mind works, how learning occurs, and how gaining new skills and abilities affect one’s behaviors and beliefs (feldman, 2012). pretend play indicates a significant impact on the development of a child’s theory of mind (leslie, 1987; lillard, 1993; smith & pellegrini, 2013-2015). leslie (1987) describes one aspect of theory of mind as children’s growing understanding that other people think, feel, and believe differently than they themselves do. pretend play is the start of a child developing theory of mind (leslie, 1987). additionally, leslie (1987) discusses the importance of a child understanding some individuals may believe or feel differently than themselves, represent a different opinion on any given topic, indicate a different perspective on an issue, or a desire to play in a different way. children must have developed this aspect of theory of mind before they are able to engage in acts of pretend play (leslie, 1987). additionally, as children continue to engage in acts of pretend play, further enhancing the development of their theory of mind, they expand their ability to understand that their own behaviors affect others around them. this allows a child to understand another person’s perspective and distinguishes fact from fiction (friend, 2011). using preand post-test established measures, burns and brainerd (1979) show that even short-term engagement in pretend play scenarios improves a preschooler’s ability to accept the perspective of another individual. initially, a young child needs realistic props in their play. as a child’s brain is developing and learning occurs, the child develops an ability to use less realistic props to represent an actual object. for instance, a very young child will most likely need a plastic apple to represent a real one. however, by the time a child reaches preschool, the ability to use a block to represent an apple will have likely developed. based on how a pretend object is used, teachers can surmise that a child understands it is not a real apple. a child shows this understanding by holding a block like an apple and saying, “i am going to eat this delicious apple,” but then takes a pretend bite from it. according to lillard (1993), these types of pretend scenarios show that children are able to hold in their brain the image of an apple and the properties of a block at the same time. it is through this type of play, with a variety of objects, that children gain the ability to pretend and 85 engage in play activities with less realistic objects, which in turn leads to further development and learning. sutherland and friedman (2013), using quantitative assessment measures, found that children use play – particularly pretend play – as a way to learn about the world around them and tend to answer questions using information gained during their play. as pretend play skills increase, due to playing with a variety of materials, preschool-age children begin to explore more play topics leading to learning more about the world around them. noteworthy from sutherland and friedman’s (2013) study, is that children were selective about their take-away knowledge, particularly if information learned was contradictory to previously acquired knowledge. for instance, children given fictional information, via a puppet show about what a cat would eat, did not alter their prior knowledge of what cats really ate. burns and brainerd (1979), using a preand post-test measure, allowed a group of children to engage in a structured play activity of counting blocks with the goal of learning a skill. another group practiced drawing a picture with a pencil to reinforce proper grasp of a writing tool. through the analysis of these test measures, they found that the children’s performance improved on the desired skills (i.e., counting, or holding a pencil correctly). ilgaz and aksu-koç (2005) used qualitative analysis of threeand five-year-old children’s narratives explaining their play. they found that children with more practice playing were able to provide a structured and detailed narrative account of their experiences. the five-year-old participants provided a more deliberate explanation of their play experiences than those who were three-years-old (ilgaz & aksu-koç, 2005). howe et al. (2005) used quantitative measures to analyze play interactions of kindergarten-age children who had an older or younger sibling. they found that children with siblings were more skilled at playing with others and better able to build a narrative of their play than children with no siblings. this finding was particularly true with kindergarten-age children with an older sibling. this finding appears to indicate that children provided with many opportunities to engage in play activities with older siblings become more highly skilled narrators. they learn to tell a more detailed story. baumer et al. (2005) implemented a teacher-directed pretend play intervention strategy that included using children's books, discussions, and free play events with a group of children between the ages of fiveand seven-years-old. they found through a post-test analysis that the narrative comprehension abilities of children who received a pretend play intervention strategy were higher than for children who did not receive an intervention. children receiving a pretend play intervention provided longer, more coherent narrative explanations of their experiences than children who did not receive an intervention (baumer et al., 2005). this is further evidence that children with strong play skills demonstrate an ability to share their perceptions of play and learning. fantuzzo et al. (2004) studied children in an urban head start classroom who were described by teachers as demonstrating strong play skills (i.e., abilities to interact with other children in a give-andtake manner and use materials with the same general purpose or goal as others). they 86 found these children evidenced significantly larger vocabularies than peers described as having limited play skills. playing with blocks, in particular, indicated significant positive impacts on language development (dansky, 1980; dansky & silverman, 1973; saracho & spodek, 1998), especially in children from middle and low-socioeconomic homes (christakis et al., 2007). bulotsky-shearer et al. (2012) utilized quantitative measures and reported that children participating in a head start program who had positive play interactions with their peers achieved higher learning outcomes by the end of the school year than children who did not. additionally, children who indicated problem behaviors in the fall and were not able to interact positively with peers demonstrated lower learning outcomes, particularly in literacy and math (bulotsky-shearer et al., 2012). sacha and russ (2006), utilizing a quantitative methodology, found that when play was incorporated into the introduction of dance instruction, children were better able to recall the skills necessary to complete dance steps than children taught in a more traditional teacherdemonstrated format of dance lessons. children in a play-centered environment took longer to recall dance steps in the second week of instruction, but by the third week, they recalled dance steps quickly and required less direct instruction from their dance teacher. children taught dance steps through play activities were more attentive during the first and third weeks of instruction. additionally, this same group responded more positively to their dance activity during the third week of instruction than children from the more traditional teacher-demonstrated instruction group. social/emotional development children learn to manage their feelings in socially acceptable ways through the safe expression of conflicting emotions (isenberg & quisenberry, 2002). brown (2009) found that play energizes and enlivens its participants, as well as renews their optimism; play helps a child see new possibilities and allows children’s temperaments to become apparent, thereby enhancing their sense of self. tahmores (2011) found children use play as a means to display a variety of emotions (e.g., kindness, anger, insecurities). tahmores also showed that during their play, children were able to express a wide range of emotions, which helps them to achieve a sense of emotional calmness. craft et al. (2012) describe how through repeated play experiences, children generate new ideas and scenarios, leading to more play possibilities, which then creates more play experiences, which leads to new learning. increased play experiences help children learn to maintain focus and the interest of all participants, which leads to extended experiences and a continued play cycle. playing leads to increased social skills, which in turn extends to an increase in play activities (craft et al., 2012). kindergarten-aged children expressed through narrative descriptions that they learned how to get along effectively with one another when playing with peers (ahn & filipenko, 2007). brown (2009) reports that children discover their world and learn how to develop and maintain friendships through play opportunities. as children gain play skills, they learn to work 87 collaboratively with one another; children often ask, “what if” questions or make “as if” statements, which help them generate new possibilities for their play (craft et al., 2012). children, highly skilled at playing with peers, exhibit more persistence and motivation than children less skilled; children skilled at play also exhibit a more positive attitude toward learning than children who are less skilled than their age-mates (coolahan et al., 2000). coolahan et al. also describe children who are disconnected from play or disruptive during play interactions display increased behavioral problems and decreased levels of motivation to learn across time. this understanding indicates children who enjoy playing also enjoy learning. it appears there is a significant link between children's developing social and emotional skills and their cognitive abilities. fantuzzo et al. (2004) report preschool-age children who are more skilled at playing with their peers become better able to regulate their emotions during conflict, exhibiting higher incidents of prosocial behaviors (e.g., turn taking and sharing), and are less disruptive in their urban head start classrooms than children less skilled at play. these play-competent children are more likely to invite their peers to participate in an activity and show more initiative, autonomy, and creativity in their play. assessment data (fantuzzo et al., 2004) describe children who exhibit competence in play interactions are less aggressive, shy, or withdrawn at the end of their preschool education. playcompetent preschool-age children, more skilled in peer relationships at the beginning of their head start year, show significantly higher gains in cognitive, social, and motor skills by the end of the academic year than their lesser skilled peers. bulotsky-shearer et al. (2012) discuss this to be true for children who exhibit externalized problem behaviors (e.g., aggressive types of behaviors), as well as children with internalized behaviors (e.g., introverted or shy children). russ and kaugars (2001) demonstrate that the type of play a child engages in significantly impacts the affect or emotional impact displayed by the child. for instance, when teachers asked children to use puppets to act out a play scenario that included angry characters, the children involved in the play more often report feeling angry when they finished playing, while children engaged in acting out a scene involving happiness indicate feeling happy. these findings indicate children’s emotions become impacted by the type of play in which they engage. through analysis of kindergarten-age children’s narrative descriptions of their imaginative play and visual depictions through artwork, ahn and filipenko (2007) found that children establish their gender, moral, social, and cultural self through play. the children in ahn and filipenko’s study built hypotheses about their own world and self. ahn and filipenko further showed that the children were struggling with abstract questions involving science, philosophy, and moral issues. during later episodes of play, these kindergarten-age children often went back to their earlier questions, and through modifications in their play, continued to work through their feelings as they developed a sense of their own identity (ahn & filipenko, 2007). researchers describe infants, engaged in mimicking play with their parents, as more persistent and motivated when attempting to engage that parent in a later encounter (fawcett & liszkowski, 2012). however, this persistence and motivation did not transfer to other adults. 88 while infants were unable to repeat the exact mimicked behavior later, they were able to successfully encourage a social interaction with their parents (fawcett & liszkowski, 2012). connolly and doyle (1984) report teachers describe children who engage in pretend play activities as more socially competent than their peers who engage in fewer instances of pretend play. connelly and doyle characterize children who engage in pretend play as more activityoriented in the classroom and more popular with peers. findings by o’connor and stagnitti (2011) describe children engaged in complex pretend play as highly capable of sustaining play with others for longer periods of time than children engaged in more simple pretend play. children in o’connor and stagnitti’s study also show more affect in their play when they assume a variety of roles. these children demonstrate improved social interaction skills, less disruptive behaviors, and remain more connected to themes and storylines of their play than less involved children (o’connor & stagnitti, 2011). children will interact in a playful way with their peers, parents, or adults in their early education setting leading to more refined and elevated social interactions with one another. one important outcome of this type of socially interactive play is a growth in a child’s language skills, including making more intricate speech sounds as the child grows and learns; a significant increase in the semantics of language, using more complex words; improved grammar; and using the newfound language skills in social interactions with others (smith & pellegrini, 2013-2015). sociodramatic play increases a child’s pre-literacy skills primarily by being structured, especially through instances of guided play, much like a story is written: with a beginning, middle, and end. smith and pellegrini (2013-2015) also make a connection between pretend play and an increase in a child’s ability to work through difficult emotions. the acts of play can help a child to understand their own anxieties and lead to a resolution of them. guided play as a teaching strategy teachers can guide socio-dramatic play by providing materials that lend themselves to telling a story. for instance, a teacher may read a book about taking a pet to the veterinarian. then set up a veterinarian clinic complete with the doctor’s tools, stuffed animals, clipboards/paper to chart notes, etc. during the play, the teacher could inquire about the symptoms of the animal to the owner, guiding them through telling the pet’s story to the veterinarian. then, the teacher may ask the veterinarian about the diagnosis process which leads the child through communicating with the pet owner. if the teacher determines the children involved are highly skilled in social interactions, they can step back and allow the play to unfold. if, however, the teacher notes the children are not continuing to interact with one another, teachers could ask additional probing questions to re-engage the children in the play scenario. while children naturally engage in play, it involves a process and set of skills, which require practice, rehearsal, and approximation. children, depending on past experiences, require different levels of adult support in learning how to effectively play with others. zosh et. al. (2018) indicates play is on a spectrum. self-directed play, sometimes referred to as free play, which is child-directed and initiated activity without an explicitly stated learning goal is at one end of the play spectrum. the teacher purposefully prepares the environment to allow children 89 an opportunity to freely explore the materials it contains. self-directed play leads to improvements in social skills, problem solving, and motor skills (zosh et al., 2018). zosh et al. (2018) describe guided play as next on the spectrum, which involves learning experiences purposefully and intentionally planned by the teacher. the experiences are teacherinitiated, in that it is the teacher who makes the materials available in an inviting way for children. the teacher deliberately chooses materials that will allow the child to learn and grow in a specific domain of development. the child may then choose to interact with the materials, in their own way; thus, directing their own play. games (adult initiated/child directed), co-opted play (child initiated/adult directed) and playful distractions (adult initiated/adult directed) are the final three aspects of zosh et al. (2018) spectrum of play. guided play activities require the child to be mentally active and engaged as they manipulate and process information in a way to make new decisions (zosh et al., 2018). the child should not be acting as a passive learner in these situations; rather, the child actively engages mentally with the play in which he or she is embedded and leading or co-leading with a peer. guided play requires that children be actively engaged, meaning not only is their mind active and focused on the play itself, but as well, the child’s brain remains engaged in that play (zosh et al., 2018). the child is able to avoid distractions and “getting lost” in their play. avoiding distractions and remaining mentally engaged lead to an increase in self-regulation skills. another important component of guided play is that it must involve meaningful information, which is currently relevant to the child’s life, connected to a familiar item or event, and the child must be able to transfer that information to other situations or events (zosh et al., 2018). meaningful learning leads to achievement of skills and gains in knowledge more effectively than rote learning or memorization. therefore, the teacher’s role is to guide/scaffold the child past the surface learning that can occur while they play to a deeper level of knowledge and understanding of the knowledge and skills. practicing essential skills at a time when the child is actively engaged in play makes the knowledge meaningful and lends itself to a deeper understanding of the ‘how’ and ‘why’ the skill is necessary; it allows for the new skills and knowledge to be transferable to other similar situations; and helps to scaffold the child’s learning to the next level. guided play can lead to growth in specific developmental domains, skills, and content knowledge. in guided play the child is clearly the leader of the play; the teacher only guides the play to a higher level by asking intentional questions or making purposeful statements. as described next, guided play allows educators to scaffold children’s social skills without taking control of the play away from them. for the purposes of this paper, guided play is considered as a means to help grow children’s social skills. social development was one area of development impacted for many young children due to pandemic-imposed isolation. in setting up guided play learning experiences, teachers purposefully arrange the environment with the intention of guiding children through various social situations allowing them to grow their skills. the child directs and is in control of all aspects of their play; however, the teacher initiates the play through the intentionally chosen materials in the environment or purposeful and intentional questions and/or statements. while 90 the adult targets specific goals for the child, sets up the materials, and works to maintain the child’s focus in the play; it is critical for the child to be engaging in self-discovery by directing the play itself (weisberg et al., 2013). it is important for the child to direct their own play; otherwise, the play will be co-opted by the adult and the benefits of the play will be lost. weisberg et al. (2013) argue that the teacher may guide the play by commenting on discoveries the child makes; being an active participant in the child’s play; posing open-ended higher-level thinking questions; and even exploring the materials in their own way alongside the child. the child, however, must be directing and in control of the play at all times. another hallmark of guided play is that the child is an active team player seeking new discoveries, rather than a passive receiver of information (weisberg et al., 2013). weisberg et al. (2016) further exemplifies the need for the play to be directed by the child by referring to the teacher’s role as keeping the learning goal as his or her focal point, as he or she acts as a mentor in the experience. mentor is defined as “a trusted counselor or guide; a tutor” (merriam-webster dictionary); lending their role to not be directing or even guiding the play but following the child’s lead in the act. zosh et al. (2018) cautions teachers to not interfere in the play and allow the child to continue to lead the play in which they are actively engaged, but to pose questions that may further the child’s learning. it is necessary that the primary characteristics of play (i.e., the child’s mind is active and engaged, the activity is meaningful to the child, and social interactivity with the environment not be disrupted (zosh et al., 2018). additionally, there is an emphasis on the importance of teachers not interfering with the joy or iteration that is fundamental to a child’s play. the joy that a child may experience while playing, according to zosh et al. (2018), acts to reinforce the learning gains for the child; while the learning reinforces the child’s desire to seek out the joy in the play. children’ growth and learning post-pandemic the isolation caused by the covid pandemic severely interrupted children’s ability to interact with other individuals and thereby, undermined children’s capacity to construct understandings of how to interact with one another. in other words, because of the social isolation during the pandemic, some children may lack prior opportunities to engage socially through play with peers of the same or mixed age, which negatively influenced their social development. the children remain deficient in the necessary skills to effectively engage in play with others. it is critical that educators complete focused observations on the young children to determine what, if any, social skills need additional support. vygotsky (1967) describes using scaffolding to intentionally build on a child’s current skills to grow them. in this instance a teacher would be scaffolding (building) the child’s social skills by providing a small amount of support, via modeling or asking a probing question, and then, stepping back to observe the social interactions between the children to determine if they are able to continue the play on their own or need additional support. verenikina (2008) outlines three steps for teachers to follow when scaffolding a child’s learning: using dialogue to allow for a co-construction of knowledge; planning an appropriate activity; and the using of artifacts to be able to show the knowledge growth. by providing support to a child 91 who is playing with other children allows the child to build his or her social skills. when using guided play with preschool age children, the teacher uses questions or statements allowing the child to co-construct the knowledge by demonstrating and providing concrete examples of what the child is to say to peers. the child then practices by actually saying the words to a peer; as contrasted with merely agreeing with the teacher’s summary. for some children, there may be times when the teacher may want to sit in close proximity to the children who are engaged in the social interaction and play event. it is imperative teachers do not interrupt the children’s play with suggestions for possible scenarios or compel specific use of materials not selected by the child. for instance, a teacher is observing jamal and lucas as they build with blocks, when lucas grabs the long block out of jamal’s grasp. jamal, understandably, gets upset with lucas. the teacher may intervene saying, “jamal, say to lucas, ‘i am using that block.’” and then wait patiently for jamal to say the words. using their prior knowledge of jamal and lucas’s social skills will help the teacher decide how close to be to jamal and lucas (i.e., at the edge of the carpet if they are highly skilled or next to them with a hand on both of their backs if they are initially building their social skills). if the play resumes, the teacher may return to observing the social interaction. if, on the other hand, lucas continues to pull on the block, it would be appropriate for the teacher to continue intervening by offering further conflict resolution skills. it would not be appropriate for the teacher to interrupt lucas and jamal’s play suggesting to lucas that he could create a structure alongside jamal’s. this action would take control away from jamal and lucas by altering the social interactions occurring in the play. during young children’s social interactions (play), there remain specific and essential skills necessary for collaborative social play to be effective. in this instance, an observant teacher may be supportive but must strive to not co-opt the play. verenikina (2008) explains the amount of support provided depends on the child’s current social skill level or zone of proximal development (zpd). the less mature the child’s skill level, the more scaffolding (i.e., support) a teacher provides to meet the child at his or her individual zpd, resulting in the child building his or her skills with limited frustration. additionally, it is important for teachers to be strategic in their interactions when scaffolding children’s learning – especially during play. when preparing the environment for play, teachers may want to consider reflecting on the zpd of individual children; going beyond what the child should be able to do based on knowledge of typical child development and consider each child’s unique and true exhibited abilities. during the planning phase, teachers may want to postulate situations that may arise and create an intentional plan to scaffold individual children’s learning through the interactions that may occur. it is crucial to be cognizant of the delicate balance between teacher’s support to further a child’s growth and learning and co-opting the play. supporting a child, only to the level necessary for success, will enhance a child’s social interaction skills; whereas coopting the play will stunt growth. it is necessary to intentionally consider the least amount of support offered while allowing the child to grow and develop their own skills. when is some support too much? when is providing children with words most appropriate? what may it look like when a teacher is supporting a child’s understanding of another’s perspective? these questions and others are important for a teacher to intentionally consider when planning for children to interact socially with one another. it is the teacher’s duty to protect the integrity and 92 importance of children’s control of their play and determine when and where to balance scaffolding a children’s social skills before and after play. it is recommended that teachers intentionally and purposefully plan activities which include guided play opportunities. in guided play, the educator sits on the edge of the play, but does not direct nor assume a leadership role. the educator is using his or her vast knowledge of child development combined with specific knowledge of the individual child’s developmental abilities, and comments on or asks questions about what the child is doing while playing. the teacher is guiding the child, within the parameters of his or her own play, to increase knowledge or abilities. in many ways, this support opportunity might be regarded as scaffolding, as described by vygotsky (1967). the questions posed should guide the child to think about something in a deeper way or encourage the child to practice a new skill. scenarios in the following three common play scenarios, social interactions in which a child lacks the necessary skills and needs support to successfully play with another child will be explored. the teacher will scaffold each child differently, based on a child’s individual skill level, during the social interactions. block play scenario teacher rippi is a veteran teacher in a preschool classroom. she is watching jason build a barn that he recently observed while visiting the petting area of the local zoo. teacher rippi listens to jason as he uses self-talk to guide the construction of the barn from his memory. teacher rippi notices olivia is watching jason build and listening to his self-talk. suddenly, olivia runs over and plops herself down, right next to jason; unintentionally knocking jason’s barn wall over with a crash. jason scrunches up his face, draws in a deep breath, opens his mouth, and screams, “get out of here” at olivia. olivia looks sad. teacher rippi could use her teacher voice to sternly tell jason to use an inside voice; she could walk over, pick olivia up, carrying her over to sit down in the calm down area and tell her to think about why she knocked over jason’s barn; or use the incident as a teachable moment to further jason and olivia’s social skills by scaffolding their learning and teaching them play skills with intentionality. teacher rippi knows neither jason nor olivia possesses much experience in a group care setting. she also reflects on how olivia has been really trying to play cooperatively with other children and yet, several of these situations resulted in frustration and tears. jason has been somewhat more successful in his attempts to socially interact with others, although he still prefers solitary play. based on this knowledge of the children, teacher rippi decides this could be an opportunity to build both jason and olivia’s skills. this might look like: rippi: oh, dear, it looks like the barn got knocked down and it sounds like this caused feelings of anger (intentionally not placing blame on either child). jason: yeah, olivia ran over and she… she kicked down my barn. on purpose. 93 olivia: i didn’t mean to do that. it was an accident. rippi: olivia, can you tell me why you stood up from your play over there and sat down over here? olivia: i liked the barn. rippi: hmmm, are you saying that you liked the barn jason was building and you wanted to help? olivia: mm-hmm rippi: it is a nice-looking barn and jason looked like he was having fun building it. jason: i was, and then she kicked it down and wrecked it. rippi: i did not see olivia’s feet kick it or her hands hit it. i saw the barn fall when olivia sat down. why do you think olivia sat down so close to you and your barn? jason: so, she could knock it down! olivia: no! rippi: olivia, you liked the barn and sat down really close to jason and the barn. did you want to help him build the barn? olivia: yeah rippi: ok, so jason, olivia wanted to help build the barn. if she had asked you if she could help before she sat down, what would you have said? jason: i would have said “sure”. i like to play. rippi: let’s do a re-do and see if this can turn out differently. olivia, i want you to go and sit over there where you were playing. jason, i want you to sit here and build with your blocks. give time for the children to get into their places. rippi: now, olivia, stand up just like you did before and quickly walk over here, but this time, where do you think there is a better spot to sit? allow olivia to approximate where to sit. now that you have a safe spot, say, ‘jason, can i build with you?’ olivia (looking at jason): jason, can i build with you? jason looks at teacher rippi. 94 rippi: jason, olivia is asking to build with you. is that ok? jason looks at teacher rippi and then at olivia. jason: sure, you can help me. olivia sits down, carefully, beside jason, and they begin the repairs on the barn. after they have been building for about five minutes, teacher rippi, who is sitting beside them this whole time, but not interrupting their interactions or play, says “you are working so hard to build that barn.” then, teacher rippi moves away from jason and olivia allowing them to script the rest of their interactions to continue their play. she continues to observe from a distance to be available if they need additional support. based on teacher rippi’s knowledge about jason and olivia’s desire to play cooperatively and their lack of prior collaborative experience, teacher rippi strategically planned to be near them while they played, but only as an observer, in the event they needed additional support. teacher rippi scaffolded their social skills during play by providing each child specific guidance, the appropriate words to say, and staying close to them as they engaged in the social interactions. due to jason and olivia’s lack of experience in social play interactions, teacher rippi needed to intervene; however, she was careful to not make suggestions about the play, only offer the needed level of support and she withdrew as soon as possible to allow the play to continue to unfold. this scenario was not an isolated incident. every day the children in this classroom saw and heard teacher rippi scaffolding the social learning of children in their classroom in the dress up area, with the manipulatives, while they created works of art, outside, at mealtime, and throughout their day-to-day experiences. teacher rippi knew it would take much practice for the children to successfully ask one another before barging in on the play; therefore, she planned several activities throughout the classroom that provided children a natural opportunity to practice socially interacting with one another. mud kitchen scenario teacher michael intentionally creates play experiences that encourage the children in the classroom to play with one another. he documents their growth in social and emotional development. lately, he notes some children need more practice. teacher michael is outside with a group of preschool-age children. samara is pretending to make mud pie soup in the outdoor kitchen area. teacher michael, is digging in the large mud planter beside three other children. out of the corner of his eye, teacher michael notices jamie running towards the mud kitchen area. teacher michael watches and is ready to offer support to samara or jamie, if necessary. jamie’s social skills for cooperative play have greatly improved; however, teacher michael knows that jamie still struggles and becomes frustrated easily and quickly. teacher michael sees jamie run up to samara and stop just a few feet away from her. jamie stands and looks at samara and at the mud pie soup on the counter. jamie smiles at samara and says “hi”, samara is intently focused on writing ‘mom’ with dry sand on top of the mud pie 95 soup and does not hear jamie. teacher michael starts to walk over to offer support just as jamie reaches out one hand and taps the edge of the mud pie soup, causing it to fall to the ground; splattering mud all over the ground and samara’s legs. samara, looking jamie right in the eye: hey, knock it off. i worked hard on that. jamie: yeah, well, you were ignoring me. samara: no, i wasn’t. i was making mud pie soup for my mom. teacher michael arrives just as jamie was lifting her hands up and pushing them toward samara. teacher michael: whoa, what’s going on here? samara, pointing to the mud pie soup all over the ground and her legs: jamie hit my mud pie soup and it fell on the ground and broke all over. teacher michael, looking at jamie: tell me about this. jamie: i wanted to help make it pretty and it, well, it just sort of fell down. i didn’t mean it. really! michael: are you saying you wanted to play with samara? jamie nods. did you ask samara if you could play? jamie looks down and quietly says: i said “hi” to her. michael: hmmm, samara did you know that when jamie said “hi” she was asking to play with you? samara: no, i didn’t even hear her. teacher michael: jamie, samara says she didn’t know that when you said “hi” it meant you wanted to play. we have been practicing how to ask someone to play. if you were to walk over here again, what would you say differently? jamie: samara, could i help you make the mud pie soup pretty for your mom? teacher michael: samara, what would you have said? samara: yeah, you can help make one for my mom and we will make one for your auntie. teacher michael steps back and allows samara and jamie to continue to engage socially with one another. 96 in this instance, the teacher scaffolded jamie’s social skills, offering a minimal amount of support. due to the prior observations the teacher knew to watch and be prepared to intervene. teacher michael waited to see if jamie was able to enter the play on his own, but when it was clear they would not be successful, the teacher intervened with minimal support. notice, the teacher did not directly comment on the play or either child’s actions, so as not to disrupt or change the play. teacher michael did support jamie, which led jamie to successfully enter the play and continue to enhance her own social development. game area scenario for months, teacher janna intentionally guides the social aspects of the children’s cooperative play efforts and frames ways to support their ability to form friendships. it is late in the day and the class has just finished hearing a story. teacher janna tells the children they can choose to play a game, put together a puzzle, or read a book until they go home. henry has enjoyed the many play scenarios involving puppets practicing their play skills with one another. last night henry’s grandparents arrived from france and he was up past his bedtime. when playing today, he become\easily frustrated and struggles to engage socially with friends. henry picks up his favorite game and walks up to maya. henry drops the game on the table beside maya. just then teacher janna caught henry’s attention and smiled at him. henry draws in a deep breath and says: hey, maya, wanna play the game with me? maya: yeah, this is your favorite game and i love it, too. teacher janna smiled and patted henry on the back as she walked behind him. after school, when henry is picked up, teacher janna makes a point of saying that even though he had had a tough day, he remembered how to ask someone to play and together henry and a friend enjoyed a game. later that day, the teacher made a note about how henry successfully entered a social encounter all on his own. concluding thoughts children deserve a teacher who understands how to guide them socially to be successful players. learning how to effectively engage in social interaction to enter play with others and then, to sustain the play allows children opportunities to practice behaviors, develop skills, and negotiate a range of emotions and situations. today, more than ever, our young children need teachers who are willing to take the time to support their learning social skills necessary to successfully interact with one another. the key is for teachers to balance the effort of supporting children through various social interactions to grow their skills as needed, while being cognizant of not interfering with the play itself. it is crucial for teachers to remember play belongs to the child. teachers may scaffold 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(2018) accessing the inaccessible: redefining play as a spectrum. frontiers in psychology. 9(1124). 1-11. final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 75 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 steam holistic identity development in steam brian stonea anorthern arizona university dr. brian stone is an associate teaching professor at northern arizona university. he is the faculty lead for the professional development school program and the museum of northern arizona partnership program at nau. he received his doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a content concentration in science and math education. he also holds two master’s degrees, one in elementary education, and another in world war ii studies. he teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses, including courses in the doctoral program. dr. stone specializes in science education, but also teaches methods courses in social studies, math, literacy, and assessment. while at nau, dr. stone has led multiple study abroad trips all around the world to study multiage education and integrated curriculum. he has taken students to new zealand, australia, the united kingdom, ireland, germany, austria, switzerland, and france. dr. stone also serves as the editor for the steam section of the international journal of the whole child. he is a play ambassador and recurring expert contributor for the genius of play (a non-profit website devoted to play advocacy), which is a part of the toy association. dr. stone has many areas of expertise and interest including scientific inquiry, play, integrated curriculum, and multiage education. prior to teaching in higher education, dr. stone served as a 4th, 5th, and 6th grade multiage teacher. he was the lead multiage teacher in his school and helped other multiage teachers in their implementation of multiage strategies in the classroom. he also works as an educational consultant, traveling all over the united states and around the world helping schools with multiage programs. dr. stone has authored many peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters in the aforementioned areas. abstract holistic steam programs can benefit children by allowing them to develop an intersecting identity in steam disciplines, explore real-world issues more broadly, think critically and innovatively, solve problems using integrated approaches, and have confidence across multiple fields of study. much of the current research situates identity development in single subjects such as science, math, or engineering. however, a broader conceptualization of identity in steam can influence the creation or progression of steam curriculum, environments, and programs to support the unique, organic construction of a child’s identity development across multiple disciplines. suggestions for creating optimal conditions for holistic steam identity development include using an interactionist approach, developing meaningfully integrated and 76 relevant real-world explorations, utilizing inquiry, interest, and play, and using a flexible curriculum that allows for divergence and creativity. keywords: steam, stem, play, inquiry introduction identity studies are increasing in stem research. students’ construction of scientific identity is well documented, as is identity development in mathematics. young scientists and mathematicians view themselves as such through their own interests, passions, sense of belonging, and natural proclivities and talents (kim & sinatra, 2018; peart, 2018). likewise, research in engineering and technology have explored identity development, and the benefits are clear. when students establish an identity in their field of interest (e.g., a child who selfidentifies as an engineer), they develop confidence, competence, and persistence (choe & borrego, 2019). they also tend to operate within or develop a growth mindset, which allows them to persevere through the difficulties or challenges of their discipline (peart, 2018). despite the substantial literature on identity in each of the individual stem fields, very few scholarly works examine identity in stem as a whole and fewer still investigate the phenomenon within the steam framework. drawing on constructivist theory and aspects of the whole child, the author of this work examines the literature and theoretical undergirding for identity development in steam. furthermore, the author of this paper presents the case for a holistic connectivism in steam identity development that involves an interactionist approach, meaningful integration and relevant contextual explorations, inquiry and interest-based learning, play-based environments, and a flexible curriculum that allows for creativity and divergence. it is well documented that children can develop an identity in an individual steam field, but a broader, more holistic approach can provide children with the opportunities and meaningful contexts to expand that identity to include multiple, interconnected disciplines and sub-disciplines within steam as a whole. relevant background and literature in 2001, administrators at the national science foundation (nsf) reorganized the acronym, smet (science, mathematics, engineering, and technology) to form the now-widely recognized acronym, stem. following critical reports, such as the rising above the gathering storm (2005), which was published out of the national academies of science, engineering, and medicine, the academic proficiency and post-education productivity of u.s. students in stem fields was critically analyzed. it was determined that despite the vast and growing evidence that stem proficiency had both measurable and immeasurable societal benefits, u.s. students were lacking in stem achievement as compared to other countries (hallinen, 2021). stem education efforts aimed to help students develop stem literacy, or the ability to apply content knowledge from multiple disciplines to solve problems that could not be solved through the lens of a single discipline (perales & arostegui, 2021). furthermore, stem education was meant to “improve critical thinking skills, and be creative, logical, innovative, and productive” in 77 real-world contexts (widya & rahmi, 2019, abstract). stem leaders also sought to build up traditionally disadvantaged groups including students of color and students from low ses backgrounds to participate and prosper in stem fields (xie et al., 2015). beyond the benefits to the individual, stem education also provided a mode for the u.s. to preserve and grow its economic and societal prosperity, address problems through innovation, and prepare a globally oriented workforce with the knowledge and skills necessary to fill rapidly expanding/evolving stem careers (hallinen, 2021). by 2006, yakman (2019) created the first steam framework, not to arbitrarily add another subject, but to provide a meaningful, real-world context (situated in the liberal arts) for which the other subjects could be explored. this framework has led to highly creative and innovative approaches in the arts and stem fields, and has led to meaningful, contextualized interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary links in steam education programs (mejias et al., 2021). steam education efforts sought to incorporate the humanities, as stem fields are still a human endeavor, and to blur the lines between academically separated disciplines through a more integrated approach. as perales and arostegui (2021) put it, “steam education could be defined as one that proposes an integrated teaching of scientific-technological, artistic, and, in general, humanistic competencies, with integration understood in a progressive sense that goes from interdisciplinarity to transdisciplinarity” (para. 8). steam was also meant to utilize the arts to leverage methodologies and strategies like problem-based learning and inquiry-based learning to boost critical thinking, creativity, and the interconnectedness of concepts (flocchini, 2017). in recent years, stem and steam education efforts have seen a significant boost in funding and overall support with the u.s. department of education’s stem education strategic plan, charting a course for success: america’s strategy for stem education, which was released in 2018. as a part of this framework, three priorities have arisen, including building stem literacy, increasing dei (diversity, equity, and inclusion) in stem fields, and developing the stem workforce for an ever-changing future (committee on stem education, 2018). however, the federal framework lacks a substantial emphasis on helping students build identity in any of the stem or steam fields, let alone an intersecting identity across multiple fields. identity in steam fields the development of identity in individual steam fields has been well researched, but there are some inconsistencies regarding how identity is developed. it could be built upon interest in the subject, through successful experiences within the subject, like a student getting good grades in science, for example, or it could also be an entirely independent construct that is unique to the individual (vincent-ruz & schunn, 2018). factors that are critical in identity development are interest, intrinsic motivation, positive experiences, relevant (real-world)/practical experiences, and representation (i.e., students see people in those fields who look like them) (eren, 2021; vincent-ruz & schunn, 2018). the benefits of identity development include a robust sense of belonging, increased performance and success and perseverance through challenges (chen et al., 2020; hernandez et al., 2017). 78 a conceptual framework for promoting steam identity development to provide meaningful opportunities for children to build intersecting identities across steam fields, it is necessary to understand the nature of steam, which encourages transdisciplinary learning. the world is complex and evolving with new challenges that arise every day. new and old problems alike cross boundaries and require people to have a varied toolkit for solving those multi-disciplinary problems. as such, the “transdisciplinary integration of stem teaching and learning across stem fields and with other fields such as the humanities and the arts enriches all fields and draws learners to authentic challenges from local to global in scale” (committee on stem education, 2018, p. 20). if students are exposed to problems that foster the development of critical thinking and analysis, problem-solving, and creativity, they will be better equipped to identify and actively engage with future problems (committee on stem education, 2018). therefore, it is not just a novel or trending educational recommendation, but a necessity that students build these types of skills through relevant, active experience. however, to be well equipped does not guarantee the necessary drive or motivation to enter steam fields or careers. an identity, built through years of sustained, relevant, educational practice, meaningful experiences, and at least some modicum of academic success can foster that intrinsically motivated drive. in other words, it can give children a purpose or mission to explore those fields throughout their careers. identity in one steam field is healthy with many benefits, as noted in the literature review, but it is limited in its capacity to engage across multiple disciplines. in other words, students may stick with what is safe and familiar, rather than take the risk of venturing too far outside their field of interest/expertise. if children are well versed in the content, strategies, and culture of multiple steam disciplines, they can cross boundaries more easily. when children are comfortable and confident in more than one subject, they can engage in the practice of codeswitching. this means they use the language, tools, and methods of inquiry for multiple disciplines, which allows them to explore more robust, complex, and interconnected real-world problems. identity in multiple areas is not necessarily the same as expertise, but it does afford the individual the confidence, competence, and persistence to engage more broadly, which has considerable value. theoretical scaffolds and conditions for steam identity development children cannot be told to develop an identity. it cannot be transferred through social transmission. identity development is complex with multiple educational, social, emotional, and cognitive contexts and experiences that factor into an individual’s construction of self. however, the educational environment can provide optimal conditions for children to build their identities with an intersection in the steam domains. creating opportunities for identity development requires a holistic, constructivist approach, situated in child-centered and whole-child philosophies. this means that direct instruction, or a specific steam identity curriculum focused on building these personalized traits can only accomplish the socially transmitted aspects of identity construction. for example, a teacher may use an identity curriculum that emphasizes representation and diversity in steam fields. this is 79 important and necessary for children of all types to see themselves represented in those who have gone before them in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and the humanities. however, simply showing children that others like them have succeeded in steam fields does not create the sustained, relevant, meaningful experiences one needs to build their own identity. furthermore, identity development, though influenced by many social factors, is a deeply personal, and uniquely constructed experience. to take a holistic, connectivistic approach means that multiple, interrelated factors must be considered. connectivist theory suggests that children should combine thoughts, theories, and information in usable ways, while also considering different viewpoints, and using technology as a central hub for informational learning through such strategies as simulations, gamification, and even social media (western governors university, 2021). constructivism also fits within this paradigm as children must construct their knowledge and their identity through their own unique experiences and understandings. all steam classroom experiences must involve meaningful, relevant, active explorations that put the learner in the driver’s seat for investigations and experiments. furthermore, this conceptual work draws from child-centered practices as children’s needs, interests, development, and individual continuums of learning must be considered in the classroom. finally, this work draws from whole-child philosophy in that the development of any identity is a multi-domain endeavor that involves cognitive, social, emotional, physical, and cultural elements. practical suggestions the first suggestion for creating optimal conditions for steam identity development is for teachers to use an interactionist approach. kim and sinatra (2018) suggest that the onus for developing an identity in these fields should not rest solely with the individual child to develop the “knowledge, skills, interests, and abilities required to be successful” (para. 1), but that the educational context and environment where students experience these subjects is critically important. the steam environment must be welcoming with a rich, immersive culture and context for explorations. there must also be a balance between students’ creativity and independence and their abilities/capacities to successfully complete realistic projects (kim & sinatra, 2018; vongkulluksn et al., 2018). interactionist theory in steam would suggest that all individuals can develop an identity in multiple fields, that the development of that identity takes time, and that the educational environment is a critically important influence in identity development (kim & sinatra, 2018). practically, this means that teachers need to construct (or even co-construct with their students) an exploratory, investigative, and integrative steam environment that offers children immersive opportunities to interact with various steam problems or concepts. the teacher can guide this process and develop the environment to match the students’ interests, abilities, and authentic inquiries so that they can find success while also exercising their choices to control the process and the direction of the explorations. steam environments and curricula need to be highly integrative, thus allowing students to see the nature of more complex problems that require a transition away from separate subject explorations to multidisciplinarity, interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity. choi and pak (2006) define interdisciplinarity as anything that “analyzes, synthesizes and harmonizes links between disciplines into a coordinated and coherent whole” (p. 351). transdisciplinarity, on the 80 other hand, “integrates the natural, social, and health sciences in a humanities context, and transcends their traditional boundaries” (choi & pak, 2006, p. 351). multidisciplinary approaches tend to organize content around a theme, but they also tend to keep disciplinary knowledge and boundaries intact (drake & burns, 2004). the level of content integration can vary in a multidisciplinary approach. this approach would foster code-switching as children jump from one disciplinary idea to another as they relate to a main theme. for example, children exploring a theme of space could use math skills to explore distance, time, size/shape, weight, and mass by using the tools and terms of math inquiry. then, as they switch to science, they could explore the differences between terrestrial planets and gas giants by using scientific inquiry and related terms. a multidisciplinary approach offers children the opportunity to operate within multiple content domains, but also maintain the structure of subject boundaries. an interdisciplinary approach shifts the emphasis away from separate disciplines, and instead offers children the opportunities to use common skills and concepts from multiple disciplines (drake & burns, 2004). there may still be a theme, like space, but instead of having children do separate activities within separate content domains as they relate to the theme, the children will use concepts and skills that transcend a certain topic. perhaps they decide to develop a rocket, but as they do so, they use language skills, critical thinking, research, and problem-solving skills that can transfer to any problem or discipline. in this approach, children can construct an identity that is broader in scope (across multiple disciplines) by using relevant skills and concepts that may apply to many different content explorations. a transdisciplinary approach sees the curriculum organized around students’ interests and questions (drake & burns, 2004). typically, these explorations are centered around projectbased learning or problem-based learning in that students select relevant, real-world issues to explore. as they investigate, they use the terms, tools, skills, concepts, and methods of inquiry from multiple disciplines as they relate to a child’s topic of study. in terms of identity development, this could be considered a more applied approach, as the students themselves pick and choose what questions to explore, which skills to use, and the contexts behind their choices. ultimately, integration of content by using these different structures will allow students the opportunities to become intrinsically motivated, make powerful connections, explore open-ended questions, and apply their learning to new, unique, real-world problems (curtis, 2002; drake & burns, 2004). these are the fertile contexts that will allow for healthy identity development in multiple areas. when considering steam identity development, it is also necessary to consider the effects of inquiry and interest-based learning. inquiry presents students with opportunities to authentically explore any of the steam domains and offers chances for students to gain proficiency with methods and procedures while also having choices in what/how they investigate (sage 2yc, n.d.). any chance that students have to engage in the work of real scientists, engineers, mathematicians, historians, and so on, is an opportunity to build the language, skills, and motivation to explore those subjects further. interest is a necessary prerequisite, and inquiry is a driving process. students must find value in the steam content, see how the content is relevant to their lives, and find a sustained interest in engaging in the content areas. this intrinsic value 81 includes task value (enjoyment of performing tasks within the content domain), attainment value (being successful), and utility value (relevance to the student’s life and future pursuits) (eccles et al., 1983; harackiewicz et al., 2016). if students are intrinsically motivated, and can utilize authentic, student-directed inquiries that foster ownership of the questions, processes, and outcomes of any steam-related investigations, then they are more likely to develop an identity in those areas (stone, 2020). play is also a mode for exploration, discovery, and inquiry. it is an enjoyable activity, but it also can lead to concept development and identity development (stone, 2022; stone, lorentsen, & schmidt, 2019). esquivel et al. (2021) suggest that play cultivates identity, and that children develop in multiple realms through play and social interaction. young children can use and develop the language, culture, and even concepts of a discipline or multiple disciplines through their play. furthermore, play is “suited to developing not only science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills but also inspiring children to tap into their artistic and creative abilities” (the toy association, n.d., p. 4). in other words, this process of identity development can start from an early age with play experiences in steam areas. any steam educational setting should include multiple opportunities for children to play with concepts, ideas, and materials. play can also lead to inquiry and foster science and engineering practices and processes. finally, to provide opportunities for children to build steam identities, any curriculum needs to be flexible rather than rigid. it should include representations of all types of people as scientists, engineers, mathematicians, artists, historians, and technologists. it should also expose children to the language, terms, concepts, tools, and culture of various disciplines, while situating explorations in real-world, integrated, immersive, and welcoming contexts. furthermore, any curriculum needs to involve open-ended explorations that foster student-directed inquiry, build student interest and ownership, and allow for play. steam renaissance (conclusions) leon battista alberti (1404-1472) once said, “a man can do all things if he will,” which exemplified the renaissance ideals that people were limitless in their capacities for development, and that all people should try to embrace all knowledge to develop themselves fully (ray, n.d., para. 1). much like the renaissance ideal, the approach of stem/steam education aims to help children solve problems that cannot be solved through the lens of one discipline. furthermore, steam includes “conceptual, procedural, and attitudinal contents, so that if the mastery of each of them is necessary, so is the ability to recognize and appreciate the connections that exist between them” (perales & arostegui, 2021, para. 3). an identity that spans across and between multiple disciplines allows children to explore new possibilities, think divergently, and innovate. the child who explores science using the tools of the historian, or the artist who incorporates math into her work are just scratching the surface of what is possible. holistic identity development in steam can provide the child with the traits necessary to expand their notion of self beyond a single discipline and to engage with broader issues throughout their education and career. 82 references chen. s., binning, k. r., manke, k. j., brady, s. t., mcgreevy, e. m., betancur, l., limeri, l. b., & kaufmann, n. 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(2019, december 12). steaman education framework to relate things to each and reality. k12 digest. https://www.k12digest.com/steam-an-educational-framework-torelate-things-to-each-other-and-reality/ 36 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 edtech where do i start? nancy caukina amiddle tennessee state university nancy caukin, ed.d. is an assistant professor and the program coordinator for the ready2teach program in the womack family education leadership department in the college of education at middle tennessee state university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. when we think about educational technology (edtech), we may picture in our minds a teacher using powerpoint during a lesson, or a room of computers with students huddled around screens, or individual students working on laptops that are perched on desks. we may visualize ipads with educational games located at student learning centers, or clicker systems used in the classroom for both engagement and assessment, or particular software that students participate when home. certainly, these are all examples of educational technology tools; however, before implementing any technology with students, the first step is for teachers to ask, “what is the purpose of educational technology and where do i begin?” technology demonstrates many functions in education. for example, to support teachers it can be used to streamline tasks, such as lesson planning, communicating, tracking tasks and maintaining grades, managing student profiles, and organizing and presenting instructional content. technology can also be used to increase student engagement. for example, students practice skills learned on various software platforms, such as educational games. using technology, they create graphs, flyers, posters, drawings, and even their own apps. students work collaboratively, engage in innovative and design thinking, and demonstrate mastery in multiple ways. there are so many possibilities that teachers and students can do with the appropriate educational tools. there are multiple pieces of the puzzle to consider when using edtech in the classroom. teachers take into account student interests and needs, accessibility, costs, needed system supports, maintenance, and the time it takes to learn these new technologies. for many teachers, this last 37 consideration regarding time and the learning curve, becomes the initial and overwhelming thought and frequently diminishes the process of using edtech in the classroom. “it is just too daunting, too time consuming, and too risky.” educators know technology is an integral part of our society. classroom teachers acknowledge the responsibility to prepare our students for their future; a future of learning, a future of change, and a future with jobs that do not even yet exist. for these reasons, teachers become technically proactive in students’ futures, not with all of the answers, but with the skills and mindset to tackle problems as they arise and the commitment to prepare students to the best of their ability. the first step to initiate on the journey of integrating edtech is to do a self-check, a sort of personal inventory describing your own personal beliefs about how you learn as well as reflecting on how your students’ learn. if you believe learning is an exciting and time consuming process; that making mistakes is part of that process; and that you can learn new things with time and effort; then chances are you believe the same thing about your students. it is significant for teachers to exhibit a growth mindset as well as promote a growth mindset in their students. this growth mind-set is integral in order to ensure students explore different alternatives and become life-long learners. importantly, it is not necessary for teachers to “go it alone to figure out the complex world of edtech.” there exist many available resources to help navigate the deep and seemingly treacherous waters of using educational technology in classrooms. professional organizations, professional learning networks (plns), webinars, blogs, chats, and even people in your own building who serve as a resource for support. see below criteria to consider when integrating edtech into classroom life. the international society of technology in education (iste) is a global network of educators who believes in the power of technology to transform teaching and learning. iste is worth the time and effort to become familiar. iste publishes two peer-reviewed journals, numerous books, hosts an annual conference, offers professional learning, and evidences a community of educators to connect with and learn. they also have standards (for educators, students, administrators, coaches, and computer science teachers) that serve as a framework for creating innovative learning environments. the seven standards for educators represent an initial place for teachers to begin considering how to approach educational technology. these standards can be found at https://www.iste.org/standards/for-educators. the seven iste standards for educators include: 1. learner – educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to improve student learning. 2. leader educators seek out opportunities for leadership to support student empowerment and success and to improve teaching and learning. 3. citizen – educators inspire students to positively contribute to and responsibly participate in the digital world. 38 4. collaborator – educators dedicate time to collaborate with both colleagues and students to improve practices, discover and share resources and ideas, and solve problems. 5. designer – educators design authentic, learner-driven activities and environments that recognize and accommodate learner variability. 6. facilitator educators facilitate learning with technology to support student achievement of the iste standards for students. 7. analyst educators understand and use data to drive their instruction and support students in achieving their learning goals. these standards set the bar for educators to strive for in considering implementing educational technology tool use in classrooms. remember, it is not critical teachers demonstrate proficiency in any of the iste standards; rather, to begin the journey, teachers just remain willing to use them as a framework. teachers can also use resources to help learn more about and vet educational technology options. common sense education (https://www.commonsense.org/education) is an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission to improve the lives of students and families by providing information about media and technology. this is a go-to place to read a short synopsis of the edtech tool under consideration and perhaps find a short tutorial video of the edtech tool. another step to take on the journey of integrating edtech is to become a member of an online professional learning network (pln) or maybe two, or even three. twitter is an opportunity to follow people or groups and just read; then, when you are ready, enter into chats by asking questions and responding to posts. you can search for an organization like @iste and @commonsenseed, or a journal such as @edtech_k12, or even search for an individual you know, an author or presenter, or the technology coach at your own or a nearby school. an additional resource is the educator’s pln (http://edupln.ning.com/) which is a social networking site for teachers with over 11,000 members and more than 100 different specialty groups (i.e. fifth grade teachers, game based learning, web 2.0 emerging technology). educators pln’s include tutorials, blogs, videos, chats, and instructions on how to get started. in the process of discovering your particular plns, become a “lurker” (someone who reads others’ posts without posting themselves). take a few minutes each day to check your twitter feed and read what’s new. then start retweeting and asking questions. read what commonsense education reports about an edtech tool in which you are interested. download the app pocket and place articles that you do not have time to read now, but will read later. next, just try out something new. be bold, be brave, and be empowered. start somewhere. allow students to introduce themselves on a flipgrid, pre-assess students on a kahoot!, communicate with parents and guardians with remind.com, solicit student thinking in a padlet, convert a powerpoint into an interactive nearpod presentation, or support students demonstrating their understanding on a canva flyer. 39 finally and importantly, reflect on the process. identify which edtech tool works well, which tool usage requires tweaking, and which tech implementation warrants re-thinking. critically, solicit feedback from your students. ask students their thinking on what edtech tools you try to use, how they feel about the different edtech tools, and how the lesson might be improved. remember that edtech is a tool whose purpose is to suit the task. think about how to use edtech to get more student engagement, promote deeper learning, and more easily collect and analyze data to inform instruction. continue to work on improving. and, with your students, you will discover how much fun edtech can be! ijwc journal v3n2-final 39 ijwc journal v3n2-final 40 ijwc journal v3n2-final 41 ijwc journal v3n2-final 42 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 64 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 page turners: books for children michelle j. sobolaka, patricia crawfordb, maria genestc, katrina bartow jacobsd, carla k. meyere auniversity of pittsburgh, buniversity of pittsburgh, cla roche university, duniversity of pittsburgh, eduquesne university bonaparte plays ball written by margery cuyler illustrated by will terry crown, 2020 isbn 9781984830470 batter up! it’s time for the weird series where bonaparte, the friendly skeleton and his fellow little monsters must face the daunting mighty aliens. are they up to the task? not just for baseball fans, this picture book serves up images in which kindness and good will prevail over bullying. young readers will cheer on the amiable and hardworking little monsters as they step up to the plate. ages 3-7. facing fear written by karen lynn williams illustrated by sara palacios eerdmans, 2021 isbn 9780802854902 enrique is so excited about the upcoming soccer tournament. he can’t wait to travel and play with the team. his dreams crumble when his father declares that it is too dangerous for enrique to participate. he fears that officials may stop enrique at an immigration checkpoint, revealing that not everyone in their family entered the country legally. enrique, angry and deeply disappointed, contemplates going anyway. he is caught between worlds; desiring to protect his family on one hand, while not wanting to let his teammates down, on the other. this powerful picture book illuminates the ways in which immigrants who lack documentation must navigate a host of serious challenges and decisions in everyday life. the story does not offer straightforward answers to complex situations, but rather highlights the roles of courage, caution, love, and solidarity in facing them. ages 5-10. here we are: book of numbers written and illustrated by oliver jeffers penguin books, 2021 isbn: 9780593466124 65 the earth is a vast and wide space, filled with innumerable people, plants, and animals but this book breaks it down. this charming board book for young children takes them through numbers 1 to 10, using the language of exploring and wondering about our natural world. it ends with a message about the infinite nature of love and how that is the greatest wonder of all. this book brings together simple numeracy and complex ideas through beautiful illustrations. ages 2-5. if you come to earth written and illustrated by sophie blackall chronicle books, 2020 isbn 9781452137797 this whimsical book is written as a letter to a visitor from outer space explaining humans, our homes, animals, and what they might expect when they come to visit earth. blackall was inspired to write this book after many years traveling the world as she worked for save the children. the book is a call to action to care for our planet and for each other. it celebrates the differences that are present in our species and in how we live, work, and play. the pages have simple text and colorful illustrations that highlight the diversity present on earth. the simple message of celebrating differences and the accompanying illustrations make this an engaging text to read aloud and explore. ages 4-8. me and my sister written and illustrated by rose robbins eerdman books, 2020 isbn 9780802855442 being a sibling isn’t always easy. it can be particularly hard when your sibling has autism and might have different strengths, challenges, and family expectations. in this loving book centered on the complexities of a relationship between a child and his sister, it looks at the small moments of joy and difficulty. without ever using the word autism in the text itself, the book looks at the ways that neurodivergent children have unique needs but also enjoy many of the same activities and humor that all children do. this is a poignant story of an individual sibling pair that has many themes teachers can draw on to discuss more broadly the experiences of families who include children with autism. ages 4-8. moon camp written and illustrated by barry gott viking, 2021 isbn: 9780593202678 being away from home can be really hard, and this clever book captures this universal feeling when lucas is sent to summer camp on the moon. he would much rather play video games and sleep in, but instead he has to experience zero gravity, go on nature hikes, and avoid tripping on craters (which seem to be everywhere!). and like many kids in summer camp, lucas misses his family and his planet. the humorous and detailed illustrations will engage readers in lucas’ plight, while the story includes positive themes about friendship and making the best of things, even when they are difficult. ages 4-8. 66 no reading allowed: the worst read-aloud book ever written by raj haldar & chris carpenter illustrated by bryce gladfelter sourcebooks, 2020 isbn: 9781728206592 this tricky text is filled with homonyms, homophones, and playful punctuation to highlight the many ways that english may sound the same but have vastly different meanings. as the authors state, “you can’t believe everything you hear.” haldar and carpenter provide two sentences side by side that if read aloud sound the same. the illustrator accompanies each sentence with a simple, colorful illustration that ensures that the reader understands the differences between the two sentences. teachers and children alike, who are studying homonyms, homophones, and punctuation or who find our language interesting, will find this book both amusing and helpful as they advance their language skills. ages 4-8. ship in a bottle written and illustrated by andrew prahin putnam, 2021 isbn: 9781984815811 mouse and cat have problems living together, and this humorous book captures the adventures of mouse as she escapes her life with cat and navigates the world as captain of a ship in a bottle. the descriptive language, sophisticated vocabulary, and detailed illustrations will draw young readers into the story, as mouse encounters creatures and situations that challenge her survival. teachers will enjoy reading aloud and discussing this text with children, and all readers will connect with the emotions depicted by the characters through the very last page. ages 4-8. rules of wolves written by leigh bardugo imprint, 2021 isbn: 9781250142306 in the final installment of the king of scars duology, war comes to the grishaverse. the demon king, nikolai lantsov, and his strongest allies, zoya nazyalensky and nina zenik fight to save ravka from its enemies. those familiar with bardugo’s grishaverse will be at the edge of their seats to see if their heroes can defeat fjerda's massive army. told from multiple points of view that highlight the fight on multiple fronts, fans of the grishaverse will devour this book. ages 13+ correction draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.30.21 27 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 tech talk elearning for k-12: challenges and solutions lori vinsona, nancy caukinb a-bnorth greenville university nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs at north greenville university. she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been a teacher educator in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates. lori vinson, ed.d. is the director of the educational studies online program at north greenville university. she recently retired from public education after twenty-eight years of service as a teacher, technology coordinator, and technology integration specialist. she has also served as a teacher educator in higher education since 2003. research interests include social emotional learning and mindful movement for both teachers and students. as a lifelong learner, she continues her exploration in the constant changes in educational technology and shares her knowledge with other educators and students. abstract lack of teaching knowledge, inequity of technology and materials, and misbehavior during elearning are three challenges that are faced during remote online learning. these three challenges and suggested solutions are explored, as well as how to take a whole-child approach integrating social and emotional learning and mindfulness. due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020-2021 school year experienced hardships like none other. in a matter of days, school administrators were faced with making some of the most challenging decisions ever regarding closing schools and pivoting to teaching and learning remotely. distance learning became the norm and elearning quickly became the most efficient way to deliver content with a myriad of edtech options and the challenges that followed (boyland, 2020; richards, 2020; sean, 2020). the rapid transition from face-to-face instruction to remote online learning left teachers and parents alike scrambling. while teachers were charged with the task of teaching online, parents were challenged with the task of helping to educate their children at home. many parents adapted to these changes and new expectations with trepidation. three challenges of elearning became immediately obvious. among the challenges that affected elearning were lack of teaching knowledge, equity of technology and materials, and student misbehavior during remote learning sessions. 28 challenge: lack of teaching knowledge the shift to teaching remotely has been challenging to teachers and parents. successful teaching and learning in a face-to-face setting do not always equate to success in online or remote teaching and learning. most teachers have not had the training with equipment, software platforms, or pedagogies associated with effective online teaching and learning (english, 2020; farmer & west, 2019). this problem is compounded with the lack of knowledge and experience that parents/guardians have with technologies and pedagogies to support the learning of their children. many parents feel ill-equipped to teach from home, especially when they are trying to work from home themselves (english, 2020). and while parents may do well in parenting, many lack teaching skills needed to help make online learning a success for their children, and many feel overwhelmed by the prospect. solutions: lack of teaching knowledge it is important that teachers and parents collaborate to provide the best possible experience for the learner. communication is a good first step. by assessing the parents’ needs through conversation, teachers can advise parents on how to help their child navigate elearning (johnson, 2020). technologies allow for various types of communication such as emails, texts, virtual meetings, and even remind.com, which allows for two-way text communication without knowledge of personal cell phone numbers. communication allows parents and teachers to help one another by guiding and providing feedback about the students’ elearning experiences. a positive online learning environment is essential for success. co-creating this space allows for input from the teacher, parent, and student. finding a location where distractions are minimal is essential as is providing a structure and routine to the learning time, whether learning is synchronous or asynchronous. also, making sure that students know how to navigate the internet safely and know how to use the learning management system the school is using will ensure a smoother and more successful experience. a few things to keep in mind when helping students with elearning are to build in brain breaks for students and encourage physical activity to boost cognition. be aware of high levels of stress and be ready to help students when they need it. stay connected with the teachers as they are the best resource (asc international school, 2020; elgersma, 2020; zalets & loehrke, 2020). techniques to motivate children to do their assignments and to learn the content often require special skills. teachers can help parents by breaking down the progression of learning into manageable tasks and provide them with resources to better understand the concepts (johnson, 2020), for example, the use of videos that teach content, like khan academy. parents need to see the big picture for learning goals, a framework to help them know the direction their children will need to take and what to aim for. sharing “i can” statements with parents and students will help them understand the learning targets (johnson, 2020). there are resources available to parents to assist with elearning. the teacher is the best source for the knowledge and skills students are expected to master and potentially for effective methodologies. other sources for parental help are: distance learning resource center 29 (education reimagined), virtual and hybrid learning resources (k-12 blueprint), parent support for online learning (facebook groups), remote learning tips for parents (youtube), resources for content (khan academy), and blogs like working parent’s guide to online learning during the pandemic (kids academy), 5 things parents can do to support students learning online (edmentum), virtual learning tips for parents (id tech), remote learning resources (trying together), and keeping kids motivated for online learning (common sense media). challenge: equity of technology and materials elearning platforms offer a variety of features, some rather complex. teachers can provide instruction in real time (synchronous) via live stream or group meetings using various software programs, or they can use recorded (asynchronous) lessons and strategies. in addition to online learning platforms, learning management systems (lms) provide a repository for student work and can assist teachers in keeping track of learning outcomes. while elearning platforms and learning management systems can be great resources for elearning, difficulties arise when there is a lack of needed technology and training to make these platforms viable. for example, some families lack access to a computer and to broadband and even some teachers lack the needed technology in their home to present instructional content. not having the proper equipment and wifi access needed makes online teaching and elearning impossible (english, 2020; vander ark, 2021). in addition to a lack of accessible technologies, challenges arise when content is presented in new ways which can limit or prohibit student accessibility. for example, lessons presented in a video platform may cause students with hearing challenges to struggle with processing auditory information; students who need visual support may struggle with text-heavy documents; and english language learners may struggle without the support they are accustomed to in traditional education (morin, nd). solutions: equity of technology and materials solving the issue of lack of technology and materials is not easy to overcome. pre-pandemic, some districts went one-to-one and provided a chromebook to each student. during the pandemic, schools began to scramble to provide the needed technology and materials to students so they could learn remotely online. even devices relegated to charging carts for classroom use were deployed to teachers and families. a suburban school district in new jersey partnered with an internet company to offer low-cost internet access to families. a rural alabama school district provided students internet access by installing a town wireless network in 2011, using a federal e-rate grant and has since provided mifi devices to insure uninterrupted internet service. a district in rural virginia deployed wireless mobile units (wow wireless on wheels) around the county that are solar powered, have a radius of about 150 feet and cost about $3,000 each. they are placed in church parking lots, fire departments, and even at a dairy queen all for download and upload of assignments; it is not, however, useful for videoconferencing or telecasting (anderson, 2019; english, 2020; samuels, 2020; vander ark, 2021). a solution, according to justin reicher (2021) in his article schooling in the fifth season, is for the federal 30 government to provide access to broadband nationwide, just as electricity was in the early part of the twentieth century. challenge: misbehavior during elearning while managing behavior in a traditional classroom is challenging, imagine managing behavior of students through a computer screen. misbehaviors can be many but tend towards cheating, aggressiveness, and cyberbullying, going awol, and slacking/multitasking (heim & strauss, 2020; jones, 2020; mooiman, 2020). most of the literature on cheating points to the occurrences happening during online courses in higher education with some literature reporting on k-12 schools (dey, 2021; jones, 2020; mooiman, 2020). cheating/academic misconduct includes texting answers, plagiarism, and turning in work not completed by the student. elearning has increased online aggressive behaviors and the accessibility of cyberbullies to victimize. hate speech is up 70% and online toxicity is up 40% between students on online platforms. 37% of students ages 12-17 report having experienced cyberbullying and 30% say it has happened more than once. 60% say they have witnessed cyberbullying (boyland, 2020). when students do not physically have a teacher present, they tend to think that what they are doing or not doing cannot be seen. the feeling of being anonymous behind a computer screen, hidden from sight, presents an opportunity to make poor choices. students say it is hard to stay focused when the camera is not on. as a result of perceived anonymity during online learning, students are more likely to abandon accountability that typically aids in keeping their behavior in check (moore, 2020; richards, 2020). according to josh loso, an intermediate school principal and online k-12 administrator in spartanburg, south carolina, one major obstacle that both teachers and students faced in the 2020-2021 school year was the absence of a physical presence of the teacher. students participating in online learning often felt as though teachers could not, or did not, monitor their progress. similarly, barriers to immediate feedback and communication made it hard for instant notification to students and parents of the lack of student participation. according to dr. lori vinson, former technology integration specialist and online k-12 administrator and current teacher educator, students not only felt like teachers could not or did not monitor their progress, but students also felt they could hide behind their computer screens and pretend they were completing their assignments when in reality they were spending time doing other things unrelated to their schoolwork. this feeling of anonymity led to students thinking they were hiding what they were doing or not doing from their teachers and parents. other issues that occur during remote learning include students recording themselves then using the video for their synchronous online classes and zoombombing or zoom raiding. these unwanted interruptions from internet intruders have become problematic (craig, 2020). even dress code violations are an issue as some students wear their pajamas during synchronous online learning (jones, 2020). solutions: misbehavior during elearning cheating can be minimized by designing assessments that require students to produce responses and presentations that utilize inquiry and critical thinking; creating a culture that discourages cheating; having students engage in peer feedback; and having students turn on their cameras during quizzes and tests as well as turning off the chat feature (klein, 2020). some ways to 31 prevent cyberbullying include establishing a positive learning environment, developing strong stakeholder relationships (parents and community), promoting classroom awareness of cyberbullying, establishing an anonymous reporting of cyberbullying, and instilling hope (hindaju & patchin, 2020). online safety and digital citizenship can be promoted by learning what tools are built into the platforms that are being used, for example, filters and tools that allow teacher approval before posting. google provides a digital safety tool called be internet awesome that is an interactive learning game that aligns with the international society for technology in education (iste) standards (boyland, 2020). parents and teachers can help students stay on task during remote learning by sharing the editable digital learning pledge in english and spanish (common sense education, n.d.). zoombombing can be prevented by following the steps in the link (craig, 2020). more ways to overcome elearning difficulties there are other ways to help students overcome elearning difficulties that can also prove helpful in the regular classroom. some examples include encouraging students to become self-regulated, independent learners, teaching the whole child by incorporating social and emotional learning (sel) into the curriculum, and facilitating mindfulness. encouraging students to be independent learners, not only has tremendous benefits for the student, but it is also a proven high impact, low-cost way to improve student progress (mullings, 2019). according to zimmerman (1990), self-regulated learners set goals, tackle problems, monitor their progress, persist during learning, and are intrinsically motivated. to truly be successful in elearning, self-regulation is essential. parents and teachers can help students develop into self-regulated, independent learners by facilitating goal setting and by teaching them how to track their progress and reflect on their learning (larkins, 2021). it is also important to teach students how to manage time, effort, and emotions (the learning accelerator, n.d.). many students are experiencing uncertainty and change in their lives that are creating hardships in their school life and home life during this pandemic. they need strategies to deal with stress, anxiety, fear, anger, and loneliness. incorporating social and emotional learning (sel) into the curriculum can help students identify and deal with their emotions and the emotions of others. sel is the process through which we learn to recognize and manage emotions, care about others, make good decisions, behave ethically and responsibly, develop positive relationships, and avoid negative behaviors (elias, 1997). there is also evidence that sel programs facilitate better academic learning and can promote success for students in both school and life in general (goleman et al., 2004). because students are experiencing social emotional challenges which disrupt their performance in school, the need to address these challenges is extremely important. problems such as discipline, disaffection, lack of commitment, alienation, and dropping out of school are examples of behaviors that frequently limit success in school and often lead to failure (zins, j. e., bloodworth, m. r., weissberg, r. p., & walberg, h. j., 2004). by addressing sel, student behaviors can be addressed and hopefully circumvented. parents and teachers can utilize the collaborative for academic and social and emotional learning (casel) framework and 5 core competencies to assist students in becoming self-aware, to self-manage, to engage in responsible decision-making, develop relationship skills, and build social awareness (casel, 2019). 32 dr. ilana nankin, founder of breathe for change addresses social and emotional wellbeing for students in her breathe for change curriculum. she encourages teachers to implement social emotional learning support by providing mindfulness activities including movement. meditation and activities addressing feelings are just a few of the activities that can be incorporated to help students adapt to emotional needs. her program empowers educators as champions of well-being in their lives, classrooms, and school communities. breathe for change aligned the learning objectives of their sel*f curriculum to the five core competencies of casel. breathe for change is guided by their work to ensure that educators gain tools to effectively embody and teach social-emotional learning in their lives, classrooms, and communities. according to dr. nankin (n.d), educational transformation must come from within school communities. her theory of change is to train educators as wellness experts and support them in being champions of well-being in their lives, classrooms, and school communities. her theory and curriculum correspond with the casel framework. like many similar frameworks, casel’s integrated framework promotes intrapersonal, interpersonal, and cognitive competence. the five core competencies can be taught in many ways across many settings. the interactive activities provided in the breathe for change curriculum can be used by elearning teachers to incorporate sel skills and to make connections with students with the aim to negate some of the attitude and behavior patterns and replace them with positive outcomes during elearning. conclusion elearning has been one of the top challenges in education during the last two school years, making it difficult for many parents, teachers, and students to experience success during remote online learning. lack of teaching knowledge, equity of technology and materials, and misbehavior of students during online classes are just three issues that are faced by teachers, parents, and students. strategies are needed to navigate the learning space and the living space of elearning. as the journey of elearning continues, parents and teachers will need to work together to implement strategies such as those suggested that will effectively impart the skills, knowledge, and dispositions for students to be successful learners. 33 references anderson, k. 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(pp. 3–22). essay, teachers college press. final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 96 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 emerging scholar multiple intelligence in a center based environment kaitlyn m. arnsa anorthern arizona university kaitlyn arns is pursuing her bachelor’s in elementary education at northern arizona university in flagstaff, az. her research interests include understanding how the theory of multiple intelligences and self-determination theory can be better understood to help engage students in the classroom. this research was conducted to gain a new perspective on students as individual learners and the findings serve as a resource for teachers to reform instructional practices. after graduating in december 2021, she will continue advocating for student needs and be using the different teaching approaches from this research in her own classroom. abstract the theory of multiple intelligences (mi), originally defined by howard gardner (1993, 1999), continues to contribute to epistemological and pedagogical understandings and practices in the elementary classroom. the multiple intelligences manifest naturally through students’ work; center-based learning is an effective approach to authentically activating children’s innate intelligences. centers provide an opportunity for students to explore a subject through varied experiences. the mi theory reveals each child possesses particular intelligences and ways of understanding which supports their learning in unique ways. consequently, traditional lessons taught in whole group settings do not satisfy individual needs. furthermore, affording children with opportunities to determine choices in their own education, they become more motivated to engage with the material. self-determination theory explains why an individual’s interest in their schoolwork increases once they are empowered to make decisions about what they learn based on their interests. building on gardner’s work, this current discussion suggests the most effective way to foster all intelligences is through choice-based centers. this overview of existing research supports implementing the theories of multiple intelligences and selfdetermination in the classroom. recommendations for centers and authentic assessments are also included as a guide for reforming instruction to best benefit students. keywords: multiple intelligences, intrinsic motivation, centers, assessment, student-centered, self-determination theory, learning styles, small groups, units, choice-based, constructivism 97 introduction howard gardner’s (1993, 1999) theory of multiple intelligences, as well as other literature, supports a student-centered approach in education. the theory of multiple intelligences increased in popularity with educators because many were finding that not all students responded to traditional teaching approaches; thus, teachers sought to find an effective way to improve instruction in order to reach all their children (strauss, 2013). with the defining of these intelligences in the classroom and the implementation of a student-centered approach, students have the opportunity to gain more control over their own education and also the chance to pursue their personal inquiries. teaching is an evolving profession requiring both educators and students to adapt as they grow and develop. in order to provide students with dynamic learning opportunities that foster genuine interest in and understanding of class material, it is important for teachers to provide creative, inquiry-based, and explorative center options allowing students to operate in multiple domains. for many educators, multiple intelligences become evident in all student populations as they work with children on a daily basis. thus, it is important for teachers to develop an idea of how to activate mi’s through different methods of instruction (peterlin et al., 2021). developing the strengths of learners is essential for student success in the classroom. even though students manifest a particular intelligence, it does not mean they lack the skills of the other intelligences, or that they cannot operate in multiple domains. this is a key point to remember when deciding how a teacher wants to guide their students through the learning process. many teachers believe that identifying the multiple intelligences in their students is the best way to guide their instruction, but when intelligence is identified by the teacher, it can lead to overly structured assignments (jiajun, 2020; kaya et al., 2007). it is critical students be trusted with the power to regularly decide for themselves how they can best engage with the content. developing a onesize-fits-all lesson for students to follow does not leave flexibility for them to explore different approaches to the presented material (sharon, 2001). furthermore, if a teacher labels a child into a particular mi box, that may have the potential to narrow the child’s educational experience. one solution to this potential limitation is to introduce centers and choice into the classroom. by introducing choice-based centers, students are granted more power over their own education and are allowed to manifest their intelligence(s) in multiple and dynamic ways. ensuring multiple options for interest-based learning provides a way for children’s inherent intelligences to manifest in a natural way. this can lead to a greater degree of intrinsically motivated effort as well as help students gain confidence in their abilities (ballinger, 2011). providing students more freedom and choice can be an intimidating idea for some teachers. teachers may worry that by giving students more control, the students will abuse their freedom and that the choice-based centers will lead to classroom management issues. often situated in a curriculum-centered, standards-based paradigm, some teachers operate in a coverage mindset and worry about test scores. however, multiple studies describe how providing students with choice in their education increases their motivation to spend more time and energy on the learning task (chang et al., 2016; erwin, 2004). not only does choice in the classroom benefit students academically, but it also develops lifelong skills such as self-regulation and problem solving. additionally, the self-determination theory supports these findings and concludes that 98 allowing students to make their own decisions promotes feelings of autonomy, motivation, and healthful functioning (patall et al., 2010). a difficult aspect of implementing choice into the classroom is understanding how the role of the instructor changes. in a student-centered and choice-based learning environment, the teacher’s role is to guide students through their own explorations and discoveries. traditionally, educators’ training is to teach students based on the school curriculum, which can lead to narrowed pathways for learning and allow limited flexibility for students to explore content from multiple intelligences. the traditional methods of instruction may be more efficient in terms of content delivery and standardization, but it might also lead to burnout for both students and teachers (oberle et al., 2020). one of the benefits of ensuring students the power to make their own decisions in the classroom is it leads to diverse, creative, and imaginative projects that inspire teachers and students alike while also maintaining a fresh, varied classroom atmosphere. afforded control over their own learning, students demonstrate hidden talents and innovative ideas not possible through worksheets or scripted teaching and learning processes. by supporting students in their own search for knowledge, teachers channel their instructional energy into focusing on the individual needs of their students rather than creating standardized lesson plans targeting all learners. in order to begin implementing these practices into the classroom, a base knowledge of the theory of multiple intelligences, an understanding of the rationale for implementing choicebased centers, and a description of how choice and interest-based learning foster intrinsic motivation become important. this discussion provides educators with ideas and recommendations on how to apply these strategies into practice and additionally, illustrate specific examples of centers and project ideas. finally, integral to the discussion, descriptions underscore the importance of authentic ways to assess students’ work without the use of rubrics or tests. research-based recommendations for instruction that fit within a child-centered paradigm will also be included. as the most effective and applicable methods of instruction become evident, teachers situate their teaching philosophy and decide how they will apply this knowledge to benefit their future students. literature review finding a way to engage students in the school curriculum can be difficult because of the differences between each student and the nature of homogenized curriculum programs. classroom instruction becomes impacted by a variety of factors. these include developmental stages, cultural identities, socio-economic status levels (ses), individual backgrounds, and multiple intelligences (goetz et al., 2013). in order to instruct all students in an authentic way, teachers recognize the individual needs of each student (kolman et al., 2017). teachers view children as unique individuals, rather than perceiving them as a whole group. understanding children’s learning in this way, teachers use culturally responsive pedagogy, meet individual developmental needs, provide diverse and dynamic scaffolding, and allow for the natural manifestation of multiple intelligences (sanders et al., 2016). when teachers evidence an awareness of the many differences in their children and participate in the freedom to create varied instructional experiences, they become better able to engage all of their students. 99 multiple intelligences howard gardner indicates nine main multiple intelligences exist in humans (mcclellan & conti, 2008). he argues that people are not born with all of the intelligence they will develop in their lifetime, but that intelligence emerges as they grow and encounter new experiences. the original theory of intelligence states that each person has a general “g” intelligence that focuses on their cognitive abilities (marenus, 2020). gardner describes the nine intelligences as verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial-visual, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalist, and existential (northern illinois university center for innovative teaching and learning, 2020). gardner's research contributes to the development of instructional methods considered appropriate in support of children’s unique and emerging minds. many studies evidence these methods can be effective and valued by the children, which can positively impact intrinsic motivation (gardner, 1993; dueñas macías, 2013; kaya et al., 2007; norris et al., 2004). the following provides a description of gardner’s nine multiple intelligences as they relate to the classroom environment. 1. verbal-linguistic intelligence is referred to as “well-developed verbal skills and sensitivity to the sounds, meanings and rhythms of words . . .” (northern illinois university center for innovative teaching and learning, 2020, para 2.). strengths for this intelligence include reading, writing, and speaking. proper use of language is understood as is the meaning of written and spoken words. students who have a strong verbal-linguistic intelligence might gravitate towards creative writing, debating a topic, or expressing their learning through a literature project. a person with a strong verballinguistic intelligence evidences the skills to speak, write, communicate, and learn new languages more easily (gardner, 2017). these students benefit from meeting in groups to tell stories, reading books, taking part in a debate, playing word games, and writing for a class newspaper (pal, 2011). 2. logical-mathematical intelligence is the ability to think in an abstract and conceptual way. students with this type of intelligence can find and interpret patterns in life and in schoolwork. if given center choices, a logical-mathematical intelligence would most likely engage with scientific or mathematical projects to investigate inquiries or explore the options of solving a challenging problem (marenus, 2020). the purpose of teaching mathematics to students goes beyond providing them with numerical facts. math requires students to use problem-solving skills that can be applied to other aspects of their life as well (arum et al., 2018). when teachers provide the opportunities for students to explore their logical-mathematical intelligence capacity, they build their problem-solving skills and grow as learners. 3. spatial-visual intelligence is defined as the capacity to think in pictures, images, and visualize in an abstract approach. students who think in this way use both their visual input from the external world and internal imagery to think about and understand content on a deeper level. to aid students who identify most with this intelligence, an instructor might provide various artistic options of expression (marenus, 2020). one barrier regarding this intelligence might be students with aphantasia which refers to a condition for which a person has reduced or absent voluntary imagery (zeman et al., 2015). this means some students cannot visualize class material in the way that people with a strong spatial-visual intelligence can. this is one of many reasons why it is important for 100 students to be presented with various opportunities to learn rather than compelled to complete an assignment that requires them to do something they physically remain incapable of. 4. bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is defined as the potential for a person to use their body to solve problems. howard gardner described how mental and physical activity become related and that a coordinated child could learn through this approach (macnamara, 2016). students with a strong bodily-kinesthetic intelligence communicate well through body language and learn best when something is first modeled by the instructor so they can mimic their actions. to most accurately assess what students with this intelligence understand, teachers provide students with opportunities to make or invent something with their hands, perform a dance, or participate in role-play. centers in the classroom greatly benefit these students because they may evidence difficulty in sitting still for a lesson (blumenfeld-jones, 2009). 5. musical intelligence refers to a skillset in performing, composing, and appreciating musical patterns (marenus, 2020). introducing music and sound into the classroom is critical for children evidencing a strong musical intelligence. these children become most aware of sounds in the classroom as well as in the real world. they benefit from engaging in band practices or listening to the different sounds of animals to better understand connections between species. these thinkers can communicate and find meaning through different sounds that may not activate the same type of learning for other students (helding, 2010). additional research describes how musical centers in the classroom benefits students because they can creatively interact with material through a method that best fits their learning needs (ballinger, 2011). 6. interpersonal intelligence is the ability to understand the motivations, intentions, and desires of other people. additionally, people with this intelligence, possessing good social skills, work effectively with others (macnamara, 2016). this way of approaching learning explains how they are able to easily relate to others. this intelligence can be activated in the classroom through partner or group work because these students learn best through personal interactions. students with an interpersonal intelligence find it easy to understand the feelings of others and are able to see situations from their perspective. this understanding of others draws students with a strong interpersonal intelligence to other people which can lead to seeking out a career with a highly social aspect (marenus, 2020). 7. intrapersonal intelligence refers to “the capacity to understand oneself and appreciate one’s own feelings, fears, motivations, and limitations as well as strengths,” (macnamara, 2016, p. 251). this definition is similar to that of interpersonal intelligence, but the main difference is whether the person better understands themselves or others. a child with a strong intrapersonal intelligence can easily reflect on their own thoughts and actions in a constructive way from which they can learn. these children are most aware of their own emotions, values, and beliefs. students who think in this way might prefer to complete activities alone rather than with a partner or group. these students may express themselves as more self-confident and inwardly motivated. this type of intelligence helps students to guide their life decisions and supports their ability to self-regulate emotions (mowat, 2011). 8. naturalist intelligence is described as one’s ability to connect with nature through environmental awareness. students who have a strong naturalist intelligence can 101 recognize, understand, and appreciate the environment, making them more able to solve environmental and sustainability problems (wirdianti et al., 2019). one way students express and develop a naturalist intelligence in the classroom is through outdoor activities. students may garden or research living things surrounding the school (hasanah et al., 2019). 9. existentialist intelligence is defined as a sensitivity and capacity to develop and look for answers to deep questions about human existence (northern illinois university center for innovative teaching and learning, 2020). students seek answers to questions such as “what is the meaning of life? why do we die? how did we get here?” (northern illinois university center for innovative teaching and learning, 2020). a center-based environment allows students to pursue deeper questions and, in doing so, develop problem-solving skills in the process of learning about the world. students with a strong existentialist intelligence are reflective in their approach to school and life (northern illinois university center for innovative teaching and learning, 2020). most recently added to howard gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, this intelligence is less developed than the previous eight intelligences. intelligences are not limited within children as some children evidence access to many or all of the intelligences, but they may demonstrate greater strength in some areas than others. teachers include different classroom activities to help develop some of these intelligences in students; centers represent one of the most effective strategies to provide students with opportunities to develop multiple intelligences (bautista et al., 2019). providing students with multiple opportunities to explore through various methods of learning reveals the more prominent intelligences in the classroom. the theory of multiple intelligences was not initially developed for educators to improve their practice, but once educators applied gardner’s findings, they found it to hold true in the classroom (armstrong, 2018). how to use the theory of multiple intelligences in the classroom the theory of multiple intelligences is not the same as an understanding of learning styles. the definition of intelligence according to gardner is a “biopsychological potential to process information that can be activated in a cultural setting to solve problems or create products that are of value in a culture” (gardner, 1999, p. 28). the term learning styles refer to “how learners gather, sift through, interpret, organize, come to conclusions about, and ‘store’ information for further use,” (chick, n.d., para. 1). the difference between intelligence and style in the context of teaching and learning in school is that intelligence refers to the strong computational power a person possesses, while their learning style is how the individual approaches a situation (strauss, 2013). when it comes to determining a child’s most dominant intelligence, it is important to remember that they will have characteristics of many of the other multiple intelligences as well. to effectively instruct, a teacher is aware of how the student interacts with the material, rather than focusing solely on their prominent intelligence (dolati & tahriri, 2017). when instructors focus too much on this idea of emphasizing a particular intelligence or activating a specific learning style, they begin to assign students a prescribed course of action, which moves the direction away from the learner-centered approach of teaching and into teacher-centered instruction. 102 a more efficient way to reach students is to offer multiple approaches to learning by setting up choice centers in the classroom (dueñas macías, 2013). during center time, students become empowered with the opportunity to make their own decisions about their learning. this studentcentered environment introduces choice into the classroom, encouraging students to pursue their own interests and become more intrinsically motivated to learn (norris et al., 2004). today, in many classrooms, students remain compelled to follow someone else’s rules and curriculum, and then take a standardized assessment that relies heavily on memorization of facts rather than fostering conceptual understandings. in order to ensure students, succeed in the classroom, it is important they are able to make decisions about their own learning, so that the environment becomes developmental, constructivist, holistic, and learner-centered (kohn, 2020). requiring students to follow a strict lesson plan that has only one option will not allow them to fully investigate their own interests. school is meant to be a place for students to explore and inquire about the world; if they are given a topic or assignment in which they have no interest, their curious minds may diminish, being shut down or ignored. self-determination theory multiple studies conclude providing students with some freedom and choice in the classroom leads to the development of an intrinsic motivation. this means students engage in an activity because they find it interesting and receive satisfaction in the process. through intrinsic motivation, students exert greater effort and put more time in their work and projects which result in more authentic learning (gagné & deci, 2005). this motivation is further explained by edward deci and richard ryan’s self-determination theory (sdt). this framework examines the human tendency to move towards growth and outlines the differences between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. the main difference between the sdt and other motivation theories is that its focus is on the strength of autonomous versus controlled motivation, rather than a total amount of motivation. autonomous motivation helps with effective performance and well-being whereas controlled motivation takes away from these results, especially if creativity, cognitive flexibility, or deep processing of information is involved (gagné & deci, 2005). the self-determination theory also investigates the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivations particularly observed in the classroom. one core tenet of sdt, extensively supported by the research, is that “more autonomous forms of motivation will lead to an enhancement of students’ engagement, learning, and wellness” (ryan & deci, 2020, p. 4). this is true for children at every level of development and across multiple content areas. higher academic achievement is seen with autonomous forms of motivation, which is likely due to the internalized motivation that leads to a greater effort put forth by the students. as they increase their investment in the work, they identify more with the subject and come to realize a relationship with schoolwork in a positive way (ryan & deci, 2020). importance of play and inquiry to activate multiple intelligences the multiple intelligences theory highlights the importance of moving away from whole group lesson plans and strategizing towards a less structured approach. allowing students to play in the classroom is important in that they can discover their own interests. the declaration on the importance of play states that “play is self-chosen, for without active choice and engagement the 103 activity is empty and reduced in meaning and significance” (ipa, 2014, p. 1). by definition, play is not rule bound. this means play is not attached to learning outcomes. authentic play allows students to determine and use their diverse forms of intelligence; it evidences no objectives because this might undermine children’s self-discovery. play is important for learning because it develops essential skills in the students that they will use for the rest of their lives. if a student chooses to play alone, they can improve on their individual problem-solving skills. this will help them when encountering challenging problems during a lesson. students can also choose to play in groups which assist in building meaningful relationships and as well attain experience collaborating with others (ipa, 2014). even if play is not directly related to students’ academic learning, the experiences they receive through these hands-on explorations increase their engagement in the classroom (kinkead-clark, 2019). data describe how students evidencing opportunities to play in the classroom become "physically healthier, more socio-emotionally grounded, more creative in their thoughts, have more developed oral vocabularies, and are able to engage in more complex critical thinking and problem-solving strategies” (kinkead-clark, 2019, p. 178). a center-based environment provides students with multiple opportunities to play because of the freedom to decide how they want to approach their topics of choice. incorporating multiple intelligence theory in classroom practice creating a student-centered environment building a student-centered environment in the classroom is essential when strategizing for student success (ballinger, 2011). it is important students participate in learning opportunities involving social interaction while engaging in classroom activities and centers. introducing students to this type of environment may take some planning; a highly scripted, teacher-centered approach undermines social interaction. a student-centered environment requires teachers to step back and allow children to inquire and discover on their own. letting students choose how they want to investigate a topic and spend their time will ultimately lead to a positive shift in their motivation and academic performance (patall et al., 2010). one art teacher found that allowing her students to be creative and push the boundaries of what they were asked to do resulted in work that was unique, imaginative, and inspired (mcelhany, 2017). this is one example of ways in which students demonstrate their extensive capabilities when they have the freedom to explore. teachers can only provide the conditions for students to authentically learn because ultimately, learning resides within each student. standardization narrows learning opportunities and creates superficial understandings through memorization. using centers in the classroom educators acknowledge the idea of implementing traditional centers into their classrooms. traditional centers operate with a specific task for students to complete in a certain amount of time. then, the students rotate through the stations, so that the teacher can ensure they have a chance to engage with each of the activities. having various stations for students to explore makes it easier to distinguish between activities and provides a way for teachers to monitor the classroom. however, this type of structured center approach does not foster a genuine 104 understanding of material or allow students to make authentic connections in their learning (dueñas macías, 2013). the predetermined activity at each station limits the options for students and narrows the range of opportunities for engagement. apart from the traditional center, pattillo and vaughn (1992) describes learning centers as “a defined space where materials are organized in such a way that children learn without the teacher’s constant presence and direction” (p. 13). howard gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences suggests students need to have the opportunity to explore different approaches to learning (dolati & tahriri, 2017). this authentic learning is achieved when teachers afford their students the freedom to engage with material in whatever format most appeals to them. providing this time for students leads to the development of an intrinsic motivation and genuine interest in school (gagné & deci, 2005). learning centers allow students to work both independently and in small groups. taking away rules about timing and rotations through center spaces allows students to work at a pace and level that is appropriate for each child's individual needs (ballinger, 2007). importantly, centers reflect the interests of a student or group of students. learning objectives and standards which limit the possibilities for center time and do not support children’s choices do not belong in centers. standards and objectives may be targeted in a small group setting where lesson plans are more structured and guided by the teacher. this customization of centers creates experiences that allow for meaningful learning on an individualized basis and provides students with greater potential for success in and out of the classroom (pattillo & vaughn, 1992). it is important to remember that the idea of centers is not to attach a specific learning objective. their purpose is to give students a chance to explore their interests in whatever way they see fit. this supports the idea of activating each of the multiple intelligences simultaneously in the classroom. students can choose from an abundance of options provided by the teacher or generate an activity or project completely on their own. the options provided range in difficulty from simple to complex so that children can decide to challenge themselves or remain in a learning comfort zone. when students choose to repeat the same center or engage with material at a lower level than others, there is no punishment or shame. this choice might be their way of building a strong foundation with the topic before they can grow and challenge themselves. centers provide an opportunity for children to use their imagination and learn in a way that is comfortable and fun for them. the freedom to choose what center they go to and how they express their understanding supports the self-determination theory as students become more intrinsically motivated. they can choose to work by themselves, with a friend, or even with a group. in this way, centers can also provide opportunities for students to build social skills and learn how to collaborate with others. guided by two primary strategies, teachers plan for students’ successes. first, as much as possible, teachers individualize learning. as a part of constructivist theory, students learn best when they can connect new learning with personal experiences or their prior knowledge (mcleod, 2019). one way to do this is by integrating technology that will adapt to each student's unique intelligence. ensuring that each student feels comfortable in their learning environment will improve their confidence and therefore their success in the classroom. the second strategy is to pluralize teaching. this means that rather than following the one-size-fits-all curriculum that is 105 provided through textbooks and worksheets, teachers introduce a variety of options that their students can choose (sharon, 2001). the freedom of a choice-based center environment will allow students to explore through their diverse intelligences, interests, and will fit within developmentally appropriate ranges that activate learning in a way that is rarely seen in a onesize-fits-all lesson plan. providing center options in a classroom allows the teacher to present the same material to students in many ways. students can then choose to remain at a single station and learn in that way, or they can rotate through the options, giving them a better understanding of a topic through differing methods of delivery (strauss, 2013). setting up effective centers in the classroom can be challenging for teachers who are more familiar with traditional classroom teaching methods. generally, educators are seen as having facilitative roles and believe that when the teacher is not leading instruction, he or she has lost control of the class. in contrast to a controlled classroom, effective classroom management involves creating an inviting and appealing environment for learning (korpershoek et al., 2016). choice-based center environments provide students with opportunities to gain confidence in their learning abilities and can help them recognize their own intelligence and potential to succeed. various studies on classroom management in relation to center time reveal classroom management does not require students to follow strict rules (könig & kramer, 2016). when children are not allowed freedom of choice while engaging in centers, they disconnect from the material and may lose their interest in school all together (bautista et al., 2019). when reviewing learning center types present in elementary school classrooms, data illustrate the options for some subjects more common than others; additionally, time spent by teachers in the different centers varied widely (bautista et al., 2019). also, teacher-directed centers with time limitations defeat the purpose of giving students the time they need to inquire and explore their personal interests at their own pace. it is important students be provided with more freedoms and less restrictions for their multiple intelligences to manifest naturally and for them to have the opportunity to think in multiple domains (barbot et al., 2012). for centers, students can be prompted with various choices or the option to create an original center idea of their own. the provided prompts might include different terminology based on the multiple intelligence they activate. the verbs that would be present at various centers demonstrate examples of how students might engage with the material. it is important to remember that these prompts ensure options for the students; prompts/verbs do not translate into measurable objectives for the class. according to mckenzie (2015), the verbiage used in choice-based centers might include: read, write, speak, or explain for centers that foster a verbal-linguistic intelligence. a logicalmathematical intelligence might be fostered by the following verbs: solve, question, hypothesize, or calculate (mckenzie, 2015). these verbs can be included in center prompts or suggestions that promote opportunities for the student’s intelligence to manifest in dynamic ways. likewise, a visual-spatial intelligence may be fostered by the following: observe, draw, create, or imagine (mckenzie, 2015). it is important to note that these verbs are not key terms in objectives and will provide a broader range of authentic learning and opportunities for applications that may not be quantifiable. in fact, choice-based centers should have no standardized objectives. bodilykinesthetic prompts could include build, play, dance, or move (mckenzie, 2015). a musical intelligence might be characterized by the following: listen, hear, echo, or mimic (mckenzie, 2015). as evidenced by these verbs, the teacher must plan an environment that is rich with diverse pathways for exploration and interest-based learning. interpersonal could include 106 sharing, collaborating, interviewing, or influence (mckenzie, 2015). similarly, intrapersonal could include express, evaluate, rationalize, or defend (mckenzie, 2015). naturalist opportunities might include sort, classify, arrange, or map (mckenzie, 2015). finally, existentialist opportunities could include reflect, synthesize, explore, or even dream (mckenzie, 2015). these verbs can be used as a guide for writing potential center ideas, but during class time, students should also be provided with the option to do something that is not listed by the teacher but is interesting to them (norris, 2004). each of the verbs that can be used in instructional prompts at centers activates various parts of a student’s mind, creating a more effective activity for them than a universal worksheet given to the entire class (mckenzie, 2005). the verbs become a starting point for students to use as a resource, helping them to brainstorm and guide their own thinking; these terms should not be used as a tool to grade students’ work. students may authentically demonstrate their learning from centers, but any assessment should be qualifiable and situated in the unique context of the individual’s activities. the wording of the center options is important because a narrow set of instructions could limit the possibilities for a student. for example, at a writing center, if an option is to learn the correct spelling of selected words from the dictionary, students will not be encouraged to understand the meaning of the word. however, if students were asked to create a story using words from a dictionary, they could generate unlimited ideas for a story. an effective center structure is to provide open-ended suggestions with unlimited possibilities that can involve a student’s own motivations, interests, and passions (armstrong, 2018). using mckenzie’s (2015) center verbiage, many of the verbs align with bloom’s taxonomy, which is defined as an educational framework that can be used to determine a student's depth of knowledge (lin hunter et al., 2020). it is a hierarchy of cognitive skills ranging from simple to complex comprehension (bloom, 1956). the six levels of cognitive skills become more challenging as they progress, thus giving students the opportunity to challenge themselves (bloom, 1956). when writing potential center options, teachers should consider using the higher cognitive skill terminology to promote more imaginative activities. these include the lower levels of cognitive process including remembering and understanding with indicators such as: memorize, list, summarize, and paraphrase. center suggestions should also include opportunities for students to use middle level and higher-order processes like application, analysis, evaluation, and creativity. the indicators for these cognitive levels could include diagram, apply, compare/contrast, judge, defend, construct, plan, and produce. using bloom’s taxonomy can be a helpful reference throughout any aspect of teaching to ensure that students are meeting goals that activate higher order cognitive skills and do not simply ask students to memorize information. choice centers provide a time for students to develop skills on their own in whatever way they choose. centers do not contain any objectives or standards regulating students. regulation restricts the possibilities and defeats the purpose of a student-centered environment. however, it still remains important for teachers to maintain the standards and objectives for their grade level but through different means. in addition, they need a concrete way to assess student progress throughout a unit. 107 for example, during center time, teachers can create small groups and teach more-individualized content. this allows teachers to more accurately gauge where each student is in their understanding (weiss, 2013). students will then have the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of a concept through the guidance of the teacher (armstrong, 2018). effective methods of assessment teachers can assess their students in many ways without the use of tests or assigning letter grades to their work. some of these ideas include projects, presentations, or products of students’ center explorations. student-driven projects can be open-ended and allow students to explore a topic in whatever way they choose. this is similar to the reasoning behind centers because a strict rubric limits the possibilities inspired by the multiple intelligences. projects can be guided by an overarching topic, but then students experience the freedom to go in whatever direction they choose. presentations afford a similar element of freedom as the projects. the assessment aspect originates in the teacher’s examining knowledge and understanding holistically which can be recorded through anecdotal records. the teacher can pose prompting questions to the students about their project and determine if there are still gaps in their understanding. while tests and rubrics may be easier to produce and grade, they do not represent the same depth of understanding as projects and presentations provide (armstrong, 2018). to help children embrace their creativity and individualism in the classroom, teachers provide options of open-ended assignments and projects that can be assessed authentically by the teacher. the goal of an authentic assessment is to determine the students’ conceptual understanding. the focus of the assessment is not to grade the work or rank it against others, but rather, for the instructor to see where the student is missing some information and determine how they can reintroduce it later in the unit. one strategy to accomplish this is for students to present their projects, sharing with the entire class or with a small group what they discovered about their topic of interest. the teacher can then write an anecdotal record, a detailed descriptive narrative written after a specific behavior or interaction and use this note to guide their instruction (mcfarland, 2008). it is important teachers provide documentation for their students to show growth; authentic assessments can align with standards. however, rather than benchmarking, authentic assessments can be used to guide students through their own continuum of learning on their own timetable. in this way, teachers individualize the assessment for each child and nurture each child’s independent growth at their own pace. if teachers emphasize students meeting each of the grade level standards, they run the risk of pushing a child through material they do not yet fully understand, leaving them unprepared for future units that may require them to build on previous knowledge. the rationale for ensuring students create personalized projects to demonstrate their understanding is tied to the idea that each student learns in different ways. children develop at different rates and expecting each of them to be able to produce the same prescribed product representing their understanding would not provide true insight into what they actually understand. according to marenus (2020), one of the most important educational implications from the theory of multiple intelligences can be summed up through individuation and pluralization. individuation reveals that because each person differs from one another, there is no reason to teach and assess students identically. the identical assessments that are seen in 108 classrooms today consist of multiple-choice tests that encourage memorization rather than investigation of the topic. conclusion instructional practice that is informed by the theory of multiple intelligences continues to indicate a positive effect on student achievement (hanafin, 2014; kaya et al., 2007). the theory of multiple intelligences enhances learning, teaching, and assessment in schools (hanafin, 2014). incorporation of choice-based centers in the classroom promotes the ideas behind gardner’s theory and provides more opportunities for authentic learning across multiple domains than traditional instructional methods. the one-size-fits-all lesson that relies on textbooks and worksheets prioritizes verbal-linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligences at the expense of the other seven intelligences, which remain equally important (lynch, 1992). choice-based centers provide the most flexible opportunities for developing multiple intelligences in students, but that does not mean it is not possible to develop these skills during a whole group lesson. all of the multiple intelligences identified by howard gardner exist in every classroom so that teachers can provide experiences to promote the less predominant intelligences in their instruction (dueñas macías, 2013). allowing students to choose where to develop their new knowledge of a subject leads to more flexible lessons. knowing about the benefits of activating multiple intelligences affords teachers an increased probability of ensuring their students succeed in and out of the classroom. encouraging students to pursue their own interests will enhance their intrinsic motivation and support their determination to achieve academically. providing students with choices in their education can positively impact their overall academic achievement. when the learning environment is too controlling, autonomy and intrinsic motivation become reduced and burnout for students and teachers alike is more common (patall et al., 2010). it is important students be provided with the power to decide how they want to learn so that their multiple intelligences are activated. choice-centers remain one of the most effective ways to provide these engaging and creative opportunities for individual achievement in the 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(2015). lives without imagery – congenital aphantasia. cortex, 73, 378–380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2015.05.019 v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 96 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 education by the numbers: considering retention in light of the covid-19 pandemic sandra stonea anorthern arizona university dr. sandra j. stone is professor emeritus at northern arizona university in flagstaff, az. her research interests include multiage education, early childhood, literacy, and authentic assessment. she consults nationally and internationally on multiage education. retention considered the issue of retention has been researched and discussed over many years in the united states. according to kamin and lamb (2021) “grade retention is not an educationally advantageous or cost effective solution for supporting struggling students, and may in fact cause more harm in the long run both to individual students and to their districts” (para. 3). for example, the impact of retaining children in grade has negative impacts on children’s abilities to achieve in school (kamin & lamb, 2021). research also indicates that retained children have an increase in school absences, experience behavioral difficulties, and undergo a decrease in self-esteem (aecf, 2018; sitrin, 2021). in addition, children retained in the early years of schooling are more apt to drop out of high school, particularly if the students have disabilities, are black or hispanic, or english language learners (french & mauriello, 2021; hughes et al., 2018; jacob & lefgren, 2009; loughlin, 2022; nasp, 2021). let’s look at the numbers. retention rates consider the retention rates during 2008-2009 for first through eighth grade public schools in the united states. warren and saliba (2012) report that the highest retention rates are for first graders at 3.5% in 2008-2009. the lowest retention rates are in grades four through six, although higher in grades two, three, seven and eight. during this time, almost a half-million public school students (447,000) were retained in the 2008-2009 school year. three out of 10 children were retained in first grade, about 130,000 children. 