About this srcd poster session

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Panel information
Panel 18. School Readiness/Childcare

Abstract

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Research has demonstrated that young children’s early academic and self-regulatory skills in preschool can have implications for transition into formal schooling, academic achievement, and life skills (Duncan et al., 2009; La Paro & Pianta, 2000; Pan et al., 2019). However, early adversity can negatively influence children’s development in these domains (e.g., Cooper et al., 2014; Crossley & Buckner, 2012; Romano et al., 2015). Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are conventionally defined as traumatic events in the home, such as maltreatment or abuse (Felitti et al., 1998). Recent research has argued for an expansion of this definition to include adverse experiences that a child may encounter outside of the home, such as discrimination or neighborhood violence, that can also influence developmental trajectories (Cronholm et al., 2015; Sacks & Murphey, 2018). While ACEs are associated with negative health outcomes in adulthood (e.g., Felitti et al., 1998; Swedo et al., 2023) and absenteeism, grade retention, and behavior in school-aged children (Bethell et al., 2014; Crouch et al., 2019; Jimenez et al., 2016), few studies have focused on the effects of adverse childhood experiences in early childhood (Jackson et al., 2021; Jiminez et al., 2016; Lipscomb et al., 2021; Zeng et al., 2019 for exceptions). Further, these studies do not account for cross-system level factors that might serve as promotive and protective factors against experiences of ACEs, such as the partnership between teachers and families (Masten, 2018; Ungar, 2019). Using tenets of family resilience theory (Masten, 2018), this poster will examine whether the relationship between teachers and families, which can help foster resilience of a family system (Ungar, 2016; Walsh, 2021), serves as a protective factor for preschool children’s development of literacy, math, and self-regulation when they have experienced a high number of ACEs. This study will use secondary data from a study that evaluated a trauma-informed professional development program for early childhood education teachers. The sample includes cross-sectional data from 92 children aged 2-5, their families, and their teachers collected prior to the intervention. Measurements include parent-report of the number of ACEs their child has experienced (encompassing conventional ACEs and extended ACEs; Bucci et al., 2015), parent perceptions of family-teacher relationship quality (Family-Provider/Teacher Relationship Quality—Parent Measure (Short Form; Kim et al., 2015)), and direct assessment of children’s emergent math, literacy (Tests of Achievement; Woodcock et al., 2001) and self-regulatory skills (HTKS-R; McClelland et al., 2014). Following descriptive analysis and an assessment of the direct relation between ACEs and early learning skills, moderation analysis using multiple regression will determine if there is an interaction effect of ACEs and the family-teacher relationship on these developmental outcomes. Results will highlight system-level protective factors for preschool children who have experienced ACEs.

Author information

Author	Role
Rebekah Benkart, Oregon State University	Presenting author
Bridget Hatfield, Oregon State University	Non-presenting author
Shannon Lipscomb, Oregon State University	Non-presenting author
Shauna Tominey, Oregon State University	Non-presenting author
Karen Thompson, Oregon State University	Non-presenting author

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