Child Engagement In School Transition: A Positivist Approach

102048 Contemporary Childhoods

Discussion

The dynamic shift into formal education primarily involves when children tend to shift from predominately communicating with parents and initiate interaction with other children as well as educators. Children typically have been exposed to newly developed influences and settings which modify their later events thus marking such an evolution a sensitive period for later school achievements. Portilla et al. (2014) have noted that such intricate social settings tend to position substantial demands on young children such as kindergarteners need to form new relationships thus regulating their impulse and further focus and pay attention and efficiently involve in learning material. According to Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015) the way young children have been dealing with these transitions has been essentially associated to behavioural engagement in learning. Furthermore, behavioural engagement can primarily be explained as learners’ active engagement in the classroom assignments that entails conforming to classroom regulations and practices and proficiently reflecting self-directed behavioural patterns. Moreover, considering critical implication of behavioural engagement, it has been essential to distinguish procedures which support such engagement during school transition of children. The following paper aims to evaluate aspects related to children and schooling and understand children’s voice and power relationship in the educational setting. Additionally, the paper will analyse the positivism paradigm used in the chose article “QuarterlyChild engagement in the transition to school: Contributions of self-regulation, teacher–child relationships and classroom climate” and identify the methodology conducted by the researchers in the article by highlighting the article’s strength and weaknesses.

Cadima et al. (2016) have found a general conformity that early experiences in school have been highly critical for shaping young children’s prospective academic careers. However, children who have the ability to acquire academically early on continue to exhibit achievement gains and the ones who tend to face challenges with learning encounter persistent unconstructive implications for a prolonged time. Thus, in order to develop early school experience, it has been highly imperative to efficiently realize competencies which support learning and assertive relationship quality with educators. According to Pears et al. (2015), two major areas of children’s performance have been perceived to envisage school willingness along with academic achievement identified as children’s self-regulation skills. Furthermore, expanding to the transactional model of development to the young children’s school context, it has been theorized that children’s behavioural patterns and classroom setting tend to interrelate bidirectional procedures. Studies of Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015) have revealed that relationship between teacher-child bond quality and children’s behavioural patterns tend to create patterns which contribute to inputs as well as outcomes to developmental process of young children.

The article “QuarterlyChild engagement in the transition to school: Contributions ofself-regulation, teacher–child relationships and classroom climate” primarily focusing on the reality of child engagement in the transition to school has applied a positivism research paradigm in order envelop a wide-range of situations in a short period of time. In addition to this, the researchers of this article have efficiently carried a positivist approach to area of knowledge by relying on positivist approach to knowledge. Portilla et al. (2014) have stated that by applying a positivist approach theoretical implications of particular study can be fundamentally generalized at a larger extent with which information for similar issues with diverse social context can be easily collected. Cadima et al. (2015) by conducting quantitative approach on the patterns of behavioural engagement in education over kindergarten and first grade along with the offerings of child inhibitory power in addition to components related to classroom context have been able to draw potential predictions and maintained consistency, increased reliability as well as explicability while gathering data from the sample of 145 children and their kindergarten as well as first-grade educators (Cadima et al., 2015).

Considering the significance of behavioural engagement it has been highly crucial to recognize processes which support such forms of involvement during radical school transition. Moreover, according to Buhs et al. (2015), as there can be found insignificant amount of study related to this specific subject area across kindergarten and first-grade years and factors supporting process of behavioural engagement the paper on behavioural engagement has evaluated the way individual child attributes such as self-regulation along with factors related teacher–child relationship quality, classroom organization which tend to merge to envisage behavioural engagement across kindergarten and first grade (Martin & Rimm-Kaufman, 2015). However, realizing the offerings related to child as well as contextual antecedents to behavioural engagement in the two years development period which can be highly critical aimed for comprehensive consideration of child school achievements.

Cadima et al. (2015) by outlining a universal-ecological model of engagement has essentially analysed certain cross-grade patterns regarding of behavioural engagement in learning over kindergarten and first grade and the contributions of child inhibitory control. The Martin & Rimm-Kaufman (2015) have primarily conducted a quantitative research paradigm with a sampling size of 145 children with their kindergarten and first-grade teachers. Additionally in order to perform appropriate instrumentation for suitable statistical treatments of the data, researchers have videotaped as a functional participant observation during the initial sessions of their kindergarten learning. Following to the videotape participant observation session to gather increased level of reliability, two waves of data collection have been conducted in which researchers of this study primarily executed classroom observations at the foundation level of the learning process for two consecutive months (Levine et al., 2014). However during the data collection period proficient observers who did not partake during classroom observations evaluated the levels of behavioral engagement following a number of observational periods during the school day. Furthermore, Cadima et al. (2015) to evaluate classroom organization have implemented the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) in order to understand the degree to which educators have been using effectual procedures to understand, assess and redirect any factors of misconduct by young children. Blair & Raver (2015) have noted that potentially constructive interaction and behaviour of children during the transition period have been captured in order to condense personal influence on the results. The statistical data gathered through participant observation and scoring system have revealed reduced levels of child and educator negotiation with increased levels of intimacy (Blair & Raver, 2015). Additionally, on one hand by evaluating within level it has been revealed that behavioural engagement in kindergarten mediated the involvement between teacher–child contact as well as elevated application of perceived peer–teacher contradictory dealings and meanwhile assessing behavioural engagement in first grade (Flook et al., 2015).

