Promoting Math in Young Children: Leveraging pediatric clinics to reach underrepresented children in rural communities

作为加强非正式环境中学习的整体战略的一部分，推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划为各种环境中使用的创新资源提供资金。在农村地区，非正式的STEM学习机会往往很少，那里的幼儿教育系统也资源不足。通过与教育研究人员、早期数学教育工作者、儿科健康专家和儿科诊所的合作，该项目将开发和研究非正式数学学习的新机会。该项目将与儿科诊所合作，为种族，文化和语言多样化的农村移民家庭提供服务。该项目利用了许多照顾者对他们孩子的儿科医生的高度信任，以改善关键的早期数学学习。该项目将建立在以前的一个项目的基础上，医生向照顾者发送短信，支持青年扫盲发展。在这种情况下，该项目将支持照顾者与3岁和4岁的孩子进行数学互动，以培养孩子的数学知识和技能。短信项目将以儿童发展、数学学习、育儿实践和成人行为改变的研究为基础。文本还将为照顾者提供如何在日常生活中让孩子参与数学活动的支持，并提供有关儿童正在发展的重要技能的信息。文本消息将与护理人员的输入共同开发，并侧重于数学发展的基础内容，如数感、分类和模式、测量、几何和推理。护理人员将在八个月内每周收到三次来自儿科诊所的短信。例如，三个支持数字感的相关文本包括："事实：孩子们喜欢数数，这为他们准备了K!用餐时间是练习数东西的有趣时间;""小贴士：吃饭时，说：你能数清桌子上所有的杯子吗？所有的盘子？你还能算什么？（叉子）告诉他们：干得好!"和"成长：你正在帮助孩子们为K做准备。&在公园里，问：有多少辆自行车？有多少只鸟？一起数数看!”&在整个项目的规划和实施阶段，该团队将与早期教育数学专家、主要顾问和护理人员密切合作，以确保短信计划能够满足农村护理人员和儿童的文化、语言和背景需求。该项目将研究短信计划对儿童、护理人员和临床工作人员的影响。首先，该项目将通过随机试验调查短信计划对儿童的影响，以及对儿童早期数学技能和能力的前后测量。其次，在基线和9个月的随访中，该项目将研究短信计划对照顾者关于幼儿数学学习重要性的看法的影响。第三，该项目将通过收集定性数据和评估对诊所在支持早期数学方面的作用的态度，探索短信程序对卫生专业人员理解幼儿数学学习的影响。护理人员和诊所工作人员也将参加焦点小组，以更好地了解这些群体的影响。该项目将覆盖1000个家庭，这些家庭将通过区组随机化被随机分配到治疗组或对照组，并按照顾者的语言和儿童年龄分层。这个家长知情的项目将为在儿科诊所推广早期数学的新方法提供证据，这是一个非正式的环境，可以接触到所有家庭，并可以利用创新技术。研究结果将通过一个包括儿童、护理人员、医生和诊所工作人员、非正式STEM教育工作者、研究人员和政策制定者的沟通和参与计划广泛分享。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

As part of its overall strategy to enhance learning in informal environments, the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program funds innovative resources for use in a variety of settings. Informal STEM learning opportunities are often rare in rural locations where the early childhood education system is also under-resourced. Through partnerships with educational researchers, early math educators, pediatric health experts, and pediatric clinics, this project will develop and study a new opportunity for informal math learning. The project will work with pediatric clinics that serve rural immigrant families who are racially, culturally, and linguistically diverse. The project leverages the high levels of trust many caregivers have in their child’s pediatrician to improve math learning during critical early years. This project will build on a previous program where physician text messages to caregivers supported youth literacy development. In this instance the project will support caregivers’ math interactions with their 3- and 4-year-olds to cultivate children's math knowledge and skills. The text messaging program will be grounded in research in child development, mathematics learning, parenting practices, and adult behavior change. Texts will also provide caregiver supports for how to engage their children in mathematical activates in their everyday lives and provide information about the important skills children are developing. Text messages will be co-developed with caregiver input, and focus on content underlying mathematical development such as Number Sense, Classification and Patterning, Measurement, Geometry, and Reasoning. Caregivers will receive text messages from their pediatric clinics three times a week for eight months. For example, three related texts supporting Number Sense include: “FACT: Kids enjoy counting and it prepares them for K! Mealtimes are a fun time to practice counting objects;” “TIP: At a meal, say: Can you count all the cups on the table? All the plates? What else can you count? (Forks) Tell them: Great job!” and “GROWTH: You are helping kids to count & get ready for K. At the park, ask: How many bikes are there? How many birds? Count together & find out!” Throughout the planning and implementation phases of the project the team will work closely with early education math experts, key advisors, and caregivers to ensure the text messaging program is tailored to meet the cultural, linguistic, and contextual needs of rural caregivers and children.The project will research impacts of the text messaging program on children, caregivers, and clinical staff. First, the project will investigate the impact of the texting program on children through a randomized trial, and pre-and-post measures of early childhood math skills and abilities. Second, using interviews at baseline and in a 9-month follow-up, the project will study the texting program’s impact on caregivers’ perceptions regarding the importance of math learning for young children. Third, the project will explore the impact of the text messaging program on health professionals’ understanding of math learning in early childhood by collecting qualitative data and assessing attitudes about the clinic’s role in supporting early math. Caregivers and clinic staff will also participate in focus groups to better understand impacts for each of these groups. The project will reach 1000 families, who will be randomly assigned to treatment or control groups through block-randomization, stratified by caregiver language and child’s age. This parent-informed project will build evidence toward new approaches to promoting early math in the pediatric clinic, an informal environment that can reach all families and can leverage innovative technology. Findings will be shared widely though a communication and engagement plan that includes children, caregivers, physicians and clinic staff, informal STEM educators, researchers, and policy makers.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.