You are here:

Three- to four-year-old children’s socioemotional competencies assessed by kindergarten teachers in general and physical education settings, and by parents at home
ARTICLE

, , ,

Preschool and Primary Education Volume 3, Number 1, ISSN 2241-7206 Publisher: Laboratory of Pedagogical Research & Applications

Full Text

Abstract

Early childhood education programs represent a valuable early learning opportunity for promoting the socioemotional skills. The aims of the study were to validate the socioemotional skills observation scale, to compare 3-4 year-old children’s socioemotional competencies in general kindergarten settings and in a PE session, separately by gender, and to compare 3-4 year-old children’s socioemotional competencies in general kindergarten settings and at home. The participants were 59 children (23 girls, 36 boys) from six communal kindergartens in Finland, their parents, and early educators. The data were analyzed using the confirmatory factor analysis and t-tests. The results showed that the construct of the socioemotional skills model was maintained as a three- factor model comprising self- and social awareness, self-management, and relationship competencies. No differences in teacher-rated socioemotional competencies between general kindergarten settings and the PE session appeared. Girls scored higher in self- and social awareness. There were no gender differences in self-management and relationship skills in kindergarten settings, the PE session and home environment. Parent-rated self- and social awareness was significantly higher than teacher-rated in general kindergarten settings, whereas teacher-rated self-management and relationship skills in general kindergarten settings were higher than parent-rated. These results may benefit the basic and continuing training of both early educators and physical education teachers.

Citation

Takala, K., Kokkonen, M., Gråstén, A. & Liukkonen, J. (2015). Three- to four-year-old children’s socioemotional competencies assessed by kindergarten teachers in general and physical education settings, and by parents at home. Preschool and Primary Education, 3(1), 17-33. Laboratory of Pedagogical Research & Applications. Retrieved June 30, 2022 from .

