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Background: Help-seeking research has traditionally inferred behavioural responses to the need for help from post-hoc reflections and experiments outside of the classroom context. Aim: We aimed to gain an ecologically valid understanding of the help-seeking process by examining the association between pupils' task-specific perceptions and their help-seeking interactions with teachers and peers during lessons. Sample: Participants were 290 pupils in Years 4-6 (aged 8.22-11.48) and 12 teachers in 12 classrooms in three schools across two local authorities in South East England, UK. Method: The microlongitudinal data consisted of 6,592 task-specific reports. Pupils reported on their task understanding and need for help and their help-seeking (teacher and peer) and help-giving behaviours at the end of each lesson. On average, pupils completed 25.44 reports across 14.64 lessons, 13 school subjects and 4.80 days. Teachers reported on pupils' academic performance. Data were analysed using two-level logistic and multinomial logistic regressions. Results and conclusions: Task-specific understanding and need for help were associated with help-seeking and help-giving behaviour during lessons. Understanding was associated also with the type of help sought and given among classmates and appeared to influence whether pupils were help-seekers or help-givers during peer interactions. There was an apparent reciprocity in peer help-seeking interactions, occurring namely among girls and higher performers. Overall, girls were more likely than boys to seek and give help across tasks. Pupils for whom English was an additional language were less likely than classmates to seek help when they needed it. The study (1) sheds new light on the dynamics of everyday help-seeking interactions in the classroom, (2) provides a conceptual framework for researchers interested in reciprocal processes of social interaction in self-regulated learning, and (3) highlights groups who might benefit from intervention.

This paper discusses the challenges facing a national evaluation of an early years intervention programme, Sure Start Children's Centres (SSCCs), that was implemented across England in the first decade of the 21st century. The paper describes the rationale for the evaluation's mixed methods research design and the ecological theoretical approach adopted. It investigates the SSCC policy aim of combatting the 'impact' of multiple disadvantage on outcomes for families, parents and children. Based on a clustered sample (2,600 families) it provides evidence of statistical effects for different user groups, including non-users. It points to the complexities in evaluation in non-experimental interventions where there was an emphasis on services to meet local needs and where families could choose which services to access and change patterns of service use over time. The paper synthesises findings and considers how complex, volatile and uncertain environments affected SSCC provision, particularly linked to a change of government and austerity policies after 2010. The paper identifies lessons learned, explores implications for future early years interventions in uncertain times, and proposes alternative approaches to evaluation (a realist approach based on mixed methods and theoretically driven models) where randomised experimental designs are inappropriate for the evaluation of certain complex policies.

This study investigates the impact of children's Home Computer Use (HCU), both educational and recreational, on their achievement in Reading and Mathematics during primary school. The data are taken from a longitudinal study in England called Effective Provision of Preschool, Primary and Secondary Education (EPPSE). Hierarchical linear regressions were employed to investigate the main (direct) effects, and path analyses were applied to study the mediation (indirect) effects of HCU on pupils' school achievement. The main effect models indicated that HCU has very little 'extra' impact on children's school results over and beyond their prior achievement and demographic background. By contrast, results from path analyses showed a statistically significant mediation effect, through the home learning environment and self-regulation, on children's Reading and Mathematics scores. The implications of the findings for policy and practice are also discussed.

This study explores how various measures of home learning environment (HLE) collected at different ages are related to each other and explores associations when the effects of significant child and family characteristics are controlled for. Different age-appropriate measures of the HLE were constructed at ages 3, 7, 11, and 14. The measures were derived from parents' reports (3, 7, and 11), but at age 14 both adolescents' self-reports and parents' questionnaires responses were used. Multilevel models tested the effects of earlier measures of HLE on later measures, while the same set of individual and family characteristics were controlled. The early years HLE measure was a significant predictor of later measures of HLE across different phases of education (primary and secondary school). The strength of the relationships between different HLE measures depended on the time lag between measurements but also on the nature of the activities covered in each dimension.