97 figure 1 note: based on educational research: warren & saliba (2012) during the 2015-2016 school year, 3.4 million children in the united states repeated one or more grades beginning with kindergarten. see the following chart comparing 2008-2009 to the 20152016 retention rates in the united states. the numbers are alarming. the question becomes, “what impact has covid had on current retention rates?” figure 2 note: based on educational research: loughlin (2022); warren & saliba (2012) 0 500,000 1,000,0001,500,0002,000,0002,500,0003,000,0003,500,0004,000,000 2015-2016 2008-2009 total number of k-8 students retained in the united states prior to covid-19 comparing the 2008-2009 and 2015-2016 school years (3,400,000) (447,000) 98 covid-19 pandemic at the beginning of the covid pandemic, spring 2020, most schools in the united states moved to distance education, mostly online learning models: 77% public schools and 73% private schools (nces, 2022). figure 3 note: national center for education statistics (nces) (2022) loss of learning during covid has amplified the retention issue for some states. according to loughlin (2022), 22 of 26 states that released their data increased their number of retained children. in south carolina, west virginia and delaware, retention numbers more than doubled; in pennsylvania, the number of retained students increased from 20,000 to over 45,000 (schultz & hollingsworth, 2022). statistics regarding retention for the entire united states were not available for 2020-2021 or 2021-2022; however, some states did submit their retention figures. for example, in the state of indiana, the number of children held back in grade increased during the 2020-2021 school year. most retentions were in kindergarten and first grade: 3,646 kindergarteners (4.8% of the total statewide) and 2,041 first-graders (2.6% of the total statewide) (loughlin, 2022). these numbers were a little higher than the 2019-2020 numbers of retained kindergarteners and first-graders, indicating an increase of retention numbers during covid. compared to the previous 2019-2020 school year in indiana, 3,201 kindergarteners were retained (4% of the total) and 1,494 first graders were retained (1.9% of the total) (loughlin, 2022). using actual student numbers, loughlin (2022) reports that children retained in first grade were up 547 children, or an increase of 36% in 2021-2022, and children retained in kindergarten were up 445 children, an increase of 13.9%. 71% 72% 73% 74% 75% 76% 77% 78% public schools private schools percentage of united states schools that moved to distance learning during the covid-19 pandemic (77%) (73%) 99 according to loughlin (2022), overall, out of 6,771 students during the 2019-2020 school year, 229 children were held back, 3.38% of k-5 children. in 2020-2021, 439 children were retained (6.9%) out of the 6,400 indiana k-5 enrollment. the covid pandemic was deemed the most likely factor for the increased retentions. the numbers of retentions started to drop during the 2021-2022 year where 332 children were retained (5.2% of the k-5 enrollment). figure 4 note: loughlin (2022) declines in reading and math scores since covid during 2019 and 2022, reading and math proficiency also fell more than any other period of time in the united states (usa facts, 2023). according to sitrin (2021), some estimates suggest that nearly all students in the united states are behind in their reading and math by probably a year or more because of the covid pandemic. an automatic retention law, passed in a number of states, requires that children who cannot pass a third-grade reading test be retained. the automatic retention law in tennessee would retain nearly 66% of third graders if the law is applied. if other states applied similar laws, hundreds of thousands of united states children would be retained (sitrin, 2021). as one michigan state senator exclaimed, “it’s a misguided law that was onerous before the pandemic. now it’s just plain cruel” (sitrin, 2021, para. 10). during the height of the pandemic, some states suspended the third-grade reading law that used standardized tests to determine who is retained and who is not. 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 kindergarten first grade year 2019-2020 3201 retained year 20192020 1494 retained year 2020-2021 3646 retained year 20202021 2041 retained state of indiana total number of students retained prior to, and during covid-19 pandemic 100 figure 5 note: national assessment of educational progress (naep) (2022a) figure 6 note: national assessment of educational progress (naep) (2022b) recommendations: retention or no retention while a few retained children experience short-term positive results, the results are short-lived and not sustainable (jimerson et al., 1997). in general, the consensus, even with pandemic circumstances such as covid, is that retaining children is neither educationally advantageous, 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 2019 2022 2022 naep average reading assessment scores for grades 4 and 8 compared with 2019 scores grade 8 grade 4 220 21 26 260 both grade-level scores dropped by 3 points between 2019 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 2019 2022 2022 naep average math assessment scores for grades 4 and 8 compared with 2019 scores grade 8 grade 4 241 23 28 27 the fourth-grade math scores decreased by 5 points, the largest the eighth-grade math scores decreased by 8 points, the largest 101 nor socially or emotionally supportive for children’s healthy growth and development (kamin & lamb, 2021; nasp, 2021). in fact, the national association of school psychologists (nasp) does not support the use of retention as an intervention strategy for the loss of instruction during covid-19 (nasp, 2021). instead of retention, whether covid-related or not, educators and researchers recommend various alternatives to retaining children such as tutoring programs (kraft & goldstein, 2020; loughlin, 2022; nasp, 2021), out-of-school support models (bowden & wasser gish, 2021), guidance and family programs (lapan et al., 2007), community partnerships (sheldon, 2003), enhanced teacher education programs (darling-hammond & richardson, 2009; loughlin, 2022), and alternative educational opportunities such as mixed-age instead of graded school programs (stone & burriss, 2019). in addition, forced retention based on third grade standardized test reading scores, such as implemented in some states, is not recommended (french & mauriello, 2021; nasp, 2021; schwartz, 2022). the better option is not retention, but offering children more support to help them in their learning endeavors (aecf, 2018). collins (2022) concludes,” it feels unfair to retain a child who, through no fault of their own, has been failed by adults. but it’s also unfair to fail millions of children, year after year, by not doing what’s needed to change how the system works” (para. 18). a world pandemic which impacts the schooling of children should also be considered when choosing between retention and offering children support for educational losses created by a pandemic. 102 references annie e. casey foundation (aecf) (2018). more than 3 million students have repeated a grade. aecf organization. https://www.aecf.org/blog/more-than-3-million-students-have-repeated-a-grade bowden, a. b., & wasser gish, j. 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(2012). first through eighth grade retention rates for all 50 states: a new method and initial results. education research, 41(8), 320-329. https://www.ncbi.nim.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmc3688838/ 4 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 neuroeducation and early elementary teaching: retrospective innovation for promoting growth with students living in poverty karyn allee-herndona, sherron killingsworth robertsb auniversity of central florida buniversity of central florida karyn allee-herndon is an elementary education phd candidate at the university of central florida with a research focus on how poverty affects cognitive development, executive function and self-regulation as predictors of school achievement, and instructional strategies to reduce achievement gaps. ms. allee-herndon’s professional experiences include teaching at high-need schools, working in a large urban district as a coach and pd facilitator, and teaching preservice teachers at ucf. sherron killingsworth roberts, professor of language arts and literacy at the university of central florida, currently serves as the robert n. heintzelman literature scholar. published in the reading teacher, journal of teacher education, journal of research in childhood education, journal of adult and adolescent literacy, teaching and teacher education, the dragon lode: children’s literature journal, international journal of educational development, journal of poetry therapy, international journal of inclusive education, reading horizons, and journal of reading education among others, her research considers literacy as social practice, content analyses of children’s literature, and innovative pedagogy in teacher education. introduction neuroeducation, or educational neuroscience, is an emerging field combining various scientific disciplines as it relates to learning to study the relationships between the biological processes of the brain and students' cognitive development. researchers and educators, increasingly working together, attempt to bridge these fields to increase positive learning experiences for increased school readiness and academic achievement, especially for children experiencing significant adversity. in fact, brain research remains such a timely topic that the may 2017 issue of young children highlighted articles focused on the important role of neuroeducation in preschool education. while researchers agree that brain development during early childhood is a critical period of growth comprised of both extreme vulnerability and competence (lally & mangione, 2017), the brain remains malleable or plastic throughout children’s years of schooling (pakulak et al, 2017; shonkoff, 2017). early elementary educators can utilize emerging research to help make their classroom environments growth-friendly to support children’s developing capacities 5 for success in k-12 school environments. therefore, this manuscript outlines a strong rationale for promoting academic growth with students living in poverty through instructional strategies that might even be considered retrospective in many ways. teachers of early elementary classrooms are more and more in need of strategies for those children most in need. neuroeducation brings much hope to the field, creating growthpromoting classrooms that are language rich, emotionally rich, steeped in play (hassinger-das, hirsh-pasek, & golinkoff, 2017), and protected from excessive stress can “dramatically improve the life prospects of all young children” (shonkoff, 2017, p. 15). the critical difference between children who overcame extreme toxic stress or hardships and children who were unable to persist comes down to significant, stable, and responsive relationships (shonkoff, 2017). the field of education is beginning to understand more concretely how specific conditions, such as poverty, affect brain and cognitive development and the related impacts on academic achievement. more than 10 million children who live below the poverty threshold attend public prek-12 schools, and over 1 million of these children attend public prekindergarten and kindergarten (national center for children in poverty, 2017). especially in early childhood, poverty poses the single greatest threat to children’s well-being and educational equity. as educators, early childhood professionals commit to a mandate to ensure all students are afforded every opportunity for school success. innovative approaches in the primary grades can apply emerging brain research to continue to build elementary-aged children’s readiness for school, emotional resiliency, and abilities to be successful academically. recent improvements in neuroimaging, a relatively new discipline using various technologies to image the structure and function of the brain, allow us to better understand how the brain develops, and this affects our understanding of teaching and learning, specifically in the areas of executive function (ef) and self-regulation (sr). these increased understandings allow educational professionals to tailor instructional practices to best meet the needs of students, especially students living in poverty who are at greater risk for underperforming compared to their more resourced peers. to meet the needs of all our students, but especially our students living in poverty or other stressful environments, teachers offer learning experiences that engage children emotionally, socially, and cognitively in growth-promoting classrooms to increase children’s chances for success in school and beyond. this paper highlights the salient connections between poverty and brain development, and then aligns neuroeducational insights with innovative, yet retrospective instructional strategies linked to the early childhood areas of language and literacy, dramatic and imaginary play, games and puzzles, and gross motor and musical movements. the connections between poverty and brain development self-regulation involves resisting impulsivity, delaying gratification, responding effectively and appropriately to our environments, and utilizing appropriate skills at appropriate times. executive functions are domain-specific mental skills including task completion, response inhibition, attention control, attention shifting or cognitive flexibility, and working memory that advantage self-regulation (shonkoff, 2017). both occur largely in the prefrontal cortex of the brain and affect judgment, differentiation, anticipating outcomes, time management, attention 6 and switch focus, planning and organizing, remembering details, and social-emotional aptitude. scientists assert that early childhood is a critical period for developing executive function skills critical for school readiness (blair, 2016; blair & raver, 2015; fitzpatrick, mckinnon, blair, & willoughby, 2014; lally & mangione, 2017; pakulak et al, 2017; shonkoff, 2017). increasingly, researchers continue to uncover poverty’s impacts on executive function development (blair & raver, 2015; fitzpatrick et al, 2014). shonkoff (2011) emphasizes how school readiness and achievement gaps can be reduced with high-quality, research-based pedagogy and curriculum in conjunction with nurturing, supportive environments that reduce stress on developing brains. existing neuroeducation research suggests a predictive relationship between executive function and to literacy and numeracy skill development (shonkoff, 2011). blair and raver (2015) provide further evidence linking executive function as a predictive agent for academic achievement associated with socioeconomic status for children of poverty. teaching with neuroeducation in mind: instructional strategies for the past decade, researchers increasingly focused on executive function and self-regulation as an essential underpinning for success in formal k-12 schooling. indeed, “coordinating multiple, and sometimes competing, demands on cognitive activity, is one of the central hallmarks of readiness for the seismic shift in complexity of the learning tasks that will occur in early elementary school” (moreno, shwayder, & friedman, 2017, p. 144). the strategies included here focus on building specific executive function skills, especially for children of poverty. researchers in neuroeducation identify three main types of brain function that act as “the air traffic control system” of the brain (center for the developing child, 2011; 2017). these primarily include working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control, but also subsume decision-making, delaying gratification, planning, goal setting, rule following, and problem solving. working memory requires children to preserve information, work with this information, and use it at the appropriate time. remembering an idea to share for turn-taking, retaining the options available when it is time to select a center activity, and following multi-step directions or procedures all require working memory (gathercole & alloway, 2007). cognitive flexibility is the ability to be nimble with one’s mind. this includes transferring easily between tasks or activities, employing different rules or procedures depending on the situation, and maintaining or shifting attention in response to various demands. focusing on a task while ignoring distractions, sorting and classifying objects by color one time and shape the next, and transitioning when directed are all indicators of cognitive flexibility (center for the developing child, 2017). inhibitory control can be thought of as a combination of impulse control, planning, and considering possible outcomes. waiting for a turn, anticipating potential consequences to choices, making a plan for play or learning and keeping that plan all require inhibitory control (galpod, 2013). while executive function can be negatively affected by stressful environments and a lack of quality interactions with caring adults (lally & mangione, 2017; shonkoff, 2017), “growthpromoting environments” (center on the developing child, 2017; pakulak et al, 2017) can help children develop or strengthen their executive function. predictable routines, familiar 7 procedures, adults who model pro-social-emotional behaviors and stress management techniques, gross motor development and exercise, creative play opportunities, scaffolding with a gradual increase of complexity and independence are all components of executive functionfriendly classroom environments. much of what supports executive function growth can be found in constructivist, discovery-based classrooms aligned with the respected theories of montessori (1912), piaget (1977), or vygotsky (1978). in recent decades, the elementary school focus collectively has shifted to an environment of increasing testing and decreasing play and autonomy. neuroeducational findings demand reflection and a return to an early childhood environment in primary elementary grades reminiscent of the past that could significantly help students, especially those students living in poverty, experience greater academic success. components of whole-child, constructivist classrooms often include language and literacy learning, dramatic or imaginary play, games and puzzles requiring logic and spatial awareness, gross motor play, and music and movement. classroom games and learning experiences that can help support the development of working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control are outlined below and are organized by areas of early learning classrooms. language and literacy. the authentic foundational literacy experiences that occur in early childhood classrooms support the development of executive function (center on the developing child, 2017; moreno, shwayder, & friedman, 2017). storytelling itself requires planning, elaboration, and organization. reading stories to children using dialogic strategies and thinkalouds, supporting them as they engage in their own writing at various developmental levels by encouraging planning, organization, and creativity, and encouraging bilingual storytelling all help support the development of working memory and cognitive flexibility. adding elements of reader’s theater, either from memory or a script, and using authentic student writing to develop personalized plays (bodrova & leong, 2007) can help develop inhibitory control. dramatic or imaginary play. dramatic or imaginary play develop working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. teachers can support children in building background knowledge vicariously through literature, multimedia, and real-life experiences. student writing plans for imaginary play that function almost as scripts (bodrova & leong, 2007) blend emerging writing with planning, inhibitory control, problem solving, and language development. stories that emanate from the circle area, classroom library, or small groups may translate into dramatic retellings. children may also engage in thematic play, with toys, props, or costumes, to practice and reinforce concepts learned about home, community, and professions. while younger children may need more concrete representations for play, older children can move toward more abstract and child-made props, promoting cognitive flexibility (center on the developing child, n.d. a). for example, younger children may use plastic or cardboard food props while older children may use blocks to represent merchandise in a store, which helps develop cognitive flexibility. using housekeeping materials as part of play, like carefully pouring liquids from pitchers (montessori primary guide introduction to practical life, n.d.), in dramatic play helps develop inhibitory control and can easily be integrated with other conceptual understandings like spatial awareness, mass, and volume. 8 games and puzzles. although it may seem less than academic to the naïve onlooker, games and puzzles remain a smart choice for teachers. whether used at circle time, in centers independently, with some teacher guidance and narrative talk, or in more formal small group instruction, games and puzzles, such as matching or classifying, can also help to improve working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. on the rug, teachers (or students) could offer a change to traditional rules to familiar games (or songs); this provides opportunities for cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control (center on the developing child, n.d., a). for example, touching one’s toes when you are actually asked to touch one’s head, or not listening when “simon says,” or putting a bingo marker on something large when you hear a cue for something small strengthens children’s cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control. puzzles, word games, brainteasers, matching or sorting games, and mazes of increasing difficulty require working memory, planning, and cognitive flexibility (center on the developing child, n.d. b). many games require working memory like the many iterations of memory or the newer game, blink. more complex card games, like go, fish! (center on the developing child, n.d. b), require children not simply to match and remember, but to concentrate on multiple pieces of information such as who has which card and what cards are needed to make a match or a pattern. some games, like quick cups and see-it? slam-it!, require rapid responses that support inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility. games like qwirkle, rummikub, and connect four promote strategic and logical thinking that support all executive function domain areas (center for the developing child, 2011). montessori sensory activities (montessori primary guide introduction to sensorial, n.d.), and all kinds of activities that support sorting, classifying, and seriation of objects by attribute, can help support this type of cognitive functionality. logic, reasoning, visual discrimination and guessing games like i spy and 20 questions are also beneficial (center on the developing child, n.d. b). for specific details regarding games aligning with current neuroeducational findings, appendix a provides a helpful, annotated bibliography. gross motor play/music and movement. the more neuroscientists know about the brain, the more early childhood educators learn that exercise and movement help build cognition. furthermore, play evidences the capacity to scaffold children’s development in positive directions and potentially helps “prime neural mechanisms” (hassinger-das, hirsh-pasek, & golinkoff, 2017, p. 49) which are important for healthy brain development. gross motor movements that increase in complexity challenge children to develop working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. songs like hap palmer’s classic “listen and move,” the camp favorite “telephone,” and “the wheels on the bus” have movements or actions that incrementally repeat to support working memory. playing different genres of music and asking children to interpret it through movement and encouraging complex outdoor play that includes climbing, balancing, pedaling, and jumping are also good strategies. planning obstacle courses or specific physical challenges, such as transferring water from one bucket to another using sponges, promote cognitive flexibility. traditional dances and games like simon says, square dancing, or other dances requiring partner changes or shifting directions, and freeze dance develop working memory and inhibitory control (center on the developing child, n.d. a). montessori games such as walk the line do the same by requiring children to focus on balance and movement while ignoring a variety of distractions (pugh, 2010). games like duck, duck, goose and red rover support working memory, fast-paced ball games like tether ball and dodge ball support inhibitory control, and organized sports and mindfulness activities help support 9 cognitive flexibility (center on the developing child, n.d. b). classics from ella jenkins like “did you feed my cow?” and familiar tunes like “if you’re happy and you know it,” “old macdonald had a farm,” and “row, row, row your boat” that require partner singing, echoing, rounds, and parts support working memory development and inhibitory control. complicated clapping rhythms like patty cake and miss mary mack can help build all three highlighted areas of executive function. closing the relationship gap and the play gap could help close the achievement gap school readiness and achievement gaps may be reduced with high-quality, research-based pedagogy and curriculum in conjunction with a nurturing, supportive environment that reduces stress on developing brains (naeyc, 2005; 2009; shonkoff, 2011). existing neurocognitive research suggests a predictive relationship between ef and sr to literacy and numeracy skill development (shonkoff, 2011). blaire and raver (2015) provided evidence linking ef as a predictive agent for academic achievement and socioeconomic status for children of poverty. these same experts believe that growth-promoting environments in early elementary classrooms are ones that are language-rich, include purposeful play, and allow discovery and exploration with the support of peers and teachers scaffolding metacognitive development of skills that support sr and ef development. growth-promoting, brain compatible classrooms that utilize purposeful play, discovery-based, language-rich, child-directed learning using strategies like those outlined above need not sacrifice accountability, rigor, and standards-based education. developmentally appropriate practice (dap) is a long-standing and highly-respected early childhood education (ece) approach that values meeting children where they are developmentally and socially with age and stage-appropriate rich, engaging content. as the field of neuroeducation evolves, many parallels between dap and the types of learning environments recommended by neuroscientists are aligning and being solidified. in the newly revised dap position statement, naeyc (2009) advocates for a blending of the best of both the ece world and the k-12 world since kindergarten is uniquely positioned as a bridge between them. a comprehensive, holistic, and effective elementary curriculum diligently attends to academic and socio-emotional competencies. today’s early elementary classroom incorporates attention to robust content, learning progressions, quality systematic assessment, and effective curriculum and teaching (traditionally, the domain of the k-12 world) while also scaffolding and differentiating learning in a prosocial environment to support each student’s unique needs (traditionally, the domain of the ece world). to help mitigate the achievement disparities often associated with family income, ethnicity, and language background, young children require access to enriched, intensive learning experiences at an early age. enabling and empowering teachers to ensure increased agency to make curricular decisions means that teachers recognize that purposeful play may be the right choice to meet individual needs. to be effective, highly competent teachers require high-quality teacher preparation and professional development (naeyc, 2005; naeyc, 2009) that empower teachers to make critical classroom decisions to include purposeful play that may run counter to current high stakes testing emphases (boote, 2006). 10 often at odds with the state-mandated standards approach which tends to reinforce instructional strategies perhaps more appropriate for older students (goldstein, 2007a, 2007b; graue, 2008), teachers in dap settings including kindergarten and early elementary grades would do well to provide high-level, purposeful play opportunities (naeyc, 2009). many young children, especially children who are under resourced, do not spend time out of school engaging in this type of play (bodrova & leong, 1996). because high-level, purposeful play affords so many socio-emotional and cognitive benefits, dap purports that quality early childhood classrooms provide play-based learning opportunities supported by skilled facilitators (naeyc, 2009). by incorporating rich learning activities, as described in the paper and additional website resources annotated in appendix b, educators can start to advance academic equity. all children will benefit, but particularly children living in poverty. final thoughts and future research to be effective, elementary classrooms include environments of both emotional stability and intellectual novelty full of predictable routines, safe spaces, consistency, and respectful caring guidance (lally & mangione, 2017). strategies to increase predictability and reduce stress can be used both in classrooms and encouraged with families to bridge caring home and school environments. playful learning environments where children have choice and agency within safe, guided limits help to develop these important socio-emotional and cognitive skills (hassinger-das, hirsh-pasek, & golinkoff, 2017; jarrett & waite-stupiansky, 2009). these environments can impact a child’s entire lifetime (shonkoff, 2017). “not only should play and games not be pushed out of the classroom to make room for more ‘academic’ learning, they need to be taken very seriously” (bodrova & leong, 2008, p. 58). a balanced approach tapping current neuroeducation advances and involving creative, guided, and independently directed movement and play in a supportive environment will help all children, but especially children living in poverty, to be more successful in navigating the rigorous demands of today’s structured learning. all of these suggested brain-compatible activities for the early elementary classroom, reinforced by today’s neuroeducational research, harken back to a time before no child left behind (2002) in early childhood classrooms. they are reminiscent, in fact, of the types of instructional strategies used almost 25 years ago. one could argue, as bodrova, leong, and akhutina (2011) have, that innovative teaching, informed by our emerging understanding of educational neuroscience, supports a return to discovery-based, independent, autonomous, self-directed, constructivist, hands-on learning aligned with the theories of montessori (1912), piaget (1977), and vygotsky (1978). curricula such as tools of the mind (bodrova & leong, 2007) incorporate similar learning experiences intended to develop self-regulation and executive function while simultaneously building foundational literacy and early math skills. to support all children’s development of executive function, it is critical teachers create learning activities “to be generalizable enough that [they] are not dependent on the implementation of a particular curriculum or intervention that emphasizes executive function” (moreno, shwayder, & friedman, 2016, p. 144). researchers, teacher educators, professional developers, and especially practitioners remain charged with identifying how self-regulation and executive function may innovate everyday teaching and learning experiences in early childhood education classrooms. 11 many schools could benefit by incorporating these retrospective instructional strategies intended to close poverty-related school readiness and academic achievement gaps that are increasingly explained by differences in executive function skills (blair & raver, 2015; fitzpatrick, mckinnon, blair, & willoughby, 2014; moreno, shwayder, & friedman, 2016; shonkoff, 2011). future research is sought to align daily, granular practices that boost executive function and selfregulation skills, and to assess executive function and self-regulation capacities efficiently in the classroom. additional short-term and long-term studies of the effectiveness of learning activities can deepen our understanding and allow educators to make research-informed decisions about emerging practice and policy for our early elementary classrooms. what is new is our increasing understanding of how critical brain development is, how toxic stress, scarcity, and poverty impede cognitive growth, and exactly how to support areas of impaired cognition in children who need it the most. in short, the early elementary classroom now can reap the benefits of concrete research findings and increasing neuroeducational evidence that older strategies are worth making new again to increase equity and achievement for students living in poverty. 12 references blair, c. 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(2011). protecting brains, not simply stimulating minds. science, 333 (6045), 982-983. shonkoff, j. p. (2017). breakthrough impacts: what science tells us about supporting early childhood development. young children, 72(2), 8-16. vygotsky, l. (1978). interaction between learning and development. from: mind and society (pp. 79–91). cambridge, ma: harvard university press. https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/pdfs/resources/position-statements/psdap.pdf https://www.naeyc.org/sites/default/files/globally-shared/downloads/pdfs/resources/position-statements/psdap.pdf 14 appendix a annotated bibliography of commercial games referenced in manuscript staupe, r. (1990s) blink (card game). el segunda, ca: mattel, inc. “how fast can you match? that's the key to blink. shape, count, or color any way you can match it, do it fast to get rid of your cards. you need a sharp eye and a fast hand to win this lightning-fast game!” (http://shop.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ms/mattel-games/blink-card-gamet5931) – recommended age 6+ connect 4 (connection game) (1974). pawtucket, ri: hasbro. “challenge a friend to disc-dropping fun with the classic game of connect 4! drop your red or yellow discs into the grid and be the first to get 4 in a row to win. if your opponent is getting too close to 4 in a row, block them with your own disc! whoever wins can pull out the slider bar to release all the discs and start the fun all over again!” (https://www.hasbro.com/enus/product/connect-4-game:80fb5bca-5056-9047-f5f4-5eb5df88daf4) recommended age 6+ coffelt, d. m. (1984). go fish! (card game). berkeley, ca: peaceable kingdom. “swim with the sharks and lunch with the lobsters! go fish is a great way for young kids to learn how to play cards – how to hold them, how to deal, how to read the numbers, how to take turns. the game set includes instructions for a simple game and a challenging game.” (https://www.amazon.com/peaceable-kingdom-fish-classic-card/dp/b002brscj6) – recommended age 3+ http://shop.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ms/mattel-games/blink-card-game-t5931 http://shop.mattel.com/shop/en-us/ms/mattel-games/blink-card-game-t5931 https://www.hasbro.com/en-us/product/connect-4-game:80fb5bca-5056-9047-f5f4-5eb5df88daf4 https://www.hasbro.com/en-us/product/connect-4-game:80fb5bca-5056-9047-f5f4-5eb5df88daf4 https://www.amazon.com/peaceable-kingdom-fish-classic-card/dp/b002brscj6 15 memory (card game). pawtucket, ri: hasbro. “children learn about taking turns and matchmaking in this game as they try to make pairs of elated elephants, panting puppies, smiling suns, and other familiar objects. the 48 (cardboard) cards have lively, colorful drawings that make them easy to remember and a tray for storing them. played alone, original memory is a quiet activity for developing concentration and memory. with more players, it's even more of a memory challenge to remember where the cards are that have already been turned over. and you have to wait your turn, which is sometimes harder than anything. the printed rules in the box set the tone for this child-friendly game: the youngest player always goes first. --lynne sampson” (https://www.amazon.com/hasbrooriginal-memory-card-game/dp/b00000iwdd) recommended age 3+ quick cups (board game). toronto, on: spin master. “quick cups™ is the fast-paced family game of matching and stacking cups to a picture! each player gets a set of five cups in five different colors. when a picture card is turned over, everyone races to line up or stack up their cups in the same color order as the picture. when the picture is horizontal, you line your cups up. when the picture is vertical, you stack them up. finish first and ring the bell -you just won the card! win the most cards after all have been played, and you win the game! quick cups is match e'm up, stack 'em up fun!” (https://www.spinmaster.com/product_detail.php?pid=p10444) recommended age 6+ ross, s. m. (2006). qwirkle. omaha, ne: mindware. “mix, match, score and win! qwirkle is a must-have for your next family game night. mindware's best seller is a simple game of matching colors and shapes that requires tactical maneuvers, quick-thinking and a well-planned strategy. players of this addictive game score points by building rows and columns of brightly-colored tiles that are either all the same color or all the same shape, without creating duplicates. look for opportunities to score big by placing a https://www.amazon.com/hasbro-original-memory-card-game/dp/b00000iwdd https://www.amazon.com/hasbro-original-memory-card-game/dp/b00000iwdd https://www.spinmaster.com/product_detail.php?pid=p10444 16 tile that touches multiple pieces with matching attributes; create a line of all six in a row, and you score a "qwirkle". the player with the most points when the tiles run out wins! qwirkle combines the game play of dominoes and scrabble and is the perfect combination of skill and chance! this easy-to-learn, yet challenging game for children and adults will have all three generations on the edge of their seat! grab your family and friends and see for yourself why everyone is hooked on qwirkle!” (http://www.mindware.orientaltrading.com/qwirkle-a232016.fltr?keyword=qwirkle) recommended age 6+ hertzano, e. (1977). rummikub (board game). new york, ny: bello games new york, inc. “it's no surprise that rummikub is so popular--it has all the elements that make a great game: it's easy to learn and fast moving, it's different every time it's played, it combines luck and strategy, and it changes quickly so every player has a chance to win until the very end. and with more than 50 million units sold, rummikub is one of the world's best-selling, and most-played, games. players take turns placing numbered tiles in runs (consecutive numbers of the same color, like 2, 3, 4 in red) and groups (three or more of the same number in different colors, like a red 9, a blue 9, and a black 9), rummy style. it's easy to learn, but packed with strategy--the "board" changes all the time as players adjust the tiles on the table. the joker tiles add to the fun; they can be any color or number. the object is to be the first player to play every tile on your rack. players keep track of who wins each round--the player who wins the most rounds wins this time-tested tile game (there's also a point system for use as a tie-breaker). rummikub is ideal for people of different ages to play together, and it's great for a game night too. when kids play, it reinforces stem and steam concepts such as sequencing, pattern recognition, and planning skills. it's got lots of exciting moments, but it's also designed to bring people together, with plenty of opportunities for talking, chatting, and sharing with family and friends.” (https://www.amazon.com/rummikub-original-rummy-tile-game/dp/b00000izjb) recommended age 8+ see-it? slam-it! 2016). victoria, bc: outset media. “see-it? slam-it! is a fast-paced family card game where players must shout out a word associated with a picture. there are three picture cards showing at all times. a letter card is flipped over and players race to spot something on any one of the cards beginning with that letter. see something!?! then slam your hand down fast on the card before someone else spots a match. for example, the three picture cards shown are of pears, a cactus, and a shark jumping http://www.mindware.orientaltrading.com/qwirkle-a2-32016.fltr?keyword=qwirkle http://www.mindware.orientaltrading.com/qwirkle-a2-32016.fltr?keyword=qwirkle https://www.amazon.com/rummikub-original-rummy-tile-game/dp/b00000izjb 17 out of a pail. you flip over the letter card and it's a "p". now slam your hand quick on one of the picture cards and make a connection to the letter, "p". you could slam the cactus and say, "prickly"! bam! there you go! you saw it, you slammed it. now you know how to play seeit? slam it! get ready for a fun game of speed and observation.” (http://www.outsetmedia.com/games/see-it-slam-it) recommended age 7+ http://www.outsetmedia.com/games/see-it-slam-it 18 appendix b helpful website resources for early elementary implementation danyew, a. (february 3, 2016). clap your hands: 16 clapping games for children's choir. retrieved from https://www.ashleydanyew.com/posts/2016/clap-your-hands-16-clappinggames-for-childrens-choir fun littles. (july 27, 2015). 40 dramatic play ideas. retrieved, from http://www.kidsplaybox.com/40-dramatic-play-ideas/ inspiration laboratories. (august 18, 2016). 30 ideas to practice classification for kids. retrieved from http://inspirationlaboratories.com/ideas-to-practice-classification-forkids/ jones, r. (ed.). (n.d.). songs and vocal activities from around the world. retrieved from http://www.mtrs.co.uk/subscriptions/downloads/support/vocal_activities.pdf ledrew, d. (n.d.). active games for kids: fun gross motor ideas from a to z. retrieved from http://www.stillplayingschool.com/2015/01/active-fun-games-indoor-kids-grossmotor.html levin, v. (january 22, 2010). dramatic play center in preschool pre-k and kindergarten. retrieved from http://www.pre-kpages.com/dramaticplay/ mess for less. (december 30, 2016). 10 best strategy games for kids. retrieved from http://www.messforless.net/10-best-strategy-games-for-kids/ montessori primary guide. (n.d.). walking on the line. retrieved from http://www.infomontessori.com/practical-life/control-of-movement-walking-on-theline.htm reading rockets (september 29, 2016). phonemic activities for the preschool or elementary classroom. retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/phonemic-activitiespreschool-or-elementary-classroom syverson, a. n., rytter, k., challoner, j., sadler, f., lim, y. s., sturm, m., & hedlund, r. (2006). supporting early literacy in natural environments. retrieved from http://wvconnections.k12.wv.us/documents/english_level_1_activities_000.pdf https://www.ashleydanyew.com/posts/2016/clap-your-hands-16-clapping-games-for-childrens-choir https://www.ashleydanyew.com/posts/2016/clap-your-hands-16-clapping-games-for-childrens-choir http://www.kidsplaybox.com/40-dramatic-play-ideas/ http://inspirationlaboratories.com/ideas-to-practice-classification-for-kids/ http://inspirationlaboratories.com/ideas-to-practice-classification-for-kids/ http://www.mtrs.co.uk/subscriptions/downloads/support/vocal_activities.pdf http://www.stillplayingschool.com/2015/01/active-fun-games-indoor-kids-gross-motor.html http://www.stillplayingschool.com/2015/01/active-fun-games-indoor-kids-gross-motor.html http://www.pre-kpages.com/dramaticplay/ http://www.messforless.net/10-best-strategy-games-for-kids/ http://www.infomontessori.com/practical-life/control-of-movement-walking-on-the-line.htm http://www.infomontessori.com/practical-life/control-of-movement-walking-on-the-line.htm http://www.readingrockets.org/article/phonemic-activities-preschool-or-elementary-classroom http://www.readingrockets.org/article/phonemic-activities-preschool-or-elementary-classroom http://wvconnections.k12.wv.us/documents/english_level_1_activities_000.pdf ijwc journal v3n2-final 7 ijwc journal v3n2-final 8 ijwc journal v3n2-final 9 ijwc journal v3n2-final 10 ijwc journal v3n2-final 11 ijwc journal v3n2-final 12 ijwc journal v3n2-final 13 ijwc journal v3n2-final 14 ijwc journal v3n2-final 15 ijwc journal v3n2-final 16 ijwc journal v3n2-final 17 ijwc journal v3n2-final 18 ijwc journal v3n2-final 19 ijwc journal v3n2-final 20 ijwc journal v3n2-final 21 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 36 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 children and families: health and wellness the intersection of trauma, mental health, and academic performance among schoolaged youth quiteya walkera, nykeisha grantb, chantel johnsonc, carolyn rollinsd awinston-salem state university, bpost university, cuniversity of iowa, dalbany state university (retired) dr. quiteya d. walker, lcmhca(nc), ncc, crc, is an associate professor in the rehabilitation counseling department at winston-salem state university. she earned her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling from south carolina state university. dr. walker received her doctorate in counseling, rehabilitation, and student development from the university of iowa. she has over a decade of experience as a faculty member in postsecondary settings. dr. walker has experience as a clinical mental health counselor in a community-based setting. she has also served as a disability support service coordinator and counselor in the postsecondary setting. dr. walker's research interest includes career, ethical and multicultural issues in counselor education and supervision, mental health, disability support services in postsecondary education, and self-care of professional counselors. dr. nykeisha grant is a part-time faculty at post university in the psychology department. dr. grant received a bachelor's degree in child development from claflin university. dr. grant obtained a graduate degree in rehabilitation counseling from south carolina state university in 2004. in 2010, she earned a doctoral degree from the university of iowa in rehabilitation counselor education with a cognate area in marriage and family counseling. dr. grant's research interest includes ptsd amongst the veteran population, school violence, and disability issues in the aging population. ms. chantel johnson is a nationally certified counselor and graduate of georgia southern's counselor education program with a concentration in clinical mental health. chantel is currently a doctoral candidate at the university of iowa. chantel's research area is the overrepresentation of boys of color being referred for special education services, youth mental health, and lived experiences of minority students in counselor education programs. chantel's interests include advocating for persons with severe and persistent mental illness and students with disabilities in the postsecondary setting. dr. carolyn w. rollins, crc-retired, ncc, a retired counselor educator, is an organizational development and program evaluation consultant. she holds a doctorate in rehabilitation 37 (southern illinois university, carbondale) and a master's degree in counseling (university of illinois, springfield). she served as coordinator of the counselor education program at albany state university (ga) until 2018. dr. rollins is past president of the board of directors of the commission on rehabilitation counselor certification (crcc), the american rehabilitation counseling association (arca), and the national council on rehabilitation education (ncre) and served on the governing council of the american counseling association. her numerous roles in professional service include serving as a peer reviewer, accreditation site visit team leader, and editorial board member for rehabilitation counseling bulletin. dr. rollins' interests include disability policy, diversity and multicultural issues, ethics, organizational and staff development, and program. abstract as the adults battle the covid-19 pandemic's effects, children are also dealing with its fallout. in addition to the health effects, since march 2020, the pandemic has caused long-term school closure, which forced school-aged youth to deal with the stress of social isolation; moreover, since youth have returned to school, there has been an uptick in school violence (maxwell et al., 2021). these experiences have produced trauma that has affected youth mental health and academic performance. consequently, educational systems need a better understanding of the intersecting effects of these traumatic events on the youth's mental health and academic performance to implement evidence-based interventions to mitigate the negative impacts of youth trauma. keywords: trauma, mental health, academic performance, covid-19, school violence the prevalence of youth exposure to trauma is significant (dorsey et al., 2017; mclaughlin et al., 2013; overstreet & chafouleas, 2016; porche et al., 2016). two out of every three school-age children will experience trauma by 17 (perfect et al., 2016). trauma and adverse childhood experiences can significantly impact a child's development, and the effects can last well into adulthood (merrick et al., 2017; schiavo, 2020). early childhood is critical for brain development and nurturing and responsive relationships; trauma can affect youth cognitive, academic, and social-emotional behaviors (schiavo, 2020; perfect et al., 2016). youth express their traumatic experiences differently, and the developmental impact can occur as early as preschool (samhsa, 2021b). preschool youth might cry or scream, eat less, or have nightmares. elementary-aged youth may feel guilt, be anxious or fearful, and have difficulty concentrating or sleeping. middle and high school youth may be more sexually active, manifest depression, isolation, self-harming behaviors, eating disorders, or substance abuse (samhsa, 2021b). porche et al. (2016) study found that youth who experienced higher levels of trauma were more likely to have a mental health diagnosis, less likely to be engaged in school, and more likely to be retained. samhsa (2021b) notes that youth who experience traumatic stress are more likely to have lower grades, more suspensions, and expulsions, utilize mental health services, have increased involvement with juvenile justice, and experience long-term health problems. 38 specific populations may be more at risk for trauma or repeated traumatic exposure, specifically homeless youth (wong et al., 2016), refugee youth (grasser et al., 2021), latino youth (cleary et al., 2018), lgbtq youth (yun et al., 2021), youth diagnosed with intellectual and developmental disabilities (nctsn, 2021), and youth in foster care. cleary et al. (2018) investigated the relationship between trauma and mental health amongst latino youth aged 12-17 and found that 44% of the youth had experienced at least one traumatic event, and 23% had experienced two or more traumatic events. their results showed that youth exposure to traumatic events is associated with differential health outcomes. wong et al.'s (2016) investigation of the impact of traumatic experiences of homeless youth on depressive symptoms revealed that youth who are homeless and who have experienced sexual trauma were more likely to show posttraumatic stress disorder (ptsd) symptoms. youth living with disabilities are more likely to be exposed to trauma than their non-disabled peers, and they have an increased risk for physical, sexual, and emotional abuse (nctsn, 2021). youths in schools are affected by three prominent issues; decreased academic performance (phelps & sperry, 2020), increased risk for school violence (dhs, 2021), and increased mental health concerns (abraham et al., 2021). because of the complexity of these issues, schools will find it challenging to address a cure for issues youth face in schools (stein et al., 2011). still, they can be more successful in focusing on a plan of intervention. covid-19 and the educational setting in the united states, schools are noteworthy contributors to youth development, and the school building is symbolic of success. children gain the educational, social, and emotional skills needed to live independent and successful lives in school. consequently, the effects of the intersection of covid-19's impact on educational systems and the trauma experiences of schoolchildren are important considerations for student learning and success, particularly as schools search for effective tools for mitigating these effects (gewertz, 2020). in march 2020, the world health organization declared covid-19 a pandemic. all public-school buildings in the united states were closed to limit exposure to the virus, and schools began remote learning. according to education week (2020), students began to feel the impact of the school closures and missed school as early as may 2020. the school closures during 2020 and 2021 severely reduced children's opportunities for peer socialization in classes and through participation in sports and other group activities. amid school closures, some children experienced the additional stressors of social isolation, social unrest, and food insecurities (prothero, 2020). prothero noted that children were grieving the loss of stability, safety, and graduation. at the same time, many parents were dealing with health concerns, job loss, food insecurity, and conflicting priorities (he et al., 2021). he et al. (2021) note for economically disadvantaged parents, these stressors influenced the quality and levels of nurturing and family interactions. when the schools reopened, children continued trying to cope with the ramifications of their trauma experiences (stratford, 2020). the continuing trauma effects, heightened by covid 19, make it necessary for schools to help children navigate the academic and mental health challenges confronting them. 39 school violence perceived school safety is a significant indicator of students' academic success and the image of schools as safe learning environments was challenged before covid 19. milam et al. (2010) investigated the effect of the school and neighborhood climate on academic achievement among 3rd – 5th-grade students; they found that students' academic performance decreased in schools and communities where more violence occurred compared to neighborhoods where students' safety is not compromised. the trauma and learning policy initiative (2017) notes that traumatic experiences can affect youth learning, behavior, and relationships at school. porche et al. (2016) indicated that students who were impacted by trauma had issues with school engagement and grade retention. between 2009 and 2019, incidents of gun violence occurred at over 177 american schools. when the infection rate dropped and schools reopened, incidents of school violence soared, totaling 14 school shootings between march and october 2021 (cox & rich, 2021). school shootings have occurred in elementary, middle, and high schools in rural, urban, and suburban settings. the time of the day is not constant, and students have witnessed shootings at the sound of the morning bell, at midday, and after school. most school shootings happen on fridays and during the afternoon. indeed, the variety of times makes it more difficult to pinpoint a trend line. as students return to school after covid-19, their adjustment period may add another layer of uncertainty to the time factor. it will be noteworthy to discover if there is any correlation between the time of day, school settings, and race. walker (2019) found that race plays a factor in when school shootings are likely to occur. in african american schools, more shootings happen after schools are dismissed as compared to predominantly non-african american schools, where this type of violence happens at school arrival or dismissal time. school violence has extended beyond the school building itself. decades ago, students could feel safe at football games, homecoming dances, and other extracurricular activities too. however, violence at these events is becoming more prevalent. since august 2021, there have been seven shootings at football games (maxwell et al., 2021). gun violence in schools and school shootings have created anxiety for students. interestingly, some students who live in high crime areas look to school for safe havens. however, this safety net has been interrupted by gun violence (everytown research & policy, 2021). when children see school shootings on television or social media, they worry about their schools and safety (graff, 2018). students return to school searching for a sense of normalcy, and some with heavy hearts due to grief. after school shootings (2019) are reported, these incidents leave students emotionally scarred and struggling to stay focused on academics. levine and mcknight (2020) reported school shootings had increased students' absenteeism and suicides. in addition, they found that boys are more negatively impacted as compared to girls. wang (2019) highlighted fatal school shootings that had increased students' use of antidepressants. furthermore, school-aged students have lower grades and miss more school when exposed to gun violence with no intervention. high school students who experience the same type of violence have lower test scores and are less likely to graduate from high school (everytown research and policy, 2021). louis-phillips and kim 40 (2016) further discussed how low-test scores would affect a students' ability to get into college and their future career incomes. the research found that students are often left feeling scared and confused. bailey (2020) explained how students who experience school shootings are more susceptible to posttraumatic stress disorder. the impact can have a lasting influence on the student's development for days, months, or even years. survivors have told abc news that they are often haunted by flashbacks, anxiety, and survivor's guilt (kellermar, 2019). although covid-19 has positively affected the number of school shootings, receiving a phone call from their children's school provokes anxiety in most parents. their concern is validated by the twenty-four school shootings since august 1, 2021, resulting in injuries and death (maxwell et al., 2021). as explained above, there is no race, gender, age group, or community spared from school shootings. in the judicial system, teenage shooters are sentenced as adults meaning that many of these children become felons before their 18th birthday; however, their actions traumatize their peers, parents, schools, and communities. ironically, no universal database compiles vital statistics, e.g., the frequency, trends, and rationale, for these crimes in schools (walker, 2019; frederique, 2020). school violence is perpetuated by intruders and students, increasing security as another area in which schools must focus, resulting in time and resources diverted from teaching and learning and making it harder for schools to sustain their image as a haven for learning and growth. academic and mental health impacts covid-19 related school closures have significantly affected children's academic performance and achievement (kuhfeld et al., 2020; phelps & sperry, 2020). the rise of covid-19 initiated a wave of school closures that displaced millions of students from their traditional learning environments (savitz-romer et al., 2021). when students were removed from the educational environment, they were removed from their friends, and they were not allowed to interact in their daily social activities. being removed from the general classroom setting and placed in a virtual learning setting can result in a child feeling alone due to being removed from their familiar daily social activities; this effect of the covid-19 pandemic was evident. moreover, families across the nations were dealing with job loss, financial stress, domestic violence, and socioemotional stress (phelps & sperry, 2020). these various stressors experienced by the family made it particularly difficult for students in the homes to focus on academic tasks. kuhfeld (2020) noted that historically out-of-school closures have negatively affected a student's academic achievement, specifically, summer breaks, weather-related absences, and student absenteeism. specific areas of concern for a child's academic success during the pandemic were (1) the teacher's ability to provide remote learning instruction, (2) family access to remote learning, and (3) family access to technology. remote learning posed a significant problem for teachers and students during the covid-19 pandemic. teachers in the traditional k-12 setting were not trained to provide remote learning instruction (hash, 2021). families were not prepared to receive remote learning instruction. bonella et al. (2020) highlighted issues with access to technology and the internet, particularly in remote areas. there were many cases where the teacher could not contact students during the remote learning period (lieberman, 2020; kurtz, 2020). teachers reported minimal interactions (kurtz, 2020) with students or no contact with them (lieberman, 2020). this resulted in students spending half as 41 much time learning as they did before covid-19 (gewertz, 2020). several families, particularly those that lived in rural areas, low-income families, and families of color, had issues with access to technology devices and the internet (bonella et al., 2020; education trust, 2020). trauma affects youth mental health (abraham et al., 2021; cleary et al., 2018; perfect et al., 2016). youth who experience multiple traumatic events are more likely to exhibit depression, anxiety, and ptsd symptoms. furthermore, these symptoms are more likely to persist into adulthood (mullen, 2018; wong et al., 2016), particularly in youth who have experienced sexual trauma (abraham et al., 2021). studies of trauma and children's mental health issues are informative. perfect et al. (2016) found that children with higher numbers of adverse family experiences were more likely to have higher numbers of mental health diagnoses and those with higher numbers of diagnoses were less likely to be engaged in school and more likely to be retained in grade or on an iep. abraham et al. (2021) found that trauma exposure could affect the psychological adjustment of youth. for example, among their sample of 8 to 17-year-olds, multiple exposures to trauma were a predictor of higher anxiety in female participants and indicated higher levels of depression for females and younger males. london and ingram (2018) reported that elementary school students had high loneliness and increased depressive symptoms. chadi and gagnon (2021) stated that children between the ages of five and twelve appear to have an increase in mental health problems, suggesting that they have been significantly impacted by the covid 19 pandemic. dealing with depression, sleep deprivation, anxiety, and psychosocial adaptation problems can result in students struggling academically. allowing students to discuss the issues they are facing can help promote resilience by understanding that it is okay to admit that they have emotional, mental, and physical struggles. the current covid-19 pandemic has taken a toll on both students and parents and has significantly affected the learning environment. children's experiences with the covid-19 pandemic have revealed themselves in the rising rates of infection in children and decreased academic performance, increased episodes of school violence, and increased mental health issues. the most common need regarding our students is the need to strengthen our student’s mental health. parents and counselors play an essential role in enhancing students' mental health and their needs. students went from spending most of their day within the general classroom setting to doing virtual learning at home from their computer screens. the pandemic took away students' normalcy. students moved from the general classroom setting and were forced to adapt to virtual learning. covid 19 has shaken the nation's security in many ways, raising uncertainty about things that were formerly taken for granted. for example, the constancy of the educational system and the value of social interaction with others are not considered "a given." the resulting uncertainty can affect various mental health issues, such as depression, sleep deprivation, and anxiety (london & ingram, 2018; talmus, 2019). counselors need to have conversations with their students on the impact that covid-19 has had on their overall mental health. interventions to combat traumatic experiences in schools it is pertinent to focus on interventions that can take place in schools to lessen the impact of trauma on youth. the substance abuse and mental health services administration (samhsa) 42 has emphasized the importance of effective treatment and services for youth and families who experience traumatic events (samhsa, 2021a). the assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, dr. rittmon, further stressed the importance in a statement, "providing appropriate trauma-informed treatment and service responses for our nation's children, adolescents and their families continues to be a samhsa priority and is needed more now than ever as we begin emerging from the pandemic" (samhsa, 2021a). research has supported the need for services to address trauma exposure (gonzalez et al., 2016; woodbridge et al., 2016). in the gonzalez et al. (2016) study of elementary school students, they found that 9.5% of students experienced significant levels of traumatic stress symptoms, with 26% reporting moderately elevated symptoms. similarly, in the woodbridge et al. (2016) study of middle school students, 13.5% of out reported traumatic stress symptoms. the substance abuse and mental health services administration (samhsa, 2014b) suggests the three e's when considering trauma. the e's of trauma are events, experiences, and effects. trauma results from an event (or events) experienced as harmful or life-threatening, lasting adverse effects on individuals' functioning across domains. the events and circumstances may include actual or extreme physical or psychological harm; primary examples include natural disasters and violence. not everyone will experience trauma the same. the experience of traumatic events helps to determine whether it is a traumatic event. for example, if a child who is removed from an abusive home will experience this differently than their sibling, that event may not be traumatic for the other sibling; this scenario is a primary example used (samhsa, 2014b) when discussing the three e's of trauma. the literature has called for school-based trauma-specific treatments to prevent the negative impact of youth exposure to trauma. this research suggests four specific school-based approaches that can be implemented: (a) utilize trauma-informed approaches, (b) utilize emotional response, (c) teach mindfulness, and (d) provide education centered on trauma in youth, staff, and students. trauma-focused training builds knowledge, changes attitudes, and fosters practices favorable to trauma-informed approaches (overstreet & chafouleas, 2016). the more school personnel knowledgeable about trauma and its impact, the more prevention and intervention efforts are available to students. trauma-informed schools samhsa (2014a) identifies four justifications for trauma-informed intervention: (a) a realization of the widespread prevalence and impact of trauma, (b) a recognition of the signs of traumatic exposure, and (c) a response grounded in evidence-based practices that (d) resists retraumatization of individuals. overstreet and chafouleas (2016) state, trauma-informed schools "respond to the needs of trauma-exposed students by integrating effective practices, programs, and procedures into all aspects of the organization and culture (p. 2)." schools that utilize trauma-informed approaches emphasize student support, academic enrichment, and training school personnel (prewitt, 2016). personnel in trauma-informed schools have basic knowledge about trauma and understand how trauma affects students' learning and behaviors (overstreet & chafouleas, 2016). it is imperative for faculty, staff, teachers, students, and parents to be well informed about the prevalence of trauma and its effects on student learning and behavior (samhsa, 2014a). trauma-informed schools also recognize the signs of traumatic exposure 43 and respond to those students using evidence-based practices and procedures. implementing trauma-informed schools can prevent re-traumatization and prevent adverse outcomes of exposure to trauma. trauma focused-cognitive behavioral therapy trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (tf-cbt) is one of the most widely used psychosocial treatment interventions to treat children and youth who have experienced trauma (mcguire et al., 2021). tf-cbt is a highly structured, conjoint parent/child intervention, consisting of sequential 90-minute weekly sessions for about 12 to 16 weeks. a trained clinician moves the client through a series of eight components, summarized by the p.r.a.c.t.i.c.e. acronym. the components include psychoeducation and parenting skills (p), relaxation (r), affective expression and regulation (a), cognitive coping (c), trauma narrative development and processing (t), in vivo exposure (i), conjoint parent/child sessions (c) and enhancing personal safety and future growth (e) (cwig, 2018). numerous researchers have investigated the effectiveness of tf-cbt with youths (cohen & mannarina, 2017; lenz & hollenbaugh, 2015; peters et al., 2021). lenz and hollenbaugh (2015) conducted a meta-analysis on studies which investigated the effectiveness of tf-cbt among children and adolescents. lenz and hollenbaugh’s study found that tf-cbt was effective in decreasing symptoms of ptsd and depression. similarly, peters et al., (2021) study participants reported significant improvement in their ptsd. anxiety, and depression symptoms. based on the results of prior research, tf-cbt can be used to facilitate a supportive response for youths and families who have experienced trauma. social-emotional learning according to the american school counselor association’s (asca) national model, school counselors help students return to the general education setting; provide counseling to students exhibiting behavioral problems and extreme tardiness. school counselors can also provide students with both long and/or short-term counseling to ensure students are emotionally and mentally stable after returning to the general education setting (pincus et al., 2020). since many students were out of school for an extended period during the covid-19 pandemic, counselors must first examine the impacts of social and emotional learning and its role in strengthening the child's mental health. incorporating high-quality social-emotional learning in the day-to-day classroom allows students to integrate their feelings and think to master different tasks within the academic setting. teaching social and emotional skills gains particular importance in the context of rising mental health issues, behavioral problems, and substance use, which jeopardize young individual’s development (centers for disease control & prevention, 2013). by examining social and emotional learning, students become educated on mental health while also understanding how to address their emotions. focusing on social and emotional learning can increase students' awareness of their feelings or moods and potential symptoms of depression, anxiety, and other social-emotional problems (gueldner et al., 2020). through students learning to connect their thoughts between emotions and behaviors, they will monitor their behavior (gueldner et al., 2020). by implementing social and social-emotional learning, students will become educated on their overall mental health, essential to their development. 44 utilizing a mindfulness approach with youth an additional intervention, which can help strengthen students' mental health and academic performance, is teaching mindfulness. mindfulness-based practices can be used to foster mental health in an elementary school setting. malboeuf-hurtubise et al. (2021) examined the interventions in which children were invited to reflect on their moral issues and personal values. research conducted (malboeuf-hurtubise et al., 2021) concluded that mindfulness-based interventions could be helpful to stratify students' psychological needs. "focusing on mental health in schools provides both natural and formal opportunities for promoting anti-stigma messages related to mental health" (stephan et al., 2007, p. 1331). by addressing mental health and mental health disorders through advocacy and education and working on ways to remove the stigma surrounding mental health, counselors can begin strengthening students' mental health. it is also imperative the simultaneous roles of both parents and counselors must be strengthened to aid students' mental health and wellness. provide education the educational system must educate students, teachers, and parents on mental health to strengthen students' mental health. the school counselor can communicate with multiple entities, including school districts, parents, and mental health organizations. pincus et al. (2020) highlighted that school counselors were often the only mental health provider identifying, managing, and providing interventions for at-risk students. educating students on mental health disorders will allow them to gain a deeper insight into mental health. pincus et al. (2020) state that counselors are uniquely trained and are qualified to serve as key components in the success of the "whole child." through school, counselors utilize their skills to educate students on mental health disorders, such as anxiety and depression, which will enable students to recognize when they are experiencing these mental health disorders within their own lives. informing students about their mental health at a young age will better identify mental health issues as they arise. parental involvement during these challenging times, students need a support system. their biggest allies are often parents, teachers, counselors, or the community in which all parties must understand the feelings children face when experiencing disruption at their respective schools. there is a strong connection between the child and the parent's mental health (centers for disease control & prevention, 2021). the centers for disease control and prevention (2021) states the parent's mental health significantly affects a child's mental health. parents can foster an accepting environment that allows children to discuss their mental health needs with their parents. coronavirus disease (covid-19) has affected children emotionally, mentally, and physically. beyond getting sick, the pandemic has influenced many young people's social, emotional, and mental well-being (centers for disease control & prevention, 2021). due to the trauma faced during the covid-19 pandemic, parents must provide their children with a safe space within their home, which allows them to listen and respect their child's feelings while also helping their children work through their problems. parents play a vital role in educating their children on mental health as they affect how children express and experience their emotions, which essentially affects their viewpoint on mental health. 45 parents are often anxious during these events, especially now. popular news outlets show clips of parents describing their anxiety as they wait to confirm their children's safety. parents can go hours without any information as they often linger in alternate waiting areas for the next update. research has found parents fear for their child's safety at school (spector, 2018). parents have reported that they find comfort in each other. a few parents may receive confirmation from their children as they called for their cellphones; however, others do not have the privilege and must wait for hours with no answers. spector (2018) highlighted advice for parents, which encourages them to put things into perspective. it is recommended that parents think of all the good days that their children will enjoy, use positive self-talk, and have these conversations with their children. furthermore, parents should build relationships with schools and attend school meetings to inform local protocols and procedures. in addition, research recommends parents discuss with their children the difference between snitching and seeking help to prevent violence and the threat of violence (lorenzo, 2012). blair (2018) encourages parents to be incredibly involved in their children's lives, including monitoring the activities of their children's social media accounts and being educated on warning signs of school shooters. parents cannot do this alone and depend heavily on the schools. counselor involvement the counselor's overall role is to educate and provide a safe space for those students to come when they need it while also providing the students with the tools to succeed within and outside the school setting while also creating ways to reduce stigma surrounding mental health (pincus et al., 2020). school counselors can facilitate groups to help students deal with school stressors. in addition, school counselors can be involved in this process to help develop a safe climate, meaning having a zero-tolerance policy for inappropriate behavior (paolini, 2015). it is important schools have an action plan to support students after the shootings have occurred by being prepared for the aftermath. everly (2018) also recommends schools have crisis intervention plans, ongoing training, and rehearsals to deal with such crises and identified resources within the school and districts. because school shootings continue, all involved parties must become equipped to protect children who attend school to learn and build lasting relationships. schools are often not authorized to provide mental health treatment services and are considered educational settings rather than clinical settings (paolini, 2015). nevertheless, school counselors play an integral role in students' success by providing resources to help youth emotionally, mentally, and physically. implications for research and practice karalis (2020) noted that the covid-19 effects experienced by schools were due not to a crisis of the education system but from a secondary crisis in education resulting from a major crisis in another level of public life. the covid-19 pandemic differed from previous pandemics in its scope and intensity as its impact was worldwide and simultaneous. given the importance of the school as a stabilizing factor in society, schools must examine the dynamics of the pandemic's 46 effect and develop contingency plans that, at a minimum, address those areas that directly affect children's success and well-being. while evidence-based strategies have been presented to help address students' mental health needs, educators are also mindful of their ethical responsibilities to their communities. in a technology-based society, access to technology is crucial for all citizens. neither poverty nor rural residency should act as barriers that hinder teachers from delivering instruction or students from participating in education. the statement of ethics for educational leaders asserts the educational leader's commitment to serving the school and community by providing equal educational opportunities to every child (american association of school administrators, n.d.). further, the first statement in the statement of standards requires that educational leaders hold the education and well-being of students as the fundamental value of all decision-making. likewise, principle i of the national education association's code of ethics commits every educator to help each student realize their potential as a worthy and influential member of society (nea, 2020). the parent teacher organization (pta) (n.d.) mission is to make every child's potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children. the inequities that pervade american society were glaring in their impact on the ability of families and students to adapt to school outside the walls of the school building. as professionals and as citizens, educators must diligently advocate for all children to access education and engage in the activities necessary to ensure access for all students. as the pta's mission demonstrates, the will to protect access to education is supported within the school's community, particularly by parents. while for some, advocacy may bring visions of demonstrations and political activism, educators and stakeholders in the education community understand that advocacy engages collaboration and partnerships to build resilience, identify solutions, formulate policy, and bring resources to the school. it seems inevitable that schools will build on their former instructional practices and increase their capability for remote instruction. covid-19 has clarified that the" long haul" approach to implementing online learning may not be the best approach for education. while instant change is also not recommended, teacher education and continuing education strategies need to embrace a new pedagogy that builds and enhances teachers' ability to integrate technology into their instruction regularly and teach remotely when needed or desirable. therefore, teachers must incorporate asynchronous learning into their instructional arsenal along with their real-time, faceto-face teaching strategies. school and community leaders must support these changes by assuring that the technology infrastructure within the community functions and that access to the technology and the devices for using it are available to everyone. taking these steps before the crisis can assure the educational system is ready to cope. promoting safety is another area in which to support students. by integrating safety concepts and practices into instructional units, teachers and counselors help reassure students and parents of the school's concern for their welfare, encourage safe practices, and help to restore a sense of safety at school. developing effective strategies calls for an adequate knowledge base. as schools maintain and catalog data about factors influencing and promoting students' achievements and strengthening their mental health, the efficacy of evidence-based practices can 47 be tested and refined. it would also be helpful for researchers to have a database that records and provides access to data from incidents of school violence nationwide, including the safety practices in place and perpetrators, school, and student demographics. such a database could help to identify youth at risk better and develop effective prevention strategies. conclusion children are experiencing significant trauma. the influx of traumatic experiences has presented itself as a significant challenge for the educational system and highlighted the need for systemic changes. this has further highlighted the need for flexible ways to deliver instruction and address student social and emotional needs. with the increase in school violence and the experience of living through the covid-19 pandemic, teachers, counselors, and family members must be vigilant in addressing the child's mental health and academic concerns. according to the u.s. department of homeland security 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(2021). examining trauma and crime by gender and sexual orientation among youth: findings from the add health national longitudinal study. crime & delinquency, 0011128721999342. final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 139 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 updates thank you for your continued support of the international journal of the whole child and our commitment to holistic learning and to the development of the whole child. to improve the efficiency of the journal, we have updated our submission and publication dates. the submission deadline for spring 2023 is february 28th. the submission deadline for the fall 2023 will be september 30th. the spring issue will be published in may and the fall issue will be published in december. thank you again for your continued support. we look forward to seeing you in spring 2023. spotlight on real-world practice puddle ponderings criselda lozon, m.a. chadwick school, palos verdes, california criselda lozon is currently the lead teacher at chadwick school in palos verdes, california. she also served at the chadwick international school in south korea as the early childhood director. cris has taught internationally in tokyo, japan at sacred heart and the american school in japan and also at the american school in milan, italy. she is a frequent speaker and author within academia on matters of early childhood education. cris lozon is the new future director of the early childhood development center at st. margaret’s episcopal school in san juan capistrano, california. “will it float?” “you need to make it lighter to make it more floatier!” “what? how come my boat started to sink? i’ll wash it. it might be the mud.” “i think my sail made it move faster than yours. i’ll help you make one.” “where did the puddle go? we were just floating and now the puddle is getting more little.” science, language, critical thinking, creativity, cooperation, all this learning comes from a simple puddle. today was the first day of heavy rain in a long time at our little school on the hill. when a spot of sunshine showed up a treasure of puddles came with it. our kindergarteners had a wonderful opportunity to learn from a simple floating and sinking lesson. their only parameters were that their boat fit in the little basket at “testing station” before they go out into the puddles and that those with no boots on ask a friend with boots on to help them get their boat out of the middle of the puddle. we talked about going back to the drawing board if their boat sank and we talked about how not every experiment will work the first time. the children were off and running, grabbing items from the creation station, paper from the communication center, and miles and miles of tape from the supply shelf. the children designed, tested, observed, discussed, hypothesized, retested, and redesigned. they watched plastic float and cardboard sink. they pondered about the depth of the water, the speed of the boats, and the disappearance of the puddle. but in the middle of the science lesson, they showed compassion as boats floated into the middle of the puddle, helping each other to retrieve boats for the no boot friends or offering a popsicle stick for friends who didn’t have any. the children called each other over to share their new discoveries or to show each other how to add something new. when the experiment was over, they found wet clothes on their bodies and they offered each other their extra dry clothes if they didn’t have some of their own. our youngest learners will have a rich curriculum with the hands on experiences we provide, but they also receive an education that honors them as learners and brings the culture of friendship and compassion to the forefront. educating the whole child is more than the curriculum; it is the child’s opportunity to use knowledge in an engaging, challenging, and safe environment supported by caring, perceptive, and qualified adults. international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 the halloween holiday: a time for community celebration claudia best akron elementary school as the glorious season of autumn unfolds before us, communities, schools, families and most importantly, children begin to prepare for the arrival of halloween. it is interesting to examine the various ways that school philosophy and policy differ as districts prepare for this holiday. many school districts decided to regard this holiday as just another traditional school day due to high stakes testing and accountability. however, for nearly 40 years, a school district in western new york has used this holiday to highlight their students in a celebration shared with the entire school and town community. all classroom teachers recognize the many challenges confronting them during any holiday time. it is difficult to help students focus on curriculum when their thoughts turn to costumes, parties, and “trick or treating”. but instead of turning halloween into a “tug of war” between curriculum and holiday activities, akron central school , approximately 575 students (k – 5), uses this day to connect with their “school family” and involves the entire community in these activities. the day begins with a “home-grown” assembly wherein k-5 classes volunteer to perform on stage for the student body, parents and community members. these performances include songs, skits, and poetry. this type of assembly is presented four times each year and plays to a full house of students and families. after the morning performances, children enjoy lunch with classmates. then, students and teachers don their costumes and prepare for their annual halloween parade into downtown akron. as students parade, the sidewalks are lined with enthusiastic parents and community members. local police monitor traffic and parents and teachers make sure everyone is having fun and walking safely. on this special day, and entire town comes out to support its elementary school and its children. the administrators, faculty, and staff of akron elementary school fully understand the important relationship between the school and the community. this day provides an extraordinary opportunity to integrate the curriculum and highlight the role of multiple intelligences in quite unique ways. in addition to their annual parade, teachers regularly incorporate walking field trips to local businesses and invite guest speakers from these businesses to speak to their classes. each grade level has a business partner from the town that they keep in regular contact. akron elementary school maintains an open door practice with parents. the faculty acknowledges their students learn in different ways and require many types of learning experiences to fully develop and be successful. akron elementary school places 70th out of 242 public schools in western new york. this ranking clearly evidences that students can learn and still be children. for our international readers, the following link provides a history of this holiday. http://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween http://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 75 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 children and families: health and wellness games in telemental health with children and adolescents jo lauren weavera, jacqueline m. swankb, shatoi scottc, tonya davisd aalabama a & m university, buniversity of missouri, c-dalabama a & m university jo lauren weaver, ph.d., lpc, is an assistant professor of counseling at alabama a&m university. her research interests focus on mindfulness-interventions, adolescent and young adult social media use, perinatal mental health and creativity in counseling and counselor education. jacqueline m. swank, ph.d., lmhc, lcsw, is an associate teaching professor of mental health practices in schools at the university of missouri. her research interests focus on supporting the holistic growth and development of children and adolescents through nature and play-based interventions, counselor development, assessment, and international counseling. shatoi scott, ph.d., lcmhc, crc, currently serves as assistant professor and program coordinator of the master’s in counseling at alabama a&m university. her research interest explores rehabilitation counselor wellness, spirituality, and the intersection of trauma. professionally, dr. scott has worked as a licensed clinical mental health counselor for over ten years and holds current certification as a rehabilitation counselor. tonya davis, ph.d., lpc-s, ncsp, is an associate professor of counseling at alabama a&m university. her research interests focus on psychological /psychoeducational assessment, biometrics, health disparities, technology/virtual reality interventions and mental health, strength-based coaching. abstract the covid-19 pandemic resulted in an increase in telemental health sessions, including transitioning clients to this counseling format that were accustomed to having sessions in-person. in using telemental health, counselors may need to find new ways to connect and engage with clients or modify existing ways for the virtual setting. this article focuses on the use of games within a telemental health environment in counseling children and adolescents. we examine the literature related to the use of game play and telemental health with children, discuss strategies to integrate games within a virtual counseling environment, and present considerations to implementing games in a telemental health setting. keywords: games, telemental health, children, adolescents, counseling 76 games in telemental health with children and adolescents while telemental health is not a new concept or approach to providing counseling, the covid19 pandemic resulted in many counselors using telemental health for the first time due to lockdowns. this also required many clients who were comfortable with in-person counseling to transition to the virtual counseling setting. counselors needed to consider how they could develop new strategies, as well as modify existing counseling interventions for the virtual environment. these include interventions commonly used in counseling, such as interactive games. telemental health with children and adolescents telemental health can be provided in various ways, including live video, mobile apps, phone calls, and texting. for the purposes of this article, we are focusing on the live video medium of telehealth, which is synchronous audiovisual communication between the client and counselor via computer or mobile device. prior to the covid-19 pandemic, researchers endorsed the telemental health as a medium to improve accessibility and equity with mental health care for children and adolescents (e.g., comer & myers, 2016). telemental health can help bridge existing gaps by solving issues of transportation and time commitment, reducing stigma, and avoiding waitlists (child mind institute, 2020). researchers also suggested that telemental health can be just as effective as traditional in person treatment for children and adolescents (gloff et al., 2015). however, at the onset of the pandemic, only 43% of outpatient mental health facilities (n=8860) offered telehealth services (cantor et al., 2021). now, researchers predict the telehealth market will reach $266.8 billion by 2026 from $49.8 billion in 2018 (child mind institute, 2020). in today’s world, children and adolescents are often familiar with engaging with others in virtual environments. according to the children’s and parents’ media literacy tracker, 55% of children ages five to 15 use social media apps, 65% use messaging apps, and 97% use videosharing platforms (of com, 2021). additionally, the majority of children and adolescents likely participated in virtual schooling since the onset of the pandemic. yet, to date, there is a dearth of literature that explores children and adolescents’ experiences and perspectives of telemental health services. however, a recent poll of parents (n=351) revealed 69% sought telehealth services for their child’s mental health services and 80% reported that telemental health is more convenient than in-person appointments (child mind institute, 2020). however, counselors should not assume that youth will be comfortable with telemental health. children and adolescents using telemental health services could be working with an existing or new counselor. either situation requires acclimating to a new virtual environment. researchers recommend adapting and using interactive activities to build rapport and keep the client actively engaged in session (dueweke et al., 2020) such as therapeutic games. 77 games in counseling counselors may integrate games within the counseling process to connect and engage with children and adolescents, known as game play (schaefer & reid, 2001). game play has five aspects: (a) a goal, (b) competition, (c) rules, (d) interactions with others, and (e) increased cognitive ability (reid, 2001). there are three main types of games discussed by sutton-smith and roberts (1971): (a) games of chance where the outcome happens by chance (e.g., candyland), (b) strategy games that involve problem solving (e.g., chess), and (c) physical games that involve motor skills (e.g., tag). counselors may use games specifically designed for counseling or ordinary games not designed for a therapeutic purpose (swank, 2008). clinicians may also incorporate video games within counseling. while games can be appealing to different age groups, structured games are particularly appealing and developmentally appropriate for latency age children (beginning around age 7), as they transition from an interest in dramatic play to play more focused on rules (bellinson, 2002). some children and adolescents are reluctant to interact with a counselor, especially when they feel forced to go to counseling. due to the appeal games have among children, counselors can use them to connect with youth. while therapeutic games may seem an obvious choice, children might be reluctant to play these games due to their obvious focus on therapy, such as games that emphasize talking, especially if they don’t want to come to counseling (swank & weaver, 2021). in contrast, children are familiar with ordinary games, and they involve multiple aspects that might be the focus of counseling (e.g., social skills [sharing, taking turns], following directions/rules, emotion regulation; bellinson, 2013). scholars have discussed multiple benefits of integrating games within counseling. children often view games as fun; therefore, introducing games in counseling may help with developing a relationship with youth (swank, 2008). the integration of games may also help reduce anxiety (reid, 2001), and facilitate communication (bellinson, 2002; reid, 2001). game play may challenge the idea that youth may have about counseling involving sitting with a counselor and being expected to answer questions by engaging them in an activity. counselors can also observe children’s behaviors during game play as part of the assessment and diagnosis process (swank, 2008). game play also provides an opportunity to develop social skills (bay-hinitz & wilson, 2005; reid, 2001; serok & blum, 1983; swank, 2008) through interacting with the counselor, peers when used in group counseling, and family members during family sessions. finally, children can develop insight by reflecting on how the game play relates to situations in their lives (reid, 2001: serok & blum, 1979), as well as engage in reality testing (bellinson, 2002; reid, 2001). this provides opportunities for problem solving (swank, 2008) and skills building, including coping skills and emotion regulation (swank & weaver, 2021). thus, there are multiple benefits of integrating games within the counseling process when working with children and adolescents. in telemental health, game play can be a vehicle to build rapport and possible ease the transition to an online platform for therapy. game play within telemental health adapting existing activities and games can aid in acclimating to telemental health (dueweke et al., 2020). for those clients working with a new counselor game play can be a way to cultivate 78 the therapeutic alliance, especially playing familiar games that can be therapeutically modified. for existing clients, playing games can help transition from in person to telemental health. we identified four types of interactive games that can be conducted online: a). board games, b). card games, c). art games, d). physical games. board games interactive board games include both chance and strategy type of games that can be therapeutically modified. battleship can also be played on a virtual medium and be made therapeutic by having each player share a certain information about themselves when they get hit. for example, each time a player “hits” the other’s ships they share something they like about themselves. clinicians can change the topic each game dependent on the client’s goals in counseling. other board games can be played both on a virtual medium or on a traditional set with the camera focused on the game set. for example, clinicians can prompt the client to share the classic board games they have at home and select from their existing collection. this could help the clinician tailor the activity to the client’s interest and promote engagement (dueweke et al., 2020). clients using games from home can be responsible for moving both the clinician and their own pieces as well as rolling the dice, if applicable. however, the client’s facial expressions may not be as visible. clinicians may select from the client’s existing collection and modify the game to make it therapeutic (swank 2008; swank & weaver, 2021). for example, for the game sorry!, each player is prompted to say “sorry!” when landing on the other player’s space making them return to the starting position. the player sending the other to the starting space must share a time they apologized or wish they had apologized. clinicians can apply this same technique with other games, such as trouble, where players can share an instance they got "in trouble” when sending the other player to the starting space. card games interactive card games that can be played virtually may include shedding type card games (e.g., uno) or matching card games (e.g., go fish). uno can be made modified that each color represents an emotion (e.g., red is angry, blue is sad, yellow is happy, green is peaceful). each time a player changes the color both players must share a time they felt the emotion associated with the color change. for example, players can share a time they felt angry when the color is being changed to red. for go fish, each time a player has to “go fish” they get to ask each other a question to build rapport. as therapy progresses, the clinician may wish to change this to specific topics that pertain to the client’s goals in counseling. art games for interactive art games, pictionary is a game that can be played virtually and easily therapeutically modified. for the canvas, clinician may introduce the choice of using a virtual white board or a blank sheet of paper as a virtual white board may be difficult for some clients. next, the clinician may use a virtual spinner populated with various feelings. the drawer will spin the spinner to determine the feeling then the player can be instructed to draw a). things that 79 represent the feeling, b). things that make them experience that feeling, c). the last or a time they felt that feeling, d). a coping skill related to that feeling. the clinician may select other prompts that relate to the client’s goals in therapy. other topics may be included on the spinner such as coping skills the client has learned in previous sessions. the client may have more autonomy in this process by selecting their own feeling from another source such as an emotion wheel or their own knowledge dependent on the developmental level of the client. physical games interactive physical games may include a therapeutic scavenger hunt or charades. researchers recommend utilizing physical things in a client’s home environment (dueweke et al., 2020). hence, a therapeutic scavenger hunt can be an excellent means to build rapport and identify objects that can be coping skills. these scavenger hunts can have various themes. for example, a self-esteem scavenger hunt may include finding something the client feels proud of, or something that represents something they accomplished. for a mindfulness scavenger hunt, the client may identify for things that channels their senses such as five things the client sees, four things that make noise, etc. this scavenger hunt can be modified to the goals the client has in counseling. for charades, the clinician could use the spinner from the pictionary activity, and have the client act out various feelings, coping skills, or past experiences. considerations when conducting telemental health sessions, the clinician should also consider factors related to technology. prior to the session, the clinician should be comfortable with accessing the virtual platform, including connecting to an internet source and troubleshooting basic technology issues that might arise (e.g., no audio). these platforms should be hippa compliant. for further guidance, clinicians should refer to their profession’s code of ethics. for example, counselors may refer to the american counseling association’s code of ethics (2014), specifically section h: distance counseling, technology and social media. when applying online games, clinician should consider the safety of the website (i.e., privacy), (american counseling association [aca], 2014, section h.2.d) and attempt to find a source that has no or minimal advisements. clinicians should try to use sites that one has to send the other user an invitation to play or share the experience (aca, 2014, section h.5.c). clinicians should limit the sites that the client could connect with other users sans invitation for safety reasons. clinicians may use the share screen function for certain games if the child is younger or has trouble staying on task (aca, 2014, section h.4.c). clinicians may need to set limits with the types of games that can be played during session as some clients may desire to show the clinician other online games that might not be therapeutic. relationally, clinician should note these skills may differ digitally than in-person, particularly with children and adolescents (orsolini et al., 2021). clinicians should minimize any potential distractions in view of the camera, zoom in their camera so the client can see the clinician’s facial expressions, and maintain continuous gaze into the camera (segar van dyk et al., 2020). clinician should use energetic tone of voice, exaggerated hand gestures, and facial expressions when working with younger clients (orsolini et al., 2021). clinicians may wish to play with 80 various telehealth backgrounds as younger clients may find that amusing (segar van dyk et al., 2020). clinicians may also want to plan their instructions for game use, especially if the game is a traditional board game the client uses from their collection. in considering the counselor’s response to the client’s decision about whether to follow the rules of the game, bellinson (2013) emphasizes the importance of remembering the purpose of integrating games within counseling. the purpose of using games differ by client; and therefore, counselors may address rule following differently for various clients. this may also differ based on the use of games in individual, group, and family sessions. similarly, a client may cheat during a game for various reasons; therefore, the counselor may address it differently depending on the client’s goals. bellinson (2002) cautions counselors to be careful about becoming involved in power struggles with clients related to following the rules and cheating. the counselor must also be mindful about what they are experiencing in the moment, as countertransference may also arise when using games in counseling. counselor should reflect on their experiences with various games and what feelings arise for them when they play the games (reid, 2001; swank, 2008). they may choose to not have some games available due to their own reactions related to the games (bellinson, 2002; bellinson, 2013). counselors also make decisions about whether they let the client win, with reid (2001) emphasizing the importance of balance related to winning. furthermore, when it is the counselor’s turn, it is important for the counselor to respond honestly, but for the response to also be relevant and appropriate for the client (bellinson, 2002). when modifying board games, clinicians should be mindful of the amount of sharing required. in other words, if the players are required to share something with every turn, they may run out of responses, the game may become prolonged, and they may become disengaged (swank 2008; swank & weaver, 2021). conclusion games are an easily transferrable tool from in person to virtual therapy. interactive board games, card games, art games, and physical games can all be modified to be conducted virtually. clinicians may wish to continue games played during in person sessions or introduce new games to keep virtual sessions interactive and engaging. 81 references american counseling association. 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(2021). chapter 13: therapeutic use of board games with children. in h. g. kaduson, & c. e. schaefer (eds.), play therapy with children: modalities for change (pp. 209-223). american psychological association. microsoft word ijwc spring 2018.docx 19   international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 1   differentiated instruction: a band-aid approach for a flawed system sandra j. stoneª ªnorthern arizona university dr. sandra j. stone, an author and speaker, is professor emerita at northern arizona university. she founded the national multiage institute, an international leader in providing professional development for educators from all over the world. dr. stone’s publications and research focus on multiage education, play, and literacy. she was past editor for the journal of research in childhood education and for columns in the journal childhood education. she serves on editorial boards for several international research journals. in the united states we currently have a system, which was instituted almost two hundred years ago as a result of the industrial revolution. this historical event significantly influenced our educational system. education incorporated the efficiency of a manufacturing model into a way to educate the general populace. while the intentions were well-meaning, they were not based on an understanding of child development or even on how children learn. the assumption was that we could mass educate children by grouping them by age and then create curriculum to match each age grouping (stone, 2009, 2010). the advent of a graded education system decried the understanding that same age children are unique with different developmental rates, family backgrounds, cultures, interests, intelligences, personalities, and learning styles. today many educators realize that the differences among children in each grade are even greater now than they were hundreds of years ago (gray, 2013; morgan, 2014; robinson, 2015; tomlinson, 2009, 2017; tomlinson & imbeau, 2012). there is a common understanding that our current system does not meet the learning needs of all our children. in addition, gray (2013) believes that our current system has contributed to an epidemic of anxiety related conditions among our youth and proposes that today’s schools are ultimately not happy places for our children. through the years, different approaches have been used to make education more efficient. a significant approach was to use a more scientific method, termed the behaviorist approach, to maximize curricular instruction through lesson plans and objectives (skinner, 1968; hunter, 1990/1991). the premise was to make education more systematic through prescriptive instruction, which would result in more accurate curriculum accomplishment by students. defining the curriculum for each grade level through precise objectives, lesson planning, and outcomes would enable teachers to deliver the grade-level curriculum more effectively. curriculum and instruction became an instrumental pair in how education unfolded and still unfolds in our schools today. the advent of standards and standardized tests has added another dimension as well as a burden to an inappropriately designed system. however, the “elephant in the room” is that our educational system of grouping children by age for onesize-fits-all instruction is ultimately a flawed system. educators have tried for years to refine, fix, redesign, and reform the existing system to try to make it better for our children and our society. yet, we keep the same system, the same framework, and the same foundation. respected authors and educators have called for us to “throw out the whole system” (gray, 2013, p. 84); disassemble the manufacturing conveyor belt (stone, 2010) and pursue radical change from the “old industrial model to one based on entirely different principles and practices” (robinson, 2015, p. xxiv). the 20   mechanical, industrial, manufacturing system does not fit with the human, organic dynamic (robinson, 2015; thompson, 2014). they do not see our system as “fixable” and envision a revolution to change this flawed system to a completely different system. with the possibilities of inventing a new system, the “differentiated instruction” model is examined. with great respect for the strategy of differentiated instruction (di), it is, however, in the same boat as other approaches, which try to fix our current flawed system. di operates within the existing system of a graded schooling, choosing to modify the instructional delivery of the curriculum, but not the grade level curriculum organization. this article seeks to demonstrate how differentiated instruction is simply a “bandaid” approach for an educational system that is detrimental to the development and well being of our diverse and unique children. this article proposes that a new and different system needs to be created if we want to meet the needs of all our children. differentiated instruction – the curriculum first, proponents of differentiated instruction are to be applauded for seeing the inequities of our system and trying to do something proactive to make a difference for our children in their educational journey (levy, 2008; parsons, dodman, & cohen burrowbridge, 2013; pettig, 2000; scigliano & hipsky, 2010; tomlinson, 2017). in addition to our system currently designed as a one-size-fits-all approach to education by age group, is the accompanying view that a curriculum, even high quality curriculum, for each grade level is appropriate. our current system fits within what is called a “curriculum-centered approach” to learning. this approach is examined in contrast to a “child-centered approach” which, for this discussion, stands apart from the graded system, not within the system. differentiated instruction is described as an attempt to reform or adapt a curriculum-centered approach into a learner-centered approach situated within the factory model graded system. however, this “band-aid” approach cannot truly impact or change a system so deeply flawed. consider the following: curriculum. in a curriculum-centered approach, the curriculum is the center of schooling. each grade level has a designated curriculum, which is aligned to standards. teachers present the curriculum through lesson plans. grades are used to evaluate success. standardized tests are the ultimate accountability to see if the children have learned the curriculum and if teachers have taught the curriculum. even if the instruction is differentiated, the curriculum is still the center of the approach. in a child-centered approach, the child is the center of the learning process, not the curriculum. the curriculum is broadly reframed as possible teaching points flexibly scaffolded through strategies by a teacher based on a process approach, which depends on the understanding and development of each child. thus, a child-centered approach is process, not product-oriented. the child enjoys choice and autonomy within the process. each child is on his or her own developmental continuum across multiple areas of child development. growth is individual and unique for each child. children are educated in family groupings of mixed ages, not same age groupings, so a one-size-fits-all curriculum is not pertinent, nor appropriate. learning is more inclusive of the human dimension (cognitive, social, emotional, moral, aesthetic), instead of a narrow focus on primarily academics. while high quality learning occurs for every child, it is not based on curriculum designed for each grade level. success is not narrowly defined by mastery of the curriculum, but instead by a child’s personal joy and satisfaction in pursuing his or her interests, talents, and intelligences. success defined as continued development, not in accomplishing set, pre-determined curriculum, is appropriately varied by each child’s uniqueness. in differentiated instruction (di), the curriculum, not the child, remains the center of instruction. tomlinson (2000b) correctly acknowledges that we are teaching human beings and that children are diverse learners. she agrees that for many teachers the curriculum is a prescribed set of academic standards and the goal of instruction is raising test scores. tomlinson (2000b) suggests that “curriculum tells us what to teach: differentiation tells us how . . . differentiation can show us how to teach the same standard to a range of learners by employing a variety of teaching and learning modes” (p. 8). di tries to adjust the one-size-fits all curriculum approach of the graded curriculum to fit the inherent diversity of the children. the problem is 21   that di tries to use the “same standard,” the “what to teach.” having a grade-level curriculum or standards does not meet the naturally varied learning needs for even those children born on the same day in a samegrade classroom. a year-by-year curricular plan for the grades does not encompass every child’s understandings even when we try to “differentiate” how the curricular standard is delivered. in essence, the curriculum by grade level in a di classroom stays the same, but the instruction is modified to try to meet the diverse needs of the children. tomlinson (2000b) agrees, “any education approach that does not invite us to teach the individual is deeply flawed” (p. 11). yet, without a consideration of developmental differences, one could be led to believe that even a graded, curriculum could be designed to meet the variances in children’s learning when in actuality, it cannot. in regard to schooling, tomlinson (2000b) believes that a high-quality curriculum and instruction is essential. she states, “choose any standard. differentiation suggests that you can challenge all learners by providing materials and tasks on the standard at varied levels of difficulty, with varying degrees of scaffolding through multiple instructional groups, and with time variations” (tomlinson, 2000b, p. 9). tomlinson (2000b) does not believe there is a “contradiction between standards and appropriately responsive instruction,” only in an “ill-conceived interpretation and use of standards” (p. 8). however, a set of curriculum directives no matter how high the quality does not address the range of how children develop. children naturally develop at different rates and understandings. even responsive instruction cannot bring about understanding if a child is not in a stage of developmental understanding. for example, the curriculum or standards may require that children are able to solve problems with missing addends. some children will be able to accomplish the task but others may not, even with differentiation. some children may not have developed “reversibility of thought” which kamii (1982) describes as the development of the brain to go both forward and backward in its thinking. solving missing addend problems requires that a child’s brain has developed that flexibility, particularly that the brain can easily go backward in its thinking. without it, solving missing addends is out of the range of a child’s possibility of understanding. a curriculum-centered approach, as a whole, is not designed with the understanding of child development or the unique development of each child. while learner-centered in regard to the curricular focus, di is on the cusp of being child-centered, but its position within a curriculum-centered, graded approach does not really support all children in their natural development; di resides in a curriculum-centered approach. even with the term “learner-centered,” differentiated instruction is about helping children accomplish the curricular goals. the graded curriculum is the problem, even high-quality curriculum. we still want everyone to have the same knowledge, skills, and understandings even though we are using different approaches, even timelines, to get to the same end. we are still trying to accomplish the objective of the graded curriculum. within the curriculum-centered approach, concern is expressed regarding our gifted learners and finding ways to challenge them (kaplan, 2016; weber, johnson, & tripp, 2013). questions also arise as to whether di can meet the needs of at risk or marginal students (anderson, 2007). in actuality, even with di, we disadvantage both our highly able and novice learners. addressing pacing, degrees of challenge, and interest (tomlinson, 2005a) are not enough. differentiating a set curriculum cannot truly meet the variance of learning needs or interests for all our children. however, di proponents mctighe and brown (2005) state that “standards-based education and differentiated instruction (di) not only can coexist, but must function together as two sides of the same accountability coin” (p. 235). mctighe and brown (2005) believe that an agreement can be made between high-stakes accountability based on rigorous standards and “the very real need to address the individual needs and strengths of the learner” (p. 236). they feel confident that you can address “rigorous content while honoring differences in learners’ prior knowledge, interests, and preferred learning styles” (p. 236). based on tomlinson’s view, mctighe and brown (2005) state that “helping all learners reach required standards must inevitably involve the tailoring or differentiating of teaching and learning experiences” through tailoring content, process and end products to maximize student achievement (p. 241). they agree that “all learners should be held to the same rigorous standards” and “standards and differentiation not only 22   can coexist, they must coexist if schools and districts are to achieve the continuous improvement targets imposed on them by” standards (p. 242). if standards-based education and di are compatible and must coexist, then the ultimate objective of di is highly questionable. herein lies the greatest flaw with differentiated instruction. is our goal to pay tribute, and be accountable, to the arbitrary graded curriculum rather than honoring and respecting each child in his or her holistic development? which option has the priority? accountability and testing. accountability to the standards based on standardized tests does not honor the great variances in normal childhood cognitive development. we are still asking by the end of the day for all children to be at the same place at the same time. not all children, even with a differentiated curriculum, will be able to succeed on the test. even though tomlinson and imbeau (2012) suggest that if children are learning in their preferred ways, they learn the content better and that will increase their confidence when they take the test, we still have a system that creates winners and losers at the end. there will be variance in how well children do on the test. how ludicrous would it be for physical development if we wanted everyone of the same age to be the same height by the end of the school year and the teachers should be accountable for this by providing high-quality food choices? while trying to avert the dominance of curriculum by differentiating the instruction, we still have the priority of grade-level curriculum for each grade, which children must accomplish. even with flexibility in a set grade level curriculum provided by di, it is not sufficient to meet the varying needs and interests of children. however, di proponents conclude that differentiation is compatible with standardized testing (brimijoin, marquissee, & tomlinson, 2003). standards, testing, and di can co-exist as partners in the goal of accountability. if di can coexist with standards and testing, then di cannot be considered a child-centered approach. grading. another consideration and concern about differentiation is the continued use of grading children. tomlinson (2005c) addresses grading based on marzano’s (2000) work as the “assignment of symbolic numbers or letters at the end of a specified period of time” (p. 263). grades serve to summarize the teacher’s evaluation of the students. the information provides feedback to parents and students in order “to support the learning process and encourage student success “ (p. 263). she does not believe that there is an “inherent problem with the philosophy of differentiation and grading or reporting” (p. 263). proponents of di believe that quality differentiation and grading are fully aligned (tomlinson, 2005c; tomlinson, 2017). however, success is narrowly defined as academic success based on criteria of curriculum accomplishment (dobbertin, 2012; tobin, 2008). in other words, grades are based on every child accomplishing the same goal. as part of “defensible grading,” tomlinson (2005c) distinguishes grading from assessment. she correctly envisions assessment as “on-going” in order to make instructional decisions helpful to the students’ learning. on-going authentic assessment can be a helpful tool in understanding where children are building and understanding, particularly in a child-centered approach to learning. grading, however, is the “end-point judgment about students’ achievement” (tomlinson, 2005c, p. 264). grades are based on “a set of preestablished, clearly stated, content-specific learning goals” where required standards “serve as the basis for grading criteria” (tomlinson, 2005c, p. 264). while tomlinson (2005c) suggests differentiated instruction provides “multiple routes to accomplishing specified goals, so that each learner can progress to the greatest degree possible” (p. 265) and advises that teachers give students second chances to meet goals, as well as multiple opportunities to practice before they are evaluated on achieving important goals, the bottom line is that grading is used to evaluate how well all students have done in reaching the goal of the curriculum. in the di approach, learning is “assessed using a well-defined set of learning outcomes or standards,” and “progress can be both measured and communicated” as “grading and reporting are, after all, an integral part of the instruction process . . .” (tomlinson, 2005c, p. 268-269). grading is devised to be more “child-friendly” in that children are not compared to other students or other extraneous considerations, rather only to the criteria. grades still measure student success on the curricular goals after a unit of learning. a child-centered approach does not need grades to demonstrate growth which occurs on a child’s own personal continuum of learning. children are not evaluated on meeting curricular goals. in a child-centered approach, children are valued for continual learning based on process not 23   curricular content. their continued learning is indicated by authentic assessment and displayed in portfolios. content is not linear by grade level; content is variable and only a function of process. content is secondary to the primacy of process – learning to read, write, problem-solve, create, socialize, and so forth. learning is not defined or based on well-defined learning outcomes or standards as suggested by tomlinson (2005c), which fit within a behaviorist approach to teaching. a constructivist approach to learning is the foundation for a child-centered approach (brooks & brooks, 1999, burke, 2005). a constructivist approach to learning appreciates that . . . . . . learning is not linear. it does not occur on a timeline of basic skills. instead, learning occurs at a very uneven pace and proceeds in many different directions at once . . . instead of learning being ‘decontextualized’ and taught, for example, by memorizing the parts of speech, it must be situated in a rich context of writing or speaking” (burke, 2005, p. xiv). differentiated instruction – the instruction because the overarching goal of di is to accomplish the objective of the curriculum, even though with modifying instruction through differentiating the content, process, and product, the approach is still centered in a graded curriculum. the journey starts with the curriculum and ends with reaching the curricular goals. the goal of di is to “plan instruction in a differentiated fashion” (tomlinson & imbeau, 2012, p. 20). the use of pacing guides and scripted lessons are not discounted, but are recommended as useful guides. as tomlinson (1999a) states, “the core of what the students learn remains relatively steady. how the student learns-including degree of difficulty, working arrangements, modes of expression, and sorts of scaffold – may vary considerably” (p. 16). but, the teacher’s goal is to increase each student’s skill level within the curriculum. as tomlinson (1999a) continues, the teacher knows where she wants her students to arrive at the end of their shared learning journey and where her students are along that journey at any given time. because she is clear about the destination and the path of the travelers, she can effectively guide them, and she varies or differentiates her instruction to accomplish this goal. further, her destination is not merely the amassing of data but rather the constructing of understanding (p. 16). tomlinson (2005b) believes effective differentiation is centered in knowledge. “lessons are based on the teacher’s clear understanding of what is essential in the study unit, and the teacher helps each student build his or her own maps of understanding and skill encompassing the essentials” (tomlinson, 2005b, p. 10). however, rich learning encompasses more than an accumulation of knowledge, the essentials, or understanding the knowledge or essentials. knowledge as the ultimate goal sidetracks knowledge as a useful tool for the learning process to unfold where children imagine, create, and invent. as einstein suggests, “imagination is more important than knowledge” (issacson, 2007, p. 7). while knowledge is important, knowledge as the ultimate goal of learning diminishes a child’s innate curiosity, interests, and pursuit of personal well-being. tomlinson (2005b) also proposes that differentiation “is learner-centered. teachers systematically study learner traits to understand what each student brings to the task, what each student needs to succeed with the task, and what the student needs to support his or her success” (p. 10). while trying to understand the learner and to modify instruction of the curriculum to the learner, the goal is success based on the task. the focus is still helping students to successfully accomplish the curriculum by getting them to the pre-determined end product or goal by attending to each student’s readiness, interest, and learning profile (tomlinson, 1999b, 2009, 2017). differentiating content, process, and product. tomlinson (2017) describes how di takes multiple approaches to content, process, and product: “(1) content – input, what students learn; (2) process-how students go about making sense of ideas and information; and (3) product – output, or how students demonstrate what they have learned” (p. 7). content, process, and product can all be differentiated according to children’s readiness, interest, and learning profile. 