2-034 - Effects of School Readiness Interventions on Academic Achievement, Behavioral, and Social/Emotional Outcomes in Diverse Samples

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

School readiness skills, like working independently, negotiating with peers, and communicating with teachers, prepare children to engage the learning environment. Interventions targeting these skills improve children’s academic and behavior outcomes, particularly among disadvantaged children (Bierman et al., 2008). This symposium will present data from three randomized controlled trials of two evidence-based school readiness interventions.

The first two studies examine treatment effects of the Tools of the Mind (Tools), an intervention targeting children’s executive functions. The first study examines treatment effects of Tools on teacher-rated child behavior among a sample of kindergartners. Results support consistent effects in the treatment year on externalizing behavior problems and self-regulation, but not internalizing behavior problems or social/emotional competence. Effects on externalizing behavior extended into first grade. The second study examines treatment effects of Tools on a preschool English Language Learner sample. Findings show positive effects on children’s English math and literacy abilities as well as Spanish vocabulary. For most outcomes, Spanish-dominant children demonstrated larger growth in academic ability than their English-dominant peers. The third study examines treatment effects of the Kids in Transition to School Program (KITS), an intervention designed to increase literacy, social, and self-regulation skills, in a sample of children with developmental disabilities and behavioral problems. Results revealed a positive effect on self-regulation, which mediated the relation between the intervention and later social competence. Together, these papers and the subsequent discussion will advance our understanding of school readiness interventions that have the potential to support children’s development in a variety of populations.

Sub Unit

• Prevention and Interventions

Chair

• Rachel McKinnon, New York University

Discussant

• Philip A. Fisher, University of Oregon

Individual Presentations

• Effects of the Tools of the Mind Kindergarten Program on Teachers’ Reports of Children’s Behaviors - Presenting Author: Rachel McKinnon, New York University; Clancy B. Blair, New York University; M. Paula Daneri, New York University

• Effect of the Tools of the Mind Prekindergarten Program on the School Readiness of English Language Learners in Head Start - Clancy B. Blair, New York University; Presenting Author: M. Paula Daneri, New York University; Carol Scheffner Hammer, Columbia University; Lisa Lopez, University of South Florida

• Effects of a School Readiness Intervention on Children’s First Grade Social Skills through Kindergarten Self-Regulation Skill - Presenting Author: Katherine C. Pears, Oregon Social Learning Center; Hyoun Kim, Oregon Social Learning Center; Kimbree Brown, Oregon Social Learning Center; Philip A. Fisher, University of Oregon