Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills

Abstract

Guided by an ecological model, we tested whether teacher–child interaction quality buffered the negative associations between challenging behavior within preschool classroom contexts and language and literacy skills. Associations were examined for a sample of children enrolled an urban Head Start program (N = 304 children across 53 classrooms). Findings from multilevel models supported direct associations between challenging behaviors within preschool learning contexts and language outcomes. Higher instructional support was associated with higher language and literacy outcomes for all children within classrooms regardless of behavioral risk. Higher classroom organization was directly associated with higher classroom literacy skills. Emotional support moderated associations between challenging behaviors in teacher contexts and literacy outcomes. Implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Keywords

challenging behaviors teacher–child interaction quality Head Start children

A high percentage of children exhibit challenging behavior within preschool classrooms, with this percentage estimated at 30% for children living in low-income households (Blair & Raver, 2012; Graziano et al., 2015; Shonkoff et al., 2012). Challenging behaviors, include both externalizing and internalizing behaviors and can interfere with engagement in learning opportunities, including both structured academic-focused activities and less-structured social interactions with peers and teachers (Vitiello et al., 2012; Williford et al., 2017). Positive engagement within the classroom is critical to support the development of kindergarten readiness skills, including language and literacy (Raver & Knitzer, 2002). If not addressed, challenging behaviors can portend a trajectory of poor adjustment as children transition into elementary school settings (Bierman et al., 2013; Bornstein et al., 2013).

Early childhood programs have the opportunity to address challenging behaviors, before kindergarten entry. To inform early intervention efforts, validated measures are needed that can be used within classroom settings to provide teachers practical information about the context in which challenging behaviors occur (Downer, Booren et al., 2010; National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC], 2009; Neisworth & Bagnato, 2004). Teacher rating scales are most often used in early childhood programs, and context-focused measures are being developed for teachers to use to assess children’s behavior as it emerges dynamically within the demands of classroom social or learning contexts.

A series of studies have validated a context-focused teacher-report measure of emotional and behavioral problems for use within Head Start programs (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008; McDermott et al., 2014). The Adjustment Scales for Preschool Intervention (ASPI; Lutz et al., 2002) asks teachers to observe and record challenging behaviors as they occur within three classroom contexts: structured learning, peer interactions, and teacher interactions. Behaviors observed by teachers include both overactive (externalizing behaviors such as aggressive, oppositional, or inattentive) and underactive (internalizing behaviors such as socially withdrawn or reticent). For example, for the problems in structured learning contexts subscale, teachers observe children’s behavior during teacher-directed activities, such as involvement in class activities, working with hands/art, paying attention in circle time, coping with learning tasks, and peer-mediated learning activities such as taking part in games with others, free play/individual choice time. Behaviors that teachers observe and endorse in these learning activities are summed to create a score for each child. For problems in teacher interactions, teachers observe and record children’s behavior in the context of talking to, greeting teachers, seeking teacher help, answering teacher questions, and helping teacher with jobs. Problems in peer interactions include situations such as getting along with peers, behaving with peers, standing in line, and handling conflicts with peers. Scores on these scales inform teachers about classroom situations that are most behaviorally challenging for children.

Early childhood research documents negative associations between challenging behaviors in these three classroom contexts and children’s language and literacy skills in local (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008; Bulotsky-Shearer & Fantuzzo, 2011) and national samples of Head Start children (McDermott et al., 2014). Specifically, children who display challenging behaviors within structured learning or in teacher contexts, perform lower in language and literacy skills in the short and long term. The associations suggest that children may have difficulty paying attention, regulating, or managing their behavior in these contexts; and that these behaviors may disrupt engagement in preschool learning contexts where educators intentionally teach and provide opportunities for children to practice language and literacy skills (NAEYC, 2009).

However, identifying where children display challenging behaviors that disrupt their learning is not sufficient. What teacher–child interactions are needed to support the language and literacy skills of children displaying challenging behaviors in these classroom contexts? Teachers who provide high levels of emotional support, organized, predictable classroom routines, and behavior support, as well as language-rich and cognitively stimulating interactions with children, support language, and literacy skill development for all children (Mashburn et al., 2008), but particularly for at risk children (Downer, Sabol et al., 2007; Hamre & Pianta, 2005). To date, however, few studies have examined the extent to which teacher–child interactions moderate associations between challenging behaviors and language and literacy skills.

