Incorporating Videos and Related Digital Assignments in a Child Development Course

Project Scope: In order to fully appreciate child development, it is essential for students to be exposed to children of a variety of ages which is best achieved by observing children. However, due to numerous logistical challenges, it is difficult to conduct live, in-person observations of children. Furthermore, in order to fully discuss concepts relevant to the study of child development in class, students need to familiarize themselves with the concept prior to the class meeting. One method for achieving this is to partially flip the class so that students watch a video lecture that describes the concepts prior to attending class. It is our intent to create two videos relevant to a child development class. One will be an observational video of a child demonstrating problem-solving behaviors. The second will be a recording of a brief lecturing introducing the concept of a Critical Period . A faculty guide that documents the technologies and techniques used to create the videos (and accompanying assignments) will be created. Project goals: To create an observational video of a child demonstrating problem-solving. This video will be created using tools and techniques learned during the FITT Academy week. The video will be uploaded to the course site in Blackboard An assignment will be created that students will complete while watching the video. This assignment will be created in Blackboard to allow for online grading. To create a lecture video describing the concept of a Critical Period, an important concept in the study of child development. This video will be created using tools and techniques learned during the FITT Academy week. The video will be uploaded to the course site in Blackboard An assignment will be created that students will complete while watching the video. This assignment will be created in Blackboard to allow for online grading. Document the steps and tools used to create these videos and assignments so that other faculty can develop similar materials for their courses Develop a survey for students to evaluate the effectiveness of these videos

Parenting

In this module, students will consider various aspects of parenting impact children. Using clips from Sesame Street, students will consider how parenting decisions and communication may impact child development. Students will also explore parenting resources developed by Sesame Worksheet to support and educate the parents of young children.https://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/themed-coursework/1008/thumbnail.jp

International Conflict

In this module, students will consider how international conflict and associated traumas impact children.Using clips from versions of Sesame Street that air in countries experiencing violence and other children’s media, students will consider the impact of violence/trauma on neurological, cognitive and socioemotional functioning.https://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/themed-coursework/1010/thumbnail.jp

Incarceration

In this module, students will consider how having an incarcerated parent impacts children. Using clips from Sesame Street, students will consider how children cope with and understand having an incarcerated parent. Students will also how having an incarcerated parenting impacts socioemotional development.https://digitalcommons.buffalostate.edu/themed-coursework/1007/thumbnail.jp

COVID-19 Modifications to a Service-Learning Project Designed to Prepare Special Education Students to Be Effective Participants in Transdisciplinary Collaborations

This research study examined the impact of COVID-19 on university students’ perceptions about the effectiveness of a community-based service-learning project designed to prepare graduate students in special education and undergraduate students in psychology and speech-language pathology to work in transdisciplinary teams in early childhood settings. Students were placed into transdisciplinary teams and assigned to one of two community-based early childhood programs to administer a universal screening tool that assessed young children in several domains. The project was in its sixth year when the country stood still because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project was re-envisioned, mid-course, to provide an equitable and rigorous assignment for students who were unable to complete the original assignment due to the lockdown. Student perceptions were compared, pre and post COVID; subsequent results are discussed in alignment with the original four goals of the project. Additionally, suggestions are posed to position this service-learning assignment for remote delivery should the pandemic persist to disrupt higher education

Service Learning in the Time of COVID-19

Excerpt This essay describes a collaborative service-learning project in which psychology and speech-language pathology undergraduate students, along with special education graduate students, completed developmental screenings as part of their training in providing effective services to children. Universal developmental screening is an important tool in the early identification of developmental delays in young children and is increasingly incorporated into early childhood education. However, limited resources make it difficult for educators to routinely screen all young children in their care. Our students were able to meet this need for two local childcare centers by conducting developmental screenings in transdisciplinary groups

The Association between Prenatal Cigarette Exposure and Behavioral and Physiological Reactivity during Infancy

The purpose of this study was to examine the association of prenatal exposure to cigarettes to measures of reactivity at 2 and 9 months of age. 191 9-month old infants (134 exposed, 57 nonexposed) were recruited prenatally. Cigarette exposure status was determined by a combination of maternal report, chart review, maternal salivary cotinine, and infant meconium. At 2-months, temperamental reactivity was assessed with the distress to limitations subscale of the revised Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ-R; Garstein & Rothbart, 2003). Behavioral reactivity consisted of infant negative affect assessed during a mother-infant feeding interaction. Physiological reactivity was assessed with respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) at the 9-month laboratory assessment during a negative affect (NA) paradigm. The NA paradigm consisted of a gentle arm restraint episode. Average RSA was calculated for baseline, and for the NA paradigm. To assess physiological reactivity, a change score for RSA from baseline to NA was calculated. Negative scores indicate a decrease in RSA and more optimal regulation during challenge. Structural Equations Modeling used to test the model indicated a significant direct association between prenatal cigarette exposure and physiological reactivity during frustration. Exposed children had a smaller decrease in RSA during the NA task indicating less optimal reactivity in response to frustration. Temperamental and behavioral reactivity at 2 months of age were also both associated with physiological reactivity at 9 months of age. Higher levels of negative affect and higher scores on the distress to limitations subscale were associated with smaller decreases in RSA

Service Learning in the Time of COVID-19

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Comparing alternative methods of measuring cumulative risk based on multiple risk indicators: Are there differential effects on children's externalizing problems?

This study examined several alternative methods to measure cumulative risk (CR) based on multiple risk indicators. Several methods for measuring CR are presented and their conceptual and methodological assumptions are assessed. More specifically, at the individual risk level, we examined the implications of various measurement approaches (i.e., dichotomous, proportion- and z-scores). At the composite level, we measured CR as an observed score, and compared this approach with two variable-centered approaches (consisting of reflective and formative indicators) and two person-centered approaches (consisting of latent class analysis and latent profile analysis). A decision tree was proposed to aid researchers in comparing and choosing the alternative methods. Using a sample of 169 low-income families (children approximately 5 years old, 51% girls; 74% African American, and their primary caregiver), we specified models to represent each of the alternative methods. Across models, the multiple risk composite was based on a set of 12 individual risk indicators including low maternal education, hunger, meal and money unpredictability, maternal psychopathology, maternal substance use, harsh parenting, family stress, and family violence. For each model, we estimated the effect size of the composite CR variable on children's externalizing problems. Results indicated that the variable-centered CR composites had larger effects than the observed summary score CR indices and the person-centered methods