References

View References & Citations Map
  1. Achhpal, B., Goldman. J.A., & Rohner, R.P. (2007). A comparison of European American and Puerto Rican parent’s goals and expectations about the socialization and education of preschool children. International Journal of Early Years Education, 15, 1-13.
  2. Ang, S.C., & Penney, D. (2013). Promoting social and emotional learning outcomes in physical education: Insights from a school-based research project in Singapore. AsiaPacific Journal of Health, Sport, and Physical Education, 4, 267-286.
  3. Arslan, E., Durmusoglu-Saltali, N., & Yilmaz, H. (2011). 6-year old children positive relationshipbetween interpersonal skills and emotion regulation, school readiness,social confidence and family involvement. Social Behavior and Personality, 39, 1281-1288.
  4. Bajgar, J., Ciarrochi, J., Lane, R., & Deane, F.P. (2005). Development of the levels of emotional awareness scale for children (LEAS-C). British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 23, 569-586.
  5. Barbarin, O. (2013). A longitudinal examination of socioemotional learning in African American and Latino boys across the transition from pre-K to kindergarten. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 83, 156-64.
  6. Bassett, H., Denham, S., Wyatt, T., & Warren-Khot, H. (2012). Refining the preschool selfregulation assessment for use in preschool classrooms. Infant and Child Development, 21,596-616.
  7. Belacchi, C., & Farina, E. (2012). Feeling and thinking of others: Affective and cognitive empathy and emotion comprehension in prosocial/hostile preschoolers. Aggressive Behavior, 38, 150-165.
  8. Bender, P.K., Reinhold-Dunne, M.L., Esbjorn, B.H., & Pons, F. (2012). Emotion dysregulation and anxiety in children and adolescents: Gender differences. Personality and Individual Differences, 53, 284-288.
  9. Blandon, A.Y., Calkins, S.D., Grimm, K.J., Keane, S.P., & O’Brien, M. (2010). Testing a developmental cascade model of emotional and social competence and early peer acceptance. Development and Psychopathology, 22, 737-748.
  10. Bornstein, M.H., Hahn, C.S., & Haynes, O.M. (2010). Social competence, externalizing and internalizing behavioral adjustment from early childhood through early adolescence: Developmental cascades. Development and Psychopathology, 22, 717-735.
  11. Browne, M.W., & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K.A. Bollen& J.S. Long (Eds.), Testing Structural Equation Models (pp. 136-162). Beverly Hills, CA:
  12. De Los Reyes, A., Henry, D.B., Tolan, P.H., & Wakschlag, L.S. (2009). Linking informant discrepancies to observed variations in young children’s disruptive behavior. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 37, 637-652.
  13. Denham, S.A., Bassett, H.H., Thayer, S.K., Mincic, M.S., Sirotkin, Y.S., & Zinsser, K.(2012). Observing Preschoolers’ Social-Emotional Behavior: Structure, Foundations,and Prediction of Early School Success. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 173, 246-278.
  14. Denham, S.A., & Weissberg, R.P. (2004). Social-emotional learning in early childhood: What we know and where to go from here. In E. Chesebrough, P. King, T.P. Gullotta, & M. Boom (Eds.), A blueprint for the promotion of prosocial behaviour in early childhood (pp. 1350). New York: Kluwer.
  15. DiPrete, T.A., & Jennings, J.L. (2012). Social and behavioral skills and the gender gap in early educational achievement. Social Science Research, 41, 1-15.
  16. Duncan, G.J., Dowsett, C., Claessens, A., Magnuson, K., Huston, A., Klebanov, P., Pagani, L.L., Engel, M., Brooks-Gunn, J., Sexton, H., Duckworth, K., & Japel, C. (2007). School readiness and later achievement. Developmental Psychology, 43, 1428-1446.
  17. Eldar, E., & Ayvazo, S. (2009). Education through the physical– rationale. Education and Treatment of Children, 32, 471-486.
  18. Elias, M.J., & Weissberg, R.P. (2000). Primary prevention: Educational approaches to enhance social and emotional learning. Journal of School Health, 70, 186-190.
  19. Fagan, J., & Fantuzzo, J.W. (1999). Multirater congruence on the social skills rating system: Mother, father, and teacher assessments of urban Head Start children's social competencies. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 14, 229-242.
  20. Fantuzzo, J., Bulosky R., McDermott, P., Mosca, S., & Lutz, M.N. (2003). A multivariate analysis of emotional and behavioural adjustment and preschool educational outcomes. School Psychology Review, 32, 185–203.
  21. Fraser, M.L., & Robinson, B.L. (2013). Development of social skills through physical education with a complex needs child population. International Journal of Sport and Society, 3, 113-124.
  22. Greenwood, C.R., Walker, D., Carta, J.J., & Higgins, S.K. (2006). Developing outcome measure of growth in the cognitive abilities of children 1 to 4 years old: The early problem-solving indicator. School Psychology Review, 35, 535-551.
  23. Goudas, M., Dermitzaki, I., & Leondari, A. (2006). The effectiveness of teaching a life skills program a physical education context. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 22,429-438.
  24. Hair, J., Black, B., Babin, B., Anderson, R., & Tatham, R. (2006). Multivariate Data Analysis (6th edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
  25. Hassandra, M., Goudas, M., Hatzigeorgiadis, A., & Theodorakis, Y. (2007). A fair play intervention program in school Olympic education. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 22, 99-114.
  26. Herndon, K.J., Bailey, C.S., Shewark, E.A., Denham, S.A., & Bassett, H.H. (2013). Preschoolers’ emotion expression and regulation: Relations with school adjustment. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 174, 642-663.
  27. Holmes-Smith, P., & Coote, L. (2002). Structural equation modeling: From the fundamentals to advanced topics. Melbourne, Australia: School Research, Evaluation, and Measurement Services. 30 Takala, Kokkonen, Gråstén, Liukkonen
  28. Hotulainen, R., & Lappalainen, K. (2011). Pre-school socio-emotional behavior and its correlation to self-perceptions and strengths of young adults. Emotional& Behavioural Difficulties, 16, 365-381.
  29. Hu, L., & Bentler, P.M. (1998). Fit indices in covariance structure modeling: Sensitivity to underparameterized model misspecification. Psychological Methods, 3, 424-453.
