ABSTRACT

Although early childhood teachers have a major role in caring for America’s young children (Early & Winton, 2001), and educational outcomes are positively related to the quality of programs (Cost, Quality and Outcomes Study Team, 1995; National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Early Child Care Research Network, 1996; Whitebook, Howes, & Phillips, 1990), studies have revealed the mediocre quality of many educational settings for young children (Cost, Quality, and Child Outcomes Study Team, 1995). This is due to structural variables, especially the teachers’ education and experience (Abbott-Shim, Lambert, & McCarty, 2000; Cryer, Teitze, Burchinal, Leal, & Palacios, 1999; Howes & Brown, 2000; Saluja, Early, & Clifford, 2002); caregiving behaviors; access to various types of activities; and interactions with children, other teachers, and other children (Bowman et al., 2000; Holloway, Kagan, Fuller, Tsou, & Carroll, 2001; Phillips, Mekos, Scarr, McCartney, & Abbott-Shim, 2000; Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000).