Bringing Science Home with PEEP: Engaging Parents and Preschool Children in Science Exploration

成绩差距早在儿童进入幼儿园之前就开始了。研究表明，那些错过了关键的早期学习机会的儿童已经面临学业失败的风险。该项目旨在缩小这一差距，寻找新的途径，将早期科学经验带给学龄前儿童（3-5岁），特别是生活在资源匮乏社区的儿童。将媒体专家、学习研究人员和两个经过验证的家访组织聚集在一起，合作开发和研究一种新模式，通过联合媒体参与和家访计划让家庭参与科学探索。该项目将利用NSF资助的PEEP和Big Wide World/El Mundo Divertido de PEEP的受欢迎程度和成功，让家长和学龄前儿童参与科学。为了实现通过联合媒体参与和家访计划让家庭参与科学探索的关键目标，该小组将使用基于设计的实施研究（DBIR）方法，通过反复研究干预模型来解决研究问题（材料和实施过程）和评估干预模式对父母/照顾者的影响。干预模式将包括PEEP家庭参与工具包，该工具包将使用新的数字和动手科学学习资源支持20周的家庭科学调查。它还将包括为家庭教育工作者提供的新的专业发展资源，以及与家庭一起制定和实施工具包的实施过程和战略。拟议的研究重点首先是完善和改进方案的设计和实施，其次，调查是否干预提高了父母/照顾者的能力，以支持幼儿的学习科学。最终，本研究将实现两个重要目标：它将为PEEP家庭参与干预模式的设计提供信息，更广泛地说，它将建立对以下问题的实践和理论理解：1）科学学习中有效的家庭参与模式; 2）家庭和家庭教育工作者实施这些模式所需的支持类型;以及3）如何在不同的家访计划中实施这些模式。鉴于家访计划的覆盖范围和对支持早期科学学习的兴趣日益增加，广泛影响的潜力是显着的。该项目由推进非正式STEM学习（AISL）计划资助，该计划旨在推进非正式环境中STEM学习设计和开发的新方法和基于证据的理解。

The achievement gap begins well before children enter kindergarten. Research has shown that children who start school having missed critical early learning opportunities are already at risk for academic failure. This project seeks to narrow this gap by finding new avenues for bringing early science experiences to preschool children (ages 3-5), particularly those living in communities with few resources. Bringing together media specialists, learning researchers, and two proven home visiting organizations to collaboratively develop and investigate a new model that engages families in science exploration through joint media engagement and home visiting programs. The project will leverage the popularity and success of the NSF-funded PEEP and the Big Wide World/El Mundo Divertido de PEEP to engage both parents and preschool children with science.To address the key goal of engaging families in science exploration through joint media engagement and home visiting programs, the team will use a Design Based Implementation Research (DBIR) approach to address the research questions by iteratively studying the intervention model (the materials and implementation process) and assessing the impact of the intervention model on parents/caregivers. The intervention model will include the PEEP Family Engagement Toolkit that will support 20 weeks of family science investigations using new digital and hands-on science learning resources. It will also include new professional development resources for home educators as well as and the implementation process and strategies for developing and implementing the Toolkit with families. The proposed research focuses first on refining and improving program design and implementation, and second, on investigating whether the intervention improves the capacity of parent/caregivers to support young children's learning in science. Ultimately this research will accomplish two important aims: it will inform the design of the PEEP family engagement intervention model, and, more broadly, it will build practical and theoretical understanding of: 1) effective family engagement models in science learning; 2) the types of supports that families and home educators need to implement these models; and 3) how to implement these models across different home visiting programs. Given the reach of the home visiting programs and the increasing interest in supporting early science learning the potential for broad impact is significant. This project is funded by the Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) program, which seeks to advance new approaches to, and evidence-based understanding of, the design and development of STEM learning in informal environments.