Infants, Toddlers, and Families in Poverty
Research Implications for Early Child Care
Edited by Samuel L. Odom, Elizabeth P. Pungello, and Nicole Gardner-Neblett
Hardcovere-bookprint + e-book
Professors: request an exam copyIdentifying factors related to poverty that affect infants, toddlers, and their families, this book describes promising early child care and intervention practices specifically tailored to these children and families' needs. Leading authorities from multiple disciplines present cutting-edge research and discuss the implications for practice and policy. Contributors review salient findings on attention, memory, language, self-regulation, attachment, physical health, family processes, and culture. The book considers the strengths and limitations of existing early intervention services for diverse populations and explores workable ways to improve them.
“This book features terrific reviews of the basic and applied science that can form the basis for designing effective programs for infants and toddlers from poor families. It makes a persuasive case for both center-based curricula taught by professionals and interventions to help struggling parents. Equalizing educational opportunity for the poor has been a major goal of the nation’s social policy for nearly a half-century, yet progress has been painfully slow to nonexistent. Interventions like those proposed in this volume could begin to alter this tragic record of failure.”
—Ron Haskins, PhD, Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, and Co-Director, Center on Children and Families, The Brookings Institution
“Some of the best minds in the field explore the latest research on infants and toddlers in poverty, with a view toward how science can better inform policy. Our nation’s future depends on how well practitioners, developmental scientists, and policymakers learn from the broad spectrum of research and evaluation covered here.”
—W. Steven Barnett, PhD, Director, National Institute for Early Education Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
“This volume assembles a dream team of contributors to confront the urgent need to direct cutting-edge science toward the design of early intervention programs. The result is a 'must read' that provides new insights about the key processes that the next generation of interventions need to address. Topics range from caregiving that supports the development of attention and memory to ways to eradicate food insecurity and other sources of toxic stress. The book describes effective approaches including creative uses of pediatric health care settings, attachment-focused parenting interventions, and Web-based professional development strategies.”
—Deborah Phillips, PhD, Department of Psychology, Georgetown University
“This volume could not appear at a better—or worse—time, with rising numbers of infants and toddlers now living in poverty. Chapters comprehensively address important, interacting aspects of early development. The book represents a marriage of the best available research with practical implications for programs and policies. Researchers and early interventionists will benefit from this timely resource as they strive to produce better outcomes for our most vulnerable children.”
—Marilou Hyson, PhD, consultant, early childhood development and education
“Infant and toddler care has been relatively neglected in the literature, given all the attention to getting preschool children ready for school, so it was with considerable joy that I learned about this volume. The book is very thorough, including advances in developmental theory and research as well as implications for optimal group care. I will use this volume in graduate seminars and upper-division undergraduate courses. I can't wait to make it available to my predoctoral research students.”
—Carollee Howes, PhD, Division of Psychological Studies in Education, University of California, Los Angeles
Table of Contents
Introduction,1.Poor and Low-Income Families, Infant/Toddler Development, and the Prospects for Change: Back to the Future, Lawrence Aber
I. Cognitive Development
2. The Development of Attention in Infancy and Early Childhood: Implications for Early Childhood and Early Intervention, John Colombo, Kathleen N. Kannass, Dale Walker, and Caitlin C. Brez
3. Facilitating Learning and Memory in Infants and Young Children: Mechanisms and Methods, Patricia J. Bauer
II. Language Development
4. How Babies Talk: Six Principles of Early Language Development, Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff
5. Bilingual Language Learners, Erika Hoff and Silvia Place
III. Social–Emotional Development
6. The Development of Self-Regulation in Infancy and Early Childhood: An Organizing Framework for the Design and Evaluation of Early Care and Education Programs for Children in Poverty, Clancy Blair, Daniel J. Berry, and Allison H. Friedman
7. Temperament as a Tool in Promoting Early Childhood Development, John E. Bates
8. Leveraging Attachment Research to Re-vision Infant/Toddler Care for Poor Families, Lisa J. Berlin
IV. Health and Physical Development
9. Nutrition and Physical Activity, Robert C. Whitaker and Rachel A. Gooze
10. Impact of Early Childhood on Health throughout the Lifespan, Barry S. Zuckerman
V. Implications for Families
11. An Ecological View of the Socialization Process of Latino Children, Natasha J. Cabrera
12. Infant/Toddler Care and High-Risk Families: Quality Services for “Omitted” Children, Brenda Jones Harden, Colleen Monahan, and Meryl Yoches
VI. Infant/Toddler Care and Education
13. Beginnings of School Readiness in Infant/Toddler Development: Evidence from Early Head Start, John M. Love, Rachel Chazan-Cohen, Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, Helen Raikes, Cheri A. Vogel, and Ellen Eliason Kisker
14. Research-Based Approaches for Individualizing Caregiving and Educational Interventions for Infants and Toddlers in Poverty, Judith J. Carta, Charles Greenwood, Kathleen Baggett, Jay Buzhardt, and Dale Walker
Conclusion
15. Translating Contemporary Developmental and Health Science: Designing an Early Childhood Program for Young Children and Their Families Living in Poverty, Samuel L. Odom, Elizabeth P. Pungello, and Nicole Gardner-Neblett
About the Editors
Samuel L. Odom, PhD, is Director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute (FPG) and Professor in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has published over 100 journal articles and seven books on early childhood intervention and developmental disabilities. Dr. Odom's research interests include preschool prevention and school readiness, effectiveness of programs for children and youth with autism spectrum disorders, and early intervention for infants and toddlers with or at risk for disability. He is a recipient of the Special Education Research Award from the Council for Exceptional Children.Elizabeth P. Pungello, PhD, is a Scientist at FPG, a Research Associate Professor in the Developmental Psychology Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Mentor Faculty member at the Center for Developmental Science. Her research focuses on closing the achievement gap between at-risk and other children. She helps lead the FPG Infant/Toddler Child Care Initiative in the development and evaluation of a model of high-quality center care for infants and toddlers raised in poverty.