Developmental and Contextual Assessment Framework

A developmental-ecological and contextual framework guides the assessment of children’s classroom behavior as it occurs dynamically within learning contexts, and social interactions with peers and teachers (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1998; Powell et al., 2008). In a contextual assessment approach, challenging behaviors are interpreted within the context where they occur. Teachers intentionally design the classroom environment to support children’s language and literacy skill development through engagement with learning tasks and social interactions (Vitiello et al., 2012). High-quality teacher–child interactions, such as those that are sensitive, supportive, engaging, and provide clear expectations for behavior, help children to manage their behavior and engage in learning. In this model, however, the extent to which children can take advantage of these learning opportunities may depend on the match between their social-emotional and behavioral skills, the demands of the classroom situation, and the quality of teacher–child interactions (Downer, Booren et al., 2010).

Preschool Challenging Behaviors and Language and Literacy Skills

Traditional rating scales measuring preschool externalizing and internalizing behaviors are found to be negatively associated with language (e.g., expressive and receptive language skills) and literacy skills (e.g., phonological awareness and letter knowledge) in low-income samples (Bichay-Awadalla et al., 2019; Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2011, 2012; Curby et al., 2015; McDermott et al., 2013; Reyes et al., 2020; Roy & Raver, 2014; Qi, van Horn, et al., 2019; Tan & Dobbs-Oates, 2013). Preschool challenging behaviors also are associated negatively with language and literacy in kindergarten (Hartman et al., 2017). Hypothesized mechanisms underlying these negative associations vary depending on the type of classroom behavior. For example, children displaying externalizing behavior often show concurrent self-regulatory or attentional difficulties, that disrupt their ability to pay attention in class, listen, and understand teacher talk or instruction, or form relationships with teachers and peers, thus disrupting opportunities to engage in positive exchanges that support language and literacy learning (Bornstein et al., 2013; Chow & Wehby, 2018; Graziano et al., 2015; Williford et al., 2017).

Context-Focused Measures of Classroom Behavior and Language and Literacy

Research with the ASPI, a context-focused teacher measure, has found differential associations between challenging behaviors in three classroom situations and children’s language and literacy outcomes. Children exhibiting challenging behaviors within the context of teacher interactions and structured learning situations in Head Start classrooms, concurrently and longitudinally score lower in language, literacy, and mathematics skills (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008, 2011; Bulotsky-Shearer & Fantuzzo, 2011; McDermott et al., 2014). In preschool, challenging behaviors in structured learning situations are negatively associated with direct assessments of reading ability (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2011) and teacher observations of language skills (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008). Challenging behaviors in structured learning situations are associated with lower language and reading achievement in kindergarten and first grade (Bulotsky-Shearer & Fantuzzo, 2011; McDermott et al., 2014).

Teacher–Child Interaction Quality and Preschool Language and Literacy Skills

The quality of preschool teacher–child interactions contributes to children’s language and literacy skills (Hamre, 2014; Hindman & Wasik, 2013; Mashburn, 2008; Mashburn & Pianta, 2006). Three validated domains observed within preschool classrooms include: Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support (La Paro et al., 2004). Emotional support is characterized by warm, sensitive, responsive, and individualized teacher–child interactions. Classroom organization assesses the degree to which teachers structure and manage classroom activities, routines, and materials to support children’s self-regulation, attention, and engagement in learning throughout the day. Instructional support measures teachers’ use of cognitively stimulating practices such as brainstorming, problem solving, higher-order reasoning, concept development, and use of more advanced language (La Paro et al., 2004).

Two domains of teacher–child interaction quality are theoretically closely related to children’s language and literacy development: instructional support and classroom organization. Instructional support assesses teacher–child interactions that promote problem solving, higher-order thinking, and use of complex language; and is associated with gains in language and literacy skills in preschool (e.g., M. Burchinal et al., 2008; Downer, Sabol et al., 2010; Mashburn et al., 2008). Classroom organization is associated with both academic and behavioral outcomes. Better organized, predictable, and well-run classrooms with clear behavior expectations are associated with gains in skills such as language and literacy in preschool (Maier et al., 2012) and in first grade (Ponitz et al., 2009). In addition, classroom organization is associated with higher levels of on-task and engaged behavior (Rimm-Kaufman et al., 2009) and growth in preschool learning-related behavior (Domínguez et al., 2010). Emotional support describes sensitive, responsive caregiving, positive climate, and nurturing relationships and is directly associated with social-emotional outcomes (Downer, Sabol et al., 2010; Mashburn et al., 2008; Qi, Zieher, et al., 2019).

