Premium
Child Care Quality and Cognitive Development: Trajectories Leading to Better Preacademic Skills
Author(s) -
Côté Sylvana M.,
Mongeau Chantal,
Japel Christa,
Xu Qian,
Séguin Jean R.,
Tremblay Richard E.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.12007
Subject(s) - numeracy , psychology , cognitive development , developmental psychology , cognition , vocabulary development , receptive language , language development , vocabulary , trajectory , child development , quality (philosophy) , cognitive skill , teaching method , mathematics education , pedagogy , literacy , linguistics , philosophy , physics , epistemology , astronomy , neuroscience
The associations between trajectories of child care quality from ages 2 to 4 years and children's cognitive performance at 4 years ( n = 250) were tested. Distinct quality trajectories were identified: low and high ascending Teaching and Interactions trajectory; low and high Provision for Learning trajectory. Membership in the high ascending Teaching and Interactions trajectory was associated with better numeracy (effect size [ES] = .39, confidence interval [CI] = .21–.66), receptive vocabulary (ES = .41, CI = .14–.68), and school readiness (ES = .32, CI = .06–.58). The results suggest that a pattern of increasing quality of teacher–child interactions during the preschool years, particularly with regard to supporting the development of language, has a moderate impact on children's cognitive development.