A Welcome to Joan Eschenbach Ohl

Joan Eschenbach Ohl is the newly appointed Commissioner of the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF) in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF). She brings to her office over three decades of leadership experience in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Throughout her career, Commissioner Ohl has “focused extensively on improving the lives of children and youth—be it their health, their education or human services needs,” as stated in her testimony before the Senate’s Committee on Finance in November 2001.

Prior to joining ACYF, Commissioner Ohl spent four years as West Virginia’s Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR). As chief administrator, she emphasized effective and efficient programs, fiscal accountability and personnel development. She successfully implemented the state’s welfare reform program and numerous child care quality improvement measures. Under her leadership, West Virginia was recognized in 1999 and 2000 as having the highest percentage of utilization of subsidized child care of any State. As Secretary of DHHR, she established the Public Health Transition Program to refocus on the provision of basic public health services in West Virginia. When she left West Virginia State government, virtually all eligible programs were receiving enhanced funding or high performance bonus funding.

In her Senate testimony, Commissioner Ohl expressed her commitment to the goals of ACF and ACYF: “I will continue to work to assure that the various levels of Federal, State and local government work together to ensure that a strong community-based infrastructure delivery system is established, maintained and accountable for its outcome. We must continue to focus on prevention and early intervention programs and services.”

Commissioner Ohl has a vision for Head Start: “We need to assure the comprehensive nature of the Head Start program with special emphasis given to ensure that children receive the EPSDT screen and all subsequent follow up services both for their physical and behavioral health needs.” She called for special emphasis on literacy programs to prepare children for school and for coordination of efforts with the Department of Education. She also plans to work with regional offices and grantees to address under-enrollment issues and do outreach to special populations.

Additionally, Commissioner Ohl wants to give special attention to the needs of our nation’s youth. She called for “positive youth development programs” and will work extensively with Assistant Secretary Horn on a special initiative to address teenage issues.

As a long time resident of West Virginia, Commissioner Ohl is especially aware of the barriers which must be overcome for effective program and service delivery in rural states. “I will work on initiatives which help to strengthen programs and services for rural children and families, as well as strengthen rural communities.”

Commissioner Ohl’s achievements have not gone unnoticed. Governor Underwood honored her with the Distinguished West Virginian Award. The West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence commended her leadership efforts in helping to end domestic and family violence. For her dedication to cultivating and building health care systems in the State, the West Virginia Rural Health Association presented her with its inaugural Joan E. Ohl Rural Health Leadership Award.

Commissioner Ohl was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and raised in Lewes, Delaware. She received an undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware, a Master of Education degree from the State University of Buffalo, New York and continued her studies at Pennsylvania State University. Married to Dr. Ronald E. Ohl, former president of Salem International University, she resides in Martinsburg, West Virginia.

The Significance of Play

It is essential that early childhood educators learn about new ways to facilitate successful play experiences in their classrooms and partner with Head Start families to promote children’s social competency.
by Christy McWayne, John Fantuzzo, and Virginia Hampton

The National Education Goals state that all children should have access to developmentally appropriate preschool programs that help prepare them for school (Kagan, Moore, & Bredekamp 1995). Effective preschool programming is designed to protect children against environmental risks and to support children’s mastery of developmentally relevant competencies (U.S Department of Health and Human Services [DHHS] 1996). Preschoolers’ development in the areas of communicative, cognitive, physical and motoric, and social-emotional functioning has been linked to later school success (Ladd & Price 1987; Prince 1992).

By focusing intervention across these key areas of children’s early development, Head Start is pivotal in helping young children prepare for school. The dual importance of promoting children’s competency through classroom curriculum design and working in partnership with families to ensure children’s success is emphasized in the revised Head Start Program Performance Standards (DHHS 1997). From its formation, Head Start has targeted children’s social competence as a primary goal of intervention (Raver & Zigler 1997).

This article will address a specific aspect of social competence—peer play. First, we provide an overview of the theoretical and research literature related to the significance of peer play in promoting successful development. Second, we discuss how quality assessment, intervention, and parent involvement can be used to promote prosocial play behaviors in Head Start children.