Developmental cognitive neuroscience highlights the importance of interactions between children and their environment. As young children spend increasing time in childcare, it is key to investigate the impact of "maths-talk" and maths provisions in preschools. Qualitative insights from early educators indicate a greater bias toward counting activities than would be expected given the Early Years curriculum. In addition, we quantified the observed breadth of preschool practitioners' maths language (e.g., place-value language), setting-based maths provisions (e.g., quality of maths-related activities), and their relation with children's early numeracy skills. In settings with greater practitioners' breadth of maths language, children display greater cardinality skills although our data call for the further investigation of parental socioeconomic status and education. We conclude with a discussion on the need to operationalize children's maths learning environments as diversely as possible. Enriching practitioners' skill sets may be an effective and needed way of improving early maths outcomes.

UK Sure Start Children's Centres (SSCCs) aim to lessen behavioural disorders yet we lack evidence concerning how this is achieved. This study evaluates one possible mechanism: improved home learning environments (HLEs). Data come from a longitudinal study of 2568 families and children recruited at a mean age of 14 months from 117 SSCCs in England in 2012. Behavioural disorders were measured at 38 months via the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. HLEs were measured at 14 and 38 months via parental interview. Families' use of SSCCs was measured via parental interview at 14, 22, and 38 months. This study suggests that the use of SSCCs is associated with fewer preschool behavioural disorders via intermediate changes to the quality of HLE's. Implications are discussed for social policies and for early years' professionals.

Specialized preschool programs can enhance the development of vulnerable young children at risk of special educational needs (SEN). Less is known about the potential of early childhood education and care (ECEC) provided for the general population. This study includes 2,857 children attending 141 ECEC centres in England and 310 with no ECEC. ECEC quality and effectiveness were assessed. Children's scores on assessments of cognitive development, numeracy, and literacy, and teacher reports of socio-emotional problems at ages 5, 7, 11, and 16 years were used to identify risk of SEN (1 standard deviation beyond the mean). Trend analyses (none vs. low, medium, and high ECEC quality or effectiveness) examined impact of ECEC on risk for cognitive or socio-emotional SEN. Better quality and more effective ECEC reduced risk of cognitive SEN at 5, 11, and 16 years of age, with similar results for socio-emotional SEN. The discussion considers the consistency of the association between children's ECEC experience and risk for SEN, which is found for alternative measures of ECEC, quality derived from observations and effectiveness derived from progress in child outcomes. These different sources for the ECEC measures add credibility to the results. Also the implications for policy and practice are discussed including the recommendation for universal provision of high quality ECEC and ensuring that the most at-risk populations receive the best ECEC available.