24   readiness. readiness is used to differentiate the content, process and product. for example, content reading levels are varied for reading proficiency. the teacher may prepare several tiered tasks based on children’s differing abilities. for process, assignments are varied for difficulty depending on student readiness. pacing is also important, as some students will need more time to accomplish task than others. product, levels of task performances, is also differentiated based on student readiness. while addressing the diversity of student readiness, mctighe and brown (2005) advise addressing gaps of prior knowledge through instructional interventions, which they believe can be done “without compromising the established standards or the integrity of subject areas” (p. 238). even though reading levels, for example, may be adjusted, students are still required to accomplish the fundamental curriculum criteria. they believe you can “reinforce rigorous core standards for all learners, and ensure sensitivity to the unique strengths and needs of every student” (p. 239). by focusing on the content knowledge, the process of reading, for example, where a child gets better and better at reading is actually diminished, as the essential knowledge is the goal, not the process of reading. interest. content, process, and product are also differentiated by student interest. within the content of a standards-based unit, students are allowed to pursue topics of interest. for process, students may, for example, work alone or in teams. for product, the teacher allows students to select from different products and rubrics to provide the criteria for successful task completion. as the teacher allows students to follow interests within the set curriculum parameters, tomlinson (2017) suggests that the goals of the student (interest) and the curriculum can be served simultaneously” (p. 102). while choice through interest is offered to students in a di classroom, it is often what alfie kohn (1993) suggests as “pseudo-choice.” the teacher has selected, for example, ten projects from which the students can choose. these are teacher-approved projects designed to further the curriculum needs. the choice is not owned by the student or pursued because of the student’s passion or personal interest. the curriculum needs take precedence over the child’s curiosity. learning profile. di considers how students learn best by looking at learning styles, multiple intelligences, gender, and culture (tomlinson, 2017). in di, the teacher is encouraged to “plan instruction that will allow as many students as possible to learn more comfortably, efficiently, and effectively” (tomlinson, 2017, p. 110). tomlinson (2017) believes that addressing a learner’s profile will “influence a student’s attitude toward and engagement in different types of tasks” (p. 110). using learning profiles to differentiate content, process and product is another way to accomplish curricular goals. children are not in charge of their own learning, in their own unique way. the learning profile is a tool for the teacher to maximize the accomplishment of the tasks. for content, the teacher, for example, may provide students who have an auditory preference a way to engage the material through a podcast. for process, the teacher may use “menus for success” (tomlinson, 2017, p. 121) which give students options for exploring the content. for example, for a math unit, some students may use manipulatives to understand the math concept while other students may use the math concept to apply to a real-life situation (tomlinson, 2017). for differentiating products, the teacher may use tests, portfolios, or a product assignment where children can demonstrate what they know about the content criteria. studying and honoring a student’s learning profile is a positive endeavor. however, even the learning profile is used to accomplish the curricular goals and tasks. the truly powerful learning children can control and enjoy within a child-centered approach is suppressed within a curriculum-centered method. campbell (2009) interprets di as differentiated content, process, and product, which he explains as “differentiated curriculum, instruction, and assessment. in other words, we can differentiate the resources we use, the ways we ask students to interact with the content, and the ways we ask students to demonstrate their learning” (p. 7). campbell (2009) suggests, “the formula is a structured, teacher-directed, and content based, but it is student centered and provides students with multiple entry points into the content areas and personal choices based on their individual strengths or learning profiles” (p. 9). nevertheless, ”the primary goal of differentiation . . . is to help teachers develop and use multiple pathways for students to learn whatever they teach, including the content standards” (campbell, 2009, p. 19). 25   readiness, interest and learning profiles are ways teachers can differentiate curricular content, process, and product. the approach is teacher-designed and teacher-directed, not child-designed or child-directed. there is little to no room for children’s choice and autonomy to unfold. the ultimate goal is to accomplish the curricular goals while trying to be learner-centered, sensitive to children’s readiness, interests, and learning profiles. however, curricular goals are still the priority over the children’s needs, interests, and development. again, di fits within a curriculum-centered, not child-centered approach. becoming good factory workers another downside and concern regarding di is the way the priority of the curriculum unfolds for the children. our current system was designed on a factory model thus, in many ways children are still envisioned as factory workers. the expectations for factory workers and for our children in our educational system are surprisingly similar. the goal of di is the mastery of content and to also help students “form their own identities as learners” (tomlinson, 2008, p. 26). di is perceived as the “logical way to achieve the goal of content acquisition” (tomlinson, 2008, p. 27). content acquisition becomes the product of the factory workers. when mastery of the content is the goal, then learning is often misconstrued as following directions, getting the work done, following the rubric for curricular success, and demonstrating on-task behaviors. these are admirable factory worker expectations. is this the identity we want our children to develop as learners? with di, the identity of the learner is formed as a “student” playing the “game of schooling” well, not about an “individual” following one’s own pathway to understanding, interests and passions (brooks & brooks, 1999; gray, 2013). if students are successful at the game of schooling in elementary and secondary education then they will be well prepared to play the game of schooling in college (tomlinson & imbeau, 2012). the element of learning is distorted to mean succeeding at schooling, not true learning, nor life-long learning. the focus is on “educating for education” not for life pursuits or personal well-being. while di proposes that instruction is “learner-centered,” the “center of gravity” is still outside the child as kohn (2015, p. 34) suggests; the school is organized around the curriculum, not around the child’s own projects, problems, and questions. in a child-centered approach, the center of gravity is within the child and his or her interests and purposes (kohn, 2015). the power in the learning process is within the child, not within curriculum and instruction. learning as a process cannot be mandated or controlled through instruction, as it is a personal construction. a curriculum-centered approach, even if differentiated, does not represent the unique learning and accomplishments a child builds for himself or herself. the factory product of schooling becomes successful curriculum knowledge with factory workers demonstrating compliance to the product assembly. is this really the identity we want our children to form? teacher-directed/controlled methods. because curriculum success is the ultimate goal, the structure of schooling, in spite of modifications, creates a climate of teacher-directed or teacher-controlled methods to motivate students for goal accomplishment. even though di suggests its approach is “learner centered,” the students are still subservient to the curriculum and instruction, which dominates the process rather than the children being dominant or in control, with the curriculum and instruction subservient to the children and their needs. tomlinson (2008) suggests four elements for di teachers to develop to help students chart their own learning and lives: trust, fit, voice and awareness. tomlinson makes child-friendly suggestions such as developing trust with students so they know the teacher is on their side. the students know the teacher views them as worthwhile, and that they have the capacity to succeed. the teacher makes sure the learning is a good fit, gives students a voice in their learning, and an awareness of how learning works. if learning is child-centered, all these elements are valuable. however, when situated in a curriculumcentered approach where the goal is accomplishing and mastering the curriculum, the benefits of these attributes fade. the teacher is on your side to help you accomplish the curriculum and believes you can do it. the teacher will provide a good fit for each student by providing different ways to master the curriculum. the teacher will asks students for input in “developing classroom rules and routines; provide guided choice 26   for tasks and ways of accomplishing them . . .provide students to review one another’s work using clear criteria . . .” (tomlinson, 2008, p. 29). the students are asked for input in order to maximize the routines and tasks to accomplish the curriculum. for awareness, the teacher helps students understand how learning works. however, learning is always defined as successfully accomplishing the curriculum. as tomlinson (2008) indicates the students know how to make sense of text, how to listen, and how to ask questions. they know how to gauge their work based on criteria for success. they know how to capitalize on their learning strengths and how to compensate for their weaknesses. they know how to plan, follow through with plans, modify plans when necessary, and evaluate the effectiveness of their planning. through these avenues, they come to believe they are captains of their own fate as learners. teachers who differentiate for student ownership of learning guide each student in developing these abilities (p. 30). being “captains of their own fate as learners” only means that they are the ones in control of whether they meet the expected criteria of the curriculum. the diligent factory worker (student) who makes sure the factory work (the curriculum) is mastered is doing a good job of accomplishing the factory work (content mastery). as tomlinson (2008) notes, to build awareness, teachers . . . use rubrics that are carefully constructed to support student thinking about the quality of their work instead of merely awarding points for completed work. they help students analyze their points of entry in the rubrics and set goals for next steps. they have students keep track of their own skill development, feedback, and grades. they give students opportunities to reflect on their work through exit cards, journals, or plus/minus/deltas charts that aid them in thinking about their strengths, their weaknesses, and the changes they will make as they approach future work. academic awareness builds academic success (p. 30). tomlinson (2008) shares how even at age six, children are “learning to position themselves as successful learners by controlling their working conditions” (p. 30) for example, the child may decide to find someone to work with when he or she cannot accomplish a task on his or her own. this is a sad commentary when we see children viewing learning as a “task accomplishment” rather than growing more and more each day and confident in their progressing abilities. for example, when a young child learns how to jump for the first time, it is like we are asking the child to evaluate whether he or she jumped well enough, or if can he or she can do it better. does the jump fit the rubric criteria for jumping? it is not about the joy of jumping, but about the work ethic to accomplish a task. di advocates students becoming skilled workers on the curriculum tasks (george, 2005; tomlinson, 2008). are we more concerned with training good “factory workers” who successfully accomplish curricular goals? is being accountable to the curriculum and diligent work performance what learning is really about? or, do we want our children to find different pathways and the freedom to follow their interests and passions? do children’s own pathways and interests really count? (gray, 2013). proponents of di are to be applauded for trying to make schooling more child-friendly, even learnercentered, but it is not a child-centered approach. di is a misguided approach for so-called learning. it is not about honoring a child’s curiosity, internal drive for understanding, creativity, imagination, or personal well being. neudecker (2012) relates how greek procrustes chopped or stretched travelers to fit the bed of his inn. she relates this to our educational system by suggesting that we are changing the “wrong variable.” as neudecker (2012) proposes for decades, we have tried to differentiate learning for our students so they will fit nicely within our educational setting. we have myriad instructional models to address a wide variety of students, settings, educational needs and learning styles. on the surface, the intentions are honorable – to ensure all students achieve to our standards. yet we continue to expect dramatic changes in student achievement within the same educational framework we have used for more than a century. we talk about accommodating the needs of individual learners, yet we try to implement the changes within 27   the traditional classroom, grade level school day and school calendar. our methods simply may not be sufficient for the 21st century. we no longer can expect our students to be high achievers when we continue to subscribe to a procrustean approach of establishing a standard to which we expect – and demandall students conform. . . a one-size-fits-all education is not meeting the needs of our learners nor our society. while we must ensure a quality education for all learners, we must courageously transform our systems to meet those needs (p. 43). unfortunately, we are still trying to fit our students to the same educational bed, instead of designing a bed that fits our children’s actual learning (not curriculum tasks) and natural development. we are not actively supporting our children to be part of the process of learning, pursuing their own interests and personal well being. we are trying to make our children more comfortable through differentiated instruction by fluffing the pillow, changing the bed spread, and providing warm pajamas. however, the actual bed is nevertheless the same, standardized size. children still need to fit the curricular bed. the children continue to be managed by instructional procedures designed by teachers. children are trapped in grade levels, with a grade level curriculum, and the same expectations for all when it comes to accountability and testing even though di proponents say it is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach. unfortunately, for our children, the factory model of education is alive and well. tomlinson and murphy (2018) acknowledge that often schools today try to cover the curriculum, so students will succeed on standardized tests which teachers “believe are oppressive and even unjust” (p. 20). tomlinson and murphy (2018) advocate for “empathetic schools,” which “humanize our work in schools” (p. 20). even tomlinson and murphy (2018) advise that we must “resist pressures to standardize young humans” (p. 27); yet at the same time di continues to reside in, coexist, and accept, this flawed educational system. while its attempts to invest a sense of respect for the diversity of children and to humanize schooling are commendable, di cannot give up the trappings of a curriculum-centered approach. di continues to embrace children meeting the essential criteria of a prescribed curriculum which is often matched to the standards, or the tradition of grading students based on the curriculum criteria, or using teacher-directed and -controlled curriculum approaches, and ultimately reducing children to see learning only as successfully accomplishing curricular tasks, the product on the conveyor belt. di proponents believe educators can still make a high-quality curriculum work for varied and diverse learners within our current system if the teaching approach is refined by differentiation (birnie, 2015; campbell, 2009; huebner, 2010; parsons, dodman, & cohen burrowbridge, 2013; mctighe & brown, 2005; tomlinson, 2000a, 2000b, 2005a, 2017; watts-taffe et al, 2012). isn’t this ultimately an oxymoron? we may live in a world where rigorous academic standards are judged by performance on high-stakes test, but we can change this. we do not have to continue to try to bandage a system designed without the working knowledge of human development, in order to make it more palatable for our children. we do not have to train our children to be compliant to curriculum mandates. to do so, we do our children an extreme disservice. unfortunately, di cannot truly accomplish meeting the needs, interests, and personal goals of our children within our current system. while differentiated instruction is to be commended for trying to accommodate the diverse needs of our children, it situates itself within the wrong system. some of the appropriate measures di is attempting to do such as ongoing assessment, pursuing children’s interests, and recognizing how children learn differently are approaches that could have the freedom to unfold in a different way in child-centered system based on child development, process learning, and the ungrading of schooling (goodlad & anderson, 1987). differentiated instruction, as it exists now, is simply a band-aid approach for a flawed system. as neudecker (2012) suggests, we must “courageously transform” our system of education to meet the needs of all our children (p. 43). we cannot allow our current, archaic graded system to continue to dominate education. a new and different system must be invented (stone, 2010). 28   references anderson, k. 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(2013). implementing differentiation. gifted child today, 36 (3), 179 186.         international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 a book review of j.d. kirylo’s “teaching with purpose: an inquiry into the who, why, and how we teach” publisher: rowman & littlefield publishers, inc. reviewed by kathleen fite texas state university, professor of education what does it mean to teach with purpose? in this book, kirylo carefully guides his readers on a journey of inquiry and discovery to learn more about the who, why, and how teachers teach. his goal is to underscore what it means to be a teacher; to present critical aspects that intersect the teaching and learning process; and, to acknowledge the numerous considerations teachers deliberate through when teaching. the book consists of seven sections (27 chapters): from the inside out; entering into relationships; the goal is to inspire (an artistic endeavor); the glue that is educational psychology; five components of knowledge; assessment is to “sit with”; and, teacher as leader: hierarchy, poverty, and the village. kirylo weaves the thoughts of numerous, relevant authors and their works, foundational and contemporary, into a scholarly tapestry designed to frame his message. he provides the origin of many terms and concepts, some of which are surprising. the content underscores how being a purposeful teacher translates into an entire way of life. according to kirylo, teaching as a way of life implies a calling in which one works to influence others. in order to be effective in positively influencing others, he advocates for an understanding of developmental theory and the nature of knowledge. teachers are entrusted with the most valuable treasure of society, our children – our future. their influence is powerful. therefore, it is critical for them to know which instructional practices are appropriate for children at a particular time. kirylo discusses guiding assumptions: the importance of knowing self; teaching is about entering into relationships; education is about opportunity; the chief task is to inspire; and, education is a political enterprise. he encourages teachers to realize their personal philosophy of education and to reflect often on their beliefs and values. he reminds us that reflection informs thoughtful action. understanding what you believe and how it motivates and integrates with your school’s mission statement is integral in becoming a purposeful teacher. from the author, we learn purposeful teachers foster collaborative relationships with students, parents, caregivers, and the local and greater communities. genuine relationships are trustworthy, supportive, and encouraged through authentic dialogue. kirylo describes how the many facets of multicultural education are nurtured through the teacher’s purposeful incorporation of respect, hope, and justice. based on his own teaching experiences, he has learned that teachers are in a unique position to inspire their diverse students. in order for teachers to become change agents, kirylo says it is critical for them to know and regard their students’ unique backgrounds. only in knowing students as individuals, can purposeful teachers create culturally responsive curriculum and just and equitable instruction that can foster inspiration. kirylo incorporates fascinating stories of motivational teachers like anne sullivan, jaime escalante, erin gruwell, and herman boone. he believes these teachers were driven by a greater cause than self, had passion for helping others, and grounded themselves in hope. he urges us to learn from the stories of these and other great teachers. additionally, he asks readers to turn inward to hear their own voice and know their personal story. he calls teaching an autobiographical affair and underscores how individual histories influence how and what we teach. knowing your story, and the stories of others, adds to the artistry of teaching. insightful teachers evolve into connoisseurs of pedagogical practice and develop a keen sense of the nuances that occur in their classes. in addition to knowing their students, subject matter, and how to teach, purposeful teachers research how individual students learn and how to manage a classroom. teachers are sensitive to the unique value of direct teaching, indirect instruction, and an integrated or differentiated approach to instruction. to assist the reader’s understanding, kirylo provides his beliefs as well as ideas from foundational leaders. he champions an understanding of theory; doing so increasingly enhances teaching as we become familiar with observing developmental stages and behaviors. he introduces the theories of john locke and jeanjacques rousseau to help illuminate aspects of nature and nurture and what can be defined as a childcentered philosophy of education. the author frames theorists in the context of behaviorism, cognitivism, and humanism. the works of figures such as john watson, jean piaget, eric erikson, and abraham maslow are also revisited. kirylo says the purposeful teacher should understand the terms assessment and evaluation. many people use the terms interchangeably; however, the terms are different. he thinks it is important to discern the unique qualities for each term and to understand when and how it should be used. for example, we do not perform assessment “on” our students but we do use assessment “with and for” them to gain information about what is happening with respect to their learning. evaluation places a value or judgement on what we find. formal or informal, formative or summative, evaluation provides us with an idea of the value and merit of what or who is being evaluated. kirylo leads the reader through a fascinating path as he explains the evolving testing movement. recapping ideas from such leaders as john dewey and edward l. thorndike, he explains how differing views about testing developed. fueled by the quest to define and measure intelligence, an array of approaches and beliefs about intelligence evolved. several are described. readers learn about the influences of such reports as a nation at risk, shifts in education, and differing perspectives on teaching. heightened expectations for teacher preparation and more rigorous standards became the norm for reform. teachers moved from simply testing to what is referred to as high-stakes testing. in theory, it was to yield needed reform; it blamed many failings on teachers. kirylo presents staggering statistics on how many tests are now given, the cost of testing, and how much time is spent in preparation for testing. he postulates, in this current educational system, that the focus on accountability indicates slowing both the depth and breadth of what is actually being taught. kirylo states that by definition teachers are leaders. their leadership occurs in both formal and informal roles. they are mentors, instructional leaders, heads of departments, literacy coaches, and lead teachers. effective principals encourage and support an array of teacher leadership both on campus and in the greater educational and public communities. part of being a leader involves being socially conscious and politically involved. the author discusses how poverty is a major societal challenge that impedes student learning and effective schooling. poverty influences a range of social and personal vulnerabilities in health, housing, nutrition, and intellectual stimulation. his message is straightforward. our education system needs to be more just and equitable, engaging, culturally relevant, and developmentally appropriate. in sum, kirylo, a master wordsmith, takes his readers along a fascinating, introspective, and retrospective journey to clarify understanding and appreciation for what teaching with purpose means. he clearly examines the who, why, and how teachers teach. beginning and experienced teachers, others in education, and the greater community will find teaching with purpose informative and inspirational. introduction for the spring of 2016, the international journal of the whole child (ijwc) editorial team proudly announces publication of the first volume of the journal. typically, ijwc includes the introduction, three manuscripts, pictures for reflection, and the spotlight on real-world practice. the introduction section provides a summary of the articles and underscores the relationship to the whole child perspective; the main content includes three original manuscripts with relevance for children birth through the adolescent years; pictures for reflection provides for readers a photograph, illustration, or graphic that, in a single moment, captures the learning of the whole child; and finally, the fourth component, spotlight on real-world practice, demonstrates how practitioners make daily contributions to the lives of children; they appreciate children are diverse, unique, and holistic learners. in this issue, three authors describe the importance of “messing-about”, listening, and advocating on behalf of children. in the first article, “playing around in science: how self-directed inquiry benefits the whole child”, brian stone describes the integral connections among inquiry thinking, children’s choice, and play behaviors. assuming a constructivist perspective, his discussion, strategies, and arguments for holistic learning are relevant for children of all ages. stone describes the importance of providing children with opportunities, time, and materials to explore science content in a selfdirected manner. he argues that through play and messing-about, children develop higher-level understandings, and demonstrate more sophisticated approaches to science. the author discusses existing research supporting the academic benefits of self-directed or authentic scientific inquiry. inquiry refers to questioning that belongs to the individual. he goes on to describe how, in adults seeking to promote inquiry, they often overlook an aspect of children’s distinctive ownership. this is play. i through play, children learn to think creatively, plan divergently, and solve problems innovatively. they develop a unique scientific identity. but, within an understanding of the whole child, stone is quick to point out that play in science extends far beyond promoting academic understandings. he argues when a child engages in play activities, while simultaneously undertaking inquiry processes, the child can also choose to participate in social/collaborative scientific endeavors. additionally, emotional development and connections can also be made when children play around with science content. finally, since play activities typically involve movement, children are actively occupied in physical representations that can also make concepts concrete for their better understanding. with respect to nurturing the whole child, play in science promotes comprehension, but it also provides opportunities for children to become socially, physically, emotionally, and even culturally involved. in the second article, “conversations in an 8th-grade ela classroom: spaces where young adolescents can construct identities,” the author, kathleen reeb-reascos, discusses how, since the mandates of no child left behind and the subsequent integration of the common core state standards, an era of accountability and high-stakes testing, have led teachers to a deficit-based approach to children’s learning. instead of highlighting logical reasoning, critical thinking, expressing creativity, synthesizing text, analyzing information, posing and solving problems, communicating, collaborating and reflecting, this prescriptive approach targets basic skills of reading comprehension and technical writing composition. consequently, children’s learning experiences lack in creativity, meaning, and empowerment. when instruction is superficial, students disengage. for the adolescent, it is critical the child reconciles his or her self-identity. using discourse analysis, reeb-reascos demonstrated how when students join together over a compelling literary text, they use this discursive space to transform into a practice in identity construction. she argues that the young adolescents’ scaffolded discussion and the substance of literary text facilitated the adoption and rejection of new facets of identity. the lesson became a means to explore identity in historical, generational and individual contexts. this led to the creation of students’ understanding of new discourses. students gained a deeper awareness of society, justice, and their positions in relation to each. ii l. kathryn sharp, in the third article, “examining the precepts of early childhood education: the basics or the essence?” provides readers with a theoretical framework for holistic teaching and learning. this discussion encourages early childhood educators and the related professional development and research communities to become the leading voices in determining the direction of early childhood education. in advocating on behalf of targeting the whole child, sharp revisits fundamental aspects of what is meant by early childhood education. using the four precepts identified by jalongo and isenberg (2008), sharp offers a conceptual and philosophical starting point for creating learning experiences targeting the whole child. these precepts include: precept 1: young children need special nurturing, precept 2: young children are the future of society, precept 3: young children are worthy of study, and precept 4: young children’s potential should be optimized. sharp’s discussion examines the nature of these precepts and the potential each of these may play in responding to teacher recruitment, quality, and retention, and the role in fulfilling the anticipated promise of universally implemented early childhood education standards. she provides readers with specific language and strategies to build and justify holistic practices for young children. she identifies a clear and concise roadmap toward supporting the learning and development of the whole child. finally, she describes ways in which teachers of all ages may promote children’s social, emotional, physical, as well as intellectual learning and development. pictures for reflection in order to promote the learning of the whole child, children, of all ages, must experience a range of opportunities and continue to challenge and test themselves. in particular, the out-of-doors provides learning events not possible in the indoors. it is important for children to run, slide, feel wet, race with the wind, and embrace the joy of genuine ownership. spotlight on real-world practice in “puddle ponderings,” cris lozon provides practitioners with the extraordinary potential for using a puddle for children’s deeper and more reflective learning. iii introduction in the fall ijwc 2016 publication, three manuscripts provide teachers with information and insight toward improving appropriate and effective instruction for diverse groups of children. viewing pictures for reflection, readers discover how engaging, intellectual, and academic dirt truly can be. in the segment titled etc., two authors describe ways in which schools directly linked with their communities in partnerships. articles in the first article, “are korean early childhood teachers becoming more responsive to multicultural children?” authors, reina park, james hoot, and hyejin shin, analyze data drawn from the korean institute of child care and education (kicce) survey. these researchers were interested in the progress being made in the preparedness of korean teachers to address diversity issues. findings indicate teaching experience, close teacher-child relationships, and awareness of recent standardized curriculum may play a role in higher levels of diversity self-efficacy of early childhood educators. the study concludes with policy recommendations describing the roles of teacher dispositions and university education. in the second article, “technology integration into early childhood education,” shaunna smith, lauren burrow, kathy fite, and laurie guerra explore the context for technology and technology integration into early childhood classrooms. defining technology assumes different meanings. for the early childhood educator, there are multiple concerns about technology integration that go beyond access and classroom management of student use. considering the current trend to eliminate the standalone technology course in favor of technology integration into methods and content courses, these authors were interested in the implications for early childhood teacher practice. “are university instructors effectively modeling the knowledge early childhood teacher candidates need?” in the third manuscript, kathleen fite provides readers with a review of kirylo’s book, teaching with purpose: an inquiry into the: who, why, and how we teach. fite outlines kirylo’s discussion describing the importance of teachers’ purposeful thoughts and actions. fite describes how kirylo believes, in order to be “change agents” on behalf of equity and justice for all children, teachers build and maintain culturally responsive classrooms. what collaborative efforts do teachers engage on behalf of genuine partnerships and relationship building? in building respectful and trustful relationships, what is important for teachers to know about themselves and others? after reading this review by fite, readers will be left wanting to read the text for themselves. pictures for reflection two photographs capture a child’s total involvement while their playing in the dirt. titled, digging in the dirt is serious business, the descriptive cutline provides insight for readers on what learning is actually occurring. after reflecting upon these many learning possibilities, classroom teachers will insist on creating an area for dirt and mud play for their students. etc. in an effort to describe unique learning experiences, the etc. section provides readers with two extraordinary ways to celebrate and partner with the community. in the first etc. article, “the halloween holiday: a time for community celebration”, claudia best describes how for more than 40 years, a school in new york, uses the halloween holiday as a town-wide celebration. from the morning assembly where children perform skits, songs, and poetry to the afternoon parade through the town, the children, teachers, and community members use this day to celebrate their school and children. in addition to maintaining academic excellence, this elementary school intentionally integrates curriculum, actively involves families and businesses as learning partners, and respects that children are unique and deserve a range of diverse learning possibilities. in the second etc. article, “growing up healthy: from the farm to the cafeteria,” tylar setser provides a step-by-step guide to creating this partnership. she describes how to build a relationship between a local farmer and the school. collaboration among the farmer, cafeteria staff, families, teachers, and children becomes a life-long commitment toward healthy eating and nutritious choices. she provides ways to effectively plan, clearly communicate, and cautiously avoid pitfalls. 1 introduction ijwc remains committed to extending an understanding of the critical importance of ensuring all children with holistic and inclusive learning opportunities. each child is regarded as unique; teachers perceive differences as natural and contributing to the overall learning environment. using professional knowledge, educators intentionally plan experiences integrating both cognitive and affective strategies. this ijwc fall issue provides readers with relevant and specific information with which to implement learning events which are both holistic and inclusive. articles the ijwc editors remain committed to providing our readers with the most relevant and current knowledge with which to create innovative, holistic, and responsive instructional practices. yet, in the first article, “neuroeducation and early elementary teaching: retrospective innovation for promoting growth with students living in poverty,” karyn allee-herndon and sherron killingsworth roberts provide readers with an interesting conundrum. they ask readers to acknowledge the effective learning strategies used by our grandparents generations ago; at the same time, they underscore the relationship between these age-old practices with the most current understanding of the brain. authors define “education, or educational neuroscience is an emerging field combining various scientific disciplines as it relates to learning to study the relationships between the biological processes of the brain and students' cognitive development.” authors describe the positive benefits for holistic learning, especially children challenged with socio-economic status and other adversities, by recalling many traditional games, songs, and experiences. there may be some contemporary educators not familiar with the practices from a by-gone era; authors discuss what our children might be missing. creating opportunities to play, use language, and diminish stress enhance all children’s learning, but in particular, support children who may be additionally vulnerable. allee-herndon and killingsworth roberts clearly describe how without additional funding, training, or consulting, educators can nurture children’s developing brain, learning, and feeling. in other words, this article provides us with an opportunity, in order to move forward, to step back and reflect on what is best for children. in the second article, “educator perceptions of student ownership and self-authorship: building a connective framework between two constructs,” brian a. stone and kendra surmitis highlight the role of holistic development by reminding readers of the importance of children’s emerging sense of self and other. in addition to the familiar construct of ownership, authors as well underscore the critical role of self-authorship as equally significant for a child’s healthy development. ownership, well defined in the existing literature, refers to ensuring children’s 2 voice in decision-making, involving students in school routines, and legitimizing a child’s personal relevance and individual instruction. self-authorship, in contrast, focuses on the internal self-regarding an integration of ‘values, beliefs, convictions, generalizations, ideals, abstractions, interpersonal loyalties, and interpersonal states’ (kegan, 1994, p. 185). authors discuss how practitioners who seek to understand how to most effectively plan for a range of diverse student populations, will find this content decisive when considering children naturally integrate their “identity, beliefs, and social relationships while critically considering external variables and perspectives.” as teachers nurture children’s holistic development, they may be aware of the intrapersonal and interpersonal dimensions; but may not be as familiar with the epistemological (how a child views the world). in this preliminary study, stone and surmitis describe the role of holistic development by reminding readers of the importance of discussing teachers’ perceptions of selfauthorship with respect to assigned value and classroom manifestation. for some readers, selfauthorship may be a new construct; therefore, in order to maximize students’ holistic learning experiences, this manuscript affords readers with a possibly new insight. in the third article, “exploring the power and processes of friendship through picturebooks,” patricia crawford and kaybeth calabria affirm the critical importance of friendships in children’s healthy development. they describe how, in addition to children’s ongoing observations of others interacting as friends as well as their own continuous efforts to initiate and maintain friendships, the role of quality picture books may prove a valuable learning alternative. crawford and calabria provide readers with an “overview of the role of friendship in the lives of children and consider ways in which children can develop the skills and habits of mind and heart needed to initiate, sustain, and navigate challenging areas within these types of relationships.” this article identifies related texts in each developing area in which children may struggle; a secure friendship requires knowledge, skills, and dispositions in which children potentially lack experiences or competencies. using quality picture books, children come to understand through the characters, story-lines, and strategies, that they are not alone in their efforts to make and maintain friends. picture books provide children with examples to both think and feel through issues arising between friends. in addition to several examples of high-quality picture books, authors provide descriptions supporting readers’ understanding of children’s developing sense of friendship. pictures for reflection although thousands and thousands of pages currently describe the critical importance of children’s dress-up and role play, in this issue, one picture captures the self-confidence, selfesteem, and sheer pleasure a child experiences when pretending to be someone/something else. this single photograph evidences the thinking and feeling motivating children’s dress-up play. take a look, smile, and wonder at children’s imaginations. 3 tech talk nancy caukin, an espoused technology-user enthusiast, describes in “edtech: where do i start?” how technology affords teachers, students, and parents a wide range of learning possibilities. most importantly, her content well supports users by describing why not to become overwhelmed, how not to expect proficiency, and where to seek additional information, support, and feedback. she describes a platform to learn, an arena to explore, and the freedom to enjoy. etc. readers frequently ask the editorial team what is meant by the etc. descriptor in ijwc. it is true the abbreviation etc., is not typically used in formal writing. yet, in reading manuscripts, authors frequently use “etc.” as if readers will quickly generate several examples; this is not always the case. in order to support readers’ ability to connect research studies with best practice examples, the etc. section of ijwc commits to clearly demonstrating connections across theory, research, and best practices. terri tharp, with the assistance and collaboration of university and community colleagues, is most successful in securing grant funding to plan and implement numerous family literacy events. she believes this article may support others’, particularly teacher candidates’, efforts to build upon child and family literacy understanding through school-community partnerships. terri tharp identifies the essential components of successful grant funding and as well provides readers with straightforward descriptions to effectively implement family literacy events. ijwc journal v3n2-final 4 ijwc journal v3n2-final 5 ijwc journal v3n2-final 6 20 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 critically reflective leadership: defining successful growth robert reardona, kathleen fiteb, mike boonec, sierra sullivand a-d texas state university dr. reardon is an associate professor of adult education at texas state university. his research focuses on leadership, organizational learning, quantitative methods and stem education. he also works in manufacturing to develop leadership skills in risk assessment. dr. kathleen fite is a professor in the department of curriculum and instruction at texas state university. her research focuses on development and learning across the lifespan, spirituality, leadership and motivation. dr. mike boone is professor emeritus (retired) in the educational leadership program at texas state university. a former school superintendent and principal, his research interests include school leadership development, servant leadership, the superintendency, and school finance. he currently resides in san marcos, texas. sierra sullivan serves as a doctoral research assistant and is a second year doctoral student in the adult, professional, and community education program at texas state university. her research focuses on student veteran transition from war zones to higher education institutions, impact of faculty development methods for military sensitivity training, and the student veteran experience on the college campus. abstract the purpose of this article is to propose a technique that can be used by emerging leaders when considering adopting the most appropriate leadership styles, behaviors or actions in a particular context. the authors review several different leadership models explored by scholars during the past six decades; not all of these models work for all leaders in all situations. in order to become effective leaders, authors propose the use of reflection-in-action to facilitate emerging leaders when faced with challenging situations. by considering a descriptive, yet brief informal checklist, the emerging leader can be supported in choosing from different models or approaches. 21 the practical application of this information is to assist those mentoring emerging leaders and leaders themselves to develop reflective practices and insightful dispositions necessary to navigate the complex situations encountered in today’s daily interactive environments. this original work combines the literature of leadership with schön’s work on reflective practice. while it seems an obvious application of schön, the concept of critically reflective leadership is not prevalent in the literature. keywords: leadership; critical self-reflection; reflective practice critical self-reflection, considered the most important skill that educators can impart to an adult learner, is “a critique of a premise upon which the learner has defined a problem” (mezirow, 1998, p. 186). this skill is a technique that facilitates an adult re-examining his or her basic beliefs in order to improve understanding. compatible with critical reflection, schön’s (1983) concept of the reflective practitioner concludes that without critical reflection, the professional is bound to technical rationality. to further simplify, without critical reflection, professionals act as they are taught, or act based on experience. schön (1983) asserts this is a limited form of practice; it is critical reflective practitioners think in action in order to be responsive, timely, and insightful. using critical reflection, practitioners can think beyond their training and past experiences and explore, at least as a mental exercise, possibilities that have been beyond their experience. by mastering this skill set, this acquired tool will, presumably, lead to professional growth (schön, 1983). critical self-reflection has applications beyond professional practice. flores, matkin, burbach, quinn, and harding (2012) argue that critical thought is a key part of effective leadership and that college graduates have, for the most part, not developed the techniques necessary to reflect on their performance as leaders. in school, students learn models and frameworks that will be transferred to their lifeworld after leaving the academic environment. schön (1983) refers to this as technical rationality. comer (2016) found this practice does not work because of the unique and conflicting aspects of the dynamic work environment. professionals reflect on practice and modify their mental models based on experience. this reflection may be tacit or thoughtful, and the practitioners fit their teaching to their experience. schön (1983) and comer (2016) assert that thoughtful and purposeful reflection leads to more accurate and robust mental models of practice. beyond the ability to master critical reflection to help an individual become a successful leader, it is important to examine the different qualifiers that individuals in effective leadership positions exhibit. since the middle of the 20th century, scholars continue to define the attributes of successful leadership using several different models. after world war ii, research focused on explaining how an entire country could follow the leadership of someone as evil as hitler. the authoritarian model describes leaders that demanded absolute obedience from followers (adorno, frenkel-brunswik, levinson, & sanford, 1950). other models were developed to describe more socially acceptable practices of leadership. charismatic leadership emerged from the writing of weber (2009) and continues to be cited in scholarly work since the 1940s (conger 22 & kanungo, 1987). conger and kanungo (1987) describe a charismatic leader as a likeable person whose power is based on expertise, respect, and admiration. the path goal leadership model (vroom, 1964; house, 1971) describes the function of leaders as providing a motivating environment for their subordinates. another leadership model, servant leadership (greenleaf, 2002), presents a model wherein the leader works to satisfy the needs of those being led. additionally, the authentic leadership model (gardner & schermerhorn, 2004) expects leaders to act in a manner consistent with their beliefs. it relies on a belief that all individuals in an organization are willing to act towards the goals of the organization. the spiritual leadership model (fry, 2003) builds on intrinsic motivation of members and individuals and highlights working in service to the key stakeholders of the organization; altruistic love is regarded as integral within an understanding of leadership. finally, burns (1978) differentiates between transactional leadership, which relies on a system of quid pro quo exchanges between the leaders and followers and transformational leadership, a model which relies on motivating followers to identify with something—an organization or cause---larger than themselves. scholars wishing to isolate distinct practices of effective leaders developed numerous instruments to measure the characteristics or behaviors of leaders. several leadership assessment instruments are currently in use. for example, scholars developed the f-scale (f stands for fascist) to measure characteristics associated with an authoritarian personality (vroom & mann, 1960). another example, the spiritual assessment scale, measures factors associated with spiritual leadership (beazley, 1998). additionally, the leadership practices inventory (posner & kouzes, 1988) is widely used to measure leader performance on five distinct components of effective leadership. in sum, each of these instruments measure attributes associated with one or more models of leadership. although these instruments are deemed effective in case-by-case research examples, none seem to apply to all the models of leadership. while instruments that measure attributes are useful in academic settings, a practicing reflective leader would not be able to do a formal assessment to determine which model of leadership is more closely aligned with their personality and which leadership model might be most effective for a particular context. instead, a reflective leader would examine his or her values, beliefs, behaviors, and impact on the organization as compared against some set of internal criteria. he or she then modifies those values, beliefs, and behaviors to become a “better” leader. what makes this reflective process so daunting a task is the decades of academic history describing the attributes of effective leadership. the resulting descriptions describe an assorted miscellany of occasionally incompatible leadership attributes. the purpose of this discussion is to propose a means by which leaders, attempting to become critically reflective, can determine criteria that can be used to further his or her growth as an effective leader. first, several models of leadership will be described. then using the existing leadership literature, characteristics of self-reflective assessment are described for each type of leadership. 23 models of leadership several models of leadership exist in both the scholarly and popular literature. additionally, this discussion includes models that were considered important to particular fields of academic endeavors or research. this analysis does not attempt to describe all possible models; rather, this content identifies the more well-known models from which characteristics of effective leadership may be gleaned. table 1 displays nine models of leadership and the scholars whose work undergirds each model. table 1 models of leadership with foundational authors model reference authentic leadership (avolio, walumbwa, & weber, 2009) authoritarian leadership (adorno, frenkel-brunswik, levinson, & sanford, 1950; vroom & mann, 1960) charismatic leadership (weber, 2009) five practices of exemplary leadership model (kouzes & posner, 2006) path goal leadership (house, 1971) servant leadership (greenleaf, 2002) spiritual leadership (fry, 2003) transactional leadership (burns, 1978) transformational leadership (burns, 1978) to further the reasoning essential for this analysis, it is important to begin with a brief overview of the models of leadership considered as important. authoritarian leadership descriptions of authoritarian leadership emerged in the years immediately after world war ii (vroom & mann, 1960). scholars sought to understand how entire nations willingly conformed to the will of authoritarian leaders like hitler, mussolini, or stalin who espoused dictatorial values and practices that were inconsistent with the norms of a democratic society (adorno et al, 1950). authoritarian leaders rely on their power relationships with followers to force compliance (schuh, zhang, & tian, 2013). this model of leadership has been called “command and control,” and is associated with the theory x (macgregor, 1960) concept of leadership. distance is maintained between leader and followers and most communication flows from the leader to 24 the followers (hackman & johnson, 2013). authoritarian leaders work without regard for the well-being of followers (schuh et al, 2013). charismatic leadership in this model of leadership, followers in the organization do not rally around the formal leader in fear of an external threat. instead, they seek the leadership of an individual whom they believe exhibits the skill, values and goals congruent with their own worldview. grabo and van vugt (2016) assert that followers are attracted to the charismatic leader and use that attraction as a focus to orient their activities. weber (2009) described charisma as a characteristic of leadership as early as 1947, and researchers continued to attribute worker motivation to external charisma well into the 1970s (alschuler & thompson, 1969; juan, 1967; vroom, 1964). path goal leadership path goal leadership also makes worker motivation a duty of the leader. in this model, personal charisma is not the motivator, instead the leader’s role is to help link worker or follower effort with positive communities or organizational goals (house, 1971). the foundation for this model of leadership is found in the expectancy theory of motivation (vroom, 1964). other scholars examined motivating factors for workers with one of the most notable models of worker motivation, namely the 2-factor model of worker motivation (herzberg, mausner, & snyderman, 2011). presumably, leaders motivate followers. house (1971) describes a mathematical approach to path goal leadership where worker motivators are related to actions. transactional leadership this model bears similarities to path goal leadership. leaders still work to provide external motivators to followers (or workers) (burns, 1978). in this model of leadership, leaders depend on communications between the leader and the followers. following is dependent on consent of the followers (burns, 1978). transformational leadership burns (1978) contrasted transformational and transactional leadership, describing transactional leadership as a more traditional model and transformational leadership as a more holistic approach. transformational leaders raise followers’ levels of awareness of the vision of the future and provide a set of morale and motivational factors that guide the actions of the organization. burns also described alignment of follower skills with the tasks required to meet organizational goals. bass (1985) argued that leaders could be transactional or transformational depending on the context. schuh et al (2013) maintain that transformational leading is amoral and that leaders could use this model of leadership to motivate their followers for good or bad. five practices of exemplary leadership model kouzes and posner (2006) proposed a model of leadership that is frequently cited. the model includes five practices of leadership: • model the way 25 • inspire a shared vision • challenge the process • enable others to act • encourage the heart (kouzes & posner, 2006; posner & kouzes, 1988). the leadership practices inventory (lpi) measures these five practices of leadership. this inventory is widely used and cited. this model, like several others, focuses on leaders’ roles in providing external motivation to followers. servant leadership greenleaf (2002) describes a model where one of the main roles of leadership is stewardship for the followers. simply put, the leader acts as a servant/enabler in ways that support followers as they focus on achievement of the organizational goals. greenleaf first put forth this model of leadership in the 1980s, and it is cited and implemented by numerous scholars throughout a number of research endeavors. there are several instruments that have been described to measure aspects of servant leadership (barbuto & wheeler, 2006; dennis, kinzler-norheim, & bocarnea, 2010; laub, 1999; liden, wayne, zhao, & henderson, 2008; sendjaya & sarros, 2002; van dierendonck, 2011; wong, davey, & church, 2007). while servant leadership indicates a strong intuitive appeal among practitioners and scholars, research on this model of leadership continues. spiritual leadership more than one model of leadership represents spiritual leadership (beazley, 1998; fry, 2003), but fry’s description predominates. the key characteristic described by fry is altruistic love. fry, vetucci, and cedillo (2005) provide an instrument to measure the characteristics of spiritual leadership. authentic leadership as the name implies, authentic leaders share their actual emotions, beliefs, and goals with their followers (avolio et al, 2009). one of the main mechanisms of authentic leadership is the promotion of trust and belief in others among-andbetween both the followers and the leaders. according to gardner and schermerhorn (2004), trust and belief in others lead to positive organizational behaviors and self-efficacy in the individual and the organization. walumbwa et al. (2008) developed and validated an instrument to measure authentic leadership. leadership as an open system to conceptualize critical reflection in leadership, the process of leadership will be described using the lens of open systems theory (scott & davis, 2007). open systems consist of inputs and outputs, the processes within the system boundaries and the context (or environment) in which the system operates. feedback is a reflective process that allows adjustment to the system. figure 26 1 is a representation of leadership when considered as an open system. here, leader characteristics or attributes are the system inputs. interactions of the leader with followers are the primary processes and actions of individuals or organizations, as outputs, become the outcomes. the context defines the resources, goals, and limitations. figure 1: leadership as a system open systems are not inherently stable. the system is normally monitored and adjusted to compensate for perturbations or instability. watch someone driving down a straight road. ideally no steering would be required. however, in even this most unchanging situation, the driver will make small adjustments to the steering. in a generic open system, feedback can be based on observed attributes of the context, inputs, processes, or outputs. feedback is then used to adjust the system. depending on the system and the situation, adjustments can be made to the inputs, the processes or even the contexts. for leadership, feedback is the process of critical reflection on the leader’s style and practices. in other words, the critically reflective leader will be aware of personal goals, context, his or her own attributes, and actions and his or her impacts on the actions of individuals or the outcomes of organizations. the reflective analysis of the leader intends to contribute to individual growth and improvement. the intention of the current analysis is not to describe a new model of leadership, but to support emerging leaders by describing existing models of leadership to illustrate the potential of using critical reflection on their personal style of leadership. leader characteristics the scholars who have conceptualized the various models of leadership take pains to clearly identify the traits and behaviors of an ideal leader. for example, charismatic leaders are described as having excellent interpersonal skills (grabo & van vugt, 2016) while servant 27 leaders are depicted as serving the needs of their followers (greenleaf, 2002). here we describe four aspects of leadership common across various leadership models. interaction with followers in many cases, leadership can be defined by the interactions or relationship between the leader and followers. authentic leaders rely on trust to maintain motivation. path goal leaders carefully define organizational goals to provide external motivation for followers. in the five practices model, motivation is provided by the interactions of the leader with the followers (kouzes & posner, 2006). actions and development of followers most of the models describe steps by the leader to develop the followers or, at least to, monitor their performance. advocates of the servant and spiritual leadership models both focus on the primary need to care for, and support development of their followers. outcomes authoritarian, path goal, and transactional models of leadership include a focus on outcomes in the traditional sense. that is, these models focus on motivating followers to meet organizational goals. authentic, transformational, spiritual, and servant leadership models acknowledge follower growth and satisfaction as valid goals. success, reward, and growth authoritarian leadership is one of the theories that seems to acknowledge the leader as interested in the leadership process. realistically, leaders can be motivated by altruistic or personal goals. in practice, most leaders tend to be motivated by a combination of both. leaders want the same things that the followers want, such as wanting to do a good job, and recognition for accomplishments. inevitably, leaders will want to grow in some way (personally or professionally). any model of leadership that ignores these motivators is incomplete. critically reflective leadership most leadership models are prescriptive. they tell the reader what characteristics are found in leaders. these can be thought of as learning outcomes or competencies for someone learning to lead. hopefully, these characteristics are transferred to practice and result in the effective implementation of leadership; however, the actions of leadership are similar to professional practice. it takes time and effort to successfully apply these skills or behaviors. schön (1983) asserts that it is critical for practitioners to reflect-in-action to improve their practice. in fact, he argues it is essential that reflection-in-action be taught to potential leaders. this reflection-inaction is one form of critical self-reflection. adopting reflection-in-action is integral for nascent leaders to fully develop skills and dispositions. leaders think through what they are doing and provide themselves with critique. at this point in their development and practice, the models of leadership begin to provide less 28 support. just as in any professional practice, the learning objectives or competencies are a start, but now transfer to effective practice. in leadership, the context is unique and changing. individuals change and grow; the goals, contexts, organizations, and problems remain as dynamic. the critically reflective leader will want to individually assess the organization’s or individual’s progress towards goals and then, modify behaviors to meet those unique goals. obviously, this implies the leader knows what the goals are which is not always clear. in some cases, the objectives of the organization are paramount; in other instances, the development of the team or individual team members become key goals. the success of the leader is a necessary goal if the leader wants to continue leading; effective leaders realize leadership is a complex balance of difficult goals. the intellectual balance of potentially competing goals defines critically reflective leadership. ideally, leaders would always seek development and job satisfaction for their followers, but many times resource limitations will force a choice between “getting the job done” or allowing individuals to develop their skills. in other situations, the goals of the organization may conflict with the values of the leader. in these cases, the leader chooses between being a “successful” leader or being true to his or her personal values. (in extreme cases, the leader may need to seek membership in other organizations). the practicing leader may draw on characteristics from different models of leadership depending on the contexts and the goals that are most important at the time. for example, when it comes to compliance with laws or regulations, the most authentic leader may adopt some authoritarian behaviors. when followers demonstrate personal issues that limit their effectiveness, a path goal leader may seek other paths to allow the individual to mediate their individual issues without sacrificing the goals of the organization. this is not to say leaders can abandon all consistency and act completely differently based on the situation. leaders evidence constraint as guided by their values, the ethical guidelines of the context, and applicable laws and regulations. followers look to their leaders for well-defined and consistent behaviors and would be troubled by apparently random shifts in the behaviors of their leaders. the critical leadership checklist schön (1983) and mezirow (1998) believe that critical reflection should be taught to leaders. assuming the beginning leader understands the process of reflection-in-action, the process might be described with the following checklist questions: what are the goals here? identify the organizational goals keeping in mind that there may be different categories of goals that are not obvious. for example, solving a labor issue will have an impact on the profit of the organization, compliance with federal or state labor laws, and/or community relations. in academic settings, it is difficult to simulate the several diverse goals faced by leaders in realworld settings. there are often situations where the goals conflict to varying degrees. goals are also not static. they change over time. new goals may emerge before existing goals are met. 29 leaders set the priorities (to some extent) and set schedules, allocate resources, and communicate goals and strategies. do the goals of individuals need to be considered? as intimated in the last section, real-world settings involve multiple goals competing for limited resources. when setting priorities and leading organizations, leaders evaluate the needs of individuals as well as the needs of the organization(s). for example, there may be someone who will gain experience or knowledge (or grow in other ways) by working on a particular goal. the leader may need to seek the best balance among potentially incompatible goals. for the current situations, what leadership skills or behaviors should be employed for the current situation? multiple diverse goals call for diverse actions or behaviors. even in the same time frame, the leader may need to vary his or her approach to particular goals. the leader will then call on skills or behaviors described in the various models of leadership. as noted previously, different contexts will call for different skills or behaviors and not all leadership models apply to every setting. what constraints apply to the situation? constraints apply to every issue a leader may encounter. many of the constraints can be addressed through planning and communication. for example, obtaining enough people or resources is an activity that is done by leaders. however, some of the constraints are due to limits within the organization, personal values and ethics, or legal limits on activities. leaders may find behaviors or skills for dealing with these constraints in one or more models of leadership. authentic leadership may be more effective for working with followers to deal with difficult non-ideal situations than an authoritarian leader that leaves followers frustrated and constrained to failure. how will i assess progress and success? sometimes achieving the organizational goals is not the only measure of success. leaders develop followers, and allowing them to gain experience is often a measure of success. in other cases, organizational goals can be clearly assessed. it may be that failure may possess pedagogical value that can be utilized by supportive leadership. how will progress and success be documented? outcomes do not speak for themselves. others in the organization and independent of the organization need to know what progress is being made and what goals are being met. it is important to the followers and the leader that their work is documented and acknowledged. this mental checklist can trigger critical reflection within developing leaders. many times, leaders will find themselves completing this sort of checklist without formal thought. formalizing this process allows leaders to consider other leadership skills or behaviors that may work more effectively in particular situations. by considering and using different behaviors or skills perhaps drawn from various models of leadership, the leader continues to develop. limitations to this process exist. not all developing leaders will be adept in all the possible leadership skills and behaviors. many organizations offer leadership development opportunities to their emerging leaders, but many do not. individual leaders can work past this limitation by reading the popular academic writings on leadership. not all leaders will be comfortable with all 30 the behaviors described in the models of leadership because leaders will have different opportunities, challenges, personalities, and cultural experiences. although individual leaders can work past their personal preferences for a leadership style, these preferences can act as constraints for leaders. conclusion critically reflective leadership would be simple if the leader selects one model of leadership and consistently follows a single approach. some models focus on organizational outcomes without regard to how the outcomes are achieved. other models focus on treatment of followers with less attention to organizational outcomes. perhaps effective leadership cannot be summarized in one model. for example, a leader may sometimes spend a substantial time mentoring individuals for them to be able to develop needed skills. however, critical circumstances may require a leader to forsake the long-term individual goals and focus on the organizational outcomes. therefore, a reflective leader may have to apply different mental models of leadership to different situations. the leadership literature provides numerous models of leadership that describe the characteristics of leaders. none of these models seem to prescribe a set of behaviors or characteristics that could be applied in all contexts. like most prescriptive models of behavior, the practicing leader must transfer these characteristics to real-world applications. in order to develop, it is integral for the leader to learn to reflect-in-action and adapt their behaviors to the situation. this adaptation process can be called critically reflective leadership and provides a flexible, personal, and dynamic quality to support effective leadership. in effective practice, a critically reflective leader balances individual and organizational goals and modifies their behaviors to achieve the most important goals. the practical application of critical reflection empowers emerging leaders to develop the skills and dispositions needed to address the new and reoccurring challenges of today’s work environment and to become effective leaders. critical reflection is the essential skill in effective leader development. 31 references adorno, t. w., frenkel-brunswik, e., levinson, d. j., & sanford, r. n. 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(2007). best practices in servant leadership. servant leadership research roundtable, school of global leadership and entrepreneurship. regent university. final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 63 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 children and families: health and wellness a family systems approach to addressing depression in children william fecka, atrevecca university william feck graduated from middle tennessee state university with an education specialist degree in professional counseling. he served as a professional school counselor for five years. he now is a full-time lecturer at mtsu providing supervision for practicum and school counseling internship students in the professional counseling program. concurrently, he is a therapist at integrative life center. william is in the doctoral program at trevecca for clinical counseling. he is trained in brainspotting phase i and ii and gottman level 1, and he is a nationally certified counselor (ncc). abstract children of all ages and around the globe can experience depressive symptoms. however, certain symptoms of depression can be expressed in distinct ways from depression in adulthood. while many individualistic approaches are utilized to treat depression in childhood, family systems modalities can be utilized with effectiveness since family factors can contribute to depressive symptoms (ghandour et al., 2019). family systems theories often examine and address the interactions between family members and the context in which the interactions occur. specifically, structural family therapy has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing childhood depression symptomology (jiménez et al., 2019). structural family therapy focuses on boundaries, hierarchies, and subsystems within a cultural context. the purpose of this literature review is to propose that structural family therapy is appropriate for addressing depression in childhood. additional discussion includes structural family therapy being appropriate for various cultures around the globe. major depressive disorder is a common mental disorder affecting children of all ages (james et al., 2018) and becomes higher in prevalence for children who have entered puberty (costello et al., 2006). mental health problems in childhood, such as depression, have been shown to have a more negative effect (e.g., a reduction in work resulting in a lower ses outcome) in the person’s adult life when compared to the effect of physical health issues (delaney & smith, 2012). furthermore, depressive disorders were found to be one of the leading causes for disability in 2017 (james et al., 2018). individuals who experienced depressive symptoms at an early onset typically had poorer quality of life, more depressive episodes, greater medical psychiatric comorbidity, more suicide attempts, and more significant symptoms severity than those with later ages of onset of major depressive disorder (zisook et al., 2007). given the research 64 demonstrating the negative effect that early onset of depression has on an individual, it is imperative to consider interventions. family systems therapy has been demonstrated to be an effective approach for addressing depression in childhood (jiménez et al., 2019; tompson et al., 2017; trowell et al., 2007). due to the reliance of children on their caregivers, it is prudent to involve the family in addressing mental health concerns (steinberg, 2001). while many approaches operate from an individualist approach (see bernaras et al., 2019), consideration of the family is significant since children with a primary caregiver who rated their own mental health as fair or poor in mental or emotional health had an increased rate of depression at 13% (ghandour et al., 2019). the purpose of this literature review is to propose structural family therapy as an effective modality for treating children with depressive symptoms. theories and treatment of depression theoretical models posit various causation for depression (bernaras et al., 2019). biological and psychological are two main perspectives regarding etiology. biological theories have postulations, such as alterations in brain structure (whittle et al., 2014), genetic factors (scourfield et al., 2003), and noradrenaline deficits (narbona, 2014). psychological perspectives explain depression through theories, such as attachment theory (bigelow et al., 2013), behavioral models (skinner, 1953), cognitive models (beck, 1987), and interpersonal theory (markowitz & weissman, 1995). while many theories focus on psychopathology in an individual context, it is important to consider systemic theories. watson (2012) defined family systems theory as a framework for understanding human functioning that focuses on interactions between family members and between the family and the context in which it is embedded. family systems theory posits reciprocal causal explanations as opposed to linear (robbins et al., 1998). to understand depressive symptoms from a child, family systems approaches would explore the interactions and context for such behavior. interactions and context for depressive symptoms can first be assessed within the family environment. tompson et al. (2017) found that family environment characteristics can be a predictor of recovery among depressed children. a study comparing the effects of familyfocused treatment for childhood depression (fft-cd) and individual supportive psychotherapy for children, who were 7 to 14 years of age diagnosed with depressive disorders, demonstrated that children had better outcomes with fft-cd (tompson et al., 2017b). additional studies have shown an effectiveness in utilizing family systems theories for addressing depression in childhood (asarnow et al., 2020; luby et al., 2021). specifically, one of the most prominent family therapies is structural family therapy (sexton et al., 2003) developed by minuchin (1967), which has been demonstrated to address depression in childhood (jiménez et al., 2019; weaver et al., 2013). depression in childhood the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.; dsm–5; american psychiatric association [apa], 2013) is often used to determine if a person meets the criteria for a depressive disorder. several diagnoses are possible for a person exhibiting depressive 65 symptoms: persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia), premenstrual dysphoric disorder, substance/medication-induced depressive disorder, depressive disorder due to another medical condition, single depressive episode, recurrent depressive disorder, persistent mood (affective) disorder, and other mood (affective) disorders. for a person to be diagnosed with major depressive disorder, several criteria must be met nearly every day for a minimum of two consecutive weeks. possible criteria include a depressed mood, diminished interest in most activities, significant weight loss, insomnia or hypersomnia, feelings of worthlessness diminished ability to concentrate, and recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. consideration for children includes the understanding that children can “mask” depressed moods with irritable moods and acting out and not meeting expected weight gain rather than a significant loss in weight (apa, 2013). the onset of major depressive disorder can occur at any age, but there are higher prospects for symptoms occurring with puberty (apa, 2013). children, aged 3-17, have a prevalence rate of 3.2% for depression and nearly 80% had received treatment for depressive symptoms (ghandour et al., 2019). boys, 10 years or younger, are more likely to be diagnosed with depression than girls. however, by early adolescence, teenage girls are 1.5-3 times more likely to be diagnosed with depression (apa, 2013). researchers using self-report measures, such as the children’s depression scale (lang & tisher, 1978) and the children’s depression inventory (kovacs, 1992), have found children experiencing high depressive symptomology at 4.2% in spain (bernaras-iturrioz et al., 2013), 6.2% in finland (almqvist et al., 1999), and 10% in australia (mccabe et al., 2011). structural family therapy salvador minuchin began working in family therapy as a child psychiatrist. minuchin and colleagues at the wiltwyck school for boys were challenged by the ineffectiveness of utilizing an individualistic approach for juvenile delinquents. he then began to recognize that his clients’ behaviors were not simply an action but a reaction. through trial and error, he and his colleagues taught themselves family therapy. by 1965 minuchin was the professor of psychiatry at the university of pennsylvania and the director of both the children’s hospital of philadelphia’s department of psychiatry and the philadelphia child guidance clinic. he continued to insist that all child psychiatry is family psychiatry and that human behavior, including psychopathology, must be understood within the context in which it occurs (sexton et al., 2003). the most predominant context is human context. human context involves systems of rules that regulate behaviors and reciprocal processes. subsequently, actions in one part of the system influence another part of the system. therefore, all family members are encouraged to be included in the therapy sessions (minuchin, 1974). in the 1970s, minuchin and his colleagues developed structural family therapy, which became one of the most influential family systems approaches and resulted in family therapy being accepted into mainstream psychiatry (sexton et al., 2003). therapists utilizing structural family therapy map family structure to address presenting problems. important concepts of structural family therapy include boundaries, hierarchies, and subsystems. minuchin postulated that restructuring to realign the hierarchies and boundaries would resolve family issues (gerhart, 2018). boundaries are defined as rules for psychological 66 and physical distance between members of the family. boundaries determine the degree and management of distance, closeness, hierarchy, and family roles (minuchin & fishman, 1981). boundaries typically are organic rather than static. three types of boundaries are considered: clear boundaries; enmeshment and diffuse boundaries; and disengagement and rigid boundaries (gerhart, 2018). clear boundaries allow each person to develop and maintain a sense of identity and differentiation with simultaneously allowing for close emotional contact. a therapist can see results of clear boundaries by a person balancing distance and closeness by the customs of their culture. enmeshment and diffuse boundaries do not allow for a sense of identity and differentiation due to an overt sense of connection and mutuality. a therapist can make such an assessment by observing family members interrupting one another, mind reading, insisting on high levels of protectiveness, and/or feeling threatened at disagreement or difference. additionally, a therapist will note if a family reports problems in one or more members and likely about complaints about the family interaction to assess for enmeshed relationships and diffuse boundaries (gerhart, 2018). disengagement and rigid boundaries often lead to autonomy and independence without emotional connection, which typically results in emotional and sometimes physical isolation. a therapist can make such an assessment by observing family members lacking in reaction or repercussions to problems, significant freedom for most members, few expressions or demands for loyalty and commitment, and engaging in parallel actions instead of reciprocal interactions. for any assessment of boundaries, a therapist must view the family within the context of culture (gerhart, 2018). minuchin (1974) defined a family as a system consisting of multiple subsystems. the three important subsystems assessed are couple, parent, and child/sibling. minuchin made two assessments concerning subsystems: discerning if there is a distinction between the parent and couple subsystem and a clear boundary between the parent and child/sibling subsystems. if a family presents an issue concerning a child, the therapist will first make an assessment concerning the parental hierarchy to determine the intervention. three forms of parental hierarchy include effective, insufficient, and excessive. effective parental hierarchies are evidenced by parents setting boundaries while concurrently maintaining emotional connection to the child. insufficient hierarchies are evidenced by a permissive parenting style of not effectively managing the child’s behavior and enmeshed boundaries. excessive parental hierarchies are evidenced by strict rules and severe consequences resulting in rigid boundaries between the parents and child (gerhart, 2018). diagnosis structural family therapists diagnose based on the working hypothesis that is developed from the observations and experiences due to joining the family (minuchin, 1974). this differs drastically from a psychiatric diagnosis that often gathers data about or from the client and assigns a label to the symptoms described. a family diagnosis includes the therapist’s accommodation to the family to develop a therapeutic alliance following the assessment. typically, a family identifies one member of the family (i.e., “identified client”). families typically exhibit tendencies to focus attention on the identified client and on the past and express a desire for change to occur with the identified client rather than on focusing on the preferred transactional patterns in the present day. the therapist will broaden the focus to include the family’s interactions as a contributing factor 67 to the problem situation. to assess these interactions, the therapist will assess six areas: preferred transactional patterns, the system’s flexibility and capacity for restructuring, resonance, life context, developmental stage, and the identified client’s symptoms as used to maintain the family’s preferred transactional patterns. unlike psychiatric diagnoses that are often static, family therapists’ diagnoses are often evolving. the evolving diagnoses are related to context and provide ongoing therapeutic interventions. therefore, the “[d]iagnosis and therapy become inseparable” (minuchin, 1974, p. 131). in relation to treating presenting concerns, structural family therapists identify three possible relationships between the family system and the symptom (e.g., depression): ineffectual challenger, “shaper,” or “beneficiary.” families who are ineffectual challengers of a symptom are considered passive and even enabling. the family fails to challenge the symptomatic member to maintain a highly enmeshed or disengaged structure. families who are “shapers” of symptoms typically mold the person’s experience and behaviors, such as a child who is triangulated into the couple subsystem conflict. families who act as a “beneficiary” utilize the symptom to maintain the family structure (gerhart, 2018). for example, a depressed child provides the parents with a way to unite and/or distract them from their marital issues. such assessments in family structure then lead to the use of intervention. interventions structural family therapists utilize such interventions as enactments, systematic reframing, boundary making, and challenging the family’s certainty and worldview (gerhart, 2018). enactments are considered a distinctive intervention within structural family therapy, in which the therapist encourages the family to reenact an interaction or conflict as opposed to talking about them in session. systemic reframing involves the therapist acknowledging that all behavior is reciprocal, such as a pursuer/distancer pattern. this removes the blame from one person and distributes it evenly. boundary making is a type of enactment that addresses rigid or diffuse boundaries allowing for an interruption of interaction patterns. therapists challenge family’s certainty about unproductive assumptions and worldviews by overt questioning. examples of assumptions that are challenges are “the kids’ needs come first,” and “it’s better to keep peace than start conflict.” additional interventions include intensity and crisis induction, unbalancing, expanding family truths and realities, making compliments, and shaping competence (gerhart, 2018). modern society implications in modern society it can be appropriately questioned whether a theoretical framework from the 1960s is relevant in modern society. mcadams et al. (2016) assessed the relevance of structural family therapy with three indicators: frequency of relevant publications, contemporary significance of client issues and treatment in publications, and an indication of ongoing assessment and refinement of the clinical process and outcome in publications. per this assessment, publications have remained steady at an average rate of more than three publications a year. additionally, structural family therapy has been utilized in recent years for a plethora of client issues and in different treatment settings. for instance, publications demonstrate application of the model to address bullying (butler & platt, 2008), parental alienation syndrome 68 (gottlieb, 2013), adolescent eating disorders (loeb & legrange, 2009), and bipolar disorder (miklowitz, 2012). furthermore, the model has been utilized in public schools (gerrard, 2008), school-family-community collaboration efforts (messina et al., 2015), and children’s residential treatment centers (mclendon et al., 2012). mcadams et al. also found that between 2000 and 2015, five process and four outcome research studies focused on structural family therapy. such evidence demonstrates the clinical relevance for structural family therapy in modern society. diversity considerations structural family therapy has a history of engagement in multicultural settings and with diverse clients (corey, 2013). the model was developed by working with people from a low socioeconomic status unlike many theoretical approaches that were based upon work with the middle-class population (minuchin, 1967). gerhart (2018) acknowledged that minuchin and proponents of structural family therapy were from immigrant and diverse backgrounds and, therefore, acknowledged strengths in diverse families. structural family therapy’s greatest strength regarding diversity is that family structure is consistently assessed in the context of setting and culture (epstein et al., 2012). furthermore, boundaries and hierarchies are restructured and reinforced in the context of cultural values (epstein et al., 2012). given that pedersen (2001) called multiculturalism the “fourth force in counseling,” it is important to acknowledge how structural family therapy is appropriate across cultures. epstein et al. (2012) stated that structural family therapy is an appropriate modality for chinese families due to assessment occurring with a cultural lens, family hierarchy being a central tenet, and the therapist operating as an expert. immigrant families with first generation asian americans experiencing differing acculturation issues that could result in conflict among family members could benefit from structural therapy as its principles are compatible with asian american values (kim, 2003). santisteban and mena (2009) developed culturally informed and flexible family-based treatment for adolescents with structural family therapy as the foundation. additional modifications of structural family therapy have demonstrated effective in reducing drug use with hispanic youth and an improvement in family functioning with african american families (robbins et al., 2008). gerhart (2018) reported minimal research specifically being conducted regarding gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender couples and families utilizing structural family therapy; however, minuchin (1996) described utilizing this approach with a gay couple. additionally, coates and sullivan (2005) have reported applying tenets of the model with same sex parents. due to the cultural consideration, structural family therapy can be appropriate for addressing childhood issues cross culturally. 69 references almqvist, f., puura, k., kumpulainen, k., tuompo-johansson, e., henttonen, i., huikko, e., linna, s., ikäheimo, k., aronen, e., katainen, s., piha, j., moilanen, i., räsänen, e., & tamminen, t. 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(2007). effect of age at onset on the course of major depressive disorder. the american journal of psychiatry, 164(10), 1539–1546. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2007.06101757 playing around in science: how self-directed inquiry benefits the whole child brian stone, ed. d. northern arizona university dr. brian andrew stone is a lecturer at northern arizona university. his research interests include child-centered, authentic instructional strategies and assessments, progressive education, inquiry-based instruction, and multiage education. dr. stone is currently the director of science and social studies programs for the international multiage institute. children of all ages who have the opportunities, time, and materials to explore science content in a self-directed manner will develop higher level understandings, and demonstrate more sophisticated approaches to science. a vast and growing body of research supports the academic benefits of self-directed or authentic scientific inquiry, which is defined as a line of questioning that belongs to the individual (llewellyn, 2011; akerson, hanson, & cullen, 2007; cacciamani, 2010; eick, meadows, and balkcom, 2005). embedded within a child’s distinctive ownership of the inquiry process is a highly beneficial, yet often overlooked aspect, and that is the child’s choice to engage in play. playing around in science presents children with opportunities to think creatively and divergently, to solve problems in innovative ways, and to develop a unique scientific identity. llewellyn (2011) states that children learn about the world through exploration, “play, creativity, curiosity, and wonderment” (p. 63). play in science extends far beyond promoting academic understandings. in fact, when a child engages in play activities while simultaneously undertaking inquiry processes, the child can also choose to participate in social/collaborative scientific endeavors. furthermore, emotional development and connections can be made when children play around with science content. also, since play activities typically involve movement, children are actively occupied in physical representations that can also make concepts concrete for better understanding. play in science promotes comprehension, but it also provides opportunities for children to become socially, physically, emotionally, and even culturally involved. this article will discuss the benefits of play in science to the whole child as well as some of the obstacles that diminish or extinguish play behaviors and scientific exploration. definitions and context in order to unpack the benefits of play in science, some definitions and context are necessary. first, inquiry is a term that is heavily used in the literature, but can be poorly understood and not well manifested in the classroom (stone, 2015). different types of inquiry exist and form a spectrum of possibilities with the main distinction being ownership of the questions and processes (llewellyn, 2011). when the teacher owns the scientific questions, processes, and outcomes, this is referred to as teacher-directed inquiry, and it forms one end of the spectrum. in teacher-directed inquiry activities, the emphasis is on standardization with students converging to a singular outcome, which was derived from a specific curriculum objective (stone, 2015). teacher-directed inquiry affords students little opportunity for creativity, divergence of thought or process, and has little to no capacity for play. on the other end of the spectrum, self-directed inquiry involves a line of questioning and developing processes, both of which belong to the individual student. the line of questioning is rooted solely in the interests and curiosity of the child, and is therefore highly intrinsically motivated. self-directed inquiry allows students the freedom to explore, create, adapt, modify, and play with ideas because the child is the owner and stakeholder of the inquiry process. intertwined with self-directed inquiry is free play, which is a natural, inherent part of a child’s interest-driven activities. the international play association (ipa) states that “the drive to play is innate,” and that “play is self-chosen,” involving “active choice and engagement” (ipa, 2014, p. 1). play belongs to each individual child like self-directed inquiry. it is important for teachers and parents to know that an attempt to structure play in order to deliver a content objective is ill advised. play must belong to the child, and the child must be free and unhindered by external constraints for the activity to still be considered play and not an academic task. also, play is ubiquitous in human nature, as it is evident in all cultures, races, and genders. it is also important to note that play does not just belong in the realm of early childhood, but extends to children of all ages, including adults. play is a process, much like science, which can take many forms including “bodily actions, social interactions and the development of symbolic thinking” (ipa, 2014). despite the numerous benefits, neither play nor self-directed inquiry are highly valued in the current school culture, which promotes a presumed efficiency model of education. this efficiency model is based on the manufacturing mindset and is constructed on the premise that standardization and high-stakes accountability will deliver predetermined content to the masses in the most timely, efficient manner. play and selfdirected inquiry are unique to the individual, are highly divergent, and require open time and resources that run counter to a school culture of compliance, standardization, and homogenization. however, the benefits of playing around in science, or any content area are clearly evident in the literature. some of the many benefits are discussed in the following sections. benefits of play in science on the whole child the advantages of play through self-directed inquiry are abundant, and are interconnected across academic, social, emotional, physical, and even cultural realms. for example, a child who is playing with magnets may be developing conceptual knowledge of the interaction between magnets or between magnets and metal objects. through inquiry that is self-directed, the child may begin to ask questions and develop simplistic or even complex experiments to test ideas. the child may also ask or inspire others to join in a mutual scientific play endeavor where social interaction becomes a valuable element, and children co-construct their own scientific reality. the child or children will make use of movement, either repetitive (attracting magnets over and over) or non-repetitive (moving a metal object with a magnet under the table). children may imagine that they themselves are magnets and can act out attraction and repulsion. the intrinsically motivated, choicedriven inquiry and play activities will help children develop strong emotional connections that are evident in their excitement and engaged passion for playing with the materials. in other words, children are having fun. it is a pleasurable experience, and one that will likely lead to deeper understanding (ipa, 2014). the children will often choose to repeat the experience if given the time and materials as well. potentially, the child or children may connect the activity/content to a cultural experience or belief. to an uninformed teacher, a student engaged in these seemingly random, “disruptive,” and “off-task” behaviors is misbehaving and not learning. however, the internal and external processes, development, deep-level thinking, socialization, creativity and physical activity can be of the highestlevel benefit to the whole child. academic benefits there are manifold academic benefits of play through scientific self-directed inquiry. hamlin and wisneski (2012) state, “play provides abundant opportunities for children to learn science concepts such as the diversity and interdependence of life, relationships between force and motion, and the structure of matter” (p. 82). furthermore, play provides a “rich context” for children to explore the “process of scientific inquiry,” and has multiple modes for exploration including: functional or discovery play, symbolic play, and games with rules (hamlin & wisneski, 2012, p. 82-84). as part of a functional approach, which occurs through self-directed inquiry and play activities, curren (2003) asserts children learn “through discovery and the largely spontaneous exercise of [their] own faculties, motivated and moved along from one topic to another by [their] own curiosity” (p. 236). the national science teachers association (2002) states, “elementary school students learn science best when they are involved in first-hand exploration and investigation and inquiry/process skills are nurtured” (elementary school science, para. 3). using the example of the child playing with magnets, he or she may discover the concepts of attraction or repulsion simply through his or her free reign of playing with the materials. after play events, teachers can guide and facilitate the attachment of terminology to the constructed conceptual framework already in place. however, teachers should not interfere with the play itself, as it provides a self-constructed experience in which the child makes use of his or her imagination, creativity, critical thinking, and capacity for thinking divergently to approach new and unfamiliar concepts. therefore, a key benefit of allowing free play through self-directed inquiry includes building a child’s capacity to think beyond the parameters of a teacher-directed, boxed, inquiry event in which the questions, processes, and outcomes are predetermined. in other words, children become more adept at examining the world from multiple perspectives, and considering multiple possibilities to explain phenomena when they are given the freedom to explore through their own play. the ipa (2014) states that play will help children discover and understand the world in which they live. also, “play is the way humans develop efficient brains,” and by “playing [a child] enhances cortical connections and neural organization” (ipa, 2014, p. 2). when children become involved in choice-driven inquiry, they are actively using their minds to explore the endless possibilities of science. social benefits social constructivism in science describes the nature of how human beings build scientific knowledge through various social experiences and activities. fagan (2010) asserts scientific facts are socially constructed, as are the belief systems of scientists (whether true or false). scientific knowledge is socially constructed, and therefore, when children embark upon inquiry/play endeavors that are of mutual interest, a co-construction of scientific “reality” takes place. for example, two children engaged in symbolic play pretend that they are astronauts. as their play progresses, their room might become their spaceship, and every day objects become their tools for conducting their experiments. the children mutually construct a play “reality” by building off of each other’s ideas and the entirety of their shared play experience becomes unique compared with what they might have done individually. also, children will adopt new language and ideas from their peers. for example, as children are pretending to be astronauts, one might point to the window in the room and say, “let’s look out of the porthole to see if we can spot a planet.” the other child may never have heard of the word “porthole,” but may now associate the term with windows in spacecraft, and may begin using the word as well. the nsta (2002) posits children will value science best when they are given opportunities to interact with and share ideas with their peers. as they interact with each other, children will tend to improvise rather than following a set plan or script, and they will develop a high level of improvisational skill (sawyer, 1997). bergen (2002) found that as children play together, they will develop a high value pretense and that their involvement in such a pretense with others will aid in their socio-linguistic development. also, children’s social play may help them avoid anxiety, depression, and loneliness (rubin & coplan, 1998). ultimately, as children co-inquire and play around with ideas in science together, they will develop collaborative, socio-cultural, imaginative, co constructed realities from which they can approach content and better understand their world. emotional benefits the emotional benefits of play-based inquiry extend beyond “fun” and “pleasurable” (ipa, 2014). when referring to the affective domain, stone and glascott (1998) note that emotions in children’s science understanding are interconnected with the cognitive domain. so as children explore science content through self-directed inquiry and play, they are simultaneously thinking about and feeling the emotions of their exploration. stone (2004) posits play in science is self-rewarding, intrinsically motivated, and personally satisfying because the play is owned and operated by the individual child. even though emotions are difficult to gauge or measure, the internal processes of play and self-directed inquiry can incorporate personal gratification, a sense of security and control, and pleasure. as children explore science individually or socially, they have chosen to pursue an activity for a reason, and typically the experience is interesting or pleasurable. for example, a child who is playing with oobleck (a non-newtonian substance with differing physical properties) will create semi-solid shapes with the substance and then allow the material to revert back to a semi-liquid state. as the child is manipulating the substance, multiple, integrated, affective and cognitive processes are taking place. the child may be questioning why the substance behaves the way it does while also experiencing the satisfaction of controlling the substance according to his or her will (e.g. creating shapes or squishing the oobleck between fingers). as part of this process, play also helps children regulate emotions by moderating “primary emotions into more nuanced and subtle forms” (ipa, 2014). physical benefits the physical benefits of inquiry-based play are perhaps the most observable, as children move to manipulate, explore, or understand scientific concepts. the ipa (2014) states that play is a biological necessity as it contributes to healthy “muscular growth, physical health and well-being,” while also developing “flexibility, agility, balance, and coordination.” (p. 1). however, beyond the health benefits of simple or even complex movements, children can also develop understanding of concepts through their movements. for example, if a child is attempting to understand the motion of the planets, he or she in collaboration with interested peers may actually act out planetary orbits. when the child engages in self-directed inquiry, bodily movement may help the child develop a more concrete understanding of the scientific concept. cultural connections fleer and pramling (2015) posit that it would be inappropriate to only focus on the conceptual development of science understanding without taking into account social processes and the cultural societies of children. furthermore, scientific knowledge is “a cultural construction by society” and is “historically evolving” (fleer & pramling, 2015, p. 24). as children inquire and play around with ideas in science, they are connecting, relating, modifying, or adapting what they know and discover based upon their own sociocultural experiences. curiosity and inquiry are fashioned and directed by the characteristics of the child, including: race, gender, ethnicity, culture, religion and socioeconomic status (wong & hodson, 2010). play in science provides an opportunity for children to act out internally held beliefs or traditions in relation to their developing understanding of scientific concepts. for example, a child may ask the question, “why is the sky blue?” after some internal consideration, he or she may answer the question by saying, “i think god painted it blue.” this response may show the child’s internal belief system, or it may also show a socio-cultural construction that has been passed to the child through his or her family. in any case, play in science through self-directed inquiry presents a child with multiple opportunities to understand, strengthen, or even question their cultural experience and internally-held belief systems. obstacles or barriers to play and inquiry many barriers exist that preclude children’s self-directed inquiry and play experiences in science (stone, 2015). as mentioned earlier, the dominant school culture values and expects compliance, standardization, and convergence. not only are these aspects prioritized, but also time and materials in schools are regimented for efficiently delivering content to children. zion and mendelovici (2012) recommend moving away from what they call “instructionism.” in other words, the curriculum is often predetermined and inflexible, leaving no room for child-centered practices. the standards are used as benchmarks to rank, order, and sort children, and the instruction is paced with timely coverage of material being of the highest priority. in such a rigid system, little time, materials, and opportunities are present for children to make use of divergent, self-directed inquiry and self-chosen play experiences. some of the effects of this lack of play in science include students’ reliance and dependence upon teachers to provide science content and answers (stone, 2015). also, students will be less likely to develop an individual and unique identity as a scientist. finally, students will become accustomed to canned lessons with scripted procedures and given answers in science. they will not have a high capacity for thinking creatively and critically, and they may not be able to look for multiple possibilities when involved in inquiry processes. as a part of the school culture that often dictates the types of tasks children do in class, teachers may not be aware of the valuable nature of play and self-directed inquiry. furthermore, teachers may be uncomfortable giving up classroom time and materials for children to approach the content with their own curiosity intact, and with their own questions, play ideas, and explorations in mind. teachers may fear that children are not learning. however, teacher-created obstacles such as fear or the devaluation of childcentered practices such as play can be overcome through professional development, research-based practices, and spreading awareness of the value of play and scientific selfdirected inquiry. conclusions children will play regardless of their situation or circumstance, but to limit play and self-directed inquiry in schools based upon assumptions that children are not learning is unacceptable. schools in finland provide children with ample playtime, encourage scientific inquiry in its purest, most authentic forms, and limit the amount of “academic” homework as well as the time spent testing (hancock, 2011). teachers in finland are respected and valued for their knowledge-base and are able to provide children with safe environments to learn at their own pace and through ownership of individual processes, like play. unlike many schools in the united states, finnish schools consistently demonstrate success due to their value for play and reduced standards/high-stakes accountability. in order to capitalize on the many benefits of playing around in science, it is important for teachers and parents to know and understand that play and self-directed inquiries provide a high level of cognitive, social, emotional, physical, and even cultural development. play in science is a necessary and beneficial element of childhood, and it should be treated as such. references akerson, v. l., hanson, d. l., & cullen, t. a. (2007). the influence of guided inquiry and explicit instruction on k-6 teachers’ views of nature of science. journal of science teacher education, 18, 751-772. bergen, d. (2002). the role of pretend play in children’s cognitive development. early childhood research & practice, 4(1). cacciamani, s. (2010). towards a knowledge building community: from guided to selforganized inquiry. canadian journal of teaching and learning, 36, 1-16. curren, r. (2003). a companion to the philosophy of education. malden, ma: blackwell publishing. eick, c., meadows, l., & balkcom, r. (2005). breaking into inquiry: scaffolding supports beginning efforts to implement inquiry in the classroom. the science teacher, 72, 49-53. fagan, m. b. (2010). social construction revisited: epistemology and scientific practice. philosophy of science, 77, 92-116. fleer, m., & pramling, n. (2015). a cultural-historical study of children learning science: foregrounding affective imagination in play-based settings. new york, ny: springer. hamlin, m., & wisneski, d. b. (2012). supporting the scientific thinking and inquiry of toddlers and preschoolers through play. young children, may, 82-88. hancock, l. (2011). why are finland’s schools successful?. smithsonian magazine. retrieved from http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlandsschools-successful-49859555/?no-ist international play association. (2014). declaration on the importance of play. retrieved from http://ipaworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ipa_declarationfinal.pdf llewellyn, d. (2011). differentiated science inquiry. thousand oaks, ca: corwin. national science teachers association. (2002). nsta position statement: elementary school science. retrieved from https://www.nsta.org/about/positions/elementary.aspx rubin, k. h., & coplan, r. j. (1998). social and nonsocial play in childhood: an individual differences perspective. in olivia n. saracho & bernard spodek (eds.), multiple perspectives on play in early childhood (pp. 144-170). albany: state university of new york press. sawyer, k. r. (1997). pretend play as improvisation: conversation in the preschool classroom. mahwah, nj: erlbaum. stone, b. (2004). playing with science. proceedings from iicp ‘04: world play conference. krakow, poland. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/?no-ist http://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/why-are-finlands-schools-successful-49859555/?no-ist http://ipaworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ipa_declaration-final.pdf http://ipaworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ipa_declaration-final.pdf https://www.nsta.org/about/positions/elementary.aspx stone, b. (2015). the influence of teacher-directed scientific inquiry on students’ primal inquiries in two science classrooms (doctoral dissertation). retrieved from umi (3682808) stone, s. j., & glascott, k. (1998). the affective side of science instruction. childhood education, 74(2), 102-104. wong, s. l., & hodson, d. (2010). more from the horse’s mouth: what scientists say about science as a social practice. international journal of science education, 32, 14311463. zion, m., & mendelovici, r. (2012). moving from structured to open inquiry: challenges and limits. science education international, 23, 383-399. v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 54 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 7, no. 1 the representation of differing abilities in children’s literature: a local analysis jamiee l. hartensteina, klaire brumbaughb, julianna holguinc, adriatik likcanid auniversity of central missouri, bfontbonne university, c-duniversity of central missouri dr. jaimee l. hartenstein is an associate professor in human development and family science at the university of central missouri. she currently serves as both the undergraduate and graduate program coordinator. she is a certified family life educator. hartenstein received her bachelor of science degree in human ecology and mass communications and her master’s and ph.d. in family studies from kansas state university. her primary areas of research are divorce and child custody; representation of diversity and disability in children’s literature; and teaching effectiveness. klaire brumbaugh, clinscd, ccc-slp is the director of clinical education and assistant professor at fontbonne university-kansas city. klaire received her bachelor and master’s degree in communication sciences and disorders from kansas state university prior to completing the clinical doctorate in speech-language pathology from rocky mountain university. currently, klaire is completing a doctorate in education from fontbonne university. klaire’s research and professional interests focus in the areas of speech sound disorders and professional issues such as ethics and supervision. julianna holguin is a child and family therapist at a private practice in leawood, ks. as a university of central missouri graduate, julianna earned her bachelor of science degree in child and family development with a minor in psychology. continuing her education at the university of central missouri, she went on to complete her master of science degree in human development and family science with a specialization in marriage and family therapy and graduated in december of 2022. throughout her education, she supported families through the child abuse prevention association, embark counseling services, the ucm clinic for individual, couple, and family therapy and also completed a child life practicum at children’s mercy hospital kansas. julianna has presented at the national council on family relations (ncfr) conference in 2021 and the missouri department of mental health’s spring training institute in 2022. holguin completed a play therapy certification program with the heartland play therapy institute in november 2022 and is pursuing her registration in play therapy (rpt). julianna specializes in working with children, parents, and families who have experienced abuse and trauma. other areas of interest include adverse childhood experiences (aces), divorce, intimate partner violence, and children with complex medical needs. dr. adriatik likcani is associate professor and program director of the marriage and family therapy graduate program at the university of central missouri. he holds a ph.d. in marriage 55 and family therapy from kansas state university, two master's degrees: one in marriage and family therapy from the university of nebraska-lincoln, and a master’s in social work from the university of missouri kansas city, and a post-graduate certificate in medical family therapy from the university of nebraska medical center. dr. likcani is a licensed marital and family therapist (lmft) in the state of missouri and was appointed in 2019 to the state committee of marital and family therapists, where he serves as chairperson. abstract one hundred popular children’s books for ages 0-6 were selected from a local metropolitan library system with data from 10 library branches. these frequently checked out books were then analyzed for how disabilities were represented in the books. this study found that only a few books checked out of the library represent children with differing abilities. out of one hundred books, only thirty-six books show differing abilities with all of them depicting visual impairment (e.g., glasses) and four depicting a mobility impairment (e.g., wheelchair) in addition to the visual impairment. understanding that children’s literature influences children’s attitudes, it is vital to find opportunities to engage children in books depicting children with disabilities as children begin to develop their understanding and attitudes at a young age. introduction books can become a powerful tool to teach children meaningful and relevant information, for example, in depicting children with differing abilities in a story setting. children, including children with disabilities, seek representation of themselves in stories and appreciate when they are able to relate to the characters (leary, 2016). many different fields utilize children’s books to explain higher-level constructs and concepts. for example, race, gender, (adukia et al., 2021) and empathy (kucirkova, 2019) are often constructs and concepts discussed in children’s books. illustrations depict the race of characters as well as the clothing, hair and other images of gender present. the storyline and depiction of characters provide insight into these concepts in addition to how to treat or engage with the characters. book characters representing children with disabilities can add to all children understanding the concept of children with disabilities. disability (differing abilities) is defined as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities according to the americans with disabilities act of 1990 (ada). within the definition of disabilities, differentiating invisible and visible disabilities is important to clarify. invisible disabilities are categorized as debilitating pain, fatigue, dizziness, weakness, cognitive impairment, learning differences and mental disorders. hearing and visual impairments also reside within this category. a visible depiction of differing abilities might include the use of an assisted device such as a wheelchair, cane or walker. an individual may live with both a visible and invisible disability or differing abilities. books often become a child’s first exposure to children and adults with disabilities. importantly, the representation of differing abilities in children’s literature can provide a myriad of positive impacts for children with and without disabilities. books focusing on this topic show an association with positive effects on children’s interpersonal relationships and social behaviors with these books providing examples and prompts for children to consider how they relate to 56 children with differing abilities as well as to reflect on individual differences (kurtts & gavigan, 2008). children who have the opportunity to engage in reading on differing abilities inclusive literature creates space for children to see themselves and others represented visually and textually (golos & moses, 2013), while also helping to foster positive peer relationships in children of varying degrees of ability (stelle, 1999). this exposure also provides an opportunity for children to learn about social norms and behaviors as well as to personally participate in developing their own social-emotional skills (price et al., 2016). regarding children with disabilities, inclusive literature introduces them to books about themselves and depictions of their daily lives (ayala, 1999). this can lead to improvement in self-efficacy and their perceptions of self-worth and accomplishment. alternatively, as children without disabilities read books focused on inclusivity, it works to help them develop a sense of acceptance, empathy, and to better understand their potential impact when interacting with differently-abled others. resultantly, these children may be more open to discussions about disabilities and their own feelings on the matter, supporting them to accept individuals with differences (kurtts & gavigan, 2008). historically, children’s literature often portrays those with disabilities stereotypically, thus emphasizing differences rather than identifying how those of differing abilities can relate to others (ayala, 1999). research studies show the characterization of those with disabilities to be inaccurate and wide ranging in severity (ayala, 1999). for example, some books often entail a miracle cure such as in the book, giraffes can’t dance. the giraffe's knees were crooked and his legs were thin. the giraffe has difficulty dancing and was laughed at by others. in the end the giraffe is able to dance and the other characters exclaim that it is a miracle (andreae, 2000). additionally, individuals with disabilities were rarely the main character (price et al., 2016). while some books include inclusivity, the most commonly represented disabilities remain limited to either visual or orthopedic impairments, without a single book in the study depicting an emotional disability (ayala, 1999). importantly, children’s literature can provide the opportunity to raise children’s awareness and engage them in conversations on differing abilities (emmerson et al., 2014). fairy tales are another example of stereotypically representing disabilities in children’s literature. previous research (ayala, 1999; beckett et al., 2010; & hughes, 2006) the representation of differing abilities in children’s fairy tales by depicting the differing ability with a character who has a difficult past and problematic present. in popular fairy tales such as beauty and the beast and rumpelstilskin, the characters represent differing ability in the form of suffering or a burden to those around them as well as to society. fairy tales also often depict the evil villain as a disabled character. an example of this is captain hook in peter pan. captain hook does not have a hand and uses a hook instead. in some versions of peter pan it is stated that peter fed captain hook’s hand to an alligator based off of a dare from the lost boys. captain hook cannot control that he lost his hand, but is treated as an evil and violent character (solis, 2007). characters with a different physical appearance apart from the norm often categorize as weak or inferior. in snow white and the seven dwarfs, the 57 dwarfs are weak, flawed, and ill. in one version of snow white, the dwarfs are portrayed as lost souls that are sentenced to manual labor in the mines due to their differing abilities (solis, 2007). additionally, a disabled character may become a source for humor (mcgrail & rieger, 2014). in some tales, characters without differing abilities laugh and mock the characters with disabilities (hodkinson, 2017). gashton laughs at the beast in beauty and the beast. he also evokes fear in the townspeople by stating that the beast will hunt their children at night. lastly, the character with a differing ability may be portrayed as the super cripple, violent, sinister and evil. examples of this would be captain hook or transformation of the evil queen into the elderly crippled woman in snow white. this stereotype conveys a world view wherein characters with disabilities change themselves to become accepted and happy in their life (harnett, 2000). similar to this perception, beckett et al., (2010) discuss the challenges of the happy ever after endings in children's books. this type of ending encourages children to believe that the differing abilities can be magically fixed or corrected. an example provided by beckett et al., (2010) is adam and the magic marble. two of the boys have tourette’s syndrome and one has cerebral palsy. when the boys find the magic marble, they are cured and the marble has fixed their ailments. from the previous examples, one can see how children’s literature can influence children’s attitudes (smith-d’arezzo & thomas, 2010). by providing age-appropriate abilities in safe ways, children gain positive interactions and acceptances. books allow children to expand their knowledge and understanding beyond their own experiences. they are able to examine themselves as they learn to accept others who are different from them as well as may be difficult to understand (taylor et al., 2020). attitude development research finds that children as young as age four can identify pronounced physical disabilities such as cerebral palsy or hearing impairments (diamond, 1993; diamond & hestenes, 1996; dyson, 2005). as children grow older, they develop an awareness of less evident disabilities (intellectual disabilities and mental illness) (price et al., 2016). beginning in the years from the 1990’s to 2000’s, children’s literature demonstrates more positive and accurately representative characters with disabilities; these characters engage in typical activities, interact positively with peers, and portray themselves as doers, helpers, and persons with characteristics similar to those without disabilities (price et al., 2016). when reviewing more current representative literature, physical, sensory and cognitive disabilities appear most commonly included, with less portrayal of learning disabilities (prater et al., 2006). however, even today in libraries, utilized by teachers and families alike, it can be difficult to find quality inclusive literature on differing abilities (price et al., 2016). while improvements are being made in targeting more contemporary literature to portray varying levels of ability, this area continues to have room for growth; in addition, research has identified multiple considerations. for example, inclusive literature can serve to assist fully abled children in understanding and accepting those in their lives with differing levels of ability. although, in order to do so, it is essential this representation is accurate and realistic. toward this goal, it is important to highlight children with disabilities as believable people and avoid portraying them as props, only depicting associated behaviors (ayala, 1999). 58 the positive impact of access to inclusive and representative literature is valuable in a wide range of settings including public libraries, schools, child care centers, healthcare facilities, as well as at home. studies highlight the importance of this evaluation and selection process of this area of literature (price et al., 2016). in examining this literature, five evaluative criteria include lack of stereotypes, confronting the disability, accuracy of information, literary quality and not “using” disabled characters inappropriately (ayala, 1999). in this way, characters with disabilities become valued, portrayed appropriately and genuinely embraced both narratively and through illustrations (price et al., 2016). the goal for this current qualitative analysis is to find the frequency of representation of differing abilities within children’s books most frequently checked out in a midwestern metropolitan city library. learning theory social learning theory developed by albert bandura (bandura, 1976) focuses on the aspects of observing, modeling and imitating behaviors. using bandura’s theory, children have the opportunity through literature to observe the depiction of disabilities and visualize the modeling of appropriate responses. thus, children have the opportunity to imitate the understanding, acceptance, and treatment of individuals with disabilities portrayed in the literature. individuals who surround the child may either reinforce or correct the child as they imitate what they observed in a children’s book. therefore, it becomes critical children’s literature provides their young readers with inclusive, accurate and responsive content. research questions in reviewing children's books that were most frequently checked out in a midwestern metropolitan city for ages 0-6, the research questions were: 1. what was the frequency of representation of differing abilities within the books? 2. what types of differing abilities were depicted? 