Abstract
Recent years have seen increasing numbers of classroom-based interventions designed to enhance the school readiness of at-risk preschoolers. Even the most comprehensive, well-designed programs can suffer from limited effectiveness due to low-frequency implementation by teachers. The current study presents findings from the Building Bridges (BB) project, an integrated program targeting school readiness in Head Start and low-income child care centers. Previous studies have reported the role of teacher-level and program-level characteristics in predicting teacher implementation of an intervention. The present study examines the role of student characteristics—language and math ability, social skills, and behavioral functioning—in predicting implementation exposure. These associations were examined in the context of program type (Head Start, child care) and intervention condition (consultation, no consultation). 88 classrooms (41 Head Start, 47 child care) participated in the BB intervention. Implementation exposure was predicted by several distinct student characteristics. Teachers whose students exhibited poorer language skills implemented significantly more BB activities, a finding that was consistent across program types and intervention conditions. A marginally significant trend was identified for oppositional behavior when interacted with intervention group in that teachers whose students demonstrated higher rates of oppositional behavior implemented fewer intervention activities when they did not have a consultant. Teachers in child care centers with a BB consultant had higher rates of implementation than did teachers in all other groups. These findings provide important information regarding the student-level characteristics that should be evaluated in order to optimize implementation of an intervention.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aber, J. L., Jones, S. M., Brown, J. L., Chaudry, N., & Samples, F. (1998). Resolving conflict creatively: Evaluating the developmental effects of a school-based violence prevention program in neighborhood and classroom context. Development and Psychopathology, 10, 187–213.
Abrami, P. C., Poulsen, C., & Chambers, B. (2004). Teacher motivation to implement an educational innovation: Factors differentiating users and non-users of cooperative learning. Educational Psychology, 24, 201–215.
Administration on Children, Youth and Families. (1997). Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Administration on Children, Youth and Families. (2003). Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Arnold, D. H., Fisher, P. H., Doctoroff, G. L., & Dobbs, J. (2002). Accelerating math development in Head Start classrooms. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94, 762–770.
Arnold, D. H., Lonigan, C. J., Whitehurst, G. J., & Epstein, J. N. (1994). Accelerating language development through picture book reading: Replication and extension to a videotape training format. Journal of Educational Psychology, 86, 235–243.
Baker, C. N., Kupersmidt, J. B., Voegler-Lee, M. E., Arnold, D. H., & Willoughby, M. T. (2009). Predicting teacher participation in a classroom-based, integrated preventive intervention for preschoolers. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25, 270–283.
Committee for Children. (2002). Second Step: A violence prevention curriculum, grades Pre/K (3rd ed.). Seattle, WA: Author.
Dane, A. V., & Schneider, B. H. (1998). Program integrity in primary and early secondary prevention: Are implementation effects out of control? Clinical Psychology Review, 18, 23–45.
Durlak, J. A., & DuPre, E. P. (2008). Implementation matters: A review of research on the influence of implementation on program outcomes and the factors affecting implementation. American Journal of Community Psychology, 41, 327–350.
Ghaith, G., & Yaghi, H. (1997). Relationships among experience, teacher efficacy, and attitudes toward the implementation of instructional innovation. Teaching and Teacher Education, 13, 451–458.
Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (1990). Social skills Rating System Manual. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
Innes, F. K., Denton, K. L., & West, J. (2001, April). Child care factors and kindergarten outcomes: Findings from a national study of children. Paper presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Minneapolis, MN.
Justice, L. M., Mashburn, A., Pence, K. L., & Wiggins, A. (2008). Experimental evaluation of a preschool language curriculum: Influence on children’s expressive language skills. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 51, 983–1001.
Kallestad, J.H., & Olweus, D. (2003). Predicting teachers’ and schools’ implementation of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program: A multi-level study. Prevention & Treatment, 6, posted October 1, 2003.
Kellam, S. G., Ling, X., Merisca, R., Brown, C. H., & Ialongo, N. (1998). The effect of the level of aggression in the first grade classroom on the course and malleability of aggressive behavior into middle school. Development and Psychopathology, 10, 165–185.
Klibanoff, R. S., Levine, S. C., Huttenlocher, J., Vasilyeva, M., & Hedges, L. V. (2006). Preschool children’s mathematical knowledge: The effect of teacher “math talk.” Developmental Psychology, 42, 59–69.
Kowalski, K., Pretti-Frontczak, K., & Johnson, L. (2001). Preschool teachers’ beliefs concerning the importance of various developmental skills and abilities. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 16, 5–14.
Kupersmidt, J. B., Bryant, D., & Willoughby, M. T. (2000). Prevalence of aggressive behaviors among preschoolers in Head Start and community child care programs. Behavioral Disorders, 26(1), 42–52.
Kupersmidt, J.B., & Voegler-Lee, M. E. (2003). Weekly Classroom Activities Log. Unpublished measure. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Lochman, J. E. (2001). Issues in prevention with school-aged children: Ongoing intervention refinement, developmental theory, prediction and moderation, and implementation and dissemination. Prevention & Treatment, 4, posted March 30, 2001.
Lochman, J. E., Boxmeyer, C., Powell, N., Roth, D. L., & Windle, M. (2006). Masked intervention effects: Analytic methods for addressing low dosage of intervention. New Directions for Evaluation, 110, 19–32.
Loney, J., & Milich, R. (1982). Hyperactivity, inattention, and aggression in clinical practice. In M. Wolraich & D. Routh (Eds.), Advances in developmental and behavioral pediatrics (Vol. 3, pp. 113–147). Greenwich, CT: JAI.
McLoyd, V. C. (1998). Socioeconomic disadvantage and child development. American Psychologist, 53, 185–204.
Moore, B., & Beland, K. (1992). Evaluation of Second Step, Preschool-Kindergarten, a violence-prevention curriculum kit: Summary report. Unpublished manuscript. Seattle, WA: Committee for Children.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, VA: Author.
Ozer, E. J. (2006). Contextual effects in school-based violence prevention programs: A conceptual framework and empirical review. The Journal of Primary Prevention, 27, 315–340.
Payne, A. A., Gottfredson, D. C., & Gottfredson, G. D. (2006). School predictors of the intensity of implementation of school-based prevention programs: Results from a national study. Prevention Science, 7, June 2006.
Pelham, W. E., Milich, R., Murphy, D. A., & Murphy, H. A. (1989). Normative data on the Iowa Conners Teacher Rating Scale. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 18, 259–262.
Rich, E. C., Shepherd, E. J., & Nangle, D. W. (2008). Validation of the SSRS-T, preschool level as a measure of positive social behavior and conduct problems. Education and Treatment of Children, 31, 183–202.
Shernoff, E. S., & Kratochwill, T. R. (2007). Transporting an evidence-based classroom management program for preschoolers with disruptive behavior problems to a school: An analysis of implementation, outcomes, and contextual variables. School Psychology Quarterly, 22, 449–472.
West, J., Denton, K., & Germino-Hausken, E. (2000). America’s kindergartners. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.
Woodcock, R. W., McGrew, K. S., & Mather, N. (2001). Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement. Itasca, IL: Riverside Publishing.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
This project was supported by grant R01HD046126 (Kupersmidt), co-funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) in the U.S. Education Department.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Voegler-Lee, M.E., Kupersmidt, J.B., Field, S. et al. Student Characteristics as Predictors of Teachers’ Implementation of a Kindergarten Readiness Program. Prev Sci 13, 472–482 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0274-5
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-012-0274-5