Background: Socio‐economic status (SES) is a powerful predictor of attainment. Research has identified multiple mechanisms that underpin the effect of SES on attainment. For example, self‐regulation (processes through which individuals direct and control their attention, emotion and behaviour) has been identified as one mechanism mediating the SES attainment gap. However, previous studies have not directly tested the statistical pathways by which children from lower SES backgrounds develop low self‐regulation skills and subsequently poor attainment at the end of primary school. Adding the home learning environment, which is associated with both SES and self‐regulation, further fleshes out the longitudinal pathways. Aims: We propose and test a new model where the relationship between SES and school attainment is sequentially mediated by the family home learning environment and the child's self‐regulation. Sample: This study uses the Effective Pre‐school, Primary and Secondary Education data set to study 2311 English children. Methods: We measured SES (via socio‐economic disadvantage) based on an index of low parental education, occupation and income at age 3+. The home learning environment was measured by the Home Learning Environment Index at age 3+; self‐regulation was a teacher report on the Child Social Behaviour Questionnaire at age 4+ and attainment was measured via scores on national assessments of English and Maths at age 11. Results: Our measure of disadvantage predicted attainment. The home learning environment predicted children's self‐regulation skills. The relationship between disadvantage and attainment was sequentially mediated by the home learning environment and self‐regulation. Conclusions: These findings suggest that home learning environment and self‐regulation may play a sequential role in perpetuating socio‐economic disparities in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a well-established association between literacy difficulties and emotional and behavior disorders (EBD). However, the scarcity of experimental studies means directions of causality are not clear. Aims: This study investigates causal relationships between literacy and EBD, and implications of co-morbidity for intervention. Sample and method: In the first year of a quasi-experimental study of 258 six-year-olds with reading difficulties: 87 received Phonological Training (PT), 81 received Reading Recovery (RR), and 90 in the control group received standard tuition. Children were followed up immediately post-intervention and four years later. Results: Immediately post-intervention, RR significantly improved children's literacy (Cohen's d = 0.89). Four years later both RR and PT had small effects on literacy (Cohen's d = 0.25 and 0.26 respectively). These effects provided the opportunity to test the hypothesis that literacy difficulties cause or exacerbate EBD. This hypothesis was not supported as neither intervention reduced EBD. There was an interaction between hyperactivity symptoms at baseline and the effectiveness of PT, with PT being effective for children with few or no symptoms but ineffective for those with symptoms. EBD did not moderate the effectiveness of RR. Conduct disorder and hyperactivity at baseline had negative effects on literacy progress. Conclusions: Literacy difficulties do not appear to be a cause of EBD but conduct disorder and hyperactivity exacerbate literacy difficulties. This may be due to EBD interfering with the effectiveness of instruction. If children have more than one problem they probably need more or different support.

Sixty-five parent--infant dyads were observed reading an unfamiliar book at home. Parents' use of language-stimulating and emotionally rich reading styles was measured via a specially developed Book Sharing Scale for Infants. Aspects of child temperament were assessed by the Infant Characteristics Questionnaire [Bates, J. E., Freeland, C. A. B., & Lounsbury, M. L. (1979). Measurement of infant difficultness. "Child Development," 50(3), 794-803], and parents responsivity was measured by the Caregiver Interaction Scale [Arnett, J. (1989). "Caregiver interaction scale." Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service]. Parents' socio-economic status and education, parents' impression of their child being unsociable and the warmth of the caregiver's interaction were positively predictive of the quality of the reading interaction. This suggests that the extent to which parents employ high-quality reading styles with their 10-month-old babies, depends on socio-demographic variables, children's ability to communicate with their parents, and the overall affective quality of their relationship.

Efforts to improve the educational achievement of children, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, are at the heart of current government policies in the United Kingdom. The Peers Early Education Partnership (PEEP) is an intervention that, since 1995, has worked directly with parents and caregivers of children from infancy to 5 years of age in a deprived area of Oxford and, recently, in other areas. This paper explores the effects of the PEEP parental education program on children's development. A longitudinal quasi­-experimental design, including pretest and post-test measures, was used to compare a group of children whose parents had access to PEEP with a group of children with similar demographic characteristics whose parents did not have such access. In order to assess the effects of PEEP on children's cognitive, language, and social-­emotional development, standardized tests and educational tasks were administered to the children upon entry to the intervention (at age 3) and after one and two years (at ages 4 and 5). This paper discusses the effects of two years of parental participation in PEEP on children (at age 5). Gains were found in vocabulary, verbal comprehension, understanding about books and print, number concepts, and self-­esteem related to both cognitive and physical competence. Thus, working directly through groups of parents was found to be an effective way of enhancing children's cognitive and social­-emotional development.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the demographic, social and psychological factors associated with moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among a sample of secondary school students (N = 402). Methods: Students completed a questionnaire which examined their level of participation in MVPA and sedentary behaviours along with a number of potential correlates. Hierarchical regression was used to explore the relationship between hypothesised factors and MVPA. Results: Approximately a third of students (31.9%) reported involvement in at least five sessions of MVPA in the previous week. The students reported an average of 2.8 hours per day watching television and 1.7 hours per day using the computer. In the final regression model, 33% of variance in MVPA was explained. Perceived barriers, peer support and family support were statistically significant predictors. Conclusions: This study confirmed a number of factors to be associated with participation in MVPA. No relationship was found between sedentary behaviour and MVPA. (Contains 4 tables.)