3. were the disabilities visually depicted through pictures or textually through the storyline? method a content analysis methodology evaluated the representation of differing abilities in children’s books. content analysis requires a systematic analysis of communication (mayring, 2004). in this study, children’s popular books were analyzed. the storyline, primary and secondary characters were analyzed both in the text and illustrations for the depiction of differing abilities using the ada definitions. terminology for the purpose of this investigation, disability (differing abilities) was defined using the examples of medical conditions listed from ada such as deafness, blindness, diabetes, cancer, 59 epilepsy, intellectual disabilities, partial or completely missing limbs, mobility impairments, autism, cerebral palsy, hiv infection, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia (american with disability act, 1990). operational definitions were derived from sources such as the center for disease control, mayo clinic, u.s. national library of medicine and the diagnostic and statistical manual-5th edition. selection of books books were selected through collaboration with a local, metropolitan library system with data from 10 library branches. the library system provided the most frequently checked out books from january 2019-december 2019 listed in order by frequency of selection. the inclusion criteria for the books were books that were targeted at the 0-6-year-old population and classified by the library as readers, picture books, or board books. books were excluded if they contained more than one story (e.g., 5-minute marvel spider-man stories). coding two graduate students provided the primary coding (one student, a graduate student in speechlanguage pathology and the other, a child and family development candidate). provided with a list of qualities with associated operational definitions, the two coders used a binary + and – system to identify whether or not the construct was present. students noted special features for the authors to revisit. by including this option, the coders were able to note potential differing abilities that were not originally provided by the authors. the coders first began rating 20 books to assess for reliability between coders; they achieved 85% agreement when assessing if differing abilities were present within the book. then, the differing items were discussed to increase understanding of the concept and gain consensus. intercoder agreement of 75-90% is considered an appropriate level of agreement (bajpai et al., 2015). therefore, when raters reached this level of agreement, the full sample was analyzed. intercoder reliability was assessed by comparing the results of 100% of the full sample. the percentage of agreement was calculated between the two coders. if a disagreement occurred between the two raters, the book was rated a second time for consensus. overall agreement was 96%. results the first 100 books that met the inclusion criteria were selected for analysis. of the 100 books, 36 books depicted a difference in ability (table 1). sixteen of the books showing differing abilities were by the same author (mo willems). the differing ability was not in the storyline, but only in a visual representation of secondary characters. in all 32 of the books, vision (i.e., glasses or an eye patch) was the only observation of difference with four additional books depicting a mobility impairment such as a missing limb and a cane in addition to a visual impairment. in the book the day you begin the text hints at some type of differing ability “there will be times when the climbing bars are too high, the run is too fast and far, the game isn’t one 60 you can ever really play.” (woodson, 2018, p. 13). while this text alludes to a differing ability, there was no representation in the illustrations of the book. the coders also evaluated if the representation of differing ability was depicted on a primary or secondary character. there was more variability in this measurement with 14 of the differing abilities occurred in primary, 18 in secondary, and the remaining four were inconclusive based on split responses or no response. the no responses were due to books without storylines or equal character involvement. the raters were also asked to comment on if they felt the depiction was negative, neutral, or positive. all ratings were neutral or positive. however, the raters did not reach consensus on each book title. in 30 of the books, both raters indicated neutral. the raters agreed only one book was a positive representation which was for the representation of a visual impairment in the book the good egg by jory john and pete oswald; the other five books split responses between neutral and positive. discussion the current findings demonstrate there are few children’s books checked out that depict differing abilities. however, children’s literature can become a child’s first exposure to individuals with developmental disabilities (taylor et al., 2020). similar to previous research, the books examined in this study found differing abilities represented as characters in a supporting role (aho & alter, 2018). all of the books in this study that included differing abilities were of secondary characters and not in the storyline. for children with differing abilities, it is vital they feel represented in books they read, not just as secondary characters but as main characters as well. for children without differing abilities, it is important for them to observe children with differing abilities in order to develop empathy and understanding (leary, 2016). thus, there is a need to find ways to encourage readers to seek and check out books on topics of differing abilities. understandably, for young children, it can become overwhelming to know what book to check out when there are so many choices. thus, this research indicates the need for libraries to display particular books, such as books on topics of differing abilities, in order to draw children’s interest. in addition, highlighting books in a newsletter or bulletin board each month also encourages readers to check out books on various topics such as disabilities. in addition, it is important for teachers to have a diverse library for their students to engage in reading. it would be helpful to have a class read aloud with books that depict differing abilities as well as discuss with the students after reading. the same is also true for parents. children should be exposed to differing abilities in children’s literature in a variety of contexts. it is also not only about reading the books, but also having open and meaningful discussion with the child where they feel they can ask questions and receive answers without judgment. implications for research/practice/policy 61 there are many reasons why it is important to include the representation of differing abilities in children’s literature. research describes how attitudes regarding differing abilities become formed in the early childhood years (favazza & odom, 1997). bibliotherapy, or the use of books in a therapeutic way, can be a critical asset to early childhood practitioners in order to develop a greater understanding of the world (kurtts & gavigan, 2008). on the surface level, representation can lead to positive experiences with literacy and therefore, potentially increasing the desire to read. on a deeper level, the representation of self is important in developing positive self-esteem. books capitalize on the interaction of both personal and behavioral factors of the social learning theory (bandura as cited in staddon, 1984). through diverse and representative books, children may learn about differing abilities, how to discuss differing abilities, and how to show empathy to individuals of all abilities. over the years there has been an increase in inclusive children’s literature. for example, every child is different by luna james, different a great thing to be by heather avis, and just ask! by sonia sotomayor to name a few. there is a need to encourage reading and access to inclusive children’s literature. libraries in communities, schools and the classroom should have an array of books that are inclusive in terms of abilities, race, family structure, religion and many other areas. in addition, inclusive literature should be highlighted for children to read whether by the adult (i.e. parent, teacher, etc.) to read inclusive books aloud, feature the books on a bulletin board, newsletter or another avenue. inclusive children’s literature is present, however it is not being checked out from the library. it is a must and need that children have to have access to the literature and be able to read it. along the same lines children will gain a greater understanding and knowledge if there is a discussion following the reading of the books. children need to feel safe to discuss and ask questions regarding the story without judgment. a useful resource is the diverse and inclusive growth checklist for inclusive high-quality children’s media available through kidmap. the checklist examines the following areas: “content: story, information, and activity, art, audio, audience, purpose, functionality & navigation, instruction, guides, and support materials for grown-ups, and creative team” (haines, n.d). while not all of the categories might fit for children’s literature it is a start and could be adapted to fit the evaluation of children’s literature. in addition, there are guidelines and suggestions for ensuring appropriate and accurate cultural representation in books (harris, & owen van horne, 2021). these guidelines could also be used as a starting point in developing guidelines for the representation of differing abilities in children’s literature. 62 references adukia, a., eble, a., harrison, e., runesha, h. b., & szasz, t. (2021). what we teach about race and gender: representation in images and text of children’s books (no. w29123). national bureau of economic research. aho, t., & alter, g. (2018) “just like me, just like you”: narrative erasure as disability normalization in children’s picture books. journal of literary and cultural disability studies, 12(3), 303-319. americans with disabilities act of 1990, 42 u.s.c. § 12101 (1990). https://www.ada.gov/pubs/adastatute08.htm andreae, g. (2000). giraffes can’t dance. orchard books. ayala, e. c. (1999). “poor little things” and “brave little souls”: the portrayal of individuals with disabilities in children's literature. literacy research and instruction, 39(1), 103117. bajpai, s., bajpai, r., & chaturvedi, h. (2015). evaluation of inter-rater agreement and interrater reliability for observational data: an overview of concepts and methods. journal of the indian academy of applied psychology, 41(3), 20-27. bandura, a. (1977). social learning theory. prentice-hall., englewood cliffs, new jersey. beckett, a., ellison, n., barrett, s., & shah, s. (2010). ‘away with the fairies?’ disability within primary‐age children's literature. disability & society, 25(3), 373-386. diamond, k. e. (1993). preschool children's concepts of disability in their peers. early education and development, 4(2), 123-129. diamond, k. e., & hestenes, l. l. (1996). preschool children's conceptions of disabilities: the salience of disability in children's ideas about others. topics in early childhood special education, 16(4), 458-475. dyson, l. l. (2005). kindergarten children's understanding of and attitudes toward people with disabilities. topics in early childhood special education, 25(2), 95-105. emmerson, j., fu, q., lendsay, a., & brenna, b. (2014). picture book characters with disabilities: patterns and trends in a context of radical change. bookbird: a journal of international children's literature, 52(4), 12-22. favazza, p. c., & odom, s. l. (1997). promoting positive attitudes of kindergarten-age children toward people with disabilities. exceptional children, 63(3), 405-418. golos, d. b., & moses, a. m. (2013). developing preschool deaf children’s language and literacy learning from an educational media series. american annals of the deaf, 158(4), 411-425. haines, c. (n.d.). diverse and inclusive growth (dig) checklist. kidmap. https://www.joinkidmap.org/digchecklist harris, s., & owen van horne, a. j. (2021). turn the page, speech-language pathologists: adequate, authentic, and accurate representation as a consideration in the selection of picture books for use in treatment. language, speech, and hearing services in schools, 52(4), 955-966. hartnett, a. (2000). escaping the evil avenger and the supercrip: images of disability in popular television. the irish communications review [online], 8, 21-28. hodkinson, a. (2017). constructing impairment and disability in school reading schemes. education 3-13, 45(5), 572-585. 63 hughes, c. (2012). seeing blindness in children’s picture books. journal of literary and cultural disability studies, 6(1), 35-51. kucirkova, n. (2019). how could children’s storybooks promote empathy? a conceptual framework based on developmental psychology and literary theory. frontiers in psychology, 10(121), 1-15. kurtts, s. a., & gavigan, k. w. (2008). understanding (dis) abilities through children’s literature. education libraries, 31(1), 23-31. leary, a. (2016). why the publishing industry can’t get disability right. medium. https://medium.com/the-establishment/why-the-publishing-industry-cant-get-disabilityright-938de48adac3 mayring, p. (2004). content analysis. in u. flick, e. von kardoff, & i. stienke (eds.). a companion to qualitative research, (pp. 266-269). sage publications. mcgrail, e., & rieger, a. (2014). humor in literature about children with disability: what are we seeing in literature? in the educational forum, 78(3) 291-304. prater, m. a., dyches, t. t., & johnstun, m. (2006). teaching students about learning disabilities through children's literature. intervention in school and clinic, 42(1), 14-24. price, c. l., ostrosky, m. m., & mouzourou, c. (2016). exploring representations of characters with disabilities in library books. early childhood education journal, 44(6), 563-572. smith-d'arezzo, w. m., & moore-thomas, c. (2010). children's perceptions of peers with disabilities. teaching exceptional children plus, 6(3), 1-16. solis, s. (2007). snow white and the seven “dwarfs”—queercripped. hypatia, 22(1), 114-131. staddon, j. e. (1984). social learning theory and the dynamics of interaction. psychological review, 91(4), 502-507. stelle, l. c. (1999). review of children's literature: children with disabilities as main characters. intervention in school and clinic, 35(2), 123-128. taylor, t. m., moss, k., brundage, k. e., & prater, m. a. (2020). selecting and using children’s books with authentic representations of characters with developmental disabilities. dadd online, 7(1), 10-30. woodson, j. (2018). the day you begin. nancy paulsen books. 64 table 1. rater ratings title author disability representatio n character role positive, negative, or neutral a big guy took my ball! willems visual impairment primary neutral that is not a good idea! willems visual impairment secondary neutral listen to my trumpet! willems visual impairment primary neutral i'm a frog! willems visual impairment primary neutral the pigeon has to go to school! willems visual impairment secondary neutral waiting is not easy! willems visual impairment primary neutral should i share my ice cream? willems visual impairment primary neutral hello hello wenzel visual impairment secondary neutral happy pig day! willems visual impairment primary neutral a good day for a hat fuller visual impairment secondary neutral the day the crayons quit daywalt visual impairment secondary neutral lion lessons agee visual impairment secondary positive/neutral the good egg john visual impairment inconclusive positive hooray for hat won visual impairment secondary positive/neutral elephants cannot dance! willems visual impairment primary neutral rex wrecks it! clanton visual impairment inconclusive neutral mustache baby heos visual impairment secondary neutral dad's first day wohnout ka visual impairment primary positive/neutral the thank you book willems visual impairment primary neutral we are in a book willems visual impairment primary neutral my new friend is so fun! willems visual impairment primary positive/neutral another robinson visual impairment mobility impairment (wheelchair) secondary neutral because willems visual impairment secondary neutral brown bear, brown bear, what do you see? martin visual impairment inconclusive neutral 65 llama llama loves to read dewdney visual impairment secondary neutral family is a superpower dahl visual impairment mobility impairment (prosthetic) secondary positive/neutral i am human: a book of empathy verde visual impairment mobility impairment (cane user) inconclusive neutral i broke my trunk! willems visual impairment primary neutral there's a giraffe in my soup burach visual impairment primary neutral the berenstain bears take off berenstai n visual impairment secondary neutral dragon was terrible dipucchi o visual impairment secondary neutral eric carle's book of many things. carle visual impairment secondary neutral there is a bird on your head! willems visual impairment primary neutral we don't eat our classmates higgins visual impairment secondary neutral knuffle bunny: a cautionary tale willems visual impairment, mobility impairment (cane user) secondary neutral how do dinosaurs learn to read? yolen visual impairment secondary neutral final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 113 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 updates thank you for your continued support of the international journal of the whole child and our commitment to holistic learning and to the development of the whole child. to improve the efficiency of the journal, we have updated our submission and publication dates. beginning fall 2021, submission deadlines for the fall will be september 30th. the submission deadline for the spring will be february 28th. the fall issues will be published in december and the spring issue will be published in may. lastly, our journal has officially moved to the apa 7th edition. we ask that all authors adhere to this edition when submitting your manuscript for review. thank you again for your continued support. we look forward to seeing you in spring 2022. final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 8 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 pre-kindergarten teachers’ perceptions of social and emotional learning hillary polchow liescha, karen morrisonb, rebecca m. gilesc a-cuniversity of south alabama hillary liesch has an education specialist degree in early childhood education from the university of south alabama. she has been teaching in a public prekindergarten classroom in mobile, alabama for eight years. karen morrison is an assistant professor of elementary education at the university of south alabama where she teaches graduate and undergraduate courses and serves as program coordinator for the educational specialist programs in early childhood, elementary, and reading. her research focuses on instructional strategies that support preservice teachers’ content knowledge and sense of efficacy, and strategies for supporting in-service elementary teachers. rebecca m. giles is a professor of early childhood education at the university of south alabama where she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses and coordinates the early childhood studies program. she has spoken and published widely in the areas of early education, literacy, and teacher preparation and is the author of two books – write now! publishing with young authors, prek through grade 2 (2007, heinemann) and a young writer's world: creating classrooms where authors abound (2020, exchange press). abstract recognition of social and emotional learning (sel), as an essential educational component, has increased in recent years, and early childhood educators’ perceptions of sel are likely to impact the delivery, evaluation, and outcomes of sel opportunities for young children. the purpose of this pilot study was to investigate sel perceptions of prekindergarten teachers in an american urban, public preschool serving predominantly black students. participant (n=22) responses to the teacher social and emotional learning beliefs scale (brackett et al., 2012) were used to calculate mean scores for the domains of comfort, commitment, and culture, which were analyzed in relationship to the independent variables of teacher position (lead or auxiliary), level of education (associate degree, bachelor’s degree, or graduate degree), and years of prekindergarten teaching experience (0-20 years and more than 20 years). while results were statistically non-significant, findings of the current pilot study have important and practical implications for implementing sel in prekindergarten. auxiliary teachers scored slightly lower in commitment and comfort domain than lead teachers, and teachers with a bachelor’s degree scored highest on the comfort domain. interestingly, experienced teachers (more than 20 years) 9 did not show a notable difference from those who have been teaching prekindergarten for much less time. findings suggest that regardless of position and educational level, both veteran and novice early childhood teachers could benefit from explicit sel training and adequate time and opportunity to become confident in providing effective social and emotional learning in their early childhood classrooms. further research is needed to examine the effects of sel training and coaching for prekindergarten teachers on the sel of young children. keywords: sel, preschool, early childhood, teachers, beliefs introduction access to public preschool throughout the united states has increased rapidly in the last decade, with states enrolling an average of 50% of four-year-old children across the country in 2017 (national institute of early education research, 2019). similarly, there has been an increased emphasis on addressing young children’s social and emotional well-being along with their cognitive development resulting in all 50 states adopting preschool social and emotional developmental standards (weissberg et al., 2015). according to the world economic forum (2016) report, students will need more than traditional academic learning to be successful in the 21st century: “they must be adept at collaboration, communication and problem solving, which are some of the skills developed through social and emotional learning” (p. 4). social and emotional development is multi-faceted and comprised of a set of specific skills and abilities needed to set goals, manage behavior, and build relationships along with processing and remembering information, making it integral to academic success (jones & kahn, 2017). according to collaborative for academic social and emotional learning (casel), social and emotional learning (sel) can be defined as: [t]the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions (casel, 2021, para. 1). the casel 5 framework targets five broad, interrelated areas of competence including selfawareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decisionmaking. casel advocates the implementation of sel using coordinated efforts involving the academic curricula, schoolwide practices and policies, and collaboration with families and communities for maximum benefit. recognizing social and emotional learning (sel) as an essential learning domain in early childhood helps prevent emotional and behavioral problems and better prepares young children to address the learning and social challenges that they will encounter in later school years (gunter et al., 2012); thus, the inclusion of sel in prekindergarten curricula can foster positive attitudes towards school and long-term academic success (cooper et al., 2014; denham, 2016; durlak et al., 2011; gunter et al., 2012; jennings & greenberg, 2009; ornaghi et al., 2017) while also playing a critical role in the acquisition of behavioral and self-regulation skills, which are 10 valued above academic skills by many kindergarten teachers (soltero-ruiz, 2013). jones, greenberg, and crowley (2015) found statistically significant associations between measured social and emotional skills in kindergarten and key young adult outcomes across the spheres of education, employment, criminal activity, substance use, and mental health. furthermore, sel benefits far outweigh costs by a factor of 11:1 (belfield et al., 2015). jones et al. (2020) found that the association between self-reported sel competencies and selfreported grades was highest for white high school students as compared with all other racial groups. researchers noted that “sel that does not encompass awareness of power, privilege, oppression or culture can serve to perpetuate systems of oppression by contributing to deficit narratives and biased appraisal of students’ behavior” (jones et al., 2020, pp. 6-7). further research is needed to assess the impact of sel programs for diverse populations (durlak et al., 2011; gresham et al., 2017) as well as at various grade levels. the most comprehensive review of school-based sel interventions to date comes from durlak et al. (2011), who conducted a meta-analysis of 213 programs including 270,034 students ranging in age from 5to 18-years-old. results supported the assertion that sel programs in schools increase social and emotional competencies and have positive effects on student attitudes. additionally, authors noted an 11-percentile gain in academic performance in a small subset of studies. conversely, weak social and emotional abilities may result in social isolation, dislike of activities and people in the school environment, and lower level of support, leading to poor academic performance, grade retention, and school dropout (denham & brown, 2010; rhoades et al., 2011). building on the work of durlak et al. (2011), yang et al. (2019) conducted a meta-analytic review of early childhood curricula for sel in low-income student classrooms. analysis found that curricula with a sel focus had a robust impact on student social and emotional competency (sec) outcomes, while curricula without a sel focus had little to no effect on student sec outcomes. specifically, sel focused curricula significantly reduced negative outcomes for lowincome children’s sec development. similarly, calhoun et al. (2020) examined the impact of an sel curriculum for low-income students across four data collection points spanning from the beginning of kindergarten to the middle of second grade. all children who received the intervention benefited significantly, regardless of baseline functioning. the connection between language and social and emotional development for prekindergarten children with and without disabilities was established by kerch et al. (2020). researchers investigated the relationship between a child’s social and emotional competencies and receptive vocabulary and differences in social and emotional competencies among students with and without disabilities. pretest differences indicated that children with disabilities had lower selfcontrol, more behavioral concerns, and fewer total protective factors while children with better receptive language scores showed more initiative, had more protective factors, and were less likely to have behavioral concerns. in terms of social and emotional competencies, differences between children with and without disabilities decreased significantly after nine months in a high-quality, inclusive prekindergarten setting including sel standards. 11 skills in social and emotional learning (sel) may be developed through the prosocial skill set which encourage positive relationships through conflict resolution, effective communication, and perspective taking (yoder, 2014). early childhood teachers can capitalize on day-to-day interactions which provide opportunities to facilitate children’s sel. ng and bull (2018) noted that kindergarten teachers’ support for sel happened more often during small group activities than whole group activities with sel activities most frequently occurring during outdoor play, followed by occurrences during lessons, meals/transitions, and learning centers. teachers were observed using the following four strategies to facilitate sel in their kindergarten classrooms: (1) setting a positive tone, (2) suggesting solutions, (3) allocating tasks, and (4) offering extensions. although early childhood teachers play an important role as mediators and are responsible for arranging meaningful social and emotional learning situations (denham et al., 2012), preschool teachers report a lack of sufficient training to effectively help young children develop social and emotional skills (bierman & erath, 2006). with teachers playing a key role in children’s sel process, there is a need for greater attention to the practices of sel in teacher preparation programs and continuing professional development initiatives (zinsser et al., 2019). a sel component in early childhood teachers’ initial training could enable them to adopt a wide repertoire of strategies with the potential to enhance the involvement of families in children’s development of social and emotional competences (ferreira et al., 2021). jennings and greenberg (2009) offer the following recommendations regarding sel for preservice teachers: incorporating teaching about sel innovations in coursework, designing experiences where teacher candidates apply sel initiatives in field work, providing a training program for teacher educators to develop a knowledge base in sel, and placing interns with teachers who demonstrate sel. the effective use of sel education in preservice programs was linked to reduced teacher experienced job-related stress (zinsser et al., 2019) prompting the suggestion for introducing secular contemplative practices like transcendental meditation (tm) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (mbsr) into teacher preparation programs as a means to facilitate future teachers’ abilities to create classrooms that can support students social and emotional development and aid them in managing emotional conflict (jennings & greenberg, 2009). teachers’ awareness, knowledge, and understanding of sel impact their perceptions of the program and the effectiveness of their classroom interventions (humphrey, 2013) while a teacher’s own social and emotional competencies affect everything that happens in the classroom (jones et al., 2013). teachers with greater knowledge of sel combined with increased confidence in, and commitment to, sel programs are more likely to value sel programs, hence, implementing them with fidelity (schonert-reichl, 2017). zinsser et al. (2014) examined teachers’ perceptions of sel in the preschool setting using a mixed-methods approach. researchers collected narrative data from focus groups as well as quantitative assessments of classroom environments. researchers found that teachers’ beliefs were related to social and emotional teaching practices. high scoring teachers differed from peers in terms of beliefs about emotions, beliefs about the value of sel, the importance of discussing socialization practices and sel strategies, and perceptions of a teacher’s role as emotion socializer. since understanding the differences in teachers’ beliefs about sel in preschool can help support teachers in increasing the quality of their interactions with students, zinsser et al. (2014) called 12 for future research to investigate how to better support both preand in-service teachers in becoming positive emotion socializers and creating supportive learning environments. huynh et al. (2018) investigated perceptions of sel of primary school teachers from two large cities in vietnam. results showed that teachers with higher levels of education had higher perceived levels of necessity of sel in primary schools. teachers with an associate (two-year) degree had the highest perceived levels of difficulty implementing sel programming. additionally, teachers with more years of teaching experience found it less difficult to incorporate sel into classroom practice. while analysis found that there is an interactive effect of education background and years of teaching experience, it was not determined to have a strong impact on teacher perceptions. poulou et al. (2018) compared perceptions of greek and united states preschool teachers’ own emotional intelligence (ei) and social and emotional learning (sel). the research examined whether perceptions of ei and sel vary across cultural groups, whether those perceptions are related to students’ emotional and behavioral issues, and whether those relationships vary by cultural group. researchers hypothesized that teachers with more positive beliefs about implementing sel would be able to better assist students with emotional and behavioral issues, as well as the converse. eighty preschool teachers and 337 students from 24 american preschools along with 92 preschool teachers and 238 students from 52 greek state schools participated in the study. researchers found that the main effect of the cultural group was significant. specifically, american teachers scored higher on ei perceptions and sel comfort of implementation, confirming hypothesized cultural differences. to assess student data, researchers used several hierarchical linear models to account for the nested nature of the data. researchers identified teacher-level predictors including u.s. teacher beliefs of comfort in implementing sel skills (lower teacher comfort level correlated with greater student anxiety) and u.s. teacher perception of commitment to improving sel skills (higher teacher commitment correlated to lower perceptions of peer difficulties). similarly, greek teacher level predictors included teacher perceptions of understanding of emotions (lower levels of teacher understanding correlated with more emotional and peer difficulties for students). despite several limitations, these findings that cultural difference significantly impacts teacher perceptions of sel supports the need for further investigation into perceptions of sel across groups. while research on sel has grown dramatically in recent years, the focus has been mainly on children's acquisition of social and emotional competences and the effects of sel on academic achievement and other benefits. limited attention has been given to teacher’s role in sel even though “[t]eachers are the engine that drives sel programs and practices in schools and classrooms …” (schonert-reichl, 2017, p. 138). as early childhood educators are the primary implementers of sel in preschool programs, their perceptions of sel are likely to impact the delivery, evaluation, and outcomes of social and emotional learning opportunities for young children. the purpose of this study was to investigate sel perceptions of prekindergarten teachers in an american urban, public preschool serving predominantly black students. specifically, the following research questions were investigated: 1. does a prekindergarten teacher’s classroom position impact perceptions of social and emotional learning? 13 2. does a prekindergarten teacher’s educational level impact perceptions of social and emotional learning? 3. does a prekindergarten teacher’s years of teaching experience impact perceptions of social and emotional learning? methodology a quasi-experimental, survey design was used to investigate prekindergarten teachers’ perceptions of social and emotional learning. survey research provides a numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population (creswell & hirose, 2019), making it a preferred method to gather data in educational research (diaz de rada, 2013). in this study, two rationalistic measures were employed to collect data related to preschool teachers’ perceptions of social and emotional learning along with demographic information. it was posited that teachers with higher levels of education and more years of preschool teaching experience would have higher comfort, commitment, and culture domain scores as compared to teachers with lower levels of education and fewer years of prekindergarten teaching experience. instruments the 12-item teacher social and emotional learning beliefs scale (tselbs) developed by brackett et al. (2012) was used to quantify teacher beliefs about social and emotional learning (sel) along three distinct subscales: commitment to teaching sel, comfort teaching sel, and perceived school-wide culture of support for sel. each subscale was comprised of 4 items: commitment (items 3, 4, 11, and 12), comfort (items 5, 7, 8, and 9), and culture (items 1, 2, 6, and 10). the tselbs uses a gradient scale ranging from 1 to 5 (strongly disagree 1, disagree 2, neutral 3, agree 4, and strongly agree 5). item 10 is reverse scored. domain scores range from 4-20 with higher scores indicating more positive perceptions of commitment to, comfort with, and support of sel teaching. along with the survey, a 4-item demographic questionnaire was used to collect information on classroom position (lead or auxiliary), level of education (associate degree, bachelor’s degree, or graduate degree), and number of years’ experience teaching prekindergarten (0-20 years or more than 20 years). participants participants were a convenience sample from a public preschool located in a metropolitan area of the southeastern united states. the 324 students are predominantly (98%) of color (94% black, 2% hispanic, 2% mixed race, and 1% white) and low socio-economic status, as evidenced by 100% participation in the free lunch program. there are 18 classrooms with two designated as inclusive classrooms that accommodate students with special needs. each classroom has 18 students, a lead teacher, and an auxiliary teacher. all teachers were female. participants (n=22) completed the survey during the week-long data collection period in the second semester of the school year. participants (13 lead teachers and nine auxiliary teachers) tended to be highly educated with 17 (77%) holding a bachelor’s (four-year) or graduate degree while the remaining five held an associate (two-year) degree. additionally, participants tended to 14 be experienced early childhood educators, with eight (36%) having more than twenty years of experience teaching prekindergarten. data analysis independent variables were the teacher position (lead or auxiliary), level of education (associate degree, bachelor’s degree, or graduate degree) and years of prekindergarten teaching experience (0-20 years and more than 20 years). participants’ teacher social and emotional learning beliefs scale responses were calculated for each domain: comfort, commitment, and culture. mean domain scores (4 lowest to 20 highest) were calculated for each research question’s subcategories. a cross tabulation analysis was performed using spss 27 to investigate the relationship between independent and dependent variables. findings research question 1 as shown in figure 1, mean lead and auxiliary teachers’ mean teacher social and emotional learning beliefs scale (tselbs) scores for comfort and commitment were very similar, varying only by .7 and .4 points, respectively. interestingly, scores for perceived culture matched exactly. figure 1 mean tselbs domain scores by classroom position research question 2 mean scores for each tselbs domain by educational level are shown in figure 2. commitment and culture scores varied slightly, within one point, across degrees (associate, bachelor’s, and graduate). the greatest variance between teacher education levels was on the tselbs comfort domain, which ranged from 15.3 (associate degree) to 16.9 (bachelor’s degree). 15 15.5 16 16.5 17 17.5 commitment comfort culture 16.8 16.3 17.4 16.1 15.9 17.4 se l d om ai n sc or es mean tselbs domain scores by classroom position lead auxillary 15 figure 2 mean tselbs domain scores by educational level research question 3 lastly, mean domain scores for teacher’s number of years of experience teaching prekindergarten were calculated. teachers with less experience scored lower than teachers with more experience across all three domains, with comfort scores showing the least amount of variation (.1) between the two groups. a difference (1.1) occurred between teachers with more than twenty years of experience teaching prekindergarten (18.1) and those with 20 or fewer years (17.) in domain scores for commitment. figure 3 mean tselbs domain scores by years of experience 14 15 16 17 18 commitment comfort culture 16.2 15.3 16.816.8 16.9 17.7 16.5 15.8 17.5 se l d om ai n sc or e mean tselbs domain score by educational level associate degree bachelor degree graduate degree 14 15 16 17 18 19 commitment comfort culture 17 16.5 15.7 18.1 16.6 16.6 se l d om ai n sc or es mean tselbs dmain scores by teaching experience 0-20 years 20 + years 16 discussion results in this study do not support the asserted hypothesis that lead teachers, more educated teachers, and more experienced teachers have higher domain scores on the teacher social and emotional learning belief scale. while auxiliary teachers did score slightly lower in commitment and comfort domains, the difference was not significant. in terms of teacher education level, domain scores for commitment and culture were similar across degrees. comfort level scores were more varied, with holders of an associate degree scoring the lowest; however, because of small sample size, further investigation to substantiate this finding is warranted. there are a few possible explanations for teachers with bachelor’s degrees scoring the highest on the comfort domain. it is possible that these teachers are more recent graduates of a teacher preparation program that, possibly, included social and emotional learning (sel) within the curriculum. assuming that teachers holding graduate degrees have been teaching longer, teacher burnout may be an impacting factor. however, this trend is not supported by the examination of domain scores by categorical years of prekindergarten teaching experience in which the mean scores for beginning teachers and the most experienced teachers differed by approximately one point for commitment, comfort, and culture. while wu et al. (2020) found teachers’ experience enhanced the implementation success of a formal, teacher-led social and emotional learning program on the development of four-to-fiveyear-old children in an australian preschool setting, number of years teaching prekindergarten was not a significant factor regarding beliefs about sel in this study. domain scores for experienced teachers (more than 20 years) did not notably differ from those who had been teaching prekindergarten for less time, seeming to suggest that novice and veteran early childhood teachers alike need explicit training along with adequate time and opportunity to become confident in providing effective social and emotional learning opportunities for their students. previous studies (domitrovich et al., 2010; durlak & dupre, 2008) found that teachers who believe that there is a need for sel and are committed to providing sel in preschool, are the most effective at implementing sel activities and/or programs in their early childhood classrooms. thus, future research might investigate the effects of exposure to sel training and coaching on teachers’ sel beliefs and/or classroom practices. the impact of age and racial identity on teacher sel beliefs and/or classroom practices would be another area worthy of further investigation. research with larger, more regionally expanded participation including teachers with various levels of sel training would also be beneficial. limitations as in all studies, certain limitations should be acknowledged. data were collected through survey method, and the limitations of self-report data have been noted (sallis & saelens, 2000). while participants remained anonymous, bias associated with individuals reporting on their own experiences (devaux & sassi, 2016) as well as a tendency to either consciously or unconsciously present a favorable image of themselves, known as socially desirable reporting, could also obscure the relationships between variables (van de mortel, 2008). further, participants were a homogenous, convenience sample of prekindergarten teachers from a single school. as a result, a 17 small sample size and homogeneity of participants limit the generalizability of findings. due to limited resources, a qualitative element was not included in this study. conclusions given the growing body of research linking sel with later academic outcomes (cooper et al., 2014; durlak et al. 2011; jennings & greenberg, 2009), impactful sel in the preschool setting has the potential to serve as an equity tool in educating young economically disadvantaged students of color (jagers et al., 2019). since classroom teachers are the primary implementers of sel, perceptions and beliefs about sel likely influence delivery, evaluation, and outcomes (brackett et al., 2012; buchanan et al. 2009). by increasing knowledge of teachers’ perceptions of sel, administrators and instructional coaches will be able to make data-informed decisions regarding sel programs/products, professional development training, and classroom-level behavior intervention strategies. given that administrators and classroom teachers are expected to address social and emotional developmental teaching standards in all 50 states in the united states (dusenbury & weissberg, 2017), more research about teacher perceptions of those standards must be conducted, preferably using larger samples and including qualitative components. specifically, research must address the gap concerning the cultural relevance of sel programs in public school settings, specifically those serving students of low socioeconomic status and/or of color (durlak et al., 2011; jones et al., 2020; yang et al., 2019). in this school-specific study, hypothesized trend lines were not supported by the data. these findings suggest that personal beliefs for teachers about social and emotional learning are highly individualized. to support teachers in developing sel instructional skills and increasing comfort level, personal relationships with administrators and coaches as well as the use of individualized goals are essential. it is recommended that both preand in-service early childhood teachers receive the training and support necessary to help students make positive, responsible decisions, create frameworks to achieve their goals, and build positive relationships with others. 18 references brackett, m. a., reyes, m. r., rivers, s. e., elbertson, n. a., & salovey, p. 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(2014). a mixed-method examination of preschool teacher beliefs about social and emotional learning and relations to observed emotional support. infant and child development 23(5), 471-493. https://doi.org/10.1002/icd.1843 zinsser, k. m., zulauf, c. a., das, v. n., & silver, c. (2019). utilizing social and emotional learning supports to address teacher stress and preschool expulsion. journal of applied developmental psychology, 61, 33-42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2017.11.006 international journal of the whole child volume 1, issue 1, 2016 introduction and overview playing around in science: how self-directed inquiry benefits the whole child brian stone conversations in an 8th grade ela classroom: spaces where young adolescents can construct identities kathleen reeb-reascos examining the precepts of early childhood education: the basics or the essence? kathryn sharp pictures for reflection spotlight on real-world practice puddle ponderings criselda lozon final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 53 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 education by the numbers donald sneada amiddle tennessee state university donald snead (b.s.in natural science, m.a. teaching in curriculum & instruction, ed.d. curriculum & instruction in science education) is the interim department chair and professor in the educational leadership department at middle tennessee state university. committed to a social constructivist philosophy, he teaches courses in curriculum, leadership, and research methods. dr. snead is an inductee into the kentucky distinguished educators cadre. his research interests focus on improving learning for all students. it is not difficult to hear or engage in a debate on the influence that a celebrity, politician, or an athlete have in society. however, outside of the immediate home environment, a teacher is the most influential person in the life of a person. they act as role models and offer guidance to our children. teachers are the backbone of society. teachers are the people responsible for social and economic development of a society. what do we know about teachers in our public schools? according to the most reliable data, there are approximately 3.7 million (3.2 million public and 0.5 million private) full-time and part-time elementary and secondary school teachers in the united states. teacher characteristics are often associated with other variables related to students’ success. characteristics of public-school teachers the united states culture has long held that women are more nurturing than men. historically, this has been the leading factor creating the notion that women are the ideal candidates for teaching. additionally, prior to the passage of title ix in 1972, women admitted to higher education institutions were encouraged to enroll in teacher training programs instead of other majors. these factors were effective in creating a female dominated profession. based on the most recent data, it appears that teaching as a woman’s profession remains engrained in the american culture. percentage of public-school teachers by instructional level and sex female female female male male male lgbt 2000 2018 2021 2000 2018 2021 2021 elementary 88% 89% 75% 12% 11% 21% 13% secondary 59% 64% 50% 41% 36% 45% 14% total 75% 76% 74% 25% 24% 26% 4.8% 54 reference elementary school teacher demographic and statistics in the us (2021). retrieved on october 8, 2021, https://www.zippia.com/elementary-school-teacherjobs/demographics/ high school teacher demographics and statistics in the us (2021). retrieved on october 8, 2021, from https://www.zippia.com/high-school-teacher-jobs/demographics/ national women’s history museum (2017). why are so many teachers’ women? retrieved on october 8, 2021, from https://www.womenshistory.org/articles/why-are-so-manyteachers-women u.s. department of education, national center for education statistics, (2020). characteristics of public and private elementary and secondary school teachers in the united states. retrieved on october 8, 2021, from https://nces.edu.gov/pubs2020/2020142rev.pdf v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 22 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 the importance of community in a fully online program: establishing equity, inclusion, and access with nontraditional students in an early childhood licensure program maryham sadat sharifiana, chelsey bollingerb, shin ji kangc, jordan perlishd, madison masterse a-ejames madison university maryam s. sharifian is the director of early childhood initiatives at james madison university and an assistant professor of early childhood education. dr. sharifian addresses educational issues relating to children and teachers in areas of armed conflict (their wellbeing and resilience strategies) and equity and access to high-quality education in marginalized populations. chelsey bollinger is an assistant professor of literacy education. her research interests include writing instruction, technology integration, and professional learning with teachers. her scholarship can be found in early childhood education journal, journal of interactive technology, and pedagogy, reading horizons, journal of early childhood literacy, and online learning journal. shin ji kang is a professor of the department of early, elementary, and reading education at james madison university. she has taught early childhood methods, diversity and social justice in education, and practicums in early elementary. her scholarly passion includes refugee education and critical pedagogies guided by spirituality and love. jordan perlish is a graduate student working on her mat in elementary education at james madison university. she earned her bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary liberal studies with a minor in elementary education from james madison university. madison masters is a graduate student working on her mat in elementary education at james madison university. she earned her bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary liberal studies with a minor in elementary education from james madison university. abstract the educational landscape requires an increased variety of teachers entering the field. the early childhood education bachelor of individualized studies program is a new online program within a teacher preparation institution located in a comprehensive university on the east coast of the united states. it is designed for students who have earned their applied associate of science in early childhood education (ece) from a community college to pursue teacher licensure. this teacher education program was developed to respond to a statewide teacher shortage for teachers who already had earned an early childhood associates degree from a state community college. this program advocates for non-traditional students and continues to be refined as we (the researchers) continue to work to find better ways to support our students. this online early 23 childhood program aims to increase access to students who have valuable attributes to contribute to the field of education (kaplan & bellwether education partners, 2018). the purpose of this study was to understand the students’ sense of community in the online educational environment. as a faculty community of practice, we, the researchers, created and sent out a qualitative survey to students (n=31) to gather participants’ perspective of community and perceived barriers of an online licensure program in which 24 students completed the survey. to enhance our knowledge about the sense of community, we utilized rovai’s (2002a) classroom community scale (ccs) to collect data from the most recent cohort of students (n=17). the data suggest that both senior and junior students perceive a relatively high level of connectedness and classroom community, with mean scores above 40. the mean score for learning was slightly lower, with both groups scoring below 23 on average. in addition, the following themes emerged from the result of the qualitative study followed by interviews:1) there is a transition period for non-traditional students from the community college to the university online setting, 2) it is important for faculty to be intentional in creating a culture of care and sense of community, 3) licensure assessments are a key barrier, and 4) coaching and mentorship are critical for students’ success. purpose the purpose of the study was to examine non-traditional students’ perspective of community and their perceived barriers in an online 4-year bachelor’s program preparing pk to 3rd grade teachers. this pilot teacher education program was recently developed to respond to the statewide teacher shortage and to grow future teachers who already earned an early childhood associate degree from a state community college. with limited knowledge and experience working with non-traditional students in an online space, the instructors of the program aimed to create a desirable learning environment where non-traditional students could make smooth transitions, felt like they belonged, and successfully met the academic requirements. while each course was thoughtfully designed and implemented to support the students’ meaningful learning, it warrants a systematic study to identify and address barriers to continue to improve the program. this study is significant for several reasons: the reviewed literature indicates a research gap in non-traditional preservice teachers’ experiences and perspectives in the field of early childhood education (ece) who had earned an associate degree at a community college. most research has been conducted on post-baccalaureate teacher certification programs allowing non-traditional students to pursue teaching careers with a graduate diploma upon completion (crosswell & beutel, 2017; walsh, abi-nader, & poutiatine, 2005). little research is documented on these students who were enrolled in an online teacher licensure program during the pandemic. it is imperative to better understand their experience so that we can theorize teacher development and quality teaching. background this program started in 2019 to provide non-traditional students a flexible, online teacher licensure track that could be completed asynchronously. the variability offered provides students 24 the ability to achieve their degree alongside working full-time and, for many, family responsibilities. upon completion of this program, students will earn a four-year degree and become eligible for a state license to teach students in grades pre-kindergarten to third grade. the program was developed due to the statewide teacher shortage as an initiative to qualify students that have earned an early childhood associates degree from a state community college who seek to earn a bachelor of individualized study. this seamless pathway was initiated with a signed memorandum of understanding (mou) between virginia community college systems and a few four-year higher education institutions. students who work at public or private early childhood centers receive funding for tuition to cover the cost of two courses per semester and textbooks. in order to continue partnership with community colleges, the transfer virginia established a collaboration among the state council of higher education for virginia (schev), the virginia community college system (vccs) and virginia's colleges and universities to provide students with transparency in college transfer across the commonwealth. there is a strong collaboration across the state between vccs, virginia's colleges and universities, and the virginia department of education to support this pathway long-term and improve the quality and accessibility of the program. the pilot program started as a small cohort of 7 students in the spring semester of 2019. successful recruiting increased the number to 60 students in 2022. continued growth is expected for future cohorts as internal procedures such as external marketing, building relationships with public schools across the state, and advocating for increasing the number of teaching assistants from private preschool providers are continually developed to support success. classes are offered fully online to provide accessibility to students across the state. the program offers parttime and full-time options to students to follow the track that meets their schedule. this can take four to eight semesters depending on summer course load. the course load includes two practicum placements and a student teaching experience. the program offers flexibility for students to complete one of their two practicum placements in their own classrooms in order to support their financial stability. in addition, the university education support center (esc) works closely with the state’s school systems and private preschool providers to arrange student teaching opportunities in their own classroom. since the program is fully online, students’ localities are distributed across the state. the esc arranges student teaching placements based on student requests to either be placed in their own classroom or in a school near their residence. the majority of the student population in this program include teaching assistants, substitute teachers, or those already working in early childhood centers in different capacities. many of these students also have second or third jobs to be able to provide for their families. this is the reality for teachers with low salaries in the early childhood education field. therefore, the program is designed as a fully online, asynchronous delivery method to support full-time, nontraditional adult learners. through extensive reflection and discourse with students, the program started to offer one-hour, weekly synchronized sessions for each course during the evening time to build a sense of community and improve content learning opportunities. each synchronous class is recorded and students who cannot participate have access to the recorded session. literature review 25 non-traditional students a term for non-traditional college students has been used to describe students with diverse backgrounds in terms of age, enrollment patterns, financial and family status, and professional work experience. as the enrollment of the non-traditional students has increased in the us colleges, recruitment and retention of these students became a critical consideration for higher education innovation and the need for accurate understanding of non-traditional students grew (chao & good, 2004). previous literature described that non-traditional college students were not only older in age but had other characteristics that were different from traditional college students: they tended to demonstrate financial independence, be the first generation of college goers, have dependents in their families, be racial/ethnic minorities, and/or have low-income status (adams & corbett, 2010; brown, 2012; chao & good, 2004; scott & lewis, 2012; wladis, conway, & hachey, 2015). these factors may connotate negative assumptions regarding non-traditional students’ achievement and performance in higher education settings. in fact, scott and lewis (2012) found that some non-traditional students taking classes with traditional college student peers experienced hostile or uncomfortable learning environments that impede their learning. minimal peer interactions between the non-traditional and traditional students resulted in feelings of separation and uneasiness. brown (2012) explored math teaching efficacy beliefs of 141 non-traditional preservice teachers working toward a bachelor’s degree and teacher certification in community colleges in florida. this particular program was created to address the state’s teacher shortage by intentionally recruiting non-traditional students who had limited access to college education (brown, 2012). brown (2012) found that the math teaching efficacy scores were positively correlated with the age of the students, lower division math history, and math methods course performance. however, their failed attempts on high-stakes teacher certification exams were not correlated with the math teaching efficacy scores. the results of this study informed the newly created teacher education program of the non-traditional students’ teaching efficacy beliefs and specific implications to support the non-traditional preservice teachers’ learning and development. the reviewed literature indicates a research gap in non-traditional preservice teachers’ experiences and perspectives in the field of early childhood education who had earned an associate degree in community colleges. little knowledge was documented on these students who were enrolled in an online teacher licensure program during pandemic. it is imperative to understand these students in such programs so that we could theorize teacher development and quality teaching and recommend better avenues to address teacher shortage. a major barrier for most non-traditional students seeking an early childhood education degree is the financial burden of post-secondary education. many do not qualify for federal funding and grants because of the limitations to the number and variety of classes they can take while working full-time and caring for a family. the formulas used to calculate financial aid awards do not take these considerations into account and ultimately impede these students from receiving the funding to cover the expense of their education (kaplan & bellwether education partners, 2018). in addition to not getting the financial aid necessary, there is no guarantee for increased pay, so “it makes little sense for students with financial insecurity to take on financial debt to fund higher education” (kaplan & bellwether education partners, 2018, p. 12). 26 online programs there is concern surrounding the reportedly high rates of attrition in online classes compared to face-to-face classes (bloemer, swan, day, & bogle, 2018). undergraduate students are poorly prepared and lack the student agency necessary for success in the online learning environment (stephen & rockinson-szaokiw, 2021). to address the lack of persistence of undergraduate online students, universities must create and implement interventions that prepare students for the online learning environment and help them develop as autonomous learners. not all factors associated with online student persistence are within the institution’s control. rovai (2002b) emphasized that students must be skilled in time management, computer literacy, information literacy, and computer-based interaction before admission and that they have additional needs (i.e., goal commitment, learning preferences, study habits, interpersonal skills and relationships, self-esteem, accessibility to services) throughout an online class or program influencing their persistence. yet, undergraduate online students continue to enroll in online classes despite lacking these necessary pre-admission student skills (broadbent, 2017; parkes, stein, & reading, 2015) and without developing the necessary student agency to persist (kizilcec, pérez-sanagustín, & maldonado, 2017; schommer-aikins & easter, 2018; song, kalett, & plass, 2016). rovai (2002b) argued that if institutions are to promote persistence, they need to consider helping students develop student agency, so they can “seek to persist” (tinto, 2017, p. 254). hence, institutions must assume a key responsibility in helping online undergraduate students develop mechanisms of student agency to persist. online student orientation, regular advisement, technology training, and the use of selfassessments to determine student readiness for online learning are some of the strategies that institutions of higher education can employ to support students’ agency, and thus, their persistence (hart, 2012; lee & choi, 2011). for example, one institution’s required orientation centered on the online class environment (i.e., navigation, tool use). an examination of the effectiveness of the orientation found a decrease in online student class withdrawals and an overall increase in student grades (taylor, dunn, & winn, 2015). another institution of higher education also experienced an increase in online student retention after implementing an online orientation focused on technology use, help-seeking, virtual communication, and tips for success as an online learner (jones, 2013). while these studies are promising and support the positive impact of such interventions, they were primarily concerned with developing skill and selfefficacy with technology, and the literature surrounding the outcomes and impact of such interventions is sparse (parkes et al., 2015). interventions facilitating technology use may enhance technical skills, but students need to develop additional elements of student agency to persist in undergraduate online classes and programs. those interventions intended to develop student agency need to be examined to determine their impact on online undergraduate student persistence. a study on undergraduate student preparedness for online learning found that students did not feel prepared to navigate an online class, manage their learning, engage with others online, interact with class content, and manage their time (parkes et al., 2015). online community building 27 the convenience and accessibility of online courses have made this mode of learning increasingly popular. students are able to participate via distance, using a schedule that works for them. however, this distance learning opportunity can cause feelings of isolation for both students and instructors. how can this concern of isolation be mitigated by building community? when meeting face-to-face, creating a classroom community typically consists of ice-breaker activities, personal introductions, and reviewing the course syllabus. these activities set the stage for the semester and help create connections between students and instructors. these types of interactions are important and should be incorporated into online learning, as well. some students and educators may have negative dispositions regarding online courses, believing that face-to-face learning is the only manner in which a course should be delivered (phirangee & malec, 2016). drouin (2008) found that community building in the classroom can help students eliminate feelings of isolation. according to mcmillan and chavis (1986), community is ‘‘a feeling that members have of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and to the group, and a shared faith that members’ needs will be met through their commitment to be together’’ (p. 9). rovai (2002a) defines community in terms of four dimensions: spirit, trust, interaction and common expectations. spirit is the “recognition of membership in a community and the feelings of friendship, cohesion, and bonding that develop among learners as they enjoy one another and look forward to time spent together” (rovai, 2002a, p. 4). trust shows a willingness of members in the community to rely on each other and have confidence in each other. rovai (2002a) distinguishes between two types of interaction: task-driven interaction and socio-emotional driven interaction. the latter is more likely to strengthen the classroom community. the final dimension of community is common expectations. in the context of examining the sense of community in higher education, the common expectation would be learning. dawson (2006) surveyed 464 undergraduate and postgraduate education students using the ccs. the students that communicated more with classmates and instructors were found to have experienced a higher degree of sense of community. rovai (2002a) studied a collection of literature on sense of community and found seven factors across his literature review that are positive correlates to sense of community: transactional distance, social presence, social equality, small group activities, group facilitation, teaching style and learning stage, and community size. many of these patterns and factors that researchers have identified overlap and show a common theme that meaningful interactions among classmates and instructors correlates to a higher sense of community. low sense of community has been found to have negative impacts on students’ success in higher education. rovai (2002b) collected 314 completed surveys from graduate students in education and leadership courses. the average age of the participants was 39.25 years old. rovai used the ccs and found that “the common factor affecting both dropout rate and cognitive learning may be a sense of community in online courses and programs” (rovai, 2002b, p. 328). likewise, rovai (2002b) found students who had a stronger sense of community to have greater satisfaction with their academic programs and therefore lower dropout rates. 28 theoretical framework: communities of practice a social theory of learning defines that competence is historically and socially established by communities of practice (cop), which shape experiences of their members (lave & wenger, 1991). wenger (2000) notes that learning is an “interplay between social competence and personal experience” as well as a “two-way relationship between people and the social learning systems in which they participate” (p. 227). we situate our study in the framework of cop and aim to better understand how students negotiate competence and experience as they participate in the online degree program as new members. the expected competence has been defined within the teacher education institution both explicitly and formally (e.g., course syllabi) as well as ambiguously and informally (e.g., communication styles), which is not always known to new students. the nature of engagement of non-traditional students is presumably diverse since their histories, repertoires, and competences are different from the traditional 4-year, full-time, residential college experience. their “non-traditional” ness as college students, thus, may create tensions and conflicts as soon as they begin their course work in the program. wenger (2000) calls these spaces of conflict, boundaries. without shared practice in the new community, the nontraditional students might have experienced the boundaries as they navigate their belongingness. we aim to articulate how boundaries are perceived and processed by the students. our ultimate goal is to create bridges between identified boundaries to sustain the new teacher education program as a learning community where participants becoming competent in a deeper level at the center. participants the majority of the students in this program are considered non-traditional students: all of them are situated in rural communities with uneasy access to a 4-year teacher education institution. the majority are the first going to college in their families, have school-aged children to take care of, have partor full-time jobs in various educational settings, and often have second or third jobs to overcome financial struggles. the study consisted of two surveys: alfred p. rovai’s classroom community scale (ccs) and a qualitative survey created by the researchers to gather students’ perspective of community and perceived barriers of an online licensure program. the total number of students in this study was 31 in which 24 students completed the qualitative survey and 17 students completed rovai’s ccs. table 1. displays the demographic data from the qualitative survey for all participants who completed it. table 1 the demographic data factor number percentage ethnicity 24 29 caucasian 17 71% african american 7 29% first generation college student 24 yes 19 80% no 5 20% number of children 24 none 9 37% 1 4 17% 2-4 9 37% more than 4 2 9% annual income 24 less than $25,000 5 21% $25,000-$50,000 9 39% $50,000-$100,000 9 39% prefer not to say 1 1% age 24 18-28 8 33% 29-38 8 33% 39-48 5 21% 49-58 2 9% 59-68 1 4% methodology and data collection the research question that guided our study is: ● how do students describe the sense of community in our fully online early childhood program? 30 this study is a mixed methods study. "mixed methods research is a rapidly growing approach to inquiry that combines qualitative and quantitative methods in a single study to understand complex phenomena from multiple perspectives" (creswell & plano clark, 2011, p. 4). data collection began in april 2022 with an email invitation to complete a 35-question survey that the researchers generated. the qualitative survey was sent to current students in the program (n=31) in which 24 students completed the survey. questions included likert scale and openended questions focused on various aspects of the two-year online bachelor of individualized studies program. in june 2022 the researchers conducted 30-minute individual virtual interviews. the interview questions focused on deepening our understanding of responses to the survey questions. the qualitative survey created by the researchers consisted of 5 categories: transition of nontraditional students to university, creating a culture of care and a sense of community, licensure assessments and barriers, coaching and mentorship, and transition from a teacher assistant position to a full-time licensed teacher. each category contains 2-9 likert scale questions followed by short response prompts. the likert scale questions were scored as follows: 0 strongly disagree to 4 strongly agree. the maximum score for the survey is 72, and a higher score denotes a more positive experience in the online program. in addition, participants who agreed to follow-up interviews completed a 30-minute zoom session with researchers as a focus group. then, the researchers reflected on their interest to increase our knowledge of sense of community through progressive investigation by adopting rovai’s classroom community scale (ccs). the researchers acknowledge that the first cohort of participants already graduated from the program and were unavailable to complete the ccs. therefore, there is a discrepancy between two cohorts of participants in data collection. many researchers (dawson, 2006; ouzts, 2006; rovai, 2002b; shackleford & maxwell, 2012; trespalacios & perkins, 2016) have used rovai’s classroom community scale (ccs) to measure perceptions of sense of community in higher education. the ccs uses 20 likert-type scale questions to survey students’ feelings of community. the survey generates a total score for classroom community by combining two sub-scores for connectedness and learning (ouzts, 2006). the ccs has been evaluated for reliability and validity. reliability for the ccs was .93 and reliability for the connectedness and learning subscales were .92 and .87, respectively (rovai, 2002b). the 20 likert-type scale questions in the ccs are split into two subscales: connectedness and learning. the questions that fall into each subscale receive a score of 0-4. to find a participant’s total classroom community score, the scores from the two subscales are combined. the maximum score for the connectedness subscale is 40, the maximum score for the learning subscale is 40 with the total score for the ccs being 80. 31 data analysis and results as a mixed method study, the researchers utilized two sets of data to create a comprehensive understanding of participants in this study. the first step of qualitative data analysis included numerous iterations of thematic coding. the analysis of the data included initial coding of participants’ responses to both survey and interview questions. then, the research team split in half. each group employed descriptive coding (miles & huberman, 1994; strauss & corbin, 1998) by assigning phrases that summarized passages of participants’ responses. then, the two groups reconvened and employed pattern coding (miles & huberman, 1994). they examined the descriptive codes for commonalities and consolidated them into a smaller number of categories (glaser & strauss, 1967). this iterative, recursive process continued until the researchers reached a consensus on the themes to be discussed in the findings. through quantitative study a total of 17 study participants were measured using the classroom community scale (ccs). table 2 presents the descriptive statistics for the completed ccs survey for two groups, senior and junior students, disaggregated by academic year. the ccs survey measures two constructs: connectedness and learning. for the senior group, the mean score for connectedness was 22.11, with a minimum score of 18 and a maximum score of 28. the mean score for learning was 22.55, with a minimum score of 20 and a maximum score of 26. the mean score for the total classroom community scale was 44.66, with a minimum score of 39 and a maximum score of 50. for the junior group, the mean score for connectedness was 22.75, with a minimum score of 19 and a maximum score of 26. the mean score for learning was 21.12, with a minimum score of 16 and a maximum score of 25. the mean score for the total classroom community scale was 43.87, with a minimum score of 41 and a maximum score of 51. the data suggest that both senior and junior students perceive a slightly high level of connectedness and learning with mean scores above 22 and 21, respectively. overall, the descriptive statistics suggest that academic seniors and juniors had similar levels of connectedness and learning in the classroom community as indicated by similar mean scores for the ccs measures. however, the standard deviation indicates some variabilities among the two cohorts. table 2 descriptive statistics for all who completed the ccs disaggregated by academic year as senior and junior. min max mean s.d. academic senior (n=9) connectedness 18 28 22.11 3.10 learning 20 26 22.55 1.81 32 total score (classroom community scale) 39 50 44.66 3.31 academic junior (n=8) connectedness 19 26 22.75 2.37 learning 16 25 21.12 2.74 total score (classroom community scale) 41 51 43.87 3.31 the data from the qualitative survey created by the researchers indicated that the participants generally had a positive experience with the university eced bis program. the mean score for the total responses is 62.09 out of a possible 85, which indicates an overall positive experience. participants' responses in each category are indicated below. transition of non-traditional students to university. most respondents agreed that they received the same attention at the university as they did at their community college, indicating that the university provided an adequate level of attention and support. the majority of the respondents felt that the online modality helped them gain access to the program, suggesting that online learning can be an effective way to reach non-traditional students. similarly, a vast majority of the respondents did not feel that the online modality hindered their learning, which is an encouraging sign for the continued use of online education. creating a culture of care and sense of community. most respondents felt that they were able to build connections and relationships with professors and classmates in their online courses, which is crucial for developing a sense of community in an online environment. participants generally felt a sense of belonging to their cohort community, which is another important factor in creating a supportive learning environment. most respondents felt that their professors cared about their wellbeing and were fair and inclusive in their practices, indicating that the university provided an environment that was conducive to student success. licensure assessments and barriers. for licensure, the state requires students to take four assessments: a core math assessment, a core literacy assessment, an elementary subject test, and a reading assessment measuring their knowledge of elementary reading and writing skills and reading development. a majority of respondents felt that participating in the tutor program supported them in passing licensure exams, suggesting that the university's support programs are effective. respondents were split on whether they had trouble scheduling licensure exams, which may indicate that there is a need for improvements to be made in this area. 33 coaching and mentorship. most respondents received helpful and regular feedback from their clinical educators, tutors, and advisors indicating that the university provided strong support in the form of coaching and mentorship. the university’s education support center (esc) matched students with clinical educators during their practicum and student teaching placement. clinical educators provided support for student teachers and practicum students in the classroom during their required hours. students observed the clinical educator, received feedback during meetings after teaching hours, and obtained mid-term and final evaluations from the clinical educator on their effectiveness in the classroom. in addition to traditional support from clinical educators, the program offered two tutors who were available to meet with students weekly in the evenings during the semester via zoom. both tutors were licensed teachers with experience in public and private settings. one of the tutors provided support in preparation for the core math assessment and elementary subject test. the second tutor provided support in preparation for the core literacy assessment and reading assessment. both tutors provided mentorship in navigating the program throughout students’ education to process the university’s required general education courses, summer program, scholarships, and the program course sequence. respondents were split on whether they saw their tutors as their mentors, which suggests that there may be some room for improvement in this area. most respondents felt supported by their professors and advisors, which is another important factor in creating a supportive learning environment. transition from teacher assistant position to full-time licensed teacher. most respondents felt prepared for their first teaching position, which is an encouraging sign for the university's teacher education program. overall, the data show that the university program provided a positive experience for nontraditional students transitioning from community college, with strong support in the areas of online learning, community building, coaching and mentorship, and licensure exam preparation. twenty four out of 31 completed the survey and 14 agreed to participate in follow up interviews. the themes from the survey and follow up interviews included the importance of: 1) understanding the transition of non-traditional students to the university online setting, 2) creating a culture of care and sense of community, 3) guiding students through the licensure assessments and barriers, and 4) coaching and mentorship for students. several students mentioned their transition from a non-traditional student to a university student. a student explained, i'm so glad that this program exists because for the longest time it was just you can get your associates, but if you got your associates at a community college that never transferred over and so you'd have to start all over…that was like my predicament. i didn't go to a university right off the bat, where i could just do the whole thing in one spot. i mean to be honest like who, who can financially support themselves, i mean the income is very low especially for what we do, it's insane. we learned that, even though our program was fully online, students indeed felt a culture of care and a sense of community. for example, students mentioned that weekly virtual discussions, 34 while they seemed difficult to schedule, allowed students the opportunity to meet others in the program. once these groups were created the students kept in touch with each other throughout the entirety of the program. a student explained, “the university is quite different, because you love your zoom meetings and those meetings give us a chance to meet each other. i have a couple of students' phone numbers and relationships grow from there. i’ve felt more included having these relationships.” students felt licensure assessments and other barriers felt complicated and this is something as teacher educators in a cop want to examine more closely. a student shared, “the science and the social studies exams have been difficult. i just got my test results back. i was like one or two points away. that's really hindered me like crazy.” coaching and mentorship was a common theme among study participants. one student mentioned that she “learned through watching other teachers during my practicum experiences. i also got my cda before i got my associates, so that experience has helped as well.” another student shared, “the stability that our advisor provided has been helpful. she was right there to answer questions and to make sure that we understood what we were doing.” with these themes in mind, we, the researchers and teacher educators were in pursuit of the truth and now that these barriers have been uncovered, we will now systematically decide how to make improvements to our program. we learned about non-traditional students' perceptions and experiences in an online program. in the future, it warrants comparing how students perceive a community in a face-to-face setting in a similar licensure program. it is critical to reflect on the lack of confidence in non-traditional students in preparation for licensure exams. this issue has been overlooked in teacher preparation programs and needs to be addressed to provide equitable measures for non-traditional students. non-traditional students typically represent a diverse background in terms of ability, ethnicity, language, and age. traditional licensure exams might have been developed without considering teacher candidates’ cultural diversity in mind which leads to major success rate gaps between traditional and non-traditional students because of their backgrounds that serve as a disadvantage. this study guides us to take concrete steps toward advocacy for equitable licensure opportunities for non-traditional students through policy makers in state and national legislature. scholarly significance creating a culture of care and sense of community as one of the main themes of this study and is supported by ouzts (2006) study that identified five patterns in courses rated high in sense of community. the five patterns were “good teacher characteristics, strong student connection related to assignments, a change in personal perspective, quality learning, and satisfaction” (ouzts, 2006, p. 291). teachers in highly rated sense of community courses were described as interactive, present, open, honest, and human. students in highly rated sense of community courses interacted frequently through discussion and group work and felt that they learned from each other. similarly, dawson (2006) found a “significant relationship between student frequency of communication and sense of community” (p. 160). 35 researchers have provided recommendations of ways to increase sense of community and promote positive student outcomes. shackleford and maxwell (2012) suggest that instructors “provide sufficient direction and support to improve the chances that this teamwork will be positive and contribute to a sense of community” (p. 241). shackleford and maxwell (2012) also recommend allowing students the opportunity to work collaboratively, share stories of personal experiences, and interact in multiple ways. rovai (2002a) recommends that instructors provide students with increased effective support by promoting a strong sense of community. this will help increase retention of students in higher education, reverse feelings of isolation, and provide students with a larger base of academic support. in addition to the sense of community, creating measurable and achievable infrastructure to support the transition from community college to a four-year higher education institution is essential to improve the teacher education non-traditional pathway. for instance, dedicating a summer-long semester prior to starting the program would be a practical strategy to provide sufficient time for students to take one general education course at the university and learn about navigation of licensure requirements, course sequence, and degree requisites. since faculty are the key players to create sustainable, high-quality education and training for students, there must be continuous professional development to increase their understanding and knowledge about non-traditional students, their needs, strengths, and challenges. non-traditional students carry a major burden of responsibilities that requires a significant understanding and care from faculty to support them throughout their education. the extra support would be essential to prevent social, emotional, and mental health challenges for students during their education. there will inevitably continue to be barriers for these students, but by providing information 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(2015). the online stem classroom: who 38 succeeds? an exploration of the impact of ethnicity, gender, and non-traditional student characteristics in the community college context. community college review, 43(2), 142164. international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 growing up healthy: from the farm to the cafeteria tylar setser master’s student at middle tennessee state university as a foodcorps member in mississippi, my responsibilities included grant writing, school garden development, and educational outreach. in particular, i coordinated with local farmers and local district nutrition directors to source local produce into school cafeterias. the benefits for children are extraordinary including describing healthy choices, identifying new fruits and vegetables, and introducing different nutritious recipes and food preparations. the following discussion provides teachers with information to secure fresh, local produce on behalf of the health of all children. building on my experiences and those of my colleagues, the following guidelines provide a map to creating a “culture of food appreciation”. 1. developing a relationship with a local farmer. start by asking about farm practices (is it organic? is there a heavy use of pesticides? how much product do they cultivate? what produce do they grow to sell? what are the seasons for the available produce?). 2. establishing a solid understanding of local farm practices and capacities is critical. this knowledge allows you to ask informed questions regarding the farmer’s interest in sourcing to local schools. 3. thinking cautiously. be sure not to lead the farmer in believing that you will need an overwhelming amount of produce. starting small in your buying is key to program sustainability. 4. developing a relationship. a relationship will assist in the ultimate cost of your produce and the possibility of your farmer making a school appearance. remember, this is about building a relationship. 5. talking with the district nutrition director. school district personnel are responsible for layers of paperwork with respect to sourcing food for the district. this may be a “new” concept for your district. initially, they may not be willing to consider this proposal. the best access point into this process is through your nutrition director. they know the guidelines for the district and will ultimately be the “yes” or “no” on whether or not the buying will happen. be prepared for some hesitancy, but do not be dissuaded. focus on the benefits for children and move forward. moving forward, stay small. this is worth repeating, “start small.” 6. talking with your food service staff. these are the individuals that will be preparing the new produce. be sure they have the knowledge and equipment to implement the recipes identified for the new produce. 7. getting the word out. it is critical your school families are well informed regarding the significance of locally sourced produce. it is important this information is shared with the community prior to program implementation. in this way, families are included in the discussion and become part of the conversation. family support is integral to ultimate program success. involving students. including students of all grades in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of this partnership is important. for example, create a problem-based lesson wherein students brainstorm, investigate, and interpret harvest and recipe possibilities; highlight a harvest of the month board, and create a healthy recipe book. 10. extend media coverage by inviting local television news and newspapers to your event. this is an excellent way to spread the message. 11. be sure to actively include students. identify what produce and recipe the students will eat. this can easily be done through a school wide taste test. based on the farmer’s availability, select what produce to be served and then describe what simple recipe can make the vegetable/fruit delicious. 12. talk to your school principal, cafeteria manager and cafeteria staff to set up a date for the taste test. volunteers help pass out the samples and support the children in their voting. 13. recruit volunteers to assist in the cafeteria on this day. help will be needed to prepare the recipe, to scoop the samples, and to assist children in voting. this vote will determine whether or not the new recipe is added to the school menu. 14. set up a buying plan: this is accomplished only after there is a evidence-based idea of what produce the district can afford, the farmer can source, and of course, the children can enjoy. 15. work with the nutrition director to set up the buying plan with your local farmer. did i say to remember to start small? begin with getting one local item in the cafeteria monthly or biweekly and gradually work your way forward. build the program slowly, offer more taste tests, try new recipes, and continue stronger community support and partnerships. 16. do not forget to capture these moments in picture. the community and school websites will enjoy this opportunity to celebrate this partnership. finally, remember the reason you started this initiative. it is always about helping children to be healthy. and yes, this will take some time and effort, but the benefits are long-range and most rewarding. microsoft word ijwc spring 2018.docx 1 introduction in order to support educators’ plan to be strategic in optimizing children’s holistic experiences, this spring 2018 ijwc issue provides international readers with deeper understandings associated with how culture, family, and environment influence designing quality learning opportunities. as professional educators, we acknowledge issues confronting one population may be somewhat different than another, but also we understand the issues may as well be similar in many critical ways. in order to ensure children’s intellectual, social, and emotional well-being, on behalf of the global community of all children, what factors might we consider as commonly shared and of critical importance? the ijwc mission is to share stories representing diverse populations, highlight best practices supporting authentic learning, and provide examples of interactions showcasing learning as holistic, genuine, and caring. by providing a variety of perspectives, readers are invited to step out of their comfort zones and question, challenge, and extend their current thinking. articles in the first manuscript, “childrearing experiences in cross-national families,” yajuan xiang and tori colson identify cross-national family as an understudied group. using qualitative data, their findings contribute to this minimally explored area multicultural parenting experiences. the findings provide evidence the role of place of residence, language, and extended families and friends, as cultural media, influence multicultural parenting experiences. xiang and colson describe how the country of residence (through the dominance of cultures, values, and beliefs) influence couples in their childrearing practices. additionally, authors describe how living in the u.s. influenced children’s learning opportunities, parental responsibilities, and parenting practices. as couples become ever more mobile, opportunities for teachers to interact with children of cross-national families increases. this research study provides valuable insight for both parents and teachers. in the second article, “differentiated instruction: a band-aid approach for a flawed system,” sandra j. stone questions the current emphasis on differentiation and challenges whether or not differentiation truly supports children’s holistic learning. while initially well-intended, stone discusses how by residing within the curriculum, differentiation is not child-centered; by focusing efforts to master standards, differentiation discounts individual children’s developmental continuum; and by narrowing assessment possibilities, differentiation undermines children’s opportunities to engage in genuine, authentic, and 2 long-range holistic learning experiences. on behalf of all children, stone invites readers to reject the “mainstream think” and consider a balanced, social, and respectful alternative. in the third article, “early childhood education in iran: progress and emerging challenges,” maryam sharifian, building on her extensive fieldwork with marginalized populations, describes the status of early childhood education in iran. she identifies challenges associated with dual governmental oversight, describes issues related to private schooling and the influence of socioeconomic status, and discusses the challenges related to teacher preparation and equitable staffing. as a positive note, sharifian reports increasing numbers of parents realize the importance of high quality early education and, as well, are more sensitive to issues related to second language and special needs learners. yet, despite the improved status of education, she also identifies issues making access to universal pre-primary school programs difficult. in an effort to improve the lives of iranian children, dr. sharifian calls for a discussion beyond political borders and an opening of professional conversations across cultures. pictures for reflection without children knowing their environment, how can they well adapt and become a steward of the global community? in “playing in the snow and much more,” the photographs show children playing in the snow; yet, the informed adult knows there is much, much, much more happening. playing in the snow is a holistic learning experience; the children use their intellect to plan, design, and organize props; use their emotions to embrace the cold, enjoy friends, and celebrate the play event; and use their physicality to roll, carry, and pack the snow. some parents and teachers report children no longer want to go outside and play. “it is too cold. what can i do?” if this is the case, as facilitators for children’s well-being, let us take a few minutes and revisit the photographs to discover what is truly happening as children play in the snow. tech talk larry l. burriss, cosmologist-wanna-be and long-time star party groupie, in “star parties: bringing the infinite universe into a small classroom,” describes the extraordinary learning possibilities afforded the local community through university-sponsored star parties. with the support of technology, the wonders of the universe are made conceivable each month. burriss describes how it becomes possible for the star parties to bring the sights and sounds of the universe into the classroom. 3 etc. highlighted as an example of extraordinary holistic planning, in the fourth article, “teaching sustainable practices as part of a holistic education in the saudi context,” ahlam alghamdi, james ernest, and fatimah hafiz illustrate the powerful capacity of storytelling to well integrate culture, environment, and religion into children’s learning. the authors describe how teachers nurture saudi children to become caretakers for their natural sand-desert environment, while simultaneously underscoring the critical importance of culture and religion in the daily lives of all saudi citizens. using the potential of storytelling as a most effective instructional alternative, ensuring authentic play events with sand, and integrating and affirming the tenets of the quran, teachers support children’s emerging understandings of their critical role and responsibilities in their physical world and cultural framework. international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 digging in the dirt this “dirt digging” is serious business. some people smile and say, “i am just having fun and playing.” in reality, “i am estimating, predicting, hypothesizing, digging, pouring, mixing, blending, planting, building, creating, planning, weighing, sensing, balancing, discovering, knowing, and organizing. as i dig in the dirt, you may hear me talking to myself. yes, i do this to help me think through my digging issues. do i dig deeper? do i add more water? should i mix the dirt with the sand? what materials do i need to construct a mud wall? is there another tool i can use than just my shovel? my dirt playing is quit complex. if you are still not sure, consider the content areas i am targeting including language arts, chemistry, geology, physics, mathematics, and art. and finally, playing in the dirt is great fun.” v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 104 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 page turners: books for children maria genesta, katrina bartow jacobsb, carla k. meyerc, michelle j. sobolakd, patricia crawforde ala roche university, buniversity of pittsburgh, cduquesne university, duniversity of pittsburgh, euniversity of pittsburgh a blue kind of day written by rachel tomlinson illustrated by tori-jay mordey kokila, 2022 isbn 9780593324011 tomlinson, a registered psychologist, provides readers with a timely story about how a family comes together to help their son deal with a day when he is feeling very blue. the story follows the main character, coen, who wakes up feeling very down. coen describes all the ways that his body is impacted by his emotions, as he pulls away from his family who are trying to cheer him up. soon his family realizes that simply being there for him is the best way to show support. their closeness and love finally help him to feel better. this text supports readers in learning about emotions, understanding sensory cues, accepting inevitable times when we all feel down and provides supportive guidance. the text would serve classrooms and families well as we all learn to better support mental health. ages 4-8. most perfect you written by jazmyn simon illustrated by tamisha anthony random house, 2022 isbn 9780593426944 growing up can be challenging as children work to build their self-esteem and identity. this enchanting story takes the reader on the journey of a loving mother helping her daughter realize that each aspect of her inside and out is both unique and perfect. the love shared between mother and daughter overflows the pages, as the mother enthralls her daughter with a tale of how she chose all of her daughter’s unique characteristics before she was born. the beautiful, whimsical illustrations complement the text with both soft pastel and bold colors to make the words come alive. ages 3-10. 105 the world’s best class plant written by liz garton scanlon and audrey vernick illustrated by lynnor bontigao putnam, 2023 isbn 9780525516354 the kids in room 109 have had it. while other classes have exciting class pets, room 109 only has a class plant; a boring, green, potted plant that hardly ever grows. what a letdown! things begin to change when their teacher suggests they name the plant. the newly christened “jerry” becomes a class plant like no other. class members begin to give jerry the tender loving care needed to grow into a thriving spider plant. in turn, jerry shines and begins to produce baby spiderette plants for all the children to enjoy. this droll, engaging picture book imparts the gentle, yet joyful, lesson that a little care, attention, and appreciation can make a world of difference in life’s circumstances. an afterword includes tips for caring for plants. while the winsome end pages offer a “before and after” take on the lives of both the plant and children of room 109. ages 4-8. yoshi: sea turtle genius written by lynn cox illustrated by richard jones anne schwartz books, 2023 isbn 9780593425688 “inside the egg was genius.” this well-researched and beautifully designed picture book celebrates the amazing ability of loggerhead turtles to travel vast distances in order to return to the place in which they were born. readers will follow yoshi’s life as a sea turtle, from egg to hatchling through adulthood, as she travels across time and over more than 23,000 miles of sea, in order to lay her own eggs on the beach where she first hatched. the storyline strikes the chord of being at once heartwarming, engaging, and filled with fascinating information about sea life. yoshi’s journey has been well-documented by scientists and followed by children and adults from around the world. now, the story is told with passion by lynn cox, herself a long distance swimmer, and brought to life with richard jones’ mesmerizing illustrations. ages 4-8. the hill we climb: an inaugural poem for the country written by amanda gorman viking press, 2021 isbn 9780593465271 first shared on the national stage during the inauguration of u.s. president joseph biden, amanda’s gorman’s heartfelt and lyrical poem marked a significant moment in national discourse. this slim book with a foreword by oprah winfrey offers the entire text in simple, elegant style. pages are left intentionally minimal, with nothing to distract from gorman’s powerful words and seemingly effortless play with language. readers will appreciate the importance of this text for both its historical significance and its recognition of the power of spoken word poetry as an artform. young readers will appreciate learning from her words, thinking about her thoughtful and ever hopeful perspective on the history and future of the united states of america. ages 8-18. 106 mrs. peanuckle’s earth alphabet written by mrs. peanuckle illustrated by jessie ford rodale kids, 2023 isbn 9780593486641 mrs. peanuckle is back with another charming alphabet book sure to get the youngest readers interested in thinking about letters, sounds, and the earth we all share. with vivid illustrations, this board book offers children a chance to practice learning letters and sounds while also learning about the world around us. each page blends basic scientific and geological information with the corresponding letter. the book manages to help children understand the basics of environment and climate and the importance of caring for the earth without being frightening or focusing on issues that we currently face with climate change. instead, this book is a gentle and loving reminder of how magical the earth and life are and how important it is for us as humans not to take it for granted. because of the thoughtful information, this book would be an excellent one for preschool or kindergarten students as they blend early literacy skills with growing awareness of the planet and its needs. ages 2-5. a spark in the dark written and illustrated by pam fong greenwillow books, 2022 isbn 9780063136533 “there is light and there is dark.” and so begins this gentle picture book about the times when we all may find ourselves searching for the light in the darkness. fong uses imagery of a fish in the deep ocean, navigating the space between the warm sun-filled waves above and the cold, dark, and deep ocean below to explore feelings around this theme. this is a beautiful, straightforward text that lends itself to a powerful read-aloud about the feelings we may have when we are in a dark and unknown place. the text encourages the reader to keep searching for the spark, even if you take a wrong turn and are angry or scared. this is an excellent book for launching discussions with young readers about emotions and perseverance in difficult moments. ages 4-8. school trip: a graphic novel (the new kid book 3) written and illustrated by jerry craft quill tree books, 2023 in this hilarious new graphic novel jerry craft, brings the readers along with jordan, drew, liam, maury, and their friends from riverdale academy day school, on their school trip to paris. not only are the friends challenged with the navigating of a new city and culture, but the trip will challenge the characters to navigate the challenges of true friendship. as with the other books in the new kid series, jerry craft masterfully balances humor with the relevant and important topics. the story offers a safe entry point for middle schoolers and beyond to engage in crucial discussions about race and multiculturism, which is of great value in today’s charged political context. ages 8+. 107 sharks: a mighty bite-y history written by miriam forster illustrated by gordy wright abrams books, 2022 isbn 9781419747731 the magnificent shark is well-deserving of this epic oversized picture book detailing how various species of this sea creature have changed over millions of years. each two-page spread in this informational text highlights an era in which a specific shark lived, with the author focusing on the fossil record and the illustrator bringing these facts to life in colorful and intricate images. children will enjoy the “toolbox” feature pages which emphasize the tools that sharks use to adapt and thrive in their environments. for example, some sharks have skin which is actually sharp because it is covered in jagged dental dentricles, which are “skin teeth!” this engaging book is filled with the latest science and would be an excellent resource for shark lovers in the intermediate grades. ages 8-12. squished written by megan wagner lloyd illustrated by michelle mee nutter graphix, 2023 isbn: 9781338568936 the author/illustrator team that brought readers the best-selling graphic novel, allergic, takes readers on a secondary literary journey in their new graphic novel, squished. megan wagner lloyd (author) and michelle mee nutter (illustrator) introduce readers to eleven-year-old avery lee who is the second oldest child (and oldest girl) in a family with seven children. as a young adolescent, avery finds her family chaotic and irritating. all she wants is her own room; however, her life is turned upside down when she learns her parents may uproot the family from avery’s beloved hometown to move across the country. this delightful and artistically appealing graphic novel will appeal to upper elementary and middle school readers. the graphic novel provides readers from large families someone with whom they can relate and offers readers from small families insights of what it is like to grow up in a large family. ages 8-13. pictures for reflection v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 108 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 updates thank you for your continued support of the international journal of the whole child and our commitment to holistic learning and to the development of the whole child. we are excited to announce coming in the fall, a new ijwc column titled “education: words and meanings” will provide readers with clarification associated with terms and words used in educational practice and writing. frequently, words may be used interchangeably when, in fact, the meanings are dissimilar. in other instances, terms may not be as familiar with readers and require further description in order to enhance understanding. finally, this new column supports readers with additional references to extend their knowledge regarding concepts, practices, and theories. words and terms represent meaning. it is important we, as educators, use the educational language with accuracy, intentionality, and as well with an understanding of a term’s origin. the submission deadline for the fall 2023 issue is september 30th and the spring 2024 submission deadline is february 28th. the fall 2023 will be published in december 2023 and the spring 2024 issue will be published in may 2024. thank you again for your continued support. we look forward to seeing you in fall 2023. final draft ijwc spring 2022 issue 45 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 1 parent reports of executive functions in students with learning disability jane roitscha, annemarie l. hornb, lisa morinc a-cold dominion university jane roitsch is currently an assistant professor in the department of communication disorders and special education at old dominion university. she has been an adjunct instructor at the university of nebraska-kearney and will be joining unk as a full-time assistant professor in the fall of 2022. she has taught anatomy and physiology, voice and voice disorders, phonetics and articulation disorders, speech science and dysphagia. her research interests include executive functions, cognition, anatomy, dysphagia, voice and fluency disorders. jroitsch@odu.edu | orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1424-6610 annemarie l. horn is an assistant professor in the department of communication disorders and special education at old dominion university. she is currently serving as the program coordinator for the msed adapted curriculum program. research interests include ecoaching and teacher preparation, as it relates to improving postsecondary outcomes for youth with disabilities. ahorn@odu.edu | orcid: https://orcid/org/0000-0002-9595-9075 lisa l. morin is a lecturer of special education in the department of communication disorders and special education at old dominion university. she is currently the research coordinator for project prepare!, the focus of which is to provide training for preschool teachers who teach children considered at risk. her research interests include learning disabilities, evidence-based math and reading strategies, and inclusive practices. lmorin@odu.edu | orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2189-9399 abstract this study examines the results of the behavior rating inventory of executive function (brief2) (gioia et al., 2015) reported by parents of children with specific learning disability (ld) and/or other comorbid disabilities. ld is most notably associated with comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd) (alloway & stein, 2014; westby &watson, 2004; willcutt et al., 2013). a total of 43 parents completed the brief-2 rating scale. findings suggest children with ld and adhd display greater challenges with inhibition, working memory, planning, along with greater challenges in organization and metacognition. parents of children with ld reported their children have greater levels of executive function difficulties in comparison to children with ld who do not have a secondary diagnosis of adhd. 46 keywords: learning disability, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, behavior rating inventory of executive function, learning, cognition introduction students identified with a specific learning disability (ld) comprise the largest individual disability population served under the individuals with disabilities improvement education act (ideia) (irwin et al., 2021). students with a ld provide 4.6% of the entire k-12 school population (national center for education statistics, 2020); however, if students at risk of ld are included, the percentage would be much higher (geary et al., 2020). converging evidence points to the notion that ld is a neurological disorder that results in difficulties acquiring basic and more complex academic skills (fletcher & grigorenko, 2017; pennington et al., 2019). cognitive abilities (e.g., working memory [wm]) consistently correlate with the different academic competencies in the areas of ld, as it is reflected in the ld definition in ideia and in the diagnostic and statistical manual-5 (dsm-5) (american psychiatric association, 2013). representing a heterogeneous population, students with ld exhibit individual differences in academic achievement, growth in skills development, visuospatial memory, verbal wm, intelligence, executive functions, and other cognitive correlates (fletcher et al., 2013; geary et al., 2012; geary et al., 2020; grigorenko et al., 2020; lee et al., 2017; swanson et al., 2009). ld is often associated with comorbidity with other disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd) (alloway & stein, 2014; miller et al., 2012; westby &watson, 2004, 2021; willcutt et al., 2013). not surprisingly, underlying academic (e. g., reading), behavioral (e.g., attention), and cognitive (e.g., wm) deficits of ld and adhd account for their comorbidity. adhd can be briefly described as deficits in executive functions. geary and colleagues (2020) found that specific cognitive abilities directly correlate with academic achievement (e.g., verbal short-term memory was critical for reading accuracy and fluency, whereas spatial ability was important for mathematics). however, poor in-class attentive behavior correlates with learning difficulties. the ability to control one’s attention is a cognitive skill included in the umbrella term executive function. similar to geary et al. (2020), other researchers identified deficits in students with ld and adhd related to executive functions, such as inhibition, cognitive flexibility, and wm (faedda et al., 2019; mattison & mayes, 2012). for example, faedda et al. (2019) identified differences and similarities in intellectual functioning and executive functions between children and adolescents with adhd and ld. both groups had deficits in executive functions, with the adhd group being more impaired particularly in cognitive inhibition, cognitive flexibility, verbal memory, wm, and intellectual functioning. mattison and mayes (2012) observed that those students with comorbid adhd and ld seemed to have more executive dysfunctions than those with adhd only. what is known in the field related to executive functions (ef) for persons with adhd and ld appears limited to the aforementioned studies, although the associations between ef difficulties in students with adhd and students with ld have been well-identified (biederman et al., 2008). to demonstrate, el wafa et al. (2020) compared the ef skills of four groups of children between the ages of six and 13 (i.e., one group of students with adhd only, another group of children with ld only; a third group of children with adhd and ld; and a control group). findings revealed the first three groups evidenced greater ef difficulties, suggesting ef assessments for 47 these three groups of students (i.e., those with adhd, ld, and adhd with ld) require intervention plans designed to optimize outcomes. executive functions efs are high-level cognitive functions that enable humans to accomplish goals, regulate their behaviors, manage their emotions, monitor their thoughts, resist distractions, plan activities, and persist to complete them to reach their goals (barkley, 2015; denckla & mahone, 2018). the multidimensional nature of efs includes several cognitive processes and skills, such as working memory operations (e.g., updating), sustained attention, self-regulatory processes (e.g., selfmonitoring), cognitive flexibility, metacognition (i.e., knowledge of one’s own thinking), task initiation, planning, and goal-directed persistence (dawson & guare, 2018; watson et al., 2016). the developmental context of efs must be understood to account for individual differences since most ef processes and skills are linked to the brain’s frontal cortex. the course of brain networks from childhood to adulthood becomes better established during the evolution of networks that occur during development (bernstein & weber, 2018). improvement of efs is associated with maturation of the frontal lobes (anderson, 2002). one standardized assessment commonly used to measure efs in students is the behavior rating inventory of executive function (brief-2) (gioia et al., 2015). along with a student self-reporting scale, the brief-2 includes a parent/teacher report rating scale for students between the ages of 11-18 years old. although developmental knowledge of efs is critical to determining what tasks students can perform and those that need to be taught (dawson & guare, 2018), there is limited research investigating the relationships between efs and other factors (e.g., age, comorbidities) in students with ld (i.e., faedda et al., 2019; geary et al., 2020; mattison & mayes, 2012). as the academic demands of a student’s curriculum must match developmental changes of efs, the need to further explore these relationships can provide critical information to drive educational supports and curriculum design. in response to the aforementioned needs, this study examines the results of the brief-2 as reported by parents of children between the ages of 11 and 18, all of whom had a diagnosis of ld, and some had comorbid disabilities, including adhd. the specific question this study sought to answer is the following: what relationship(s), if any, exist between parent reports of children’s efs and other variables (i.e., age, severity of condition, comorbid conditions, household income, parent education, parent race, presence of autism, or presence of emotional/behavioral problem)? method participants a total of 43 parents of children with ld enrolled in this study by responding to an online invitation to participate in a research study and volunteering to complete the brief-2 rating scale. inclusion criteria required participants to be at least 18 years old and self-identify as being the parent of at least one child with a diagnosis of ld. comorbid diagnoses (e.g., asd, adhd) 48 in children did not exclude their participation. participants were informed their enrollment was voluntary, and all data would remain anonymous. according to parent reports, all students with ld were enrolled in school within the united states, where they received special education services under the primary disability diagnosis of ld. table 1 includes participant demographic information. participants completed a short online demographic questionnaire and then, proceeded to a link to the brief-2 parent questionnaire. the brief-2 parent report included 86 statements regarding behavior rated on a 3-point likert scale (i.e., 1 = never; 2 = sometimes; 3 = often). raw subscale scores were calculated for eight subscales (i.e, inhibit, working memory, shift, emotional control, initiate, plan/organize, organization of materials, and monitoring) (gioia et al, 2015). next, aggregated subscales were tallied into three index scores: (1) the behavior regulation index (which includes the inhibit, shift, and emotional control subscales); (2) the metacognition index (which consists of the working memory, initiate, plan/organize, organization of materials, and monitoring subscales); and (3) a total score (a composite of all subscales). for all the scores, an elevated score suggests greater ef difficulties. this study employed the computerized version of the brief-2 due to the face-to-face constraints of the global covid-19 pandemic. therefore, an email link was sent to interested participants who met inclusion criteria. this survey study utilized descriptive statistics and correlations analysis to determine what relationships, if any, existed between variables (i.e., demographic questions and responses to the brief-2 parent report). the first author confirmed collection and scoring accuracy, and reliability was ensured through independent statistical analyses performed by a trained master’s degree student studying speech-language pathology. no discrepancies between data analysis were found; thus, results were determined to be reliable. materials and procedures after obtaining consent from the university institutional review board (irb), flyers including a qualtrics link to the survey were disseminated on approved websites and social media platforms for a two-month period. due to the nature of dissemination, researchers were unable to track the total number of qualifying individuals who may have seen the survey invitation and declined to participate. the invitation included a qualtrics link to a demographic questionnaire, and the brief-2 survey immediately followed. prior to the brief-2 survey questions appearing, participants were asked if they had a child with a primary diagnosis of ld. only survey data from those who self-reported being the parent of a child with ld were included in this current research. further, all survey questions had to be answered in order for data to be analyzed and reported. survey responses were anonymous, yet still kept confidential through the secure, universityowned and faculty-operated qualtrics account. data were imported into sas version 9.4 (sas institute inc., 2014) for management and analysis. the brief survey responses were scored according to previously published manual guidelines. higher scores indicate that the child has greater problems with the behaviors. descriptive analyses were used to understand the level of missing data, sample socio-demographics, and brief scale raw scores. means and standard deviations were reported for continuous variables while frequencies and percentages were 49 reported for binary/categorical variables. a multivariate analysis of variance (manova) was used to examine differences in the brief scale raw scores between parent education, parent race, household income, parent age, child age, child diagnosis severity, presence of other child diagnoses, child adhd diagnosis, child asd diagnosis, and child emotional/behavioral problem diagnosis. a p-value < 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance. results in all, 96 subjects were enrolled in this survey study. a total of 52 subjects (54.2%) did not complete any of the brief questions and 1 (1.0%) completed only 33 of the 86 brief questions, leaving an analytic same of 43 participants. table 1 displays the sample characteristics. among the parent respondents, 31 (72.1%) had at least a college degree, 33 (76.7%) were white, 40 (93%) were female, 19 (45.2%) made over $100,000, and 22 (51.2%) were between the ages of 25 and 44 years. among the children discussed in the brief questionnaire, 14 (32.6%) were between the ages of 13 and 18, 28 (70%) exhibited a mild learning disability, six (15%) represented a moderate learning disability, six (15%) demonstrated a severe learning disability; 32 (76.2%) indicated another diagnosis, with 24 (55.8%) having adhd, 13 (30.2%) having an autism spectrum disorder, and eight (18.6%) evidencing an emotional or behavioral disorder. table 2 displays the descriptive statistics for the brief scale raw scores. there was no main effect of child age (wilk’s lambda=0.57, f(24, 93.41)=0.82, p = 0.70). similarly, there was no main effect of severity (wilk’s lambda=0.72, f(16, 60)=0.68, p = 0.80), presence of another diagnosis (wilk’s lambda=0.73, f(8, 33)=1.56, p = 0.18), household income (wilk’s lambda=0.67, f(16, 64)=0.89, p = 0.59), parent education (wilk’s lambda=0.58, f(16, 66)=1.29, p = 0.23), parent race (wilk’s lambda=0.88, f(8, 34)=0.60, p = 0.77), presence of autism (wilk’s lambda=0.84, f(8, 34)=0.84, p = 0.58), or presence of emotional/behavioral problem (wilk’s lambda=0.75, f(8, 34)=1.40, p = 0.23). there was a main effect of the presence of adhd (wilk’s lambda=0.60, f(8, 34)=2.86, p = 0.02). when looking at the individual components, we identified 11 key findings: (1) there was no difference in emotional control between children with and without adhd (mean (sd)=18.42 (5.47) vs. 18.63 (5.72), f(1, 41)=0.01, p = 0.91); (2) those with adhd had elevated inhibition problems (mean (sd) of children without adhd=16.21 (4.89) vs. mean (sd) of children with adhd =19.75 (5.78), f(1, 41)=4.53, p=0.04) than those without adhd; (3) there was no difference in shift between children with and without adhd (mean (sd)=15.53 (4.10) vs. 16.54 (2.95), f(1, 41)=0.89, p = 0.35); (4) there was no difference in initiation between children with and without adhd (mean (sd)=15.84 (3.80) vs. 17.71 (3.22), f(1, 41)=0.09, p=0.09); 50 (5) children with adhd had elevated working memory problems than those without adhd (mean (sd) of children without adhd=21.47 (5.23) vs. children with adhd = 24.54 (3.90), f(1, 41)=4.86, p = 0.03); (6) children with adhd had elevated plan/organize problems than those without adhd (mean (sd) of children without adhd=23.84 (5.63) vs. children with adhd = 28.63 (5.03), f(1, 41)=8.63, p = 0.01); (7) children with adhd had elevated organization of materials problems than those without adhd (mean (sd) of children without adhd=11.05 (3.94) vs. children with adhd=14.58 (3.37), f(1, 41)=10.02, p= 0.003); (8) there was no difference in monitor scores between children with and without adhd (mean (sd)=16.58 (3.92) vs. 18.08 (3.68), f(1, 41)=1.67, p = 0.20); (9) there was no difference in behavioral regulation index between children with and without adhd (mean (sd)=50.16 (12.82) vs. 54.92 (13.29), f(1, 41)=1.40, p = 0.24); (10) children with adhd had an elevated metacognitive index than those without adhd (mean (sd) children without adhd=72.95 (16.01) vs. children with adhd = 85.83 (13.91), f(1, 41)=7.96, p = 0.01); and (11) children with adhd had higher total scores than those without adhd (mean (sd) children without adhd=138.95 (28.21) vs. children with adhd = 158.66 (27.14), f(1, 41)=5.29, p = 0.03). discussion this survey study examines the results of the brief-2 reports provided by parents of children between the ages of 11 and 18 with a primary diagnosis of ld, and some of whom had a secondary diagnosis (e.g., adhd). this study sought to discover what relationship(s) exist between parent reports of efs and other variables (i.e., age, severity of condition, comorbid conditions, household income, parent education, parent race, presence of autism, or presence of emotional/behavioral problem). the findings extend the extant literature in several ways. the comorbid diagnosis of adhd demonstrated a significant relationship to the efs of children with ld, as reported by their parents. that is, children with ld and adhd were reported to have greater challenges with the following efs: (a) inhibition, (b) working memory, (c) planning/organization, (d) organization of materials, and (e) metacognition abilities. notably, this subgroup (i.e., ld and adhd) had higher overall total scores compared to children with ld only. these findings are significant and warrant further discussion. inhibition is defined as “the ability to suppress a dominant response in favor of another or no response” (van der ven et al., 2013, p. 71). barkley (1997) defined inhibition difficulties as a failure to: (1) delay a response for which immediate reinforcement is available, (2) stop an 51 ongoing response, or (3) protect from competing events and responses (i.e., interference control). deweerdt et al. (2013) found listening recall, often used as a measure of inhibition, to be a particular deficit in students with ld. barkley’s (1997) assertion that behavioral inhibition is a core deficit associated with adhd was backed by the findings of willcutt et al. (2001) that behavioral inhibition deficits were strongest in students with adhd. one example of this type of difficulty with inhibition includes rushing through academic assignments without taking time to carefully consider the instructions provided. this current study supports the importance of considering inhibition as a challenging impediment to the academic success of students with ld and underlying adhd. these data indicate wm issues were noticed by parents of children with adhd and ld. by definition, wm can be described as the concurrent storage and processing of information (baddeley, 1992; watson & gable, 2010). similar to this study, research indicates students with ld can experience deficits in wm areas controlled by the phonological loop and central executive, manifesting in domain-general working memory difficulties in academics, typically in reading, mathematics, and writing (de weerdt et al., 2013; swanson & siegel, 2001). however, by definition, wm involves attentional control (martinussen & major, 2011). students with adhd often exhibit higher levels of inattentive behavior when presented with tasks that place high demands on wm which, in turn, leads to poor academic performance across subjects (martinussen & major, 2011). thus, dupaul et al. (2013) suggests that while students with ld may receive interventions in one specific setting, students with comorbid ld and adhd should receive interventions to address deficits across many settings, suggesting the critical importance of “cross-setting collaboration” (p. 48). these current findings support this assertation, as they highlight wm difficulties that have been observed by parents of students with ld and adhd. planning and organization involve strategizing about how to complete a task or assignment, or a reach a goal successfully (kaufman, 2010). for students with ld, planning and organization deficits often appear as deficits in reading comprehension, including the ability to read with a specific purpose in mind, or to answer a specific question (kaufman, 2010). students with ld can struggle with writing tasks that require planning and organization of a multi-step process (graham & harris, 1993; watson et al., 2016). similarly, jacobson and reid (2010) reported students with adhd do not spend time planning before writing, despite being reminded to do so and provided with required components of an essay. heavily related to planning and organization is material organization, which can be described as the hands-on, physical organization of materials necessary to carry out a plan (kaufman, 2010). this is a deficit shared by students with ld and adhd (langberg et al., 2013; meltzer & krishnan, 2007). as the importance of planning and organizing only increases as students progress through academic courses, the need to investigate how to best support the needs of students with ld and underlying adhd becomes of growing importance. these findings were underlined by the reports of parents who participated in this current study. parents felt that their children had lessthan-optimal planning and organization skills. metacognitive difficulties (i.e., deficits in awareness about thinking and regulating thinking) have been identified in students with ld, often manifesting in poor planning skills, ineffective self-monitoring of their own learning, and challenges in identifying and correcting their own errors (mason et al., 2011). students with adhd have also been identified as having 52 metacognitive difficulties that can ultimately impact their abilities to regulate behaviors and focus on tasks (capodieci et al., 2019). perhaps it is not surprising that when these two conditions are compounded (i.e., ld and adhd), greater metacognitive challenges are observed in comparison to parental reports of children with ld who do not also have adhd. nonetheless, there is a paucity of research specifically focusing on how metacognitive deficits can be compounded in students with ld and adhd. the importance of acknowledging this increase in metacognitive challenges for students with both ld and adhd cannot be understated. working with students with compounding diagnoses should be not only considered, but also adjusted for an individual student basis. limitations these findings should be interpreted within the context of several limitations. first, the use of a survey tool to gather data has inherent limitations, as does the selection of what demographic questions and which survey tool is used. the brief-2 parent report is a valid and reliable means of reporting ef perceptions (brief-2; gioia et al., 2015) and administration of this tool was relevant and appropriate due to current covid-19 global pandemic restrictions. nonetheless, since data were self-reported, there is no guarantee that respondents provided accurate information (wright, 2005). secondly, sample bias is a possible limitation, since the nature of the survey may have excluded parents who do not have access to the internet or who have difficulty reading, possibly excluding parents of students who live in rural locations, represent lower socio-economic groups, or have a reading disability (coughlan et al., 2009). the third limitation relates to the sample size. that is, our sample was small and only included parents of children with a diagnosis of ld, or comorbid conditions that include ld. parents of children with other disability diagnoses (e.g., intellectual disability) were not included in this investigation; thus, generalization of these current findings should be analyzed within this context. finally, the fourth limitation centers on the variability of reported disability diagnoses. that is, some children had ld only (i.e., no reported secondary diagnosis), whereas other children had a primary diagnosis of ld as well as a secondary disability diagnosis (e.g., adhd). varying disability diagnoses could limit generalization of reported findings. implications for research based on findings from this survey study, coupled with the paucity of literature related to measuring efs in children with ld, findings suggest several implications. first, it is recommended researchers consider conducting a similar study that uses methods other than parent reports to assess efs in children with ld. second, researchers should utilize methods other than the internet to disseminate flyers to potential participants. similarly, the third recommendation relates to sample size. it is recommended researchers aim to sample a larger sample to enhance generalizability of findings. the fourth recommendation for research relates to variability in disability diagnosis. in a larger-scale study, it is recommended researchers tease out disability diagnoses and do more thorough comparative analyses between subgroups of children with ld. 53 implications for practice there is substantial research connecting efs and ld (alloway & stein, 2014; cain et al., 2004; geary et al., 2020; mattison & mayes, 2012; toll et al., 2011). the negative effects of ef weaknesses have been observed in specific academic domains, such as reading comprehension (spencer et al., 2020), mathematics (van der ven et al., 2012), and written language (drijbooms et al., 2017). conversely, different ef processes contribute to distinct academic areas. acknowledging that ef processes are developmental and have been associated with student academic performance is the first step to intervention. evidence from few studies suggests that efs are malleable and deficits in efs can be enhanced through specific interventions (diamond & lee, 2011; diamond & ling, 2016; espinet et al., 2013). the second and critical step is to understand how efs, such as working memory, inhibition control, and cognitive flexibility, affect academic performance. this is essential to designing classroom instruction and to teaching students specific compensatory strategies. for example, to address poor inhibition, students should be taught self-regulation strategies within the academic area, such as the self-regulated strategy development (srsd) for writing (harris et al., 2008). teaching students how to use graphic organizers (e.g., story mapping) can support working memory. as mentioned earlier, dupaul et al. (2013) suggested that while students with ld may receive interventions in one specific setting, students with comorbid ld and adhd should receive interventions to address deficits across many settings, suggesting the critical importance of “cross-setting collaboration” (p. 48). there is, then, a critical need to understand the deficits and needs of students with ld and comorbid adhd, not only in one area on which an iep team and a student’s teachers might focus for a student with ld in reading or in math, but across all settings. for example, students with metacognitive deficits often have difficulty distinguishing between reality versus what is not realistic (yong & kiong, 2005). thus, it is more likely that a student who has difficulty with inhibition will rush through academic assignments without taking time to carefully consider the instructions provided to complete the task. 54 references alloway, t. p., & stein, a. 