The Importance of Social Competence

Social competence is defined as the capacities children possess for developing positive relationships with adults and other children (Hart et al. 1997). It is well accepted that children’s development in all areas of functioning is influenced by their ability to establish and maintain positive, consistent, and primary relationships with adults and peers (Sroufe et al. 1992). Evidence of the significance of social competence for preschool children has been demonstrated by its ability to predict later competence in other domains and school adjustment (DeRosier, Kupersmidt, & Patterson 1994; Ladd, Birch, & Buhs 1999).

Early childhood educators and researchers realize that social competence is a complex, multifaceted area of development (Raver & Zigler 1997). It includes regulating one’s emotions, communicating effectively, taking the perspective of others, problem-solving and conflict resolution, and, of course, developing positive peer relationships. For preschoolers, the ability to establish and maintain effective peer relationships requires the coordination of multiple skills across developmental domains. This emerging competence is a primary indicator of school readiness.

The degree to which children master the developmental task of getting along with peers helps to determine successful negotiation of challenges in later developmental stages. Longitudinal research has indeed linked poor peer relations in the early childhood years with detrimental consequences during later developmental periods (Denham & Holt 1993; DeRosier, Kupersmidt, & Patterson 1994). Preschoolers with difficult peer relationships are at greater risk for numerous academic and behavioral problems, such as poor academic achievement, retention, truancy, and emotional maladjustment (Parker & Asher 1987; Hartup & Moore 1990; Kupersmidt, Coie, & Dodge 1990; Ladd & Coleman 1997). Conversely, preschoolers with positive peer relations have a greater likelihood of experiencing positive adjustment in kindergarten as well as positive academic outcomes in elementary school and high school (Ladd & Price 1987; Ladd, Kochenderfer, & Coleman 1996; Hampton 1999).

Play as a Dynamic Developmental Context

Play is a primary context for preschoolers to acquire and express peer social competencies (Gallagher 1993). According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), &quotPlay is an important vehicle for children's social, emotional, and cognitive development, as well as [emphasis added] a reflection of their development" (Bredekamp & Copple 1997). In other words, children not only develop skills necessary for school success during peer play, but play is a mirror for children's current developmental capacities.

The child development theories of Piaget and Vygotsky provide a conceptual framework for understanding the contribution of play to development. According to Piaget (1962), children gain knowledge about the world through play and incorporate that information into existing cognitive structures (Creasey, Jarvis, & Berk 1998). Piaget proposed that children progress from &quotpractice play" (which consists of individual sensorimotor activities) to &quotsymbolic play" (in which children acquire the use of symbols and experience make-believe) and finally, to &quotplay with rules" (during which they learn to regulate social interactions) (Nicolopoulou 1993). As children engage in these increasingly complex activities, they adjust their existing ways of viewing the world. Piaget also believed that peer interactions during play provide children with opportunities to develop higher-level cognitive skills. They develop perspective-taking abilities when they argue or express different viewpoints. For Piaget, cognitive development occurs not through the medium of play itself but through the enhancement of specific skills during peer interactions in play (Creasey, Jarvis, & Berk 1998). The Piagetian perspective has been influencial for several decades.

However, Piaget's theory has been criticized for not giving adequate attention to social and cultural issues in development (Corsaro & Schwarz 1991). Vygosky's theory of development (1978) has received increasing support because of its emphasis on the social and cultural aspects of play. Vygotsky proposed that children's competencies are affected by the cultural practices and beliefs conveyed through social interactions and communication (Rogoff 1993). Through interactions with more knowledgeable adults and peers, children learn about cultural norms. When engaging in pretend play, children must work together to develop rules to govern the activity in these imaginary situations (Goncu 1993). In Vygotsky's theory, pretend play provides children with the opportunities to learn implicit rules of social behavior, according to their cultural group's norms. He also spoke about the "zone of proximal development," which referred to both children's individual abilities to accomplish and create as well as their capabilities to grow and extend when confronted with the ideas of older and wiser peers. Therefore, he considered play the &quotsource of development” during early childhood (rather than just a conduit of development), because it enables children to internalize social rules, acquire cognitive processes, and advance their competencies.

