promoting the social and emotional development of infants ...•social and emotional development...
TRANSCRIPT
Promoting the Social and Emotional
Development of Infants and
Preschoolers
Part I
Barbara J. Smith, Ph.D.
University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus
What is meant by “social and
emotional development”?
• Infant Mental Health
• Early Childhood Mental Health
• Social and Emotional Development
• Social and Emotional Competence
• Challenging Behavior
• There is a growing consensus across disciplines that these terms refer to the same thing and reflect a continuum of health from social and emotional well-being to mental, emotional and behavioral problems
CSEFEL Definition of Social
Emotional Development
For our (the Center on Social Emotional
Foundations for Early Learning) purposes, the
term social emotional development refers to the
developing capacity of the child from birth
through five years of age to form close and
secure adult and peer relationships;
experience, regulate, and express emotions in
socially and culturally appropriate ways; and
explore the environment and learn - all in the
context of family, community, and culture.
CSEFEL Definition cont.
Caregivers promote healthy development by:
1) working to support social emotional wellness
in all young children, 2) making every effort to
prevent the occurrence or escalation of social
emotional problems, 3) identifying and working
to remediate problems that surface, and, when
necessary, 4) referring children and their
families to appropriate services.
Some Sobering Facts
An estimated 9 to 13% of American children
and adolescents between ages nine to 17
have serious diagnosable emotional or
behavioral health disorders resulting in
substantial to extreme impairment.
(Friedman, 2002)
Children who are identified as hard to manage at ages 3 and 4 have a high probability (50:50) of continuing to have difficulties into adolescence (Campbell & Ewing, 1990; Egeland et al., 1990; Fischer, Rolf, Hasazi, & Cummings, 1984).
Early appearing aggressive behaviors are the best predictor of juvenile gang membership
and violence.
(Reid, 1993)
When aggressive and antisocial behavior has persisted to age 9, further intervention has a poor
chance of success.
(Dodge, 1993)
Of the young children who show early signs of problem behavior, it has been estimated that
fewer than 10% receive services for these difficulties. (Kazdin & Kendall, 1998)
Preschool children are three times
more likely to be “expelled” than
children in grades K-12
(Gilliam, 2005)
There are evidence-based practices that are effective in changing this
developmental trajectory…the problem
is not what to do, but where and how we do it.
• Research has shown a critical link between social skills and early success in school
• Serious, persistent challenging behavior in the early years predicts a developmental trajectory of failure
• “Learning is a social event!”
• We must help children learn appropriate social and emotional skills early-we cannot wait!
Key Social and Emotional Skills
Children Need as They Enter School
• Key Social Skills Associated with School Readiness:
– Confidence
– Capacity to develop good relationships with peers
– Concentration and persistence on challenging tasks
– Ability to effectively communicate emotions
– Ability to listen to instructions and be attentive
• When children don’t have these skills, they often exhibit
challenging behaviors
• We must focus on teaching the skills!!
Expected Prevalence of Challenging Behavior
1-10%
Children with
Persistent
Challenges
Focused
Interventions
5-15%
Children at-Risk
Intervention and
Support
All Children
Universal Interventions
However, research reports that personnel
say that they have a much higher rate of
challenging behavior in early childhood
programs
• Teachers and administrators report challenging behavior is their primary
training need
• Family members, direct service personnel and state and local
administrators report that the lack of knowledge and skills in this area is
the #1 barrier to effective services
• Many early childhood programs do not have expertise in behavior
support or resources to access this expertise
• Yale Study: preschool aged children are expelled from programs at a
rate 3x that of school aged children
• Families need help and personnel need administrative support to know
about and use effective, evidence-based strategies
Critical Issues
Outcomes Across Programs with
Evidence-based Practices
• Improved staff satisfaction
• Decreased staff turnover
• Increase in overall program quality
• Clearly articulated and implemented policies and procedures
• More intentional teaching and purposeful in supporting children’s emotional development
• Elimination of “time-out”
• Less reliance on “outside”experts
• Stronger collaboration with specialists with promotion and prevention efforts in addition to intervention
• Fewer children asked to leave program
National Centers –
Evidence-based Resources
Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations
for Early Learning
www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel
Technical Assistance Center on Social
Emotional Intervention for Young Children
www.challengingbehavior.org Formerly known as “Center for Evidence Based Practice: Young Children with Challenging Behavior”
Evidence-Based Resources
• Power Point Presentations
• Fact Sheets
• Summaries of research
• Videos
• Case Studies
• Parent resources
• Materials to use with children
• Training modules
Promoting Social and Emotional
Competence: the Pyramid Model
High Quality Supportive Environments
Nurturing and Responsive Relationships
Targeted Social and
Emotional Supports
Intensive
Interventions
The Center on the Social and Emotional
Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL)
National Center focused on promoting the social emotional development and school readiness of young children birth to age 5.
Jointly funded by the Office of Head Start and the Child Care Bureau, under the auspices of the Administration on Children, Youth and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/
CSEFEL
Analyze and synthesize the research on the social
emotional development of low-income children and
translate the findings into materials that are practical
and accessible.
Engage in intensive T/TA to selected states, territories
and/or tribal partners to foster professional development
that sustains the use of effective practices at the local
level.
Disseminate evidence-based practices and materials via
an interactive website.
CSEFEL
• Vanderbilt University
• University of Illinois
• University of South Florida
• University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical
Campus
• ZERO TO THREE
• Georgetown University Center for Child
and Human Development
March, 2013
Primary Partners
• NAEYC
• NACCRRA
• DEC
• NASMHPD
• NABE
• NHSA
March, 2013
The Pyramid Model
An Evidence-Based, 3-Tiered,
Conceptual Model for
Promoting Social Emotional
Development in Infants and
Young Children
The Pyramid Model