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(2005, august). metacognitive aspect of mathematics problem solving. paper presented at the third east asia regional conference on mathematics education (icmi regional conference), shanghai, nanjing and hangzhou, china. http://math.ecnu.edu.cn/earcome3/tsg4.htm4. microsoft word ijwc full issue fall 2017.docx 18 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2   teachers’ perspectives on language assessment and effective strategies for young english language learners in florida tunde szecsiª, tara lashleyb, sydney nelsonc, jill shermand ªflorida gulf coast university bflorida gulf coast university cflorida gulf coast university dhunter institute of early childhood, florida gulf coast university dr. tunde szecsi is a professor and the coordinator for the elementary education programs at florida gulf coast university, fort myers, fl. she earned her master’s degrees in hungarian, russian and english language and literature in hungary. in 2003, she obtained her ph.d. in early childhood education at university at buffalo. since then she has taught courses on elementary and early childhood education, and teaching english as a second language. for ten years, she was the co-editor of the teaching strategies column of the childhood education journal, and she served as coeditor for the 2007 and 2012 international theme issues. over the past decade, she has made numerous presentations throughout the world, and has contributed over forty articles and five book chapters in child development, multicultural education, culturally responsive teacher preparation, humane education, and heritage language maintenance. tara lashley is a senior at florida gulf coast university where she is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. she is currently completing her teaching internship at pinewoods elementary school in fort myers, fl. tara is interested in academic language development for english language learners and loves using cooperative learning strategies in the classroom. she recently completed a study abroad internship program in hungary. sydney nelson is a senior in the early childhood education program at florida gulf coast university. currently, she is completing her teaching internship at sunshine elementary, in lehigh acres, ff. she is interested in instruction for english language learners, learning through play, and the use of conscious discipline in early childhood. in addition, she completed a study abroad internship program in hungary. jill sherman is the director of the hunter institute of early childhood. she holds a master degree in educational leadership. she has worked at florida gulf coast university as intern supervisor and adjunct for 20 years. as the director of the hunter institute, she has organized numerous early childhood conferences and has lead study abroad trips in hungary and austria.   abstract this article reports on the findings of an empirical study that examined elementary school teachers’ views about the english language learners’ (ells) program placement assessment, and progress 19 assessment. specifically, the interviews in the study explored teachers’ perspectives on the effectiveness of these assessments and the connection between language assessment and curricular decisions. in addition, classroom observations were conducted to gain insights into language strategies that these teachers used to promote better teaching and learning for ells. in this article, an overview of the current assessment system for ells in florida is provided, then the findings regarding the value of assessment are discussed as well as effective teaching strategies. the article concludes with implications for teachers, teacher educators and school district personnel. introduction the increased focus on language assessment promotes effective teaching and learning. however, these efforts can be productive only when language teachers are knowledgeable about the assessment, the process of implementation, interpretation of assessment results, and most importantly, the use of these results for further improving education. studies indicate that language teachers are often unprepared to maximize the benefits of assessment results (popham, 2004). for their contribution to be effective, teachers must have language assessment literacy, which is defined as “the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and principles of test construction, test interpretation and use, test evaluation, and classroom-based assessments alongside the development of a critical stance about the functions of assessment within a larger educational context” (lam, 2015 p. 170). language assessment literacy must be an acquired and mastered skill for teachers who educate english language learners (ells) in the united states of america. out of 5 million ells in the public schools in the usa, many of them have no or limited access to quality educational programs (anyon, 2005; orfield & lee, 2004). the lack of access to an optimal education, which includes quality english language teaching, is mirrored by the achievement gap between ells and native speakers of english. specifically, there was a 36-point gap at the 4th-grade level and a 44-point gap at the 8th-grade level between the scores of native english speakers and ells, and this achievement gap has remained unchanged each year between 2002 and 2011 (national center for education statistics, 2013). in addition, ells’ high dropout rate and low college enrollment and graduation numbers suggest the ineffectiveness of educating ells in the public school system (giambo, 2010; national center for educational statistics, 2013; romo, 2013) in florida, 28% of school-aged students speak a language other than english at home (us census bureau, 2015). in public schools in florida, the meta consent decree, which is the framework for compliance with federal and state laws, regulates the identification, eligibility and programmatic assessment for ells (fdoe consent decree, n.d.). considering the stagnating achievement gap, questions related to the role of assessment and language instruction across the curriculum in a multilingual classroom are essential to ask in order to determine the current status, effective practices, and areas for improvement. it is essential to examine teachers’ perceptions of the nature and effectiveness of language assessment because teachers’ views and beliefs regarding language teaching have an impact on their practices, instruction, and communication in and outside the classroom (dejong & harper, 2005; zheng, 2009). in this current article, authors report on a small scale study in which six early childhood teachers shared their views about language assessments and effective strategies for young english language learners in florida. to situate the study, authors provide an overview of the current assessment system for ells in public schools. then we describe the themes of these teachers’ views that emerged to make some conclusions related to the current situation. 20 current identification and assessment of english language learners the current landscape of language assessment for ells in florida is determined by the meta consent decree which addresses the civil rights of ell students, such as their right to equal access to all education programs. through these rights, the meta consent decree provides a structure that ensures the delivery of comprehensible instruction to which ells are entitled. (fdoe rules & legislation, n.d.). as table 1 shows it consists of six major sections which cover identification of ell students, assessment, access to programming and categorical programs, the requirements for personnel, and monitoring and outcome measures section description section i: identification and assessment all students with limited english proficiency must be properly identified and assessed to ensure the provision of appropriate services. this section details the procedures for placement of students in the english for speakers of other languages (esol) program, their exit from the program, and the monitoring of students who have been exited. section ii: equal access to appropriate programming all ells are entitled to programming which is appropriate to their level of english proficiency, their level of academic achievement, and any special needs they may have. ells shall have equal access to appropriate english language instruction, as well as instruction in basic subject areas, which is understandable to the students given their level of english proficiency. section iii: equal access to appropriate categorical and programs ells are entitled to equal access to all programs appropriate to their academic needs, such as compensatory, exceptional, adult, vocational or early childhood education, as well as dropout prevention and other support services, without regard to their level of english proficiency. section iv: personnel this section details the certificate coverage and in-service training that teachers must have in order to be qualified to instruct esol students. teachers may obtain the necessary training through university course work or through school district provided in-service training. section v: monitoring issues the florida department of education (fdoe) is charged with the monitoring of local school districts to ensure compliance with the provisions of the consent decree pursuant to federal and state laws. section vi: outcome measures fdoe is required to develop an evaluation system to address equal access and program effectiveness. this evaluation system is to collect and analyze data regarding the progress of ell students and include comparisons between the ell and the non-ell population regarding retention rates, graduation rates, dropout rates, grade point averages and state assessment scores table 1 description of sections of meta consent decree source: fldoe rules & legislation, n.d. 21 identification of ells for the purpose of this study, section i. identification and assessment contains essential information about language assessments. according to the meta consent decree, a home language survey must be administered upon registration in a public school. the survey has the following questions: is a language other than english used in the home? does the student have a first language other than english? does the student most frequently speak a language other than english? when there is at least one ‘yes’ for these questions, the students will be assessed for english proficiency in reading, writing, speaking and listening in english within 20 days after enrollment. if the student scores in the 32th percentile or below on any of these subskills, the student is classified as an ell who is eligible for english for speakers of other languages (esol) services. in addition, ells are to be assessed in academic areas to assist the teacher who develops the instructional program. consequently, the student will receive esol services according to his/her individualized esol plan. students classified as ells continue to receive appropriate instruction and services until he/she is reclassified as english proficient (fds florida administrative, 2017). table 2 provides information about the identification process with consideration of the different entry points for ells. it shows how different school districts collaborate in terms of accepting assessment results for students who are moving from one school district to the other. table 2 identification process of ell in florida source: esol services, n.d. 22 language assessment of ells in the selected school district in this study, a variety of language assessments are used for determining placement and documenting progress of ells. specifically, for determining the correct placement of ells, the language assessment battery (lab) is used to measure english language proficiency in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. additional assessment is used in ells native language to measure their academic preparedness e.g. in reading in the native language. in florida, 72% of ells (n= 199,000) speak spanish as their native language. the second largest student population (n=27, 500) which is 10% of ells in florida, speak haitian creole as their native language (soto, hooker & batalova, 2015). when a student comes from a spanish speaking country, aprenda, an assessment targeting reading and math skills in spanish for students in k-12 grades is used to identify the student’s academic needs. furthermore, aprenda is also used to determine the student’s eligibility for gifted programs. in addition, crane, an assessment to determine a spanish speaking student’s dominant language is administered for ensuring that the student’s dominant language is used for further screening and evaluation of special needs. in the case of students from haiti, eka is used to measure students’ reading level in their native language. furthermore, to collect information about the educational background of students who are non-spanish native speakers, parents are surveyed with a form due to the lack of appropriate assessment. (district ell plan, 2016). after the identification process, the ell receives appropriate language instruction and annually takes an assessment to measure his/her progress. in selected school districts, access for ells 2.0 assessment is utilized for this purpose. it is a large-scale english language proficiency assessment administered to kindergarten through 12th grade ells. it is aligned with the wida english language development standards (wida, n.d.) and assesses listening, speaking, reading, and writing. the purpose of using access for ells 2.0 is (1) helping students and families understand students’ current level of english language proficiency (2) serving as one of multiple measures used to determine whether students are prepared to exit esol programs, (3) providing teachers with information for enhancing instruction and learning, and (4) providing districts with information that will help them evaluate the effectiveness of their esol/bilingual programs. table 3 demonstrates the path for ells who meet/do not meet the exit criteria from the esol program (district ell plan, 2016). table 3 processes addressing yearly language assessment results source: esol services, n.d. 23 when an ell meets the exit criteria, the student stops receiving esol services. however, he/she is monitored for two more years to ensure that his/her language proficiency is satisfactory for grade level academic work. in case the esol committee finds that the student’s academic achievement is impeded by the lack of language proficiency, the student will re-enter the esol program. ultimately, after the monitoring period is over, the student is no longer identified as ell (fds administrative, 2017.). although the process and assessments are regulated by the meta consent decree, school districts also have flexibility regarding the type of assessment to be used for program placement and/or progress monitoring. when aligned with the meta consent requirements, school district professionals can determine the specific esol plan for the given district (district ell plan, 2016). the implementation of this plan is monitored by the department of education, and the assessment data inform state officials about the outcomes of the educational program for the ells (fdoe rules & legislation, n.d.). methodology the purpose of this study was to explore teachers’ views about the use and effectiveness of language assessments and to gain insights into their perspectives on best teaching practices with ells. therefore, the following questions were posed: what views do teachers of young ells hold about language assessment and its use for curricular decisions? what pedagogical practices do teachers find effective for teaching english as a second language to young children? participants in this study, we used convenience sampling composed of five teachers two kindergarten teachers, three third grade teachers, and one paraprofessional who was hired for assisting ells. all participants had at least one year of teaching experience with ells. the five teachers had esol endorsement, which was composed of the completion of five college classes or 300 hours of professional development at the school district level. therefore, these teachers met the state requirement which mandates that all public school teachers who teach ells are required to earn esol endorsement (fldoe rules and regulations, n.d.). the paraprofessional who was a native speaker of the spanish language had 18 hours of training in esol. in addition, one teacher out of five was fluent in spanish: all others were monolingual. data collection and analysis individual structured interviews were conducted. nine questions were posed to each teacher regarding 1.) experience with teaching ells, 2.) the effectiveness of placement and progress assessments and 3.) pedagogical approaches used to promote better teaching and learning for ells. interviewees were also asked to respond with examples of each. the approximately 30 minute interviews were audio recorded and transcribed. in addition, observations were conducted to gain insights into the strategies that teachers used to facilitate ells’ language and subject area learning. both the interview data and the observation data were analyzed with the “data analysis spiral” approach which includes the following steps: (1) data management (2) initial reading and taking notes and (3) coding, describing and interpreting data (creswell, 2003). the findings were organized based on the categories that emerged through the data analysis and reported by the research questions. 24 findings teachers’ views on language assessment this study examined teachers’ views about language assessment for ells in public schools. overall, to various degrees, teachers were familiar with different types of assessments e.g. lab and access for ells 2.0. however, often they referred to assessment in reading, alphabet knowledge and vocabulary as language assessment for ells. this lack of clarity of the purpose of different assessments might indicate a gap in their knowledge regarding the proper use of specific language assessments for ells. from the interviews, the following themes emerged: (1) confusion in perceived responsibilities and (2) flaws in the use of assessment data. in terms of holding responsibility for assessment, teachers expressed frustration. they mentioned that in their schools, it is the esol teacher or esol paraprofessional who is responsible for administering the placement and progress assessment rather than the classroom teachers. teachers felt that they are often excluded from test result discussions and instead that they are only given the final decisions and scores. ultimately, most teachers felt that there was a lack of communication about testing and test results between classroom teacher and esol professionals. for example, one teacher stated, “i do not feel that they[assessments] are effective at all. we have no initial testing data on the student.” another teacher supported the same view, “since testing results are not shared and explained, i do not feel that they are effective at all.” although they recognized the lack of communication and collaboration between classroom teachers and esol professionals, the teachers did not mention any steps that they tried to take in order to mitigate the problem. this lack of collaboration and effective use of assessment data can result in a lack of accountability, which probably negatively impact the education of ells. interestingly, the one teacher who held the highest esol qualifications emphasized the importance of language assessment results for planning instruction while acknowledging her role as well. she noted that, “language assessment data is essential when planning for ells. language data lets me know if i need to focus on phonics, fluency or comprehension. ells do not perform well in vocabulary assessment, so the data helps me decide whether to reteach the materials.” overall, it seems that teachers see their involvement in language assessment in various ways. most teachers do not feel accountable for the meaningful use of assessment results, though some recognize the important link between assessment results and planning appropriate instruction and act accordingly. teachers pointed out several flaws related to the current language assessments. they felt that students can exit the esol program too early due to the very low cut score (32 percentile). teachers in this study believed that these students would need further help in learning english in order to successfully participate in academic learning. furthermore, regarding another flaw, one teacher stated, “these assessments don’t always show what ells are truly capable of doing.” she advocated for bilingual assessment, which would provide a more valid picture of the student’s performance level in a given subject. several teachers felt that students should be allowed to “test in the language they are fluent in”. clearly they recognized that ells are often unable to demonstrate their knowledge in a subject area due to the lack of english proficiency. teachers’ views on effective strategies for ells in this study, we also examined teachers’ views about effective teaching strategies for ells in kindergarten and third grade. overall, kindergarten teachers in the study focused on social language development for communication in everyday situations. teachers of third graders, however, emphasized the importance of developing academic vocabulary and sentence structure essential in subject areas such as science and social studies. from the interviews and the observations, a variety of effective strategies for young ells emerged. 25 for both teaching english for social and academic purposes, using visuals was found as a basic and important strategy. specifically, all teachers in the observation used graphic organizers for teaching vocabulary. these graphic organizers displayed information about the new vocabulary in written and picture form. in addition, the most frequently used visual strategies were, for example, creating flipbooks, using vocabulary charts, and using pictures to express meaning. teachers pointed out that essential vocabulary should be explicitly taught to help ells develop social and academic language in english. regarding language for social purposes, the explicit vocabulary instruction was infused in everyday activities, such as calendar time and snack time. in addition, one teacher shared that she taught practical phrases such as “tie, please” so the ell students could practice their english skills in simple social situations. in addition, with these simple practical expressions, ells were able to express their needs without becoming frustrated due to the lack of language proficiency. in terms of academic vocabulary, a teacher discussed how she pretaught academic vocabulary, prior to whole group reading: sharing the meaning of the word, often with pictures and giving examples for how to use the word in sentences. afterwards, when these words were encountered during the reading, the teacher checked for understanding by asking comprehension questions using the new vocabulary. kagan activities (kagan, 2009.) was a broadly used strategy to increase interaction between students in the kindergarten classroom. in particular, these kagan activities often target both academic and social purposes simultaneously using collaboration, cooperation and interaction among students. for example, in an activity during the observation, students moved around the room to find a partner with whom they talked about a specific topic, such as dinner last night. moreover, to increase interaction most teachers seemed to use the strategy of peer tutoring: sometimes paring students with native speakers of english and at other times pairing them with students who speak the same language e.g. spanish. planning instruction that incorporates ells’ background knowledge and experience is important. although only one teacher acknowledged the importance of students’ background knowledge, she strongly emphasized the need for building the bridge between experiences at school and home. she stated, “i use a culturally responsive approach when working with ells. i try to teach through their cultural strength, while helping them connect to their home lives and prior experiences to make learning meaningful.” conversely, another teacher commented on the lack of ells’ background knowledge. clearly, she did not realize and recognize the value of the knowledge that ells bring from their own culture. she seemed to evaluate issues from the majority ‘s perspective, disregarding the “funds of knowledge” children with different cultural backgrounds possess (gonzales, moll, & amanti, 2005). discussion and conclusions this study was designed on the assumption that all teachers who teach english language learners must have language assessment literacy, which includes the ability to administer, score and interpret results of language assessments. specifically, the certification exam for esol teachers in florida requires teachers to have specific competencies related to assessment, e.g. “evaluate formal and informal assessments to measure oral language, literacy, and academic achievement” and “determine appropriate accommodations during formal and informal assessments of ells at varying english language proficiency levels.” (competencies and skills, 2015, p. 85). this mandated skill set is essential in order for teachers to be knowledgeable users of language assessment. ultimately this knowledge will drive their curricular decisions and instruction and maximize the learning opportunity for ells. 26 this study suggests that teachers have knowledge and understanding about assessment to various degrees. it seems that teachers who have more extensive preparation in esol topics are the ones who can fulfill the expectations in terms of using assessment to design optimal instruction. they are also the ones who seem to pursue culturally responsive approaches and acknowledge students’ diverse backgrounds and experiences. on the other hand, some teachers, often with less esol preparation, separate their own duties from those including language assessment. this approach is not conducive to ells’ academic progress. in most schools in florida, ells are integrated into mainstream classrooms with children who are native speakers of english. therefore, it is the classroom teacher who is responsible for using strategies that make instruction accessible and understandable for ells. to be able to select and implement effective strategies, teachers must understand the student’s proficiency level and language related needs from the assessment results. therefore, continuous professional development in topics related to esol is essential for teachers so that they are able to utilize assessment data for instruction and to infuse students’ experiential and cultural background in the curriculum. teachers in this study pointed out two major challenges – early exit from esol programs and the lack of opportunity for taking subject area assessment in the native language. their awareness of the inappropriate early exit from esol services is important because these teachers have become advocates for extended esol services that provide additional language instruction to students who exit the esol program prematurely. some of these teachers also seemed to be supportive of emergent bilingualism, which involves the process of english language learning with the maintenance and development of the native language of the ells (garcia, kleifgen, & falchi, 2008). teachers in this study acknowledged that ells could benefit from a learning environment in which their native language is recognized and supported to avoid subtractive bilingualism in which the new language suppresses the first language (wright, 2010). this finding is important because bilingualism and bilingual education are often targeted by supporters of the english only movement (ricento, 2005). these teachers’ request for bilingual assessment indicates their understanding of how language proficiency and subject area knowledge should be assessed separately. ultimately, the more teachers understand the benefits of bilingualism, the more they can be expected to advocate and implement appropriate assessment and instruction for ells. this study had a limited number of participants. therefore, the in-depth exploration of their views on language assessment and esol strategies was meaningful rather than aiming for more generalizable findings. although a higher number of participants might add additional views on the topic of investigation, it would not challenge the existence of the views of these participants (ernest 2001). it is important to keep in mind that these participants were from one school district, therefore, their views might be impacted by their experience in this shared context. it is also important to note that these teachers volunteered to participate in the study, therefore we assume they had a special interest in ells. because of these limitations, teachers’ views explored in this preliminary qualitative study cannot be generalized beyond the context. for future research, it would be meaningful to examine teachers’ views about esol assessment and effective teaching and learning strategies in a study that would recruit participants from wider geographical locations. 27 references anyon, j. 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(2009). a review of research on efl preservice teachers’ beliefs and practices. journal of cambridge studies, 4(1), 73-81.                                       v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 10 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 parent involvement in early childhood education: exploring the role of korean american cultural beliefs and practices using the figured worlds approach to support learning success for all children hyunjin kim, susan trostle branda-b a-buniversity of rhode island dr. hyunjin kim is an experienced scholar in the field of early childhood education, holding the positions of associate professor and program coordinator of the early childhood education program, as well as program director for early childhood care and education pathways at the university of rhode island. with extensive experience in the field, she has actively participated in several funded projects, including preschool development, registered apprenticeship, ecce workforce development, and ready to learn grants. dr. kim has published numerous scholarly and peer-reviewed articles related to early childhood education. dr. susan trostle brand is a full professor of early childhood education at the university of rhode island. she was previously a preschool and primary grades classroom teacher and a reading specialist. she has served as a co-pi or consultant on grants addressing inclusion, science learning among preschoolers, and recently the ecce workforce project for adult learners. the author of four textbooks and numerous scholarly articles, dr. brand serves as the counselor for the iota sigma chapter of kappa delta pi national honor society. she is also a united nations representative for kappa delta pi. abstract this paper examines the significance of parental involvement in early childhood education, with a specific focus on the cultural practices and values of korean american parents and children in schools in the united states (us). it discusses the critical issue of the learning gap among different ethnic and racial groups and how, through the recognition and integration of various cultural beliefs and values, educators can help parents to close this gap. the paper focuses specifically on korean american children and their parental involvement in the us through the lens of the “figured worlds” approach, in order to better understand differences in educational practices and to support the success of all diverse groups of children in the learning process in american schools. keywords: parent involvement, early childhood education, cultural beliefs, korean american children, figured worlds approach 11 introduction parent involvement in early childhood education refers to the active participation of parents in their children's learning and development during the critical early childhood years. numerous studies have shown that parental involvement in education is linked to better learning and developmental outcomes, social skills, and self-esteem for children (castro et al., 2015; chun & devall, 2019; el nokali et al., 2010; fan & chen, 2001; lara & saracostti, 2019; ma et al., 2016). understanding the importance of parental involvement in early childhood education is crucial for both parents and educators to appreciate. however, the role of cultural practices and values in shaping the experiences of children from diverse backgrounds is often overlooked. the learning gap existing among different ethnic and racial groups in early childhood education is a significant issue with long-term implications for individuals and society as a whole. parent involvement is a vital factor in understanding this gap, as cultural beliefs and values can shape how parents approach their children's education (gonzalez-dehass et al., 2005; hill & tyson, 2009; wilder, 2014). by utilizing the “figured worlds” approach, which acknowledges the cultural and social context in which individuals operate, educators can better understand how cultural beliefs and values affect parent involvement in early childhood education. educators reaching out to promote parent involvement are able to gain insight and understanding of different cultural beliefs and values and then capitalize on integrating these themes/values into the schooling context on behalf of each child’s well-being and learning success. this paper will examine the significance of parental involvement in early childhood education, with a specific focus on korean american children and their parental involvement in the united states (us). the article will provide insights on korean american parental involvement within the us context, utilizing the concept of “figured worlds” to frame the discussion for a better understanding of differences in educational practices. the figured worlds approach the term "figured worlds" was first introduced by sociolinguist james paul gee in his book, "social linguistics and literacies: ideology in discourses" (gee, 1990). gee developed the concept as a way of understanding the cultural practices and values that shape individuals' experiences in social and educational contexts (gee, 2000). he argued that the ways in which people understand and make sense of their world are molded by the cultural practices and values of the communities in which they participate. since then, “figured worlds” further developed as a theoretical approach in sociology, anthropology, and education fields. scholars such as holland et al. (1998) used the concept of “figured worlds” to understand the process individuals use to construct and negotiate their identities within social and cultural contexts. for example, nasir (2011) used the concept to explore the experiences of african american youth in educational contexts in understanding how their racialized identities impact their academic achievement. nasir employed the figured word “racialized identities” to elucidate the intricate and diverse experiences of african american children within educational settings, and to conduct a detailed examination of the influence of race on academic success. the use of this figured word facilitated a more nuanced and comprehensive analysis of the topic at hand. 12 in the field of education, the “figured worlds” approach helps educators to understand the cultural practices and values that shape children's experiences and expectations in the classroom. by understanding the "figured worlds" of children from different cultural backgrounds, educators can better understand and support children’s learning experience in educational settings. using this approach, educators can comprehensively analyze the factors that contribute to the learning and development gap between children of different ethnic groups. for the purpose of the current discussion regarding parent involvement in early childhood education, korean american parents and children are explored. early childhood education and parent involvement among korean americans parental involvement in early childhood education remains critical for children's success in school. research consistently demonstrates that parental involvement links to better learning outcomes, social skills, and self-esteem for children (jeynes, 2005; liu et al., 2020). however, the impact of parental involvement may vary across cultural contexts. for korean american parents, involvement in their children's education is ever more critical due to cultural differences and language barriers (lee & bowen, 2006). korean american parents have been shown to be highly involved in their children's education, often setting high learning expectations and prioritizing a strong emphasis on the value of education (lee, 2014; paik, 2008). this high level of parental involvement has been linked to the strong learning performance of korean american children, who have been found to have higher levels of learning success compared to their peers from other ethnic and racial groups. for example, studies show that korean american children outperformed their peers from other ethnic and racial groups in early childhood education, and parental involvement was a significant predictor of their learning success (kim et al., 2010; kwon, 2017). another study by hahm and lee (2017) showed that korean american parents' high expectations and involvement in their children's education positively influenced their learning outcomes. understanding the cultural and social factors shaping parental involvement among korean american families provides insights into effective strategies for promoting parental involvement. an examination of the unique cultural and social context of korean american families through the lens of the “figured worlds” approach highlights the important role that parental involvement plays in promoting positive learning outcomes for korean american children. cultural practices and values sok and schwartz's (2021) study on korean american families with successful heritage language maintenance supports the importance of understanding cultural practices and values in promoting positive educational outcomes for all children. the “figured worlds” approach is a helpful framework for educators to gain insight into the experiences of children from diverse ethnic backgrounds. cultural practices and values, such as prioritizing learning success and placing high value on discipline and hard work, can significantly impact the learning success of children from different ethnic groups (hahm & lee, 2017; otto, 2017; sok & schwartz, 2021; villenas & crespi, 2015). 13 for example, korean american children often come from families that value working hard and succeeding in learning. according to otto (2017), korean american parents tend to be highly involved in their children's education and often provide a supportive home environment that fosters learning success. this high level of parental involvement can be attributed to the cultural value of education, which is seen as a pathway to upward mobility and social status. however, korean american children may also encounter cultural pressures to excel in learning (park et al., 2018). korean american children may experience cultural stress, which refers to the psychological distress arising from the conflict between the demands of the culture of origin and the culture of the mainstream society. the cultural value of learning success can lead to high levels of stress and anxiety among korean american children, which may impact their learning outcomes. in sum, knowing the cultural beliefs and practices of korean american children is critical for teachers to create an inclusive and supportive learning environment that fosters learning success and well-being for all children. the “figured worlds” approach can be a helpful framework for educators to gain insight into the experiences of children from diverse ethnic backgrounds and promote positive educational outcomes. language and communication in addition to cultural pressures to succeed in school, korean american children may have additional language expectations and communication differences. while korean american children may speak english as their first language, they may also be fluent in korean and as well may demonstrate a different communication style from their peers from other ethnic groups (lee & shin, 2008; lim, 2012). according to park et al. (2014), korean american children may value respect for authority and conformity, which can impact their interactions with teachers and peers in the classroom. an example of how the cultural value of respect for authority and conformity can impact korean american children's interactions with teachers and peers in the classroom is illustrated in a study by lee (2017). lee found that korean american children tend to prioritize their relationship with their teacher and may avoid challenging or questioning authority figures to maintain harmony and respect. this cultural trait can sometimes result in a lack of engagement or participation in classroom discussions, leading teachers to misinterpret the children's lack of contribution as a lack of interest or ability. teachers can use this knowledge to create a classroom environment that values respectful communication and encourages all children, including korean american children, to participate in discussions and express their ideas. additionally, parental language barriers can be a significant factor in the learning performance gap and in the development of a partnership with other stakeholders (lim, 2012; park & kim, 2019). for example, korean american children may struggle with learning english, which may impact their performance on standardized tests and in classroom tasks. moreover, the lack of access to language resources and societal pressures to assimilate may hinder the efforts of korean american parents in promoting their children's heritage language maintenance (kim et al., 2016; kwon, 2017). in addition, yoo and lee (2008) reported that korean american children 14 (and their parents) may also experience negative effects on their psychological well-being due to cultural conflicts and discrimination, which can impact their learning process. despite facing these challenges, korean american parents place a high value on education and often have high expectations for their children's learning success (lee & bowen, 2006). however, cultural differences may make it challenging for korean american parents to navigate the united states’(us) educational system. korean american parents may be unfamiliar with the expectations and norms of us schools, and language barriers may further complicate communication with teachers and other educators. strategies for promoting understanding of diverse backgrounds to promote understanding and thoughtful consideration in educating every child, valuing each child’s unique background, it is essential to recognize, comprehend, and appreciate the cultural practices and values that shape the experiences and learning outcomes of children from diverse backgrounds (king, 2012). park and jung (2019) recommend that educators use culturally responsive teaching practices, which incorporate culturally relevant materials and experiences into the curriculum to better engage and support children from diverse backgrounds. according to kim et al. (2017), korean american parents believe in maintaining korean cultural traditions and instilling korean values in their children while, at the same time, balancing the demands of the us context. the authors discuss two strategies that korean american parents use to achieve this balance between cultural maintenance and bicultural socialization. the first strategy is "cultural maintenance," which involves teaching children about korean cultural practices, values, and beliefs. for example, korean american parents may teach their children how to speak korean, celebrate korean holidays, and practice traditional korean customs. the second strategy is "bicultural socialization," which involves preparing children to navigate the cultural differences between the korean and american contexts. this strategy emphasizes the importance of understanding and appreciating both korean and american cultural values, beliefs, and practices. for example, korean american parents may encourage their children to participate in both korean and american cultural activities, learn about both cultures, and develop communication and social skills that are relevant in both contexts. their findings suggest that culturally sensitive interventions incorporating both korean and american parenting strategies can be effective in promoting an understanding of differences. moreover, family engagement and language support are also additional strategies that can enhance the understanding and valuing of differences. for example, educators can foster strong relationships with families and provide language support and accommodations to children who are bilingual or struggling with learning english (otto, 2017; villenas & crespi, 2015). by implementing these strategies, educators work towards promoting a more positive learning environment for all children. dantas-whitney et al. (2020) maintain dual language education can promote learning outcomes and linguistic and cultural proficiency for both language minority and language majority children and, furthermore, it can also contribute to greater understanding of the rich language and cultural diversity of children, valuing diversity in the process. lee and hakuta (2018) emphasize the 15 importance of educators’ awareness of the challenges that bilingual children face and also provide them with appropriate support and accommodations. in summary, relevant literature emphasizes the importance of promoting an understanding and valuing of children’s diverse languages and backgrounds and supporting the education of language-minority children through culturally sensitive approaches, implementing appropriate language frameworks and accommodations, and partnering with families (e.g., hakuta, 2011; lee & hakuta, 2018; otto, 2017; villenas & crespi, 2015). educators who utilize these strategies can create a more positive and caring learning environment for all children. by partnering with parents on these issues, educators can provide not only learning advantages, but also support children’s overall well-being. implications for educators working with diverse groups this current discussion, which explores the educational experiences of korean american children, illustrates several important implications for all educators working with children of different ethnic groups. learning outcomes. learning outcomes vary significantly among different ethnic groups; as noted, parental involvement remains as a critical factor in promoting children’s learning and learning success. however, the role of cultural practices and values in shaping the experiences of children from diverse backgrounds is often overlooked. parent involvement is the open door to understanding each child’s cultural values and practices. figured worlds. through the lens of the “figured worlds” approach, educators can also better understand the cultural practices and values that impact the learning outcomes of children from different ethnic groups and develop strategies for promoting a deeper understanding of each child’s diverse language and culture in order to support each child’s learning success. incorporating cultural traditions. to effectively target the educational needs of children from diverse backgrounds, it is important for educators to recognize and appreciate cultural differences. for example, a teacher working with korean american children might incorporate cultural traditions and practices into the classroom to make the curriculum more meaningful and relevant. an example of incorporating korean cultural traditions and practices into the classroom could be including korean literature, art, and music in the curriculum. teachers can select texts by korean authors or books that showcase korean culture and history, providing children with an opportunity to explore their cultural heritage and identity. additionally, teachers can introduce korean traditional art forms, such as calligraphy or painting, to teach children about korean aesthetics and history. another example of incorporating korean cultural practices into the classroom is to celebrate korean holidays, such as lunar new year or chuseok, by organizing cultural events or activities. for instance, teachers can invite korean american parents to share traditional korean foods, songs, and dances with the class, providing children with an opportunity to learn about korean culture and connect with their peers. 16 by incorporating diverse cultural practices and values into the children’s learning process and experiences, all children can feel recognized and valued. eliminate discrimination and bias. with parental input and support, teachers can take steps to eliminate discrimination and bias, thus preventing actions that can result in a significant and deleterious impact on the learning success and well-being of children from diverse groups. educators can promote a positive and inclusive environment for all children. these positive actions might also include engaging teachers in anti-bias training, implementing policies to prevent bullying and harassment, and promoting diversity and inclusion strategies in the curriculum. social capital. educators can also promote social capital which refers to the resources, networks, and connections that individuals can access through their relationships with others. teachers promote social capital by providing opportunities for children to engage with their communities and build connections. for example, a teacher might invite community leaders and members to come to the classroom to speak about their careers or provide opportunities for children to engage in service-learning projects that focus on community needs. for korean american parents and children, social capital can take many forms. korean american families often prioritize maintaining close ties with their community and culture, which can provide them with a strong source of social capital. this can include access to community organizations, religious institutions, and cultural events, which can provide opportunities for social networking, emotional support, and cultural enrichment (kim et al., 2016). korean american parents may draw on their social networks to provide learning support for their children. for example, they may enlist the help of family members or friends to provide tutoring or mentorship, or they may seek out connections with educators or community leaders who can offer guidance and advice on navigating the education system. growth mindset. according to dweck (2006), promoting a growth mindset emphasizes the belief that intelligence and ability can be developed through effort and hard work. a growth mindset can be a powerful strategy for building confidence and resilience in children, regardless of their background or ethnicity. furthermore, promoting a love of learning can help children develop a lifelong passion for knowledge and personal growth (martin & marsh, 2018). by instilling a growth mindset and a love of learning into their teaching practices, educators can help children develop the skills, attitudes, and resources needed to succeed in school and beyond. with these measures in place, educators work towards promoting learning success for all children, regardless of their background or ethnicity. involve families. finally, as discussed in this article, family involvement remains a critical factor in promoting the learning and learning success not only for korean american children, but for all children from different ethnic groups. hopefully, educators will work to support and involve all families in their children's education. this might involve sponsoring family nights or parent-teacher conferences, providing resources and materials in multiple languages, and developing strategies for communicating with families from diverse backgrounds. 17 summary. overall, this article emphasizes the importance of recognizing and understanding cultural factors, eliminating discrimination and bias, fostering an understanding of the rich diversity of each child, supporting the learning process with a growth mindset, promoting social capital, providing an inclusive education for all children, partnering with parents, and encouraging family involvement. by taking these actions, educators can better support the learning success and well-being of young children from diverse backgrounds and promote a more positive and inclusive learning environment for all. future directions the implications of the studies exploring the educational experiences of korean american children suggest several important future directions. the following future directions involve conducting additional research and related actions for all ethnic groups. first, future research might explore the intersectional identities of korean american children and other children from diverse groups to further understand the ways in which multiple aspects of a child’s identity interacts to shape his or her experiences in educational settings. second, educators may continue to explore innovative ways to engage families from diverse backgrounds in their children's education. engaging families might involve leveraging technology to improve communication with families, developing culturally responsive curricula, and providing resources and materials that are accessible and relevant to families from diverse backgrounds. third, teacher education can design programs to prepare educators to work effectively with children from diverse backgrounds. this might involve teacher candidates with training in culturally responsive pedagogy, anti-bias education, and the use of “figured worlds” and other theoretical frameworks to more deeply understand the experiences of children from different cultural backgrounds. fourth, policymakers may consider the impact of implementing policies on the educational experiences of korean american children and children from other diverse groups. these policies have the potential to foster a comprehensive understanding of diversity and inclusion within the educational context, bolstering endeavors to mitigate discrimination and prejudice. furthermore, these policies ensure the provision of sufficient resources, such as mentorship from experienced educators, providing teaching assistants, curricula, literature, technological tools, and tailored pacing strategies, all of which contribute to the learning success of every child. finally, schools and communities can work collaboratively to promote positive and inclusive education for all children. schools can develop partnerships with community organizations, leverage the resources and expertise of families and community members, and promote community-based research and action to provide for the needs of diverse populations of children. by using culturally responsive teaching, providing language support, promoting diversity and inclusion, and fostering family engagement, educators can support the learning and learning success of all children, regardless of their cultural background or language ability. children’s 18 well-being in school is dependent upon a plethora of changing attitudes and practices including re-examining our current educational system. changing our educational system the restructuring of our educational system is recommended so that children no longer need to face discrimination or marginalization (glaude, 2020). it is also important for educators and policymakers to consider eliminating policies and practices that contribute to inequality and discrimination within the education system. some of these discriminatory policies and practices include tracking or streaming, unequal funding of schools, biased disciplinary practices, biased standardized testing, inadequate support for english language learners, and lack of diversity among educators and 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(2014). effects of parental involvement on academic achievement: a meta-synthesis. educational review, 66(3), 377-397. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2013.780009 final draft ijwc fall 2021 issue 12.20.21 85 international journal of the whole child 2021, vol. 6, no. 2 emerging scholar “productive struggle” as an effective strategy in elementary math classrooms sara dailya amiddle tennessee state university sara daily graduated from middle tennessee state university with her bachelor's in film and video production in 2016. she is currently earning her master’s degree at middle tennessee state university in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis on elementary education in the initial licensure specialization. her research interests focus on improving education for all elementary students. abstract productive struggle refers to a strategy that gives students an opportunity to increase their background mathematical knowledge. productive struggle helps students connect key concepts, determine how and where an error occurs, and supports students in figuring out how to use their own thinking and reasoning skills to correct an error. teaching without utilizing productive struggle instruction can lead to students being reluctant to work towards developing a deeper understanding of math concepts. without a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts, students, who often do not perceive themselves as competent in math, may continue to find math difficult for them in the future. introduction productive struggle (murdoch et al., 2020) is an instructional strategy designed for teachers to help students use their own thinking and reasoning skills to solve math problems. the process helps students develop an improved understanding of conceptual math as well as to gain confidence in their abilities to solve problems. productive struggle instruction is not a concept that is easily implemented. it requires teachers to know the material well enough to determine where a student may go wrong in the process and then, know how to guide them to the correct solution without directly providing the answer. productive struggle, as a part of instruction, enables students to develop confidence in their abilities, become more willing to take risks, and grow in their understanding of the content. when students are building a new skill, it is not always comfortable for them. in addition, allowing students to struggle is typically not in most teachers’ comfort zone, which begs the question: what is to be gained from this uncomfortable and time-consuming method? 86 productive struggle instruction productive struggle, as explained by murdoch et al. (2020), is recognized both in policies and research as a signal of quality education. they believe productive struggle is an important and necessary strategy for teaching mathematics for conceptual understanding. instruction in productive struggle can help students by teaching them how to problem-solve effectively. these skills will help students, not only in their current classroom, but throughout their educational time as well. traditionally, a common method of instruction in mathematics involves teaching students a formula or pattern to follow. these instructional methods provide students with the correct answer in a timely manner, but unfortunately, do not teach students how to independently solve problems. this leads to other issues in both their future math classes and in real-life situations. mathematics teaches students the important skills of how to problem solve and adapt in a variety of situations, not just get right answers. by only teaching formulas and not problem solving, teachers deny their students the opportunity to perceive themselves as competent at math; this perception undermines students’ potential to become a problem solver. math problems are often tasks without clear solution paths. effective teachers can provide their students with more than just a formula; rather, they can highlight the possibility of how students can solve problems by themselves in a variety of ways. the instructional method used to teach problem solving and help aid students in becoming more confident in their mathematic abilities is called productive struggle. productive struggle is an effective method for enhancing the process of mathematics teaching for the benefit of students. productive struggle goals productive struggle instruction goals include students learning to think deeply, gaining understanding, and developing independent problem-solving skills (amidon et al., 2020; baker et al., 2020; granberg, 2016). while students who develop their own methods may encounter more errors and take longer to solve the problems, they often score more positively on tests than students who use memorized procedures. even if the students who created their own methods are incorrect, they are more likely to adapt their methods than their classmates who used memorized information (granberg, 2016). by creating their own methods, students can create new pathways and develop connections to concepts previously taught in mathematics. without assistance from teachers, this is much more difficult for students to accomplish if all they have previously learned to do is memorize how to solve a problem. as teachers, one of the most limited resources is time. spending time doing something deemed unproductive is not a common practice. it is more likely that teachers will evaluate struggling students as doing something unproductive and provide those students with steps in how to solve the problem rather than allowing the students to develop the techniques themselves. there is a possibility when teaching problem-solving, that teachers will reduce it to following an algorithm rather than allowing the students to reason it out for themselves (brousseau & gibel, 2005). 87 another problem may arise when teachers become unwilling to allow their students to fail, so they make the problem easier to solve, taking away the chance for the students to develop problem-solving skills (brousseau & gibel, 2005). struggle takes time and is often not seen as worth the risk to a teacher not familiar with the benefits of productive struggle. however, teachers who use productive struggle are taking a risk. first, implementation of productive struggle requires teachers to truly know their content. thorough knowledge of the subject matter increases teachers’ effectiveness in challenging and encouraging their students to engage in productive struggle (murdoch et. al., 2020). second, learners possess diverse background knowledge and require different strategies to challenge them. because of this, unpredictable behaviors often occur as they struggle during learning events. teaching productive struggle not only takes preparation and an in-depth knowledge of the content but also understanding of the individual students’ needs in order to be implemented effectively. most research describing productive struggle regards secondary students struggling in mathematics (baker et al., 2020; granberg, 2016; warshauer, 2015; zeybek, 2016). research describing implementation of productive struggle in elementary schools is limited. however, this approach is complementary to constance kamii’s (1982, 2000) constructivist understanding of how young children (ages birth to eight) develop logico-mathematical knowledge. kamii (1982) asserts, “relationships are created by the child from within, and not taught by someone else from the outside” (p. 29). she advises teachers to create an environment that encourages children to think and make their own decisions. kamii (1982) explains that the teacher’s role is not simply correcting children’s answers, but rather figuring out how the child made the error, and then guiding the child’s “process of reasoning which is far better than correcting the answer” (p. 41). similar to productive struggle, kamii’s (2000) approach supports children developing their thinking skills, rather than memorizing rules, as this will enhance their understanding of math concepts as well as build their confidence. lev vygotsky’s theory, zone of proximal development, can be found in several productive struggle studies. struggle involves students doing scaffolded tasks that are within the student’s understanding (betts & rosenberg, 2016; vazquez et. al., 2020). scaffolding allows the students to take steps towards the desired goal at a reasonable pace. these scaffolded tasks can lead to better memory of the material, a deeper understanding, and a chance to create more solutions to the same problem (vazquez et. al., 2020). the key to vygotsky’s theory is for teachers to maintain high expectations of their students. in a study by ewing et al. (2019), english language learners were thought to not have mastered english and were provided with problems outside their zone of proximal development. these expectations only hurt the students and the teachers. by providing problems within the zone of proximal development, students can develop their mathematic skills without becoming overwhelmed. brousseau’s theory of didactical situations in mathematics has been implemented in productive struggle research as well. granberg (2016) states that mathematics without struggle involves fast ways that will always lead to the correct answers. while this is an ideal output and useful in saving time, it does not prepare students for the future. teachers wish for their students to 88 succeed. some teachers find that when leading their students, they break down the problems until they no longer require critical thinking (brousseau & gibel, 2005). effective teachers do not simply provide their students with procedures but allow the students to solve problems on their own and develop the skills necessary for all subjects. the earlier students are supported in working through difficult problems, the better prepared these students will be throughout their education. problem-solving skills are not limited to mathematics. students who are supported in developing their own methods will likely be more successful in many other school subjects. teachers may not initially acknowledge the time spent teaching productive struggle as worthwhile, but their students’ test scores will reflect the benefits. more importantly, the students will become confident problem-solvers, an important life skill. benefits for students researchers consider productive struggle as a crucial and natural part of the learning process in mathematics (murdoch et al., 2020; russo et al., 2021). math problems are not meant to be similar. they are intended to be implemented in a variety of situations and designed to prepare students for life after the classroom. through intellectual struggle, students learn from their own mistakes. instruction in productive struggle encourages students to implement this knowledge in other tasks and improves their ability to be self-directed (lemley et al., 2019). productive struggle provides students with opportunities to thoroughly study difficult problems in order to determine similarities between them. this helps students to develop a deeper understanding of mathematics (ewing et al., 2019; lemley et al., 2019; russo et al., 2021). allowing students to correct their mistakes is another means to build mathematical understanding. this knowledge cannot be achieved unless students can determine how their mistakes were made, or if their teachers specifically guide them to where they erred in their understanding. the idea of struggle can be defined as students attempting to understand something in mathematics that is not clearly discernible at first glance (o’dell, 2018; warshauer, 2015; warshauer et al., 2021). the problems meant for productive struggle are difficult, but not impossible. problems requiring students to think about the process of finding solutions provide challenge as they use their thinking and reasoning skills. importantly, if they can immediately use memorized information, the problem does not promote productive struggle. struggle is only productive when teachers implement it correctly, and students are able to gain understanding and problem-solving skills from the effort. herein, lies the benefit for students engaging in productive struggle. productive struggle builds students’ understanding of mathematical concepts (warshauer et al., 2021). the more students do on their own will promote future mathematics learning. by productively struggling, a more thorough knowledge of the topic is developed. students remember concepts longer and better than if they had only been taught the steps to solve by their teachers (vazquez et al., 2020; warshauer et al., 2021). 89 productive struggle indicates where students are lacking in their knowledge (amidon et al., 2020; granberg, 2016; murdoch et al., 2020; vazquez et al., 2020). if a teacher walks the student through a problem, there is no critical thinking involved. the students cannot determine if they know how to do all the steps on their own. by allowing the students to figure out the problems for themselves, they can discern the differences between their current knowledge and what they are trying to understand (granberg, 2016). these students will be able to make their own connections to other topics, which will help them with encountering future concepts and reviewing learned material. students feel positive emotions when they productively struggle. when students are successful in their struggles, they feel pride (o’dell, 2018). there is something special about being able to solve something without any aid from others. the more often students are afforded opportunities to feel prideful in their work, the more likely they are to see mathematics in a positive light. students were also noted to feel joy when they finished a problem (o’dell, 2018). when a teacher can link happiness together with mathematics, students will benefit. when students can fail and still want to continue dealing with difficult problems, productive struggle instruction is successful (livy et al., 2018). how to teach productive struggle effective teachers instruct students in how to think like problem solvers. through guiding and questioning, students become encouraged to determine exactly what is necessary for solving math problems. in general, a student’s response to productive struggle is to practice, ask for assistance, or persist in struggle (warshauer et al., 2021). when a student seeks assistance, it will usually come from a lack of understanding. the goal for teachers in this situation is not to tell the students specifically how to solve the problem, giving them steps and protocols, but instead, to scaffold and support them with guidance by providing students with strategies to help them to create their own methods and be able to solve the problems themselves in the future (ewing et al., 2019; warshauer, 2015). there are several different strategies that can be used to teach productive struggle. for example, during instruction, the teacher talks the students through what they already know and provides them with questions requiring deep thinking. providing questions for students encourages them to take the time to make sense of the problem they are trying to solve (ewing et al., 2019). unfortunately, there is not a set list of questions to ask. productive struggle requires teachers to adapt to each individual student and instruction varies with each type of problem (lemley et al., 2019; murdoch et al., 2020). another strategy used to teach productive struggle involves teachers inspiring their students to reflect upon their own work and become capable of explaining how they arrived at a particular answer. the ability to explain their own thinking enables students to develop their problemsolving skills. when students explain or show their reasoning behind how they arrived at their answer, the teacher helps guide the students with the knowledge of where they erred. in this way, students improve understanding and develop those skills for the next problem (baker et.al., 2020; betts & rosenberg, 2016; murdoch et al., 2020). 90 another strategy to implement productive struggle instruction entails teachers initially providing students with problems in a new concept, and then providing instruction after the students have had time to explore (vazquez et al., 2020). this strategy builds on student understanding of the material because the students can develop their own reasoning on how to solve the problem. they determine the elements of the problem and create connections with problems they solved in the past with similar elements. a common problem when teaching productive struggle is to reduce the cognitive load. teachers are accustomed to achievement that seems to be effortless (livy et al., 2018). most teachers wish to help a student who seems to be struggling. not doing so appears neglectful, but this is not always the case. students require adequate time to develop persistence to be able to complete the tasks themselves. when teachers help students solve problems, they diminish students’ chances to build critical thinking skills, support their dependence on others when confronted with challenges, and extend students’ struggles in the future. the key to teaching productive struggle is to provide students with the tools to independently solve the problems (warshauer et al., 2021). similar to reading instruction where students learn to decode words themselves, teachers can help their students develop the ability to create a list of approaches to solving a problem. the more the students can do by themselves, the more effective their learning. effective teachers purposefully plan the time to create an environment where students are able to develop a deeper understanding of the topics. they encourage learning through process and building knowledge rather than attaining correct answers. while these teachers maintain high expectations of their students and their abilities, they prepare for and support productive struggle; when they do not, they deny students opportunities for growth and understanding (ewing et al., 2019). productive struggle in the classroom in productive struggle instruction, the goal is not for students to consistently and correctly solve the problems. effective teachers shift their understanding of success to create opportunities for their students to build knowledge, not just show correct answers (vazquez et al., 2020). students who always get the correct answers do not necessarily understand how or why their answers are accurate. students who fail can develop useful strategies for solving problems and determining where they went wrong (amidon et al., 2020; livy et al., 2018; russo et al., 2021). hearing or seeing students’ failures will help teachers. when productive struggle is happening, it is important the process is documented. the teacher’s responses, the ways in which a student attempts to solve a problem, and records of how and why a student becomes “stuck” become important components that will be necessary to consider the next time the lesson is taught (zeybek, 2016). the goal is to provide students with the necessary tools to independently solve the problems. it is common for teachers to want to reward their students with free time to do as they wish, but in mathematics, that time can be used to benefit the more efficient students. ewing et al. (2019) 91 discuss their study about a teacher who allowed the students to read when they were finished with their math instead of offering more challenging problems. those students lost an opportunity to build upon their knowledge and gain a deeper mathematical understanding. in contrast, betts and rosenberg (2016), describe how students who finished quickly were challenged to find multiple solutions to the same problem. a problem with multiple routes to the solution not only engages higher-achieving students, but also encourages students to use other avenues that support their mathematical strengths. time is the key to productive struggle. in several studies, it was determined that given adequate time, ability to work in small groups, and an environment where students feel safe, students were able to solve the difficult problems (ewing et al., 2019; warshauer, 2015; zeybek, 2016). time is imperative for students to develop their own strategies and figure out whether the strategies will work or not. it also provides teachers with an opportunity to identify struggling students and guide them towards the correct path without hindering students’ critical thinking. potential productive struggle problems productive struggle instruction is not without challenges. if the wrong tasks are chosen, students are likely to grow frustrated and will be unwilling to try again. a teacher that provides too many steps, reduces the cognitive load, or does not provide enough time will undermine productive struggle. a teacher who does not allow students to learn from their mistakes is preventing them from building a deeper understanding of mathematics (ewing et.al., 2019). productive struggle can lead to uncomfortable feelings in students. when a student is tasked with facing the unknown, it will often lead to anxiety (murdoch et al., 2020). the first few times a student struggles productively, it will be difficult. prior to this new problem-solving instruction, students were previously taught the specific steps to follow. in the former model, they did not understand what they did, only that they had to follow the identified steps. in productive struggle, many students push back, asking for help or saying they do not know what to do. they are unwilling to try because of the anxiety of getting the problem wrong. before students learn to productively struggle, many of them perceive their struggle as a weakness. when students observe themselves falling behind their classmates, it is seen as shameful. shame will cause students to withdraw, lash out at others or themselves, or cause them to avoid the issue (amidon et al., 2020). if this shame remains unchecked, the students could forever see themselves as “bad” at math. one effective strategy teachers use to deal with shameful feelings is to place less emphasis on correct answers and more focus on the learning process (amidon et.al., 2020). the benefits of productive struggle outweigh the challenges that may occur. students develop a deeper understanding of mathematics, including the disparities between what they do and do not know. even though productive struggle may lead to feelings of shame and anxiety in students practicing this method, the benefits include pride and joy in their accomplishments after succeeding in solving the problem. regarding the time and effort, productive struggle evidences value for both teachers and students. 92 parents and productive struggle the effectiveness of productive struggle instruction is influenced by parents as well. many parents were taught mathematics differently than current instruction. this causes parents to grow frustrated with new instruction methods and, sometimes, insist on the ways they are familiar with using. this will only cause problems for the student in the classroom. once parents understand the benefits of productive struggle instruction and why teachers are choosing to implement this method, they will appreciate the advantages for their children. unlike teachers, parents are less likely to understand the necessity for struggle. they may not see the struggle as beneficial, only as a waste of time. parents want their children to succeed, so the parents are likely to talk their child through the process, or just provide the correct answer and move on (russo et al., 2021). mothers who helped their children with their homework reported a negative attitude toward the experience. this was caused not by having to help, but because they thought of their child as helpless (vazquez et al., 2020). this idea is not beneficial to the student or the parent. parents react differently to productive struggle in their children’s homework. parents who view their children as “good” at mathematics are more likely to allow their students to struggle because they believe their child has the background knowledge to solve difficult problems (vazquez et al., 2020). some parents were not content leaving their students alone. parents with strong stereotypes linked to math are more likely to interfere with their child’s homework (vazquez et. al., 2020). in order for productive struggle instruction to be effective, a united front in implementation between the parents and the teachers becomes necessary. it is helpful to inform parents about productive struggle instruction and how it includes teachers making time for students to solve the problems themselves. it is important for parents to understand that if a teacher tells the students how to solve the problem, the students lose the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the process. additionally, parents may require assurance that teachers understand how a student’s struggle will more effectively prepare them for the next lesson. however, the more a teacher knows about the topic and the moments in the problem-solving process with the highest potential to derail the student, the more effective the instruction will be along with increased opportunity for greater positive outcomes. instruction in productive struggle cannot succeed in the classroom without parental support on the home front. productive struggle in the classroom requires many elements working together, including teacher and parent cooperation and understanding, to enable the students to be successful. conclusion productive struggle is an essential method of instruction for mathematics (amidon et al., 2020; baker et al., 2020; ewing et al., 2019; granberg, 2016; lemley et al., 2019; zeybek, 2016). the key to this method of instruction is to allow students to struggle and come to appreciate the benefits of the process. if they do not understand the reasoning behind their struggle, they are more likely to give up on the difficult problems. students engaged in productive struggle realize an additional advantage. productively, struggling students outperform students with similar 93 capabilities who did not participate in this problem-solving instruction of productive struggle (o’dell, 2018; vazquez et al., 2020; warshauer et al., 2021). productive struggle encourages students to take risks (livy et al., 2018; murdoch et al., 2020; russo et al., 2021). in order to build their own knowledge and understanding, students try out ways to find solutions. these methods may be successful or not, but by engaging in this process, students become more effective at problem solving in the future. 94 references amidon, j., monroe, a., rock, d. & cook, c. (2020). shame, shame, go away: fostering productive struggle with mathematics. kappa delta pi record, 56(2), 64-69. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/00228958.2020.1729636 baker, k., jessup, n.a., jacobs, v.r., empson, s.b., & case, j. (2020). productive struggle in action. mathematics teacher, 113(5), 361-367. doi: 10.5951/mtlt.2019.0060 betts, p., & rosenberg, s. (2016). making sense of problem solving and productive struggle. delta-k, 53(2), 26–31. https://search-ebscohostcom.ezproxy.mtsu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eue&an=118517581&site=edslive&scope=site brousseau, g., & gibel p. (2005). didactical handling of students’ reasoning processes in problem solving situations. beyond the apparent banality of the mathematics classroom. springer, boston, ma. doi: 10.1007/0-387-30451-7_2 ewing, j., gresham, g. j., & dickey, b. (2019). pre-service teachers learning to engage all students, including english language learners, in productive struggle. issues in the undergraduate mathematics preparation of school teachers, 2. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ej1206251 granberg, c. (2016). discovering and addressing errors during mathematics problem-solving-a productive struggle? journal of mathematical behavior, 42, 33–48. doi: 10.1016/j.jmathb.2016.02.002 kamii, c. (1982). number in preschool and kindergarten. national association for the education of young children. kamii, c. (2000). young children reinvent arithmetic: implications of piaget’s theory (2nd ed.). teachers college press. lemley, s. m., ivy, j. t., franz, d. p., & oppenheimer, s. f. (2019). metacognition and middle grade mathematics teachers: supporting productive struggle. clearing house, 92(1/2), 15–22. doi: 10.1080/00098655.2018.1547264 livy, s., muir, t., & sullivan, p. (2018). challenging tasks lead to productive struggle! australian primary mathematics classroom, 23(1), 19–24. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/211710208.pdf murdoch, d., english, a. r., hintz, a., & tyson, k. (2020). “feeling heard”: inclusive education, transformative learning, and productive struggle. educational theory, 70(5) 653-679. doi: 10.1111/edth.12449 o’dell, j. r. (2018). the interplay of frustration and joy: elementary students’ productive struggle when engaged in unsolved problems. north american chapter of the international group for the psychology of mathematics education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed606604 russo, j., bobis, j., downton, a., livy, s., & sullivan, p. (2021). primary teacher attitudes towards productive struggle in mathematics in remote learning versus classroom-based settings. education sciences, 11(35), 1-13. doi: 10.3390/educsci11020035 vazquez, s. r., ermeling, b. a., & ramirez g. (2020). parental beliefs on the efficacy of productive struggle and their relation to homework-helping behavior. journal for research in mathematics education, 51(2), 179-203. doi: 10.5951/jresematheduc-20200019 95 warshauer, h. k. (2015). strategies to support productive struggle. mathematics teaching in the middle school, 20(7), 390–393. doi: 10.5951/mathteacmiddscho.20.7.0390 warshauer, h. k., starkey, c., & herrera, c. a. (2021). developing prospective teachers’ noticing and notions of productive struggle with video analysis in a mathematics content course. journal of mathematics teacher education, 24(1), 89-121. doi: 10.1007/s10857019-09451-2 zeybek, z. (2016). productive struggle in a geometry class. international journal of research in education and science, 2(2), 396-415. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ej1110272 international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 are korean early childhood teachers becoming more responsive to multicultural children? an analysis of diversity self-efficacy data from the korean institute of child care and education (kicce) survey sungok r. parkª, james hoot ᵇ, and hyejin shin ᶜ ªnorthern arizona university, ᵇ university at buffalo, ᶜseoul education research & information institute korea is in transition toward becoming a multicultural society. this study assessed progress in the preparedness of korean teachers to address diversity issues in this rapidly changing society. analysis of diversity data from a 2011 national survey suggests that progress is being made toward making teachers more aware of developmental needs of diverse children. moreover, data suggests that teaching experience, closer teacher-child relationships, and awareness of recent standardized curriculum may play a role in higher levels of diversity self-efficacy of early childhood educators. this study concludes with policy recommendations. introduction an article in the new york times aptly pointed out that “south korea, a country where until recently people were taught-to take pride in their nation’s ‘ethnic homogeneity’ … is struggling to embrace a new reality” (choe, 2009). this new reality has emerged largely from a rapid increase in the numbers of foreign workers needed to fuel korea’s growing economy and an increase in the number of foreign brides. in 2008, foreign residents in korea made up about 2% of the total korean population. one year later, the rate of foreign residents increased by more than 17% (moon, 2010). another indicator of this increase is that in 2008, 13,443 babies were born to inter-racial korean couples. this number increased to 22,014 in 2011. this figure represents 4.7% of all births in korea in 2011 (korean statistical information service, 2011). korea’s recent journey in diversity has even begun to alter its language. widespread use of terms such as “danil minjok” to describe the former one race native korean nation is becoming less used in daily conversations. such descriptors are now being increasingly replaced by words such “damunhwa” (multicultural) when referring to citizens of mixed race or families of inter-racial couples. rapidly increasing diversity in korea presents many challenges for our highly industrialized nation. perhaps one of the most critical challenges likely to affect our future economy, however, lies in the education sector. specifically, we must learn how to better prepare teachers and children to celebrate the recent diversity in our nation. since 2012, korea has been applying a revised curriculum called the nuri curriculum to 5 years old children in korean public childcare programs. the application of this standardized curriculum has more recently been extended to children ages 3 to 5. in this curriculum, cultural diversity is clearly emphasized. for example, the curriculum states children must “…learn to recognize and to embrace diverse socio-cultural differences…” it also indicates that teachers must consider the educational needs of multicultural families when preparing teaching-learning environments. in the social interaction section of the curriculum, it is emphasized that multicultural issues “take priority in creating anti-bias environment where children can learn about different countries, races, and cultures.” it also emphasizes, “children are to respect physical differences between oneself and others” and actively encourages children to “work toward living cooperatively with diverse cultures.” emerging curricula such as this is clearly in line with korean goals of becoming a 21st century diverse nation. however, we know very little about how teachers in the schools are currently prepared to use such curricula to achieve national goals. increasing numbers of leading scholars are expressing the critical nature of diversity education in early education. keenhwe (2010), for example, suggests that it is important to focus on multicultural education from an early age to most effectively develop the ability to communicate with and relate to others from diverse backgrounds. likewise, the 100,000 plus members of the national association for the education of young children (naeyc) in the united states acknowledge the importance of an anti-bias approach to early education in position papers and in its accreditation process (derman-sparks et al., 2010). similarly, the association for childhood education international (acei) addresses the importance of diversity preparation in global teacher education programs. in their position paper, "preparation of early childhood education teachers"(1997), acei stresses that teachers should develop: … comprehension of the variety and complexity of communication patterns as expressed by people of differing cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds in a global context; a knowledge and understanding of differences and similarities among societies and cultures, both at home and abroad; an awareness of the social, historical and political forces affecting children and the implications for education within individual nations and world contexts (p.164). teachers and parents play an important role influencing children’s identity as well as developing an antibias perspective from very young ages. data collected by the panel study on korean children in 2011(kicce, 2012) suggests that korean children spend more than 7 hours per day in preschools or kindergartens. other than an average of 10 hours of sleep per day, this figure suggests that the majority of our children’s time is spent in school. if korea is to create future citizens who value diversity more than previous generations, the development of lasting dispositions to respect and value those who are different must begin in the earliest years. and, classroom teachers will play a vital role in the development of such dispositions as korea transitions toward becoming a truly multicultural society. yet, research is just beginning to emerge to provide direction for qualities and experiences of teachers that are likely to result in more diversity-conscious teachers. teacher impact on multicultural classrooms some teacher variables were investigated in the kicce teacher survey. this study investigated carefully selected teacher variables based on recent study trends of teacher impact on diversity in classrooms. research provides a promising glimpse of teacher variables that are likely to result in more productive multicultural classrooms. two promising variables include: teacher-child relationships and teacher-parent communication. teacher-child relationships productive teacher-child relationships appear to be a critical factor in the academic achievement of children. in an experimental study (n = 120) of teacher-child relationships with kindergarten children, ahnert, milatz, kappler, schneiderwind, and fischer (2013), for example, found that children with a closer relationship with teachers showed higher cognitive processing. in their study, teacher-child relationships were measured first and, then, children participated in computerized tasks in a laboratory situation. in order to measure teacher-children relationships, the researchers visited children in kindergartens. they first asked their teachers to report on the quality of the teacher-child relationship using student-teacher relationship scale (pianta, 2001), which measured closeness, dependency, and conflict. in addition, children and teachers were observed together. later teachers were asked to provide evaluations of their teacher-child relationships from the children’s point of view. children were then given laboratory tasks challenging their cognitive processes relating to basic knowledge and belief systems. tasks included things like classifying items (i.e., using a computer mouse, click on the figure which does not belong to the rest), ordering (i.e., click on the patterns which should be replace the blank in a way to match the order rows), and composing and comparing (i.e., click on the figure which best fits in the big pattern). before beginning the tasks, an image of a child’s teacher was shown to the experimental group (n = 60) whereas children of the control group were shown a neutral image. results suggested that cognitive processing was significantly (p < .05) impacted by closer teacher-child relationships. in addition to cognitive benefits of positive teacher-child relationships, other studies (greenberg, 2002; liew, chen, & hughes, 2010; neu, 2013; wentzel & berndt, 1999) suggest closer teacher-child relationships may provide a powerful social context for ethnic, linguistic, and cultural minority children. these studies suggest that closer teacher-child relationships may positively impact language development, academic achievement and greater involvement in classroom learning environments. teacher-parent communication teacher-parent communication has also been shown to be important in the maximal development of children in the early years. miedel and reynolds (1999), for example, investigated the association between parent involvement in early education and children’s later school performance. in their longitudinal study of 704 parents of preschool and kindergarten children in chicago, usa, researchers found a significant relationship between parent involvement in schools and higher reading achievement. likewise, cheatham and ostrosky (2013) conducted an analysis of conversations in teacher-parent conferences with native spanish speaking, latino bilingual and native english speaking parents and teachers. for this study, researchers gave teachers three different methods of setting goals for their children. the first method involved the teacher telling the parent a goal they had set for the children. in the second method, the teacher asked parents a goal they would like to establish for their children. in the third method, the teacher shared with parents a goal they had established and requested parent input into how to address this goal. examples of goals described above included items like working with other children, helping the child better understand math patterns and help with writing letters. this investigation found that cultural differences and misunderstanding between teachers and parents might affect children’s goal setting differently. for example, when teachers largely controlled child goal setting during parent-teacher conferences, particularly native spanish speaking parents were confused by teachers’ decisions but reluctant to ask teachers for a detail explanation. this study concluded that understanding of cultural backgrounds of children’s families were productive when recognizing the value of what families can bring to teacher-family communication. eberly, joshi, and konzal (2007) also found that teachers in their study struggled to interpret parents’ childrearing practices due to different cultural perspectives. in their qualitative study, teachers indicated that they could not make generalizations about a child’s culture based solely on their race or ethnicity because “there are cultures within cultures.” for example, teachers were confused and struggled in terms of understanding child-rearing styles when parents mentioned “we give our babies coffee because coffee to us is a dessert,” or when puerto rican mothers says to a child “you touch it and die… because i said so.” a teacher also expressed different cultural aspects on gender: “… in certain cultures education for girls is not valued as much as it is for boys.” the researchers concluded that more effective communication with parents resulted from better teacher understanding of the families’ perspectives. teacher preparation for diversity if korea is to maintain and expand its place, as an economic force in the world, greatly improved education for diversity is needed urgently needed especially in the preparation of teachers for very young children. yet, little is known about how universities in korea prepare teachers to work with diverse very young children in classrooms. other nations such as the usa have a long history of teacher education institutions being required to assure graduating teachers are prepared for a 21st century global economy based on multicultural participation. the majority of u.s. teacher education universities, for example, follow, standards developed by the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate) (gorski, 2009). standard 4 of these guidelines deal specifically with “diversity” (ncate, 2008). in order for teacher education programs to be accredited, the curriculum of institutions being assessed must demonstrate how they prepare candidates to be able to “demonstrate and apply proficiencies related to diversity” and “apply them effectively in schools” (p. 34). it further requires that all teacher candidates “must develop proficiencies for working effectively with students and families from diverse populations and with exceptionalities to ensure that all students learn.” children of multi-ethnic families are a growing population in korea. in order for all children to be competent in a global society, diversity should be addressed from an early age. however, little research exists regarding korean multicultural educationespecially regarding teacher preparation. this study sought to fill the research gap of korean teacher education for multicultural education through analysis of data emerging from the 2011 kicce survey relating to diversity issues. research questions the following research questions guided this investigation: 1. what is the current status of diversity self-efficacy of korean early childhood educators? 2. what teacher variables appear to impact the level of teachers’ self-efficacy regarding diversity? methodology 1. data source the data used in this study was collected in 2011 by the korea institute of child care and education (kicce). a total of 1,425 surveys were distributed to korean teachers of children ages birth to 5 years who worked at national public daycares and kindergartens, and at private, religion-based early childhood programs. the response rate on the survey was approximately 45.2%. accordingly, total 800 cases were used to investigate diversity selfefficacy of korean early childhood teachers. 2. instrumentation the survey was developed by kicce to obtain national data regarding korean childcare and education. the survey included separate questionnaires for teachers, mothers and fathers. since this study was designed to explore state-of-the-art diversity status concerning classroom teachers, only data from the teacher questionnaire was used for this study. the teacher survey portion of this survey required selfreported responses to questions based on a 5-point likert-type scale ranging from 1(strongly disagree) through 5(strongly agree). for this study, we selected only survey items that were related to the diversity variables investigated in this study. this included teacher self-efficacy, child-teacher relationships, parentteacher communication, and awareness of korean national standardized curriculum for childcare programs. the teacher self-efficacy survey (7 questions) was developed based on bandura’s (2006) not in references teacher self-efficacy scale. for the purpose of this study, three items that measured teachers’ confidence in their ability to promote diverse students’ learning were selected and named diversity self-efficacy. these included the following items: 1. efficacy to motivate academic achievement for children at-risk, 2. efficacy in supporting children to work collaboratively 3. efficacy to help children overcome poor environments that prevents them from learning. each score of the three items was aggregated to get the total score for diversity self-efficacy. also, within the survey, the three main predictor variables were measured as follow: 1) ten items relating to teacherchild relationships were used to measure teachers’ use of various methods to interact with children, 2) four items considered teacher-family communication to measure how well teachers maintained communication with families and 3) awareness of national standardized curriculum was measured. the kicce survey also included teacher’s general background information (i.e. gender, teaching experience, and teacher certification). teaching experience was measured by months of classroom teaching. teacher certification was defined as whether the participant was certified to teach children in early child settings. 3. variables the dependent variable in this study was teachers’ level of diversity self-efficacy (dse) as measured by the survey. in order to answer the research questions under investigation, the following predictor variables were investigated: 1) teacher-child relationship, 2) teacher-family communication, and 3) awareness of national standardized curriculum. total scores of the three items were calculated respectively. teachers’ characteristics were also considered as independent variables. these included: 1) gender, 2) teacher certification, and 3) teaching experience. gender variable was used as a dummy variable indicating male (ref. female). whether teachers were early childhood certified was indicated by the dummy variable (ref. not certified). we aggregated the teaching experience from each institution where the teacher taught, and then, the aggregated total teaching months, were controlled as an independent variable. table 1 provides a summary of variables explored investigated in this study. table. 1 summary of variables variable descriptions dependent variable teaching efficacy total scores of teacher self-efficacy on diversity independent variables gender a dummy variable indicating gender (0 = female, 1 = male) teacher certification a dummy variable indicating certification (0 = no, 1 = yes) teaching experience total teaching experience (unit: months of teaching experience) teacher-child relationship relationship between teacher and children teacher-family comm. communication between teacher and parents/families curriculum awareness awareness of latest early childhood educational policy 4. analytical method a regression analysis was used to investigate what variables might better explain teachers’ level of diversity self-efficacy (dse). the following multiple regression model was used for this study. y= α +β1e1 + β2 e2 + β3 e3 + β4 e4+ β5 e5 + β6 e6 + e where y = level of diversity self-efficacy e1 = gender, e2 = teacher certification, e3 = teaching experience, e4 = child-teacher relationship, e5= family-teacher communication, and e6 = awareness of national standardized curriculum findings this study used results of the kicce survey to explore the current status of korean early childhood teachers’ level of dse and predictor variables relating to the levels of dse. findings related to research question 1 are as follows: research question 1: what is the current status of korean early childhood educators’ dse? the mean of total dse score in this study was 11.49 (out of a possible score of 15). this suggests that korean early childhood teachers, in general, were comfortable in their ability to celebrate diversity in their preschool classrooms most of the participant teachers (99%) were females (n = 792). data also suggested that the majority of teachers were certified to teach in childcare programs (n = 791) (only 9 teachers were not certified). descriptive results of the variables are summarized in table 2. table 2. summary of descriptive statistics result variable n mean sd min max dependent variable diversity self-efficacy 800 11.49 1.65 3 15 independent variables gender 800 0.01 0.10 0 1 teacher certification 800 0.98 0.11 0 1 teaching experience 792 70.02 59.30 0 311 teacher-child relationship 800 42.30 4.65 10 50 teacher-family comm. 800 17.73 2.13 4 20 curriculum awareness 800 6.20 1.06 2 8 research question 2: teacher variables effect on diversity self-efficacy the results of multiple regression analysis for the teacher variables effect on diversity self-efficacy are presented below in table 3. table 3. summary of regression analysis of predictors of diversity self-efficacy as can be seen in the table 3, the prediction model for this study was statistically significant, f(6, 800) = 3.02, p < .001, and accounted for approximately 38% of total variance of the dse (r2 = .38). a significant effect on dse was not found in either gender (β = .52, p > .10) or teacher certification (β = -.36, p > .10). since the data included very few of certified teachers (0.02%) as well as very few male teachers (0.01%), the dummy results were not likely affected. the teacher-family communication effect was estimated to be about .048 at the 10% significant level (p = .06). this suggests that when one point of teacher-family communication increases, .048 point of the teachers’ dse increases. other significant predictors from the survey were stronger indicators of the teachers’ level of dse. first, the effect of teaching experience was significant at the p = .001 level. this suggests that if one unit (month) of teaching experience is increased, the level of dse was increased by .003. for example, a teacher who taught ten months more than another can be predicted to score .03 higher in dse. this suggests that more experienced teachers may have a more positive impact on working with diverse children and families. second, teacher-child relationships accounted for approximately .19 (p < .01) of the variance. third, awareness of recent educational policy was positively related to teachers’ dse (β = .14, p < .01). this suggests that dsc scores increased by .14 points with each additional degree of national standardized curriculum awareness thus, teachers who were more aware of the standardized national curriculum tended to have higher levels of dse. overall, approximately 38% of all variance investigated in this model was accounted for by the dependent variable. this suggests that dse may be best predicted by examining predictor variables of teaching experience, teacher-child relationship, and awareness of national standardized curriculum. data from this study also found that teacher-parent communication was moderately related to dse. thus, active communication between teachers and parents may help promote more positive atmosphere where cultural variable beta s.e. p-value intercept 2.013*** .666 .003 gender .519 .464 .264 teacher certificate -.358 .438 .415 teaching experience .003*** .001 .001 teacher-child relationship .188*** .012 .000 teacher-family comm. .048* .025 .060 policy awareness .139*** .047 .003 r2 .382 note: *p < .10, **p < .05, ***p < .01. gap may be reduced between school and home. such positive communication appears to be more ideal when there is an open, two-way communication between teachers and their caregivers. discussion this study investigated the relationship between diversity self-efficacy (dse) and its predictor variables selected from the 2011 kicce teacher survey. the most important finding of this study was that it appears that progress is beginning to emerge in the area of early childhood teacher’s confidence in dealing with diverse children. while this finding offers optimism that we may be moving in the right direction, it also raises a number of issues. first, the human race has been consistent over the years in sometimes not necessarily doing what they know they should. this may well be the case with teachers in this study. they may feel relatively competent in dealing with classroom diversity; yet, instructional practices may present a different result. from this, it appears a highly productive line of research might be to explore the relationship between teachers’ dse and evidence in the classroom supporting a given dse level. for example, do teachers who score high in dse have classrooms with children’s books, posters, and artifacts of diverse children? perhaps an even more productive line of research might be to compare teachers’ dse with measures of children’s views toward diversity? commensurate with previous studies of teacher-child relationships (brown, 2002; miedel & reynolds, 1999), teachers in this study tended to have higher dse as they professed closer relationships with children. based on the specific survey items asked of teachers, closer teacher-child relationships may be summarized as a teacher who: 1) has positive attitudes when communicating with children, 2) encourages children to work together, and 3) a teacher who actively responds to children’s demands with affection. these items address views toward general interactions between teachers and children within the classroom. yet, close teacher-child relationship can be defined differently from the above. for example, pianta (2001) defined closeness of teacher-child relationship as child’s view of how much teachers support them and are appreciative of students as a resource. another possible definition might be how attuned teachers are to children as individuals. for example, do teachers know families personally (e.g., number of siblings, family issues such as being refugees from north korea), cultural background (e.g., nation, origins of family), and special interests of children (e.g., pets, goals). it may be, then, that the more a teacher knows about children and their family, the more likely teachers might be to respond more appropriately to instruction. more qualitative classroom-based research may allow researchers to better assess possible differences in what teachers profess and the reality of their relationships with children. such research, for example, might explore specific ways that a teacher might support a child’s adjustment while children are in transition (e.g., learning a new language, culture shock). teacher-parent communication showed a moderate relationship with teachers’ dse. descriptive result showed that teachers tend to actively communicate with families through various methods (m = 17.73, sd = 2.13). teachers in the sample reported that they frequently communicated with families via phone, face-to-face, text messages, and newsletters. while these methods may support greater teacher-family involvement, they may be overlooking even more effective methods not mentioned. methods of communication such as these tend to represent a uni-directional flow of informationi.e. from the teacher to parent. in such one-way information flow, families who are cultural/linguistic minorities may not be fully considered as active participants. the ethnic minority participant parents in the kicce survey were only .5% of total sample parents (n = 9). since diverse families are likely to rapidly increase, it is important for future research to begin to explore more effective strategies for building stronger teacherfamily relationships. further, the data from this study also suggests that family involvement strategies identified in the kicce survey consisted primarily of teacher oriented activities such as: inviting families for their children’s performances and reporting the developmental growth of the child. teachers may have to find more effective ways to support families in taking greater responsibility for teacher-parent relationships. this is likely to be especially true when considering parents of mixed race. lack of teacher knowledge of diverse cultures can widen this critical relational gap. given the impact of this variable upon the child development, however, effort in this area appears likely to result in highly positive outcomes. teacher awareness of curriculum was also found to be significantly related to diversity self-efficacy. korean educators appear to be knowledgeable of the new policy relating to development of dispositions toward supporting diversity in classrooms. since the most recent nuri curriculum places major emphasizes upon diversity, this trend suggests that teachers may be more aware of diversity issues in early childhood programs. however, as discussed above, it is worth noting that higher dse does not, in itself, predict how effectively teachers actually interact with diverse children and their families. in light of national diversity goals, it would appear prudent to investigate in depth the relationship between dse and instructional proficiency as it relates to diversity in the actual classroom. results also suggests that teachers with more teaching experience profess to have greater confidence in dealing with diversity in their classrooms. based on our nation’s long history as a homogeneous nation, this result was a bit surprising. if, for example, preparation for diversity is just beginning to be included in teacher preparation programs, it would seem that more recent teachers in the field would be more knowledgeable and supportive of diversity than teachers who were educated when multicultural issues were not included in teacher preparation. it might be that this finding simply suggests that more experienced teachers are more confident in dealing with a host of potential classroom issuesdiversity being but one. further, a more experienced teacher might have had more experiences working with ethnic minority studentsboth good experiences and bad ones. perhaps a more important issue that “self efficacy” would be to what extent more/less experienced teachers impact the development (cognitive, social, emotional) in a more positive direction. thus, it could be that while teachers with less experience may be less confident in their “ability” to deal with diversity in their classroom, they might, in fact, be more likely to impact the actual educational attainment of diverse learners. suggestions 1) suggestions for educators and policy makers in light of data from the kicce survey relating to diversity self-efficacy of teachers, the following implications appear warranted for early childhood educators. first, early childhood researchers and policy makers would do well to provide specific information on how to ensure that dispositions towards valuing diversity is increasingly stressed in both teacher training and in-service education. second, korean teacher colleges and universities would do well to create campus climates and experiences that foster positive diversity values. in particular, institutes of teacher education have the responsibility to prepare early childhood educators to support diverse learning communities where all children have the equal opportunity to learn. third, in addition to providing more appropriate and effective diversity knowledge and instructional strategies in pre-service teacher preparation, attention is also needed for educators who are already classroom teachers who have not had diversity preparation in their programs. 2) suggestions for future study internationally, the united nations convention on the rights of the child (crc) applies to every child equallyespecially for ethnic minority children who are most vulnerable. this global standard for humane treatment of children obliges educators to provide an environment that supports children in developing their full potential regardless of cultural background. while the importance of multicultural teaching competence for the world’s children has emerged as a central issue in education in very recent years, little is known about the extent to which korean educators are prepared to meet this rapidly emerging cultural challenge. this study has suggestions for future research. first, research is needed to determine the nature and quality of diversity preparation in teacher education programs, field experiences and in-service workshops. this information would assist decision-makers in determining those activities/programs that appear to be more productive in achievement of a national diversity goal. second, as described above, there might be a major gap between teacher’s professed confidence in working with diverse children and what strategies they might actually use in their classroom to support positive diversity dispositions. qualitative investigations into this potential problem could be especially helpful in addressing national diversity goals. finally, research is needed to identify more productive ways to develop better relationships between immigrant children and their families. research from other nations might provide positive directions for strengthening such relationships. conclusion children come into our world without cultural bias. as early as age 3, however, biases begin to emerge and often last a lifetime. if koreans purport to create a nation based upon justice and equality for all, serious attention to diversity needs to be addressed in the earliest years. derman-sparks and edwards (2010) not in references suggest that children are aware from the earliest ages that color, language, gender, and physical ability differences are connected with privilege and power. while recognizing differences is a natural component of cognitive development, accepting and respecting these differences are the result of moral development that is acquired within a socio-cultural context. prominent researchers (e.g., piaget, vygotsky, and bronfrenbrunner) are consistent in their view that a child’s social environment is an essential component of a child’s cognitive development. thus, an increasingly productive, yet diverse, society has no choice but to address cultural diversity in the earliest of years. national educational policy is beginning to respond to diversity challenges (e.g., diversity emphasis in nuri curriculum and becoming more supportive of multicultural families) (lee, 2013). however, much work remains if we are to promote a culturally appropriate education for all of our children. as results of the kicce survey suggest, korea has made progress in the area of diversity. however, our long-term ability to survive and thrive as a major economic force in the world may well depends as much upon our ability to respond to diversity as our traditional emphasis upon academic acumen of our students. twenty-first century citizens need 21st century competencies. skill in dealing with diverse cultures may well determine korea’s future. it is now time for korean educators to move ahead full-speed in addressing multicultural educational challenges that will dramatically impact the future of korea. references association for childhood education international (1997). preparation of early childhood teachers: a position paper. childhood education, 73(3), 164-165. ahnert, l., milatz, a., kappler, g., schneiderwind, j., & fischer, r. 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(1999). social influences and school adjustment: overview. educational psychologist. 34(1), 1-2. association for childhood education international (1997). preparation of early childhood teachers: a position paper. childhood education, 73(3), 164-165. conversations in an 8th –grade ela classroom: spaces where young adolescents can construct identities kathleen reeb-reascos, m.a. kathleen reeb-reascos has an undergraduate degree in mass communication (journalism) and foreign literature and translation (spanish) from middle tennessee state university. she has a master’s of education in education studies (learning and instruction) from the university at buffalo and is currently a ph.d. student in the educational culture, policy and society program at the university at buffalo. she has taught english as a foreign language in costa rica, south korea and ecuador. the public discourse surrounding english language arts (ela) education in the united states imitates the ongoing debate over state standards and high-stakes testing (anagnostopoulos, 2003). since the inception of no child left behind and the subsequent integration of the common core state standards, a paradigm shift toward accountability and the “quantifying of ability” (beach, campano, edmiston & borgmann, 2010, p. 8) has fostered “a remedial and deficit-based approach to teaching” (beach, et. al., 2010, p. 8). this prescriptive approach prioritizes the “basic skills” of reading comprehension and technical writing composition and dissuades the integration of logical reasoning, critical thinking, creative expression, text synthesis, information analysis, posing and solving problems, communication, collaboration and reflection (beach, et. al., 2010; calkins, ehrenworth, & lehman, 2012). lacking the opportunities to utilize these skills or explore in the ela classroom, students experience teaching and learning devoid of meaning, empowerment and creativity, which has become associated with widespread student disengagement and superficial instructional practices (alsup, 2010; beach, et. al., 2010; cunningham, 2001; ivey & johnston, 2013). considering the push to take constructive exploration out of ela curricula in favor of technical skill building, it is necessary to question of what students are being deprived when they are denied the opportunity to engage in, and make meaning from, discursive literary work. the current study looks to an ela classroom that has remained committed to authentic discourse and literary exploration for their potential benefits to young adolescents. specifically, this study investigates the following research questions:  how do young adolescents talk about identity in conversations about literary texts in an 8th-grade ela classroom?  what discussion mechanisms do young adolescents use in conversations about identity in classroom conversations? theoretical framework engaging the psychological theories of edward thorndike, arnold gesell, jean piaget, paulo freire and lev vygotsky, we learn that maturation and development manifest through the facilitation of, and participation in, oral communication (hill, 2001). according to thorndike (1910), children needed direct oral instruction to enhance their ability to speak, listen and interact but, gesell (1925), asserted that talking supports children to mature and develop knowledge of self in a natural way. drawing on cognition and development perspectives, piaget (1955) believed talking supported the internal construction of language as it captured children’s modes of thinking and problem solving (woolfolk, 2013). around the same time, freire (1970) concluded that talking could facilitate the identification and change of sociopolitical power relationships among children and adolescents. likewise, vygotsky (1978) drew on a socio-psycho linguistic model to connect talking with the social construction of language, learning and the acquisition of knowledge (hill, 2001; woolfolk, 2013). vygotsky’s theory furthered the idea that learners were not alone in the learning process, and that learning was guided by social interactions with parents, teachers, peers and family members (woolfolk, 2013). incorporating the role of the school institution, michel foucault (1980) studied how discourses existed within the school paradigm (hill, 2001). foucault (1970, 1972, 1980) realized the transmission of knowledge and power as a subtle “coercive force” (hill, 2001, p. 21) instead of an overt act or top-down process1. foucault (1972) argued that power existed within the relationships among people and manifested through their subsequent discourses to create “grids of identity” (hill, 2001, p. 21). elaborating on foucault’s assertions, susan hill explained: “…discourses make up practical grids of specification for diagramming, classifying and categorizing the subject in the social world. these grids are put to work in institutions in ways that generate self-surveillance, wherein the subject internalizes the disciplinary and cultural gaze as his or her own” (2001, p. 21). 1 a top-down process of learning is defined as “making sense of information by using context and what we already know about the situation” (woolfolk, 2013, p. 286). foucault (1980) further concluded that these power forces underpinned the processes of teaching and learning, on which hill (2001) expounded, “[this] provides insight into how the everyday classroom organization, grouping patterns, management structures, language and teaching practices…work to construct [learning] success or failure” (2001, p. 22). pierre bourdieu (1986) provided further insight into the relationship between the learner and learning environment by introducing the idea of capital (i.e. cultural, economic, social and symbolic composition and resources) in concordance with habitus (i.e. worldview, aspirations, dispositions, norms and rituals). he found that a student’s habitus and capitals combined to form his/her practices when confronted with unlike discourses, events or spaces (bourdieu, 1986; hill, 2001; knapp & woolverton, 2004; ladson-billings, 2004; nieto, 1999; weis & centrie, 2002; wong, 2000). through the acquisition of new discourses and the integration of learned knowledge, bourdieu concluded that individuals moved across various cultural spaces that conflicted with, affirmed or called into question the person’s habitus, which ultimately led to a rejection or adoption of new capital and/or discourses ((bourdieu, 1986; hill, 2001; knapp & woolverton, 2004; ladson-billings, 2004; nieto, 1999; weis & centrie, 2002; wong, 2000). james p. gee (1991, 2014), purported that discourse spaces and literacy events were the intersections of competing discourses, which he defined as: “ways of behaving, interacting, valuing, thinking, believing, speaking, and often reading and writing, that are accepted as instantiations of particular identities. [they] are ways of being ‘people like us'. they are ‘ways of being in the world’. they are ‘forms of life’. they are socially situated identities. they are, thus, always and everywhere social products of social histories. each discourse incorporates taken-for-granted and tacit ‘theories’ about what counts as a ‘normal’ person and the ‘right’ ways to think, feel, and behave. these theories crucially involve viewpoints on the distribution of ‘social goods’ like status, worth, and material goods in society” (2014, pp. 3-4). gee’s social linguistic discourse perspectives viewed interpersonal discourses as the mechanism for identifying, articulating and realizing discourses. gee wrote, “a good deal of what we do with language, throughout history, is to create and act out different ‘kinds of people’ for all sorts of occasions and places” (2014, pp. 2-3). he stressed, however, that discourses may not be compatible and may conflict with one another. he wrote: “each of us is a member of many discourses and each discourse represents one of our ever multiple identities. these discourses need not, and often do not, represent consistent and compatible values. there are conflicts among them and each of us lives and breathes these conflicts as we act out our various discourses’ (2014, p. 4). therefore, according to gee (2014), engaging in discourse with others activates individual discourses and become points of conflicting ideologies, multiple identities and possible transformation (gee, 2014). methodology to carry out this study, i reached out to an 8th-grade ela teacher at a prestigious 5-12 testin magnet school that ranks as one of the top public schools in the northeastern united states for permission to observe classes. after receiving permission, the teacher, miss rose2, advised me of the “discussion-based” lessons for the upcoming units and encouraged me to visit on those days. over the course of five field days in a three-week3 span, i observed 18 40-minute class periods that consisted of 5 distinct lessons. three of the five days, i observed four class periods, and on the remaining days, i observed three periods. table 1 outlines the lesson themes, instructional methods and texts used for each field day. each class was comprised of 25-28 students 4between the ages of 12 and 14. as i observed whole and small-group discussions, i took detailed field notes of what the teacher and students said. for the purposes of anonymity, no student names were taken and all indicators of identity were obscured. on the final day of observation, i was given permission to record the lesson due to the rapid nature of whole-group response. once i felt i secured enough data, i transferred my hand-written field notes to the computer and transcribed the recording using the same software. once all data were transcribed, i used soft coding methods to make connections across classroom discussions and identify dominant themes. those themes provided the basis for this paper and have situated the trajectory for my discussion. 2 the teacher’s name was changed in an effort to protect her privacy. 3 due to testing, days off and other instruction requirements, the observation days were not consecutive. 4 the racial demographics for these classes are unknown, but the groups appeared diverse table 1 – lesson themes, activities and texts lesson themes, instructional methods and texts used by field day day lesson theme instructional method texts used 1 claims and rebuttals multiple perspectives whole and small group discussion narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) “the blessings of slavery” by george fitzhugh (1857) 2 author purpose and theme articulation whole-group discussion and chapter title creation (small group activity) narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) 3 theme articulation chapter title creation (small group activity) narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) 4 bias, claims and rebuttals and multiple perspectives whole and small group discussion narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) “refuge of oppression: to the public, falsehood refuted” by a.c.c. thompson (1845) 5 romeo and juliet pre-reading opinionnaire (teacher generated), survey and whole-group discussion romeo and juliet (dover thrift edition) (1993) emerging identities through the process of coding, the theme of identity emerged in three contexts history, generation and individuality; and within these discussions, linguistic patterns emerged as indicators of these contexts. these findings are detailed in this section. identity in a historical context. working in the framework of the narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) and supporting texts (see table 1), students discussed the positions and relationships of blacks and whites during the age of legalized slavery. the emergent pattern of discourse used across these discussions was dialogic, which created allusions to the process of conceptualizing the historical text and reconciling the identities of blacks and whites. students spoke in phrases with upward inflections consistent with a questioning tone or overtly asked questions about the text and/or aspects of slavery. the following conversation was taken from a small-group exercise in which students had to conceptualize an underlying theme to use as a chapter title. this conversation showcases the interrogative pattern of these discussions: s: this [chapter] was about all the murders and stuff? s: yeah s: so ummm… s: so, i guess it describes how cruel people can be toward slaves and how they beat them to death? s: i really don’t know how to summarize this. s: they use a lot of violence for stuff. s: so how much slaves…? s: so like how they are beaten? s: so we ….? s: so like slaves…? s: umm…this is confusing. s: i guess like the violence slaves have to undergo? s: no, i guess in the chapter he describes how nobody are worth…like …like justice? s: …so like the will and injustice? s: …so like ‘the unjust worth’? s: …so like they are not that worth like…? s: …like violence toward society that is not worth that much…like violence toward a ‘half cent’…no no no…like violence toward animals…? although the dialogic pattern persisted across discussion spaces, it was most apparent in relation to historical events within the context of slavery. another pattern that emerged was the way students began categorizing whites and blacks as good and evil by determining their overall beings as worthy or unworthy of the students’ respect. in the following examples, the students demonized white people and projected negative motives for their actions by ascribing negative traits to the white characters and using religious terminology (e.g. ‘angel’, ‘devil’, ‘demon’) to represent them. s: they’re mean…the slave holders …they’re lazy and they don’t want to do [things] on their own. *** s: we could also talk about sophia auld being the only smiling white person he knows… s: sophia went from angel to demon. s: i think he has hopes people can change…like he sees slaves get hurt and are human too…that gives douglas hope people can change, if one can. *** s: ‘mister’ covey to make it formal. s: he doesn’t deserve a title. s: i mean like some people could do like…like news and story titles with a slash…when they cannot decide…like ‘plan for escape/whatever’…i think it should be ‘life with covey/life as a slave’… s: …so we could say like ‘life with the devil/life in hell’ … likewise, the students advanced the good versus evil categorization by adding descriptions of terror to detail the abuse blacks faced at the hands of white owners. in the following selections, the students associate white people with cruel and violent behaviors: s: what’s chapter 4 about? s: the savage barbarians [referring to white people] *** s: chapter 3…is about the aulds…? s: it’s about the garden… s: we should call it ‘forbidden fruit’… s: forbidden fruit? s: we should call it ‘creating slavery’. s: …so insensitive. s: …the’ terrible trade’? s: ….’horrors of the farm’? s: …’horrors of the plantation’? *** s: this is all about his owner… s: ‘mean mr. gore’? s: ‘the gory gore’? s: spooky sounding… s: what does it mean? s: …like bloody and violent s: ‘gory mr. gore’? s: ‘gory gore’? s: it has a nice ring to it s: this is basically what he is like. s: i don’t like these people, so i shouldn’t talk about them in other discussions, students activated their “moral identities” (cunningham, 2010) by using the conversations to judge whether certain actions of whites and blacks were right or wrong. in the following exchanges, the concept of right versus wrong emerges through judgmental rhetoric and rhetorical questions: s: pfft…it’s saying slaves have no willpower to think for themselves… s: hehe…it is..? [the laughter implied a sense of disbelief] s: i don’t like how he is saying it. miss rose said he is like saying that slaves have no imagination…like that’s the dumbest thing i ever heard. *** s: this [paragraph] is really sad. how could you give kids one shirt and one pants and no shoes? that’s like really awful neglect. the discussion of right versus wrong also emerged while discussing the trustworthiness of douglas’ narrative. in an evaluation of the authors’ motives for writing – both the narrative and a.c.c. thompson’s opinion article – students questioned the veracity of the writings and seemed to reach a consensus that douglas could be trusted, but the white writers could not be. the students conceded that douglas’ stories were probably exaggerated, but dismissed his hyperbole as unimportant since his motives of ending slavery were of greater significance. for a.c.c. thompson, however, the students criticized all his claims and disregarded his evidence on the basis of who he was. the following excerpts were taken from a whole-class discussion and illustrate the varying perspectives on these two men: s: at some time, i think douglas exaggerated because he uses really descriptive quotes from when he was young, but it is kinda okay because he was doing it to end slavery... s: i think most of the content [in the book] is sort of an exaggeration…? s: why wouldn’t he be trustworthy? he’s writing against slavery he got so lucky during slavery. he learned to read and write during slavery. could you imagine that? i could see how he is not trustworthy, but i think he is. s: his story is like slavery. it’s certainly bad, but maybe it was somewhere in the middle? *** discussing the thompson letter… s: …like literally…all of his claims …are like the same? like [re-voice] ‘i was there’ s: …like he argues with douglas about the system…it was confusing... s: at the end of this letter, he is a hypocrite [re-voice] ‘i own slaves. i love slaves. i didn’t like slavery.’ s: he seems fairly…. s: ....he’s gay s: …so it is obviously true that he was white…so his claims are like [re-voice] ‘yeah, [covey] is really nice’ s: …slave owners treat [slaves] around guests well…but they don’t really know how they treat the slaves…? in this exchange, re-voicing (heath, 1998) as a linguistic technique is noted, but will be addressed in the following section. identity in a generational context. stemming from the discussions following the pre-reading survey for romeo and juliet (1993), emerged a discursive construction of identity in the context of generation. specifically, the conversations about romantic love and parents as plot themes stimulated talk around the students’ identities as young adolescents and their identities as part of a generation. the use of generalizations (e.g. ‘us’ v. ‘them’; ‘you’ instead of ‘i’) and re-voicing (heath, 1998) became indicators of these identity constructions. according to heath (1998), re-voicing “appears in the talk of older children when they take on the role of someone else and speak as that person” (p. 227) and is modeled after peers, authority figures or popular culture figures. the following excerpts were taken from the whole-class discussion to illustrate the generation of a group identity from a ‘young adolescent’ perspective: t: do parents know what you are thinking about? s: no...no...no...[in unison] s: what they don’t know won’t hurt them. s: [applause from class] *** s: we have friends for a reason…you tell your friends some things and your parents others…but i guess if you are a loner then you might have to talk to your parents. *** t: why don’t you tell your parents about things that are important to you? s: in some cases, parents may not be supportive… s: …because we don’t know how to tell them… t: do you think your parents want to know? s: [loud uproar of yeses and other ramblings] s: …like they’ll get engaged with it and will keep questioning you about it…so like you don’t tell them. through the discussion of parents, the students spoke of themselves as a group of 12-14 year olds and used language (e.g. ‘they’, ‘them’, ‘we’ and ‘us’) to portray parents or adults as “other”. by doing so, the differences between young adolescents and adults became apparent. in the following exchanges, the distinction between the groups is realized through the articulation of opposing opinions between the students and their parents: s: it’s sort of like…at our age, you sorta forget like your parents were kids once…like they look really old…you don’t really think like they sort of understood…at some point of time…ya know…about school and our lives…like i kinda see why you wouldn’t tell your parents these things… s: …like i see it in a different way…like what if you want to go to one school, but your parents want you to go to another, but they’re like both good schools…or like you want to study math, but they want you to study science, or you want to go to camp and they want you to get a job…they are both good choices…how do you choose? s: going off of what she said, about opinions, despite what parents think, their children can be very different from them…or have very different viewpoints….just like you don’t go up to a vegetarian and wave a hamburger in their face…sometimes you can’t go up to your parents and say certain things …sometimes if you share your opinions you’re like provoking them…like you’re trying to start an argument…sometimes there’s just major differences between the parent and the child…different viewpoints…different opinions…different things they believe in…and a lot of those things can be very important to a person, so certain things you just don’t do out of respect almost… in addition to delineating a ‘young adolescent’ group identity, it appeared that the students situated their collective identity in the context of the macro society by addressing certain social issues that are defining features of the millennial generation. in the following exchanges, the students discuss the belief in acceptance that is often attributed to current youth culture (gollick & chinn, 2013; twenge, 2014): s: well, like, let’s say a person is like….gay…and their parent is are like homophobes…that definitely won’t work out…so the parents definitely wouldn’t like be okay with that and the person is like [re-voice] ‘well, that’s who i am’…so i don’t really know where the understanding would come from… t: so, like the parents don’t have all the information or that they are predisposed to a certain way of thinking…? s: this doesn’t apply to me, but like i have a lot of friends who aren’t straight…and if they were to tell their parents …they would say like [re-voice] ‘oh it’s just a phase’…or ‘it’s bad’ …i guess they like have like old-fashioned opinions i guess…and those get in the way… *** s: i guess like my mom…she was bullied a lot…and she like thinks it’s going to happen to me…so she’s always like saying…like always giving me advice like ‘you don’t want to do that…[re-voice] ‘you don’t want to be bullied…you don’t wanna be like me’….so sometimes it’s kinda like annoying…because she doesn’t see the change and like people have become more accepting…also it’s very similar to what they said …it’s kinda hard because she’s like always trying to be aware of the things i say, but we usually have conflicting opinions … across discussions, other aspects related to the millennial generation (e.g. college admissions, physical appearance, technology and religious disaffiliation) emerged (gollick & chinn, 2013; twenge, 2014), but the themes of acceptance related to sexual orientation was discussed most. identity in an individual context. the final context for identity construction that emerged from the classroom discussions addressed the students being individuals with personal opinions, beliefs and attitudes. while discussing these concepts, students tended to use personal narrative and spoke using ‘i’ and ‘me’ to convey their ideas. the following exchange illustrates the use of personal narrative: s: [parents] are reliving their lives through you…like what they didn’t um…couldn’t do when they were your age; they want to do with you. so like, uh,….say like…i don’t know…like my mom wanted to always play volleyball….she’d be like [re-voice] ‘hey hun, why don’t you join the volleyball team?’…and then she’d be like [voice] ‘hey let’s go get ice cream’ and then she’ll drop me off at volleyball …like she’ll do all this weird stuff…just to make me do what she wants to do or what she wanted to do… across discussions, students seemed to use these spaces as opportunities to share personal information about their individual experiences and concerns. in the following excerpts, students express their individualities as they see them: s: i can’t really tell my parents about my relationship status or my crushes because they don’t …know my sexuality… t: okay, so sometimes there are really big parts that you don’t really know how to broach that conversation… *** s: i never…i usually try not to tell my parents about my opinions…because certain opinions i have…like i don’t’ know…like my parents…like if i say like i like that …and they like…like they don’t always respect my opinions….so i don’t really like share them with really anybody…they respect me, but not my opinions. *** s: i feel like a lot of the time…like…like…my parents…like i don’t want the reaction of [re-voice] ‘oh that’s kind of ridiculous…that should not bother you’….well, right it does…i’m sorry you don’t feel that way’…well, i like having opinions and not being judged by them… advancing the discussion of personal identity, students expressed a desire to be respected and validated as individuals. in the following exchanges, students express frustration over being dismissed and their subsequent worry of being seen as different: s: well, if i told them all [the stuff i was thinking], they would probably be like [revoice] ‘what are you talking about’ and see me in a different way and they’d think i was a weirdo… *** s: i don’t know who said this, but someone said that parents do legitimize your opinions, but sometimes i like know my parents call my interests stupid…like not stupid like that…but stupid like put it down or say it’s not interesting…so i don’t like talking to them about those things because they’ll say like [re-voice] ‘that’s just a teenage thing, you’ll grow out of that’…it’s a phase, basically…i don’t like when my parents tell me that it’s a phase…like my mom will say ‘it’s a phase, you’ll regret it when you’re older… *** s: so, whenever, i wanna talk to my mom about something…like she tries to relate to it…like she knows kid feelings… [re-voice] ‘i know what you are feeling; i had the same experience when i was a kid’…yyyyyou don’t know how i’m feeling because it’s not you…they think that they know, but the feelings…they don’t…they don’t like know what like i’m feeling… the beliefs students held also became evident through these discussions. in the following exchanges, individual opinions about life and love began to emerge: t: …so half of us said we believe in soul mates…but only a quarter of you said you believed in love at first sight…most of you think that that is nonsense…but some of you think it is possible…obviously our main characters romeo and juliet would answer yes… s: isn’t that kind of shallow? t: 27% of you in here...she just called you shallow….why do some people think that love at first sight is shallow? s: i said i didn’t believe in love at first sight because at first sight, you don’t know the person…so how are you gonna know if they are really attractive or really weird… t: so you get partial information...incomplete information…if you’re just using vision? s: personally, i would never know…like yeah…it hasn’t happened but…based on things i’ve seen, it can happen…but it’s sort of very uncommon…but even if it’s common it doesn’t always work out… *** s: a lot of times, i think about a lot of like future plans like that are kinda important to me, but i don’t’ tell my parents , because a lot of things that i think about pass – they come and they go – and i’m not quite sure on a lot of things that i think about….like one month i think about something and if i say it, then the next month they bring it up and i’m like never mind…i changed my mind…it’s not what you thought…and then everyone gets confused…so i prefer to keep things to myself until they’re finalized… the students’ discussions about individual beliefs also suggested a connection to how students made decisions. much of the conversation related to sharing information with parents was indicative of how the students perceived consequences and chose actions based on those perceived consequences. in the following examples, we see how students made decisions based on personal beliefs and perceived consequences of sharing those beliefs: s: i listen to my mom’s advice on a lot of things…but there are things i don’t want to tell her because she like blows it out of proportion…so it’s easier to get advice from friends…they know what else is going on and they know what is happening…whether you tell your parents even if it’s not about you they’ll like blow it out of proportion… t: what categories of things do they blow out of proportion? s: if you...like i don’t mention crushes or anything like that to my parents…because they’ll be like [re-voice] ‘no…you’re too young for that’… *** s: honestly, i talk to…like i like to talk to the people who are least like me…’cause my mom is a lot like me…and she’s like [re-voice] ‘ok, so like we’re like exactly alike and i know exactly what you should do and you have to do this or like you’re going to die’…and my dad’s like more accepting like…he’s like…[re-voice] ‘okay’…he doesn’t really like go into detail with his comments …he just says like [re-voice] ‘okay, okay’ and like [re-voice] ‘that’s how you feel…it’s okay’…so it’s like easier to talk to him ‘cause he like doesn’t have like this really opinionated response i guess… *** s: …like this happens to me a lot…like i tell my parents a joke that i think is funny and they’re like… [re-voice] ’that’s mean to dogs‘ or something…but i wasn’t trying to be mean…and i end up getting lectured about something that has nothing to do with the story i was telling…they use everything as a teaching moment and that’s why i don’t like sharing with my parents. in these examples, students’ allude to the perceived consequences of being lectured and getting into trouble, which suggested their beliefs in avoiding conversations with their parents or deliberately withholding certain information. likewise, these examples hinted at the young adolescents’ appreciation of privacy secrecy and self-expression (dore, 2004; feinstein, 2009). conversations transformed to better understand how the whole and small-group conversations in miss rose’s classroom transformed into spaces of identity construction, we must analyze three underlying dynamics that converged to remake these spaces – young adolescents, discussion and literary texts. in jane kroger’s identity development: adolescence through adulthood (1996), we learn that young adolescence is a “period of disorganization” (p. 39) resulting from the combination of puberty, new relationships and new transitions, which leads to perplexity and “identity considerations” (p. 34). kroger (1996) further elaborates that language is “a text through which identity is made, justified and maintained” (p. 22) as early adolescents undertake the process of distinguishing one’s own values, ideas, talents and aspirations from those of their parents. in the following example, we see one student articulate the visceral frustration of being dismissed while attempting to separate from her parents’ ideas: “i feel like a lot of the time…like…like…my parents…like i don’t want the reaction of [re-voice] ‘oh that’s kind of ridiculous…that should not bother you’….well, right it does…i’m sorry you don’t feel that way’…well, i like having opinions and not being judged by them…” for young adolescents, many of their actions and reactions stem from the need to distance themselves from the “dictates of the internalized parent” (as quoted in kroger, 1996, p. 39). this became apparent in this study as the students “re-voiced” (heath, 1998) many of the things their parents had told them in order to establish their individuality. in the following example, the student takes on his mom’s voice to assert himself as his own person: “so, whenever, i wanna talk to my mom about something…like she tries to relate to it…like she knows kid feelings… [re-voice] ‘i know what you are feeling; i had the same experience when i was a kid’…yyyyyou don’t know how i’m feeling because it’s not you…they think that they know, but the feelings…they don’t…they don’t like know what like i’m feeling…” the students also used “re-voicing” (heath, 1998) to allude to the parent-child conflicts that arise during this developmental stage (hill, 2001; feinstein, 2009; kroger, 1996). in the following example, the student takes on the role of an unsupportive parent of a child who is gay and attributes the conflict to differences in generation: “this doesn’t apply to me, but like i have a lot of friends who aren’t straight…and if they were to tell their parents …they would say like [re-voice] ‘oh it’s just a phase’…or ‘it’s bad’ …i guess they like have like old-fashioned opinions i guess…and those get in the way…” young adolescence is a period heavily influenced by the parent-child relationship; however, it is also greatly affected by peer groups and the value of belonging (dore, 2004; feinstein, 2009; kroger, 1996). moreover, kroger states that “peer groups and friendships provide context for later identity development” (1996, p. 54). in the following example, we see the collective peer identity emerge through the students’ use of a generalized ‘you’, ‘we’ or ‘our’ to represent their generation and cast those without friends as ‘loners’ who have to talk to the ‘others’ (parents): “we have friends for a reason…you tell your friends some things and your parents others…but i guess if you are a loner then you might have to talk to your parents….” for young adolescents, the challenges of integrating new social and institutional structures (i.e. teacher, school, peer etc.) are considerable since they must mitigate the varied expectations from the various structures and institutions with which they interact (kroger, 1996). to do so, the young adolescents in this study employed personal narratives to mitigate the extrinsic and intrinsic forces at play during these lessons (bruner, 2002; kroger, 1996). jerome bruner (2002) describes narrative telling as “self-making” and describes it as: “[being] from both the inside and the outside. the inside of it…is memory, feelings, ideas, beliefs, subjectivity. part of this insidedness is almost certainly innate…like our irresistible sense of continuity over time and place and our postural sense of ourselves. but much of self-making is from outside in-based on the apparent esteem of others and on the myriad expectations that we early, even mindlessly, pick up from the culture in which we are immersed” (p. 64). as a result, the personal stories that the students shared in class became more than just prereading exercises for romeo and juliet (1993); they became practices in sharing personal identities. for one student, a teacher-led discussion about confiding in parents became an outlet to express their5 sexual orientation. “i can’t really tell my parents about my relationship status or my crushes because they don’t …know my sexuality…” 5 due to the sensitive nature of this exchange, i am purposely using the ungrammatical ‘their’ to protect the student’s privacy. across classroom conversations, the process of “self-making” (bruner, 2002) extended beyond the cultivation of physical and emotional identities to incorporate cultural and historical discourses (bruner, 2002; gee, 1991, 2014; kroger, 1996). self and group identity takes into account the shared values and history of a people, but for young adolescents, “beginning to challenge these new capacities using culturally appropriate means of expression is another demand” (kroger, 1996, p. 40). for this reason, the students’ interactions with the historical texts narrative of the life of frederick douglas (1995) and the supplemental texts (see table 1) became practices in conceptualizing the historical legacies of blacks and whites in american society and their subsequent identities (alsup, 2010; gee, 1991, 2014). for these students, engaging with the text became almost as real as engaging with another person. as janet alsup (2010) explains: “[for young adolescents] identifying or relating to a character involves a mental and emotional grappling with what the character represents an ongoing interaction between the reader’s lived experience and the narrative with which he or she is engaging. while reading can and does evoke emotion and memory, the reader uses the narrative experience to reconsider these personal responses in a new, vicarious context” (p. 10). across discussions spaces, it became apparent that the students engaged with the text on a more intimate level. as the conversations progressed, they began to identify the mistreatment of blacks as unjust and began empathizing with them by demonizing the white owners. for instance, white owners were called ‘devils’, ‘demons’ and ‘savage barbarians’, and the slaves were associated with hope and strength. these students further developed a moral connection (cunningham, 2010) with douglas by outwardly questioning the actions of white people. in the following example, the “moral identity” (cunningham, 2010) or “one’s affect” of the student is activated by her realization of the neglect slaves endured: “this [paragraph] is really sad. how could you give kids one shirt and one pants and no shoes? that’s like really awful neglect.” upon reflection, the work these students did in relation to douglas (1995), surpassed decoding and reading comprehension. their discussions prompted them to conceptualize the historical identities of black and whites in the us, as well as categorize their actions as right or wrong, good or evil; which, in turn, created “a pathway to cross-cultural understanding and heightened awareness of the goals of social justice” (alsup, 2010, p. 13). in addition, these spaces contributed to expanding the students’ “social imagination” (ivey & johnston, 2013, p. 263) by building their “competence and propensity to recognize the self in other and the other in self… [through] conversational contributions about socioemotional logic” (ivey & johnston, 2013, p. 263). conclusion reconciling identity is of the utmost importance for young adolescents (dore, 2004; feinstein, 2009; kroger, 1996), so when they join together over a compelling literary text, the discursive space can be transformed into a practice in identity construction. although this study was limited in scope, population and duration, it suggests that the confluence of young adolescents, scaffolded discussion and the substance of literary text can facilitate the adoption and rejection of new facets of identity (alsup, 2010). the students in miss rose’s classes utilized her lessons as a means to explore identity in historical, generational and individual contexts, which ultimately led to the creation of understanding of new discourses (gee, 1991, 2014) and a deeper awareness of society, justice and their positions in relation to each (alsup, 2010; 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(2013). educational psychology. upper saddle river, new jersey: pearson education inc. 25 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 2 exploring the power and processes of friendship through picturebooks patricia a. crawforda, kaybeth calabriab auniversity of pittsburgh bfranciscan university patricia a. crawford is an associate professor at the university of pittsburgh, where she teaches in the early childhood education and language, literacy, and culture programs. she also serves as the associate chair of the department of instruction and learning. her work focuses on the ways in which the areas of children’s literature, early childhood, and teacher education intersect. kaybeth calabria is an associate professor of education and the director for the advancement of teaching excellence at franciscan university. she has taught in the teacher preparation program in the areas of special education with a focus on preparing early childhood educators to work in inclusive environments. she currently coordinates professional development initiatives for professors in the areas of active learning strategies, classroom technology, and high impact practices for online instruction. introduction “friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the whole world together.” --woodrow wilson, 1918 these words of woodrow wilson, spoken a full century ago, ring just as true today in a world that often feels like it is falling apart. in the daily news cycle, national and global debates constantly swirl around issues of justice, equity, and civility, with concerns raging about the core elements needed for individuals, communities, and nations to interact successfully. no doubt, children are impacted by the way these issues play out on the world stage. however, they also learn similar, more developmentally appropriate life lessons about key relationship values and what it means to engage fairly, successfully, and happily with others, through the power of personal friendships. close, personal friendships evidence the potential to serve as both anchors and supportive scaffolds for the developing child; rooting children in the security of established, close relationships and giving them the confidence and assurance essential to engage in new ones. thus, it is important that children have opportunities to learn about the meaning and power of friendship, and receive tangible support to develop the pro-social skills necessary to forge, navigate, and deepen these relationships. 26 children learn about friendship through many avenues, including observations of interpersonal interactions, their evolving participation in personal relationships, and the information about friendship that is presented through books and other media sources. high quality picturebooks provide an excellent source of accessible and developmentally appropriate information about the nature of friendship, revealed through informational tips, as well as through the stories of protagonists who grow through opportunities to alternatively embrace and struggle with different aspects of their personal relationships. in this article, we offer an overview of the role of friendship in the lives of children and consider ways in which children can develop the skills and habits of mind and heart needed to initiate, sustain, and navigate challenging areas within these types of relationships. related touchstone texts are introduced in the discussion of each of these areas. finally, we discuss pedagogical possibilities for effectively sharing friendship-based stories with young children. friendship in the lives of children there is little doubt that strong, healthy relationships bring joy and stability to both young and old (hartup & stevens, 1999; maunder & monks, 2015). relationships matter deeply to children from the time they are born. infancy is a critical time for establishing strong attachments with parents, family members, and caregivers; people who often comprise the totality of the child’s social world (zeanah, berlin, & boris, 2011). as children emerge into the toddler and early childhood years, relational shifts begin to occur and their social worlds expand to include others beyond this tight circle. even the very young begin to notice, acknowledge, and eventually interact with other similarly-aged children, setting the groundwork for the development of peer relationships (erwin, 1998; rubin, 1980). the nature of peer relationships changes over time and across circumstances. for example, peer relationships among the very young may take the form of one child simply connecting with another through eye gaze or touch, while slightly older children may engage in parallel play, and eventually, in more interactive forms of engagement. as children develop physically, cognitively, emotionally, and socially, they gain access to “tools” that enable them to extend their play and interactions, allowing them to participate in a greater range of relationships (coplan & arbeau, 2009). by the time children arrive in the middle childhood years, there is often a significant shift, in which children spend a more substantial amount of time with similarly-aged others. thus, the impact of peer influence expands, while the impact of parents, family members, and other caregivers may begin to wane (erwin, 1998, gifford-smith & brownell, 2003). children’s peer relationships also change in other ways throughout time. in terms of activities, young children typically engage in varied forms of pretend play, which eventually give way to participation in more structured forms of games and activities. eventually, as children enter middle childhood, they begin to prefer extending opportunities to simply spend time talking and visiting in less structured ways with their peer group (gifford-smith, 2003; zarbatany, hartmann, & rankin, 1990). while toddlers and very young children are typically satisfied spending time with whatever children are close to them in terms of proximity and availability, older children develop more specific preferences for the children with whom they want to 27 interact. in this way, children do not just participate in a general peer social network. rather, they begin to develop genuine friendships. unlike more general relationships, childhood friendships are evolving, intimate relationships with selected similarly-aged peers; close relationships in which the participants are relative equals in terms of power and in which there is a degree of reciprocity (gifford-smith, 2003; kemple, 2004; nangle, erdley, newman, mason, & carpenter, 2003; rubin, coplan, chen, bowker, mcdonald, & heverly-fitt, 2015). by the time that children reach the preschool years, they frequently identify other children who are friends, and it is not long after this that they may willingly identify a “best friend” (erwin, 1998; rubin, 1980). studies indicate that children tend to build friendships with individuals who are somewhat similar to themselves. while young children often seek friends who are similar to them in superficial ways (i.e. same gender, similar ages, race, ethnicities, and abilities, etc.), older children tend to expand the scope of their friendships to include others who have similar beliefs, values, and interests (rubin et al 2015). while research indicates that there is a strong element of stability in children’s friendships, it is also clear that some friendships wax and wane; requiring more of an effort from participants at certain times than others. while many childhood friendships are maintained through long periods of time, other friendships seem to fade or lose importance; friends may develop new interests and grow in different directions, sometimes resulting in a relationship that is abandoned or left in a state of disrepair (erwin, 1998; staub, 1998). the benefits of childhood friendships are rich and manifold. friendships not only provide an opportunity for children to expand their relationships beyond the bounds of family and caregivers, these relationships provide an opportunity for children to develop important social skills that help them to engage in the give-and-take process that helps them to interact successfully with others (kemple, 2004). as they develop communication skills with a trusted peer, they learn to better understand the perspectives of others, share confidences, and increase their level of relational intimacy. children learn that high quality friendships not only offer a means of companionship, but can be a key to happiness, offering a “port in the storm” when they experience emotional stress or find themselves in difficult circumstances at school or at home (gifford-smith & brownell, 2003; nangle et al, 2003; rubin et al 2015). many friendships seem to have an organic quality and appear to evolve naturally, as two people are drawn together due to similar interests, activities, and personalities. however, it is also apparent that educators can do a number of things to help expand both the quantity and quality of children’s friendships; helping children to become more inclusive and to more effectively connect with others who differ from them or who struggle to engage socially (guralnick, neville, hammond, & connor, 2007; kemple, 2004; nangle et al, 2003; staub, 1998). learning about friendship through literature children’s literature provides an excellent medium to help young readers learn about many different types of social phenomena, including friendship (lacina & griffith, 2014; roberts & crawford, 2008). through literature, children have the opportunity to access developmentally appropriate information about high quality friendships, as well as more problematic ones. as is well noted, literature provides both illuminative and reflective qualities that invite readers to look 28 intently at their own life experiences and perspectives, while also gaining insight into the lives of others (bishop, 1990; botelho & rudman, 2009; crawford & calabria, 2018; short, 2009; wanless & crawford, 2016). in particular, picturebooks provide the opportunity for authors and illustrators to offer multimodal, richly-layered stories that invite readers to consider information, weigh sensitive issues, and consider multiple perspectives of characters, all within the confines of a short, and accessible text (nikolajeva & scott, 2001; wolfenbarger & sipe, 2007). in the sections that follow, we consider picturebooks as sources from which readers can learn about friendship. specifically, we consider messages that these texts offer related to the areas of initiating friendships, sustaining friendships, and navigating challenges within friendships. introductory comments and touchstone texts are provided for each of these areas. initiating friendships imagine a playground filled with children playing on swings, climbing gyms, or at a water table filled with all sorts of toys and containers. as children play, it is easy to observe how they glimpse at each other, and then how the glimpse becomes a lingering look, a smile, and a welcoming expression. the tentative looks of interest can be observed between all of us as we rest on park benches, survey playgrounds, and look up from our phones in waiting rooms. the noticing of another is the fragile beginning of an affiliation that can lead to a deeper sense of camaraderie. friendships become initiated when we realize kindred experiences and recognize reciprocal feelings of trust and loyalty. sam and jump (mann, 2016) is a provocative text that illustrates the trust and loyalty experienced by two boys whose friendship begins on a sandy beach littered with sand pails, shovels, and toys. as the story begins, sam goes to the beach accompanied by his family and best friend, jump, a stuffed bunny. while building sandcastles, sam meets thomas, another child and fellow beach-goer. they play together happily and agree to meet again the next day. all goes well until the ride home, when sam realizes that jump was forgotten on the shore. after a restless night, they return to the beach, but jump is not to be found. happiness is restored only when thomas arrives, with jump tucked safely inside his sand pail. “now sam and thomas- and jump-are best friends” (n. p.). with scant text, the story probes these relationships, and the different types of security found within them. together, words and pictures depict the initiation and development of a blossoming friendship. in snappsy the alligator and his best friend forever! (probably), falatko & miller (2017) nicely capture the proverbial dance that occurs when individuals are identifying new friends, defining relationships, and in some cases establishing relational boundaries. this graphic-rich book details a conversation between an unlikely pair, snappsy the alligator and bert, his loyal chicken sidekick, who serves as story narrator. bert admires everything that snappsy says and does, and wants to be with him all the time. snappsy is unconvinced they are destined to be friends and at times doesn’t even seem to notice bert’s efforts. after many miscues, all hope for friendship seems to be lost. a satisfying turn around occurs when both animals realize they need and value the friendship. this seemingly light and humorous book raises important questions about how one might identify potential friends and behave in the early stages of friendship. 29 a decidedly more serious perspective of initiating friendship is presented in the day war came (davies & cobb, 2018). inspired by a true story, this haunting book depicts the utter loneliness a young refugee experiences as the pain of war pervades her life and seemingly follows her to new places. her agony is exacerbated when she is not welcomed in her new land and a teacher turns her away from school, “there is no room for you, you see. there is no chair for you to sit on. you have to go away” (n. p.). light enters her darkness when a child knocks on her door, offering a chair so that she can come to class, and promises that the other classmates are doing the same so all children can attend school. through an act of kindness, new friendships begin, “[p]ushing back the war with every step” (n. p.). this is a powerful tale that invites readers to enlarge their vision of who can be a friend and to take the necessary generous, caring actions required to make these friendships happen. sustaining friendships mutual trust and loyalty are part of the affective threads tying together friendship. the affective ties become stronger as feelings and thoughts are shared. friends laugh, smile, look at each other, talk, and mimic each other more readily than with other individuals (hartup, w.w. & stevens, n., 1999). our interactions as friends are often focused on activities that require us to cooperate, and cooperation necessitates compromising and working out differences. negotiation makes a friendship elastic, thus the tugs and pulls of disagreement will stretch the friendship rather than break the affiliative bonds. at these less than ideal moments of a friendship, conflict is resolved when we look within, recognize our part in causing problems, and then attempt to repair the ties of friendship. the willingness to compromise and resolve conflict is a hallmark of a sturdy friendship as illustrated in the following books. starting a friendship is one thing. sustaining it is another. in how do dinosaurs stay friends, yolen and teague (2016) ask readers simple, but important, questions about what one must do to sustain a friendship during difficult times: “how does a dinosaur keep his best friend when a terrible fight just might signal the end?” (n. p.). the lyrical rhymes and engaging illustrations will capture children’s interest. meanwhile, this clever text offers concrete advice on ways to help resolve relational problems: one could apologize in person, send a note of explanation, invite the friend in question to play, or share a snack to start the healing process. the book ends on a reassuring note, reminding readers “that even though friends may occasionally fight, there is always a way to make everything right” (n. p.). the big balloon (scheffler, 2013) provides a reminder that small things matter in the life of a friendship. pip and posy have a day about town, showing off pip’s beautiful, big, red balloon. then, in one sad moment, the balloon slips away; soaring higher and higher until it pops. pip is inconsolable until posy comes up with an idea. she invites pip to make bubbles with her. like the balloon, the bubbles soar high and pop, but pip and posy don’t mind. fun and happiness is restored. ideal for the very young, this book invites children to understand their own sense of agency. when a friend is troubled, they can do small things that make a big difference. yak and gnu (maciver & chapman, 2015) is the lyrical story of two friends who love to sail: “this is yak, this is gnu--/the best of friends,/ dear and true./ yak has a kayak,/ gnu a canoe./ yak’s is black./ gnu’s is blue.” as the two set out, they sing a happy song that celebrates their friendship and their unique ability to sail together: “no one else/ but you and me/ can float a 30 boat/or sail the sea” (n. p.). much to their surprise, they are quickly joined by many others. a virtual animal kingdom arrives on a host of different vessels. their surprise turns to anger and sadness when they realize they are surrounded by many who can do the same things that they can. their strong emotions fade when they realize that no matter what else happens or who is around, they always have each other. even in the midst of a crowd, their friendship goes on, special and unique. this poignant, yet whimsical tale, invites readers to think about “next steps” in friendships. what happens when the uniqueness of a special friendship seems to wear off? how does one sustain a friendship, when surrounded by many others? navigating challenges within friendships proximity is often a stable characteristic that allows friendships to flourish at school, clubs, sports, and work. when proximity changes, friendships can be weakened, particularly for children who cannot independently navigate new distances occurring in place and time. in such circumstances affective ties become undone and companionship fades. alliances become less reliable when friends grow apart in interests or when one friend no longer keeps confidences safe. when misunderstandings do occur, the friendship becomes disrupted with conflict and rivalry leading to emotional disengagement. the following books offer glimpses into the challenges of friendships when the ties that bind are tested. in the first two examples, the friendship challenges have happy outcomes and appear to be repaired “just in time.” the fate of the friendship in the third example, my best friend (rodman & lewis, 2004), looks less promising. although a new relationship will not be a replica of a previous friendship, picture books can assist children in recognizing that all friendships are similar, therefore, they will again experience mutual positive regard, shared interests, and companionship with a new friend. in are we still friends? (horowitz & gómez, 2017), powerful lessons about the importance of communication are provided in the form of a nature-based metaphor. with their yards separated by only a small wall, beatrice the bear and abel the mouse are happy neighbors. abel grows apples and beatrice raises bees. bea’s bees pollinate abel’s apple trees to make a sweet honey, while abel’s trees produce the most delicious apples. the friends help each other and enjoy the fruit of their collective labor in the form of tasty apple butter and sweet honey. all goes well until abel gets stung by a startled bee. suddenly, a series of misunderstandings occur, in which each neighbor thinks the other has no empathy. is it possible that bea is actually laughing at abel’s pain? the two fall into a war of words, refusing to see one another. meanwhile, outside, the bees continue doing what they always do, buzzing and pollinating, and helping wonderful apples to grow. life goes on. it is not until the pair hits a crisis that they are willing to reconcile and renew their friendship. this bright, colorful picturebook shows that it’s easy to be friends… until something goes wrong. then, it requires understanding, patience, and effort to make the relationship work. in the two tims, elliott and aborozo (2016) explore a common challenge in friendships: how can close friends expand the boundaries of the relationship by including others? in this story, two boys, both named tim, are best buddies who love to do all the same things and go everywhere together. all goes well until tom, a third boy, enters the picture. predictably, things quickly change, with two boys pairing off in different turns and the third boy feeling left out of the trio. using an economy of words and an upbeat tone, the author captures the growing pains 31 that often occur when a pair of friends enlarges to become a group of three. in the end, the two tims and a tom find that they can all be best friends. are all friendships meant to be? do they always end happily? rodman and lewis (2005) probe these questions through their poignant picturebook, my best friend. each week, six-year-old lily ventures to the pool to play with her best friend, seven-year-old tamika. the only problem is that tamika does not seem to know they are best friends. each week, lily tries to impress, cajole and attract tamika. however, it is all to no avail, since tamika almost always chooses to spend time with someone else, casting lily in the role of a “baby” who simply tries too hard. lily wonders, “how can i make her be my friend?” (n. p.). in the end, she realizes that she can’t and turns her attention to another little girl who clearly wants to be her friend. the well-told story, accompanied by lewis’ luminescent illustrations, has strong emotional pull, raising questions about how to navigate one-sided friendships, and ultimately how to maintain selfrespect in situations in which friendship goes unrequited. sharing friendship-oriented literature with children children’s picturebooks offer a plethora of opportunities for children to learn the lessons of friendship. surely, many children will benefit from simply having the opportunity to read these books or to listen as the books are read aloud to them. however, an abundance of research indicates that children gain much more from their literary experiences when they have an opportunity to transact deeply with texts; to read closely and respond to the print and visual messages within them (panteleo, 2008; rosenblatt, 1994; sipe, 2007; wiseman, 2011). the need for this deep type of transaction is particularly important when the content of texts address a complex, multilayered social phenomenon such as friendship. young readers need the opportunity to read deeply as they consider their lives in light of the text and the text in light of their lived experiences. repeated readings and the opportunity to look closely at illustrations within the text can help to facilitate these deep readings. educators can support children’s transactions with friendship-themed picturebooks in a number of practical ways. first, teachers might consider ways in which they can surround the reading of these books with opportunities for rich talk and discussion. this can be done through the implementation of interactive read alouds; shared reading experiences which include opportunities for children to interact with the text, as well as with the teacher and other children who are listening to the story (panteleo, 2008; wiseman, 2011). this type of read aloud allows for discussion and can be used as an invitation for children to make verbal connections between the story and their own life experiences with the topic. in this way, the texts can be used as a springboard for discussing student observations about friendship in both their literary and lived experiences. literature circles, small group experiences in which readers have rich, student-led discussions based on texts, offer another excellent opportunity for children to pose questions and talk about the models of friendship they see in literature (peterson & eeds, 1990). teachers might also consider ways in which children can respond to these books through writing, the visual arts, or dramatic role play experiences. ultimately, educators can use friendship-oriented literature as an invitation to praxis, as tools that provide tangible support to children as they seek out new friends and work through both the joys and challenging quirks that occur within friendships. 32 concluding thoughts friendships are among the most treasured and important experiences in the lives of children. these relationships offer opportunities to learn to get along and to make that all important human connection. as children engage with friends they have ongoing opportunities to mature and to discover ways in which friendships can be sources of joy, confidence, and companionship. reflective of woodrow wilson’s words, children can begin to see that friendship may indeed be the “cement that holds the whole world together.” picturebooks, and the thoughtful pedagogical experiences that surround them, can accompany children on this developmental journey, providing reassuring models and serving as crucial informational sources about the power, processes, and potential of friendship for their lives. 33 children’s literature cited davies, n., & cobb, r. (2018). the day war came. somerville, ma: candlewick. elliott, d., & alborozo, g. (2016). the two tims. somerville, ma: candlewick. falatko, m., & miller, t. (2017). snappsy the alligator and his best friend forever! (probably). new york, ny: viking. horowitz, r., & gómez, b. (2017). are we still friends? new york, ny: scholastic. maciver, j., & chapman, c. (2015). yak and gnu. somerville, ma: candlewick. mann, j. k. (2016). sam and jump. somerville, ma: candlewick. rodman, m., & lewis, e. b. (2005). my best friend. new york, ny: viking. scheffler, a. (2013). the big balloon. somerville, ma: candlewick. yolen, j., & teague, m. (2016). how do dinosaurs stay friends? new york, ny: blue sky. references bishop, r. s. (1990). mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors. perspectives: choosing and using books in the classroom, 6(3), ix-xi. botelho, m. j., rudman, m. k. 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(2007). a unique visual and literary art form: recent research on picturebooks. language arts, 83, 273-280. zarbatany, l., hartmann, d. p., & rankin, d. b. (1990). the psychological functions of preadolescent peer activities. child development, 61(4), 1067-1080. zeanah, c. h., berlin, l. j., & boris, n. (2011). practitioner review: clinical applications of attachment theory and research for infants and young children. the journal of child psychology and psychiatry, 52, 819-833. ijwc journal v3n2-final 28 ijwc journal v3n2-final 29 ijwc journal v3n2-final 30 ijwc journal v3n2-final 31 ijwc journal v3n2-final 32 ijwc journal v3n2-final 33 ijwc journal v3n2-final 34 ijwc journal v3n2-final 35 ijwc journal v3n2-final 36 ijwc journal v3n2-final 37 v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 68 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 tech talk cyber safety efforts for children: are they working? what can we do? nancy caukina anorth greenville university nancy caukin, ed.d. is the associate dean for undergraduate programs at north greenville university.  she began her career working in outdoor education before her fifteen-year tenure as a high school science teacher. she has been a teacher educator in higher education since 2013. her research interests include teacher candidate beliefs and sense of self-efficacy. she is on a journey of being an edtech learner along with her teacher candidates.  introduction connectivity, particularly in an online environment, is ubiquitous. everywhere you look, you see people engaging with devices that are connected to the internet. many children have access to the latest information and communication technologies, immersing themselves and connecting with others in a myriad of online sites, games, chats, etc., which make them vulnerable and at a high risk of exploitation (united nations office on drugs and crime, 2015). in 2018 there were more than 45 million instances of child sexual abuse material on tech companies’ platforms (end violence against children, 2022b; turban, 2020). what do the statics indicate? according to the u.s. center for cyber safety and education’s pre-pandemic children’s internet usage study (2019), 40% of 4th – 8th graders reported talking to a stranger online. 53% of those revealed their phone number; 11% met a stranger in their home, the stranger’s home, park, mall, or restaurant; 21% spoke to the stranger by phone; 30% texted with the stranger; 15% tried to meet the stranger; and 6% revealed their home address. 87% of those students reported being taught to use the internet safely and 90% of those students have either a cell phone, tablet, or computer in their bedroom. 29% use the internet in ways their parents would not approve of and 31% lied about their age to access adult websites. kids are spending an average of two hours a day online for something other than homework and 33% are online after midnight on a school night. disconcerting statistics indeed. the pew research center (vogels, gelles-watnik, & masserat, 2022) surveyed more than 1,300 american teens (13-17 years old) in 2022 and found that 95% of teens have a smartphone, 97% say they use the internet daily (with 46% indicating they are on it almost constantly), 95% use youtube, 67% use tik tok, 60% use snapchat and instagram, and 32% use facebook. 35% report being on one of those platforms nearly constantly. of those, about 55% believe that they 69 are spending about the right amount of time on social media, about 36% believe that they are spending too much time on social media, and about 8% believe they are spending too little time on social media. when asked how hard it would be to give up social media, 54% said it would be hard and 46% said it would be at least somewhat easy. in 2018, the ohio attorney general’s human trafficking commission requested a study on human trafficking be conducted by dr. celia williamson and her team at the university of toledo. they found that 58% of victims were trafficked after they met their traffickers face-toface and 42% were trafficked having never met their traffickers face-to-race, rather having met them only online. traffickers lurk on social media sites like facebook, instagram, and snapchat, as well as dating sites like tinder, blendr, and yellow, or webcam sites like chatroulette and monkey. the perpetrators study posts that indicate low self-esteem, posts like, “nobody gets me”, “i am so ugly”, “i need to get out of here”, etc. traffickers begin to get involved and build trust with victims by saying things like, “i understand you”, “i think you’re beautiful. i’ll encourage you to show your body. use your body.”, “i’ll protect you”, etc. (billau, 2018). this is truly alarming. in the european union (eu), one in five digital users is a child and 62% of all child and sexual abuse materials were hosted in europe. in 2021, 85 million pieces of child sexual abuse material were reported online, a 35% increase from 2020 (end violence against children, 2022b; turban, 2020). 70 what are we doing to protect children from online threats? there are many more disturbing statistics and stories to be told. suffice it to say that too many children are susceptible to devastating threats when connecting online in unhealthy, and unsafe ways. so, what are we doing to protect children from the dangers of being online? there are laws in the united states designed to protect children online dating back to 1998 and more recent bills struggling to gain traction. in 1998, coppa – children’s online privacy protection rule, was created to identify what information must be included in the privacy policy of united states website sources that are directed at children 13 years of age and younger, and when and how to seek consent from parents. this rule mandates that these website sources divulge that they are collecting information online from children 13 years of age and younger and provides parents control over what information is collected about their children online (federal trade commission, 1998). coppa was amended in 2013 to update definitions, for example, personal information now includes photographs, geolocation (street name, city), video or audio files, and persistent identifiers that can be used to recognize children over time and across platforms. persistent identifiers include ip addresses, customer numbers held in a cookie, processor or in device serial numbers, and unique device identifiers (hunton andrews kurth, 2013; privacy and information security law blog, 2013). schools and libraries are subject to the children’s internet protection act (cipa) of 2000, which mandates that an internet safety policy be adopted and implemented, and the online activity of minors must be monitored. cipa also mandates that minors be educated about appropriate online behaviors, including interacting with other individuals on social networking websites and in chat rooms, and cyberbullying awareness and response (cyberbullying is bullying that takes place over digital devices) (federal communications commission, 2019). of course, students don’t necessarily use only school computers to access online content. as noted above in the center of cyber safety and education report (2019), 87% of the 4th – 8th graders surveyed reported as being taught how to use the internet safely; however, statistics demonstrate that many children still do not heed that instruction. training on how to use the internet safely does not seem to be enough. while cipa has protocols in place, it does not protect children from cyberbullying, inappropriate content (sexually explicit and/or unsolicited obscene materials), sexting (sharing or receiving sexually explicit emails or pictures via messages or apps), or sextortion/ransomware (threats to distribute private and sensitive information if not provided with images of a sexual nature, sexual favors, or money) (readiness and emergency management for schools, n.d.). in 2021, 85 million pieces of child sexual abuse materials were reported online 71 in 2020, the uk’s information commissioner’s office, introduced the age appropriate design code, also known as the children’s code, which took effect in 2021. this 15-point code focuses on privacy issues, inappropriate advertising, and tactics to keep children online for long periods of time (wakefield, 2021). new legislation is proposed in the eu to make it mandatory to detect, report, and remove childhood sexual abuse and materials; use grooming detection and deterrence mechanisms that prevent childhood sexual exploitation and abuse; and establish a center devoted to fighting and preventing childhood sexual abuse (end violence against children, 2022b). currently the practice is voluntary and unfortunately, at the time of writing this article, the legislation in the eu is being held up amidst “legislative limbo” (bertuzzi, 2022). some bills in the us that are struggling to gain traction are coppa 2.0, kids online safety act (kosa), and the american data and privacy protection act (adppa). the latter bill is more comprehensive, and some feel that it should take precedence over the two smaller bills focusing on children specifically (osano staff, 2022). what more can we do to protect children? in 2022, the world health organization published a report titled, “what works to prevent online violence against children.” this report focuses specifically on two types of violence: child sexual abuse, including grooming and sexual image abuse; and cyber aggression and harassment in the form of cyberbullying, cyberstalking, hacking, and identity theft. the report delineates what works and what does not. the report indicates that prevention education works, but it must have multiple and varied learning modalities and tools to engage students in learning, for example, videos, games, infographics, readings, guided discussion, role play, and direct instruction. prevention education is not effective as one-off sessions, but rather should be multiple engagements with numerous exposures to messages. whole-school involvement as well as peer engagement and interaction has proven successful. the report also indicates that parent involvement through homework materials and activities is also important (world health organization, 2022). in 2022 the global partnership to end violence against children, a global collaborative of more than 700 organizations, including governments, un agencies, ngos, etc., invested $15 million through its safe online arm towards eighteen projects world-wide that will strengthen systems to protect children against online child exploitation and abuse. since 2016, they have invested more than $68 million for 80 projects in 75 countries for this purpose (end violence against children, 2022a). what resources are available? the national center for missing and exploited children has created netsmartz (2023), an online platform of free resources for parents/guardians, educators and the community in english and spanish. there are presentations, videos, tip sheets, informational slides, and classroom activities. “be internet awesome”, is a free google platform for children, parents, and educators with the purpose of teaching students the fundamentals of digital citizenship and safety. they promote 72 five tenets they call the internet code of awesome. they are: be internet smart share with care (communicate responsibly); be internet alert – don’t fall for fake; be internet strong – don't share your secrets; be internet kind – it's cool to be kind; and be internet brave when in doubt, talk it out. for children, there is an iste endorsed (international society for technology in education), free, interactive, online game called interland which is designed to make learning about digital safety and citizenship fun. players (internauts) practice skills they need to be good digital citizens as they combat hackers, phishers, over sharers and bullies. for parents there is a free, easy-to-follow be internet awesome family guide (in english and spanish) that breaks down each of the five tenets into modules that provide goals, preinformation, explanations, vocabulary, scenarios, family activities, and guidance. families are invited to practice the skills they are learning by engaging in interland after each of the five modules. there are additional free resources including family tips and activities, exploring youtube confidently guide and accompanying youtube playlist, a downloadable be internet awesome coloring book, a digital wellbeing family guide, and more. for educators, the entire free be internet awesome curriculum for teaching the five tenets with multiple, sequential lesson plans and instructions on how to approach the curriculum based on grade bands is provided. the lesson plans are aligned with iste standards for students and include interactive activities, vocabulary, scenarios, and discussion guides. another resource is common sense digital passport, (n.d.), an interactive learning tool that teaches digital citizenship, safety, and equity. it interfaces with google classroom and consists of a series of six interactive games: password protect security, twalkers –multitasking (media balance and well-being), share jumper -privacy, e-volve – upstander (cyberbullying, digital drama, and hate speech), search sharksearch (news and media literacy), mix-n-match – creative credit (news and media literacy). there is also an educator guide that provides a scope and sequence with detailed lesson plans. online dangers are here to stay, and children have access to the online world at a very early age. knowing the choices that children can make to put them in harm’s way, knowing that predators are lurking at every turn, and knowing that there are entities who may exploit children’s privacy, cyber safety is of utmost importance. there are numerous resources for parents and educators to raise awareness of the potential dangers of online connectivity and we know that education is key for training children and adults how to engage online safely. let’s be proactive to protect our children and ourselves. let’s be intentional in our efforts to be cyber safe. 73 references be internet awesome (n.d.). google. https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/en_us/ bertuzzi, l. (2022). the eus temptation to break end-to-end encryption. iapp. https://iapp.org/news/a/the-eus-temptation-to-break-end-to-endencryption/#:~:text=currently%2c%20eu%20legislation%20allows%20online,measure %20that%20expires%20in%202024. billau, c. (2018). utoledo study details link between social media and sex trafficking. the university of toledo. https://news.utoledo.edu/index.php/10_08_2018/ut-study-detailslink-between-social-media-and-sex-trafficking center for cyber safety and education (2019). kids need stronger parental oversight online: children’s internet usage study. https://isc2center.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/#g0000000ivst/a/0f000000fyoc/tyq9xvdatba78rr0 0g.pgj9fmalm1vqfaw9hcpy3gwk common sense (n.d.) digital passport. https://www.digitalpassport.org/ end violence against children (2022a). safe online invests an additional $15 million in combating online child sexual abuse and exploitation. https://www.endviolence.org/articles/safe-online-grantees-2022 end violence against children (2022b). eu’s proposed new legislation promises a brave new (online) world. https://www.end-violence.org/articles/eus-proposed-new-legislationpromises-brave-new-online-world federal communications commission (2019). children’s internet protection act. https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/childrens-internet-protection-act federal trade commission (1998). children's online privacy protection rule (“coppa”). https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/childrens-online-privacyprotection-rule-coppa hunton andrews kurth (2013). amended coppa law comes into effect. privacy and information security law blog. https://www.huntonprivacyblog.com/2013/07/01/amended-coppa-rule-comes-into-effect/ national center for missing and exploited children (2023). netsmartz. https://www.missingkids.org/netsmartz osano staff (2022). what’s going on with the children’s online privacy and protection act? https://www.osano.com/articles/whats-new-coppa readiness and emergency management for schools (n.d.). cyber safety considerations for k-12 schools and school districts. https://rems.ed.gov/docs/cyber_safety_k12_fact_sheet_508c.pdf turban, j. (2020). the coronavirus puts children at risk for online sexual exploitation: one conversation could keep your kids safe. scientific american. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-coronavirus-pandemic-putschildren-at-risk-of-online-sexual-exploitation/ united nations office on drugs and crime (2015). study on the effects of new information technologies on the abuse and exploitation of children. https://www.unodc.org/documents/cybercrime/study_on_the_effects.pdf vogels, e.a., gelles-watnik, r., & masserat, n. (2022). teens, social media and technology, 2022. pew research center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teenssocial-media-and-technology-2022/ 74 wakefield, j. (2021). children’s internet code. what is it and how will it work? bbc news. https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-58396004 world health organization (2022). what works to prevent online violence against children? https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240062061 microsoft word ijwc fall 2017.docx 29 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2 teaching sustainable practices as part of a holistic education in the saudi context ahlam alghamdiª, james ernestb, fatimah hafizc ªuniversity of alabama at birmingham, buniversity of alabama at birmingham, cuniversity of alabama at birmingham dr. ahlam alghamdi is an early childhood educator from saudi arabia. had an opportunity to work with preschool children in saudi arabia and u.s. she is interested in multicultural education and seeks to extend the interest in dap among saudi educators to join global ece community. dr. james ernest is professor of early childhood education and the advisor for the phd program at the university of alabama at birmingham. he is a strong advocate for developmentally and culturally appropriate pre-k practices and enjoys working with colleagues and students from a variety of countries. fatimah hafiz is a ph.d. student at the university of alabama at birmingham. she believes that a good quality early education is fundamental for future successes. her ultimate goal is to help in developing early education in her country, saudi arabia. abstract children of every culture love to hear stories about their heritage. storytelling creates shared experiences through the combination of time and space (langellier, 2011). educators and parents often use storytelling to explore characters, plot, setting, conflict, and resolution or other key elements of a story. from a more holistic view, storytelling is a teaching tool that is a natural way to teach about the environment and ethical and moral obligations to each other; it has the potential to create a social process that supports cultural survival (rankin, hansteen-izora, & packer, 2007). storytelling can help maintain a sustainable culture, which is a basic element of a sustainable society (abdul-malik, 2012). supplementing traditional benefits of storytelling, many activities and routines in early childhood lend themselves to broader discussions of sustainability. in this article, we will share an example of how sand and water activities have been used to support sustainable environments in saudi arabia. to do this, we explore how transformative and developmentally appropriate activities fit within a saudi early childhood context, and provide examples of experiences that support a whole child approach to education. 30 sustainability and education the term sustainable development was first proposed three decades ago (international union for conservation of nature, 1980) and is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (world commission on environment and development, 1987, p. 43). sustainability, in general, refers to thinking of a long-term goal of having a more sustainable world or “thinking about forever.” according to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco, 2005), sustainable development comes about when you have four interrelated and coordinated dimensions: ecologic, economic, political, and social stability. ecological, or natural, sustainability considers resources, such as food and water, which support life. economic sustainability is related to people's salaries, jobs, and income. economic sustainability is best defined by its broad definition of maintenance of capital, or keeping capital intact. political sustainability is concerned with the political system and political power’s role in making decisions about social and economic consumption of natural resources. finally, social and cultural sustainability deal with human rights and people’s interaction through culturally appropriate aspects. the role of education as a catalyst for sustainable development was proposed during the 1992 united nations conference on environment and development (unced): education is critical for promoting sustainable development and improving the capacity of the people to address environment and development issues.... it is critical for achieving environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behavior consistent with sustainable development and for effective public participation in decision-making (hopkins & mckeown, 2002, p.15). although it is well acknowledged that education is a critical practical tool for sustainable development (manteaw, 2012), progress in the area of education for sustainable development (esd) was limited until december 2002 when the united nation (un) announced the years 2005-2014 to be the decade of education for sustainable development (un, 2015). conceptually, education had been considered essential to help bring the four domains together (unesco, 2005), and more recently, research has provided support for education as the key to a nation’s sustainable development (gyberg & löfgren, 2016). the concept of esd was originally described as “a world where everyone has the opportunity to benefit from quality education and learn the values, behavior, and lifestyles required for a sustainable future and for positive societal transformation” (unesco, 2005, p. 5). within esd, programs are developmentally and culturally appropriate and should consider the local environmental, economic, and societal and cultural factors (unesco, 2006). teacher-education organizations have been identified as carrying the key to training and encouraging teachers to apply sustainability in their classroom, which will, in turn, globally impact the future (alelaimat & taha, 2013). however, without a shift in thinking about the pedagogical practices we use in education, teachers are not likely to consider a more holistic education that “aims at the integration of elements: self and world; mind and body; knowing and feeling; the personal and societal; the practical and transcendent” (griffin, 1981, p. 111) while, at the same time, valuing esd. to move beyond the traditional focus of reading, writing, and math, a promising approach to esd integrates developmentally appropriate practices within a transformative model of teaching in education. as samuelsson and kaga (2008, p.14) believe, “every child has the right to adequate care, learning, development and protection, and a sustainable society is where everyone’s rights are recognized, respected and fulfilled.” not only is engaging children in appropriate practices enough, but we should be developing a child’s sense of responsibility toward a sustainable world. 31 connecting developmentally appropriate practice with culture in the 1987, the national association of the education of young children (naeyc) released the first position statement about developmentally appropriate practices (dap) for young children. the dap guidelines are based on research and theories of how young children develop and learn. the guidelines provide teachers and care providers with examples of best practice in early childhood education (ece) serving children from birth to 8 years old (copple & bredekamp, 2009). since dap’s first edition, the guidelines have received criticism from professions in the field of ece, with editions in 1997 and 2009 that have responded to the criticisms. the universal consensus underlying dap philosophy was the rejection of an education that focused on drill and practice and ignored higher level thinking skills (national commission on excellence in education, 1983). thus, the authors of dap have advocated for a learning style that focus on the whole of the child using effective teaching approaches and practices. the learning style based on dap guidelines is a child-centered pedagogy where the child is a center of the overall learning process (samuels, 1994; aldridge, 1992). children in developmentally appropriate classrooms are seen as active learners, problem-solvers, and actions-takers (stuhmcke, 2012). as dap was initially based on a framework of well-known european theorists’ views of child development and theory, questions have been raised about the relevance to children from different ethnicities (e.g., delpit, 1988; jipson, 1991; kessler, 1991; wien, 1995; spodek, 1991; lubeck, 1998). the diversity of human culture and the wealth of social and traditional values has shaped the ways in which education has evolved in different parts of the world (unesco, 2009). therefore, many see early childhood education as influenced by varied social perspectives deeply rooted in local culture and customs (spodek & saracho, 1996; mallory & new, 1994; hoot, parmar, hujala-huttunen, cao, & chacon, 1996; mcmullen, elicker, wang, erdiller, lee, lin, & sun, 2005). a shift in more recent versions of dap emphasizes an awareness of cultural appropriateness and attention to the role of bringing children’s culture to the classroom (walsh, sproule, mcguinness, trew, & ingram, 2010). to do this, teachers bring children’s culture into the classroom by knowing what is culturally important to the children as well as listening with an open mind to family’s preferences regarding child rearing and education (copple, bredekamp, koralek, & charner, 2013). as copple et al. (2013) note, this is a shift to pluralism where educators “create a harmony in the face of differing practices, [and where] it is important to move away from viewing contrasting practices as right or wrong, instead thinking of them simply as different” (p. 20). even with the most diverse early childhood classrooms, teachers cannot have in-depth knowledge of the cultural dimensions of specific individuals or families. indeed, teachers cannot have a detailed understanding of every culture they encounter in the classroom (copple et.al., 2013). culture is a highly complex concept and encompasses various aspects of human living patterns within a particular social structure. culture is a complex term that “represents traditional and contemporary expressions of human achievement (e.g. language, art, tools, religious beliefs and practices, values, architecture, fables, traditions, customs and all other forms of human endeavors) that bind together groups of people” (unesco, 2012, p.16). rather than teachers using a top-down approach to bring culture to a classroom, a goal of teaching for transformation to change the world to be a better place is a natural fit for esd. 32 transformation as a model of teaching aldridge and goldman (2007) argue that educational practices and approaches usually fall under three main categories: transmission, transaction, and transformation. teaching as transmission considers teaching as the action of transmitting knowledge from the teacher’s head to the student’s head. as much social knowledge is transmitted (e.g., names of letters, remembering sequences such as numbers or months of the year), transmission works well if a teacher simply wants a student to repeat what a teacher tells them, often without knowing if a child understands the information they are repeating. the second model is teaching as transaction. here, teachers guide students to construct their knowledge through investigation or exploration, often following their interests. the third general model considers teaching as a transformative experience and one that leads to meaningful change. as an ancient chinese proverb says, “if i don't change my direction, i will likely end up where i'm headed.” in the same way, transformational teaching often begins with changing students’ thinking in order to change their actions and follows a process of reflecting on what we learn and challenging our belief systems, which shifts our perspectives and assumptions. transformational teaching is intended to change people’s views of themselves and the world around them (wright knapp, 2013). as with transformative education, taking action is a key feature for dap which encourages and supports children to be active agents in their own environments (aldridge & goldman, 2007). teaching within a dap framework supports teachers’ decision-making skills as intentional in planning and practice, but also stresses building a caring community for learners, and establishing reciprocal relationships with families (copple & bredekamp, 2009). a good example of bringing dap culturally sensitive practices together with transformational teaching, toward a goal of esd is seen with how children learn about the importance of sand and water in saudi culture. a case study of saudi arabia’s transformational practices in ece educational influences in saudi arabia early childhood education in the kingdom of saudi arabia is highly influenced by the unique religious characteristics of saudi society. saudi arabia known as the most religious and conservative society in the middle east and is also known as “the land of the two holy mosques” with al-masjid al-haram in mecca city, and al-masjid al-nabwi in madinah city. geographically, where these two mosques are, gives the country a special responsibility among other muslims nations as custodian for the most sacred places of islamic faith. this religious significance in the country has shaped the identity and the nation’s philosophy of education. the presence of islamic spirit and faith is strongly supported in all level of formal education and ece. the education in the preschool years, known as kindergarten level, is the earliest stage of education and considers a general orientation for formal schooling (al sunbul, al khateeb, matwalli, & abdu al jawad, 2008). the educational policy in saudi arabia (1970) is used as a main reference for developing ece programming. the document defines objectives and goals that serve as guidelines for preschool teaching. the objectives encompass different aspects of children rearing (see figure 1) with a notable presence of cultural and spiritual values that mesh with the saudi philosophy of educating young children (world data on education report, unseco, 2010/2011, p.8). 33 figure 1: the main objectives of saudi early childhood education the curriculum implemented in preschool programs is the national self-learning advanced curriculum developed by the ministry of education in 2002 (al sunbul et al., 2008). the curriculum is based on three core considerations for saudi preschool teaching. they are: a) suitability for children’s developmental stage of physical, social, emotional, and cognitive growth, b) abundance of age appropriate learning experiences and hands-on activities, and c) considering children’s present and future lives (al jabreen & lash, 2016). all units and lessons are designed in theme-related experiences with a list of objectives and suggested activities with some room for the teacher allowing for flexible implementation. the content of any learning unit falls under three categories: academic, vigorous, and religious contents (al hamed, zayadah, al otebi, & matwali, 2007). academic content includes letters, numbers, and subject matter in different content areas (e.g., math, science, geography, history). children’s physical development includes outdoor/indoor play, hands-on activities and games. religious content is integrated in the daily program through qur’an recitation, daily supplication, and storytelling time, which mostly nurturing the instincts of the children and looking after their moral,  mental, and physical growth in a natural envirnment similar to thier  family, and complying with the injunctions of islam familiarizing the children with the school atmosphere and  preparing them for school life teaching the children easy fundamentals that suit thier  age and related to their surroundings encouraging the  children’s imaginative thinking, polishing  thier taste and opining the doors for thier energies to  blossom under gudence protecting the children against dangers, treating the early signs of  bad conduct and facing childhood problems in an adequate manner 34 relates to hadith legislation (the prophet muhammad’s legacy and teachings). finally, the curriculum also advocates for teaching skills related to self-exploring, environmental observations, cooperative work, developing the spoken language, good conduct and manners, socialization, following rules, cleanliness and personal hygiene (megren, 2003). recently, the country has witnessed major improvements in its educational system starting with the preprimary and preschool levels. current educational reforms, associated with alternative ways to work with young children in the kingdom, show a remarkable shift to a western style of educating young children. the saudi early learning standards (sels; ministry of education, 2015) reflect naeyc standards and presents a new policy to support children’s comprehensive development toward optimal learning while still considering saudi culture and tradition. the sels is a culturally appropriate package that respects saudi arabian policy regarding educational philosophy and at the same time is aligned with naeyc’s global vision of ece around the world (ministry of education, 2015). water and sand learning unit water and sand is a learning unit for preschoolers taught as a part of the self-learning advanced curriculum in the kingdom of saudi arabia. the ecological feature of the desert-like country is widespread and is part of a sand landscape that covers most of the arabian peninsula. it is known as one of the largest continuous bodies of sand in the world with a land surface of about 900,000 miles (saudi general authority of statistic, 2017). the land is locally named rub al-khali, or in english empty quarter, in reference to its dryness and extreme climate. within this desert territory, the country is arguably the least water-secure region in the world. according to the world resources institute (2015), saudi arabia is considered one of the world’s most water-stressed countries. the shortage of water resources have led the saudi ministry of water and electricity (mowe) to initiate a national campaign for sustainable water consumption (ouda, shawesh, al-olabi, younes, & al-waked, 2013). the campaign has received much attention from the educational sector in the country including preprimary and primary education. natural resources. the growing threat of water shortage and the nature of the geographical area makes water and sand two essential components of saudi children’s ecological surrounding. one of the main objectives that guides the water and sand unit is to help children develop a growing wealth of knowledge and understanding about the country’s natural resources with special focus on water resources and conservation. learning experiences designed for this unit include: watching a video of sea water desalination process in the kingdom, creating a poster about using water responsibly, and discussing ways of preventing the waste of water in school and at home. history and culture. sand, on the other hand, is a natural element of the planet and at the same time a dominant ecological feature for this specific environment. essentially, sand is not only considered an elemental component of a child’s immediate surroundings, rather, it is deeply connected to historically and culturally valued events of the country. for example, a hundred years ago, the home tent lifestyle was popular in the arabian peninsula region where modern saudi arabia is now located. with oil exploration, the rapid economic wealth has led to major transformational changes in the country. valuing this transformation of the desert into modern society is strongly supported through education and the water and sand unit is an example of how history and culture are important parts of saudi’s philosophy of educating young children. learning experiences associated with this unit reinforce children’s participation in nationalistic behavior and traditional customs. examples for some popular activities in a water and sand unit include: wear traditional clothes in dramatic play area, discuss ways people might adapt to live 35 in the desert, read a book about safety with respect to local weather challenges (e.g., sunstroke, sand storm). patriotism. within saudi policy, patriotism is an important dimension of educating young children. children’s emotional and cultural attachments help to develop a sense of national loyalty and is an important value educationally and culturally appreciated in saudi arabia. according to the saudi early learning standards (sels, 2015), patriotism is a most important standard that is strongly supported throughout education and starts as early as the preschool years. as the document notes, “children begin to appreciate and take pride in the characteristics of their group, those characteristics become an important component of their sense of self, which will later develop into a sense of citizenship in the kingdom of saudi arabia” (2015, p. 124). it is common to see children in saudi preschools bringing the history of their great grandparent’s generations to topics of interest in the classroom. children are often seen building a tent with local materials, wearing traditional clothes, or sitting on the floor. all are customary activities that children enjoy in the dramatic play center. home tent lifestyle in dramatic play center 36 integrating rich cultural texts with dap activities one strong tradition of the saudi preschool is to use stories as a powerful medium for mixing historical and religious teachings with social guidance. saudi storytelling, as with many cultures, includes many historical references, but also includes very explicit connections to religious beliefs. these can be intentionally connected to current-day challenges as the following describes: it is a storytelling time where children sit quietly on the carpet waiting for the teacher to read them a story. ms. amal walks toward the book shelf and chooses a book about how life began in the barren arabian peninsula. as she walks back to the carpet, ms. amal says to her children, “are you excited to hear a story about a well that was originally dug by an angel from heaven?” as children stare at her with eyes filled with curiosity, ms. amal starts to read. a long long time ago, prophet abraham, his wife hajer, and his son ismael had a long journey. they walked and walked for a long time until they reached a desert of the arabian peninsula. they came to a very dry valley named mecca. the valley had no sign of life, no trees, no food, and no water. prophet abraham, for almighty purpose, left his wife and son with little food and water and walked away. hajer began to drink the water and eat the food that abraham had left for her so she could feed ismael her milk. but that water and food soon ran out. hajer and his baby were so hungry and thirsty. she looked for food and water but she couldn’t find any. she was running back and forth between two hills of al-safa and al-marwa seven times looking for people to help her. the last time she reached al-marwa hill, she heard a voice calling her. all of a sudden, she saw an angel digging the earth until the water flowed from the ground. hajer tried to contain the spring water and shouted zom zom--meaning stop flowing--which was later named zamzam. the water kept flowing and flowing and never stopped until this day. after reading this type of story, teachers talk to children about conservation and the value of water and its relationship to sand. children are then directed to a sand box. values are connected to their religious teachings and help create the strong intergenerational bonds. the story of the abundance of sand and the need to respect water leads to children playing frequently with sand in the kingdom. each preschool has to have a proper sand area in its facility with appropriate equipment and tools in order to meet standards. the sand used is all purified natural sand regulated to 20 inches in height above the walking surface for children’s safety. sand located in outdoor areas must be protected for the extreme hot weather by providing suitable shelter and appropriate air conditioning. children play in small group in sand block area 37 to prepare the sand for children, the sand’s surface is commonly sprayed with some minimal amount of water to cool it down and allow opportunities for children to engage in manipulative play. children are encouraged to take off their shoes and socks before entering the sand area; children benefit from playing with sand as much as they benefit from playing with water. sand is a compelling source of pleasure for most children whether on a warm beach, attractive sandbox, or messy playground. children enjoy sand as sensory learning and a joyful experience where children can see, touch, smell, hear, and more importantly, explore one of the basic elements in nature. many conversations emerge as teachers talk to children about mixing sand with water to allow children to observe the physical properties of sand change in texture, consistency, smell, and color. sand is an outstanding medium for many mathematical and scientific thinking skills and sand can play a valuable role in stimulating children’s cognitive growth. building, digging, scooping, sifting, or burying are all hands-on activities that build upon children’s exposure to concepts such as counting, measuring, balancing, dividing, predicting as well as using various learning contexts such as heavy, light, more, less, or equal. playing with sand works well for developing children’s language and verbal communication. as children play with sand, they talk, negotiate, and exchange thoughts. this leads to children cooperating as a group which, in turn, enhances children’s creativity and imaginative play. moreover, playing with sand also supports children’s physical development. children are using physical energy as they interact with sand. when appropriate tools and props are provided, playing with sand is a fun way to develop children’s gross and fine motor skills. conclusion children have the right to a well-resourced tomorrow. education for sustainability could be meaningfully addressed by adapting approaches that see children as significant contributors to their environment. providing children with learning experiences that encourage them to make a positive change in their environment is consistent with dap and becomes a transformative education. nature differs in its geography in different parts of the world which, in turn, is associated with a diversity in human culture, styles of adaptation, as well as ways to sustain natural resources. recognizing children’s curiosity about the world around them is a common theme in ece throughout different parts of the world. once coupled with educating young children about science and the environment, children have an instinctive desire to explore, especially when it comes to base elements like water and sand. the use of the water & sand learning unit can help with promoting sustainable ways of thinking about natural resources, and, in particular, consider the unique history and culture of the country of saudi arabia. the saudi experience of how children 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(2015). aqueduct projected water stress country rankings. retrieved from: http://www.wri.org/resources/data-sets/aqueduct-projected-water-stress-country-rankings 5 international journal of the whole child 2019, vol. 4, no. 1 childhood remembered: reflections on the role of play for holistic education in armenia, kuwait, saudi arabia, the usa, and wales james m. ernesta, amy nicholasb, shushan vardanyanc, fatimah hafizd, mohammad alazemie, dorielle dixonf a-f university of alabama birmingham dr. james ernest is a professor and program director for the phd program in early childhood education at the university of alabama at birmingham. james has been able to help secure more than $7.75 million in grants for a variety of projects and current research focuses on helping alabama's state systems expand high quality pre-k education and expanding a reflective coaching model used throughout the state. he serves on the editorial board for several international journals. @ bit.ly/jernest amy nicholas is the ceo of axon industries. she has previously been working on her ph.d. at the university of alabama at birmingham in early childhood. over the decades, she has been a classroom teacher and a specialist in reading, mindfulness, learning styles and technology from k-higher education. her passions are neuroscience and mindfulness in all aspects of the classroom. shushanik vardanyan is a ph.d. student in early childhood education at the university of alabama at birmingham. she worked as a kindergarten, first, and second grade teacher in dubai, united arab emirates. she is an advocate for learning through play and whole-child approaches in early childhood education. her goal is to facilitate outdoor and indoor play opportunities for young children through playground projects and professional developments for early childhood educators. mohammad alazemi is a ph.d. student in early childhood education at the university of alabama at birmingham and will move into a faculty position at kuwait university after completion of his doctoral program. he is a believer of active learning that promotes logicomathematical knowledge. his goal is to improve education in kuwait. dr. dixon is a 1st grade teacher at pleasant grove elementary school. she earned her bs degree in 2006 and her master’s degree in 2012 from the university of alabama at birmingham. in december 2018, she obtained her ph.d. in early childhood education at the university of alabama at birmingham. dr. dixon is interested in pursuing a position on the collegiate level in early childhood education in curriculum and instruction. 6 fatimah hafiz is a ph.d. student at the university of alabama at birmingham. she believes a quality early childhood education is fundamental for future successes. her ultimate goal is to support developing early education in her country, saudi arabia. introduction play remains a topic for discussion, debate, and research within the education community. zigler and bishop-josef (2004) provide an historical overview of early childhood; one of their main findings is play is under siege in many educational circles. the authors indicate, through time, there is a move away from play-oriented learning activities to a narrow focus on academics. outside of the united states, and in many other countries, shifts occurred toward education focusing on academic skills that “deepen the damage and [make] more permanent the ‘achievement’ gap” between many children (meier, 2009, p. 12). in opposition to this trend, advocates continue to call for more play-oriented and holistic approaches to learning, arguing the play vs. academics debate with academic support for and against the role of play in early childhood (miller, 2008). although this work provides important contributions to the field, prior research often gives little voice to teachers’ perceptions about play, especially from varied and diverse cultural backgrounds. in this article, we argue for a broader view of education in line with plato’s observation (gender not withstanding) that “the direction in which education starts a man will determine his future life” (jowett, 1874, p. 249). the current approach draws on the recommendation that we move beyond the typical developmental research view to use an interpretivist analysis that considers history, culture, and context (swadener & kessler, 1991). we begin with a short overview of the potential and traditional developmental and academic benefits of play. our argument then focuses on a less common consideration of the holistic benefit of play: we explore teachers’ cultural reflections about the nature and worth of play through the authors’ personal accounts of playful childhood in armenia, great britain, kuwait, saudi arabia, and the united states of america. finally, we provide recommendations for the value of play as part of a whole child education. developmental and academic support for play the potential developmental benefits of play are well documented in the literature. play evidences links to increases in memory, oral language, and school adjustment (bodrova & leong, 2005) and the development of children’s logico-mathematical knowledge, abstract thinking, and better social skills (ridgers, knowles, & sayers, 2012). studies indicate that less play is associated with increases in children’s obesity, decreases in active learning, and negative effects on emotional development and self-esteem (stegelin, fite, & wisneski, 2015). when children are more active in play, we often see a change for the better with behavior problems (al-sahel, 2006). as we consider the work of vygotsky (1930-1935/1978), there is a long 7 established connection between a child’s play and learning to exercise self-control while developing empathy for others. more recently, we see ample evidence of researchers examining more developmentally and psychologically oriented play-associated relationships. as one example, research shows the importance of a child’s self-regulation to other developmental skills and abilities with children as young as six-months to three-years-old. the motivation for self-regulation can come from the brain signaling the dopamine system while the learning engagement comes from the norepinephrine systems. from studies (e.g., wang & aamodt, 2012), we see that play does not increase the stress hormone cortisol: play is associated with responses that promote increased opportunities for learning. with an increased understanding of the nature of the brain and its inherent need for play, we understand how the prefrontal cortex develops with the knowledge needed to function in the world. children gain perceptual, cognitive, social and emotional practice through playing that leads to discovery and learning (wang & aamdodt, 2012). even with infants and toddlers, improvements in social emotional development generally, and selfregulation in particular, result in indirect and direct effects on language and cognitive development (sharkins, leger, & ernest, 2016). here, authors found self-regulation to have a mediating effect on cognition through language. play exhibits a powerful vehicle through which children develop self-regulation. decreasing play in early childhood can affect self-regulation that in turn affects language, cognition, and other developmental abilities that relate to later school success. however, as many reconceptualists (pinar, 1988, p. 3) of early childhood education argue (see the seminal collection of texts in kessler & swadener, 1991), the field of early childhood education reaches well beyond developmental confines. broader analyses of play can move beyond the narrow developmental benefits. as noted by swadener and kessler (1991), researchers often choose narrow “parameters of inquiry” (p. 85) that have become almost an exclusive focus on development. the reconceptualists have advocated for a broader set of analyses that include historical, political, and social dimensions of early childhood, interpreted with respect to meaning within context (swadener & kessler, 1991). in essence, an educational analysis may encompass developmental and psychological aspects of play, but are never the sum of these aspects of play. education is a larger concept. education: a breeding, a bringing up, a rearing the word "education" is derived from the latin educātiō meaning a breeding, a bringing up, a rearing. the object of education has been described as to love beauty (plato), to create men and women who are capable of doing new things (piaget), to entertain a thought without accepting it (aristotle), and what remains after forgetting everything that was learned in school (einstein). regardless of how education is defined, it is clear that the intent of education lies far beyond the ability to recall or use academic information in a way that is easily tested in school settings. although few argue that academics are unimportant as a formal part of education, there has been a worldwide shift to focus on testing and academic ability at the expense of allowing children to 8 develop more holistic abilities (meyer et al, 2014). at academic’s expense, there has been a dramatic shift in the time engaged in play with data indicating children playing eight hours less every week than their friends did two decades earlier (elkind, 2008). meyer et al. (2014) and several dozen academics from around the world cosigned a letter to the director of the organization for economic co-operation and development pisa study. the signatories noted the response to global shifts to testing with concerns that this change “takes attention away from the less measurable or immeasurable educational objectives like physical, moral, civic and artistic development, thereby dangerously narrowing our collective imagination regarding what education is and ought to be about” (para. 5). with shifts across the world in how we have made education available to larger communities of children, corresponding questions about the health and wellness of our children continue to surface. just looking at the united states of america, data from the national health and nutrition examination survey (benjamin et al, 2018) estimates more than 10.5 million children (5-18) evidence elevated or high blood pressure. beyond education, we acknowledge the value of play and its relationship to academics as discussed by the american academy of pediatrics (aap). for example, in ginsburg’s (2007, p. 182) clinical report for the aap, the author notes “an increased attention to academics and enrichment activities at the expense of recess or free child-centered play.” however, young children tend to be more active during school days than weekend days, and more active during recess than during physical education classes (frömel, stelzer, groffik, & ernest, 2008). at the same time that play and recess decline in school settings, there is a corresponding increase in the proportion of overweight and obese children. critics of the decline of play also take a more holistic and existential viewpoint, noting how the shift to a more academic and testing culture is questionable to who we are as people. from this stance, play assumes a natural part of childhood for millennia and reducing play is likely to influence far-reaching consequences of which, at present, we possess limited understanding. for example, spikins, hitchens, needham and rutherford (2014) described the neanderthal child as resilient and strong to live through tough climates and extreme situations. the authors described how artifacts that children used as toys doubled as elementary tools. if the benefits of play promote a lasting frame of mind not only for learning but for survival, how are we affecting society if we change a fundamental part of who we are? in early childhood education, with every ebb and flow of policy and practice between academics and play (zigler & bishop-josef, 2006), researchers and advocates continue to document the academic and developmental benefits and challenges with play. a broader view of research is needed to provide a more holistic support for play. design and methods to add to the literature base for and about play, we explored perceptions of early childhood play from teachers that grew up in diverse cultural settings that included armenia, great britain, kuwait, saudi arabia, and the united states. we became participant observers as we considered our own perceptions of play using brown and vaughan (2009) suggestion that as teachers and 9 professionals that work with preservice and in-service teachers, we can learn much about ourselves when we look at our own play history. participants in the study were asked to reflect in narrative form about their own early childhood play experiences and also write about cultural changes in their own countries through time as they consider their own personal development as early childhood teachers and professionals. participants had at least a master’s in early childhood education. for data analyses and interpretation, we focused on emic or ‘insider’ knowledge (merriam & tisdell, 2016) of play reflections and employed a thematic narrative analysis to determine patterns in results. more specifically, we used intrinsic case studies in an instrumental way to “examine a particular case to provide insight into an issue” and with reference to varied cases “particularity and ordinariness” to help synthesize across cases (onwuegbuzie, leech, & collins, 2012, p. 5). the narrative data were treated as stories to provide meaning to findings. the narratives were analyzed for initial codes that, when compared across stories, provided varying cultural childhood themes about play. results and discussion across the collective cultural backgrounds, three main themes emerged from the codes: (a) deep and long-lasting emotional memories in the early years, (b) a perception of things learned through play that exist and help define who we are today, and (c) cultural connections that bind our personas to our lived experiences. emotions of early school experiences narrative reflections of play clearly evidenced strong and enduring emotions run hand-in-hand with recollections of early childhood. as is somewhat common, first days in school are tough for children and this was recalled by hana from saudi arabia: “because i was very attached to my mother, i attended kindergarten for [a] few days. i don’t have good memories about it. i used to cry a lot and i did not feel comfortable.” what was a somewhat surprising revelation were some of the long-term distressing experiences and negative connotations associated with school. for example, emir from kuwait said “i did not like school. in fact, i hated school. both private and public. school was certainly not a place i look at fondly, but i do have a few good memories.” nare from armenia shared that “i hated my school. first of all, i hated to wake up early morning to go to school. that is at 8 o'clock. when i taught in dubai, i could feel the frustration of the kids who used to wake up at 5 a.m. to be at school at 7 a.m. (traffic jam).” these types of reactions were still prevalent as we moved into higher grades. for example, emir from kuwait recalls: when i was in the first grade, i hated to go to school. i feel that the school looked and felt like a jail even though it was not. can you imagine that in my country, students in the 10 classroom were not allowed to speak, move, or do any things without permission from the teacher? however, some of these perceptions of school changed as reflections shifted to the role of play in education. contrary to the negative associations that were found when our recollections moved beyond the larger concept of ‘school’ to thinking about play experiences. claire from the us shared positive memories: the one thing i did like about the private elementary school i went to was the playground. they had some seriously high slides. they would just get hot when the sun was on them, and i had to wear dresses so it would burn all the way down if it was that time of day. the swings were great, too. i loved to play this twist game in the swings we played. even with the element of pain associated with the “burn,” it was clear that it was worth it for the “fun!” aniya from the us also mentioned emotions of pure joy while on the playground: i can remember preschool, being outside and playing with my friends. learning how to swing, going down the slide, playing on the see-saw, and the playground activity list could go on and on, but ultimately after being given that time it was like our time to be free. no worries, no demands . . . just fun! perhaps the most surprising finding was the recognition of so many people having so many negative associations with early schooling … and yet seeking a career in early childhood education. as amiya asked, “children should want to go to school, right? was there hesitation in your answer? did you want to go to school?” similarly, emir from kuwait exclaimed, “children should want to come to the school every day.” rhys from the uk also recalled negative emotional memories from years ago involving a private school and how these changed when moving to a traditional british nursery school: i went to a private school where they used the cane and a slipper on your backside when you didn’t do what you should. it’s tough to have a positive view of school when you know your sisters are playing outside in the evening and you have to do lots of homework because if you don’t, you’ll get popped with a slipper or cane as a punishment if you don’t do your work. i kept nagging my parents to send me to the public school where the kids seemed to be much happier with school. at the private school, it was all about academics. when i moved to the public school, they seemed to value the whole child, keeping children engaged and happy, being supportive socially and emotionally. the making of a wo/man: holistic support for play in addition to many of the emotional reactions about schooling, many reflections spoke to a broader value of play beyond the academic realm that corresponds with a whole child education. according to griffin (1981), holistic education “aims at the integration of elements: self and world; mind and body; knowing and feeling; the personal and societal; the practical and 11 transcendent” (p. 111). to put it simply, play and holistic experiences help form us into the people we are going to be and are natural ways to develop coping mechanisms. claire from the us recalled one harrowing experience: when i was in kindergarten, we all went to my teacher’s house to have a welcome back to school party where she had a family swing and several of us were pushing some other children in it. we were all laughing and playing, and they wanted to go higher, the swing set was popping out of the ground, we pushed harder and it flipped over. i was the only one left standing there with another child screaming pinned under the swing set; everyone else ran and the other children in the swing had managed to jump out. the adults came out and everyone circled around. i had to tell them what happened. only to hear, “you should never push people in these kinds of swings.” it broke the boy’s leg and my heart, i never meant to hurt him. because of that trying to find someone to play with was very hard when we went to school. they were afraid of me. i would go play by myself. eventually, i made a friend. whether thinking about who is associating blame, considering high emotions when people get hurt, the formation of friendships, there are a myriad of thoughts that come together to help a child understand self in relation to the world. play invariably involves some pain and unpredictability, and may “dampen their [a child’s] emotional weighting in order for that discomfort to be regarded as ‘background noise’” (pellis & pellis, 2006, p. 265). there are times when children are playing, they get injured. either, they injure themselves or possibly get injured by a family member or friend or even unintentionally injure someone else. claire from the usa describes: when i was in the 3rd grade, one of my guy neighbors was attending the same school i was, and we decided to carry over one of our adventures during recess catch the others up on our mission after school. they were building a new baseball field at the edge of the playground (present day sports complex) and there were these big, huge, delightfully fun cement tunnels we had started rolling each other in. i had my hand on the outside of one these big guys while we were being rolled by some of our friends during our secret mission. well, it crashed into another cement tunnel crushing my left hand. i say this only because children are going to have accidents playing. they kept telling my mom that they had told us not to go out there. i remember hearing my parents talk about how everyone needed to calm down. with everything we do there are risks and things are going to happen. how we handle things happening as adults is what is important. i learned valuable information from that experience. amiya from the us wrote about this idea as they note “pain felt is real, but because children are playing, they will devalue the pain because they were ‘just messing around’ as compared to a situation when they were injured and it was not associated during a play experience.” here we see how when children are engaged in play, we treat pain through a different lens, in a way ‘toughening us up’ to keep doing what we were doing and work through the pain. it is, as wang and aamodt (2012) noted, that through the developmental system of play, children are able to engage in social interactions combined with their physical environment to negotiate risk taking, 12 distinguish between safe and dangerous and test boundaries storing for later use in life. therefore, and as nare from armenia shared, “decreasing these play opportunities, decreases the chances for preparedness.” emir echoed these thoughts as “learning through play can promote children to grow in many respects.” another set of reflections noted the role of free play in offering, what hurwitz (2002-2003) considers, children having control over the course of their own learning and this control helps promote the intangibles of motivation and desire leading to mastery and creativity. again, claire from the usa describes: my favorite “girly things” to do were shows for our families, and i loved taking blankets and making “fashion” out of them. i’d make my friends stand on stools while i would tailor these outfits made out of blankets over their clothes. they were simply baby blankets tied, looped, or swayed in different ways covering the essential body parts that needed covering. it would then culminate with a runway show with them walking while i would talk about what a beautiful model they were describing the fashion. the shows we did for our families would be quite the production. we would practice dances, cheers, and gymnastics, come up with costumes, props, have snacks (the first time we forgot drinks, the second time we forgot food), read books, do magic tricks, charge admission ($.10), create a theatre space in the backyard with seating on both sides of the fence, and pick special music. this event could sometimes last 10 minutes or an hour. as claire went on to note, “talk about learning through play. even though the landscape changed and the perimeter was limited there was still opportunity for me to continue to learn within my own interest.” this free play experience was full of creativity, innovation, business and service full of future skill sets and opportunities for allowing a young child to explore their interests not preset, prescribed curriculum. research suggests these types of opportunities in learning, flourish with diverse forms of play (cheng & johnson, 2010) and becomes a springboard for problem solving, critical, and divergent thinking skills (hirsh-pasek & golinkoff, 2003). in the context of play, children that are afforded choice tend to be more motivated and engaged (king & howard, 2014). russ and kaugars (2001) recognized in their work that a child’s affect while playing related to a child’s divergence in thinking. when a child has a positive play mood they are more likely to create original responses to situations. another set of reflections can be described as children using play as a mechanism to develop important concepts of the mind and body, the knowing and feeling, the self and the world, as essential parts of being human. hoffman and russ (2016) remind us of the life skills that are associated with play that include organization and imagination. also, children learn to manage their own risk (ridgers, knowles, & sayers, 2012) and play helps children understand others’ points of view and build self-confidence (smilansky & shefaya, 1990; wesley & buysse, 2003). other life-skills include those noted by ginsberg (2007): children forge connections, learn how to share, negotiate, and resolve conflicts and engage in existential thoughts of our relationship to the larger world. these ideas were consistent with several of our participants’ thoughts about play growing us. as claire from the us shared: 13 some of the best memories of my childhood were at home when i could go outside and play. the days were unending in our neighborhood. we started sometime after breakfast and didn’t end until we heard the whistle of one of the moms which was on into dusk as the bats would be starting to eat the mosquitoes, and our imaginations were incorporating them into whatever star wars, mad scientists, cowboy saga, or game we were playing. we even thought we could chirp to the bats and get them to come eat out of our hands. ah, to be a child. the example is clearly one that develops deep and lasting memories that are created when children are free to play. play becomes time-space for “everyday momentary forms of hopefulness” (kraftl, 2008, p. 88). here, as kraftl explains, there is a joy and pleasure of playing--of doing things for the sake of them, rather than performing obligations for adults--that enable children to maintain an openness to the world. children can create and take on the environment, work through toxic stressors taking actions that help to reduce the emotional pressures, and thereby enable children to cultivate resilience through play. hurwitz (2002-2003) explained the value in an activity where a child can enjoy the moment: play can help children regulate stress responses and emotional systems by rerouting impulsedriven or under-receptive reactions to unfamiliarity. they are better able to ‘roll with the punches’ (siviy, 1998) at a neural level negotiating their way through situations that present themselves during play. with our participants, play was felt to be particularly valuable for learning when negotiating social rules. for example, nare from armenia reminisced “my grandfather had sacks of wheats in the basement. i thought it would be even more pleasant to use wheats to throw on each other. the feeling of doing something novel and forbidden added more fun to our play.” this was also shared by rhys from the uk: my earliest recollection of school was standing in the corner! three minutes earlier, my friend neils and i were busy stomping on the lego’s, smashing the constructions, having a whale of a time as we played ‘destruction.’ apparently, my teacher had other ideas about how lego’s should be treated. as berinstein and magalhaes (2009) found when studying play in tanzania, many cultures value a more eclectic view of education noting the roles of traditions, culture and standards of living and finding play associated with creativity, healing, and oneness. engaging in play in these cultures will help a child internalize rules and customs particular to their way of life in a natural and meaningful way. cultural connections to our past a third theme from the narratives was related to helping us link our cultural nuances from past to present. as play is as old as any culture, using play is a natural and logical mechanism to help connect who we are to our ancestors. as french (1977) explains, there has been a shared cultural definition of play that dates at least as far back as ancient egypt. archeologists have found wall art depicting children playing with dolls, balls, and what looks like jumping rope. although some 14 of these activities might be culturally specific, many transcend cultures. in the following, we see hana from saudi arabia sharing an example of many activities that could be found around the world: before going to school, i remember that i loved to play with my mom’s makeup and my favorite thing to do was playing with dolls. despite the fact that i was living with six brothers, i did not like to play their kind of play such as soccer or basketball. i had a small kitchen and that was the best part for me. when i was in the elementary school, i started to join my brothers in their play. in our house, we had a big courtyard that my brother used to play soccer, basketball, volleyball and such. i played with them sometimes if their friends were not there, but if their friends were there, i watch them while they playing because they usually play real rough and tough games. because our house was the ‘boys’ house’, usually all my cousins (the boys) gather in our house. it was like their club. conversely, there was also a perception of culturally-specific nuances that help to define a culture. we see this reflected in nare’s conversation with her mother when living under the old soviet system: my mom was a teacher during ussr and recently i asked my mom about punishments at school in old times. she told me that even then punishment by law was forbidden, but no student knew about their rights. so, teachers abused the fact that children have no clue about the 'hidden rules' and used their power on them. culture makes a difference. kids have no say in my culture, they should obey the adults (as in your culture i assume). hence, even if kids knew about the law they would not have a say in anything. play helps children learn social structure with other people in their homes, school, and community (wheeler & swords, 2004). as hana noted about their own play growing up in saudi arabia: “the relationship with my relatives has a lot to do in my childhood playing. we lived at the same neighborhood, very close to each other’s, so we played together most of the days.” another reflection from hana explained during the weekdays, i go with my mother most the days to visit my grandma, and sometimes we play domino together, my grandma was a very good domino player. another thing we used to do with my relatives was camping in the desert. we spend all the time playing cards, domino, traditional games, play with the sand, climbing mountain, tag, hide and seek and so on. we play all the time. hana continued to mention: i love games so much. i play with my kids and my nephews and nieces board games, cards, and even the traditional games; i think they love me so much because of that. i also like to play games (board games such as sequences, cards, traditional games) with my grown-up cousins and my sisters-in-law. writing about play makes me realize something strange. i realize that the older i’ve gotten, the more i love and value play. 15 conclusions and recommendations we all come from different backgrounds having experienced play in different forms, and as brown and vaughan (2009) suggest, there is much to learn from an exploration of your own play history. our reflections on play at home, at school, and now as adults has helped us better understand where we are as we ‘play’ the role of educator. as teachers, interpreting our past experiences and how we feel about play today can help inform how we nurture our children’s development. the work of piaget informs us that children learn and develop when interacting with their environment (piaget, 1962) and johan huizinga has helped us understand the role of play as a necessary component in the development of culture and society (huizinga, 1944). children need more time playing, and they need opportunities to guide their play (hurwitz, 2002-2003). reflecting on our own experiences of being a child and valuing teacher research as a way of knowing (rust, 2009), the choice to have children engage in play is more than the sum of academic gains. also, from an access to education perspective, research shows that children’s social skills matter. gilliam (2005) found preschoolers to be three times as likely to be expelled than children in kindergarten through 12th grade and their behavior was the primary reason for being expelled. the opportunity to play brings a greater opportunity for self-expression and opportunities to work through social interactions and understand and regulate emotional feelings. as proponents of a more holistic view of education, it is important advocates remain mindful of the views of parents that we might collaborate with one another. prior research indicates that in their urgency to have their children read and write, parents can marginalize or fail to appreciate the learning benefits of play (garcia-coll & meyer, 1995). however, mccloskey (2011) notes that although parents often emphasize the fundamentals associated with reading, writing, arithmetic, there is an implicit recognition of the value of economics, arts, language, and other areas of learning so that “each student becomes academically, socially, and emotionally wellrounded” (p. 81). in our research, we found connections across cultures that coincide with emotional wellness and more holistic supports for child development. on the surface, parents are often concerned with academics, but not at the expense of the value of play for learning about navigating social circles. also, there was a recognition that play helped us remember who we were in the past as people of today: remembering how we enjoyed ourselves while accepting some of the injuries that almost always go in hand with play is important as well as remembering how we interacted with others during play, at the child, parent, grandparent level. as witten, kearns, carroll, asiasiga, and tava’e (2013) note, a decline of outdoor play has seen corresponding declines with the development of intergenerational relationships. it might be that conversations with parents about the function of play to help bridge generations might be a fruitful approach for play advocates. as children, and as we navigate who we are as we mature to adolescence and adulthood, we can draw on the work of gray (2016). his work shows that children in less academically-oriented schools also discover their interests and passions, develop specialized skills in those realms, and often go on to successful careers that make use of those skills. gray noted that this curiosity and playfulness blooms in an environment rich in self-educational opportunities, children learn to read, write, and perform numerical calculations without deliberate training, in their own ways 16 and in their own time. furthermore, gray provided evidence from 37 case histories of literacy that did not receive formal reading instruction and 61 responses to an informal qualitative analysis on sat preparation for math. results indicated that when children are regularly exposed to literate and numerate environments, they learn these skills without coerced instruction. the skills that are acquired developmentally during play set the scene for social interactions in a child’s life as they become mindful of the emotions, motivations, desires, and actions of others. children learn to modify their own actions and reactions in response to these encounters. play then becomes a “willful belief in acting out one’s own capacity for the future” (sutton-smith, 1997, p. 198). recommendations from this work include working with principals and other administrators so that teachers can implement scheduling to safeguard flexibility throughout the day for play. rather than advocating for having to fit play into an academic day, teachers can advocate for working our academics into our play: altering our language we use as teachers can be helpful here. as many reflections indicate, initial emotions to a first day/week of school are lasting memories that can shape our perceptions of school. if teachers use a play-based approach to introduce young children into a classroom that mirrors home life or a community play-based mothers’ morning day out, some children may be less likely to develop the strong negative emotions that some people have toward schooling. as professional educators, we can better publicize the importance of play in the community, sharing moments of excitement and learning success that will be observed for others to benefit. play is an integral part of our lived experience whether it is indoors or outdoors, structured or not, we play leaving us to hone in on the power of diversity and the importance of accountability. the challenge is how to capitalize on both in a demanding era. educators can meet this challenge by making the development of the whole child their top priority (nelson, 2009). miller (2008) reminds us “the child is not merely a future citizen or employee in training, but an intricate and delicate web of vital forces and environmental influences” (p. 5). said another way, a child is a child, and as the office of the united nations high commissioner for human rights (1989) noted, play is a right of every child. it is important that as adults we remember the value of play as central to working through emotions, being aware of the developing who we are as women and men, and forging cultural connections to our past. early childhood is a formative period of development and play is not just an integral mechanism for learning academics but the sine qua non of more holistic learning and development. 17 references al-sahel, r. 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it has the potential to create a social process that supports cultural survival (rankin, hansteen-izora, & packer, 2007). storytelling can help maintain a sustainable culture, which is a basic element of a sustainable society (abdul-malik, 2012). supplementing traditional benefits of storytelling, many activities and routines in early childhood lend themselves to broader discussions of sustainability. in the current article, authors share an example of how sand and water activities have been used to support sustainable environments in saudi arabia. to accomplish this, the authors explore how transformative and developmentally appropriate activities fit within a saudi early childhood context, and provide examples of experiences that support a whole child approach to education. sustainability and education the term sustainable development was first proposed three decades ago (international union for conservation of nature, 1980) and is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (world commission on environment and development, 1987, p. 43). sustainability, in general, refers to thinking of a long-term goal of having a more sustainable world or “thinking about forever.” according to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization (unesco, 2005), sustainable development comes about when you have four interrelated and coordinated dimensions: 43   ecologic, economic, political, and social stability. ecological, or natural, sustainability considers resources, such as food and water, which support life. economic sustainability is related to people's salaries, jobs, and income; economic sustainability is best defined by its broad definition of maintenance of capital, or keeping capital intact. political sustainability is concerned with the political system and political power’s role in making decisions about social and economic consumption of natural resources. finally, social and cultural sustainability deals with human rights and people’s interaction through culturally appropriate aspects. the role of education as a catalyst for sustainable development was proposed during the 1992 united nations conference on environment and development (unced): education is critical for promoting sustainable development and improving the capacity of the people to address environment and development issues.... it is critical for achieving environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behavior consistent with sustainable development and for effective public participation in decision-making (hopkins & mckeown, 2002, p.15). although it is well acknowledged that education is a critical practical tool for sustainable development (manteaw, 2012), progress in the area of education for sustainable development (esd) was limited until december 2002 when the united nation (un) announced 2005-2014 to be the decade of education for sustainable development (un, 2015). conceptually, education had been considered essential to help bring the four domains together (unesco, 2014), and more recently research has provided support for education as the key to a nation’s sustainable development (gyberg & löfgren, 2016). the concept of esd was originally described as “a world where everyone has the opportunity to benefit from quality education and learn the values, behavior, and lifestyles required for a sustainable future and for positive societal transformation” (unesco, 2005, p. 5). within esd, programs are developmentally and culturally appropriate and should consider the local environmental, economic, and societal and cultural factors (unesco, 2006). teacher-education organizations have been identified as carrying the key to training and encouraging teachers to apply sustainability in their classroom, which will, in turn, globally impact the future (alenaimat & taha, 2013). however, without a shift in thinking about the pedagogical practices we use in education, teachers are not likely to consider a more holistic education that “aims at the integration of elements: self and world; mind and body; knowing and feeling; the personal and societal; the practical and transcendent” (griffin, 1981, p. 111) while at the same time valuing esd. to move beyond the traditional focus of reading, writing, and math, a promising approach to esd integrates developmentally appropriate practices within a transformative model of teaching in education. as samuelsson and kaga (2008) believed, “every child has the right to adequate care, learning, development and protection, and a sustainable society is where everyone’s rights are recognized, respected and fulfilled” (p. 14). not only is engaging children in appropriate practices important, but we should be developing a child’s sense of responsibility toward a sustainable world as well. connecting developmentally appropriate practice with culture in 1987, the national association of the education of young children (naeyc) released the first position statement about developmentally appropriate practices (dap) for young children. the dap guidelines are based on research and theories of how young children develop and learn. the guidelines provide teachers and care providers with examples of best practice in early childhood education (ece) serving children from birth to 8 years old (copple & bredekamp, 2009). since dap’s first edition, the guidelines have received criticism from professions in the field of ece, with editions that have responded to the criticisms in 1997 and 2009. the universal consensus underlying dap philosophy was the rejection of an education that focused on drill and practice and ignored higher level thinking skills (national commission on excellence in education, 1983). thus, the authors of dap have advocated for a learning style that focuses on the whole of the child using effective teaching approaches and practices. the learning style based on dap guidelines is a childcentered pedagogy where the child is a center of the overall learning process (samuels, 1994; aldridge, 44   1992). children in developmentally appropriate classrooms are seen as active learners, problem-solvers, and action-takers (stuhmcke, 2012). as dap was initially based on a framework of well-known european theorist’s’ views of child development and theory, questions have been raised about the relevance to children from different ethnicities (e.g., delpit, 1988; jipson, 1991; kessler, 1991; wien, 1995; spodek, 1991; lubeck, 1998). the diversity of human culture and the wealth of social and traditional values shape the way in which education has formed in different parts of the world (unesco, 2009). therefore, many see early childhood education as influenced by varied social perspectives deeply rooted in local culture and customs (spodek & saracho, 1996; mallory & new, 1994; hoot, parmar, hujalahuttunen, cao, & chacon, 1996; mcmullen, elicker, wang, erdiller, lee, lin, & sun, 2005). a shift in more recent versions of dap emphasize an awareness of cultural appropriateness and attention to the role of bringing children’s culture to the classroom (walsh, sproule, mcguinness, trew, & ingram, 2010). to do this, teachers bring children’s culture into the classroom by knowing what is culturally important to the children as well as listening with an open mind to family’s’ preferences regarding child rearing and education (copple, bredekamp, koralek, & charner, 2013). as copple et al. (2013) note, this is a shift to pluralism where educators “create a harmony in the face of differing practices, [and where] it is important to move away from viewing contrasting practices as right or wrong, instead thinking of them simply as different” (p. 20). even with the most diverse early childhood classrooms, teachers cannot have in-depth knowledge of the cultural dimensions of specific individuals or families. indeed, teachers cannot have a detailed understanding of every culture they encounter in the classroom (copple et. al, 2013). culture is a highly complex concept and encompasses various aspects of human-living patterns within a particular social structure. culture is a complex term that “represents traditional and contemporary expressions of human achievement (e.g. language, art, tools, religious beliefs and practices, values, architecture, fables, traditions, customs and all other forms of human endeavors) that bind together groups of people” (unesco, 2012, p.16). rather than teachers using a top-down approach to bring culture to a classroom, a goal of teaching for transformation to change the world to be a better place is a natural fit for esd. transformation as a model of teaching aldridge and goldman (2007) argued that educational practices and approaches usually fall under three main categories: transmission, transaction, and transformation. teaching as transmission considers teaching as the action of transmitting knowledge from the teacher’s head to the student’s head. as much social knowledge is transmitted (e.g., names of letters, remembering sequences such as numbers or months of the year), transmission works well if a teacher simply wants students to repeat what a teacher tells them, often without knowing whether or not children understand the information they are repeating. the second model is teaching as transaction. here, teachers guide students to construct their knowledge through investigation or exploration, often following their interests. the third general model considers teaching as a transformative experience and one that leads to meaningful change. as an ancient chinese proverb says, “if i don't change my direction, i will likely end up where i'm headed.” in the same way, transformational teaching often begins with changing students’ thinking in order to change their actions; a process of reflecting on what is learned is followed by belief systems being challenged, which, in turn, shifts our perspectives and assumptions. transformational teaching is intended to change people’s view of themselves and the world around them (wright knapp, 2013). as with transformative education, taking action is a key feature for dap which encourages and supports children to be active agents in their own environments (aldridge & goldman, 2007). teaching within a dap framework supports teachers’ decision-making skills as intentional in planning and practice, but also stresses building a caring community for learners, and establishing reciprocal relationships with families (copple & bredekamp, 2009). an illustration of joining dap culturally sensitive practices together with transformational teaching, toward a goal of esd, is seen with the example of how children learn about the importance of sand and water in saudi culture. 