Meanwhile, Virtanen et al. (2014) have found the way participant observation has facilitated the accessibility for a comprehensive description which primarily tend to signify the behavioural patterns of informants and offers avenues for involving in unscheduled events. Cadima et al. (2015) by conducting participant observation research method has aimed to enhanced the quality of data collection and augment the progress of new research questions or hypothesis related to the behavioural engagement in education over kindergarten and first grade along with the offerings of child inhibitory power in education over kindergarten and first grade along with the offerings of child inhibitory influence. The participant group of around 145 children with mean age of 6 years and 2 months has been enrolled in 30 classrooms in schools in Flanders, Belgium (Portilla et al., 2014). Cadima et al. (2016) have observed that participants engaged in the present sample have been part of the interim longitudinal study with data waves in preschool, kindergarten, and first grade. However, it has been essential to note few children did not engage in the current sample because of parents resistant in participating in the study.

At this juncture, drawing relevance from social capital theory, authors have considered whether the classroom setting tends to envisage engagement of young children. Studies of Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015) have revealed that influencing children and classroom attributes, young children constituting reasonable and interconnected peer associations have shown greater propensity of being engaged in future academic performance. According to social capital theory when students have been engaged in classroom activities with adequate access to peers for educational or social sustainability, classroom intellectual activities tend to have greater availability to them (Virtanen et al., 2014). However, Diaz et al. (2017) have stated that as unified and inclusive settings primarily construct a safe space to connect children in the primary activities of the setting, school intervention study has essentially acknowledged this notion. Furthermore, interventions which support integrated or unified communities improve behavioural engagement level of young children for kindergarten and first grade further relating to constructive effects of child or class extensive social or intellectual connections on the modification of children with behavioural complexities (Blair & Raver, 2015).

Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015) have stated that challenges of children with self-regulation have been perceived as a highly precipitate and inattentive behavioural pattern in early classroom environment. According to Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015), such behavioural patterns have been primarily distinguished as indicators of reduced inhibitory control specifically factors related to response inhibition in the milieu of impulsive behaviours and intervention reserve in the context of inattentiveness. Moreover, Cadima et al. (2015) have theorized that lack of attention along with impulsivity tend to emerge when children encounters challenges with emotional self-regulation and working memory. According to Portilla et al. (2014), consequently young children who show severe lack of self-regulation tend to develop emotions of being socially alienated thus losing ground from classroom participation. The findings of Martin and Rimm-Kaufman (2015) have showed support for the unconstructive impacts of supposed perceived peer–teacher conflicted associations on behavioural engagement in learning. Moreover, it has been noted that despite levels of negotiations with a particular child, this particular child can further be adversely affected by an elevated proportion of challenging relationships in the classroom setting. Additionally, considering the interconnectedness between teachers and children during this significant phase of children development Pears et al. (2015) have examined the impact of educator child relationship quality on children’s functioning must also consider the individual attributes that a child carries into the school surroundings and the way these characteristics tend to modify transactions between teacher-child relationship excellence and the child.

One of the major strengths of the articles of Cadima et al. (2015) has relied on the fact whether the value of classroom association tends to add up to behavioural engagement while taking into account both individual as well as relational factors. The paper through critical participant observation has revealed that classroom settings of kindergarten and first grade students has been regarded as vital contributors in learning behavioural engagement in education. Furthermore, drawing relevance from the view of social capital theory in addition to classification theories related to social development by paying attention on peer resources as well as structures within classroom setting has established an in-depth understanding of classroom development which can envisage behavioural engagement of young learners (Flook et al., 2015). However, emphasizing on the impact of teacher-student associations based on intimacy, further query must be based on the suppositions on behavioural engagement has been highly influenced by attributes which have its occurrences at the classroom level or by quality which function fundamentally at individual level. On the other hand, Virtanen et al. (2014) have noted that although alleged peer–teacher conflict evaluation scores have been calculated based on an outsized sample, with an average of approximately 8 peers, a more consistent evaluation has been required in order to include the scores of all children engaged in the classroom.

Conclusion

Hence to conclude, the findings of the article significantly shed light on the importance of classroom environment along with social relationships and further focus on children’s inhibitory power for behavioral engagement in learning. Furthermore it has been noted that young children exhibited greater inclination in classroom settings in which educators have implemented dynamic behavior management approaches along with recognized conventional practices furthermore applied a productive utilization of time. Such approaches by educators have been productive to enable young children of 6 years to 0.2 years to spend greater amount of time and energy in playful activities.

References

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