Moderating Role of Teacher–Child Interaction Quality

All three domains of teacher–child interaction quality may support the language and literacy skills of children who enter classrooms displaying challenging behaviors. For example, preschool children with behavioral or temperamental risks who experienced high emotional support benefited more academically than children enrolled in classrooms with low emotional support (Curby et al., 2011; Hamre & Pianta, 2005; Rudasill et al., 2010). Hamre and Pianta (2005) in the National Institutes of Health and Child Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (NICHD SECCYD) found that emotional support buffered the negative association between indicators of risk for school failure, which included behavioral, attention, or academic problems, and reading and mathematics skills in kindergarten. Other studies from the NICHD SECCYD found that emotional support buffered the negative associations between difficult temperament (attention and activity level) in infancy and elementary school academic achievement (Curby et al., 2011; Rudasill et al., 2010). In a Head Start study, emotional support weakened the negative association between challenging behaviors and learning behaviors, such as initiative, competence motivation, and attention persistence (Domínguez et al., 2011).

Instructional support and classroom organization may play a moderating role as well. In elementary school studies, instructional support weakened the negative association between difficult temperament in infancy and academic skills in first grade (Curby et al., 2011), and behavioral risks and reading achievement in first grade (Hamre & Pianta, 2005). In preschool studies, behavior management, a dimension of classroom organization, moderated the relationship between task orientation and vocabulary gains. Children with higher task orientation in classrooms with higher levels of behavior management showed greater vocabulary gains when compared to children in classrooms with lower behavior management (Dobbs-Oates et al., 2011). In a second study, higher behavior management strengthened the positive relationship between expressive language and receptive language skills (Mashburn et al., 2008). Taken together, these findings suggest that all three domains of teacher–child interaction quality may play a moderating role in preschool classrooms, for children with challenging behaviors.

Study Purpose

To inform a contextual understanding of preschool classroom behavior, we examined whether observed teacher–child interaction quality moderated associations between challenging behaviors displayed within routine classroom contexts and language and literacy skills (measured by direct assessments of receptive vocabulary, phonemic awareness, and expressive literacy skills). We examined these associations in a diverse sample of children enrolled in a large, urban Head Start program. Based on prior research, we hypothesized that challenging behaviors in structured learning situations would be negatively associated with language and literacy skills, based on prior research. Second, we expected that the teacher–child interaction quality domains of instructional support and classroom organization would have direct effects on language and literacy skills. Third, we expected that emotional support and classroom organization would buffer the negative associations between challenging behaviors in classroom learning contexts and language and literacy skills.

Method

Participants

Participants included a sample of children enrolled in a large urban Head Start program in the Southeastern United States (N = 304 children) who were participating in a larger University-Head Start partnership project. The participants were selected to represent the children served by the larger program, proportional to the three different geographic regions (north, central, and south regions). The program served approximately 7,000 children at the time of this study. All children within the participating classrooms were consented and then children in this study were randomly selected from centers from this larger sample, stratified by age, sex, and ethnicity to represent the demographics of the larger program (across 53 classrooms and 8 centers). Teachers completed the Galileo on all children as per the Head Start Performance Standards, and the children’s data were requested from the program at the end of the year.

In the fall, children ranged in age from 35 to 66 months (M = 47.8, SD = 7.5 months) and sex was split evenly (49% male). The majority of the children were black non-Hispanic (45%) or Hispanic (44%), and 4% other (e.g., white non-Hispanic, Asian, or multiracial). Forty-one percent of the children in the sample spoke Spanish at home. All children were from families that met the federal poverty criteria for enrollment in the Head Start program. Administrative records and teacher reports identified approximately 7% of children with academic disability (developmental or speech delay) and 4% of children with behavioral disability.

Participating lead teachers were all female, with the majority (64%) identified as Hispanic or Latino, 28% African American, and 4% white or Other. In terms of educational level, 17% of teachers reported having a Master’s degree, 57% a Bachelor’s degree, and 23% an Associate’s Degree. Teachers reported working as a preschool teacher an average of 13 years (SD = 7.9, Range = 1–30 years).