45   a case study of saudi arabia’s transformational practices in ece educational influences in saudi arabia early childhood education in the kingdom of saudi arabia is highly influenced by the unique religious characteristics of saudi society. saudi arabia, often regarded as the most religious and conservative society in the middle east, is known as “the land of the two holy mosques” with al-masjid al-haram in mecca city, and al-masjid al-nabwi in madinah city. geographically, where these two mosques are located, provides the country with a special responsibility, among all other muslim nations, to be custodian for the most sacred places of islamic faith. this religious significance in the country has shaped the identity and the nation’s philosophy of education. the presence of islamic spirit and faith is strongly supported in all levels of formal education and ece. the education in the preschool years, known as kindergarten level, is the earliest stage of education and is considered a general orientation for formal schooling (al sunbul, al khateeb, matwalli, & abdu al jawad, 2008). the educational policy in saudi arabia (1970) is used as a main reference for developing ece programming. the document defines objectives and goals that serve as guidelines for preschool teaching. the objectives encompass different aspects of children rearing (see figure 1) with a notable presence of cultural and spiritual values that mesh with the saudi philosophy of educating young children (world data on education report, unesco, 2010/2011, p.8). nurturing the instincts of the children and looking after their moral, mental, and physical growth in a natural environment similar to their family, and complying with the injunctions of islam familiarizing the children with the school atmosphere and preparing them for school life teaching the children easy fundamentals that suit their age and related to their surroundings encouraging the children’s imaginative thinking, polishing their taste and opening the doors for their energies to blossom under guidance protecting the children against dangers, treating the early signs of bad conduct and facing childhood problems in an adequate manner figure 1: the main objectives of saudi early childhood education 46   the curriculum implemented in preschool programs is the national self-learning advanced curriculum developed by the ministry of education in 2002 (al sunbul et al, 2008). the curriculum is based on three core considerations for saudi preschool teaching and include: a) suitability for children’s developmental stage of physical, social, emotional, and cognitive growth, b) an abundance of age appropriate learning experiences and hands-on activities, and c) a consideration of children’s present and future lives (al jabreen & lash, 2016). all units and lessons are designed in theme-related experiences with descriptions of objectives and suggested activities with flexibility for teacher implementation (al qassem, dashash, & al zahrani, 2016). the content of any learning unit is categorized as academic, vigorous, or religious contents (al hamed, zayadah, al otebi, & matwali, 2007). academic content includes letters, numbers, and subject of matter in different content areas (e.g. math, science, geography, history). children’s physical development includes outdoor/indoor play, hands-on activities and games, and religious content is integrated in the daily program through qur’an recitation, daily supplication, and storytelling time which mostly relates to hadith legislation (the prophet muhammad’s legacy and teachings). finally, the curriculum also advocates for teaching skills related to self-exploring, environmental observations, cooperative work, developing the spoken language, good conduct and manners, socialization, following rules, cleanliness and personal hygiene (megren, 2003). recently, the country has witnessed major improvements in its educational system starting with the preprimary and preschool levels. current educational reforms toward alternative ways to work with the young in the kingdom shows a remarkable shift to a western style of educating young children. the saudi early learning standards (sels; ministry of education, 2015) reflect naeyc standards and presents a new policy to support children’s comprehensive development toward optimal learning while still considering saudi culture and tradition. the sels is a culturally appropriate package that respects saudi arabian policy regarding educational philosophy and, at the same time, is aligned with naeyc’s global vision of ece around the world (ministry of education, 2015). water and sand learning unit water and sand is a learning unit for preschoolers taught as a part of the self-learning advanced curriculum in the kingdom of saudi arabia. the ecological feature of the desert-like country is widespread and is part of a sand landscape that covers most of the arabian peninsula. it is known as one of the largest continuous bodies of sand in the world with a land surface of about 900,000 miles (saudi general authority of statistic, 2017). the land is locally named rub al-khali, or in english empty quarter, in reference to its dryness and extreme climate. within this desert territory, the country is arguably the least water-secured region in the world. according to the world resources institute (2015), saudi arabia is considered one of the world’s most water-stressed countries. this shortage of water as resource led the saudi ministry of water and electricity (mowe) to initiate a national campaign for sustainable water consumption (ouda, shawesh, al-olabi, younes, & al-waked, 2013). the campaign has received much attention from the educational sector in the country including preprimary and primary education. natural resources. the growing threat of water shortage and the nature of the geographical area makes water and sand two essential components of saudi children’s ecological surrounding. one of the main objectives that guides the water and sand unit is to help children develop a growing wealth of knowledge and understanding about the country’s natural resources with special focus on water resources and conservation. learning experiences designed for this unit include: watching a video of sea water desalination process in the kingdom, creating a poster about using water responsibly, and discussing ways of preventing wasting water in school and at home. 47   history and culture. sand, on the other hand, is a natural element of the planet and at the same time, a dominant ecological feature for this specific environment. essentially, sand is not only considered an elemental component of a child’s immediate surroundings, rather, it is deeply connected to historically and culturally valued events of the country. for example, a hundred years ago, the home tent lifestyle was popular in the arabian peninsula region where modern saudi arabia is now located. with oil exploration, the rapid economic wealth has led to major transformational changes in the country. valuing this transformation of the desert into modern society is strongly supported through education; the water and sand unit is an example of how history and culture are important parts of saudi’s philosophy of educating young children. learning experiences associated with this unit reinforce children’s participation in nationalistic behavior and traditional customs. examples for some popular activities in the water and sand unit include: wear traditional clothes in dramatic play area, discuss ways people might make adaptations to live in the desert, and read a book about safety with respect to local weather challenges (e.g., sunstroke, sand storm). patriotism. within saudi policy, patriotism is an important dimension of educating young children. children’s emotional and cultural attachments help develop a sense of national loyalty and is an important value that are educationally and culturally appreciated in saudi arabia. according to the saudi early learning standards (sels, 2015), patriotism is a critically important standard that is strongly supported throughout education and starts as early as the preschool years. as the document notes, “children begin to appreciate and take pride in the characteristics of their group, those characteristics become an important component of their sense of self, which will later develop into a sense of citizenship in the kingdom of saudi arabia” (2015, p. 124). it is most common to see children in saudi preschools bringing the history of their great grandparents’ generations to topics of interest in the classroom. children are often seen building a tent with local materials, wearing traditional clothes, or sitting on the floor. all are customary activities that children enjoy in the dramatic play center. home tent lifestyle in dramatic play center 48   integrating rich cultural texts with dap activities one strong tradition of the saudi preschool is to use stories as a powerful medium for mixing historical and religious teachings with social guidance. saudi storytelling, as with many cultures, includes many historical references but also includes explicit connections to religious beliefs. these can be intentionally connected to current day challenges: it is a storytelling time where children sit quietly on the carpet waiting for the teacher to read them a story. ms. amal walks toward the book shelf and chooses a book about how life began in the barren arabian peninsula. as she walks back to the carpet, ms. amal says to her children: are you excited to hear a story about a well that was originally dug by an angel from heaven? as children stared at her with eyes filled with curiosity, ms. amal starts to read. a long, long time ago, prophet abraham, his wife hajer, and his son ismael had a long journey. they walked and walked for a long time until they reached a desert of the arabian peninsula. they came to a very dry valley named mecca. the valley had no sign of life, no trees, no food, and no water. prophet abraham, for almighty purpose, left his wife and son with little food and water and walked away. hajer began to drink the water and eat the food that abraham had left for her so she could feed ismael her milk. but that water and food soon ran out. hajer and her baby were so hungry and thirsty that she looked for food and water but she couldn’t find any. she was running back and forth between two hills of al-safa and al-marwa seven times looking for people to help her. the last time she reached almarwa hill, she heard a voice calling her. all of a sudden, she saw an angel digging the earth until the water flowed from the ground. hajer tried to contain the spring water and shouted zom zom-meaning stop flowing—which was later named zamzam. the water kept flowing and flowing and never stopped until this day! after reading this type of story, teachers talk to children about conservation and the value of water, water and its relationship to sand, and direct children to a sand box. values are connected to their religious teachings and help create strong intergenerational bonds. the story of the abundance of sand and the need to respect water leads to children frequently playing with sand in the kingdom. each preschool has to have a proper sand area in its facility with appropriate equipment and tools in order to meet standards. the sand used is all purified natural sand regulated to 20 inches in height above the walking surface for children’s safety. sand located in outdoor areas is protected from the extreme hot weather by providing suitable shelter and appropriate air conditioning. children play in small group in sand block area 49   to prepare the sand for children, the sand’s surface is commonly sprayed with an amount of water to cool it down which allows opportunities for children to participate in manipulative play. children are encouraged to remove their shoes and socks before they enter the sand block area; children gain from playing with sand as much as they benefit from playing with water. sand is a compelling source of pleasure for most children whether on a warm beach, in an attractive sandbox, or at a messy playground. children enjoy sand as sensory learning and a joyful experience wherein they see, touch, smell, hear, and more importantly, explore one of the basic elements in nature. many conversations emerge as teachers talk with children about mixing sand with water to allow them to observe the physical properties of sand change in texture, consistency, smell, and color. sand is an excellent medium for exploring and applying many mathematical and scientific thinking skills; sand is valuable in stimulating children’s cognitive growth. building, digging, scooping, sifting, or burying are all hands-on activities that buil upon children’s exposure to concepts such as counting, measuring, balancing, dividing, predicting as well as using various learning contexts such as heavy, light, more, less, equal. playing with sand works well for developing children’s language and verbal communication. as children play with sand, they talk, negotiate, and exchange thoughts. this discourse leads to children cooperating as a group which enhances children’s creativity and imaginative play. moreover, playing with sand also supports children’s physical development. children are consuming considerable energy when they interact with sand. it is a fun way to develop children’s gross motor skills as well as fine motor skills when appropriate tools are provided. conclusion children have the right to a well-resourced tomorrow. education for sustainability could be meaningfully addressed by adapting approaches that see children as significant contributors to their environment. providing children with learning experiences that encourage them to make a positive change in their environment is consistent with dap and becomes transformative education. nature differs in its geography in different parts of the world which, in turn, is associated with a diversity in human culture, styles of adaptations, as well as ways to sustain natural resources. recognizing children’s curiosity about the world around them is a common theme in ece in different parts of the world. once coupled with educating young children about science and the environment, children have an instinctive desire to explore, especially when it comes to base elements like water and sand. the use of the water & sand learning unit can help with promoting sustainable ways of thinking about natural resources. this is especially important when considering the 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(2015). aqueduct projected water stress country rankings. retrieved from: http://www.wri.org/resources/data-sets/aqueduct-projected-water-stress-country-rankings microsoft word ijwc spring 2018.docx 30 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 1 early childhood education in iran: progress and emerging challenges maryam sharifianª ªjames madison university dr. sharifian has worked with children of illegal afghan refugees in iran, street children in tehran, preschoolers in azerbaijan and schoolgirls in rural tanzania. her current research explores educational issues relating to teachers and children in areas of armed conflict (i.e., syria). she just completed her term as a member of the board of directors of the association for childhood education international and is assistant professor of early childhood education at james madison university (jmu) abstract frequently, our world seems filled with nations in conflict. the ultimate legacy of nations’ inability to cooperate will be inherited by the world’s children. perhaps the most effective solution to creating a more peaceful world in the years to come is to provide high quality education for all children. such education, however, is more likely to result if teachers of the world become willing to share their success stories and examples of supportive resources. admittedly, professional collaborations between teachers in the islamic republic of iran and those of the west are rare, at best. despite political challenges, it is time to find ways to share. a place to begin is to provide teachers with background information regarding the current status of early childhood education (ece) in iran. this paper is also a call for a global teacher-response to initiate greater dialogue in support of all of our children. keywords: iran, education, early childhood early childhood education in iran in 1924, jabbar baghcheban, “a pioneer of early childhood education in iran,” established the first kindergarten in tabriz called “children’s garden.” most children of wealthy families were attending these centers. the first government-supported kindergarten program for children, ages three-to-six years old, was established in 1931 when the supreme council for culture adopted the first law supporting kindergarten. three decades later, independent kindergarten programs were authorized by the ministry of culture (research and educational planning organization, 2016). initially, these newer programs were specifically designed to provide early education opportunities for children who spoke languages other than farsi, the national language of iran, and as well provide improved support for working mothers (talebzadeh nobarian, 2006). these initial programs were later expanded to advance early education for all iranian children. today, there are approximately 17,800 kindergartens in iran (jahanpanah, 2014). 31 current pre-primary school in bojnord (city in north east of iran) current kindergarten in tehran (capital city of iran) supervision of early childhood education (ece) programs in iran prior to the islamic revolution, the iranian women’s organization was charged with the supervision of these centers (unesco international bureau of education [ibe], 2006). after the 1979 revolution, however, the iranian women’s organization was dissolved and kindergartens and the monitoring and licensing of all public and private kindergartens and day care centers became the responsibility of the state welfare organization of iran and the islamic council (research and educational planning organization, 2016). currently, responsibilities for licensing, evaluating of pre-primary schools, editing book content, and monitoring qualifications of pre-primary schoolteachers reside within the ministry of education (zaare & ghoshuni, 2008). in iran, the terms “kindergarten” and “pre-primary school” convey different meanings than typically acknowledged by western countries. kindergartens in iran are formal educational programs for children three months to four-years old. programs for children four-to-six years old are considered pre-primary school education. this means, the kindergartens are under the supervision of the state welfare organization; pre-primary school education is the responsibility of the ministry of education. 32 the age of entry to pre-primary school has been the subject of disputes between the ministry of education and the state welfare organization. while the state welfare organization considers four-year-old children of kindergarten age, the ministry of education refers to them as pre-primary schoolers. in 2010, two organizations signed an agreement to resolve this agency controversy (islamic parliament research center of the islamic republic of iran, 2014). however, controversy continues because the state welfare organization refuses to implement this agreement. additionally, creation of dual authority for licensing, supervising, and determining of educational content has become quite problematic for programs in the private sector for those attempting to meet licensure requirements. since pre-primary education is considered “official but not compulsory,” it has become exclusively privatized. the primary reason for this privatization is financial. since the education system is free in iran, the government refuses to include preprimary education as part of its compulsory education system. this lack of government support for preprimary school programs has had an impact on most lower and middle-income families since they are frequently unable to afford private tuition. the magnitude of this lack of government sponsorship of pre primary school programs is clearly seen in the enrollment in public first grade since a pre-primary school completion certificate is required. struggles of lower-income parents attempting to enroll their children into first grade are becoming increasingly common in the news media (iranian students news agency, 2015). types of ece programs in iran while government programs do exist for children prior to primary school, the majority of both kindergarten and pre-primary school programs in iran are private businesses. common program types are as follow. pre-primary school education the ministry of education is the only licensing authority to establish pre-primary school program centers. all pre-primary school centers, including private centers and other governmental and non-governmental organizations, are required to implement their plans in concert with this license. pre-primary school centers must include a maximum of five days a week with about 3.5 hours of daily activity. the principles and framework of the curriculum and educational activities of pre-primary school programs were approved at the 77th session of the supreme council on education (sheraki ardakani, riahi nejad, & razaghi, 2013). some pre-primary school programs are located in public elementary schools. children must be five years of age to be eligible for enrollment. these programs are operated by the ministry of education and tuition is generally lower than that of the private sector programs. many pre-primary school programs are also located in private ece centers. directors in these centers must apply for licensure through the ministry of education and allocate some of their classrooms to pre-primary school programs. however, these centers are faced with many additional challenges to meet the requirements of licensure for kindergarten and pre-primary school programs. such confusion is primarily explained by the dual governmental oversight framework. private programs must follow standards of the state welfare organization for kindergarten level while at the pre-primary school level they must meet the ministry of education standards. private sector kindergartens goals for private sector programs include developing cognitive, social, religious, spiritual, physical and mental health of children from birth through pre-primary school. while government kindergarten programs do exist, the majority of kindergarten programs are private. these programs are funded solely by tuition paid by parents. these programs are strongly influenced by location. facilities located in affluent areas typically contain better educated teachers and greater access to advanced techniques and technologies. 33 rural kindergartens kindergartens in rural areas, which comprise about half of all centers, are generally established by the semiprivate sector and are responsible for the development and education of rural children. while not as costly as private kindergartens, a vexing challenge of these programs is finding teachers with adequate academic credentials. as in many developing nations, this problem is affected by younger teachers who tend to prefer employment in larger cities. workplace kindergartens child care for children of employees of companies and factories is provided under article 78 of the national labour law. developed with the collaboration of the ministry of labour and social welfare, these programs allow parents to have their children cared for near their worksite. this allows parents to visit and breastfeed their children during break times as well as be able to see that their children are in good care. the cost for these programs is subsidized by industry so tuition is generally less than private kindergartens. admittedly, there are few of these kindergartens in the country. public sector kindergartens these programs are established by ministries, organizations, institutions, and other governmental agencies. where they do exist, they are free for female employees and offered at cost to the general public. however, as with workplace kindergartens, such programs are rare. kindergarten for the indigent public childcare is established by the state welfare organization to provide services to children of poor and vulnerable parents. these programs are sparse in number and generally located in high poverty areas. indigent programs receive little funding and very few resources. the quality of instruction and services of these programs are not comparable with kindergartens found in the private sector (zaare & ghoshuni, 2008). quran kindergartens in addition to providing an educational program similar to those in the above programs, quran kindergartens are established for teaching of the quran and islamic religious concepts. in these programs, children sing both religious and secular songs and use play to learn social and religious skills. teachers are trained in both spiritual doctrine and basic pre-primary school education (research and educational planning organization, 2016). friday prayer day care these facilities provide childcare on fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to enable parents to participate in friday prayers. this is a free program funded by the government (the state welfare organization, 2009). ece staffing in iran the quality of staff of any organization is critical to the success of that venture. ece staff in iran generally include directors, teachers, and assistants. 34 pre-primary school staff in ece center in tehran directors of ece centers in general, directors of ece centers are female, muslim, and at least 25 years of age with a bachelor or higher degree in early childhood education or related fields. if the director is not muslim, she must be of one of the official religions sanctioned by the constitution of the islamic republic of iran (i.e., zoroaster, jewish, or christian) and meet the same academic requirements (the state welfare organization, 2009). kindergarten and pre-primary school center director teachers of ece centers ece teachers must have a minimum of a high school diploma. in addition, these teachers must complete training prior to starting the job and receive a certification from either jahad daneshgahi organization (iran’s official training organization) or the state welfare organization. teachers must pass the courses such as first aid skills, play and movement, psychology and child development, education of religious and social concepts, common diseases in children, storytelling techniques for children, and children's emotional and behavioral disorders. the length of the training periods for those with only high school diplomas is six months to a year (hoot et al, 2015). pre-primary school teachers receive the lowest salary in the educational system of this country. since they work minimum weekly hours, their employers are not required to follow department of labor regulations such as provision of insurance or minimum wage. qualifications for teachers in these programs include the ability to communicate with children under age six years, the capacity to provide appropriate quranic instruction, the interest in teaching quran to pre-primary school ages (teachers of religious minorities preprimary school are exempt from this requirement). additionally, teachers must achieve an associate degree in a related field and evidence clearance from the department of labor (talebzadeh nobarian, 2006; sheraki ardakani, riahi nejad, & razaghi, 2013). 35 teaching assistants assistants generally have minimal formal education and seldom have professional ece backgrounds. in addition to supporting the teacher, assistants participate in janitorial tasks such as washing and cleaning the classroom. toileting and bathing young children is exclusively reserved for teaching assistants. it is rare, in iran, a teacher would assist with this task (the state welfare organization, 2009). recent progress and challenges in ece in iran research is clear that quality early childhood education is the key to optimal development of future citizens as well as our best hope for future economic progress of nations (blakemore & frith, 2005; shonkoff & phillips, 2000; sylva & pugh, 2005). for example, studies suggest that children who have experienced high quality early education are more successful in terms of both social and educational development during their higher education (barnet, 2008). research studies further indicate that early education has a more powerful effect on pre-primary school children from lower income environments than on their wealthier counterparts (lamb 1998; myers 1995, 2004). in addition to rapidly emerging research, a number of recent societal aspects also contributed to iran’s rapid development of early childhood education programs including the increased numbers of working parents, the more educated parent population who understands the importance of high quality early education as well as the increased awareness of addressing issues relating to second language and special needs learners. while progress has certainly been made in recent years, access to pre-primary school programs is still not universal. in iran, of the 7 million pre-primary school children, four-to-seven years old, 5 million children from primarily poor and rural households still do not have access to pre-primary school education (unicef, 2012-2016). additional challenges include rules and regulations for child care centers, ece teacher preparation programs, lack of incentives to become a pre-primary school teacher, and issues related to language. rules and regulations for child care centers according to the law, each day care cannot accept more than 100 children and only women are granted permission to open centers. further, both the proprietor and director of a day care center must generally be both muslim and of iranian descent. non-muslims whose religions are accepted by the iranian constitution (i.e., christians, jews, and zoroastrians) can request permission to open day care centers if those centers are designed to serve only the children of the same religious community and the centers are located near those children’s homes. in addition, prospective day care operators must swear allegiance to the islamic republic and its principles and may not belong to illegal parties or groups. they must also be at least 25 years of age and in stable mental and physical health condition as determined by the state welfare organization. physically handicapped women, whose condition would not interfere with the administration of the centers, are allowed to apply to operate a day care center. applicants must possess a bachelor or higher education degree in ece, educational science, psychology, or sociology, and have, at least, one year of practical experience in working with young children (talebzadeh nobarian, 2006). ece teacher preparation the professional preparation of ece teachers in iran comes in two forms—preservice and in-service education (hoot et al., 2015). at the preservice level, degree programs at the associate through master’s level are provided by universities. at the in-service level, short-term courses are provided for those currently teaching who have only high school diplomas in order to update these teachers with emerging knowledge in the field. in this dual system, only those with formal preservice education/degrees may become directors and, thereby, receive much higher salaries. 36 preparing pre-primary school teachers in bojnord (city in north east of iran) lack of incentives to become a pre-primary school teacher ece teachers rarely hold graduate degrees in pre-primary school education from teacher education institutes or universities. since pre-primary school is not part of iran’s compulsory education system, those who hold graduate degrees in ece generally work as managers or directors of centers. further, pre-primary school teachers have little incentive to continue formal education since pre-primary school centers are generally non-profit schools. as such, the ministry of education is not responsible for benefits such as job security or insurance. in addition, the potential for obtaining a salary commensurate with teachers in the public education sector is low. teachers usually are not able to independently live on a single teaching job salary and have second or even third jobs to satisfy their living expenses (hoot et al., 2015). language issues while farsi (persian) is the national language of iran, many languages are spoken (e.g. turkish, arabic, kurdish, and lori). children from different geographic regions of iran, such as west and south, may not speak farsi. the language barrier is a major challenge for these children. in response to this challenge, in 1989 the ministry of education proposed to start a formal first day of school and pre-primary bilingual school classes one year earlier. while many question the impact of such a short time for learning a second language, it is reasoned that this opportunity would provide a bit more time for children to learn farsi and adjust to a new environment (mofidi, 2008). moreover, some native farsi speaker teachers suffer from similar language challenges in their teaching as well as in communicating with parents. the lack of language skills and cultural background clearly causes a lack of trained teachers in these areas. in order to attract more teachers to these areas, the government has recently increased stipends for rural teachers. however, even this increased benefit does not appear to be changing this trend. conclusion children deserve the best that the world has to offer. however, political systems and responses to these systems often keep nations from sharing their successes and challenges with others who might support them. the current article details iranian progress from opening the first public supported kindergarten in 1924 to today. accompanying growth is a challenge in the area of preparing teachers for diversity, working with second language children and parents, and providing financial benefits that will attract and retain the brightest and best professionals. such challenges are not dissimilar to ece teachers throughout the world. perhaps if specific strategies were developed for sharing ece progress and failures internationally, teachers of the world could begin to better prepare children, resulting in a better future for all. it is our hope that professional ece organizations such as association for childhood education international (acei), world organization for early childhood education (omep), and comparative international education society (cies) might begin to address this challenge in the near future. 37 references barnet, w.s, (2008). better teachers better preschools, new york: colombia university. blakemore, s., & frith. u. (2005). the learning brain. oxford: blackwell. hoot, j.l., bakuza, f., lavasani, m., park, r., sharifian, m. s., & szecsi, t. (2015). globalization: international perspectives on early childhood teacher education. handbook of early childhood teacher education, l. couse and s. recchia (eds.). new york: routledge. iranian students news agency (2015). “pre-primary school” a period that hands down between the ministry of education and the welfare organization. retrieved from http://www.isna.ir/news/94043116406 islamic parliament research center of the islamic republic of iran. (june, 2014).ررس ع یب شیپ تیوض تان ا یدبس اک ب ر دیت ناد ب انون اس ازمان فیوظا و یق ز س تیبھ رورش و آموزش وزارت و یس review] پ the qualification of preschool with an emphasis on legal documents and the welfare organization and the ministry of education’s duties]. retrieved from http://rc.majlis.ir/fa/news/show/892242 jahanpanah, m. (2014, july 24). کالت ودک یمھدھا مش ر کی ک دار مقص there are more than one to blame] دن for kindergarten’s problems]. رانیا روزنامه [iran-newspaper], pp. 23002. retrieved from: http://www.iran-newspaper.com/newspaper/blockprint/23002 lamb, m. (1998). non-parental child care: context, quality, correlates, and consequences. in handbook of child psychology: child psychology in practice, v.4, eds. damon, w., sigel, i.e., & renninger, k.a. new york, ny: wiley. mofidi, f. (2008). ه رورش و آموزش برنام تان از شیپ دوره در پ ازمان .[pre-primary education program] دبس س مت .tehran, iran .[samt organization] س myers, r.g. (1995). the twelve who survive: strengthening programs of early childhood development in the third world. ypsilanti, mi: high/scope press. myers, r.g. (2004). in search of quality in programs of early childhood care and education [ecce]. paper commissioned for the efa global monitoring report (2005). the quality imperative. research and educational planning organization. (2016). ا ن هیپ ش یف foundation of technical] دان knowledge]. رکت ر و چاپ ش اي نش ي کتابھ [textbooks printing & publishing company] درس tehran, iran. sheraki ardakani, j., riahi nejad, h., & razaghi, h. (2013). وبات مجموعه وراي مص الي ش رورش و ٓاموزش ع پ ه راھنماي ي ھاي برنام assembly approvals of the supreme council of education (curriculum] درس guidelines)] ه .tehran, iran .[school printing] مدرسه چاپخان shonkoff, j.p., & phillips. d. (2000). from neurons to neighborhoods: the science of early child development. washington, dc: national academy press. sylva, k., & pugh. g. (2005). transforming the early years in england. oxford review of education 31,1: 11-27. talebzadeh nobarian, m. (2006). رورش و آموزش تان از شیپ دوره در پ ول دبس ه و اص principles] یزیر برنام and planning of pre-primary education]. 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(2008). تان شیپ آموزش ع( ازدبس ت تیوض نھادیپ ،ھا یموجود،کاس دو و ھا ش نیت تیس .[early childhood education: current situation, recommendations and existing policies] (ھا اس گ م و فرھن .1(1), 241–248 ,[journal of culture and science] عل final draft ijwc fall 2022 copy 124 international journal of the whole child 2022, vol. 7, no. 2 emerging professional let the games begin: why structured and unstructured play should be utilized in the classroom carleigh slatera auniversity of edinburgh carleigh slater is a doctoral education student at the university of edinburgh. she received her master's in teaching from seattle pacific university and taught as a primary teacher in the edmonds school district in washington state. her research currently focuses on the universities' role in preparing educators as safe guarders and child protection policy. personal interest also includes students' perception and opinions of education and inclusive holistic teaching styles. abstract the role of school has drastically changed over the past several decades. standards and added subjects lead to a challenging and narrow view of education. the consequences of added pressure undermine the role of play throughout k-12 school systems. research studies continue to describe play as vital for the success of children’s development and subsequent academic achievement, not only for younger children, but older children as well. this article explores how play and gamification utilized within all classrooms, including intermediate, middle school and high school classrooms, can provide a comprehensive approach to support both students’ academic content understanding and social and emotional development. play-based and gamebased learning reinforces intrinsic motivators which lead to children’s lifelong learning mindset and allows for students to take a more participatory role in their education. introduction research demonstrates play-based learning promotes and improves learning more than direct instruction for elementary students (wickstrom et al., 2019). in addition to improving social skills, play-based education indicates a positive influence on language abilities and problemsolving skills (ahmad et al., 2016). while these studies represent the pre-primary and primary grade levels, many arguments remain to support the need for pedagogical approaches for playbased learning in the upper educational classroom as well. educators and administrators argue against play-based learning for upper primary, intermediate, and secondary classrooms because of the amount of curriculum and standards required to be taught during a school day, and that play-based learning would not be an efficient use of limited 125 instructional time. most facets in the educational system view direct instruction as an easier and more concrete way to educate students, especially those in the upper grades or with students who need intensive support based on grade-level benchmarks. direct instruction is scripted, holds fewer variables for error, and is controlled by the teacher rather than the students, making direct instruction a preferred approach. through a review of the research, consideration of applicable theories, and an examination of relevant examples, the current discussion provides a rationale for utilizing play-based and game-based learning experiences in the intermediate and higher school grades. the goal for this discussion is to persuade educators and administrators to incorporate more play-based experiences, not only for children’s learning, but also as a means for authentic retrieval practices to assess learning instead of implementing paper/pencil assessments. direct instruction mindset with the focus departing from play beginning in second grade and all but disappearing by sixth grade, this issue of incorporating play in learning becomes an increasingly poignant topic among teachers and district leaders. the essentialist mindset of american school systems indicates a preference students receive and retrieve information via direct instruction and lecture (rosenshine, 2008). direct instruction and a lecture format suggest more control and consequently, provide the capacity to increase content in a particular class period (rosenshine, 2008). the many interpretations of the meaning of direct instruction could be argued extensively; however, it is agreed upon that this instructional framework does provide an outline for teachers to guide and support their students in an explicit manner (rosenshine, 2008). while this mindset systemically prevails, some educators continue to challenge and confront direct instruction with a rationale for unstructured play and structured gamification. importance of free play the rise in mental health issues in children between eight through twelve years can be marked by the limitations of play found in the classroom and in general (gray, 2011). play, referred to here, is the fostering of the creative imagination or free thought that is often allowed in primary grades and with preprimary-aged children (gray, 2011). while data show the need for free play and teaching social-emotional learning in the primary school day, minimal attention for older students, who suffer socially and emotionally during a critical intersection of their lives, continues. importantly, older children, navigating and developing into the individuals they want to become, need as well to be supported by allowing them to still act as children and receive time in their school day to play freely. across the country, educators continue struggling with increased content, regulations, and evolving expectations. past educators, teaching core content, represented expertise in the areas of their endorsements. currently, educators teach a variety of subjects (or sub-subjects). this pressure on educators is daunting and debilitating for many. in typical passive, direct, and prescriptive instruction settings, teachers remain challenged to reach their students in engaging ways as well as to maintain quality peer interaction and nurture proactive social norms. while many teachers realize direct instruction is not the most effective way to engage students; planning and maintaining interactive lessons become formidable. this current discussion 126 provides stakeholders with an opportunity to reimagine play as a means to differentiate learning, prioritize standards, and support the social-emotional needs of all students. play-based learning play-based learning refers to the concept that children learn and grow to understand the world around them through social experiences and active unstructured exploration. this type of learning can be solitary or social and can represent many forms. play-based learning is commonly associated with young children in the pre-primary to primary years. however, an understanding of play-based learning and the potential benefit are becoming more widely accepted as reflected through different forms as children age into intermediate and higher-level schooling. the origins of play-based learning can be traced significantly back to the works of froebel (1887) and piaget (1971). both theorists advocate for the child’s right to self-discovery (curtis, 2021). froebel, founder of the kindergarten, believed that children’s understanding of the world is developed through their personal experiences (curtis, 2021; froebel, 1887). developmental goals become realized through play when time is provided to young children to pursue their own self-interests (curtis, 2021). according to froebel (1887), an individual’s potential originates through a child’s range of interactions with people and materials. with extended exposure and greater freedom to explore, children realize enriched learning and enhanced development (curtis, 2021). the principles posited by jean piaget (1971) remain significant in the debate regarding play (babakr et al., 2019). piaget's research describing play led to his theory of the four stages of development: sensorimotor (birth to two years), pre-operational (two to seven years), concrete operational (seven to 11 years) and formal operational (12 years and beyond) (babakr et al., 2019). analogous to froebel's argument for free play, piaget supported young children’s need for both sensory and unstructured play (ahmad et al., 2016). however, significant to the current discussion, piaget furthered the importance of the idea of playing into a more concrete and advanced state with his final two phases for advancement of learning (gardner, 1993). in the final stages of development, piaget (ahmad et al., 2016; piaget & inhelder, 1969) argues that in the concrete operational and formal operational stages of development, learning departs from free exploration and, instead, bases understanding on past experiences learned in the sensory and pre-operational stages (ahmad et al., 2016; piaget & inhelder, 1969). in these final stages, learning becomes more dynamic and consistent (ahmad et al., 2016; mcleod, 2018). the individual child/player draws upon past experiences and knowledge and begins to synthesize input into output and generates thought (ahmad et al., 2016). it is in these final stages of development that children and adults employ their ability to access knowledge, skills, and concepts and apply them suitably in new situations (gardner, 1993; mcleod, 2018). if educators consider the research of froebel and piaget important for their own teaching and, consequently, for children’s learning, why is it then some teachers assume that suddenly at the age of approximately eight years old, children achieve peak development and knowledge and no longer require instructional strategies and interactive experiences through free play? why does the instruction shift drastically away from exploration and unstructured curiosity to that of direct 127 instruction? is it that the benefits of play no longer exist or is it that managing this type of interactive learning is overly challenging at this age? through a study of froebel and piaget, an understanding clearly demonstrates that children and adults alike grow through play; play provides beneficial skill development that left unnurtured or ignored could be detrimental both cognitively and socially (gray, 2011). if indeed, educators want to employ play into their classrooms, it is then beneficial to provide examples of such strategies. to begin to understand the overall ways in which to instruct and guide students of all ages through free play and game-based learning, it is critical to start with a reframed mindset of scaffolding and the meaning therein. reframing play as a scaffold scaffolding and differentiating for students become the supports in place to both initially help students learn the material and as well retain the knowledge gained (rosenshine, 2008). typically, scaffolding is a mixture of strategies and consists of traditional methods such as note taking, mnemonic devices and songs, pre-teaching, and visual aids like graphic organizers (agarwal & bain, 2019). traditionally, play is not included in the mixture of scaffolding strategies; yet, play is another means to scaffold. many teachers use a variety of scaffolding techniques in their teaching, but not play. however, to incorporate play into the class is as straightforward as providing any scaffold. for example, all effective instruction begins by describing each child’s stage of cognitive development. understanding how each child learns allows a teacher to meet individual needs with appropriate materials, relevant goals, and meaningful instruction. for primary-aged students, a quick free play activity is coloring or building with blocks. for older students this may be an advanced art design, independent problem-solving project, science experiment, or a free choice writing activity. these activities allow children to explore their own thoughts, play with ideas, and cement their ideas into tangible items. observing and/or conferring with students during free play provides teachers with insight into their understanding of the content as well as their world view. within all phases and ages, allowing children to discover ways in which to construct their thoughts and ideas is a key component of free-play and of cognitive development (piaget, 1971). by offering a constructive, unstructured learning environment, teachers create expectations without conformity or constraint, where students become playful with their own ideas. game-based learning gamification or game-based learning is the advanced play of children who represent a higher cognitive developmental stage (kapp, 2012). in game-based learning, children evidence the stage in which they exhibit the capacity to follow directions, rules, and social norms to complete a task (kapp, 2012). within an understanding of play, this task does not refer to a worksheet or an essay/project; instead, as a process, it is a focused and engaged game in which the person grows, 128 shows, and advances his or her knowledge on a topic through individual, peer, or group game styles. this interaction provides new knowledge or involves a review of an academic skill (kapp, 2012). some examples of such games include the modifications of classic games such as chutes and ladders, sorry, and jeopardy. board games of many types can be modified to include educational content such as math problems or reading comprehension questions simply by covering game board spaces with sticky notes or printing blank paper copies that can be distributed to students. these games implement multiple standards and strategies by using a commonly known board and set of directions and can be differentiated for challenge. not only do students engage academically, but as well socially; thereby, students advance their internalization of both moral convictions and logico-knowledge capacities (kamii et al., 2004). further, in order to incorporate a less prescriptive and more flexible and free-play dynamic, teachers may offer blank board game templates for older children (eight -14 years) to design/construct their own games and pass these games along to share with peers. in order to practice retrieval, typically, game-based learning is implemented with intermediate and middle school students (8-14 years). agarwal and bain (2019) explain retrieval practice is the act of remembering what you previously learned. this skill is completed in many ways, but the most effective involves intentional and engaging activities that target not only assessment, but further learning. the games may support prior learning and/or retrieval practice; importantly, games may also provide opportunities for children to learn and advance their knowledge on a new topic as well (agarwal & bain, 2019). these topics can be an array of standards found within math, science, social studies, and other subjects. for a quality game-based learning environment, students learn as much or more than in what would be called a direct instruction model (kapp, 2012). additionally, working as a small group nurtures students’ higher-order thinking as they collaborate to generate questions. games and retrieval some of the most applicable ways of implementation of retrieval practice are found in the form of a game or playful activity. educators may use some retrieval practices for remembering previous information with online platforms such as kahoot and gimkit or pen and paper “quiz games” conducted at the beginning, middle or end of a unit or lesson. educational content such as math facts, historical dates, or summaries of events within literature are only a few examples of what students can play to recall and/or further expand their learning when participating in retrieval activities. for example, a game comprised of planet information might include facts (how many moons circle planets in this solar system?), planet comparisons (identify the planets with the hottest and coldest temperatures and provide the range.), and for challenge, analyses questions (how long will it take an astronaut to travel between venus and neptune?). games targeting the ocean, pollution, economics, or finances will prove interesting and engaging for older students. importantly, the difference between a traditional assessment and the type of retrieval strategy discussed here in a “game” is all students outwardly participate and then, receive immediate feedback on their responses/interactions; therefore, the “game” not only provides immediate 129 feedback, but also supports students further learning in their content knowledge (agarwal & bain, 2019). critically, these “game-like” quizzes are not provided for a letter or point-based grade, but as an enjoyable learning strategy. there are no consequences; this is not a test. instead, there is student buy-in to play the game and student self-confidence improves as the capacity to experience fun during the game abounds (agarwal & bain, 2019). rationale for implementation educational standards and the ways in which children learn show drastic shifts through the last 10 to 20 years (gray, 2011). utilizing play, free-play, or gamification, not only enhances the social environment in the classroom, but also motivates students and maintains engagement in their learning (kapp, 2012). recent data describing learner-centered practices indicate that when students intentionally perform and apply meaning to subject matter, they can create coherent representational knowledge (mccombs, 2010). thus, learning can be employed within a system of retrieval practices where gamification can be swiftly adapted into a daily schedule for all intermediate to high school learners and classroom settings. for example, students can play quiz-like games to retrieve or remember information on any topic of current study. using entry tasks or exit tickets is a form of retrieval practice and can set the tone and expectations for the entire day. an entry task is any task that is given prior to new explicit instruction and is primarily used to gauge the students' understanding of previous material or a future topic. an exit ticket is a task taking place at the conclusion of instruction. at this time, the students’ new levels of understanding or reflections become challenged. both entry and exit tickets can take many forms but most consist of a brief question-answer format that interacts with the current study taking place. in traditional assessment, these tasks are quick and consist of open-ended questions or forced-choice answers. instead of traditional assessments, games provide students with interesting, engaging, and playful alternatives. games can be introduced at any point in the year and can be built into the daily schedule as entry and exit tasks or offered as needed for cognitive relief while still utilizing all class time. another key aspect introduced within learner-centered practice is the understanding that learners of all ages engage in different strategies and experience a range of constraints (mccombs, 2010). learning is most effective when experiences become differentiated across focus areas and develop using physical, intellectual, and social domains (mccombs, 2010). by combining different subjects and task completion methods, students become exposed to more content in a variety of ways. games, as a multidiscipline approach, help build metacognition and enable long-term retention. for example, students participating in a word game or song where they are clapping and following a beat can support syllable and word mapping within literacy learning. a combination of physical and verbal cues as well as melodical components solidify the learning by providing greater ease and longer retention. teachers’ expectations evolve and change with time; contributing to this transition is an acknowledgement of the holistic needs of children and the importance of planning for students’ differentiated learning (karl, 2017). for teachers to effectively use and implement game-based or play-based learning, they will need to create resources and develop a routine that balances an individual student’s learning within the curriculum and through meaningful connections (agarwal & bain, 2019). 130 barriers to play and game-based learning several barriers undermining teachers’ implementation of game-based or play-based learning do exist. for example, teachers do not always have the financial ability to purchase games, the time to research and create resources, or the supplies and knowledge needed to support this system of learning (karl, 2017). in other words, teachers who may want to use play-based and game-based learning in their classrooms often find it difficult to balance time and resources (agarwal & bain, 2019). recalling the earlier example describing students creating games for their peers, becomes notable. in order for a group of students to create a game, they must not only demonstrate accurate content knowledge, but will also need time and materials to develop the game. additionally, teachers who want to instruct through play and games may meet with difficulty if other teachers use traditional pedagogies such as tests and worksheets instead of play and games for evidence of learning (agarwal & bain, 2019). in the next section, examples and substitutions provide support for teachers’ implementation of play-based and gamification-based learning. transitioning to play-based and gamification-based learning while game-based learning opportunities suggest a profound impact on students’ intrinsic growth, there is evidence that game-playing can also initiate a positive influence on academic learning and retention as well (agarwal & bain, 2019). a system of gameor play-based learning can substitute as a formative assessment in monitoring students’ on-going progress. teachers employ overt and covert types of retrieval practices (finding out what students know and understand) (agarwal & bain, 2019). overt retrieval practice is a deliberate pre-learning or post-learning activity that can be observed by the teacher such as a quiz or test; in contrast, covert retrieval practice is not directly observable as it is metacognitive and is not outwardly expressed (agarwal & bain, 2019). for example, a covert activity does not evidence any student output (i.e., written, or verbal responses); students’ internal thoughts/metacognitive processes remain within each individual. this learning is an internalized mental process and not outwardly disclosed, but may serve as a stimulus for overt responses. the more traditional style of assessment is an overt test which is when a student is simply relaying information about a certain subject by way of writing, answering multiple choice questions or verbally explaining a topic. data demonstrates that students can learn as much from covert reflections as they would from overt responding (smith et al., 2013). in other words, the act of thinking about the information is just as critical to learning and retention as it is to produce it outwardly. therefore, playing a game as an individual or with peers is an example of covert learning and retrieval which represents the student’s internal thinking and overt response to that thinking. to implement playand game-based learning into a routine that does not overwhelm the stakeholders involved (i.e., the teacher and students), it is critical to substitute retrieval practices through play or games in place of formative assessments such as a quiz. play and game retrieval practices are simple and effective ways to solidify knowledge of students and serve as well as a formative assessment for teachers to gauge the effectiveness of student learning (agarwal & 131 bain, 2019). this process of playing takes place overtly or covertly, as pre-learning entry tasks, post-learning exit tickets, individual or group reflections, and student-teacher conferring sessions (agarwal & bain, 2019). for example, instead of creating, administering, collecting, and grading formative assessments in the form of quizzes or worksheets, a teacher quickly distinguishes which students understand the material through their retrieval play and game practices. it is simpler and highly time efficient to gauge the students' understanding through a brief consultation or observation than using traditional formative assessment types. a further advantage for this type of formative assessment, in contrast with traditional ways of monitoring student progress, is that it takes place in a low stakes' environment with a tone of inclusion and positivity (agarwal & bain, 2019). the positive outcomes attained from game and play-based retrieval practices afford educators knowledge and insight regarding students’ learning and the effectiveness of lessons (agarwal & bain, 2019). observing a quiz-like game such as kahoot or jeopardy quickly communicates to the teacher what areas of the subject knowledge remain lacking and additionally, what other learning gaps students may demonstrate. consequently, students become more motivated in their learning and remain longer engaged as a participant (agarwal & bain, 2019). vannsteenkiste, lens, and deci (2006) describe how students with intrinsic not extrinsic motivational goals could recall and retain more information about a related topic. when students participate in low stakes, highly engaging forms of retrieval practice and learner centered games and play, they are more likely to feel motivated to learn because, simply put, it is fun. this intrinsic motivator lends itself to a lifelong learning mindset and allows for the student to take a more participatory role in their education. conclusion the implementation of play-based and gamification learning as forms of instruction and assessment in classrooms positively supports the academic and developmental opportunities of all students, including intermediate, middle school and high school learners. it has been argued here that play, both structured and unstructured, clearly improves the learning ability and retention of content in contrast with other techniques and pedagogies. most teachers are knowledgeable about the research and studies conducted on play-based learning and understand the developmental positives that students show when games and play are implemented in the classroom; yet, many educators do not utilize such techniques. lack of support remains a primary obstacle for teachers implementing play-based and gamification-based learning (agarwal & bain, 2019). it is time teachers receive assistance in this regard, but are also encouraged to use play-based and gamification as a tool for retrieval practice. play and games become fun tools for helping teachers to identify student progress. not only do play and gamebased learning benefit students’ covert and overt learning abilities, but efficiently supplement and substitute for traditional formative assessments as well. 132 play and gamification support student development in a holistic way (karl, 2017). play supports physical activity as well as mental engagement. play is a learning alternative affording a more inclusive means to engage students no matter the age. furthermore, the teamwork associated with play and game-based learning allows students to grow in their social-emotional development and become not only adept at social cues, but also in their own perceptions of self (ahmad et al., 2016). in a society that pressures students to be socially and academically confident, it is critical educators support and foster students’ play-based learning opportunities. the benefits of intrinsic motivation provided through play and games remain vital for students’ engagement and overall development in both academic and social-emotional health (mccombs, 2010). play allows for several functions in creating and fostering healthy social and academic skills and is a key motivator for students. it follows that incorporating and implementing play and game-based learning into the classroom and educational settings is critical and beneficial to all students in all age groups. 133 references agarwal, p. k., & bain, p. m. 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(2019). does theory translate into practice? an observational study of current mathematics pedagogies in play-based kindergarten. early 134 childhood education journal, 47(3), 287-295. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-01800925-1 v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 83 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 steam learning doesn’t stem from worksheets: why stem learning starts beyond paper and pencil tasks rebecca horracea, brian stoneb auniversity of colorado, colorado springs; bnorthern arizona university rebecca horrace holds both her bachelor’s and master’s in elementary education from northern arizona university, along with her reading specialist and structured english immersion endorsements. she has taught elementary school, ran a homeschool cooperative program, and founded a 4-h club for military youth. she is currently a lecturer of literacy methods for the university of colorado, colorado springs. rebecca also contributes to the play in education newsletter, which is a quarterly publication that advocates for play in the classroom. she is currently serving as editor. she also homeschools her two children, from whom she gains all her playful inspiration. she is a play ambassador and expert contributor for the genius of play (a non-profit website devoted to play advocacy), which is a part of the toy association. rebecca is also finishing her doctorate in education with indiana university in the literacy, culture, and language education program with a research focus on the intersection of play and popular media with literacy components while utilizing technology to expand the definition of local by converting distant interactions into a common, shared space. it is rebecca’s passion to reignite the dwindling spark between play and education along her career journey. brian stone is an associate teaching professor at northern arizona university. he is the faculty lead for the professional development school program and the museum of northern arizona partnership program at nau. he received his doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a content concentration in science and math education. he also holds two master’s degrees, one in elementary education, and another in world war ii studies. he teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses. dr. stone specializes in science education, but also teaches methods courses in social studies, math, literacy, and assessment. while at nau, dr. stone has led multiple study abroad trips all around the world to study multiage education and integrated curriculum. he has taken students to new zealand, australia, the united kingdom, ireland, germany, austria, switzerland, and france. dr. stone also serves as the editor for the steam section of the international journal of the whole child. he is a play ambassador and recurring expert contributor for the genius of play (a non-profit website devoted to play advocacy), which is a part of the toy association. dr. stone has many areas of expertise and interests including scientific inquiry, play, integrated curriculum, and multiage education. prior to teaching in higher education, dr. stone served as a 4th, 5th, and 6th grade multiage teacher. he was the lead multiage teacher in his school and helped other multiage teachers in their implementation of multiage strategies in the classroom. he also works as an educational consultant, traveling all 84 over the united states and around the world helping schools with multiage programs. dr. stone has authored many peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters in the aforementioned areas. abstract the purpose of this article is to critically examine the use of worksheets in stem classrooms from a whole-child, constructivist perspective. teachers continue to rely on worksheets for stem lessons, rather than engaging children in experiential learning practices. the authors argue that teachers must reexamine the role of worksheets in their classrooms and foster activities that deepen student understandings, cater to development, provide for differentiation, and provide engaging real-world/relevant experiences. with a focus on stem education, the authors provide appropriate child-centered practices for educators to utilize as an alternative to worksheets. some suggestions include inquiry-based activities that foster student interests, integrated real-world activities, authentic assessments, centers, projects, and play in stem. keywords: stem, play, worksheets introduction worksheets are commonly used in american classrooms to provide individual practice with specific skills, to supplement activities, and to assess student knowledge. teachers often rely and depend on worksheets as an instructional tool, but rarely stop to question if the practice itself is a worthwhile endeavor. in other words, worksheets are a fully accepted practice and an expectation for most classrooms, but any critical analysis of worksheets and their dominant usage in education is rare. stem environments are not immune to the overreliance on worksheets as children endlessly complete menial math and science tasks on paper. from a child-centered, whole-child, and constructivist perspective, this dominant practice needs to be critically reexamined. worksheets often take the place of or reduce experiential learning activities, where children can build stronger, longer-lasting conceptual understandings. worksheets also make differentiation across a variety of developmental levels and a range of understandings nearly impossible as they tend to push a singular objective in a standardized manner, not capturing the range and diversity of student interests and abilities. furthermore, worksheets cater to obsolete societal skills that prioritize compliance, convergent thinking, superficial memorizations, and low-level mechanical skills. therefore, it is the purpose of this paper to critically examine worksheets (especially in stem environments), to provide a counter argument for their commonly accepted benefits, and to offer alternative suggestions for activities that cater to different student interests, developmental levels, and provide more meaningful/relevant experiences for children. yildirim (2011) explains, “worksheets are materials by which students are given transaction steps regarding what they are supposed to learn” (p. 45), where students fill in a box or answer a question based on specific evaluation criteria. often, these steps are prescribed and standardized despite the plethora of evidence to suggest students have a substantial range of abilities and understandings. many worksheets, perhaps most, fall into the busywork or “busy sheet” category where students complete “low-level recall, filling in blanks with words, choosing from multiple choice questions, labeling things or work that has no educational value at all” (gonzales, 2018, 85 para. 11). when evaluating stem curriculum, educators need to place an emphasis on students’ learning, inquiry, and application of knowledge, as well as their engagement, which are all supported by active involvement and exploration, rather than the passive compliance of filling out worksheets. educators should adopt a critical lens when considering worksheets as an instructional tool, and at the forefront, teachers need to account for the continuum of child development in their classrooms. the range of academic abilities in a typical public-school classroom can span five or more grade levels (bondie et al., 2019; hertberg-davis & brighton, 2006), yet a worksheet provides a one-size fits all approach (latz et al., 2008), covering only the grade-level curriculum, and cannot accommodate all learners (segar, 2021). attempting to use a singular tool, such as a worksheet, to drive instruction and assess student understanding is inappropriate and often out of alignment with the range and diversity of human intelligence represented in the typical classroom. for example, using a multiplication worksheet after a lesson on multiplication can cause high levels of frustration for students who are still struggling to understand addition. furthermore, students who have already mastered multiplication and who are ready to learn more advanced concepts need additional opportunities. worksheets, along with their prescribed standardized expectations and learning outcomes, are inappropriate practices to support student learning and engagement, and do not represent authentic assessments of student learning. worksheet usage in the classroom “if they can do the worksheet, they don’t need it. if they can’t, it won’t help them.” –marilyn adams the above quote from marilyn adams, a cognitive and developmental psychologist, presents a profound and substantial truth. if students can easily complete the worksheet, then it is indeed a “time-filler.” yet, for those children struggling to complete the worksheet, any length of time and effort ends up being in vain as the worksheet will not help with their understanding or knowledge retention in any way. a worksheet can be seen as a sheet in which students regurgitate a specific set of information, not a place where they showcase evidence of their understandings of a concept or a place where they build or apply critical thinking skills. problem solving and critical thinking are pillars of the expertise needed to thrive in stem classrooms and future careers. students learn best through active exploration as they engage in meaningful content that extends their knowledge and excites their desire to learn (parker et al., 2022). yet, segar (2021) points out, “[worksheets] do not ignite a passion for learning” (para. 19). in fact, they often preclude interest-based explorations and limit intrinsic motivation as the only teaching method used is based on writing, lecturing, and filling out a corresponding sheet (yildirim, 2011). furthermore, “as worksheets tend to impose the theories on the students, this may affect the process of the students’ knowledge construction” (choo et al., 2011, p. 525), inhibiting students from critically thinking and engaging with content beyond surface level memorizations. within a “worksheet space” there is a continuum of possibilities, some more engaging than others. on one end of the spectrum, “busysheets” represent work that has little educational value 86 and accomplishes the goal of filling time. on the other end of the spectrum, more engaging possibilities include graphic organizers, data collection tools, and planning webs. these options can be viewed as “powersheets” which directly support learning and may support other tasks as well (gonzales, 2018). these “powersheets'' are often open-ended, supplement more robust activities like science experiments, and provide opportunities for differentiation and student inquiry. however, educators should use caution because the worksheet can be a hindrance to genuine learning, and typically there is a more engaging way to complete an activity than relying on any type of paper and pencil task, even if it is open-ended. with an ever-changing and constantly challenging landscape in our society, children are often exposed to increased amounts of stressors (gray et al., in press). coupling life stress with school stress creates a very unhealthy imbalance for children, and these school stressors can occur when inappropriate teaching methods are practiced. as burts et al. (1990) defined “examples of inappropriate practices are: rote-learning; abstract paper-and-pencil activities; and direct teaching of discrete skills, often presented to large groups of children” (p. 408). these practices can cause further stress regarding timely completion and accuracy as students focus heavily on “fitting in the box” as opposed to feeling confident in thinking divergently and operating through intrinsic motivation. children need to have the opportunity to make their own decisions, feel valued and heard, and participate in their education as they develop agency. “if children are to grow up welladjusted, they need ever-increasing opportunities for independent activity, including self-directed play and meaningful contributions to family and community life, which are signs that they are trusted, responsible, and capable” (gray et al., in press). worksheets, especially when they dominate classroom time and then go home as homework, create undue stress, push extrinsic motivators, and do not even lead to any sort of meaningful boost in achievement (lee, 2014). reevaluating worksheets as a stem instructional tool the consistent use of worksheets in stem environments creates an effect where students feel they must conform to specific answers in order to be “right” where any other response is viewed as “wrong.” furthermore, students often feel uncomfortable with more open-ended explorations in science, and “are often presented with highly detailed laboratory instructions that have been carefully designed and tested to produce a desired outcome” (nunes et al., 2022). while these scripted procedures can have some value, they often do not represent true scientific exploration of unknown phenomena (nunes et al., 2022). worksheets contribute to this dominant culture of scripted procedures in stem subjects, while conditioning children to adhere to the script and motivating them to conform for a grade. students come to realize the ultimate goal–to provide the correct answer (anderson, 1981; slavin, 1983). if they have the right answer, students tend not to care “why and how the answers were generated” (wu & huang, 2007, p. 745), which is the exact opposite goal of stem education, where innovators, thinkers, collaborators, creators, and inventors need to understand the “why” and “how” as they develop into future astrophysicists, coders, architects, and roller coaster designers. in worksheet-heavy stem environments, students become reliant on their teachers to provide scripted procedures and the answers at the end. this can, in turn, affect their ability to develop a personal identity as a scientist, mathematician, or engineer, for example (stone, 2022). instead, students view the teacher as the expert (e.g., the scientist) and they await their instructions, rather 87 than taking ownership of their learning and hindering their agency to take on the role of scientist. these types of scripted explorations that are aided by worksheets often put children in a box and are antithetical to real-world stem explorations that require problem-solving skills, critical thinking, innovation, and a willingness to step into the unknown. instead, as teachers seek to inspire inventors and creators, children need to know that each trial or failure is part of the path to their success. by taking away the predetermined, correct answer sheet, educators make room for students to engage in conversation with one another, discuss outcomes, question each other, and self-assess to become “aware of their learning” (wu & huang, 2007, p. 740). allowing for instructional flexibility apart from worksheets can open student-initiated dialogue that perhaps deviates from the main topic, but ventures into a whole new area of educational content, one that would not have been possible with a strict adherence to completing the worksheet. no longer should students be expected to passively fill out worksheets (broadbent, 2021; browne, 2020), but rather they can actively participate in experiential learning opportunities ignited by real-time interactions and hands-on engagement (segar, 2021). hartini et al. (2020) used worksheets for stem learning and activities as part of a study to train students’ critical learning and identified eight critical thinking indicators including: giving explanations, formulating questions, formulating answers, reporting experiment results, analyzing experiment results, concluding investigation results, concluding calculation results, and deciding actions. the results concluded seven out of eight critical thinking indicators of students’ evaluation were measured as only “sufficient.” the goal is for students to be strong in the areas of critical thinking, creativity, and exploration, not just “sufficient” and able to pass a test or complete a worksheet; rather they should be capable of questioning, reasoning, and evaluating on their own. when relying on pre-scripted worksheets, there is very minimal flexibility that can occur within teaching strategies and activities as “the implementation of lesson plans cannot be separated from the usage of the student worksheets” (hartini et al, 2020, p. 4), which can lead to issues with student comprehension and concept development if there is no flexibility to deviate away from “the script.” considering the surface-level, memorized information worksheets foster (stone, 2020), they bring little value for student assessment. it should be noted that worksheets are not a form of authentic assessment (frey et al., 2012) due to their restrictive nature in predetermined response structure. when looking for authentic student assessments, it is vital to consider the experiential aspect and evaluate how students are involved in showcasing their understanding by analyzing key components such as the following questions: ● are students able to “do” the subject? ● are students replicating or operating in real-world contexts? ● are students able to efficiently and effectively use a repertoire of knowledge and skills to negotiate complex tasks? ● are students receiving ample feedback? ● are students able to showcase their product/result with their peers or community members? 88 when designing authentic assessments for stem, educators must rethink their usage of sterile, disconnected, inauthentic tools like worksheets. instead, they must design meaningful, relevant, performance-based activities that are situated in real-world contexts where students must problem-solve, actively apply their knowledge, and embrace uncertainty. for example, imagine a student conducting an experiment on several plants to determine what environmental elements help them grow and thrive the best. perhaps another student codes a new ending for their favorite video game. a budding engineer, who loves thrill rides, creates a roller coaster from a building system of interlocking rods, connectors, blocks, gears, and wheels, and then submits their idea to a theme park creativity submission contest. another example is the mathematician who loves space and develops a safe path for a satellite to orbit, all as part of their stem activities in the classroom. rather than answering “true” or “false” on a worksheet, these students experience what is “true” and “false” as they interact with concepts and develop a deep understanding of their content matter, hyper-engaged in their learning. moving toward a constructivist lens stem curriculum should align with a constructivist approach in which learners are engaged in and construct their own meaningful knowledge through play, inquiry, and exploration. the focus should be on the child (or learner); where once seen as passive, constructivism appreciates a child’s “active application of ideas to problems” (ertmer & newby, 1993, p. 62). as wilson (2018) explains, “a typical example of constructivist instruction presents a complex problem or challenge within a resource-rich environment, with learners working together and assuming responsibility for activities and decisions, and teachers in a support role” (p. 61) mentoring their learners as the students take charge and collaboratively work through real-world problems, as they naturally occur. further supporting the move away from dry, teacher-centered instruction (i.e., classrooms that rely heavily on worksheets) to fostering actively engaged learners, the national science teaching association (2018) recommends that teachers “[nurture] the wonder, enthusiasm, and curiosity of children by creating an environment” that fosters “exploration and discovery,” and one that actively engages children in their own investigations (declarations, para. 6). furthermore, nsta recommends “[considering] development and learning…while [providing] authentic formative… assessments” (declarations, para. 2). drawing from wilson’s (2018) extensive look into specific attributes that constitute constructivist learning/teaching, three basic precepts include: ● learning is an active process of meaning-making gained in and through our experience and interactions with the world. ● learning opportunities arise as people encounter cognitive conflict or challenge, and through naturally occurring as well as planned problem-solving activities. ● learning is a social activity involving collaboration, negotiation, and participation in authentic practices of communities. (p. 61) considering the nature and possibilities of child-led stem explorations, it is vital to align curriculum to the pillar of constructivism in order to enhance children’s creative avenues as they draw on their previous knowledge to construct new knowledge because “to repress interest is to 89 substitute the adult for the child, and so to weaken intellectual curiosity and alertness, to suppress initiative, and to deaden interest” (dewey, 1897, p. 79). methods for teaching stem considering “students learn best when they are actively engaged in their learning through direct experience, reflective thinking, and social interactions” (mchenry et al., 2017, p. 60), it is evident worksheets do not support these learning goals since they are passive in nature, prescriptive, and do not accommodate diverse learners. the national science teaching association (2018) recommends three-dimensional teaching that includes the following attributes: ● an educational environment that supports “creative and in-depth learning,” and opportunities to engage in stem through real-world, relevant applications that are driven by student interest. ● students engage in science and engineering practices over time while developing conceptual understandings and move from curiosity to interest to reason (moulding, bybee, & paulson, 2015). students become scientists “as they plan and carry out investigations, solve problems, create models, analyze and interpret data, construct explanations, and design solutions.” ● adequate time for active science investigations that involve the processes of science. (paras. 6-9) it is difficult to reconcile traditional, passive tasks like worksheets with the nsta recommendations for dynamic, three-dimensional teaching methods. according to the engineering in education branch of the museum of science (2020), america’s future workforce will be significantly impacted by a “pace of innovation [that] is so rapid that new technologies of today may be obsolete in just a few years,” while “65 percent of the jobs that today’s k-6 children will hold haven’t even been invented yet” (para. 1). their recommendation is for instruction to be rooted in the engineering design process that encourages children to be “problem solvers, critical thinkers, communicators and collaborators” (eie, 2020, para. 4). worksheets could certainly be used to supplement active practices and investigations, but too often they are used to replace those activities. furthermore, the worksheet was designed to reinforce the skills of yesterday including rote memorizations, simple transfers of information, and encouraging isolated, discrete learning outcomes that are often disconnected from any meaningful contexts. as the eie (2020) noted, the skills of tomorrow will require students to think beyond these simplistic time killing tasks. students must learn to problem-solve and innovate in a complex, interconnected world. the worksheet often teaches the student that there is one right answer, that there is always a scripted procedure (designed by someone else), and that the goal/motivation is a grade rather than the actual learning process. even in the realm of mathematics, which overall has been a long-standing holdout in the move towards a more progressive, child-centered approach, researchers found that experiential learning as related to real-world, relevant topics positively impacted student attitudes towards math and boosted their academic achievement (uyen et al., 2022). larbi and mavis (2016) suggest that “typical mathematics instruction… consists of listening to teacher explanations, watching him 90 solve problems on the chalkboard using a mathematics textbook, and working alone to solve problems on worksheets” (p. 54). however, in their study, they found that the use of manipulatives significantly improved students’ mathematical thinking and performance (larbi & mavis, 2016). in addition, the national council of teachers of mathematics (n.d.) suggests that educators of “stem education within the mathematics program, look for opportunities to integrate science, technology, and engineering in meaningful ways as students tackle problems involving mathematics in relevant settings” (para. 16). therefore, when considering ways to teach experiential stem activities, it is important to consider pedagogical practices that support inquiry, the whole-child, development, and relevant, active projects. inquiry and interest-based explorations should be a guiding force in stem investigations. also, meaningfully integrated, real-world, relevant contexts should be used as the setting for stem activities. teachers should emphasize problem-solving skills, social interaction and collaboration, concrete representations to build conceptual understandings, critical thinking, and research skills. the authors’ recommendation is for educators to move away from worksheets entirely to a dynamic, three-dimensional teaching approach. strategies like choicebased centers, student-led projects (i.e., project approach), problem-based learning, and small group instruction can be very effective to accomplish these goals. as schmidt et al. (2011) agreed, “students [involved in these strategies] are more independent learners and take more personal responsibility for their learning” due to the nature of their openended, project-based learning opportunities. these strategies deemphasize obtaining the correct answer and focus on the students’ learning process. students are involved in the entirety of their learning from the beginning, as they “are required to come up with tentative theories to explain the phenomena presented in the problem” (choo et al., 2011, p. 524), work through their theories, testing and analyzing, and then forming their conclusions. play in stem–a perfect pairing just as children develop their literacy understanding from birth, children also form their understanding of stem concepts from an early age (kennedy & tunnicliff, 2022), and since children’s key mode for gathering knowledge is through exploration of their world, it is natural to incorporate play into stem activities. educators should encourage children to tinker with toys versus providing an endless parade of paper and pencil tasks. a recent fad that is catching on in education programs is to use “educational toys” that push learning (with specific objectives) through play. educators might use terms such as “child’s work” and “tools” rather than play and toys (chudacoff, 2007). this practice is especially prevalent in stem, but it is important that educators (and parents) hold on to the true value of play (authentic, self-chosen, self-directed) because this type of thinking is the exact opposite of what child-led play truly entails. as almqvist (1994) noted, children do not say “now i’ll improve my thinking by means of constructional play.” or “now i’ll play something that can develop my creativity.” they just play, and usually they do not do one instead of the other. rather, they say, “let’s take all the blocks and pretend we build the highest house in the world.” (p. 65) 91 children do not critically examine how they play; they just play. furthermore, as gray et al. (in press) and most parents and educators can agree, “play is a direct source of children’s happiness,” so it makes sense to pair their favorite pastime with the very hands-on, engaging curricula of stem. as opposed to utilizing worksheets for stem instruction, educators can prioritize authentic play as a mode for student learning because “through constructive play, children explore science in action, use mathematics through counting and comparing sizes and shapes, apply their imagination and curiosity by creatively exploring the world around them, and cooperate and communicate their understandings of their own environment” (kennedy and tunnicliffe, 2022, p. 6). for example, students demonstrate their understanding as they play with magnetism, understanding when and how to apply their knowledge to construct bridges using magnetic tiles to hold specific weights, calculating measurements along the way. ample exploratory activities and play opportunities are important for children as “they have chosen to pursue an activity for a reason, and typically the experience is interesting or pleasurable” (stone, 2016, p. 6). these experiences create meaning for the child to continue exploring and analyzing, as opposed to filling in pre-scripted worksheets that bear little importance for the child. furthermore, children’s play is their way to work through their problems and negotiate their feelings and surroundings. therefore, pairing play and stem not only “promotes comprehension, but it also provides opportunities for children to become socially, physically, emotionally, and even culturally involved” (stone, 2016, p. 1). play in stem curriculum allows children to construct and interact as they naturally “learn by making sense out of the world” (wilson, 2018, p. 61). when children engage in playful learning, they play what they know as they “draw upon their imaginations and their lived experiences and to tap into their passions and expertise” (wohlwend, 2011, pp. 2-3). a child who loves airplanes may want to learn about forces and tinker with the aerodynamics of paper airplane construction, while a child fascinated by chemistry may want to develop their own unique slime concoction. in both examples, the educator does not need to force their knowledge onto a pre-scripted sheet of paper, but rather foster the organic, natural process of inquiry through experimentation. as stone (2016) agrees, “play in science is a necessary and beneficial element of childhood, and it should be treated as such” (p. 9), which is why educators should consider play over worksheets for authentic, engaging, experiential stem teaching practices. granting students the freedom and independence to follow their inquiries and choose their activities (at least to some extent), which includes how they will play their way through their learning, is a vital benefit to our children’s whole-self and well-being. children need to know they have ownership in what they learn and how they learn because “a primary cause of the rise in mental disorders is a decline over decades in opportunities for children and teens to play, roam, and engage in other activities independent of direct oversight and control by adults” (gray et al., in press). allowing our students to propose a stem interest and then providing them the reins to follow through with corresponding activities or experiments, as opposed to teacherdriven worksheets, not only promotes their stem education foundation, but also their self-worth and agency. all the key components and “elements for developing stem capital and promoting active citizenship, and a scientifically literate workforce, begin with young children and revolve around play” (kennedy & tunnicliff, 2022, p. 23). with continued support from parents and 92 educators, when children are encouraged to imaginatively play, they can build a solid stem foundation (horrace, 2021). conclusion worksheets have, over the decades, become a dominant instructional practice in american schools. a typical public school uses on average about 2,000 sheets of paper per day, and with over 100,000 schools in the united states, it is estimated that schools are consuming about 32 billion sheets of paper per year (mchugh, 2022). not only does this represent an environmental catastrophe, but educators must re-examine whether worksheets are worth the time and material resources. as stem education continues to move in the direction of an integrated, context-rich, child-centered, inquiry-based, and three-dimensional direction, classroom practice needs to evolve as well. educators need to reconsider their usage of worksheets and move toward wellplanned activities that foster student interest, active investigations, and relevant experience. the drawbacks of worksheets are evident, but educators rarely critique the practice. children cannot afford to waste significant time on empty instructional tools that support passive learning. rather, teachers should focus 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(2018). constructivism, for active authentic learning. in r. a. reiser & j. v. dempsey (eds.), trends and issues in instructional design and technology (4th ed.), (pp. 60-67). new york, ny: pearson education. 95 wohlwend, k. e. (2011). playing their way into literacies: reading, writing, and belonging in the early childhood classroom. teachers college press. wu, h., & huang, y. (2007). ninth-grade student engagement in teacher-centered and studentcentered technology-enhanced learning environments. science education, 91(5), 727749. yildirim, n., kurt, s., & ayas, a. (2011). the effect of the worksheets on students’ achievement in chemical equilibrium. journal of turkish science education, 8(3), 44-58. microsoft word ijwc fall 2017.docx 1 introduction as readers explore the fall 2017 publication of the international journal of the whole child, they quickly realize issues related to best practices represent a global context. whether you are a teacher in tanzania, a practitioner in the united states, or an early childhood educator in saudi arabia, teachers share the desire to maximize learning experiences on behalf of their children. in order to achieve holistic instruction and transformative thinking, we, as their teachers, read and reflect to enrich our intellect, expand and innovate our instruction, and heighten our awareness to dignify what it truly means to be a child; we acknowledge the culture of childhood. in this issue, readers consider the roles of the teacher as well as examine the relationship between instructional alternatives and transformative thinking. in order to achieve this goal, ijwc provides readers with different publication venues. initially, ijwc describes the relationship between educational and theoretical underpinnings and holistic and appropriate practices. next, pictures for reflection underscores the importance of following through with holistic learning for, not only our young children, but as well for our elementary and adolescent learners. new to our spring 2017 issue, the subsequent section, entitled “tech talk,” identifies several technologies that support students with disabilities. finally, in etc., a straightforward argument is made for the importance of children’s sand play. with respect to the etc. section, readers ask, “why this most unusual title for this section?” thank you for this question. the answer is that one of the ijwc goals is not to be a typical journal targeting a particular audience. ijwc intends to provide relevance for a range of readers and to do so in a variety of publication alternatives. the etc. section highlights what developmentally appropriate theory looks and sounds like in the real world. this section may include articles, newsletters, teachers’ lesson plans, video clips, teacher-made brochures or other materials to support practitioners in their classrooms. articles in the first article, “gender equity in diverse curriculum content: views from primary teachers in tanzania,” jessica essary and james hoot believe baseline research describing teacher-beliefs is critical in determining how existing perspectives may influence how gender inequities impact a learner’s social capitol in a particular context. despite increased government efforts on the african continent to prioritize quality education, of the nine out of 10 children who begin primary school, only six will complete their studies and of this number, only three children will achieve mastery in literacy and numeracy skills. in an effort to improve not merely the numbers of children attending school, but as well the quality of instruction, this manuscript provides data identifying tanzanian teachers’ perceptions of the value of boys and girls studying particular subject matter. the authors believe in order to create gender responsive curriculum, it is not merely teacher training that improves gender equitable practices, but as well it is 2 critical to acknowledge individual teachers’ beliefs, experiences, and backgrounds. the importance of introducing teachers’ voices to inform government policy is described. this study identifies how teachers representing a range of geographic locations, ses frameworks, and ethnic diversity, provide insight and reflection regarding their own beliefs associated with subject matter and gender equity. in the second article, “teachers’ perspectives on language assessment and effective strategies for young english language learners in florida,” tunde szecsi, tara lashley, sydney nelson and jill sherman frame an argument for the critical importance of teachers attaining language assessment literacy. with increased school focus on students’ secondary language, the authors describe how language strategies can be productive only when language teachers are “knowledgeable about the assessment, the process of implementation, interpretation of assessment data, and most importantly, the use of these results for further improving education. the authors report their findings describing elementary school teachers’ views about the english language learners’ (ells’) program placement assessment, and progress assessment. interview data explored teachers’ perspectives on the effectiveness of these assessments and the connection between language assessment and curricular decisions. classroom observations were also conducted to gain insight into language strategies that teacher-participants used to promote more effective teaching and learning for ells. implications for teachers, teacher educators and school district personnel are described. in the third article, “teaching sustainable practices as part of a holistic education in the saudi context,” ahlam alghamdi, james ernest, and fatimah hafiz discuss how experiences with sand and water can be used to support sustainable environments in saudi arabia. building on the potential of storytelling as an effective instructional strategy, authors describe how children learn the importance of regarding their local environment and discover the relevance of conserving natural resources as an ethical responsibility for their country’s future. this article provides readers with a discussion of how quality early childhood practices can support children’s critical and transformative thinking. further, despite the young age of the children, authors illustrate how informed educators can deepen children’s regard for their responsibility for time and place in history. etc. in the article, “the nitty gritty of sand play,” rebecca giles and karyn tunks strongly argue for educators revisiting the potential value of allowing children access to sand as a medium for learning and development. they respond to the common complaints when including sand play (“sand is messy,” and “sand play leads to misbehavior”,) by clarifying several proactive strategies for organization and cleanup. most importantly, they describe how, as children play in the sand, they naturally integrate and learn about science, mathematics, and language. children communicate, negotiate, and share; sand play becomes powerful instructional alternative for academic learning, developmental support, and individual growth. after reading this article, readers will be willing and ready to bring sand into the in-and-outdoor classrooms. 3 tech talk william burgess, in “today’s classroom accessibility,” discusses current software in order for educators to most appropriately connect students with disabilities with effective technologies. he reminds readers that before considering technology as an instructional alternative, it is critical to respect all students within any population of disability as unique and individual. this means, regardless of impairment, educators take the time to know their students as individuals with particular needs and interests. he provides readers with numerous examples of how technology can support learning for different disabilities. further, he describes how both typical and atypical students may benefit. this content serves as a platform to motivate and facilitate educators as they seek ways to support their diverse community of learners. pictures for reflection take a look at an older child who is thoroughly enjoying group play and a team sport, on page 41. microsoft word ijwc spring 2018.docx 4 international journal of the whole child 2018, vol. 3, no. 1 childrearing experiences in cross-national families yajuan xiangª, tori colsonb auniversity of southern indiana buniversity of southern indiana dr. yajuan xiang is an assistant professor of early childhood education at the university of southern indiana. she received her ph.d from the state university of new york at buffalo. her research interests include multicultural family and early learning and early dual language and literacy learning. dr. tori colson is an assistant professor of education at the university of southern indiana. her research interests include teacher preparation, efficacy, and assessment. abstract cross-national family is an understudied group. in the past, research on this group tended to focus on the challenges confronted by the couples in marital conflicts impacted by the unique stressors within the family including: place of residence, disparate language and cultural differences, societal attitudes, and extended families and friends. a relatively small proportion of the literature focused on multicultural parenting experiences which is recognized as a turning point for increasing conflicts within couples. through surveys and selected interviews, this qualitative study provides insightful narrative descriptions to further understand how the unique stressors might impact childrearing experiences. results describe parents’ perceptions on their cross-national marriages and multicultural parenting experiences. keywords: childrearing; multicultural parenting; cross-national family; international marriage; cultural impact; language; place of residence; societal attitudes; extended family introduction typically, a cross-national couple is a married pair who has different countries of origin. consequently, the couple is often ethnically, culturally, and racially different. they may possess different nationalities and citizenships as well as share different fundamental cultural values and norms. recent demographic data indicate a trend of diversified family structures in the united states (u.s.) (bikel & mandarano, 2012). although data pertaining to cross-national marriages are still not available, in 2015, a total of 1,051,031 persons became legal permanent residents of the u.s. of these, 265,367 (25.2%) gained their residence as a spouse of an american citizen (baugh & witsman, 2017). this number portrays an image of cross-national marriage in the u.s. since such marriages were often subsumed in discussions of other types of intermarriages including interracial, interethnic, and intercultural (cottrell, 1990; lee & fernandez, 1998; seto & cavallaro, 2007), cross-national couples and their families are not adequately represented in the research literature (adams, 2004; crippen & brew, 2013). distinguishing this 5 population from general intermarital studies is challenging, but necessary to understand the unique features of such a group. to date, research studies suggest cross-national couples faced unique stressors due to the nature of their marriages. seto and cavallaro’s (2007) described primary stressors such as: gaining legal status for foreign spouses, coping with limited linguistic acquisition of foreign spouses, maintaining family ties in both countries, and responding to societal reactions and cultural complexities within couples. other findings identify further challenges as lacking of social support, adjusting to the new culture, and reframing cultural differences within couples, especially for cross-cultural parenthood (baltas & steptoe, 2000; bustamante, nelson, henriksen, & monakes, 2011; crippen & brew, 2007; kuramoto, koide, yoshida, & ogawa, 2017). this research trend tended to focus on the challenges confronted by couples in potential marital conflicts. minimal literature studies have explored opportunities in such families and lack an emphasis beyond the dyadic couple system (bhugun, 2017; bustamante et al., 2011; crippen & brew, 2007; djurdjevic & roca girona, 2016). generating from a balanced perspective, the current study, therefore, aims to examine the impact of traditionally recognized stressors among cross-national families on their childrearing experiences. to provide clarity for readers, the authors define major terms in table 1 commonly used in this study. the definitions were developed specifically for the current study; the terms may be used differently in other research literature. table 1: major term definition term definition intercultural couple a heterosexual married pair who are from two different cultural backgrounds. country of origin the country of residence in which a person was born and raised. cross-national/international marriage a heterosexual marriage between people from two different countries of origin. cross-national couple a heterosexual married pair who are from two different countries of origin. cross-national family a cross-national couple and their biological child/ren in a single household. foreign-born spouse a member of a cross-national couple who currently resides in a country other than one’s country of origin. native-born spouse a member of a cross-national couple who currently resides in one’s own country of origin literature review in many cases, cross-national couples have to determine a place to live. depending on which country the couple decides to reside, at least one spouse must learn how to function in a foreign country. people who live abroad were found to experience a range of negative emotions, such as: social isolation, inadequacy, a feeling of being caught between two cultures, etc. (adams, 2004; molina, estrada, & burnett, 2004; sinha, 1998; wieling, 2003). therefore, foreign-born spouses were often restricted in the amount of social support received, experienced distress, and may have felt inadequate to fulfil parental roles, as they were challenged to learn and build a new supporting system in a different country (imamura, 1990). kuramoto et al. (2017) pointed out that the power of residence hindered foreign-born spouses from obtaining educational resources to teach their heritage culture and language to children and granted the native-born spouse more power within the relationship. they have less need to move to their spouses’ 6 home countries, change habitual ways, and acculturate into the culture of their spouses (kim & mcgoldrick, 1998; rosenblatt, 2009; wieling, 2003). unfortunately, the unequal power distributions within couples may worsen the marital relationship and further complicate childrearing in the long run (romano, 2008). language, as the primary mechanism by which people share meaning, has a significant impact on crossnational couples. couple relationships and parenting experiences include the language choice within couple communication and with children, one’s language proficiency of their spouse’s first language, and the language choice in the larger community. with limited language proficiency, foreign-born spouses reported difficulties in socializing, limited career options, adjustment issues related to a new culture, and challenges in raising children (ali, 2008; romano, 2008; turney & kao, 2009; yaman, mesman, van ijzendoorn, & bakermans-kranenburg, 2010). specifically, parents had difficulties helping with children’s homework, communicating with teachers, engaging in school activities, and communicating with spouse and children (kuramoto et al., 2017). social attitudes towards cross-national couples were often made on the basis of the cultural, racial, age, religion, and social economic status differences within couples. the distance between the countries of origin within the couples, fluency of shared language, historical relationships between the two countries, and perceptions of gender and gender role in one society were all factors impacting the social attitudes towards a cross-national marriage (bystydzienski, 2011; kalmijn, 1998; yang & lu, 2010). children’s appearance and mixed heritage were often targeted in school (kuramoto et al., 2017). even though marriage itself is primarily a personal affair, reactions from community and society could influence how well cross-national couples and their children might be accepted by their respective communities (breger & hill, 1998), and could trigger marital conflicts by emphasizing the differences within couples (bustamante et al., 2011; bystydzienski, 2011). moreover, attitudes and reactions from extended families and friends of cross-national couples and their children can be more severe because of the closeness of the relationships (bystydzienski, 2011; mcfadden & moore, 2001; rosenblatt, 2009). cross-national couples often have disparate cultural backgrounds within the dyadic system. when each spouse brings one’s own values to the family, the cultural dynamics within the family can become both interesting and challenging. cultural clashes can lead to emotional difficulties and later conflicts in the marriage. for example, native-born spouses were found experiencing more culture difficulties than their spouses, and the couples reported relatively higher depression symptoms because of the cultural difficulties (baltas & steptoe, 2000). cools (2006) found that childrearing increased conflicts between couples. they displayed divergent childrearing beliefs and practices including relationships among family members (bystydzienski, 2011), parent-child relationships, roles and responsibilities between fathers and mothers (romano, 2008), children’s identity and belonging (caballero, puthussery, & edwards, 2008), health care and school preference (kuramoto et al., 2017), parents’ interactions with schools, and child discipline methods (bustamante et al., 2011; cools, 2006). disagreements and conflicting childrearing beliefs and practices may complicate children’s development. a major conclusion of previous research on cross-national couples tended to focus on the unique stressors on marital relationships and parenting experiences. more recent research identified benefits of childrearing in cross-national families, such as parental personal growth, improved communication and parenting skills, and multiple perspectives for children (bhugun, 2017; kuramoto et al., 2017). although parenthood was recognized as a flashpoint where clashes of couples’ distinct cultural backgrounds were highlighted (bustamante et al., 2011; crohn, 1995), understanding how traditionally recognized unique stressors may complicate or benefit the perceptions of parenthood and raising mixed-heritage children are still unclear in the u.s. context. thus, this study aimed to understand the ways place of residence, 7 language, social attitudes and extended families, and culture might impact cross-national couples regarding their childrearing experiences. methodology participants and data collection this study adopted a general qualitative research methodology. participants in this study are crossnational couples of an american-born citizen with english as his/her first language and a foreign-born national with other languages as the first language residing in the u.s. participants were initially recruited by the first author through distribution of flyers to professional and personal contacts at institutions and organizations (colleges/universities, early childhood facilities, public schools, churches, and parent clubs), and through listserves (college student associations, community churches, language institutes, and online minority discussion forum) mainly in an urban area in the northeastern u.s. potential participants were asked to contact the first author for detailed information, and then were asked to forward the researcher’s contact information to other eligible couples they might know. after screening for eligibility, 82 participants consented. all participants completed a written survey and 10 were selected for an individual interview. a written survey consisted of 15 demographic questions and 10 short-answer questions. demographic information included gender, age, ethnicity, country of origin, years living in the u.s., current status in the u.s., primary/first/mother language, english ability, yearly income, occupation, education level, number of children in the household, ages of children, number of clinical referred children in the household, and interest in follow-up interview. the short-answer questions were developed to understand parents’ perceptions of cross-national marriage and multicultural parenting, and the impact of the unique stressors to childrearing. a total of 10 individual interviews were conducted. all questions were openended in nature and tailored to individual family situations gained from the written survey. all interviews were audio recorded and lasted 1-1.5 hours. participants included 82 individuals from cross-national marriages. detailed demographic data were listed in table 2 and 3. interview participants were selected based on four criteria: first, both parents showed interest in being interviewed; second, since asian-american family combinations comprised the majority of the research sample, families of this type were chosen to develop a cohort group of cross-national family; third, participants represented two gender and status combination) (foreign-born wife with nativeborn husband and native-born wife with foreign-born husband). based on the above criteria, five couples were selected (table 4). 8 table 2: demographic information of numerical variables of cross-national couples n mean sd min. max. native-born spouse parent age 40 40.28 6.83 29 54 yrs in the u.s. 40 38.98 7.02 27 54 english proficiency a 41 4 4 4 yearly income b 41 67,024.36 42,934.54 0 250,000 foreign-born spouse parent age 41 37.93 5.83 27 50 yrs in the u.s. 40 11.48 6.62 2 28 english proficiency a 41 3.34 .85 1 4 yearly income b 41 36,853.93 43,718.03 0 170,000 total parent age 81 39.09 6.41 27 54 yrs in the u.s. 80 25.23 15.41 2 54 english proficiency a 82 3.67 .69 1 4 yearly income b 82 51,939.14 45,656.50 0 250,000 note: a 1=1=basic, 2=competent, 3=proficient, 4=fluent. sore range 1-4. b usd ($) 9 table 3: demographic information of categorical variables of cross-national couples native-born spouse foreign-born spouse total counts proportion counts proportion counts proportion parent gender male 34 82.9% 8 19.5% 42 51.2% female 7 17.1% 33 80.5% 40 48.8%  race/ethnicity asian 1 2.4% 28 68.3% 29 35.4% white/caucasian 38 92.7% 9 22% 47 57.3% hispanic/latino 1 2.4% 4 9.8% 5 6.1% american indian 1 2.4% 0 0% 1 1.2% multiple 0 0  0 0 0 0  education high school below 0 0 0 0 0 0 high school 2 4.9% 3 7.3% 5 6.1% partial college 2 4.9% 3 7.3% 5 6.1% standard university 15 36.5% 15 36.6% 30 36.6% graduate above  22  53.7% 20 48.8% 42 51.2%  occupation a homemaker/students 4 9.8% 18 43.9% 22 26.8% unskilled worker 0 0 0 0 0 0 semiskilled worker 1 2.4% 0 0 1 1.2% skilled worker 2 4.9% 0 0 2 2.4% clerical worker 2 4.9% 2 4.9% 4 4.9% semiprofessionals 6 14.6% 5 12.2% 11 13.4% business owner  11  26.8% 4 9.8% 15 18.3%  administration 2 4.9% 0 0 2 2.4% major professionals 13 31.7% 12 29.3% 25 30.5 country of origin b asian 0 0 28 68.3% 28 34.1% european 0 0 8 19.5% 8 9.8% n. american 41 100% 2 4.9% 43 52.4% s. american  0 0  3 7.3% 3 3.7%  primary language english 41 100% 0 0 41 50% mandarin/cantonese 0 0 17 41.5% 17 20.7% japanese 0 0 4 9.8% 4 4.9% spanish 0 0 3 7.3% 3 3.7% others c 0 0 16 39.0% 16 19.5% multiple  0 0  1 2.4% 1 1.2%  note: a homemaker/students=farm laborers/menial service workers/homemaker/students, unskilled workers, semiskilled worker= machine operators and semiskilled workers, skilled worker=smaller business owners, skilled manual workers, craftsmen and tenant farmers, clerical worker=clerical and sales workers, small farm and business owners, semiprofessionals=technicians, semiprofessionals, small business owners, business owner=smaller business owner, farm owner, manager, minor professionals, administration=administration, lesser professionals, proprietors of medium-sized businesses, major professionals=higher executives, proprietors of large businesses, and major professionals. b asian= china, malaysia, south korea, vietnam, japan, philippine, indonesia, and iran, european= germany, czech republic, italy, poland, sweden, serbia, and hungary, north american=mexico, south american= colombia and brazil. c other languages=cebuano, tagalog, czech, german, hungarian, swedish, portuguese, indonesia, farsi, hokkien, korean, vietnamese, czech, italian, polish, and serbian 10 table 4: interview participants demographic information family 1 family 2 name dan wenjing bennett ran age 52 45 40 40 gender male female male female status native foreign native foreign county of origin u.s. china u.s. china primary language english mandarin english mandarin english proficiency fluent proficient fluent proficient yrs. in u.s. 52 8 40 12 education graduate above university/ college graduate above university/ college occupation professor homemaker engineering manager homemaker family 3 family 4 name ron lingli liam abby age 45 35 47 38 gender male female male female status native foreign foreign native county of origin u.s. china malaysia u.s. primary language english mandarin hindi/english english english proficiency fluent competent fluent fluent yrs. in u.s. 45 4 10 34 education university/ college university/ college high school graduate above occupation nurse homemaker sales consultant administration family 5 name weijia jane age 35 46 gender male female status foreign native county of origin china u.s. primary language mandarin english english proficiency fluent fluent yrs. in u.s. 9 43 education graduate above university/ college occupation professor homemaker 11 data analysis the analysis of written surveys and in-person interviews took place concurrently. each interview was transcribed and read repeatedly. interview transcriptions were coded first, and then followed with the written survey, as the former data captured a wider spectrum of couple perspectives on cross-national marriage and childrearing. additional codes were established in response to emergent meanings within the data. reflective notes, analytic memos, and summaries of interviews were well documented. after initial coding, a focused coding was applied to eliminate, combine, or subdivide the initial coding categories. the third coding process was conducted using the new coding scheme. thick description approach (geertz, 1973) was utilized to portray unique participants’ background information in order to make their statements and behaviors become meaningful to others (denzin, 1989). several diagrams were drawn to visualize intricate links between emerging codes. this mapping process further reduced the data into a set of holistic categories allowing themes to emerge capturing the rich meaning of all data. this research applied cross-data-source triangulation, peer review for alternative interpretations, and member checking (ely, 1991; golafshani, 2003). findings perceptions of cross-national marriage and multicultural parenting cross-national marriage. participants held positive views about their marriages and acknowledged differences within couples. the mixture of two different cultures led to different beliefs, values and expectations. the difference in language also brought difficulties on communications. although occasionally those differences triggered conflicts, cross-national marriage was viewed as “respectful,” “interesting,” “fun,” “rich,” “exciting,” “rewarding,” “stronger,” and “great learning experiences.” participants appreciated that the different upbringings introduced them to a broader range of experiences such as language learning, holidays, and travels. moreover, mixed marriage was believed to strengthen couple relationships, since couples tended to be more aware and tolerant of the differences within them. it also “breaks racism.” liam, a malaysiaborn indian husband, said: it did break a lot of differences, because i got married [with an american], my sister, my brother and my cousins had the chance to do the same thing……but, every time, when somebody, like a chinese girl marries a white guy, or an american, it breaks that value. but as more people see mixed marriages, they will think differently and change differently…… families and friends of cross-national couples displayed a range of attitudes from extremely supportive to disapproval towards the marriage. many couples were well accepted, but some families hesitated and disapproved about such marriages, mainly because doubts about internet credibility for dating, unknown risks, limited understandings of the spouses and their cultures, and concerns of the solidarity of one’s group. for example, jane’s parents said that they would “disown” her if she insisted on her marriage and even bribed her with a new car for not doing so. jane’s father’s outdated understanding about china, a communist country, built up his attitude towards jane’s marriage. they [my parents] thought i lost my mind. that’s what they said “have you lost your cottonpicking mind? ……they are going to kill you in china. you can’t live in china”. they [my parents] don’t know anything about china. my daddy asked me if they still wear ponytails in 12 china, because that time china was so closed off. they don’t know anything about china. but i don’t think it’s something necessary given to chinese. most participants believed that they have not been viewed differently by others. a small number of couples shared that they were getting second looks from people and had been stereotyped once. for instance, the foreign-born wife was mistaken as a nanny and the couples were assumed to be not related when appearing in public; couples were questioned for threatening the solidarity of the one’s cultural heritage; white women’s sexuality was also targeted. multicultural parenting. cross-national couples view mixed heritage as a “distinct advantage in today’s globalized and increasingly interconnected world.” they believe mixed children were “culturally sensitive,” have a “rich cultural and language environment,” a “broad perspective in life,” “more opportunities to travel,” and “better ability to adapt to different environments.” nevertheless, many couples reported a concern that their children might be targeted or even bullied for their mixed traits. in most cases, children from such families were not viewed and treated differently from children of mono-heritage. the couples wanted children to embrace dual language and cultures, and reinforced such aspiration in daily practices. parents intentionally created a rich language and cultural environment by speaking two or more languages, introducing holidays, food, music, art, literature and movies from both cultures, as well as providing weekend language classes to children. parents maintained a close communication with the foreign-side of extended families through travelling and internet to enrich the cultural and language connections. enabling children to become dual cultural and bilingual was a challenge. on one hand, couples were concerned that learning two languages hindered children’s english learning as some children struggled at school and social events in the american system. on the other hand, as children developed, their drastic growth of english proficiency inhibited the second-language acquisition. moreover, the mainstream language and cultural power undermined couples’ efforts to maintain the other heritage root. usually, the responsibilities resided with the foreign-born spouse. cross-national couples continuously negotiated childrearing issues, such as daily practices, parent-child relationships, agency of children, and perceptions of learning and education. for example, weijia shared: the different upbringings of the parents can pose difficulties in agreeing on what should be the most important goals of life for our children. for instance, as a chinese parent, i feel it is important for my child to have a more structured schedule after school to do some additional practice at home, but this seems like a mission impossible for my american wife. in addition, long distance with the foreign-side extended families, often diminished the opportunities for children to develop the other cultural heritage and socialize with relatives, and for parents to receive extra social supports. role of place of residence. many participants have had travelling or long-time living experiences in the foreign-born spouse’s home countries. they believed that their marriages and children were better received in the u.s. than other countries. “less environmental pollution,” “bigger yard for outdoor play,” “easy access to museum and 13 theaters,” and “school system that nurtures creativity” were identified as benefits to raise mixed-heritage children. however, other parents argued that the american culture and school overemphasized “individualism” and did not promote “respect for elders,” “mindfulness,” and “grit.” moreover, parents shared that living in the u.s. has changed their perceptions on discipline and expectations on academic performance in order to follow the mainstream culture. in general, native-born spouses felt their roles as parents came easier as they were raised in this country, understood what it means to be a parent, and knew the system. thus, native-born spouses felt more obligated to navigate the health system and school issues. foreign-born spouses were responsible to reinforce dual cultural and language learning. furthermore, living in the u.s. limited foreign-born spouses in career options. thus, many foreign-born wives, holding “foreign-born” and “mother” roles in one person, became the primary caregivers of their children. dan shared: she [wenjing] has a degree but it doesn’t have a background that translates it into a new job. she has to get additional training. hopefully she will find something she wants to do, but she does not have the option of going out and earning money at the rate as i do……it is just an unfortunate situation that she was put in. role of language. cross-national couples believed bilingualism is a tool to understand culture, traditions, and customs that each parent represents, and to communicate with extended families on both sides. further, parents believe bilingualism strengthens children’s learning capacity, enhances cultural sensitivity, broadens career and social network opportunities, and grants more perspectives of viewing the world. however, learning a second language required greater efforts and financial means from both parents and children. the couples engaged bilingual media and literature, socialized with friends who shared the second language, travelled to foreign-spouses’ countries of origin, devoted extra time on second-language classes, and frequently communicated with foreign extended families. within cross-national families, people who spoke two or more languages had additional channels to exchange information while mono-language speakers were limited in communication. this unique communication pattern, on one hand, constrained native-born parents to join the conversation when it was held in the foreign language; on the other hand, this process diminished children’s second language acquisition when communication was based on english where all families can be included. in addition, the power of a language was strengthened by the number of its language users in the current conversation. jane stated when with her chinese parents’ in-laws, she felt being completely excluded from communications, as chinese was mutually shared by the majority of the people in the house. many foreign-born parents felt a sense of incapability in their roles such as helping with homework, reading to children, and building social networks with other parents. rain shared: it’s about the terms. it’s too many, like in math, i am good at math and i know all the contents. but when he (the son) asked me, i don’t have the english words to explain to him. all i know is in chinese. i tried to explain to him [in english], it hardly makes any sense. because of my english, my ability to socialize is not as strong as people who grown up here. there were occasions that i have to socialize with people, like if my kids get along with other kids, or have play dates, it is better that the parents can get along. but my relationships with those parents are in a polite stage. it’s hard to develop a deeper relationship. 