  30. Jacobs, F., Knoppers, A., & Webb, L. (2013). Making sense of teaching social and moral skills in physical education. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 18, 1-14.
  31. Junttila, N. (2010). Social competence and loneliness during the school years– issues in assessment, interrelations and intergenerational transmission. Annales Universitatis Turkuensis B 325. Department of Teacher Education.
  32. Junttila, N., Voeten, M., Kaukiainen, A., & Vauras, M. (2006). Multisource assessment of children’s social competence. Educational and Psychological Measurements, 66, 874-895.
  33. Kalyva, E. (2010). Multirater congruence on the social skills assessment of children with Asberger syndrome: Self, mother, father, and teacher ratings. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorder, 40, 1202-1208.
  34. Keane, S.P., & Calkins, S.D. (2004). Predicting kindergarten peer social status from toddles and preschool problem behavior. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 32, 409-423.
  35. Kokkonen, J., Kokkonen, M., Telama, R., & Liukkonen, J. (2011). Teachers’ behaviour and pupils’ achievement motivation as determinants of intended helping behaviour in physical education. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 57, 199-216.
  36. Lahaye, M., Luminet, O., van Broeck, N., Bodart, E., & Mikolajczak, M. (2010). Psychometric properties of the emotion awareness questionnaire for children in a French-speaking population. Journal of Personality Assessment, 92, 317-326.
  37. Lane, K.I., Stanton-Chapman, T., Jamison, K., & Phillips, A. (2007). Teacher and parent expectations of preschoolers’ behavior: Social skills necessary for success. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 27, 86-92.
  38. Lantieri, L., & Nambiar, M. (2012). Cultivating the social, emotional, and inner lives of children and teachers. Reclaiming Children& Youth, 21, 27-33.
  39. Malina, R.M. (2012).Movement proficiency in childhood: Implications for physical activity and youth sport. Kinesiologia Slovenica, 18, 19-34.
  40. McBryde, C., Ziviani, J., & Cuskelly, M. (2004). School readiness and factors that influence decision making. Occupational Therapy International, 11, 193-208.
  41. McWayne, C. (2004). A multivariate examination of parent involvement and the social and academic competencies of urban kindergarten children. Psychology in the School, 41,363-377.
  42. Merrell, K.W., Felver-Gant, J.C., & Tom, K.M. (2011). Development and validation of a parent report measure for assessing social-emotional competencies of children and adolescents. Journal of Child Family Studies, 20, 529-540.
  43. Onchwari, G., & Keengwe, J. (2011). Examining the relationship of children’s behaviour to emotion regulation ability. Early Childhood Education Journal, 39, 179-284.
  44. Parker, A.E., Mathis, E.T., & Kupersmidt. J.B. (2013). How is this child feeling? Preschoolaged children’s ability to recognize emotion in faces and body poses. Early Education and Development, 24, 188-211.
  45. Reed, P., & Osborne, L.A. (2013). The role of parenting stress in discrepancies between parent and teacher ratings of behaviour problems in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 43, 471-477.
  46. Reid, C., Davis, H., Horlin, C., Anderson, M., Baughman, N., & Campbell, C. (2013). The Kids’ Empathic Development Scale (KEDS): A multi-dimensional measure of empathy in primary school-aged children. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 31, 231-256.
  47. Renk, K., & Phares, V. (2004). Cross-informant ratings of social competence in children and adolescents. Clinical Psychology Review, 24, 239-254.
  48. Romer, N., Ravitch, N.K., Toma K., Merrel, K.W., & Wesley, K.L. (2011). Gender differences in positive social-emotional functioning. Psychology in the Schools, 48, 958970.
  49. Siskos, B., Proios, M., & Lykesas, G. (2012). Relationships between emotional intelligence and psychological factors in physical education. Studies in Physical Culture and Tourism,19, 154-159.
  50. Sofo, S., Beard, D.H., Slattery, A., & Howard, S. (2012). Preservice teachers’ beliefs about the curricular goals for physical education. Missouri Journal of Health, Physical Education,Recreation, and Dance, 22, 18-35.
  51. Stan, M.M. (2012). Socioemotional predictors of school success at the beginning of school years. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 33, 806-810. Doi:
  52. Swindells, D., & Stagnitti, K. (2006). Pretend play and parents’ view of social competence: The construct validity of the child-initiated pretend play assessment. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 53, 314-324.
  53. Takala, K., Kokkonen, M., & Liukkonen, J. (2009). Päiväkotilasten sosioemotionaalisten taitojen kehittäminen liikuntatuokioiden avulla. Liikunta & Tiede [Sport and Science, 46,22-29.
  54. Telama, R. (1999). Moral development. In Y. Auweele, F. Bakker, S. Biddle, M. Durand, 32 Takala, Kokkonen, Gråstén, Liukkonen & R. Seiler (Eds.), Psychology for physical educators (pp. 321-342). Champaign, IL: Human
  55. Tsangaridou, N., Zachopoulou, E., Liukkonen, J., Gråsten, A., & Kokkonen, M. (2013). Developing preshoolers’social skills through cross-cultural physical education intervention. Early Child Development and Care, 1-16.
  56. Vierikko, E., Pulkkinen, L., Kaprio, J., Viken, R., & Rose, R. (2003). Sex differences in genetic and environmental effects on aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 29, 55-68.
  57. Walker, S., Irving, K., & Berthelsen, D. (2002). Gender influences on preschool children’s social problem-solving strategies. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 163, 197-209.
  58. Webster-Stratton, C., & Reid, J. (2004). Strengthening social and emotional competence in young children– The foundation for early school readiness and success. Infants and Young Children, 17, 96-113.
  59. Zins, J.E., Payton, J.W., Weissberg, R.P., & O'Brien, M.U. (2007). Social and emotional learning for successful school performance. In G. Matthews, M. Zeidner, & R.D. Roberts (Eds.), Emotional intelligence: Applications (pp. 376-395). New York: Oxford

These references have been extracted automatically and may have some errors. Signed in users can suggest corrections to these mistakes.

Suggest Corrections to References

Also Read