42.068 - Examining Head Start: The Role of Curriculum, Nutrition, Assessment, and Research Engagements

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

Since its inception, Head Start has provided comprehensive services for young children and families who are economically under-resourced, many of whom are of color and speak languages other than English (Souto-Manning, 2010; Quintero, 1998). As a multi-faceted program, there are myriad aspects of Head Start that can be examined. In this session, we share empirical findings of individual research studies centering on curriculum, nutrition, and assessment in Head Start programs located in Pacific Islands, Southwest, and Midwest. We then look more closely at how one engages in research with Head Start, providing recommendations for the purposes of inquiry and role of the researcher.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Early Education and Child Development

Chair

• Lacey Elizabeth Peters, Hunter College - CUNY

Papers

• Equity Through Dialogue: American Samoan Community-Based Perspectives on Head Start - Allison Sterling Henward, Penn State University; Mene Tauaa, University of Hawaii - Manoa; Ronald Turituri

• Food and Nutrition in Head Start: A Black Feminist Analysis - Margarita G. Ruiz Guerrero, New Mexico State University

• When "Effortless" Becomes Effortful: Work Intensification of Head Start Teachers in an Era of Assessment - Koeun Kim, New Mexico State University; Ba-Ul Paul Chung, Seoul National University of Education

• Engaging in Research With Head Start Teachers: Contemplations on the Role and Purposes of Inquiry - Michelle Salazar Perez, New Mexico State University

Discussant

• Mariana Souto-Manning, Teachers College, Columbia University