Measures

Preschool challenging behaviors within classroom context

The ASPI (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008; Lutz et al., 2002) was completed by lead teachers to assess children’s behavior problems in the fall. The ASPI is a 144-item multidimensional instrument based on teacher observations of children’s classroom behavior across 22 routine preschool situations and two categories of nonsituationally specific behaviors (e.g., unusual habits or outbursts, Lutz et al., 2002). The items reflect both problematic as well as adaptive behavior within the context of interactions with the teacher (how the child greets teacher, accepts help from teacher, responds to teacher requests), relationships with peers (during games and play, standing in line) and during structured and unstructured classroom activities (working with hands, art, and circle time). Three situational (context) dimensions were developed and validated for use with Head Start children: Problems in Structured Learning, Peer Interactions, and Teacher Interactions (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008), each demonstrating adequate internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of .84, .81, and .75, respectively). Convergent and divergent validity has been established. Raw score totals for each scale based on the published structure and standardization sample were converted to T scores. In the current sample, 18%, 22%, and 16% of children scored at or above the 85th percentile rank, in Problems in Structured Learning, Peer Interactions, and Teacher Interactions, respectively.

Observed teacher–child interaction quality

The Classroom Assessment Scoring System—Pre-K (CLASS; Pianta et al., 2008) was used to assess three domains of the quality of the interactions between teachers and children: (a) Emotional Support, including the dimensions of Positive Climate, Negative Climate, Teacher Sensitivity, and Regard for Student Perspective; (b) Classroom Organization, including Behavior Management, Productivity, and Instructional Learning Formats; and (c) Instructional Support, consisting of Concept Development, Language Modeling, and Quality of Feedback (Cronbach’s alpha = .89, .77, .83, respectively, La Paro et al., 2004). For example, high-quality regard for students’ perspective includes a high level of flexibility, respect for student autonomy, and emphasis placed on students’ interests, motivations, and points of view rather than being very teacher driven. High levels of behavior management includes teachers’ use of effective, proactive methods to prevent and redirect misbehavior, present clear behavior expectations and maximize learning time. Dimensions were rated on a 7-point scale with low-quality interactions coded as 1 to 2, mid-level quality ranging from 3 to 5, and high quality ranging from 6 to 7. Observer ratings are guided by detailed examples of behaviors in the low, medium, and high ranges in the CLASS manual. The CLASS is reliable and valid for use in bilingual Spanish-speaking preschool classrooms (Downer et al., 2012).

A CLASS-certified trainer at the University conducted a 2-day intensive observation training. Observers watched and coded a set of five video clips published online by Teachstone and became certified observers by successfully achieving 80% reliability with the Master codes. In the middle of the school year (February) on a typical morning, trained, reliable observers completed four 20-minute cycles for each participating classroom, rating each of the 10 CLASS dimensions. Final scores for each dimension were obtained by averaging each score across each of the observation cycles. Domain scores were obtained by averaging the respective dimension scores. For this study, 20% of classrooms were double coded to minimize observer drift across the course of the observation period. Inter-rater agreement across all observations for this study was high: Eighty-eight percent for emotional support (Range = 63%–100%), 82% for classroom organization (Range = 58%–100%), and 80% for instructional support (Range = 33%–100%). In the case where inter-rater reliability was low, the gold standard rater’s scores were used.

Language and literacy skills

The Woodcock–Johnson III Tests of Achievement (Woodcock et al., 2001) or Batería III Woodcock–Muñoz (Batería III; Muñoz-Sandoval et al., 2005) were used to assess language and literacy skills at the end of the year. The WJ-III and Bateria-III are individually administered nationally normed assessments of academic achievement validated for ages 2 to 90 years. Parallel items in English and Spanish cover basic language and literacy skills. The Batería-III items were developed and Rasch-calibrated via Item Response Theory (IRT) with WJ-III items. Spanish items are scaled to be equivalent in difficulty to parallel English items (Schrank et al., 2005).

For this study, two subtests (Picture Vocabulary and Letter-Word Recognition) of the WJ-III or Bateria-III were chosen because of their established reliability and validity with preschool children. Picture Vocabulary assesses receptive language skills such as identifying words and concepts that are orally presented by the examiner. For this study, W scores were used based on the published manual scoring program. Letter-Word Recognition assesses children’s phonemic and expressive literacy skills such as recognition of icons, letters, and words. The subtests are widely used in national studies of Head Start children and have adequate reliabilities for preschool children (ranging from 82 to .98).

