Low-cost teacher implemented intervention improves toddler’s language and math skills

The authors of the article investigate how to increase the quality of kindergartens by means of a low-cost intervention (‘Play and Learn’) over the course of 20 weeks. The intervention helps kindergarten teachers to be more explicit and aware in their interactions with children. The research questions are:

1. To what extent will a cost-effective intervention improve children’s general language, mathematical language and mathematical skills?
2. To what extent will the ‘Play and Learn’ intervention be dependent on children’s and parents’ backgrounds, especially their linguistic background and socioeconomic status?
3. To what extent is the effect of the intervention affected by the quality of the kindergarten before the intervention?

The ‘Play and Learn’ intervention had a positive effect on general vocabulary and language use. The impact on mathematical language and mathematical skills was even more significant. However, the children who received the intervention did not show any improvement in empathic skills, self-regulation and collaborative skills compared to the control group. Ethnic Danish children responded positively to all aspects, while non-Western children’s mathematical language or numeracy was not affected by the intervention. There was no noticeable difference between Danish and non-Western children’s vocabulary or language skills after the intervention. Children whose mothers had low to a medium level of education showed marked improvement on three out of four dimensions. Children with highly educated mothers also showed improvement in language skills in addition to the other three dimensions. Nevertheless, the children with highly educated parents experienced better progression. This indicates that children from homes with a high level of education and socioeconomic status benefited the most from the intervention.

The study found no evidence that the quality of the kindergarten prior to the intervention influenced the effect of the intervention.

The data material was collected from 88 Danish kindergartens between 2015 and 2016. The groups consisted of between ten and sixteen children. All children were 18 months or older. The sample consisted of a total of 1508 children.

Bleses, D., Jensen, P., Slot, P. & Justice, L. (2020). «Low-cost teacher implemented intervention improves toddler’s language and math skills». Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 43:64-76.