Prioritizing Research for Integrated Implementation of Early Childhood Development and Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition Platforms

Background: Existing health and nutrition services present potential platforms for scaling up delivery of early childhood development (ECD) interventions within sensitive windows across the life course, especially in the first 1000 days from conception to age 2 years. However, there is insufficient knowledge on how to optimize implementation for such strategies in an integrated manner. In light of this knowledge gap, we aimed to systematically identify a set of integrated implementation research priorities for health, nutrition and early child development within the 2015 to 2030 timeframe of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Methods: We applied the Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative method, and consulted a diverse group of global health experts to develop and score 57 research questions against five criteria: answerability, effectiveness, deliverability, impact, and effect on equity. These questions were ranked using a research priority score, and the average expert agreement score was calculated for each question. Findings: The research priority scores ranged from 61.01 to 93.52, with a median of 82.87. The average expert agreement scores ranged from 0.50 to 0.90, with a median of 0.75. The top-ranked research question were: i) How can interventions and packages to reduce neonatal mortality be expanded to include ECD and stimulation interventions? ; ii) How does the integration of ECD and MNCAH&N interventions affect human resource requirements and capacity development in resource-poor settings? ; and iii) How can integrated interventions be tailored to vulnerable refugee and migrant populations to protect against poor ECD and MNCAH&N outcomes? . Most highly-ranked research priorities varied across the life course and highlighted key aspects of scaling up coverage of integrated interventions in resource-limited settings, including: workforce and capacity development, cost-effectiveness and strategies to reduce financial barriers, and quality assessment of programs. Conclusions: Investing in ECD is critical to achieving several of the SDGs, including SDG 2 on ending all forms of malnutrition, SDG 3 on ensuring health and well-being for all, and SDG 4 on ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promotion of life-long learning opportunities for all. The generated research agenda is expected to drive action and investment on priority approaches to integrating ECD interventions within existing health and nutrition services

Prioritizing research for integrated implementation of early childhood development and maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health and nutrition platforms

Background: Existing health and nutrition services present potential platforms for scaling up delivery of early childhood development (ECD) interventions within sensitive windows across the life course, especially in the first 1000 days from conception to age 2 years. However, there is insufficient knowledge on how to optimize implementation for such strategies in an integrated manner. In light of this knowledge gap, we aimed to systematically identify a set of integrated implementation research priorities for health, nutrition and early child development within the 2015 to 2030 timeframe of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).Methods: We applied the Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative method, and consulted a diverse group of global health experts to develop and score 57 research questions against five criteria: answerability, effectiveness, deliverability, impact, and effect on equity. These questions were ranked using a research priority score, and the average expert agreement score was calculated for each question.Findings: The research priority scores ranged from 61.01 to 93.52, with a median of 82.87. The average expert agreement scores ranged from 0.50 to 0.90, with a median of 0.75. The top-ranked research question were: i) How can interventions and packages to reduce neonatal mortality be expanded to include ECD and stimulation interventions? ; ii) How does the integration of ECD and MNCAH&N interventions affect human resource requirements and capacity development in resource-poor settings? ; and iii) How can integrated interventions be tailored to vulnerable refugee and migrant populations to protect against poor ECD and MNCAH&N outcomes? . Most highly-ranked research priorities varied across the life course and highlighted key aspects of scaling up coverage of integrated interventions in resource-limited settings, including: workforce and capacity development, cost-effectiveness and strategies to reduce financial barriers, and quality assessment of programs.Conclusions: Investing in ECD is critical to achieving several of the SDGs, including SDG 2 on ending all forms of malnutrition, SDG 3 on ensuring health and well-being for all, and SDG 4 on ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promotion of life-long learning opportunities for all. The generated research agenda is expected to drive action and investment on priority approaches to integrating ECD interventions within existing health and nutrition services

