Investigating predictors of fidelity of implementation for a preschool vocabulary and language curriculum

ABSTRACT

This study describes initial development, feasibility, and fidelity of implementation of a vocabulary and language curriculum supplement that combined explicit instruction and educational television programming to enhance children’s vocabulary acquisition. Efficacy of an intervention relies in part on its fidelity of implementation, but little is known regarding predictors of fidelity itself; therefore, the current study evaluated quality of implementation and its association with teacher characteristics. The implementation of teachers in 39 preschool classrooms was observed for teachers’ adherence, and the quality of lesson enactment during 16 weeks of daily lessons. Teachers’ preparedness and classroom management significantly predicted teachers’ observed and rated implementation quality. Whereas teacher education was not a significant predictor of either metric of implementation quality, teachers’ receptivity, and consistency in implementation predicted their rated and observed implementation quality, respectively. Results demonstrate that teachers from diverse educational backgrounds and settings can successfully implement high-quality language-focused instruction.

KEYWORDS:

• Language
• vocabulary
• preschool
• fidelity
• professional development

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on Contributors

Beth M. Phillips, Ph.D. is Associate Professor of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems and Faculty Associate, Florida Center for Reading Research at Florida State University. Her research interests include early language and literacy development, efficacy and development of curricula and interventions to support early learning, professional development, and parent-child language and literacy-focused interactions.

Smriti J. Ingrole is a doctoral candidate in the Learning and Cognition Program in the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems at Florida State University. Her research interests include parent-child language interactions, particularly among fathers of preschool children and in families from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Pamela W. Burris is a doctoral candidate in the Learning and Cognition Program in the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems at Florida State University. Her research interests include parent-child home literacy and language interactions, and parent training to support efficacious home environments, particularly among families from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Galiya Tabulda is a doctoral candidate in the Learning and Cognition Program in the Department of Educational Psychology and Learning Systems at Florida State University. Her research interests include parent-child language interactions and their concurrent and longitudinal links to children’s language and early literacy skill development.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Institute of Education Sciences under grant R305A080476 to the first author. The views expressed herein are those of the authors.