The Language and Literacy subscales of the Galileo System for Electronic Management of Learning Pre-K (Galileo; Bergan et al., 2003) were completed by teachers at the beginning of the year as part of the Head Start Performance Standards. Administrative records including these scores were shared with the research team for participating children. Galileo is an IRT-based teacher-report measure used by the Head Start program to assess developmental progress in the readiness domains established by the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2015). Galileo domains include Language and Literacy, Mathematics, Approaches to Learning, Social and Emotional Development, Nature and Science, Creative Arts, Motor Development, and Physical Health. The published manual reports high levels of internal consistency, ranging from .92 to .97.

English language screener

The PreLAS2000 (Duncan & De Avila, 1998) was used as a language screener to determine the language of administration for direct assessments of language and literacy skills. Children in the sample were individually administered the first two subtests: “Simon Says” and “Art Show” that assess receptive and expressive English language skills. The two subscales demonstrate high reliability, with Cronbach’s alphas of .88 for “Simon Says” and .90 for the “Art Show” (Duncan & De Avila, 1998). The two subscales consist of a total of 20 items, yielding a total observed score ranging from 0 to 20. Children who received a total score greater than or equal to 15 in English were directly assessed in English based on criteria used in national Head Start studies (e.g., Family and Child Experiences Survey; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2011; Head Start Impact Study, Puma et al., 2005; Vogel et al., 2008). Children who received a total score less than 15 in English and who had scores in Spanish that were greater than their English score were assessed in Spanish.

Procedure

This project was conducted under the auspices of a larger University-Head Start research partnership. Approval to conduct the study was obtained from the University’s Institutional Review Board, from the director of the program, and from the parent policy council. In the fall, members of the research team met with center directors, explained the study and obtained consent from teachers. Parental consent was then obtained for children with the assistance of teachers. In mid-October, lead teachers rated children’s classroom behavior (ASPI) and teachers completed assessments using the Galileo. In the winter, classrooms were observed by trained observers using the CLASS. In mid-April and May, based on the language routing procedure described above, children were individually assessed using the Woodcock–Johnson in English or the Woodcock–Muñoz in Spanish. In total, 251 children were tested in English and 53 in Spanish. If children did not pass the language screener in English or Spanish, the next randomly selected child in the classroom was assessed. Children were assessed by trained research assistants in a quiet space outside of the classroom and received a sticker for their participation.

Data Analytic Approach

Multilevel modeling using the software HLM Version 7 (Raudenbush et al., 2011) examined: (a) direct associations between ASPI situational behavior problem scales and language and literacy skills assessed in the spring; (b) direct associations between teacher–child interaction quality (CLASS) and language and literacy skills; and (c) the moderating role of teacher–child interaction quality in the associations between ASPI situational behavior scales and language and literacy skills. A series of two-level models were estimated separately for each language and literacy outcome (W-J/W-M Picture Vocabulary and Letter-Word Recognition), controlling for child covariates and Fall scores on the Galileo Language and Literacy subscales.

Multilevel models

Models were built in a series of steps. The first models were unconditional to determine the distribution of variance in language and literacy skills (picture vocabulary and letter-word recognition, respectively) attributable to Level 1 (variability due to differences between children within classroom) and Level 2 (variability due to differences between classrooms). Once it had been established that there was substantial variability to be explained at each level, child demographics were entered at Level 1 as predictors. Age (months), sex (0 = male, 1 = female), ethnicity (Black as reference group), language form of achievement test (0 = English, Spanish = 1), and Fall scores on the Galileo Language and Literacy were entered as covariates. Random effects for child-level covariates were fixed to zero.

Next, the child-level variables (Fall ASPI situational behavior problem scores: problems in structured learning, peer interaction, and teacher interaction) were entered at Level 1 as predictors and were permitted to vary randomly across classrooms (i.e., the variance components were allowed to be freely estimated). Finally, classroom-level variables (the three CLASS domains of emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support) were entered at Level 2 as predictors. Both the main effects of teacher–child interaction quality and cross-level interactions between teacher–child interaction quality and ASPI situational behavior problem scales were included in the models. Due to moderate correlations between the three CLASS domains, separate models were tested for each of the CLASS domains. Child-level demographic covariates were centered at the grand mean, ASPI scores at the group mean, and classroom-level variables were centered at the grand mean as recommended by Enders and Tofighi (2007).

