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WVU research looks into role of parents
in preschool
West Virginia University, Newswise.com, 27-Sep-02
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A professor from West Virginia University's Davis College of
Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences has studied the
effects of parents' influence on preschool curricula and how
teachers can help parents understand how a developmentally
appropriate classroom will benefit their children.
"Instead of focusing on a child's ability to be independent
and work well with others, parents of children enrolled in
preschool tend to be more focused on their ability to read and
write," said Barbara Warash, professor of family and consumer
science and director of the WVU Child Development Laboratory,
or Nursery School. "This simple fact puts a lot of pressure on
preschool teachers to deviate from maintaining a
developmentally appropriate classroom."
"Developmentally inappropriate instruction for 3-5-year-olds
would involve structured activities where children have to sit
for long periods of time, doing things such as practicing
printing on worksheets," Warash said. "Appropriate activities
for children in this age group should involve movement and
choices so that the children are not all doing the same thing
at the same time."
The pressure of standardized tests and parents' urging
teachers to utilize more formalized instruction have made it
difficult for preschool teachers to follow a developmentally
appropriate curriculum for young children, Warash explained.
In West Virginia, standardized testing begins in kindergarten,
causing teachers to accelerate the learning process in order
for their students to know the necessary information that will
appear on the test.
Warash feels formal instruction involves more attention to
worksheets and less to play, an imbalance that is inconsistent
with the developmentally appropriate classroom. "Parents tend
to want more formal instruction, where they see worksheets and
the evidence that their child is learning. This could very
well have an impact on preschool curriculum," she said.
As director of WVU's preschool for 20 years, Warash knows from
experience how teachers and parents interact. She conducted a
survey to achieve a better understanding of how parents of
children enrolled in the preschool felt about developmentally
appropriate curriculum.
Results from the survey suggest that some parents have an
understanding of developmentally appropriate curriculum, while
others doubt the overall effectiveness of the practice.
However, many parents felt very positively towards utilizing
play as an educational tool.
"The interesting finding was that it was mothers who tended to
favor more formal methods of teaching," Warash noted.
Preschool teachers should offer parents a helping hand when it
comes to understanding the age-appropriate curriculum their
child needs, Warash said. WVU's Nursery School offers a wide
variety of opportunities to help parents become familiar and
comfortable with their children's curriculum.
"During the first parent meeting at the University preschool,
parents are able to do some of the same activities that their
child will be involved in as we explain what their children
will be gaining academically from the activity," Warash said.
Speaking with parents individually about what their child is
doing at preschool is another example of how teachers can help
parents understand the importance of developmentally
appropriate curriculum.
Warash's research was published recently in The Journal of
Early Education and Family Review.
"In a time when young children are enrolled in numerous
activities and programs, and are pressured to do more than
just have fun, we as early childhood educators must be the
advocate of the young child," she said.
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