Investigating Teaching Activities in Rural China: Effective Teaching, Class Management, and Child Attention

• In Event: Understanding the Dynamics of Low-Resource Early Childhood Education Settings in Rural China

Abstract

The quality of teaching is the most important factor at classroom level (Fraser, Walberg, Welch, & Hattie, 1987). The presence of effective classroom practices can be explained by a learner-centered teaching style and by good class management skills (Opdenakker & Van Damme, 2006). Teachers exercising more advanced types of behavior have better student outcomes (Kyriakides, Creemers, & Antoniou, 2009). Previous research showed that child attention in the preschool teaching activities was associated with class management and effective teaching. (Coelho, Cadima, & Pinto, 2019; McWilliam, Scarborough, & Kim, 2003). Most studies were conducted in primary and secondary school contexts (e.g. Opdenakker & Van Damme, 2006; Kyriakides, Creemers, & Antoniou, 2009). However, we have little knowledge on early childhood education settings. Also, rare studies have been conducted in the rural and Chinese context. In this study, our research questions are: 1) what is the difference in child attention between high-quality and low-quality classrooms distinguished by MELE scores in rural China? 2) are different dimensions of effective teaching or class management associated with child attention? 78 videotapes of teaching activities were collected from the One Village One Preschool program in Xichou County, Yunan Province, China. All teaching activities were rated by using Measurement of Early Learning Environment (MELE). In this study, we selected 7 video recordings of teaching activities with highest MELE score and 5 video recordings of teaching activities with lowest MELE score. 7 teaching activities with high MELE score are defined as high-quality classes while 5 teaching activities with low MELE score are defined as low-quality classes. We designed the Effective Teaching Observation Tool with three sections: Effective Teaching, Class Management, and Child Attention. The interrater reliability yielded to 0.78. T-test showed a statistically significant difference in the child attention between high- and low- quality classes. In terms of effective teaching, correlational analysis showed that question raising, question answering, and commenting of students’ answer of open-ended question are positively associated with child attention. However, question raising and commenting of students’ answer of close-ended questions are negatively associated with child attention, whereas question answering of close-ended question is positively associated with child attention. In terms of class management, child attention is positively associated with command, positive discipline, encouragement, but is negatively associated with the negative discipline. Interestingly, regression analysis concluded that the quality of the classroom moderated the relationship between asking close-ended questions and the ratio of children who pay attention. Close-ended questions asked in the high-quality teaching activities do not lose child attention whereas those in low-quality teaching activities significantly predict less child attention. An assumption is that the function of close-ended questions in the high-quality teaching activities is scaffolding, that is, teacher use close-ended questions to help children understand a complex idea or answer a question that requires tremendous cognitive loading. In contrast, close-ended questions in the low-quality teaching activities are presented alone, not challenging to children. This assumption is worthwhile to be discussed in the future in order to better understand the function of questions in a preschool setting.

Authors

• Peizhi Wen, PACE Research Institute

• Yilin Chen

• Xinying Zeng, PACE Research Institute

• Siling Guo, University of Pennsylvania