Observing individual children in early childhood classrooms using Optimizing Learning Opportunities for Students (OLOS): A feasibility study

Publication date: Available online 26 December 2019Source: Early Childhood Research QuarterlyAuthor(s): Carol McDonald Connor, Ashley Adams, Elham Zargar, Taffeta S. Wood, Belinda E. Hernandez, Deborah Lowe VandellAbstractIn this feasibility study, we present a newly developed observational system, Optimizing Learning Opportunities for Students (OLOS). OLOS is designed to elucidate the learning opportunities afforded to individual children within early childhood classrooms and as they transition to formal schooling (kindergarten through third grade). OLOS records the time spent in different types of learning opportunities (e.g., play, literacy, math) and the frequency of specific discourse moves children and teachers use (child talk and teacher talk). Importantly, it is designed to be used validly and reliably by practitioners. Using OLOS, we explored individual children’s experiences (n = 68 children in 12 classrooms) in four different types of early childhood programs; state-funded pre-kindergarten (PK), state-funded PK serving children with disabilities, Head Start, and a tuition-based (non-profit) preschool. Results of our feasibility study revealed that coders achieved adequate inter-rater reliability with about 10 h of training and 5 h of practice. We could feasibly and reliably use OLOS in these very different kinds of pre-kindergarten programs but with some changes. In analyzing the observations, we found that individual children’s learning opportunities v...
Source: Early Childhood Research Quarterly - Category: Child Development Source Type: research