While there have been reviews over the past decade of studies examining second-language (L2) acquisition and also emergent literacy development, these related bodies of knowledge have not generally been considered together in relation to the education of very young English-language learners. This paper attempts to do so in a selective manner by proposing a preliminary conceptual framework for second language emergent literacy development, thus paving the way for future research. The literature on the emergent literacy of native English speakers is first outlined, followed by a discussion of the general effects of bilingualism and cross-linguistic transfer, with the special case of Hong Kong children serving as an illustrative example. Finally, potential environmental influences are explored, with a focus on the home literacy environment.

This paper presents a review of the family services that were offered by a sample of 121 English Sure Start Children's Centres in 2011 and 2012. Children's Centres are community based facilities that aim to improve outcomes for at-risk families and children through the delivery of a range of services largely aimed at families with young children. Services commonly offered include: health advice, childcare and early education, employment advice, informal drop-in facilities, and specialist support on parenting. This paper provides a snapshot of Children's Centre service provision in 2011 and 2012 and documents the extent of change. A picture of broad stability was observed in the numbers of services that centres reported offering (from a list of 47 services grouped into 11 categories). However, some Children's Centres also appeared to be changing the focus of the services that they provided. Some centres seemed to be shifting towards providing greater outreach (rather than parent-support) and services which were targeted (rather than universal).

Educational and occupational aspirations have become an important reference point in policy debates about educational inequality. Low aspirations are presented as a major barrier to closing educational attainment gaps and increasing levels of social mobility. Our paper contributes to this on-going debate by presenting data on the educational aspirations of students from the Effective Provision of Pre-School, Primary and Secondary Education Project in England. We analyse factors that help predict students holding high aspirations. Our findings reveal generally high aspirations across all students but also differences by income group and other background factors. We evaluate the significance of these findings for the existing literature and public policy discussions about the importance of raising educational aspirations. In particular, we question the way in which low aspirations are framed by policy-makers as a major problem in debates around educational inequality.

In the first volume of the "Oxford Review of Education" Jerome Bruner (1975) showed how the upbringing of the very young is influenced by poverty, and how different kinds of upbringing shape human development. He called the paper "Poverty and childhood" and baldly stated "With respect to virtually any criterion of equal opportunity and equal access to opportunity, the children of the poor ... are plainly not getting as much schooling, or getting as much from their schooling as their middle-class age mates" (p. 43). Since Bruner's seminal paper, the developmental sciences have exploded. New insights from neuroscience, genetics and cognitive psychology have provided accounts of the developing architecture of the brain, the course of linguistic and cognitive development, and more recently the development of resilience. Most of these insights focus on the "development of the child", but usually from research in the laboratory or in the context of the family. However, there is also a new literature on ways that "environments outside the home" can support or hinder the child's development. This paper will attempt to integrate findings from the developmental sciences with educational research on pre-school education. The first half of the paper extends Bruner's arguments through a discussion of possible mechanisms that underlie the link between poverty and under-achievement, especially the capacity to plan ahead. The second half of the paper focuses on the role of the "enabling environment" of the pre-school in supporting the kinds of early "executive functions" that will later underpin educational achievement. The paper concludes with recent findings from the 'Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education' research (EPPSE; Sylva, Melhuish, Sammons, Siraj, & Taggart, 2014) on the educational pathways of nearly 3000 English children. The findings show that high quality pre-school provided the foundation for academic learning, but the newest research shows that it also nurtured self-regulation and the executive skills needed in planning ahead.