Brief description.

Psychologists, politicians, and parents are currently puzzled about the importance of the first three years of life for children's future development. On the one hand, researchers are arguing that the experiences children have during the first three years may be critically important for future physical, cognitive, and social development. On the other hand, some researchers and politicians feel that the data are being over-interpreted, and that an entire generation of parents is being overburdened by unnecessary guilt and worry. In this proseminar, we will read and discuss a recent book that presents an in-depth study of the language experiences of 42 children from varying socio-economic backgrounds. We will discuss the findings of the book, and their social and public policy implications for families and lawmakers. Students will be responsible for helping to lead one class discussion and for searching out relevant news articles in the popular media. In addition, we will attend any relevant lectures on campus that relate to child development.
 

Text.
Meaningful differences in the everyday experiences of young American children, by Betty Hart and Todd Risley. Paul H. Brookes Publishing, 1995.

Grading.
This course is one credit hour, pass-fail. You will pass if you attend our meetings regularly, read the book, make a reasonable contribution to our discussion, fulfill your obligations in leading one group discussion, and show respect for your classmates and their opinions. More than one unexcused absence may result in a failing grade.

Leading Discussion.
On one of the days marked by an asterisk on the accompanying schedule, you will be responsible for leading class discussion. This means that you will need to think about what you consider the most important issues in the chapter (or section), what the implications are, and what the reader should take from the material. You will then need to design discussion questions that will allow your classmates to discuss, debate, and grapple with these issues. In this type of class, a discussion leader should be more of a "facilitator" than a "lecturer." However, even though you should have thought about the material thoroughly, you don't have to have it "all figured out" - it's ok to ask the group questions about things that were confusing to you, and we can discuss them as a group. On the day that you lead discussion, bring a list of questions with you that you have thought about - this is something for which you should prepare, and not do off the top of your head.
 
 
 

Tentative Schedule (subject to change if necessary)
Week	Date	Topic	Assignment for this meeting
1	Jan 10	Introduction
2	Jan 17	no class -- Martin Luther King
3	Jan 24	Early intervention and children's language	Forward, Preface, Acknowledgments, and Chapter 1
4	Jan 31	Planning research	Chapter 2 *
5	Feb 7	Differences in families	Chapter 3 *
6	Feb 14	Everyday parenting	Chapter 4 *
7	Feb 21	Analyzing language	Chapter 5 *
8	Feb 28	What children experience	Chapter 6 *
9	Mar 6	no class, spring break
10	Mar 13	Following up, at age 3	Chapter 7, 141-159 *
11	Mar 20	Following up, at age 10	Chapter 7, 160-173 *
12	Mar 27	Implications	Chapter 8 *
13	Apr 3	Implications for intervention	Chapter 9, 191-202 *
14	Apr 10	Further implications	Chapter 9, 203-219 *
15	Apr 17	What does popular culture say about the importance of the first three years?	Bring books, news, and/or magazine clippings discussing popular opinions on these issues
16	Apr 24	final class meeting

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Page last updated January 4, 2000