Little is known about the curricular practices or thinking of early childhood teachers attempting to use developmentally appropriate practices in public school primary grades. The purpose of this study was to investigate four primary grade teachers' thoughts and classroom practices, through observation, interviews, and classroom schedules. Data were analyzed following the procedures for open, axial, and selective coding as explained by Strauss (1987). All four teachers exhibited common elements: educational beliefs consistent with those of the National Association for the Education of Young Children; frustration with their school's curriculum; and the combination of a rich pattern of guidance strategies in the use of whole group math and language instruction. The curricular practices are viewed as a compromise between the teachers' personal beliefs and the expectations of their schools. They reflect the historical difficulty of using a child-centered curriculum in a public school setting.
","abstract_html":"<p>Little is known about the curricular practices or thinking of early childhood teachers attempting to use developmentally appropriate practices in public school primary grades. The purpose of this study was to investigate four primary grade teachers' thoughts and classroom practices, through observation, interviews, and classroom schedules. Data were analyzed following the procedures for open, axial, and selective coding as explained by Strauss (1987). All four teachers exhibited common elements: educational beliefs consistent with those of the National Association for the Education of Young Children; frustration with their school's curriculum; and the combination of a rich pattern of guidance strategies in the use of whole group math and language instruction. The curricular practices are viewed as a compromise between the teachers' personal beliefs and the expectations of their schools. They reflect the historical difficulty of using a child-centered curriculum in a public school setting.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Brading, Elizabeth Ely"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MA (Master of Arts)","degree_level":"Thesis - unrestricted","degree_discipline":"Early Childhood Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2003,"date_issued":"2003-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2003-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:19:28Z","subjects":["public school","qualitative research","primary grades","developmentally appropriate practices","Curriculum and Instruction","Education"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/743","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Brading, Elizabeth Ely"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2003-05-01T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Early Childhood Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - unrestricted"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MA (Master of Arts)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["public school","qualitative research","primary grades","developmentally appropriate practices","Curriculum and Instruction","Education"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright by the authors."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/1900/viewcontent/BradingE040803f.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/743"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Little is known about the curricular practices or thinking of early childhood teachers attempting to use developmentally appropriate practices in public school primary grades. The purpose of this study was to investigate four primary grade teachers' thoughts and classroom practices, through observation, interviews, and classroom schedules. Data were analyzed following the procedures for open, axial, and selective coding as explained by Strauss (1987). All four teachers exhibited common elements: educational beliefs consistent with those of the National Association for the Education of Young Children; frustration with their school's curriculum; and the combination of a rich pattern of guidance strategies in the use of whole group math and language instruction. The curricular practices are viewed as a compromise between the teachers' personal beliefs and the expectations of their schools. They reflect the historical difficulty of using a child-centered curriculum in a public school setting.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Curricular Practices of Early Childhood Teachers Working in Public Sschool Primary Grades."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Brading, Elizabeth Ely"],"dc:date.available":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2003-05-01T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Little is known about the curricular practices or thinking of early childhood teachers attempting to use developmentally appropriate practices in public school primary grades. The purpose of this study was to investigate four primary grade teachers' thoughts and classroom practices, through observation, interviews, and classroom schedules. Data were analyzed following the procedures for open, axial, and selective coding as explained by Strauss (1987). All four teachers exhibited common elements: educational beliefs consistent with those of the National Association for the Education of Young Children; frustration with their school's curriculum; and the combination of a rich pattern of guidance strategies in the use of whole group math and language instruction. The curricular practices are viewed as a compromise between the teachers' personal beliefs and the expectations of their schools. They reflect the historical difficulty of using a child-centered curriculum in a public school setting.
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