Final models are presented in the following equation for language and literacy skills:

Level 1: Language and Literacy Skills_ij = β_0j + β_1j (Age) + β_2j (Female) + β₃_j (Hispanic) + β_4j (Other) + β_5j (Language Form) + β_6j (Fall Language and Literacy score) + β_7j (Fall Problems in Structured Learning) + β₈_j (Fall Problems in Peer Interactions) + β_9j (Fall Problems in Teacher Interactions) + r_ij

Level 2: β_0j = γ₀₀ + γ₀₁ (Teacher–child Interaction Quality) + u_0j

β_1j = γ₁₀

β_2j = γ₂₀

β_3j = γ₃₀

β_4j = γ₄₀

β_5j = γ₅₀

β_6j = γ₆₀

β_7j = γ₇₀ + γ₇₁ (Teacher–child Interaction Quality) + u_7j

β_8j = γ₈₀ + γ₈₁ (Teacher–child Interaction Quality) + u_8j

β_9j = γ₉₀ + γ₉₁ (Teacher–child Interaction Quality) + u_9j

Results

Descriptive Statistics

Variables were examined for outliers, homoscedasticity, and kurtosis. No assumptions of normality were violated. Table 1 presents descriptive statistics for child- and classroom-level variables. Table 2 presents bivariate correlations among child-level variables. ASPI Problems in Structured Learning was negatively correlated with language and literacy skills. ASPI Problems in Teacher and Peer Interactions were negatively associated with literacy skills. Bivariate correlations among the three CLASS domains were moderate, ranging from .65 to .78.

Table 1.

Descriptive Statistics of Child- and Classroom-Level Variables.

Child- and Classroom-Level Variables	n	M	SD
Child-level measures
ASPI (fall)
Problems in structured learning	304	51.64	10.15
Problems in peer interactions	304	52.11	10.19
Problems in teacher interactions	304	51.35	10.08
Galileo (fall)
Language and literacy subscale	295	455.84	66.77
Woodcock-Johnson/Muñoz (spring)
Letter-word recognition	304	333.60	24.26
iPicture vocabulary	304	453.99	14.49
Classroom-level measures
CLASS (winter)
Emotional support	53	5.28	0.97
Classroom organization	53	4.57	1.00
Instructional support	53	2.48	1.05

Note. ASPI scores for the ASPI are standardized T scores (M = 50, SD = 10). Scores for the Woodcock–Johnson/Muñoz represent standardized W scores (M = 500, SD variable depending on subscale and age, McGrew et al., 2007). Galileo scores are W scores (Bergan et al., 2003). Scores for the CLASS are means across cycles for each dimension (Range 1–7). ASPI = Adjustment Scales for Preschool Intervention.

Table 2.

Bivariate Correlations Between Child-Level Situational Problem Behaviors, Language and Literacy Skills, and Language Screener.

Child-level measures	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1. Fall ASPI problems in structured learning	__	.61**	.62**	−.12*	−.29**	−.19**	−.18**	−.29**
2. Fall ASPI problems in peer interactions		__	.53**	−.03	−.16**	−.03	.03	−.15
3. Fall ASPI problems in teacher interactions			__	−.02	−.20**	−.10	−.13*	−.22*
4. Fall Galileo language and literacy				__	.28**	.25**	.29**	.32**
5. Spring letter-word recognition					__	.57**	.49**	.08
6. Spring picture vocabulary						__	.67**	.08
7. English PreLAS							__	.03
8. Spanish PreLAS								__

Note. N = 304. ASPI = Adjustment Scales for Preschool Intervention.

p < .05. **p < .01.

Multilevel Modeling Results for Language and Literacy Skills

Variance in each outcome associated with child-level (Level 1) and classroom-level (Level 2) variance was estimated in the unconditional models. For picture vocabulary, 86% of the variance was attributable to differences between children, and 14% of the variance was attributable to differences between classrooms. For letter-word recognition, 87% of the variance was attributable to differences between children and 13% of the variance was attributable to differences between classrooms.

Child-level

Age was positively associated with picture vocabulary (β_1j = 0.41, p < .0001) and letter-word recognition scores (β_1j = 0.79, p < .0001). Hispanic children and children identified as “other” ethnicity scored lower than Black children on picture vocabulary (β_3j = −6.08, p <.0001, and β_4j = −7.39, p <.0001, respectively). Galileo language and literacy subscale scores were positively associated with letter-word recognition (β_6j = .06, p < .01). Language of assessment was associated with picture vocabulary (β_5j = 15.50, p < .0001) and letter-word recognition (β_5j = 14.66, p < .0001).

