Differences in Kindergartners’ Participation and Regulation Strategies Across Time and Instructional Contexts

Executive functions and science achievement during the five-to-seven-year shift

“…Furthermore, results from the 2012 National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education (NSSME) revealed that the instructional format most frequently used in elementary school science lessons is teacher-led, whole class discussion (Trygstad, 2013). However, children tend to use deeper-level participation strategies and exercise greater self-regulation skills in student-centered activities compared to teacher-led instruction (Neitzel & Connor, 2014). In a study of ethnicallydiverse early childhood classrooms, children who are taught by teachers who use developmentally appropriate instructional practices (e.g., providing ample opportunities for student engagement, creativity, and hands-on problem solving) were more likely to be on-task, answering questions, and freely exploring (Alford et al, 2016).…”

School principal's self-regulated learning: a conceptual framework of learning-centered leadership

“…The factors affecting teachers' and students' SRL have been explored in the literature. First, the classroom's social features have a direct impact on SRL (Järvelä and Jarvenoja, 2011; Neitzel and Connor, 2017). In a classroom environment that emphasizes collaboration, motivation for successful task completion requiring the students to consider group goals, understanding, and standards (Järvelä and Jarvenoja, 2011).…”

“…In a classroom environment that emphasizes collaboration, motivation for successful task completion requiring the students to consider group goals, understanding, and standards (Järvelä and Jarvenoja, 2011). Furthermore, some students may prefer social forms of regulated learning, such as comparing their work with that of their peers, seeking help or assistance from teachers or peers and asking questions (Neitzel and Connor, 2017). Despite personal preferences, the benefits and constraints of the classroom environment likely guide students' selection of SRL strategy.…”

“…Findings have revealed that teachers' instructional information and feedback content predict students' self-regulation learning behaviors in the classroom both directly and indirectly. However, features of the classroom environment and structure influence how students make use of the available information and mediate the effects of social interactions in the classroom (Neitzel and Connor, 2017). Consequently, we propose that school principals choose their learning strategy based on their unique organizational structure and environment.…”

Executive functions and science achievement during the five-to-seven-year shift.

“…Second, while we demonstrated that science achievement can predict later EF skills, we were not able to examine the classroom and instructional mechanisms that might underlie this effect. These mechanisms may be related to mode of instruction (e.g., child-centered vs. teacher-centered; Neitzel & Connor, 2017), instructional time devoted to science (Curran & Kitchin, 2019), as well as the structural organization of classrooms unrelated to content instruction (Morrison et al, 2019). Decisions about how instructional time is allocated across different learning domains can also influence achievement.…”