Testing a PK -3 Approach to education in three urban public schools

A model for educating children in grades pre-kindergarten (PK) through third grade (3) was tested in the current study. The PK-3 Approach includes Structure (e.g., class size, teacher training) Process components (e.g., emotional & instructional classroom climate) in addition to Aligning and Coordinating children\u27s experiences across grades PK-3. Alignment and Coordination is the lining up of standards, curricula, and assessment practices and ongoing efforts to maintain this alignment in the context of the student population. A comparative case study design was implemented in three urban public schools serving low-income student bodies, but with different fourth grade achievement outcomes in literacy and math. The main goals of the study were to: (1) examine empirical evidence regarding the relationship between a PK-3 Approach to education and fourth grade achievement outcomes; and (2) discover variations in PK-3 implementation which could then be used to modify the original model. Data from classroom observations using the CLASS, archival school records, and teacher and principal interviews were collected in order to characterize how each school operates on a daily basis, and then to compare the three school types in the context of the PK-3 Approach. Alignment and Coordination components best discriminated among the three schools, with the highest achieving school implementing within grade (horizontal) and across grade (vertical) Alignment and Coordination activities across subjects on a regular basis. The school with the next highest level of achievement implemented horizontal Alignment and Coordination for the literacy curriculum; and the lowest performing school (average for the population they served) did not implement any level of Alignment and Coordination except for monthly within grade meetings designed for teachers to agree on literacy topics to be taught. Process components discriminated between the two higher performing schools and the lowest performing school; and Structure components were either non-significant, or did not predict achievement in hypothesized directions. Alignment and Coordination moderated the relationship between teacher training (Structure) and Instructional Climate in the classroom (Process), whereby teachers with training above and beyond an M.A. in education was related to higher Instructional Climate scores in the lowest performing school, but no significant relationship was found in the two higher performing schools. Results are discussed in terms of educational policies

El costo que tiene la falta de acción para la infancia en el mundo : resumen del taller

La Junta sobre Niños, Jóvenes y Familias del Instituto de Medicina (IOM) y el Consejo de Investigación Nacional (NRC), en colaboración con el Consejo Mundial de la Salud del Instituto de Medicina (IOM) lanzaron el Foro sobre la Inversión en la Infancia en el Mundo en enero de 2014. En esta reunión los participantes acordaron centrarse en crear y sostener, por más de 3 años, una comunidad de accionistas basada en la evidencia en los países del norte y del sur cuya finalidad es explorar la ciencia y las investigaciones existentes, nuevas e innovadoras de todo el mundo. En este informe se resumen las presentaciones y los debates llevados a cabo en el taller. El rol del comité de planificación se limitó a la planificación del taller, y el resumen de taller ha sido preparado por los ponentes basado en los hechos de lo ocurrido en el taller. Las declaraciones, recomendaciones y opiniones expresadas son las de los presentadores y participantes individuales y no están necesariamente respaldadas ni verificadas por el IOM y el NRC, y no deben interpretarse como el reflejo del consenso de ningún grupo convertir esta evidencia en inversiones sólidas y estratégicas en políticas y prácticas que marcarán la diferencia en la vida de los niños y de las personas a cargo de su cuidado

The introduction of a qualitative perspective in advanced psychological research training: Narrative of a mixed methods doctoral dissertation

The first mixed methods dissertation in the Department of Psychology in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Fordham University is described. In research on pre-kindergarten through 3rd-grade school programs, the interplay of quantitative hypothesis testing and qualitative discovery was used to gain knowledge of how different educational outcomes are achieved. A narrative addresses such contemporary disciplinary issues as the growing interest in qualitative research methods; the effort to employ holistic, contextually sensitive investigations of complex social problems;and the need in graduate training to facilitate the learning of and an identity formation that includes multiple methods. This study highlights the value of dissertation research for learning qualitative methods and melding multiple methods into a unified research identity and stresses graduate students’ need for coursework on qualitative research methodology and philosophy of science. The pragmatic approach (Fishman, 1999) is suggested as one methodological framework capable of successfully synthesizing multiple methods