Developmental Contributions of Peer Processes

Adding to these earlier theories, developmental and educational psychologists have now proposed specific ways socialization experiences with peers influence student’s academic engagement (Birch & Ladd 1996; Wentzel 1999). With the recent emphasis on school readiness for Head Start children, these models are particularly relevant. One of these models posits that peer relationships affect school accomplishment through motivational processes (Wentzel 1999), indicating that peer relationships may establish and define the significance of learning and academic achievement and provide the motivation for children to succeed in school. Specifically, positive interactions with peers help children develop the motivation to engage in prosocial behaviors, such as being cooperative and willing to ask for help, that lead to academic success (Wentzel 1999). For example, as young children develop their attitudes toward school, the quality of their relationships with peers can affect whether they like or dislike school. Acceptance from peers helps children want to be involved in classroom activities, whereas peer conflict and rejection can suppress children’s motivation (Birch & Ladd 1996). Children who experience rejection by peers have lower levels of interest in school and are more likely to drop out of school, which suggests that negative peer relationships contribute to decreased motivation to succeed in school (Wentzel & Asher 1995; Hymal et al. 1996). Because these influences are proposed to occur as early as the preschool years (children’s first experience with school and a structured learning environment), children’s primary peer context—free play—becomes ever more important as an opportunity for learning and development.

In addition, important associations exist between interactive peer-play behavior and the emergence of other competencies indicative of school readiness, such as early literacy skills, approaches to learning, and self regulation (Fisher 1992; Shonkoff & Phillips 2000; Fantuzzo & McWayne 2002). School readiness skills such as literacy are reflected and enhanced in play activities such as story-telling (Pellegrini & Galda 1993). The complex skills necessary to establish and sustain effective play interactions with peers also require children to exercise self-control. For example, preschoolers who have difficulty controlling their emotions during play (e.g., crying, having a tantrum, or becoming angry) have a more difficult time making and keeping friends. Other behaviors significant to the learning process, such as cooperation, attention, and persistence, are also learned during play interactions among peers (Bredekamp & Copple 1997; Creasey, Jarvis, & Berk 1998).

Not only does effective peer interaction enhance development across domains of functioning, but the emergence of cognitive, linguistic, and socioemotional competencies contributes to successful peer interactions. With increasingly advanced cognitive skills, children develop perspective-taking abilities helpful for engaging in collaborative activity, solving interpersonal problems, and developing empathy (Frost 1992; Goncu 1993). Advances in linguistic skills enable children to improve their communication with peers and make their own point of view known. To establish effective play with peers, children need a repertoire of social skills—they must recruit playmates, enter the peer group, gauge other children’s responses, and negotiate play activities (Creasey, Jarvis, & Berk 1998). Positive peer relationships are also enhanced by children’s ability to regulate their emotions so they can maintain cooperation during interpersonal conflicts.

Implications for Early Childhood Practice

Thus, theory and research tell us that peer play is a significant context for children’s early development. However, this knowledge must be translated into educational practice to be meaningful for early childhood teachers and the families of Head Start children. In this next section, we discuss three areas of the Head Start Program Performance Standards relevant to children’s play interactions: 1) partnerships between Head Start staff and families; 2) classroom curriculum design; and 3) assessment and intervention.

Communication and partnership between staff and families. Early childhood educational programs for children from high-risk environments recognize the critical role of the family in laying the foundation for success in school (Garcia Coll, Meyer & Brillon 1995; Slaughter-DeFoe & Brown 1998). There have been increasing mandates to involve parents in the specific early childhood learning experiences of their children, causing a reconfiguration of parents’ roles within early childhood programs (Cochran 1993; Powell 1998). Head Start has, from its inception, been a two-generational program and now requires parental involvement in all aspects of the program’s implementation (i.e., program planning, curriculum development, and daily classroom activities) (DHHS 1997). Therefore, Head Start teachers are not only required to share their observations of children’s development with parents but are also expected to obtain information relevant to children’s classroom functioning from parents. This information exchange can occur in various ways—while parents serve as volunteers in the classroom, during parent-teacher conferences, or during home visits.