14 furthermore, english proficiency was found affecting parent-child relationships. children of mixed heritage tended to question their foreign-born parents for their english abilities and not being “americanized”. dan: so that (americanism) comes up recently and i am concerned about it because sometimes there is some disrespect perhaps, um, wenjing, some of it is based on her language ability……they get the opportunity to correct her. so that often does happen when children say “you are not saying that right” or “you are not doing that right.” they get to do that with her fairly often. role of extended families and friends. cross-national couples attributed extended families and friends as a source of support and role model for their marital relationships and childrearing. in some cases, the marriage between couples was promoted by the precedent of mixed marriage in the family history. extended families and friends spent quality time, and provided parenting advice and financial support to the couples. however, in most of the cases, families of foreign-born spouses were located in other countries. many couples expressed their desire of having foreign-sided extended families provide childcare, share parenting advice, engage in children’s upbringing, and provide the emotional support to the families. extended families indirectly influenced parenting practices, as cross-national couples refer to their own growing-up experiences to parent their children. moreover, extended families strengthened children’s multicultural heritage, but also highlighted the different values and beliefs on marriage and childrearing within couples. one parent expressed, “their [extended families’] values are different from my family’s values that we mutually developed and molded with my husband. it mainly was an issue when it comes to parenting our children.” specifically, the tension between extended families and cross-national couples was due to their different understandings on the boundary of childrearing responsibilities and parenting practices between each party, such as whether it is feasible to take an infant outside in cold weather. cross-national couples believed friends were a positive source to exchange parenting advice. however, some couples indicated a peer pressure on childrearing. dan explained, “we have mostly chinese friends and that does reinforce [the] source of the demanding tendencies and high expectations we place on our children.” role of culture. many couples have not recognized the cultural differences before marriage. others believed differences were minor and a tangle of cultural and personal matters. however, most couples believed the cultural root was deep and cannot be changed easily. jane stated: anyway, my husband is very chinese, and he will always be chinese……just like i will always be an american. it’s just our culture. i believe that we are cultural beings from the time we were born. there’s a collective program that goes on... if you see him all of the objective stuffs like, you know, he is a u.s. citizen, a republican, he is a professor, he doesn’t speak with an accent, he will eat mcdonalds, you know all of these external things, but what drives him is his culture. his values and his ideas, all his views, all come from being a culture being which is chinese. the couples argued that what one believes was “normal” or “usual” on raising children was often different from their spouses. they did not think “each other’s ‘normal’ was good enough for the 15 children.” parents often disagreed on children’s bath time, food and clothing preference, and indoor or outdoor play choice. moreover, cultural difference was reflected through perceptions on learning. asian parents tended to have higher expectations on children’s academic performance. they value hard work, diligence, structure, and endurance. weijia explained: “it is not all easy and fun when it comes to study something. american culture emphasizes if you enjoy yourself, but oftentimes ‘enjoying’ something is a short time. thus, you really need to cultivate the endurance in learning.” however, most american parents believed that learning was supposed to be “fun,” “creative,” and “through experiences.” cross-national couples had divergent beliefs on children’s agency. it led to the different degrees of parental control posed on children. many asian parents believed that it is completely reasonable to feed and clean after children, since young children are still developing self-helping skills. however, american parents argued to foster independence and responsibilities at an early age. moreover, the level of parental control was also reflected through children’s school and future career choices, age of involving in romantic relationships, and sibling relationships. for example, american culture views each child in the family as independent and as equal individuals. however, from an asian perspective, older siblings making compromises to take care of the younger children is a virtue. this different value was found difficult to reconcile within couples. discussion current findings indicate that divergent cultural backgrounds may not necessarily bring challenges but also opportunities for both the couples and their children. parenthood was a flashpoint for increased marital conflicts among cross-national couples. but parents displayed balanced perceptions on their mixed marriage and multicultural parenting experiences. conflicts derived from distinct cultural backgrounds were likely to be “tradeoffs” to opportunities brought by the differences. in most cases, cross-national couples and their children were well received by the extended families and communities in today’s increasingly diversified society. the tensions between the couple and their families were alleviated once the families learned about the foreign-born spouses and their cultures. foreign-born spouses, especially females, were found disadvantaged in many aspects in the marital relationships and childrearing. such findings may be due to the fact that female foreign spouses comprised the majority of the sample. thus, the result generated a stronger voice of their experiences. the disadvantaged situations faced by foreign spouses were relative whereas the native spouses may have to invest greater effort to maintain a healthy marital relationship and childrearing process. this study provided strong evidence that the role of place of residence, language, and extended families and friends were cultural factors influencing multicultural parenting experiences. choosing which country to reside will influence couples by the dominant cultures, values and beliefs in their childrearing practices. living in the u.s. impacted children’s educational resources and learning opportunities, parental responsibilities, and parenting practices. the physical distance was a main challenge in engaging foreign-side extended families in childrearing. speaking different languages within the household was another unique feature of cross-national families. before child birth, english was the language used between couples, which was also the dominant language spoken in the larger community. the balance between dominant and minority language was maintained mainly by foreign spouses assimilating to the mainstream culture. however, child birth 16 prompted foreign spouses to increase the input of their languages and cultures. the dyadic balance developed by couples inclined towards the minority culture. although the dominant language in the larger community still overpowers the minority language, interestingly, the power battle overturns when there were more people speaking the minority language in the current context. extended families and friends were important role models and support sources for cross-national families, but they may complicate couple relationships and childrearing experiences. childrearing was a point in which the involvement of extended families increased; the cultural power they brought to the family can further aggravate the cultural differences within couples. under such family dynamics, maintaining a foreign heritage linguistically and culturally for mixed children becomes challenging. cross-national couples are not a homogenous group. the combinations of couples’ gender and status, and country of origin have great variation. the condition of the current data does not permit fine distinctions to be made across gender and status, and country of origin. it would be beneficial for future studies to develop cohort groups and balance the different gender and status combinations to hear more voices from foreign-born male spouses. in addition, including the insights of mixed-heritage children into the discussion of multicultural parenting would be valuable. finally, future research may consider conducting cross-country comparisons on this population. conclusion since only the 1950’s, the systematic and clearer defined research regarding cross-national families represents a brief history. with the unique feature of such families, this population deserves increased attention from researchers, practitioners, and educators. the findings of this study distinguished crossnational families from general intermarried families, and examined the impact of traditionally recognized unique stressors on childrearing experiences from a balanced perspective. finally, this study shed light on the opportunities and challenges cross-national couples and mixed-heritage children experienced in becoming bi-lingual and cultural. as a result, more research would contribute to supporting multilingualism and multiculturalism in public school systems where more and more mixed-heritage children attend. 17   references adams, j. 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(2010). asian cross-border marriage migration: demographic patterns and social issues (vol. 2): amsterdam university press.   examining the precepts of early childhood education: the basics or the essence? l. kathryn sharp, ed.d. east tennessee state university dr. l. kathryn sharp is currently teaching at east tennessee state university. prior to working in higher education, she taught in the public schools system. in addition to her work in teacher preparation, she enjoys engaging in professional development opportunities with in-service teachers in literacy, classroom management, and assessment. teacher burnout and teachers’ dispositions are also areas of research interest. abstract the purpose of this article is to encourage early childhood educators and the related professional development and research communities to become the leading voices in determining the direction of early childhood education. to support this vital, and complicated transition, this discussion revisits fundamental aspects of what is meant by early childhood education and intends to spark discussion and the direction needed to guide thought and action as nations begin a shift towards more affordable, universal and, most importantly, high-quality early childhood education. introduction jalongo and isenberg (2008) described four precepts of early childhood education that offer a conceptual and philosophical starting point for an examination of what may be found at the essence of early childhood education. these precepts are: precept 1: young children need special nurturing precept 2: young children are the future of society precept 3: young children are worthy of study precept 4: young children’s potential should be optimized” (jalongo & isenberg, 2008, p. 46-49). the current discussion examines the nature of these precepts and the potential each of these may play in responding to teacher recruitment, quality, and retention, and describes the role in fulfilling the anticipated promise of universally implemented early childhood education standards in “high-quality” programs. precept one: young children need special nurturing “you have to do the maslow stuff before you can do the bloom’s stuff.” a. e. beck what do we mean by “early childhood education?” bredekamp (2011) defines this practice as, “a highly diverse field that serves children from birth through age 8” (p. 5). this is the typical age range used in research, funding formulas, curriculum, and discussions related to developmental stages. this stage has many distinctions from other age or developmental groups (e.g., elementary, middle school, secondary, etc.). this early part of the life cycle is unique and one that requires particular awareness and pedagogical approaches. in order to become productive members of society, young children require protection and safety, as well as stable loving relationships (brazelton & greenspan, 2001). during the early childhood years, one of the most significant differences is the awareness of the need to approach children’s learning holistically. that is, we, as early childhood educators understand that cognitive development is only one aspect of the whole child. the skilled and caring educator understands that children’s social/emotional, physical, linguistic, and moral development are just as important as cognitive growth (http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/keymessages.pdf). these skilled and caring individuals understand that this nurturing has enormous impact on each child’s potential as a learner, a community member, and a citizen. this holistic approach is a clear distinction from the upper elementary, middle, and secondary levels. in contrast with the early childhood holistic perspective, the upper grades emphasize content learning. this difference begins during university coursework and teacher training. for example, in the upper grade ranges of teacher preparation, more coursework is focused on teaching math, science, and language arts. in contrast, early childhood education for pre-service candidates begins with studying developmentally appropriate practice and human development. naeyc, in its position statements and standards, clearly emphasizes the consideration that must be given to developmental and cultural facets for the individual child and for groups of children (national association for the education of young children). a review of early childhood education programs reveals that the coursework and http://www.naeyc.org/positionstatements/dap content is rich in theory and foundational principles of early childhood. there is an abundance of information to guide us in our early childhood work, and yet, is there a need to consider the current definition for learning? in this era of high-stakes evaluation, prevalent today is to value convergent thinking and performance on standardized tests, summative evaluations, and benchmark assessments of academic achievement. yet, early childhood educators, guided by the first precept, provide children with special nurturing. they value creative activity, divergent thinking, and innovative problem solving. this means, instead of in-depth content, the early childhood candidate learns how to instill higher-order thinking, creative activity, and problem solving into instruction and curriculum for young children (darling-hammond, 2010). the dilemma for early childhood teachers is the current emphasis on assessment which contradicts the first precept stating that young children need special nurturing. precept two: young children are the future of society “old men can make war, but it is children who will make history.” ray merritt, full of grace by rereading plato’s (427-347b.c.) reasoning, we are reminded of the importance of educating young children. plato stated children should be nurtured and educated so that the collective society benefits from having healthy and informed citizens. in turn, these citizens elevate the democracy, the economy, and the arts. this same concept has been echoed by many past theorists. dewey (1897) underscored this belief as it relates to america in my pedagogic creed. dewey stated, “…i believe, finally, that the teacher is engaged, not simply in the training of individuals, but in the formation of a proper social life. i believe that every teacher should realize the dignity of his calling” (as cited in gordon & browne, 2007, p. 12). this “dignity of his calling” also speaks to the worthiness of children and elevates the profession. as early childhood professionals, we ask ourselves if we are following through on behalf of children’s social wellness. if not, how can we correct the narrow trajectory of the profession? this would mean that early childhood educators were professionally motivated, highly skilled and knowledgeable educators who were supported and valued by society. it would mean that salaries are commensurate with the demands of the profession. ultimately children, families and the general society benefit from a reassessment and restructuring of early childhood and its educators. the evidence is abundant and clear: what happens in early childhood matters! it matters to the child, to the classroom, the community and to society. it matters to the future. precept three: young children are worthy of study to borrow from sir isaac newton, those of us in early childhood education stand on the shoulders of giants. theorist and researchers such as piaget, vygotsky, dewey, montessori, malaguzzi, katz and countless others made timeless contributions to the field. again and again they offer rich information about how to best support young children in a way that optimizes their potential. clearly since pestalozzi and froebel, we know that to teach children we must study them (gordon & browne, 2007). we learn how to teach by watching interactions. we watch how children interact with one another, how children interact with objects, and how children interact in different environments. this leads us to move away from layering on what the adult world sees as important or relevant, but instead, we seek to understand children’s individual thinking. through this lens, we honor children’s unique qualities and consider the most appropriate adult response. in this way, we do not evaluate or judge, but as responsive adults, we acknowledge and dignify children’s differences. we come to understand this range of difference by studying the world of children. early childhood teachers have rich and abundant research, but we have to ask if we are using the findings to determine what is best for children. for example, reggio emilia, considered by many educators to be an outstanding program, is studied intensely, but where and how often are we seeing these ideas interpreted and applied into classrooms? early childhood research describes the positive relationship among creativity, cognition, and social learning (koster, 2009). in order to create optimal experiences for young children, are we, as early childhood educators, using the existing research on behalf of children? if not, why not? ashton-warner, kozol, elkind, devries, and many others eloquently demonstrated the value and power of studying children (jalongo & isenberg, 2008; wortham, 2002). their works are studied but how are they seen in practice and how are they ignored? as one example, ashtonwarner (1963) left an indelible mark on early childhood education through her study and writings, but do we celebrate children’s stories? it seems rare indeed to see children’s words and stories used as working material. instead, current practice imposes commercial curricula and one-size-fits all texts and basals with “stories of the week.” it is a most relevant topic of debate to consider that there is a vast amount of research telling us how children need the time to learn and develop, they need rest, healthy foods, playtime, time to talk to each other and time to explore (feeney, s., moravcik, e., & nolte, s., 2016). it is familiar to observe kindergarten children working in isolation at tables writing out worksheets and workbooks filled with tracing and copying “learning activities.” one teacher said, “we don’t have time to cut and paste and all that cutesy stuff. we have too much learning to do.” are these cutesy things? at the same school a teacher explained why there are no learning centers: “our principal doesn’t allow them. he said we have too much work to do.” gone are the blocks, props for dramatic play, and listening centers. another example of ignoring early childhood research is the removal of rest and play times for young children. for precept three, the early childhood profession is well grounded in evidence-based findings to maximize learning for all children. percept four: young children’s potential should be optimized “one generation plants the trees; another gets the shade.” chinese proverb we have all heard that children are the future; a simple statement, but one that should give us an impetus to pause. yes, they are the future and part of the great lure of teaching and surely a cause for the sense of duty and purpose it should evoke. plato (427-347b.c.) made clear statements of the reciprocal nature of civilization (or society) and education. education should be a function of the nation, or society, and in turn, that society benefits from education. further, plato made straightforward statements regarding the early care and nurturing of its youth in order that the society, as a whole, is elevated in its dignity of character, but also in its scholarship and democratic foundation (cooney, cross, & trunk, 1993). much of this foundational theory has been echoed by leading theorists, and it is apparent that how we value, nurture, and educate our children is our legacy. it is what we cast into the future. it is the harvest we plant for others to reap. katz (2011) eloquently conveyed this precept thusly: “i really believe that each of us must come to care about everyone else's children. we must come to see that the well-being of our own individual children is intimately linked to the well-being of all other people's children. after all, when one of our own children needs life-saving surgery, someone else's child will perform it; when one of our own children is threatened or harmed by violence on the streets, someone else's child will commit it. the good life for our own children can only be secured if it is also secured for all other people's children. but to worry about all other people's children is not just a practical or strategic matter; it is a moral and ethical one: to strive for the well-being of all other people's children is also right” (katz, 2011, p. 19-20). discussion are things changing in early childhood education? the good news is that education is about change—or should be. it is about learning new and better ways to do things. early childhood education policy and practice continue to evolve in our country and around the world. some trends are promising and others are causes for concern. one promising trend is the emphasis being placed on teacher preparation that has resulted in many states requiring teacher educators to spend much more time working in the field with mentor teachers and students to learn their craft (a “residency” experience). this is an enormous shift in thinking and one that holds great promise for a new generation of highly-skilled educators. these new initiatives call for improved collaborative relationships between teacher preparation programs and the pre-k-12th grade schools. increasing site-based training in itself will not be the solution. these teacher candidates and even the inservice teachers will need ongoing coaching and mentoring to become the highly skilled professionals our children need. new and innovative work has been done in this area and the results are promising (pinata, 2011). again, bridging this gap will help new teachers develop their knowledge, dispositions and skills more effectively and will provide a much needed supply of fresh, energetic, and passionate educators to participate in schools. this isn’t a pipe dream; it is an attainable goal that meshes with the time-honored precepts of early childhood. we can be certain that a great deal of the onus lies with teacher educators, those who deliver professional development for practitioners, and the new educators entering the field. their voices and actions have the potential to alter the current landscape of early childhood education. another promising trend is the additional funding early childhood education continues to receive. one of the most significant examples of this is the universal prekindergarten movement. this has resulted in improved access to education and nutrition for all children. in particular, this movement has had a great impact on minority children and children in low-income homes or those who live in poverty. the success of this movement will depend on the degree to which the standards of success are driven by early childhood educators vs. politicians. while politicians recognize the dire need for the additional funding, professional, highly skilled educators may be best suited to select instructional methods, curriculum materials, and varied assessments. the development and availability of high-quality teaching materials, including technology resources, hands-on materials, and an amazing array of children’s texts is at an all-time increase. this is a trend that gives many educators and care givers hopes for a brighter future for children. these learning materials and resources help educators provide rich and varied learning opportunities for children and their families. there is a national focus on improving the quality of school lunches and snacks. chef jamie oliver has led a “food revolution” and school lunches are at the heart of this movement. chef oliver put the spotlight on school lunches and revealed some very disconcerting information and organized petitions for improved school lunches. we could no longer ignore the links between nutrition and learning (http://www.jamieoliver.com/us/foundation/jamies-food-revolution/schoolfood). it is very promising that these resources and public awareness is at its peak. michelle obama has made exercise and nutrition her leading initiatives. television programs, commercials, books, magazines, etc., have all spotlighted this important movement. far too many of our nation’s children are overweight, not getting adequate rest and physical activity, or malnourished. children’s health has been forced into america’s consciousness, which resulted in a reexamination of our children’s health and nutrition and a consideration of how wellness may impact student learning and healthy citizenry. abundant supporting resources are available in print and online (http://www.letsmove.gov/). we also know that not all trends are as encouraging. we are working in a time wherein, in many schools, prekindergarten and kindergarten-age children are not allowed time to snack, nap, or rest. we continue to learn of horror stories about young children not being allowed time to play or to explore learning centers in classrooms so that they have more “learning” time. we have too many children in poverty, suffering from neglect and abuse (national center for children in poverty, 2007). consequently, we have far too many children who do not want to go to school and who cannot see the beauty of their minds and spirits. they are confined to a world of intellectual poverty while seemingly surrounded by opportunities and well-intentioned adults. final reflection too often we seem to be in a race to skip over early childhood entirely. as a nation, we seem to be very intent on young children learning and achieving without giving adequate thought to what those words mean. as advocates, taking the time to reflect on these four basic early childhood precepts provides the language and purpose to refocus on behalf of the holistic learning required to maximize young children’s learning and development. please join the discussion at: https://preceptsofearlychildhoodblog.wordpress.com/ references ashton-warner, s. 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http://nctaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/nctaf-cost-of-teacher-turnover-2007-policy-brief.pdf http://www.letsmove.gov/ http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/precept http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/precept http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic1231814.files/teacher%20turnover%20in%20high-poverty%20schools.pdf http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic1231814.files/teacher%20turnover%20in%20high-poverty%20schools.pdf http://www.ed.gov/early-learning http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ed470897.pdf v2 ijwc spring 2023 issue 39 international journal of the whole child 2023, vol. 8, no. 1 facial masks and student engagement in early childhood and exceptional student education classrooms anna frahma, judit szenteb, sherron killingsworth robertsc amorning star catholic school, b-cuniversity of central florida anna frahm is an ese teacher at morning star school that provides exceptional student education and serves grades k-12 and transitional services up to adulthood age 22. she is a graduate of communication science and disorders at the university of central florida with an associate of early childhood education from eastern florida state. her research interests include early childhood, early childhood teacher education, exceptional student education, ese teacher education, and communication science and disorders. judit szente is professor of early childhood development and education at the university of central florida. her research interests include international development, early childhood and early childhood teacher education. she currently serves as associate editor for the journal of early childhood teacher education. sherron killingsworth roberts is professor of language arts and literacy education at the university of central florida where she served as the robert n. heintzelman literature scholar. her research considers early childhood, literacy as social practice, children’s literature, and innovative pedagogy. formerly co-editor of literacy research and instruction, she currently serves as associate editor for early childhood education journal and seven other editorial review boards. abstract during the advancement of covid-19, many safety protocols, including facial masks, were incorporated into public settings. the centers for disease control and prevention (cdc) (2021), due to safety regulations, recommended wearing face masks when in close contact with other people in public environments, such as in a classroom, where social distancing was difficult. many industries smoothly transitioned to daily use of traditional cloth masks, but other industries that served children sought masking alternatives. this study examined related research to explore whether wearing masks had any impact on student engagement, particularly in early childhood education (ece) and education of students with exceptionalities (ese) settings. the synthesis of research here suggested that masks influenced children’s engagement, including intellectual, emotional, social, behavioral, and physical aspects, and recommended the use of transparent masks with young children and children with exceptionalities. the paper also provides recommendations for future research. 40 keywords: early childhood education, covid-19, exceptional students, face masks, student engagement introduction since spring 2020, the influence of covid-19 has been extensive for a variety of industries, but education was transformed in many ways. education has been impacted far more than other industry due to the complex needs of its clientele: children (asri et al., 2021). covid-19 safety protocols were soon implemented that have modified people’s lives and routines. for example, “stay-at-home mandates,” remote work and instruction, and eventually in-person instruction with required face masks. suddenly, children were not able to see facial expressions, including nonverbal contextual clues, such as the movement of lips and emotional expressions which are the core elements of the teaching/learning process. as tremmel (2020) documented, young children, english as a second language (esol) students, academically at-risk children from low income areas, and children with developmental delays and exceptional needs were most affected by masks. the impact of covid-19 on education covid-19 impacted every element of education, from classes being instructed virtually to inclass instruction needing to be split with virtual modes which caused stress on teachers and students. many of these elements were explored by pressley (2021) with over 300 teachers to see the impact of covid-19 on instruction based on all the new alternative methods of instruction created by school districts around the country. the results suggested that the highest instructional self-efficacy of the teachers regarding their own abilities in teaching was for in-person instruction, then hybrid instruction, and lastly fully online instruction. the study also illustrated some of the impacts that virtual instruction had on teachers’ lack of confidence in implementing effective instruction. many elements probably played a role in this, such as technical issues, high absences, and the difficulty of holding student engagement through the barrier of a screen in virtual instruction. further, specific subjects were more difficult to teach with various covid-19 restrictions (tremmel et al., 2020). covid-19 also greatly influenced teaching and learning in a variety of environments, including rural locations with limited resources and many places had to adapt to serve all their students effectively, including students with exceptionalities in exceptional student education (ese) programs. tremmel et al. (2020) explored the impact that covid-19 had on underprivileged ese programs and compiled statistics and recommendations for advancing students to the next grade level. impact of covid-19 on individuals with exceptionalities in light of face masks lockdowns, increased use of virtual communication software, social distancing, and the use of face coverings kept people safe but also impacted their ability to connect, communicate, speak, and hear, especially for individuals with hearing impairments and other varied disabilities. children with specific language impairment (sli) struggle with phonological perception that impacts literacy (mcdowell, 2018). students with sli need access to the visual cue of their teacher’s lips during the pronunciation of words (ehri, 2020). the addition of visual language cues is a greater priority for those with sli who need additional context clues to equate meaning 41 and understanding to a literacy lesson. this access to the additional visual language-based context clues can be blocked by the use of a traditional mask. children also need human engagement to develop effective language skills and to better learn and retain information. adults may be inconvenienced by using masks in an educational or public setting, but children rely on the social and emotional components of language for the acquisition of proper language and literacy skills (feldman, 2019). the social and emotional components of language are far more difficult to access for children with conditions related to social and emotional comprehension, such as children with autism spectrum disorder (asd). children diagnosed with asd may already have language and literacy acquisition challenges even without the additional barrier of face masks due to the impact on their perception of emotions (matteson, 2014). according to atcherson et al. (2020), children and adults with hearing and language disabilities can experience visual barriers with traditional masks due to their dependence on nonverbal communication, such as facial cues. for educators, wearing a mask during instruction may potentially make it more difficult for children with exceptionalities to engage with lessons that include aspects of literacy. relation to a high impact on engagement to literacy or literacy incorporated lessons could be linked to the added barriers of masks affecting the student’s visual access to their teacher's mouth and lips articulating proper phonetic pronunciation of words (ehri, 2020). clearly, more research still needs to be done on the effects of masks on engagement in different environments with different communities. but a further understanding of what engagement is in practice is first needed before addressing the various types of masking. engagement many aspects of student engagement should be considered when developing an effective learning environment. engagement is important to learning but may be difficult to gauge without understanding what categories are involved. for classroom environments, great schools partnership (2016) defined engagement by focusing on separate constructs called engagement categories as indicated in table 1. table 1 engagement categories engagement categories: definition: examples: intellectual students’ interest and desire to interact and problem solve within the coursework. accuracy and dedication to pursuing accuracy during instruction. appropriately answering the questions in an effective way that shows their understanding of the material. answering verbal questions, having questions of their own related to the topic, making time to focus on studying the material. 42 emotional students react with positive emotions in a way that facilitates learning instead of distracting with negative behaviors. smiling, laughing when appropriate, providing positive verbal and non-verbal reactions to the topic. social social interaction and collaboration with other students and teachers related to the lesson. positive collaboration with instructors and peers using positive and productive conversations that facilitate instruction instead of distracting from it. behavioral the use of consistent cues, routines, and reactions that foster behaviors more conducive to learning. students’ willingness to participate in a classroom’s set schedule, routine, rules, directions, expectations, and procedures, such as sitting in a designated location in a seat. physical participation in active physical movements, reactions, or routines to bring awareness to the lesson. eye contact with instructor or assignment, raising hand, dancing, playing, performing written assignments, manipulating related tools, objects, scissors, paper, calculators, etc. note. table created was based on the great schools partnership (2016). table 1 provides insights into these separate, positive constructs of the categories of engagement. however, engagement is not just simply positively represented or absent (not represented). sometimes, engagement is negatively represented within an environment. in addition, diversity in engagement within a classroom could be linked to a set of environmental factors that can have a negative impact on a student's ability to engage behaviorally, emotionally, and socially (hiver et al., 2021). with this new post-pandemic world in which we live, understanding that young students, especially students with exceptionalities, may harbor a great deal of life stressors which are brought into the classroom to demonstrate negative engagement. examples of negative engagement within these engagement categories can be seen in table 2. table 2 examples of negative engagement engagements: negative examples: physical ● infrequent, un-prolonged eye-contact ● eye-contact and body positioned away from the instructor or lesson ● not physically participating in lessons ● not writing and following along 43 emotional ● disruptive emotional outbursts (e.g., laughter, crying, whining, sighing loudly) ● inappropriate facial reactions (e.g., frowns or pouting, making faces) social ● disruptive negative verbal reactions ● talking out of turn ● talking to other people besides the instructor when unprompted ● talking off topic ● asking questions unrelated to the lesson behavioral ● disruptive and distractible non-verbal behaviors ● finger fidgeting, rocking, arm flapping, putting things in mouth, picking skin biting hands, etc. ● not following routine and not using positive behaviors when expected, aka raising hand, etc. intellectual ● shown by lack of comprehension of the lesson ● lack of dedication and focus on problem solving within the lesson ● lack of accuracy and dedication to pursuing accuracy note. answers will be looked at but engagement with questions will be the primary focus for testing intellectual engagement (great schools partnership, 2016). table created was based on the great schools partnership (2016). when looking at the great schools partnership (2016) categories of engagement, it is important to understand the cues within the context of one’s own classroom environment and the importance of conducting lessons that inspire a variety of engagement categories. however, not all engagement types hold equal representation within classroom lessons. behavioral engagement, emotional engagement and social engagement are more inclusive and present in early childhood education (ece) and exceptional student education (ese) classrooms than the other categories because of the learning characteristics of young children with special needs (green et al., 2021). impact of masks on behavioral, emotional, and social engagement in the classroom some of the more salient categories of engagement for educators to consider are behavioral engagement, emotional engagement, and social engagement because children have a biological and neurological need to be exposed to an environment filled with effective behavioral, social, and emotional interactions (great schools partnership, 2016). a young child’s capacity to engage socially, emotionally, and behaviorally is heavily based on what they experience or observe when interacting with the adults around them in their learning environment. within a socially supportive environment, children can start to form important social skills that will lead to competent engagement in future academics. reading another’s face is an important social skill for engaging with others because reading another’s face helps the person to regulate their own social behavior (green et al., 2021). 44 the reading of another’s face and being aware of the other’s emotions can help a child form an appropriate social response based on the other’s emotional clues. from there, the child forms patterns of appropriate social skills performed as a task, some of which can be deemed specific behaviors (gresham, 2000). because of the needed social skills used in the forming of behaviors, such as reading emotions on another’s face, behavioral engagement is an intersecting issue that correlates with emotional engagement and social engagement categories, all of which are learned through proper exposure to other people. to explain further, a child will only feel motivated to engage behaviorally in classroom routines, if they are also motivated to be socially and are emotionally engaged (gresham, 2000). a teacher can inspire students to be socially engaged with positive verbal interactions and motivate them to be emotionally engaged with positive facial expressions. these forms of motivation are why access to the instructor’s face, mouth, and voice is so important when implementing engaging lessons. when looking for emotional engagement in a person, a teacher should start with looking for external identifiers and cues of emotions. seeing as emotions are strictly internal factors, a teacher could look at any external visual or audible cues of a person’s inner emotions and base any deductions off this (mccollow & hoffman, 2019). these cues can be simply to identify if the student’s face is not obscured by a mask. identifying some of these cues includes looking at the person’s audible emotional reactions unrelated to speech, such as sighing out loud; or a teacher can look at visual emotional reactions, such as facial expressions like frowning, and any emotional expressions unrelated to non-verbal communication, such as raising hands. when looking to identify social engagement in students, teachers should look to primary language and communication-based interactions that show “positive” social interactions among student and teacher and student and classmates in relation to any academic lesson. when considering social engagement, a student’s own interactions with a lesson can be directly influenced by any emotional disruptions or behavioral disruptions, too. all types of engagement are connected to each other, but also individually hold importance when being represented in a classroom setting. facial masks can affect social interaction as facial masks can inhibit speech, audibility, and the visual cues of speech, such as perception of emotions and lipreading (heikkilä, et al., 2017). these are directly related to social engagement and interaction, but also overlap with physical engagement due to the manual manipulation of one’s face and voice. behavioral engagement relates to routine, emotional engagement relates to a person’s internal emotions, and social engagement relates to interpersonal communication. all three engagement categories play large roles in the development of young children and their capacity to learn in a classroom environment. all these categories of engagement are impacted by the use of masks in the classroom and can directly impact young children’s ability to engage with the content being taught to them. traditional face masks can directly impact a child’s ability to learn in their environment and by extension affect the child’s willingness and ability to engage in appropriate behaviors. interacting with a teacher whose face is obscured has the potential for miscommunication and misunderstanding among students on what their behavioral expectations truly are. masks can add a layer of misunderstanding to an environment that already has a plethora of distractions 45 impacting young students’ engagement skills. table 3 illustrates the various engagement skills as they relate to the engagement categories. table 3 engagement skills and each related engagement category engagement skill related to masks: engagement categories: comprehension behavioral, emotional, intellectual, physical, social lipreading intellectual, physical perception of emotions behavioral, emotional, social note. table created was based on heikkilä et al., (2017) and mccollow & hoffman (2019). when exploring these various categories of engagement in the ece and ese classroom, it is important to consider an added distraction which is environmental noise. environmental noise can be a significant distraction due to its impact on auditory perception. prior to the implementation of masks, students were able to fill in the gaps of their missing auditory information by observing their teacher’s mouth and pronunciation. however, with the use of masks covering up those visual cues, students struggle even more in a disruptive classroom environment (nobrega et al., 2020). these layers of distractions can cause a rise in stress for both the learner and the instructor and can inhibit a person’s emotional wellbeing and motivation to engage. schools also have additional regulations placed on the environment related to student and teacher goals and expectations, many of which correlate directly with behavioral engagement. during the pandemic, ece and ese teachers were expected to teach several content areas behind a mask, while giving instruction that is both educational and stimulating (mccollow & hoffman, 2019). these regulations can cause stress among students and teachers during the enforcement of safety mask protocols and can interrupt a person’s routine and extension of a student’s ability to behaviorally engage and may even ignite negative behavioral engagement (great schools partnership, 2016). in summary, children are still learning things like focus, self-control, self-motivation, comprehension, facial recognition, and social cues along with how, when, and in what ways they should react in different social settings (mccollow & hoffman, 2019). these cues are not accessible to students when their instructors are wearing traditional cloth masks. masks cover the instructor's mouth, so that a student cannot perceive specific facial cues and features of the mouth related to the instructor’s expression of emotion that leads to engagement. 46 impact of masks on engagement skills in lipreading and literacy to learn literacy and language, a child needs to focus on more than just sound but also how to properly pronounce these sounds with their own oral motor movements (alcock, 2006). oral motor movement is the functional movement of the different parts of the mouth, such as the tongue, jaw, cheeks, and lips, all of which play a large role in speech and other processes (pedroza et al., 2015). lipreading is the ability to pick up visual information from a speaker’s mouth; lipreading is useful because watching a speaker’s facial movements improves perception of speech. lipreading could be a large contributing factor in obtaining necessary oral motor skills related to pronouncing certain words or understanding spoken language; these factors are concealed by traditional masks (heikkilä et al., 2017). lipreading is an important component for children developing language and other skills in relation to academic progress. instructors wearing facial masks during and after the impact of covid-19 and connections to lipreading could play an even bigger role than imagined, when it comes to student engagement and overall comprehension of any lesson, especially language and literacy. students relying on reading lips is one additional route to obtaining information and comprehension. with masks, this visual information is not accessible to students. when instructing subjects such as literacy, teachers must consider how masks obscure lipreading and impede students’ observation of the correlated oral-motor movements with their respective phonemes. once effective pronunciation and students’ discrimination of a sound is established, instructors can move on to connecting them to corresponding decoding and spelling skills (ehri, 2020). face masks may likely inhibit moving to these next steps. face mask alternatives as an alternative, transparent face coverings include a variety of facial coverings such as shields and masks. clear/transparent masks or cloths masks with a clear plastic panel were approved by the u.s. food & drug administration (fda) and considered to be helpful when interacting with people in special situations (cdc, 2022). they function in much the same way, but are instead made of transparent materials, such as plastic. because of the concerns with engagement, transparent face masks and shields were introduced into the educational realm as indicated in figure 1. figure 1 three types of transparent face wear 47 (a.) plastic face shield and cloth mask. (b.) windowed mask. (c.) clearmask note. images taken by lead researcher. as the figure indicates, these types of face coverings can be worn on the entire face or just around the mouth. face shields can be worn at a distance, but during pandemic, the cdc recommended wearing a shield with a cloth mask for environments where people are closer than six feet apart. other transparent masks are more similar to paper or cloth face masks, such as windowed masks, with fabric covering most of the nose, cheeks, and chin with a small transparent plastic portion in the middle revealing the mouth. another transparent mask type includes fully transparent face masks that only cover the nose, mouth, and chin area, much like the traditional masks, but are made of different transparent plastics and materials. despite some transparent face masks becoming available to consumers, transparent face masks were and remain in limited supply, with only a few on the market (atcherson et al., 2020). some of these transparent or clear masks, however, may need to be paired with a personal remote microphone (rm) system to offset the impediment of sound that comes with clear plastics. preliminary evidence suggested that rm systems helped alleviate some concerns regarding sound qualities when used with face coverings (rudge et al., 2020). rm are wireless systems created to amplify sound and help listeners better hear and understand speech in different environments. some rms are used with hearing aids or ear buds, while others are used with speakers called “sound field systems.” conclusion and implications this piece explored how covid-19 safety protocols impacted student engagement as identified by great schools partnership (2016) by examining the various categories of engagement and how masks influence children’s engagement. as indicated above, traditional masks hindered children’s ability to observe and read teachers’ faces and lips, identify various social cues which influenced their intellectual, social, and emotional development. when the visual cues of communication are eliminated, intelligibility of speech can decrease to as low as 20% (bankaitis, 2022). according to hiver et al. (2021), the impact masks have on language and literacy 48 acquisition skills, such as the perception of emotions, lipreading, and comprehension is significant. since the use of transparent masks have shown to work during speech therapy sessions (bankaitis, 2022), it is hoped that using transparent masks in ece classrooms and/or with ese students could also show similar benefits. transparent masks, such as a face shield or windowed face masks paired with rm, implemented by an ese instructor could break down any communication-related barriers related to the wearing of traditional cloth face masks. these barriers relate to the covering of the mouth affecting non vocal communication skills, like lipreading and interpreting emotions, and in extension comprehension. the other barrier caused by face masks includes impediment of vocal speech output. with the use of transparent face shields or windowed face masks paired with rms these communication barriers are lessened, which gives way to students feeling more confident and competent when trying to engage with their classroom lessons (rudge, et al., 2020). certainly, the young students who would benefit the most from the implementation of transparent face masks are those who either are still learning literacy, communication, and engagement skills, such as young children, or individuals who already struggle with literacy, communication, and engagement, such as children with learning disabilities or who are on the autism spectrum, along with other exceptionalities related to language skills (feldman, 2019). recommendations for future research continuing to explore future research on the topics of masks and engagement would be highly beneficial, especially in relation to ese and ece programs, but also across disciplines, developmental and age levels, and diverse populations. when developing future research related to traditional and transparent masks’ impact on student engagement, one might consider researching and measuring the engagement of children with specific language disorders. furthermore, future researchers must consider the breadth of all safety measures and health risk factors of the population being studied. the field needs more research targeting transparent mask alternatives safely by having certified ece and ese instructors conduct language and literacy lessons while following cdc recommendations. lessons could be conducted with four different conditions including instructors wearing two different types of masks with and without being paired with rm. conditions are shown in table 4. table 4 possible future research conditions related to face mask and rm pairing in a classroom. conditions: instructor wears: rm pairing: condition 1: (mean norm) cloth with no rm traditional cloth face mask no 49 condition 2: cloth with rm traditional cloth face mask yes condition 3: windowed with rm windowed face mask yes condition 4: windowed with no rm windowed face mask no note. table was created based on rudge et al. (2020). to track engagement and engagement categories, future research might also consider the teacher or researcher recording the salient conditions and documenting behavior using a checklist of observable criteria exemplifying engagement based on engagement categories (great schools partnership, 2016) as indicated in figure 2. figure 2 sample engagement category checklist instructor: date: reading level: group: id#: init: age: sex: exceptionality(s): examples: engagements: negative positive physical emotional 50 social behavioral intellectual note. this framework was created based on the engagement categories (great schools partnership (2016). in addition, a study could take record of positive and negative examples of any engagement cues shown in observation, including language and literacy acquisition skills like perception of emotions, lipreading, and comprehension (see the example shown in table 3). this suggestion for research would provide more solid, conclusive data on the effects masks have on ese student engagement (great schools partnership, 2016). last, it becomes increasingly clear that the impact of masks on student engagement necessitates further investigation in future research and delve deeper into the broader factors influencing engagement in the classroom setting. teachers' experiences, as highlighted by li (2022) shed light on how covid-19 safety measures such as mask-wearing and physical distancing have considerably affected their teaching methods, communication efficacy, and relationships with students. the discomfort from wearing traditional masks and the constant need for monitoring students' compliance with public health protocols were notable challenges that teachers faced, especially with younger students. these factors potentially act as a barrier to creating an engaging educational environment and may inadvertently impact students' overall learning experience. furthermore, understanding the nuances of non-verbal cues, such as lip reading and emotion perception, can be significantly hampered by mask-wearing. these factors are particularly crucial in the context of students still developing literacy, communication, and engagement skills, or those who have learning disabilities or other language-related challenges. future research must extend its scope to consider these aspects and the experiences of both students and educators. only through a comprehensive understanding of these dynamics can we devise more effective strategies to enhance classroom engagement while upholding necessary health protocols. the exploration of 51 the impacts that masks and other covid-19 safety protocols have on classroom engagement should continue to be a priority in educational research, with a focus on the benefit of all members of the educational environment. 52 references alcock, k. 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(2020). educating students with disabilities during the covid-19 pandemic: lessons learned from commerce independent school district. rural special education quarterly, 39(4), 201–210. https://doi.org/10.1177/8756870520958114 microsoft word ijwc full issue fall 2017.docx 4 international journal of the whole child 2017, vol. 2, no. 2 gender equity in tanzanian classrooms jessica essaryª, james hootb auniversity of mississippi bthe university at buffalo jessica n. essary, phd, is currently assistant professor of early childhood education, and the coordinator of the m.ed.ece program, at the university of mississippi. her primary research interests are diversity teacher preparation and international education. prior to her work at ole miss, dr. essary received her phd at the university at buffalo, the state university of new york, and spent 4.5 years as a faculty member in the college of education at zayed university in dubai, u.a.e. james l. hoot, phd, is currently professor emeritus at state university of new york at buffalo. his primary research interest is global issues concerning early childhood education. dr. hoot is a member of the executive board of the world organization for early childhood education (omep usa) and he has served two terms as president of the association for childhood education international (acei). abstract while rhetoric concerning gender equity is beginning to emerge in many african nations, a dearth of research examines the status of gender equity in actual sub-saharan african classrooms. the purpose of this study was to explore teacher views of gender equity pertaining to primary grade boys and girls. data were collected using the teacher attitudes survey (tas) (anderson, 2005). this instrument was administered to 137 randomly selected tanzanian primary grade teachers. findings suggest significant differences exist in what teachers perceive to be important for boys and girls to learn when the curriculum is broken down by subject. discussion of findings provides suggestions for future international comparative research on gender equity in african classrooms. introduction the positive outcomes associated with completion of basic education are well known internationally. among these are an increase in literacy rates, economic prosperity, status mobility, and individual autonomy (spodek & saracho, 2014; zachrisson, & dearing, 2015). on the african continent, nine out of 10 children begin primary school. however, only six will finish primary school and only three will master basic literacy and numeracy skills (adea, 2006). perhaps the major reason for this dropout rate is that more immediate issues (e.g., health emergencies, sanitation provisions, and water access) often take precedence over national education agendas, leaving issues such as gender inequities in schooling not addressed. 5 while providing quality education in african nations is becoming a priority for increasing government agendas, understanding the complex needs of marginalized children in order to address educational inequities continues to be a major challenge. during the 1990’s many african countries increased access to education in response to education for all (efa) and millennium development goals (mdg) by providing more schools and teachers (zhang, 2006). the number of schools and teachers increased from 1999 to 2009 by 500% (unesco, 2010). national leadership, outside aid, and more effective policies have allowed many african countries to demonstrate that it is possible to provide education even in the world’s poorest areas (unesco, 2010). however, while brick and mortar schools have become more accessible for some, the quality of that education, levels of achievement, and advancement among students remain problematic (oldekop et. al., 2016). for education to be accessible and valuable, improvements in both access and quality in schooling need to progress simultaneously. the education for all global monitoring report (unesco, 2010) has the following to say: the ultimate measure of any education system is not how many children are in school, but what and how wellthey learn. yet there is growing evidence that the world is moving more quickly to get children into school than to improve the quality of the education offered (p.7). since the quality of education is strongly linked to the quality of the classroom teacher, this current study begins to explore one critical variable in educational improvement-gender equity. specifically, this investigation provides researchers, teacher educators, and policy makers with an extended understanding of gender equity with respect to teachers’ pedagogical decision-making. the influence of teacher perspectives on teacher pedagogy reports of gender inequities in sub-saharan african societies raise increasing concerns among government officials and education stakeholders. as in many african nations, policy makers in tanzania are working to prioritize improvements in curriculum and teacher pedagogy to address these concerns. resulting policies have the potential to begin to close the gender divide (aikman, unterhalter, & challender, 2005). as has been recently pointed out, however, early education policy at the national levels seldom translates into improved classroom practices (bakuza, 2014; tandika, 2015). perhaps the major reason for this is that the voices of practicing teachers are seldom considered in policy development. research suggests that teachers’ prior beliefs have a greater influence on teachers’ pedagogy than their formal knowledge (ethell & mcmeniman, 2002). as anderson (2005) notes, “theories about the role of beliefs in pedagogical decision-making are important… since efforts to raise awareness about gender equity in school may confirm or challenge teachers’ existing beliefs about boys’ and girls’ ability to succeed in an academic setting” (p. 41).” in light of these findings, greater attention to teachers’ beliefs appear warranted. teachers’ expectations of boy and girl students in sub-saharan africa teachers’ expectations of their students are highly related to variations in student achievement (adea, 2006). primary school environments, which have similar treatment of both genders and equal curricular opportunities for boys and girls, have been significantly associated with decreased dropout rates among girls. however, investigations in sub-saharan africa stake strong claims that teachers view academic subjects as more or less important for boys and girls (lloyd, mensch, & clark, 2000). in agreement with 6 an earlier investigation in malawi (davison & kanyuka, 1992), anderson’s (2005) benin study also found that teachers believe girls require primarily domestic skills in their lives. this study analyzed 324 teacher views of student behavior and questioned how these perceptions influenced gender equity in teachers’ pedagogical practices. anderson (2005) found that when teachers addressed their perceptions of the importance of vocational/domestic studies, they, on average, emphasized cooking, sewing and typing as subjects important for girls. in contrast, they listed mechanics as an important subject for boys. formal schooling may also maintain messages of a hidden gender curriculum. images in textbooks often display females engaged in domestic chores more often than males. for example, in an analysis of the home economics curriculum in tanzania, a strong reflection of the participants’ belief in girls’ roles as mothers and homemakers emerged (stambach, 2000). when teachers utilize these materials, they are sending hidden messages, which condone a gendered curricular belief system. the historical context of equity in educational development in tanzania indicators of gender-equity in the classroom are relational and exist within a cultural context. in the article “gender equality in education: definitions and measurements,” subrahmanian (2005) calls on researchers to recognize these relational aspects within the educational system. to comprehend equity in education, it is helpful to understand the general context of education within a particular society before conducting a baseline examination of equity in the classroom. this allows for looking beyond the surface of equality indicators to understand deep-rooted traditions, which may have influenced the equity within an educational experience (e.g., power influences, collective action efforts, and opportunities for distributive justice). each country in sub-saharan africa has a historical education account of its own. in order to better understand educational equity in tanzania, it is valuable to know a bit about the historical context of education in this country. on december 9, 1961, after centuries of foreign rule (i.e., portugal, germany, and britain, respectively), tanzania was challenged to quickly implement a new education system. president julius kambarage nyerere (1922 -1999) implemented a first five-year development plan. within this plan, there was a response to the urgent need for educated citizens. without tribal discrimination, classes were offered to any and all adults in tanzania. the implementation of this plan reduced the illiteracy rate, from 71.9 percent in 1961 to 15 percent by 1985. tanzania’s history of supporting ideals of equity among ethnicities in education and within the government since the 1960’s is often discussed as a factor which can be attributed to making it a relatively peaceful nation in contrast with its many war-torn, neighboring countries (marlow-ferguson, 2002). within tanzania’s primary education development programme ii plan (pedp), mainstreaming gender issues is recognized as a goal that is an “important contribution to the achievement of access to education and quality and equity in education” (tanzanian ministry of education, 2007, p. 6). this is consistent with tanzania’s vision 2025. within the pedp, the tanzanian ministry of education (2007) clearly addresses the desire to design capacity training models to respond to gender needs, provide gender responsive pedagogy, monitor and evaluate gender mainstreaming, take into account system-wide variations among schools when implementing interventions, and create indicators for gender responsive pedagogy (objective 28, tanzanian ministry of education, 2007). in planning for the future, the recommendations from the current research investigation may be helpful for the government, considering the lack of baseline data, which pertain to the relevance and need for such goals. 7 research question: the following research question guided this investigation: what are tanzanian teachers’ perceptions of the value of boys and girls studying particular subject matter? methodology sample tanzania is composed of 364,900 square miles. according to the last population and housing census in tanzania, there were approximately 44.9 million tanzanians in 2012 (i.e., with about 1.3 million living on the island of zanzibar). teacher training is offered in 34 government and 43 non-government colleges in tanzania (united republic of tanzania, 2013). the most recent data suggests that out of the 205,387 teachers employed in tanzania in 2007, approximately 5,958 obtained a degree in teaching (tanzanian government ministry of educational statistics, 2007). this investigation samples 137 degree seeking, primary emphasis, in-service teachers in training. the site where this research was conducted was purposively selected. the teachers enrolled were from a variety of regions making it the most geographically representative teacher training college (ttc) in tanzania. permission to collect data was granted after the senior researcher met with the headmaster on site. next, university affiliates administered the survey to a random, interval, systematically selected group (chosen from the entire enrollment list). the survey was provided to this group in february, 2012 after an assembly session. the final copy of the surveys were mailed in a sealed envelope to the senior researcher by a representative from the immaculate heart sisters of africa. out of the 150 original teachers randomly selected, 10 declined the opportunity to remain and fill out the survey. further, three surveys were eliminated due to a large amount of missing data. the average age of the teachers in this sample was 22. descriptive data collected from the sample demonstrates that out of the 137 participants, 41(29.9%) were predominately from the city and 96 (70.1%) were predominately from rural areas. as the population is increasingly becoming more urban and less rural, the sample mirrors this ongoing, slight demographic shift, which corresponds with the trend documented over the last decade (united nations population division, world urbanization prospects, 2015). there were 83 males (60.6%), and 54 females (39.4%). in 2007, there were 10,036 (53.5%) males in government teacher training colleges and 8,718 (46.5%) females for a total of 18,754 teachers enrolled (ministry of education and vocational training mainland and zanzibar 2008, p.17). although there were 83 males (60.6%), and 54 females (39.4%), this may be representative of trends in 2012. the enrollment of girls in government schooling has decreased by more than 200 students each year from 2004-2007 (ministry of education and vocational training mainland and zanzibar, p. 18). one might assume that the larger representation of males in this study’s sample (60.6%) may be due to an increasing number of females entering non-government institutions instead of government schools. 8 in this study, 14.6% of this sample had mothers or fathers with no schooling. in the sample, 54.7% (75) of teachers’ mothers and 38% (52) of fathers were reported to have dropped out of school after completing primary education. when it came to achieving higher levels of education, 19 (13.9%) of the fathers completed the advanced form of secondary school (high school) while only five (3.6%) of mothers were able to achieve this level. in addition, only three teachers’ mothers had college degrees, while 10 fathers had college degrees. table 1 provides a descriptive overview of the sample of this study. table 1 sample description (n = 137) variable description values range mean median mode age age of teacher continuous 18-48 21.61 21.0 20 gender sex of the teacher 0= male 1= female 0-1 .39 0 0 urban/ rural personal history teacher grew up predominately in a village/villages or a city/cities 0= village 1=city 0-1 .30 0 0 mother’s education the last grade achieved by the teacher’s mother number of years 1-7= standards 8-11= ordinary forms 12-13= advanced forms 14-16= college 17-18= masters 0-16 7.50 7 7 father’s education the last grade achieved by the teacher’s father number of years 1-7= standards 8-11= ordinary forms 12-13= advanced forms 14-16= college 17-18= masters 0-18 8.85 7 7 career satisfaction teachers’ satisfaction rating of the teaching opportunities in tanzania 1= very unsatisfied 2= slightly unsatisfied 3= neutral 4=somewhat satisfied 5= very satisfied 1-5 3.79 4.0 4.0 9 instrumentation until anderson’s (2005) development of the teacher attitudes survey (tas) there was no instrument specifically designed to measure teachers’ perceptions of gender equity in their practices. the tas examines tanzanian teachers’ self-reported beliefs about girls’ and boys’ needs and abilities as students. this instrument was further chosen because it was the only survey found specifically designed to measure gender equity in teacher pedagogy as it relates to teacher perspectives. the cronbach’s alpha reliability levels of the composite variables of the tas (at an alpha level of .05) suggested a strong reliability among each formed subset of the questions, with even the lowest score being rather strong at .68 (anderson, 2005, p. 120-122). adaptations were made of the original survey through a number of sources. first, a focus group of tanzanian primary teachers provided feedback on the content of this survey (e.g., taking out unnecessary words that did not change the meaning). additional questions were provided as a result of research recommendations from aikman, unterhalter, and challender (2005) who developed additional indicators of gender equity in teacher pedagogy. by adapting the instrument in terms of: 1) the descriptive information collected, 2) the order and wording of the questions, and 3) the particular questions chosen, the investigation provided a different, yet meaningful, comparable analysis that may better examine common links among the predictor and predicted variables between the benin (anderson, 2005) and tanzanian data. this provided an opportunity for cross-cultural comparisons, such as that suggested in anderson’s study (2005). since subjects in tanzania are taught in english in primary schools, the survey was administered in english. teachers self-rated their support for the importance of different curriculum content on a 1-7 likert scale, where 1-3 represent decreasing levels of agreement (negative perception), a value of 4 represents neutrality, and 5-7 represents increasing levels of agreement (positive perception) for each indicator. results the primary purpose of this investigation was to examine tanzanian teachers’ perceptions of the value of boys and girls studying particular subject matter. to determine possible gender differences among teachers’ perceptions regarding course content more suitable for boys/girls, paired t-tests were conducted (see table 2). the largest mean differences existed regarding: mechanics (5.04) and cooking (5.48). teachers favored boys learning mechanics and girls learning how to cook. teachers tended to be ‘neutral’ in their perceptions about the importance of boys learning biology (4.64), and girls to learning english (4.40). to discuss the remaining results, we begin with teachers’ strongest reported beliefs and end with areas teachers’ ‘strongly disagreed’ for each gender. 10 table 2: teachers’ perceptions about subject matter importance in boys’ and girls’ primary schooling in tanzania, according to paired t-tests, n=137 boy-girl difference in teacher’s perceptions statistical significance based on paired t-tests (2-tailed hypothesis test) boys’ mean (s.e.) girls’ mean (s.e.) boy-girl mean difference: 2-tailed statistical significance it is important for boys/girls to learn basic math 5.45 (.119) 2.81 (.139) 2.64*** it is important for boys/girls to learn advanced math 5.95 (.196) 2.81 (.148) 3.14*** it is important for boys/girls to learn chemistry 5.82 (.205) 2.40 (.218) 3.42*** it is important for boys/girls to learn english 3.85 (.257) 4.40 (.256) -.555 it is important for boys/girls to learn accounting 5.20 (.236) 3.09 (.246) 2.11*** it is important for boys/girls to learn kiswahili 3.12 (.155) 5.62 (.101) -2.50*** it is important for boys/girls to learn cooking 1.17 (.087) 6.65 (.121) -5.48*** it is important for boys/girls to learn mechanics 6.61 (.127) 1.57 (.151) 5.04*** it is important for boys/girls to learn typing 2.42 (.106) 5.62 (.101) -3.20*** it is important for boys/girls to learn biology 4.64 (.251) 3.63 (.255) 1.01* it is important for boys/girls to learn sewing 2.84 (.237) 5.38 (.228) -2.54*** it is important for boys/girls to learn computer 2.31 (.213) 5.99 (.192) -3.68*** *p < .05, **p< .01, ***p< .001 teachers tended to ‘agree’ that it is important for boys to learn mechanics and ‘somewhat agree’ that it is important for boys to learn math (5.45), advanced math (5.95), chemistry (5.82), and accounting (5.20). for their female students, teachers tended to ‘agree’ that it is important for girls to learn cooking (6.65) and ‘somewhat agree’ that it is important for girls to learn kiswahili (5.62), typing (5.62), sewing (5.38), and computer skills (5.99). the teachers in this sample ‘somewhat disagreed’ that it is important for boys to learn english (3.85) and kiswahili (3.12). these teachers ‘disagreed’ that it is important for boys to learn typing (2.42), sewing (2.84), and computer skills (2.31). the importance for boys to learn cooking is something with which teachers ‘strongly disagreed.’ teachers in this sample ‘somewhat disagree’ that it is important for girls to learn accounting (3.09), and biology (3.63). these teachers tend to ‘disagree’ that it is important for girls to learn math (2.81), 11 advanced math (2.81), and chemistry (2.40). teachers ‘strongly disagree’ that it is important for girls to learn mechanics (1.57). the perceptions of teachers did not significantly vary among teachers depending upon their profiles in combination with their background characteristics [i.e., age, area of origin (rural or urban), parents’ schooling level achieved, sex (male or female), and career satisfaction]. yet, there are stark differences in what the teachers in the sample perceive to be important when the curriculum is broken down subject by subject. overall, the null hypothesis was rejected for every indicator except for english language learning. english language learning was the only item that was not significantly different. the teachers considered english to be important for the education of both boys and girls. discussion similar to most societal norms (aikman, unterhalter, & challender, 2005) and related research studies (e.g. davison & kanyuka, 1992; anderson, 2005), teachers in this study believed it is more beneficial for girls to learn domestic subjects (cooking and sewing) than boys. these data are consistent with findings (biraimah, 1989) from a nigerian classroom study, which demonstrated designated roles for boys were often positions of authority, while girls were mostly assigned leadership roles that related to domestic responsibilities. cross-cultural comparisons between this study and anderson’s study in benin suggests that teachers in benin were less gender specific about the subjects boys and girls may be taught, on average, than the teachers in the tanzania sample. moreover, teachers in this tanzania sample, on average, ‘somewhat disagree’ that it was important for girls to learn accounting (3.09), and biology (3.63), tend to ‘disagree’ that it was important for girls to learn math (2.81), advanced math (2.81), and chemistry (2.40), and ‘strongly disagree’ that it was important for girls to learn mechanics (1.57). however, on average, benin teachers did not disagree with any indicators, and, instead, selected various levels of ‘agreement’ on every subject being important for both boys and girls to learn. in addition, in anderson’s benin study, there was no statistically significant difference in teachers’ perceptions of the importance of computer skills, accounting, biology, and advanced math subjects for boys and girls to learn. however, teachers considered more of the subject matter indicators of greater importance for girls than for boys to learn [i.e., advanced math (-.213, p.001), typing (-.213, p.001), accounting (-.403, p.001), french (-.197 p.01), sewing (-.467, p.001), and cooking (-.601, p.001)] with the only exception being mechanics (.537, p.001). contrasts in the tanzania and benin studies suggest that teachers’ perceptions may vary by cultural context. yet, due to the lack of in-depth teacher explanation, findings from these exploratory studies call for further investigation. designing culturally-relevant gender equity teaching interventions gender sensitivity training in tanzania has recently been recognized as a major educational weakness. the need to strengthen the current teacher-training curriculum in terms of gender has been suggested in government recommendations (tanzanian ministry of education, 2007). moreover, goals regarding educational reform in tanzania are heavily focused on improving teacher professional development and practice in the area of gender equity by the year 2025 (tanzanian ministry of education, 2007). although 12 this study identifies inequities in teacher perspectives, which may be found in their practices, gender inequities are complex problems requiring thorough examination prior to implementing effective solutions. therefore, additional research is needed to determine how these perspectives are developed, how the perspectives may influence individual learners, and how might gender inequities in curriculum influence a child’s social capital in a particular cultural context. table 3: comparative table of teachers’ perceptions regarding subject matter importance in boys’ and girls’ primary schooling in tanzania (essary, 2012) n=137 and benin (anderson, 2005) n=324 it is important for boys/girls to learn… boy-girl mean difference: (anderson, 2005) in benin benin direction of opinion favoring: n = neutral b = boys g = girls boy-girl mean difference: (essary, 2012) in tanzania tanzania direction of opinion favoring: n = neutral b = boys g = girls basic math -.021 n 2.64*** b advanced math -.213*** g 3.14*** b chemistry .035 n 3.42*** b accounting -.208*** g 2.11*** b cooking -.601*** g -5.48*** g mechanics .537*** b 5.04*** b typing -.403*** g -3.20*** g biology .003 n 1.01* b sewing -.467*** g -2.54*** g computer -.112 g -3.68*** g *p < .05, **p< .01, ***p< .001 political and educational leaders often develop broad goals to address inequities in classroom scenarios from a narrow viewpoint (unesco, 2010). unesco (2010) suggests “successful interventions against marginalization have to tackle specific underlying causes that may be missed by blanket interventions” (unesco, 2010 p.185). when complex problems arrive on a political agenda, solutions may overlook the human, material, and financial resources needed. consequently, complex issues (e.g., gender inequity 13 in the classroom) are frequently bandaged with blanket responses. without research to support these decisions, solutions are likely to be ineffective and/or unsustainable (e.g. such as providing a gender equity training package without knowing about the specific contextual factors which influence teacher perspectives). in her study of gender issues in benin classrooms, anderson (2005) noted specific unexpected findings. this researcher found that teacher’s professional academic preparation in benin had an unintended negative impact on teachers’ use of gender equity in classroom practices (eic) with girl students. results suggest that by introducing gender equity training systems, the training itself may emphasize gender prejudices and thus negatively impact teacher pedagogy. anderson (2005) suggests, “the negative relationship between professional certification and the implementation of eic strategies, challenges that commonly held view that training expands teachers’ professional knowledge base and generally improves teacher practice” (p. 73). examining and expanding previously documented variables that create gender equity in teacher pedagogy (its predictors & indicators) might provide future researchers with a more thorough understanding of the structures and processes taking place in a gender-equitable classroom (subrahmanian, 2005). future investigations may examine the norms and values institutionalized within the pedagogical relationship between students and teachers in tanzanian classrooms and further define the predictors and indicators of gender equity in teacher pedagogy. a review of research on pedagogy and teacher development in eastern sub-saharan africa states that “there is a robust body of knowledge that suggests that teaching practices are informed by ideas, beliefs and images that (a) teachers begin to develop well before embracing teaching as a career and (b) that traditional teacher preparation isn’t successfully challenging” (dembele & miaro-ii, 2003, p.3). by recognizing the existence of gender biases, teachers may more readily begin to consider how to eliminate them (frawley, 2005). for example, while referring to the research findings evidenced within this investigation, teachers can be asked to theorize why the individuals in this sample reported that mechanics are more important for boys to learn about and less important for girls. teachers’ perspectives may be collected through qualitative methods, which provide in-depth insights on the development of their opinions on subject matter importance for boys and girls. such insights and teacher suggested solutions for inequities might be used in designing culturally responsive gender equity training. the availability and quality of primary schooling in sub-saharan africa has been a growing focus of research, political change, and international financial support over the past two decades. yet, when considering the level of complexity involved in understanding gender inequities, research initiatives continue to be warranted, and this challenge is not to be underestimated. prior to designing teachertraining interventions, additional studies are necessary to examine which factors have influenced teachers’ perspectives. since teachers’ perceptions shape the way they receive, resist, and transform policies (blackmore, 1998), if a pedagogical change to improve equity in education is warranted, teachers may be more willing to use new strategies when reform efforts consider their beliefs, experiences, and backgrounds. before designing training programs, conducting a community level evaluation may provide a detailed narrative on how each teacher’s experiences led to development of gender bias. through participatory, critical, reflective analysis, teachers can examine how such biases may be a problem within the classroom. also, through this process, the teacher may be offered an opportunity to become a part of designing an intervention to address such issues. this aim cannot be achieved solely through other common methods of qualitative investigation (e.g., interviews, focus groups) (donnely, 2015). 14 recommendations for practice training interventions and gender research may encourage gender equity if the focus is on exploring how to improve the quality of education for both boys and girls. currently, much international gender equity research focuses on girls’ needs in the classroom. if too much focus is placed on girls, the pendulum may shift and perceptions and practices towards boys may display more inequities (weaver-hightower, 2003), or vice-versa. when implementing training programs, organizers must be mindful of the social landscape that is being targeted. for example, if teachers receive gender training in areas that are already demonstrating equity, their time may be wasted. in addition, due to exposure to popular gender stereotypes, teachers may also create biases that did not previously exist. the training design and other gender equity interventions should receive feedback from focus groups of gender equity researchers before being conducted. these researchers may assist in providing practical considerations for the proposed intervention. for example, one anonymous gender equity expert who briefly provided commentary in a european evaluation society session in dublin, ireland recently suggested that all trainings should be co-conducted by a male and female who share responsibility equally. she believes this provides a model of both gender equality and equity. what trainers have to say may gain credibility with the teachers when they see the trainers are able to model gender equity in their practices while working together, regardless of gender differences. direction for future studies investigating gender equity in curriculum content improving gender equity in teacher pedagogy is not a complete solution for all gender inequities that children face in their school experience. beyond individual teacher inputs, factors such as the resources in the physical classroom environment or other systematic differences may result in differential discouragement for girls and/or boys. for instance, if girls and boys are taught the same content, with ‘equity in the classroom pedagogy’ used for both, yet still perform poorly or drop out, other influential factors may be interacting. educational quality is not simply created with inputs or variables that undergo certain reliable combinations to ensure predictable outcomes. for example, poverty can influence inequities. further, politicians and researchers rarely come from marginalized backgrounds and often go to great lengths in order to understand what solutions might be most effective in confronting complex educational problems. efforts for school improvement may be in vain if the social processes of teaching, learning, and mediating changes (teachers, students, and management/policies) are not well understood before intervention planning commences. this can lead to slippages and oversights that can weaken improvement efforts (tao, 2010). there are a plethora of potential gender equity research topics in sub-saharan african education that may be investigated further. for example, one might conduct research that examines: 1) what activities outside of school hours may compliment or distract from educational attainment among rural vs. urban female and male children. 2) what cultural beliefs and common proverbs influence the importance of children’s familial roles? how do these roles influence a boy or girl child’s schooling? 15 3) how might teachers’ childhood experiences influence how they developed their own gender equity perspectives over time?   these are a few among many examples of factors that may be resulting in differential discouragement for girls’ and/or boys’ education and warrant examination in future research in sub-saharan africa. limitations this baseline study sought to begin examining gender inequities in the classroom in tanzania. there are many aspects that can influence gender inequities in teacher pedagogy. this study was designed to examine only teachers’ perspectives regarding gender-related subject matter importance. essentially, this study contains preliminary information for future studies of gender inequities in tanzania and other subsaharan african countries. this is the first step in approaching subsequent research on gender equity in tanzanian classrooms, but not entirely representative of all the possible factors. further, teachers’ voices were limited in this study. although teachers were able to report their perceptions on the tas, there was a limited option of responses and no area for teachers to elaborate on the rationale for their views. conclusion understanding the negative effects training can have on teacher pedagogy encourages careful planning prior to testing an intervention for gender equity teacher training. this study was minimally invasive by design in order to gather baseline data on gender equity in tanzanian teacher pedagogy. the collection and substantiation of more evidence and information are needed to continue this process in the most nonintrusive manner as possible. in the pedp, the tanzanian ministry of education noted in the gender equality section (goal 4.5 educational research: “responses to unique local realitites can only be achieved if local educators organize and reflect on their own experiences and use these reflections to design local interventions that will improve pupils’ learning” (tanzanian ministry of education, 2007). teachers’ voices may be amplified through practical aspects of national involvement (e.g., non-profit organization to support teacher networking) and teacher research involvement. this study provided baseline data and contextual information that systematically informs what teachers’ perspectives and practices appear to be among tanzanian primary school teachers. this information may assist others in understanding the call for future sequential explanatory mixed-method research designs. such a design may allow for insights from a participatory, critical, and reflective qualitative examination to highlight why teachers maintain the perspectives and practices illuminated in this study (creswell & plano clark, 2007). for example, teachers’ reactions to gender inequities may be collected by including pictures of scenarios that suggest individuals are crossing gender boundaries and videotaping survey participants’ reactions and in-depth critical reflections. finally, as educational practitioners, teachers should be more involved in suggesting what changes (e.g., policy, additional resources, etc.) might support the use of more equitable practices. in order for gender equity teacher training to be meaningful for educators, training should evaluate how to challenge the perceptions of teachers in a way that accurately represents their needs. therefore, involving teachers in the design of gender equity training is highly warranted. 16 references aikman, s., unterhalter, e., & challender, c. 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(2006). urban-rural literacy gaps in sub-saharan africa: the roles of socioeconomic status and school quality. comparative education review, 50(4), 581-602. international journal of the whole child 2016, vol. 1, no. 2 considering instructional appropriateness of technology integration into early childhood education shaunna smithª, lauren burrowᵇ, kathy fiteᶜ, and laurie guerra ͩ ªtexas state university, ᵇstephen f. austin university, ᶜ texas state university, ͩ doctoral candidate at sam houston state university introduction in a research context, the very nature of how one defines technology and technology integration into an early childhood (ec) classroom takes on different meanings that can complicate the national discussion. in an early childhood education (ece) context, there are multiple concerns about technology integration that go beyond access and classroom management of student use. mcmannis, nemeth, and simon (2013) point out that lack of research on technology integration in ec classrooms could be contributing to common misconceptions in the discussions about affordances and translation of theory into practice. in order to keep with the changing educational landscape of preparing pre-service teachers (psts) to effectively integrate technology into classrooms, institutions of higher education have previously required standalone educational technology courses. however, due to changing accreditation requirements or programmatic restructuring, there is migration toward the elimination of the standalone course in favor of technology integration into methods and content courses. technology integration in an ec classroom is critical to prepare and provide students with the evolving 21st-century skills that are recommended and essential for operational success in a technology-reliant society. while technology standards for both students and teachers (iste standards, 2008) have been identified, standards for teacher educators who model initial knowledge and application necessary for psts to carry out those standards are still in development. without national standards and with many teacher education programs no longer providing a specific course on technology integration to instruct psts on how to navigate working, learning, and teaching in an increasingly connected digital society, the questions then become --what do psts know and believe about ece technology integration? how well are instructors effectively modeling the knowledge psts need? and, if there is no room in programs for a standalone technology integration course, what messages about technology integration are psts receiving and how is instructionally appropriate technology integration being modeled by faculty instruction? context this exploratory study used a researcher-created survey to identify the current state of psts’ knowledge and attitudes about technology integration in ec classrooms. survey and follow-up focus group results were used to re-examine the impact teaching foundations without formal technology training (due to a national trend to cut out standalone technology courses) has on psts in teacher preparation programs. re-examination allowed the researchers to surmise what next steps should be taken in order to best prepare psts within the confines of sharing technology practices only through integrative course instruction. this study is informed by the following guiding questions: 1. what are the contributing factors to pre-service teachers' current perceptions about technology integration practice in early childhood classrooms? 2. what do pre-service teachers’ current perceptions about technology integration practice in early childhood classrooms mean for instructors in teacher education programs? related literature current theory on approaches for integrating technology into instruction emphasizes the importance of choosing technology tools that compliment content and pedagogy. mishra and koehler’s (2006) technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpack) adds the role of technological knowledge to shulman’s (1986) pedagogical content knowledge (pck) theory that effective instruction is dependent upon choosing pedagogies that compliment contentspecific needs. pierson (2001) further contextualizes this theoretical concept by explaining that technology integration exemplifies pedagogical expertise and each tool that an educator chooses to integrate into classrooms has direct connections to specific content and pedagogy needs of lessons being taught. often times in ece contexts, choices to implement technological solutions relies on what is viewed as developmentally appropriate practice (dap) as defined by psts' usage and training in such practices. drawing upon shulman, mishra & koehler, and pierson, authors for this current project argue that dap is of important concern in an ec classroom; however, psts’ awareness of instructionally appropriate technology integration is paramount. developmentally appropriate practices in ece contexts, technology integration is primarily viewed through the pedagogical lens of developmentally appropriate practices (dap). dap is an educational philosophy that requires educators to evaluate individual children’s developmental stages, contexts, and desired developmental goals in order to be intentional in making curricular decisions that will further promote learning and development (copple & bredekamp, 2009; finegan & austin, 2002; naeyc, 2009; naeyc, 2012). within the dap framework, educators begin with basic knowledge of developmental stages for a certain age range and from this understanding they will have a general concept of what activities, routines, interactions, and curriculum are most effective in promoting development and learning (copple & bredekamp, 2009; naeyc, 2009, p. 10). each child within the group is then considered individually and “within the context of that child’s specific family, community, culture, linguistic norms, social group, past experience (including learning and behavior), and current circumstances” (naeyc, 2012, p. 5). given that children are being exposed to technology at progressively earlier ages and are becoming increasingly proficient at using technology to accomplish developmentally appropriate tasks, the context of technology and interactive media must also be considered factors within the dap framework for educators when selecting instructional materials and facilitating learning environments (naeyc, 2012). because of this cultural phenomenon, attention and awareness is being brought to phrases such as “digital natives” (prensky, 2001a) and “net generation” (kumar & vigil, 2011; oblinger & oblinger, 2005; tapscott, 1998) that refer to individuals who have grown up around and are frequently using technology (parette, quesenberry, & blum, 2010). there has been significant increases in uses of technology in ec classrooms and home settings; yet, there are still many ec teachers who are not tapping into this potential educational resource due to various concerns about what role technology should play in ec curriculum, as well as lack of knowledge on ways to successfully integrate technology into developmentally appropriate instructional practices (blake, winsor, burkett, & allen, 2011; finegan & austin, 2002; naeyc, 2012; grunwald and associates, 2010; parette, quesenberry, & blum, 2010; wartella, blackwell, lauricella, & robb, 2013). dap with technology it is easy to see why ec educators might be hesitant to jump on board the technology bandwagon. many people fear the potential hazards presented by technology mis-use to children’s physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development (grunwald and associates, 2010; naeyc, 2012). to combat these potential harms and ensure safe and secure learning environments for young children, it is pertinent for teachers to understand what is developmentally appropriate and effective when monitoring and restricting the amount of time that children spend using technology. even more essential, though, should be the significance placed on how that time is actually spent using chosen technology (barron et al., 2011; christakis & garrison, 2009; naeyc, 2012; parette, quesenberry, & blum, 2010; tandon et al., 2011). "early childhood educators who are informed, intentional, and reflective use technology and interactive media as additional tools for enriching learning environments. they choose technology, technologysupported activities, and media that serve their teaching and learning goals and needs" (naeyc, 2012, p. 10). informed and effective ec teachers practice what these researcher’s call “instructionally appropriate” technology. instructionally appropriate technology integration while dap still appears to be the primary guiding force for making most decisions regarding ec curriculum, when specifically considering technology integration into ec curriculum it may be more correct to focus on “instructional appropriateness” to guide pedagogical decisions. instructionally appropriate technology focuses on the best way to teach what needs to be taught; and while that may take into consideration children's learning preferences and developmental abilities (just as dap does), primary concerns should be about determining whether or not technology will simplify, amplify, extend, or transform children’s ability to learn and then choosing those programs, apps, and hardware that improve teacher instruction by purposefully aiding student understanding and application of content knowledge. when approached from an instructionally appropriate perspective, student learning takes priority instead of allowing technology to take center stage. rather than allowing national or school district demand for “more technology in the classroom” to drive classroom instruction, instructionally appropriate technology practice encourages teachers to consider the instructional purpose and place of technology. with this practice, technology becomes one of many tools in teachers' instructional toolkits. the problem is that too often ec teachers are entering classrooms from their undergraduate education and pst experiences and are ill-prepared to successfully navigate the waters of effectively incorporating technology within their instructional practices (ertmer, 2005; kumar & vigil, 2011; moursund & bielefeldt, 1999; parette, quesenberry, & blum, 2010; williams, foulger, & wetzel, 2009). while some psts are simply unaware of technology tools at their disposal, it appears that many more are familiar with technology in their personal lives, but lack necessary training for effectively transferring that tool knowledge for maximum benefit into an ec classroom. early childhood pre-service teacher preparation for technology integration while there appears to be a high use of technology in psts’ personal lives (kumar & vigil, 2011), there is a general lack of transferability to classroom settings in part due to psts' attitudes, values, and beliefs in regards to educational technology (ertmer, ottenbreit-leftwich, sadik, e. sendurur, & p. sendurur, 2012; lei, 2009; williams, foulger, & wetzel, 2009), as well as a lack of effective modeling and practice applied during their pre-service educational experiences (blake, et.al., 2010; kumar & vigil, 2011; lei, 2009). from this research the following questions were pursued: 1) what factors contribute to psts’ current perceptions about technology integration practice in ec classrooms and 2) what does that mean for instructors in teacher education programs? methodology to discern how ec psts think about instructionally appropriate technology integration, this exploratory study used mixed methods, including a survey that combined quantitative and qualitative methods (marsland, wilson, abeyasekera, & kleih, 2001) and a retrospective focus group (wallen & frankel, 2011). participants eighty-eight ec psts from a large urban university in the southwestern united states participated in this study. the study took place during the spring 2014 semester, in which participants were enrolled in a human growth and development course required within their teacher preparation program in the college of education. ranging in age from 18 to 34, these participants were in the early semesters of their program and were demographically representative of undergraduate psts enrolled at the university. their participation was voluntary; however, all 88 participated in the survey and follow-up focus group. survey the survey was designed by the research team and consisted of 35 questions that included 30 questions with four likert scale levels (strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree) and 5 questions with open-ended response. in line with bandura’s (1997) theories of socio-cultural impacts on self-efficacy, this survey was crafted to look at influences on attitudes, motivation, and self-efficacy beliefs toward technology integration, including technology use in personal life (mastery experience), current models of technology integration (vicarious experience), awareness of related theories and perspectives (social persuasion), and psychological impacts on motivation (physiological state). additionally, the survey included a 6th factor that focused on future intended use. although bandura does not theorize about the validity of participants’ projections into the future, these glimpses into future intentions are important for this study’s context. the survey was administered by hardcopy (pen and paper) at the end of one of the face-to-face class meetings. focus group the focus group with all 88 participants immediately followed the completion of the survey. the research team guided participants through a series of semi-structured questions that were based upon items on the survey. the entire 45-minute focus group was audio recorded. participants were encouraged to feel free to speak up and comment or ask questions whenever they desired. in typical dialogic style, the research team asked questions and participants indicated agreement and/or elaborated by voluntarily voicing personal opinions. validity and reliability this study used purposive sampling to target ec psts in a large urban university teacher preparation program. this specific group of participants was purposefully chosen based on relevant knowledge and experiential history (berkowitz & donnerstein, 1982) with regard to shared phenomenon (i.e., knowledge and attitudes about technology use for ec classrooms). the sample size for this study (n=88) constituted the entirety of the target population with 100% of the sample population fully participating in both the survey and focus group. in terms of qualitative validity, the researchers crafted measures (i.e., survey and focus group) that allowed participants to share individual interpretations of lived experiences with regard to shared phenomenon (maxwell, 1992). additionally, while the researcher-created survey is currently undergoing a validity study, the focus group provided exploratory confirmation of construct validity by providing multiple data sources and methods of collection (mcgrath, 1982; scandura & williams, 2000). further construct validity is found in that results from this study continue to be in line with other studies’ results (including blake, et al., 2010) thereby inferring that there is convergence across data sources, methods, and researchers (mcgrath, 1982). finally, construct validity is confidently inferred for this study due to the involvement of multiple researchers with varied expertise, experience, and knowledge in the fields being studied (i.e., ec practices and technology) (jick, 1979; mcgrath, 1982; scandura & williams, 2000). data analysis the research team collected surveys and then analyzed each factor using descriptive statistical procedures involving one-way tables and cross-tabulations. the focus group audio recording was transcribed and coded. coding analysis procedures ranged from descriptive coding to more explicit “in vivo” codes of exact participant wording for an emic (insider’s) perspective (saldana, 2009). results guided by bandura (1997), six factors were explored to examine self-efficacy toward technology integration for early childhood educational contexts, including 1) awareness, 2) confidence, 3) value, 4) current practice in personal life, 5) current models, and 6) future practice. the results of both the survey and focus group are woven together throughout each factor in order to explore each disposition below. awareness of and attitudes toward technology integration issues five items on the survey prompted participants to rate the level to which they had been exposed to issues related to instructionally appropriate technology integration within ec classrooms. since exposure to related theories and perspectives can heavily influence psts’ attitudes toward technology integration (williams, foulger, & wetzel, 2009), these items draw upon whether or not participants have received encouraging messages from faculty and peers, or “social persuasions” (bandura, 1997). dap with technology initial questions gauged connections between awareness of theories related to ec instructional practices and technology integration. when asked if they were aware of theories related to dap, 87% of participants answered affirmatively. participants elaborated on their survey affirmations by indicating need for “hands-on activities” and “active” learning experiences in ec classrooms (open-ended survey response). however, when asked about their awareness of how dap directly related to technology integration, there was a near even split between 52% of participants who indicated awareness and 48% of participants who indicated that they were not aware of theoretical connections. it should be noted that when probed further during the focus group, many participants revealed that they struggled with an accurate understanding of both dap and technology integration. as expected, a majority of participants indicated awareness of many general uses of technology for teaching and learning, including 94% awareness of hardware that could be used for classroom instruction and/or learning (i.e. computers laptops, ipads, projectors, interactive whiteboards), 95% agreed that technology is most effective when used to support content and instructional strategies, and 96% agreed that technology is most effective when presented as active learning. this was confirmed during the focus group in which participants voiced positive perspectives that technology had great potential for teaching and learning in ec classrooms. table 1 shows participants’ self-reported awareness levels and attitudes toward technology integration issues. table 1. awareness of and attitudes toward technology integration issues item strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree awareness of developmentally appropriate practices (dap) 6% 81% 10% 3% awareness of dap & technology integration 2% 50% 43% 5% technologies appropriate for teaching & learning 33% 61% 6% 0% technology should support content & pedagogy 41% 54% 5% 0% technology should be presented as active learning 38% 58% 4% 0% confidence with technology and technology integration issues six items on the survey asked participants to rate the level to which they felt confident in performing tasks or what bandura (1997) identifies as the “physiological state.” self-assessment of current levels of confidence in these tasks is an important consideration for psts’ own self-efficacy, but also a predictor of their ability to confidently perform the task in ec classrooms. table 2 shows participants’ self-reported confidence with technology and technology integration issues. personal technology skills despite some participants who indicated that they are “horrible with technology,” many participants indicated need to embrace technology integration. as one participant reported, “children in this generation use so much technology every day, they are used to it so it will be beneficial for teachers to use it also” (open-ended survey response). others shared this thought with 75% of participants indicating that they felt confident taking risks to try out new technologies and 62% of participants indicated that they were confident in their ability to troubleshoot their own technical problems. technology and others despite generally positive perspectives of their own individual technical abilities, only 44% of participants indicated that they were confident in their ability to explain to others how to troubleshoot technical problems. in general, respondents felt that young students already know how to use technologies, “my nephew is even more knowledgeable in using an ipad than i am” (open-ended survey response). this creates an interesting juxtaposition between participants’ confidence in their own troubleshooting ability versus their ability to facilitate someone else’s troubleshooting, which is a very important factor for facilitating student use of technology in classroom settings (lei, 2009). similarly, 76% of participants indicated that they felt confident operating technology in front of other people. however, upon further discussion during the focus group, two-thirds of participants revealed that they had personal experiences when technology did not work as expected as they were presenting to their peers in class --“it seems to take forever because they are staring at you while you’re waiting for it to work” (student communication, focus group interview, line 108). communicating about technology though it was expected that participants would be confident in their own technical abilities, the researchers were surprised by the levels of confidence they reported with regard to communicating key issues of technology integration with others especially given the evenly distributed levels of awareness they indicated in the previous section. despite only 53% of participants reporting that they were aware of dap and technology integration theories, 61% indicated that they felt confident explaining to others how to integrate technology to support student learning in the grade level and content area that they plan to teach. similarly, despite their awareness of related theories, 60% of participants felt confident about their ability to explain to others why technology integration is essential to student learning. table 2. confidence with technology and technology integration issues item strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree confidently take risks by trying new technologies 22% 53% 22% 2% confidently troubleshoot my own technical problems 10% 52% 35% 4% confidently explain to others how to troubleshoot 6% 38% 48% 7% confidently operate technology in front of other people 16% 60% 22% 1% confidently explain to others how to integrate technology 7% 54% 35% 4% confidently explain to others why technology integration is essential 6% 54% 36% 4% value of technology integration ten items on the survey asked participants to rate the level to which they perceived the value of technology for teaching and learning. guided by bandura (1997), these items were based on literature regarding affective and/or emotional beliefs held toward technology. an overwhelming majority of participants indicated that they highly valued technology. table 3 shows participants’ self-reported attitudes towards the value of technology integration. technology for teaching and learning with regard to practical instructional strategies, 95% of participants felt that technology could be integrated in a variety of ways to support teacher-centered instruction. in open-ended survey responses, participants suggested this could be accomplished by using common didactic instructional tools, such as videos and powerpoint presentations. though 94% of participants indicated that they felt that technology could be integrated in a variety of ways to support hands-on, student-centered instruction, no examples of developmentally appropriate technology tools were given through open-ended survey responses or during the focus group. when probed further in the focus group, participants revealed that they could not think of specific examples, but felt there had to be some technologies that could support this type of active learning. acknowledging “technology comes with its malfunctions,” 70% of participants still indicated they believed technology use in ec classrooms would not require teachers to spend too much time troubleshooting technical problems (open-ended survey response). impact on students' behavior eighty-eight percent of participants indicated that they felt the use of technology in ec classrooms would not result in behavior issues; however, 33% of participants believe that it could result in students developing poor attention spans. one participant expounded upon this by stating, “kids are always on technology and don’t know what to do without it” (open-ended survey response). similarly, 68% of participants believe that technology use causes students to neglect traditional learning resources, which many participants seem to feel would lead to an abandonment of “real books, writing, or spelling” or “libraries, art, or outside play/learning” (open-ended survey responses). generally perceived as adding value, 96% of participants felt that technology could add engagement to instruction and student learning. this was reinforced with 93% of participants who indicated their agreement that technology could transform teaching and learning. acknowledging the necessary role of teacher facilitation to promote successful student use of technology, one participant stated, “teachers should also teach students how to use it effectively for learning,” while another participant added “if it is not used properly it is just a distraction. but it is important to make sure students know how to use it to their benefit” (open-ended survey responses). impact on students' creativity despite these optimistic perspectives, interesting divisions between positive and negative views of technology integration appeared more prevalent when participants were asked about their perceptions of technology’s possible impact on student abilities. forty-one percent of participants believed that technology stifles student imagination and creativity, which one participant explained by using the following example: “when children are in younger grades they need to be creative with their minds not through a computer. also children should not have to be stuck depending on technology. they should come up with ideas on their own” (open-ended survey response). in contrast, another participant indicated the importance of teacher facilitation to support technology use by stating, “technology can open many doors for learning but it must carefully be utilized” (open-ended survey response). ultimately, 89% indicated they felt that technology integration is essential to 21st-century learning. despite overwhelming positive value perceptions, a small percentage of participants consistently indicated negative views of the general value of technology integration, resulting in 1% of participants “strongly disagreeing” with the value statement. though a small percentage, it is important to ascertain what contributes to such perspectives. some of the open-ended survey responses illuminated these negative views with responses, such as “21st-century technology is the norm; however, i am not a supporter of using technology to teach a classroom. i think a lot of time is wasted and it doesn’t promote actual learning. it also burns my eyes” (open-ended survey response). table 3. value of technology integration item strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree technology can require too much time troubleshooting 3% 27% 65% 5% technology can support teacher-centered instruction 25% 70% 5% 0% technology can support student-centered instruction 21% 73% 6% 0% technology can result in behavior problems 0% 22% 73% 5% technology can add engagement to student learning 23% 73% 4% 0% technology can transform teaching and learning 25% 68% 6% 0% technology can stifle student creativity 16% 25% 54% 5% technology can cause poor attention spans 5% 28% 58% 9% technology can cause neglect of traditional resources 19% 49% 30% 3% technology integration is essential to 21st century learning 28% 61% 10% 1% current practice in personal life according to bandura (1997), perceptions of one’s mastery experiences are important factors for measuring self-efficacy. it appears that the majority of college students use technology throughout their personal life for a variety of academic, social, and personal purposes. the five questions in this category asked participants to indicate the level to which they felt they could effectively use technology in their personal life. the overwhelming majority of participants (> 98%) indicated that they felt confident in their use of hardware, applications, as well as the use of various technologies to communicate, research, and create multimedia for academic, social, and personal purposes. table 4 shows participants’ selfreported current practices of effective use of technology in their personal lives. table 4. current practices: effective use of technology in personal life item strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree effectively use hardware (i.e. computer, smartphone, tablet device, etc.) 70% 28% 1% 0% effectively use applications (i.e. web-based applications, apps on smartphone/tablet, software, etc.) 65% 35% 0% 0% effectively communicate (i.e. texting, email, social media, blogs, etc.) 77% 23% 0% 0% effectively research & investigate topics (i.e. internet, search engines, online databases, etc.) 69% 31% 0% 0% effectively create multimedia (i.e. cameras, microphones, record audio, take photographs or videos, etc.) 64% 33% 2% 0% current models of technology integration vicarious experiences, such as observation of exemplars and models, are very important to self-efficacy development (bandura, 1997). particularly in the field of education, pst development is most successful when preparation programs provide opportunities to not only observe best practices, but also dedicates time for discussion and reflection with instructors and peers thereby creating reflective practitioners (ertmer, 2005; kumar & vigil, 2011). unfortunately, participants overwhelmingly reported a lack of consistent technology integration being modeled and discussed by professors. as one participant indicated, “in all five of my classes i am not taught about ways to use technology in a classroom, which i think would be helpful since technology is growing in schools and among students” (open-ended survey response). encouraging examples despite the lack of modeling of technology specifically for the context of ec instruction, participants indicated that they are generally encouraged when they observe their professors successfully using technology throughout instruction. and even when professors experience technical difficulties, it only discourages approximately 28% of participants from attempting technology integration on their own. focus group discussion further revealed that the majority of participants find these instances more comical than discouraging and most participants indicated that they would be willing to get up during class to help professors in need of technical assistance. above all, the focus group highlighted discussion about the generational gap and perceptions that their professors are not as tech savvy as they are. as one participant eloquently warned, “we’re going to get outdated too. in 15 years the technology will be completely different” (focus group discussion). discouraging examples amidst participants’ individual descriptions of in-class experiences with professors being confused by mac and pc operating systems or having too many internet browser windows open, a resounding 50% of participants recounted similar stories about professors canceling class because instructors’ technology (e.g., computer, powerpoint) was not working properly (focus group discussion, lines 132-141). one participant emphasized the importance of having a “plan b” by asking, “what do you do when the batteries run out or the computer isn’t working” (focus group discussion)? this laughable contradiction of modeling a dependence on technology for teacher-centered instruction was pointed out as an inaccurate representation of real-world ec classrooms. table 5 shows participants’ self-reported attitudes towards current models of technology integration that professors model for them in their teacher education courses. table 5. current models of technology integration item always frequently sometimes never professors model grade level specific technology integration 5% 25% 59% 11% professors model teacher-centered technology integration 6% 28% 49% 16% professors model student-centered technology integration 4% 16% 49% 31% i am encouraged by professors’ successful technology use 28% 43% 27% 1% i am discouraged by professors’ unsuccessful technology use 14% 14% 37% 36% future practice five questions on the survey asked participants to indicate the level to which they would like to engage technology integration in their future classrooms. though projections of future use have inconsistent validity, it is important to consider participants' current thoughts on how and if they can apply this knowledge in future contexts in order to better inform teacher educators’ practices. ninety-one percent of participants indicated that they can think of ways that everyday technologies can be integrated into teaching, though much like in the “value” section, they did not provide specific examples. the focus group revealed participants’ general concern over access to devices and district policy on common social media tools such as facebook, twitter, and youtube. despite the overwhelming majority of participants proclaiming an affinity toward hands-on student use of technology, only 70% indicated that they would actually like to encourage students’ hands-on use of technologies during class time in their future classroom (which is 20% less). the percentage returns to 90% when measuring how many participants would like to encourage students to use technologies outside of class to support their learning. likewise, 90% would like to encourage parents of their future students to use everyday technologies outside of class time to support their child’s learning. the results show that despite seeing uses for everyday technologies to support teaching and learning, many participants feel that student use of technology is better suited for out-of-class time rather than during class time. table 6 shows participants’ self-reported visions for technology integration as part of their future practice in their future ec classrooms. table 6. visions for technology integration in future practice item strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree everyday technologies can be integrated into classroom 21% 70% 9% 0% encourage students to use technology during class 11% 58% 29% 1% encourage students to use technology outside of class 16% 74% 9% 1% encourage parents to use technology outside of class to support student learning 20% 70% 9% 1% include student opinion when choosing technologies to integrate 33% 64% 2% 0% discussion despite personal affinity toward technology in their personal lives, participants in this study verbalized numerous potentially problematic misconceptions about --and in some cases even a total lack of conception about --instructionally appropriate technology integration in ece. the results indicated that these misleading perceptions could be formed by a general lack of awareness and inconsistent modeling of best practices by professors. corroboration between survey results and the focus group revealed varying levels of misconceptions about technology integration in an ec context, including the instructional nature of technology integration itself, as well as hands-on, playful, and social affordances of technology tools. disconnect/misalignment of theory and practice while most participants initially responded positively concerning their knowledge about current theories of dap and technology integration on the survey, open-ended responses during the focus group revealed significant disconnect between participants’ understanding about such topics. at best, participants’ focus group responses revealed surface-level knowledge about dap, while their knowledge of how to effectively and appropriately apply technology in ec classrooms was nearly nonexistent. since foundational courses in technology are quickly becoming a luxury for most colleges of education, teacher education programs will need to take amplified steps to dispel myths and correct misconceptions so as to ensure that instructionally appropriate messages can be received. general misconceptions of technology in an early childhood context one of the recurring themes throughout this study was participants’ view that technology use is a passive activity in which students are in-actively consuming information from technology tools or the teachercentered use of tools for didactic instruction. though 96% of participants agreed that technology could engage students, often their view of engagement was equal to “consumption” or being babysat by technology absent of actual learning. similarly, it was alarming that 41% agreed that technology would stifle student creativity. these misconceptions could be related to interpretations of how “play” is defined within ece because perhaps participants do not feel that technology translates into an active definition of play. results show that despite seeing uses for everyday technologies to support teaching and learning, many participants feel that student use of technology is better suited for use in settings outside of class rather than during class time. ece + technology can be a hands-on, playful learning tool during the focus group, participants were quick to identify examples of commonplace technology, such as computer, laptop, projector, and powerpoint; yet none of them mentioned ways in which students could use those tools for hands-on learning, nor did they mention other tools that lend themselves to individualized artifact creation. much like there are didactic teacher-centered instructional strategies, there are in-active and consumptive uses of technology tools. successful technology integration that supports development is not solely about teachers showing powerpoint presentations on projection screens, nor is it about students merely replacing paperback books with reading e-books on ipads (naeyc, 2012). as facilitators of learning, teachers can empowers students to see how to use technology to support their own learning and creativity (iste standards•t, 2008). more than just portals to view videos through, technology can be placed in the hands of children to reinforce content and developmental growth. as one participant pointed out, “when done correctly, using a computer influences inquiry and improves fine motor skills (i.e. typing /mouse control)” (open-ended survey response). when placed in the hands of students, these technology tools can be used to actively create personally meaningful artifacts (iste standards•s, 2008). for example, they could give children a digital canvas to explore letters and color as they “type” their own expressive story or let children swirl the mouse to create digital drawings or paintings for story reflections. students can use video cameras to capture peers' reenactment of read-alouds or use digital cameras to take photos of geometric shapes throughout school. each of these hands-on creations can be printed and displayed as evidence of their personal expressive inquiry. ece + technology can be a social learning tool as one participant responded, “technology is cool, but it also takes away from the social aspect of a classroom environment by letting kids focus on things like screens rather than people” (open-ended survey response). according to naeyc (2012), “all screens are not created equal” is a mantra to live by. it is pertinent for ec teachers to understand that looking at screens does not necessarily mean the absence of socialized play, when in fact students can interact with one another while using technology tools in classrooms (barron, et al., 2011). through our digitally connected world, not only can they share what they have created with one another, they can share it globally with students from around the world. examples include using skype to communicate with pen pals, using googleearth for virtual field trips, and promoting 3-to-1 use of ipads to match struggling readers with more advanced students who can help model critical thinking strategies. lack of consistent modeling impacts confidence the focus group revealed that participants were unsure how they could incorporate their knowledge and skills with everyday technologies into ec classrooms to support teaching and learning. as kumar and vigil (2011) pointed out, this concern needs to be addressed through effective modeling in pst education to help bridge the gap between technology integration in their personal life with that of their professional life. implications for teacher education results from this research indicate that many psts at this large urban institution are not, as of yet, sufficiently prepared to understand intricate relationships between dap and technology integration, which results in instructionally appropriate technology practices. throughout their responses about their present values and beliefs on technology integration in an ec classroom, many had conflicting opinions as to what it meant exactly to successfully integrate technology within their own teaching practices. although a vast majority felt comfortable using technology in their personal lives and had an overall positive attitude towards technology for academic use, they did not feel confident in transferring their personal skills to their own future classroom environments. additionally, many felt resigned to the inevitably of technology’s place in their classrooms while simultaneously feeling unprepared to effectively manage this significant classroom component. while a lack of efficacious modeling through coursework by faculty did not dispel participants from at least thoughts of technology integration, many were left unaware as to what technology integration in practice actually embodied. as colleges of education charged with preparation of tomorrow’s teachers, it will be up to individual instructors’ work with colleagues to determine to what extent their students’ experiences parallel with those discussed in this study. since each institution is different, with varying access to schools, varying districts to prepare student for, and varying commitments to effective technology integration throughout courses, each teacher preparation program will need to determine to what extent they are failing their psts in the area of instructionally appropriate technology practices so that they can then begin discussion and take action to proactively and purposefully capitalize on students’ apparently positive attitudes towards technology while minimizing their misconceptions about and building up their authentic understanding of instructionally appropriate technology practices. just as ec teacher educators have had to explain, model, and reinforce committed practice to other developmentally appropriate ec pedagogy (e.g., project-based learning, emergent curriculum), the same will need to done to promote effective technology practices. conclusion based upon the results, participants appear to see opportunity for practical technology integration and minimal hurdles to acting upon that; however, it is their actual view of what technology integration is that is disconcerting. open-ended responses indicated that most have already committed to uninspired, teacher-directed technology use. without a dedicated course that explicitly and inspiringly deals with ways to integrate technology to support pedagogy and content in ec classrooms, teacher preparation programs must encourage faculty to effectively model throughout their courses in order to provide broad ranges of integration options to psts. as suggested by ertmer (2005), in order for beliefs regarding technology integration to be changed, we must first provide multiple sources of real world application modeling and opportunity for practice, as to increase confidence and encourage changes in beliefs. if this is not done effectively, misconceptions will continue to manifest within preparation programs and continue to infiltrate into ec classrooms. due to a lack of consistent modeling by program faculty, these psts are less likely to try to find ways to integrate technology on their own time outside of their designated teacher education courses. it is through proper guidance and opportunity that teacher educators can facilitate hands-on explorations of technology integration to better equip psts with various instructional tools and strategies that can be implemented in an ec classroom to further support dap. future research the goal of a future exploratory study is to use this data in order to generate hypotheses for identifying both pre-service and currently practicing in-service teachers’ barriers to instructionally appropriate technology integration in ec classrooms. by identifying psychological barriers that prohibit one from successfully integrating technology in practice, the research team will be able to further explore those educators who comprise “threats to technology integration” category and explore the deeper cognitive and psychosocial issues that are presented towards professional development in regards to technology integration. references bandura, a. 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(2009). preparing preservice teachers for 21st century classrooms: transforming attitudes and behaviors about innovative practices with technology. journal of technology and teacher education, 17(3), 393-418. http://punya.educ.msu.edu/publications/journal_articles/mishra-koehler-tcr2006.pdf http://punya.educ.msu.edu/publications/journal_articles/mishra-koehler-tcr2006.pdf introduction context related literature developmentally appropriate practices dap with technology instructionally appropriate technology integration early childhood pre-service teacher preparation for technology integration methodology participants survey focus group data analysis results awareness of and attitudes toward technology integration issues awareness of and attitudes toward technology integration issues confidence with technology and technology integration issues confidence with technology and technology integration issues value of technology integration current practice in personal life current practices: effective use of technology in personal life current models of technology integration future practice discussion disconnect/misalignment of theory and practice general misconceptions of technology in an early childhood context implications for teacher education conclusion future research references