Effects of an Early Childhood Training Program on Vulnerable Children’s Outcomes: An Exploratory Study
Date
2021
Type:
Article
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Abstract
This exploratory study assessed the effect of an innovative early childhood training
approach on the development of children attending an early childhood education and
care drop-in centre called Halte-garderie du Cœur offered by a general and vocational
college. The direct beneficiaries of the services were children aged four months to five
years, who had either experienced maltreatment or were from recently immigrated
refugee families. This article presents a mixed methods exploratory and comparative
evaluation study based on multiple data sources, including standardized
developmental scales measuring child development, data from structured
questionnaires with parents and program staff, and interviews with parents and staff.
Participants included two cohorts of children and their parents, involving a total of 25
children, 16 parents, and four professionals. The results show that a significant
proportion of children attending Halte-garderie du Coeur made gains in their emotional,
affective, and social development between the start and end of each of two 12-week
sessions. The effects seen in children were consistent with those set out in the program
theory. To explain these results, we hypothesize that the training program helped
students to develop specific skills that allowed them to positively influence children’s
development particularly for children from vulnerable families
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Citation
R. Quiroz Saavedra, N. Bigras, J. Lehrer, L. Brunson, J. Dion. (2021). Effects of an Early Childhood Training Program on Vulnerable Children’s Outcomes: An Exploratory Study. International Journal of Early Childhood Special Education (INT-JECSE), 13(2): 1219-1229. DOI: 10.9756/INT-JECSE/V13I2.211169
Keywords
Exploratory Outcome Evaluation, Early Childhood Training Program, Early Care and Education, Mixed Methods, Vulnerable Children