Research to Practice Summit
Family and Community Life as Sources of Participatory Learning Opportunities 1
by Carl J. Dunst, Investigator
- Orelena Hawks Puckett Institute
- Asheville, North Carolina; and
- Mary Beth Bruder
- Investigator
- Division of Child & Family Studies
University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington
Methodology Research Questions Findings Implications
The Children's Learning Opportunities Early Childhood Research Institute has recently completed two studies:
- a short-term longitudinal study of 136 families throughout the U.S., and
- national surveys of more than 3200 families throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Yap.
The purpose of these studies was to identify, develop, and evaluate strategies and approaches for increasing the use of home and community activities that provide children with or at-risk for disabilities development-enhancing learning opportunities. The children participating in the studies were between birth and 6 years of age and participating in Part H/C Early Intervention Programs, Part B (619) early Childhood Special Education Programs, Early Head Start, Head Start, Even Start, and other early childhood programs. The families included parents from all socio-economic backgrounds and nearly all cultural and ethnic groups living in the U.S.
Methodology
The short-term longitudinal study was conducted over a 6 to 8 month period of time in the homes and communities of the families, and included observations, focused interviews, administration of various scales and instruments, and parent completed self-report scales. The constructs measured included home and community activity settings, personal cultural beliefs, acculturation and enculturation, child, parent, and family functioning, and instructional plans and practices.
The national surveys included questions about home and community learning opportunities, family background and ethnicity, child, parent, and family functioning, and the early intervention or preschool program in which the children were participating.
Research Questions
The main research questions were: (1) What kinds of activity settings make-up the fabric of family and community life?, (2) What learning opportunities are afforded by these activity settings?, 3) What child, parent, family, and community factors influence the types of activity settings and learning opportunities experienced by the children, and (4) What effects do different types and configurations of activity settings and learning opportunities have on child, parent, and family functioning?
List of Research Findings and their Implications for Inclusion
The findings-to-date from the study of the 136 families participating in the short-term longitudinal study specific to activity settings and learning opportunities indicate that children with or at-risk for disabilities and delays experience, on average, 87 different home/family and 76 different community activity settings, and that these activity settings "give rise" to an average of 113 and 106 different kinds of learning opportunities, respectively. Disentangling the children's and families' life experiences indicate that different places and locations in the home and community are made up of many different kinds of activity settings, and that these activity settings, in turn, "give rise" to many different kinds of learning opportunities, some of which are serendipitous and some of which are planned. "Going along" is one type of activity that represented the former kind of opportunity. For example, many parents reported that young children going along to places with older siblings, cousins, etc. to such things as ball games, karate classes, and so forth resulted in learning opportunities for a younger child that had development-enhancing consequences. Going along is one of many participatory learning opportunities that provided children with or at-risk for disabilities or delays opportunities to interact with other children in which the interactions and various positive effects. Enrolling a child in a parent/child playgroup is an example of a planned activity.
The findings-to-date from the national surveys indicate that family life and community life are each both made up of about 11 different "classes" of learning opportunities, varying from those that are very informal to those that are more structured. Examples of the former include taking walks or strolls and visiting friends or neighbors. Examples of the latter include library story times and water babies swimming classes. As was found in the short-term longitudinal study, these various kinds of experiences provide many participatory learning opportunities.
Implications
The fact that the family and community life is made up of so many experiences providing children with or at-risk for disabilities and delays participatory learning opportunities indicates that context plays an important role in predicting these kinds of learning opportunities. Subsequent studies will focus on whether or not there are value-added benefits to the participatory learning opportunities when instructional practices are embedded within them.
1 Presented at the Research to Practice Summit, July 30-31, 1998, Washington, D.C., sponsored by the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance System in collaboration with the Early Childhood Research Institute on Inclusion and the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Education Research and Improvement (OERI).