Associations between fall situational problems and spring language and literacy skills

ASPI problems in structured learning was negatively associated with picture vocabulary (β_6j = −0.33, p < .01) and approached significance for literacy skills (β_6j = −0.35, p = .08). Problems in peer and teacher interactions were not associated with language and literacy skills, although associations between problems in teacher interactions and literacy skills approached significance (β_7j = −0.32, p =.07).

Classroom-level

Associations between teacher–child interaction quality and classroom language and literacy

Several direct effects of teacher–child interaction quality were found. Classroom instructional support was positively associated with both picture vocabulary and letter-word recognition scores. On average, children in classrooms with higher instructional support exhibited higher skills in these areas. Classroom organization was positively associated with letter-word recognition scores. On average, children in classrooms with higher classroom organization scored higher in letter-word recognition skills in the spring.

Moderating effects of teacher–child interaction quality

One cross-level interaction was significant for Emotional support. Emotional support moderated the negative associations between ASPI problems in teacher interactions and letter-word recognition skills. Higher emotional support weakened the negative association between problems in teacher contexts and literacy skills in the spring. Please see Supplemental Tables 3, 4, and 5 for fixed and random effects for the final multilevel models.

Discussion

Using a developmental-ecological and contextual assessment approach, this study examined the moderating role of teacher–child interaction quality in the association between preschool challenging behaviors and language and literacy skills. We examined these associations for a sample of culturally and linguistically diverse low-income children. Findings replicate and extend prior research by documenting differential associations between challenging behaviors observed within routine classroom contexts and children’s language and literacy skills. We found that higher levels of instructional support and classroom organization were directly associated with higher language and literacy skills overall in the classroom; and that emotional support buffered the negative associations with literacy outcomes, for children entering the classroom displaying challenging behaviors in teacher contexts early in the preschool year.

Preschool Challenging Behaviors and Language and Literacy Skills

Confirming study hypotheses, challenging behavior in structured learning situations was negatively associated with language skills. Challenging behavior within teacher and peer interactions was not significantly associated with these skills. These findings provide additional support for using reliable and valid measures of challenging behavior as it occurs within the context of learning activities within early childhood classrooms where language skills are intentionally taught. Findings replicate and extend previous research conducted with other Head Start samples (Bulotsky-Shearer et al., 2008, 2011) using nationally norm-referenced validated assessments of children’s language and literacy skills, directly assessed in Spanish and English for a culturally and linguistically diverse sample.

Direct and Interactive Effects of Teacher–Child Interaction Quality

In support for our initial hypotheses, we found direct positive associations between two domains of teacher–child interaction quality: instructional support and classroom organization and language and literacy skills. Children within classrooms characterized by higher levels of instructional support, including cognitively stimulating interactions that fostered higher-order thinking, brainstorming, problem-solving skills, and complex and varied language, exhibited higher vocabulary skills at the end of the preschool year. This finding is consistent with previous research conducted in several large-scale studies of prekindergarten children documenting positive within-domain associations between high-quality instructional support and preschool language outcomes (Downer, Sabol et al., 2010; Mashburn et al., 2008).

In addition, we found that classrooms characterized by predictable, organized routines were positively associated with children’s letter-word recognition skills at the end of the year. This finding extends previous research conducted with low-income preschool children that found direct positive associations between classroom organization, learning behaviors (Domínguez et al., 2010), and language and literacy skills (Maier et al., 2012) by documenting the contribution of both high-quality instructional and organizational support to direct assessments of vocabulary and literacy skills, for culturally and linguistically diverse children.

In partial support for our hypotheses, we found that one domain of teacher–child interaction quality (emotional support) moderated associations between challenging behaviors and literacy skills. For children entering classrooms exhibiting challenging behaviors within teacher contexts (such as greeting teacher in the morning, asking teacher for help, following teacher directions), the negative risks to their literacy skills were buffered by higher levels of emotional support. This finding is supported by prior research conducted in elementary school where emotional support was found to buffer the academic risks associated with difficult temperament in infancy (Curby et al., 2011) and early functional risk (Hamre & Pianta, 2005). Study findings align with Head Start studies where emotional support was found to buffer negative associations between challenging behaviors and learning-related behaviors (Domínguez et al., 2011) and to be more beneficial to language and literacy growth across the Head Start year for temperamentally shy children (Vitiello et al., 2012).