Nicole Gardner-Neblett, PhD, is an Investigator at FPG at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her main focus is the FPG Infant/Toddler Child Care Initiative, where she works to design and implement a model for infant/toddler care to promote the early learning, development, and health of children living in poverty. Her principal research interests are the effects of parenting practices and the classroom context on children's language and literacy development.
Contributors
Lawrence Aber, PhD, is Distinguished Professor of Applied Psychology and Public Policy at New York University.Kathleen Baggett, PhD, is Associate Research Professor at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project at the University of Kansas.
John E. Bates, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Indiana University, Bloomington.
Patricia J. Bauer, PhD, is Senior Associate Dean for Research at Emory University and the Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Psychology.
Lisa J. Berlin, PhD, is Associate Professor at the University of Maryland School of Social Work.
Daniel Berry, EdD, is a Post-Doctoral Research Associate in the Neuroscience and Education Lab in the Department of Applied Psychology at New York University.
Clancy Blair, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Applied Psychology at New York University.
Caitlin C. Brez, PhD, is a Research Associate and postdoctoral trainee at the Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies at the University of Kansas.
Jeanne Brooks-Gunn, PhD, is the Virginia and Leonard Marx Professor of Child Development at Teachers College and the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University and Co-Director of the National Center for Children and Families at Columbia.
Jay Buzhardt, PhD, is Associate Research Professor at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project at the University of Kansas.
Natasha J. Cabrera, PhD, is Associate Professor of Human Development at the University of Maryland.
Judith J. Carta, PhD, is Director of Early Childhood Research at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project, Senior Scientist in the Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies, and Professor of Special Education at the University of Kansas.
Rachel Chazan-Cohen, PhD, is Associate Professor of Applied Developmental Psychology at George Mason University.
John Colombo, PhD, is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies at the University of Kansas.
Allison H. Friedman, EdM, is a doctoral student in applied psychology at New York University.
Nicole Gardner-Neblett, PhD, is an Investigator at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Roberta Michnick Golinkoff, PhD, holds the H. Rodney Sharp Chair in the School of Education at the University of Delaware, with joint appointments in the Department of Psychology and the Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science.
Rachel A. Gooze, MPH, is a PhD student in public health at Temple University.
Charles Greenwood, PhD, is Director of the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project and Professor of Applied Behavioral Science at the University of Kansas.
Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, PhD, is the Stanley and Debra Lefkowitz Professor in the Department of Psychology at Temple University, where she serves as Director of the Infant Language Laboratory and Co-Director (with Roberta Michnick Golinkoff) of the Center for Re-imagining Children’s Learning and Education (CiRCLE).
Erika Hoff, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Florida Atlantic University.
Brenda Jones Harden, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Early Childhood Education Program of the Department of Human Development at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Kathleen N. Kannass, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Loyola University of Chicago.
Ellen Eliason Kisker, PhD, is President and Managing Partner of Twin Peaks Partners, LLC (TPP).
John M. Love, PhD, provides independent consulting in early care and education research and policy.
Colleen Monahan, BA, is a doctoral student in the Human Development Program at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Samuel L. Odom, PhD, is Director of the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute and Professor in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Silvia Place, MA, is a PhD candidate in the Psychology program at Florida Atlantic University.
Elizabeth P. Pungello, PhD, is a Scientist at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, a Research Associate Professor in the Developmental Psychology Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Mentor Faculty member at the Center for Developmental Science.
Helen Raikes, PhD, is Professor, Child, Youth and Family Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln.
Cheri A. Vogel, PhD, currently directs the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES).
Dale Walker, PhD, is Associate Research Professor at the Juniper Gardens Children’s Project at the University of Kansas.
Robert C. Whitaker, MD, MPH, is Professor of Public Health and Pediatrics at Temple University.
Meryl Yoches, BA, is a doctoral student in Human Development at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Barry S. Zuckerman, MD, is the Joel and Barbara Alpert Professor of Pediatrics and Public Health at Boston University School of Medicine/Boston Medical Center.