The Head Start Program Performance Standards specifically require that teachers and staff provide opportunities for parents to increase their child observation skills so that they may contribute information as equal partners in their children’s educational process (DHHS 1997; Slaughter-DeFoe & Brown 1998). Volunteering in the Head Start classroom offers a perfect opportunity for parents to observe their children in free play activities. Indeed, a recent study conducted with Head Start children and families suggests that as parents increase their understanding and ability to facilitate peer play, children’s academic success actually increases (Lamb Parker et al. 1999).

An essential aspect of information exchange is the development of a common language. The ability to communicate with the same words that have shared meaning helps parents and teachers understand the child’s functioning and be partners in the child’s learning (Fantuzzo & Hampton 2000). A common language also facilitates opportunities for teachers to learn more about children’s culture. Discussions about children’s play experiences at home and in the neighborhood allow teachers to learn about cultural customs and how they are manifested in children’s play. This information can include the specific games and activities that children engage in, who teaches the children to play games, and the meaning of these games and activities within their cultural context (Mize & Abell 1996; Fantuzzo & Hampton 2000). Recognition of the cultural aspects of children’s play has the potential to strengthen the partnership between teachers and families (because teachers are explicitly valuing important aspects of culture) and to communicate to families the importance of bringing cultural traditions into school and celebrating them. Knowledge about children’s play at home can help teachers plan curricula and interventions that best meet children’s needs (Fantuzzo & Hampton 2000).

Indeed, gathering and sharing information serves as the basis for developing useful interventions to develop children’s social competency in both home and school settings (Fantuzzo, Mendez, & Tighe 1998; Powell 1998). Play provides a perfect context for helping adults get more involved in children’s developmental progress. During play, teachers and parents can observe children’s emergent competencies as well as identify areas needing extra assistance. For example, if parents and teachers observe that a child acts differently around peers in the home and in the classroom, they can discuss these differences and how to promote competencies in both settings. Children’s play, therefore, gives adults insights into children’s development and opportunities to support the development of new strategies for social interaction (NAEYC 1996).

Informing the curriculum. The development of an age-appropriate curriculum involves recognizing realistic and attainable goals for children to provide optimum learning experiences (NAEYC & NAECS/SDE 1991). Because developmental domains are interrelated, educators should use these interrelationships to organize children’s learning experiences in ways to promote optimal development within a domain and across them. Furthermore, recognition of the connections across developmental domains is useful for curriculum planning appropriate to the wide age range in many preschool classrooms (NAEYC 1996).

Based on findings from research, the early childhood curriculum should promote play to enhance social development and to facilitate learning in other domains (NAEYC & NAECS/SDE 1991; DHHS 1997). Decisions about the best ways to facilitate these multiple competencies should be made at the classroom level, based on children’s individual needs (Bredekamp & Rosegrant 1992). Teachers can help children enhance their cross-domain competencies by providing thematic organization for play; offering appropriate props, space, and time; and extending and elaborating on children’s ideas (Levy, Wolfgang, & Koorland 1992). Therefore, child-initiated, teacher-supported play is an essential component of developmentally appropriate practice.

Screening, assessment, and intervention. Members of the National Education Goals Panel emphasized that data collection plans should include input from families, teachers, and the children themselves (Kagan, Moore, & Bredekamp 1995). Head Start mandates procedures for screenings and assessments of children’s social functioning to identify strengths and needs. In fact, the Head Start Performance Standards call for screenings of children’s social skills within 45 days of the time when they enter the program (DHHS 1997). The Standards also indicate that the screening should occur in collaboration with families to obtain multiple perspectives on children’s behavior and development. Ongoing assessments of children’s progress are needed to identify any areas of need that may arise. Therefore, both parents and staff should contribute information to the assessments based on their observations of children’s functioning over time. Similarly, the NAEYC and NAECS/SDE (1991) position statement indicates that assessments should include observations by parents and teachers in naturally occurring contexts. Clearly, play is a primary context where useful observations can be made.

