The Contribution of Different Aspects of SelfRegulation to School Readiness

1
The Contribution of Different Aspects of
Self-Regulation to School Readiness

• Ulrich Mueller, University of Victoria
• Jeremy Carpendale, SFU
• Michael Miller, University of Victoria
• Gerald Giesbrecht, University of Victoria

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Self-Regulation School Readiness

• Self-regulatory skills as key predictor of school
  readiness and school achievement (e.g., Blair,
  2002 Bodrova Leung, 2006)
• Bodrova and Leung (2006, p. 205) distinguish
  between two aspects of self-regulation that
  affect school functioning
• 1. Social-emotional self-regulation
• 2. Cognitive self-regulation

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Self-Regulation

• Social-emotional self-regulation Social
  understanding (Theory of Mind) and emotion
  regulation
• Cognitive self-regulation Executive function
  (higher order cognitive processes used to control
  consciousness and behaviour)

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Empirical Research

• Socially skilled behavior (e.g., Normandeau
  Guay, 1998), theory of mind competence (Astington
  Pelletier, 2005), and emotion regulation (e.g.
  Gumora Arsenio, 2002) have been linked to
  school readiness and achievement.
• Different aspects of executive function have been
  linked to school readiness skills
• - Working memory (e.g., Alloway et al., 2005)
• - Inhibition (e.g., NICHD, 2003)
• - Flexibility (George Greenfield, 2005)

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Goal of Present Study

• Determine predictors of childrens school
  readiness
• Examine the relations between different aspects
  of self-regulation and different domains of
  school readiness

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Participants Procedures

• 100 3- to 6 year old children
• Computerized tasks of executive function
  (inhibition, working memory, flexibility)
• Behavioural tasks Emotion regulation, Theory of
  Mind
• Interviews Emotion Regulation (Coping)
• Standardized tests Language, School readiness
• Parent questionnaires Temperament, Emotion
  Regulation)
• Day-care teacher questionnaire Emotion
  Regulation

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Conclusion

• Findings will provide information about how
  different aspects of self-regulation contribute
  to different domains of school readiness
• Study bridges the gap between basic developmental
  (neuro-) science and educational psychology.
• Implications for compensatory education