Early childhood education and highrisk children Promises and

Early childhood education and high-risk children Promises and Pitfalls Brenda Jones Harden, Ph. D University of Maryland OMEP Conference August 1, 2015

Poverty and Child Development ► Major risk factor for maladaptive outcomes ► Larger associations with cognition and academic achievement than behavior, mental health, and physical health ► Largest impacts of poverty for children at lower end of low-SES continuum ► Poverty in early childhood matters more for development than poverty in adolescence ____________________ Aber et al. , 2007; Duncan & Brooks-Gunn, 1997; Mc. Loyd, 1998

Physical Effects of Poverty ► Stunted brain growth and CNS disorders ► Delayed physical growth ► Delayed motor skills ► Higher rates of infant mortality, prematurity, low birthweight ► Higher rates of injuries ► Increased morbidity (e. g. , asthma, HIV seropositivity, obesity, dental decay) ______________________ Aber et al. , 2007; Barker et al. , 2005; Frongillo, 2003; Crum et al. , 2005; Iida et al. , 2007

Cognitive Effects of Poverty ► Compromised development brain § Cognitive selfregulation ► Lower DQ’s and IQ’s ► Language delays ► School readiness ► Later academic difficulties Aiken & Barbarin, 2008; Duncan & Brooks

Socioemotional Effects of Poverty ► Compromised prosocial skills § Empathy, cooperation ► Affective dysregulation § Aggression, emotional lability ► Higher rates of mental health difficulties § Internalizing/externalizing behavior problems ► Later difficulties with peers __________________ Conroy & Brown, 2004; Webster-Stratton et al. , 1998; Campbell 1994; 2002

What are the mechanisms by which poverty affects children? To what extent is poverty itself the cause of negative child outcomes?

Attention to Omitted Variables (Duncan et al. , 2010) ► Demographic variables § Family structure § Race/ethnicity ► Prenatal factors § Prematurity/low birthweight ► Larger ecological factors § Neighborhood disadvantage ► Poverty-related risk factors

Risk Factors Linked to Poverty ► Low socioeconomic status linked with multiple contextual risks which increase child vulnerability (Chase-Lansdale & Brooks-Gunn, 1995) § § § Inadequate nutrition / food insecurity Environmental toxins Parental psychopathology Parental substance abuse Compromised parenting & child maltreatment Lower quality child care and schools ►Higher quality child care in some studies due to availability of government-sponsored child care

Developmental Consequences of Pre/Post-Natal Substance Exposure § Prematurity/low birthweight § Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (opiates) § Respiratory difficulties (tobacco, methamphetamine) § Intellectual disabilities (alcohol) § Language delays § Neurobehavioral deficits § Affective dysregulation § Attentional deficits and hyperactivity § Impulsivity and aggression § Internalizing behaviors ________________________ Lester et al. , 2009; Frank et al. , 2001

Developmental Consequences of Maternal Depression ► Prenatal effects ► Differential emotion processing § Frontal EEG asymmetry ► Neurointegrative deficits § Distractibility; Hypersensitivity ► Emotional distress § Gaze aversion; fussiness ► Emotion expression § Restricted range; Negative responsivity ► Internalizing/externalizing problems § Inattention; Aggression/impulsivity ________________________ Murray & Cooper, 1997; Hay et al. , 2010; Beeber et al. , 2007

Developmental Consequences of Family/Intimate Partner Violence ►Unintended injuries ►Cognitive/academic difficulties ►Physiologic and emotion dysregulation § Irritability, sleep disturbance, stress symptoms § Traumatic stress ►Later behavioral, social, and emotional problems § aggression, anger, and oppositional behavior § poor peer and sibling relationships § Social skills deficits _________________________________________________ Gewirtz & Edleson, 2007; Edleson, 1999; Lieberman & Van Horn, 2009

Developmental Consequences of Maltreatment Prematurity; low birth weight; failure to thrive ► Injuries/diseases re: maltreatment ► Increased illnesses & poorer medical care ► Developmental and language delays ► Traumatic stress symptoms ► Attachment difficulties ► Emotion dysregulation ____________ ► Cicchetti et al. , 2010; Jones Harden, 2007

Implications for Early Childhood Education Programs

Research re: Risk and Prevention ► Focus on specific risk factor § Coercive parenting as predictor of child abuse (Oregon Social Learning Center; Patterson, Fisher, Chamberlain, etc. ) ► Focus on high-risk sample (multiple risks) § Reducing maternal depression in low-income, immigrant families (Beeber et al. ) ► Early intervention (prior to risk effects) § Parent-infant programs (Olds et al. ) ► Focus on multiple systems (school, family) § Prevention of behavior problems (Webster-Stratton et al. )

Early Childhood Education ► Primary prevention strategy with documented benefits for children from impoverished backgrounds ► Risk factor: poverty ► Timing: early intervention ► Multi-systemic focus: child, parent, community, school ► What about focus on high-risk children?

Early Childhood Education as Protective Factor …compensates for high-risk environments (Watamura et al. , 2011)

Relation of Risk to Program Effects ► Early Head Start § Program had least effect on families with 5 or more risk factors and most effect on medium risk families (3 -4 risk factors) ► New Hope § Poverty-related cumulative risk partially mediated effect of welfare reform program on child behavior and academic outcomes

Implications for ECE Programs Addressing omitted variables! ► Perinatal Services § Services begun during pregnancy § Focus on healthy birth outcomes ► Residential Stability § Program as facilitator of neighborhood cohesion § Housing stability focus

Implications for ECE Programs ► Race/Ethnicity/Culture § “entering the developmental niche” (Harkness & Super, 1999) ► Physical and social settings ► Customs and practices of care ► Psychology of caretakers § Capitalizing on cultural processes that are protective ► Extended family ► Latino family paradox (e. g. , birth outcomes) ► Strong African American Families program § Services for immigrant groups ► Engagement ► Family support

Implications for ECE Programs ► Comprehensiveness § Formal collaboration with other service systems (Rouse & Fantuzzo, 2009) § § Two-generational Child care/family support Focus on “whole child” Emphasis on core developmental processes ► Emotion regulation ► Cognitive self-regulation ► Prosocial skills ► Oral language

Implications for ECE Programs ►Services within ECE programs designed for families at environmental risk § Child care/education as major goal ►Dosage/quality for children in families at risk ►Teacher-child relationships § Import of family support ►Parent long-term well-being (e. g. , health) ►Siblings (e. g. , parentified children) ►Self-sufficiency (e. g. , EITC, EHS)

Implications for ECE Programs § Focus on specific parental risk factors ►Parental psychopathology § Depression ►Child maltreatment § Neglect ►Substance use ►Homelessness ►Criminal involvement ►Family Violence § Intimate partner violence

Implications for ECE Programs: Early Childhood System of Care § Evidence-based interventions ►Incredible Years (Webster-Stratton & Hammond, 1997) ►Family Check-Up (Dishion et al. , 2008; Shaw, 2006) ►Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (Eyberg et al. , 2001) ►ALAS (Beeber et al. , 2007)

Implications for ECE Programs: Early Childhood System of Care § Evidence-based interventions ►Attachment and Bio-behavioral Catch-up (Dozier et al. , 2005) ►Nurse-Family Partnership (Olds, 2007) ►Play and Learning Strategies (Landry et al. , 2008) ►Early childhood mental health consultation (Gilliam, 2014)

Implications for ECE Programs ► Staff Development § Training § Supervision/monitoring § Knowledge to skills transformation ► Resource Distribution § Child AND family intervention § Classroom and caseload size § External resources

Early Childhood Education A necessary but insufficient intervention for high-risk children