Early childhood education -- Philosophy

This qualitative case study was conducted to investigated whether selected 3rd-5th
teachers in a Title 1 school increased their understanding as they described and used their
pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) in writing aligned with the Common Core
Anchor Standards 1-6. It also examined how the teachers collaborated to advance their
knowledge in the area of ELs in the classroom. Qualitative data were collected in the
form of 15 participant interviews and 15 Learning Team Meeting (LTM) observations.
The data from the interviews and observations were used to investigate how participants
implemented the Common Core Anchor Standards (CCAS) 1-6 in their classrooms. The
data also sought to examine how the participants’ collaboration in LTMs contributed to
the selected 3rd-5th grade teachers’ PCK with respect to CCAS 1-6 and support for their
English language learners (EL). The findings indicated that participants recognized various EL instructional strategies embedded in the subject matter of writing. Further, the data indicated that the dual language participants collaborated as an effective means for delivering various EL instructional strategies.

The current study explores what characterizes the relationship between the pedagogical
processes within a school culture of creativity in a Reggio Emilia-inspired school in the
Southeastern United States. The questions which frame the study are:
1. How is a culture of creativity fostered within a Reggio Emilia-inspired
school?
2. Within a culture of creativity, what characterizes the relationship between the
pedagogical processes of curriculum and assessment?
The research was designed as ethnography and incorporates multiple data sets which
provide layers of rich and descriptive information that reveal how to foster a culture of
creativity in a school for young children. These data sets were generated by the
researcher and the study participants over 18 weeks of ethnographic fieldwork and
participant observation. These data sets include class group observations, professional development observations, interviews, focus groups, and audio-photo vignettes of the life
of the Reggio Emilia-inspired school which served as the research site for the
ethnography. Through ongoing, iterative, and eclectic processes of qualitative data
analysis, the researcher identified four emergent themes in the combined data generated
during fieldwork. These themes represent the four findings of the study and are presented
in the work in terms of answers to research questions, as well as how they support study
conclusions, implications, and suggestions for future research in early childhood
education. The four thematic findings that emerged in the ethnographic data generated for
this study are: The Protagonists, The Daily Life, Research and Analysis, and Languages
of Expression.