To meet these guidelines and standards, early childhood programs need culturally sensitive and scientifically sound assessment instruments that identify children’s strengths and needs in natural contexts. Some rating scales and observational methods meet these rigorous assessment criteria and are useful in identifying children experiencing difficulty during peer play. Furthermore, when parents and teachers use valid and reliable instruments, a common language is created, and the information exchange between home and school is stimulated.

Information from these instruments can also provide a way to guide interventions and to evaluate treatment outcomes. As Head Start strives to enhance children’s social competencies, interventions must be developed for children with peer difficulties. The development of these interventions must be guided by scientifically valid methods of identifying those children.

The development of an assessment tool followed by an intervention to help children experiencing difficulties in peer play was undertaken jointly by Head Start staff, parents, and university researchers (Fantuzzo, Coolahan, & Weiss 1997). First, observations of children’s free play were videotaped and coded by both research assistants and Head Start parents to ensure cultural sensitivity. Next, salient peer play behaviors from the videotapes were transformed into individual questions (or items) to form a rating instrument. This instrument was developed in collaboration with teachers and parents to describe a range of peer play interactions. Items were designed to differentiate children who demonstrated positive peer relationships from those who were less successful with peers.

Three types of play interactions were observed and formed the basis of the rating scale:

• interactive peer play behaviors include creative, cooperative, and helpful behaviors that facilitate successful peer play interactions (e.g., sharing toys, helping to settle peer conflicts, disagreeing without fighting);
• disruptive peer play behaviors include aggressive and antisocial play behaviors (e.g., grabbing toys, having a tantrum, and starting fights or arguments with other children during play);
• disconnected peer play behaviors include hovering outside of a play group, needing help from the teacher to join play, and rejecting the invitations of other children. These children were typically more withdrawn and avoidant, and their behaviors often impeded active participation in play.

Both a teacher version and a parent version of the rating scale were constructed and tested to make certain they held up to rigorous scientific standards. It was expected that information from home and school would be shared.

The rating scales were then used in a peer play intervention. The intervention consisted of three tasks: (1) selecting resilient peers, called Play Buddies, and the children with poor peer play skills, called Play Partners; (2) establishing collaborations with teachers to set up Play Corners for play interactions between the Play Buddy and Play Partner; and (3) identifying and training parent volunteers, called Play Supporters, to support the positive play interaction of the children in the Play Corner. The rating scales assisted with the identification of Play Buddies with high interactive peer play skills and Play Partners with highly disruptive and/or disconnected peer play behaviors. Observations were made of their play interactions. Indeed, with the help of their more resilient peers, the lower functioning Play Partners learned to engage in interactive and successful peer play (for a more detailed description of the intervention and the evaluation, see Fantuzzo, Coolahan, & Weiss 1997).

Given the salience of the developmental challenge of prosocial play for preschool-aged children, it is essential that early childhood educators learn about new ways to facilitate successful play experiences in their classrooms. Head Start children would benefit immensely from the integration of peer play interventions into their daily experiences. In addition, the importance of early peer play to later school success highlights the need to partner with Head Start families in order to maximize children’s development and learning at home and school (NRC & Institute of Medicine 2000).

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Christy McWayne is a doctoral candidate in the Psychology in Education Division in the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. T: 215-898-9842; E: cmcwayne@dolphin.upenn.edu. John Fantuzzo is Diana Riklis Professor in the Graduate School of Education at the Unviersity of Pennsylvania. T: 215-898-4790; E: johnf@gse.upenn.edu. Virginia Hampton is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. T: 215-898-5005; E: ghampton@gse.upenn.edu.