Why was it that we did not find that instructional support or classroom organization moderated associations between early challenging behaviors and language and literacy skills? First, our entire sample represented a socioeconomically at-risk population of preschool children and differs from many previous studies that capitalized on data available from the NICHD SECCYD, where low-income and ethnic minority families comprised a small percentage of the sample. In addition, our outcome measures were direct assessments of language and literacy, whereas in several previous studies (e.g., Curby et al., 2011; Vitiello et al., 2012) academic skills were assessed via teacher-report which may capture more variability in children’s skills and thus permit more opportunity statistically to identify these relationships (McDermott et al., 2009).

Importantly, it may be that children displaying behavioral needs within classroom contexts early in the year foundationally need to establish strong, emotionally supportive relationships with teachers first—interactions that are positive, warm, and sensitive to their needs before instructional demands are placed on developing language and literacy skills. As Chow and colleagues articulate, language and behavioral needs often co-occur (Chow et al., 2020; Chow & Wehby, 2018). In our study, it may be a promising finding that all children’s language and literacy skills benefited from high-quality classroom instructional and organization support, given their overall level of socioeconomic risk. However, findings suggest that for children with social-emotional and behavioral needs displayed within teacher contexts, teachers may need to pause academic instruction and incorporate social-emotional interventions first (e.g., Teacher and Me Time from the Teaching Pyramid Model, Hemmeter et al., 2016 or Banking Time, Williford et al., 2017) to develop positive teacher–child relationships, in addition to supporting language and literacy.

Limitations and Directions for Future Research

This study extends our understanding of the child- and classroom-level factors contributing to the language and literacy skills of children exhibiting challenging behaviors within preschool classrooms. However, several limitations must be acknowledged. First, while we extended previous research by studying a sample of culturally and linguistically diverse children, our findings are limited to this sample of children. Future research should replicate and extend our findings to other diverse populations of children from other early childhood programs. In addition, future studies should examine other outcomes, such as mathematics and science, and include additional variables of important proximal contexts that promote the positive development of children from low-income families, such as those within the home context (M. R. Burchinal et al., 2002; McCartney et al., 2007). Examining the contribution of family involvement or parenting practices would expand our understanding of the familial resources that support the language and literacy skills of preschool children with behavioral needs.

In addition, while we intentionally chose child- and classroom-level measures specifically developed and validated for use with diverse low-income preschool children, there was some restricted variability in two of the measures within our sample. First, given the linguistic diversity of the children in our sample, we chose the Woodcock–Johnson and Woodcock–Munoz achievement measures as they are nationally normed measures of academic skills appropriate for use with preschool-aged children with parallel Spanish and English forms. First, we note that scores may not be equivalent statistically. Children showed variability in their English and Spanish performance, with the Spanish language form associated with higher scores on average (therefore, supporting the need to include as a covariate in the analytic models). It would be important for future studies to incorporate validated measurement tools, as they are developed in the broader field to assess language and literacy in bilingual preschool children.

Second, there was some restricted variability in children’s scores, even when assessed in the most appropriate language. This is a problem commonly found when nationally norm-referenced tests developed for commercial use are used with low-income samples. In nationally normed tests, items are typically centered around the 50th percentile of difficulty (with reference to a national norm); however, in low-income preschool samples, typical average performance on academic measures is below this average range (e.g., 15th–20th percentile; McDermott et al., 2009). In addition, on average the CLASS domain of Instructional Support was low in our sample (M = 2.48). This average score comports with large-scale early childhood studies, where Instructional Support on average falls in the “low” range (Mashburn, 2008). However, the restricted variability in this CLASS domain score may have made it more difficult for us to detect both the direct and interactive contribution of Instructional Support in our models.

Third, our cross-level moderation analysis tried to model statistically whether for children displaying greater behavioral problems, higher teacher–child interaction quality could be beneficial. However, it must be acknowledged that we measured teacher–child interaction quality using the CLASS, a tool that measures the average experience of all children in the classroom. Future studies should employ observational measures that capture individual children’s experiences with the teacher such as the inCLASS (Downer, Booren et al., 2010) to extend our work.

Finally, we were not able to assess children’s initial language and literacy skills using the same direct assessments. We included another measure as a proxy available from the Head Start program; however, it would be important in future studies to employ the same pre/post measure of language and literacy skills. Future studies can extend our short-term predictive study by examining whether teacher–child interaction quality continues to serve a protective function in growth of literacy skills at multiple time points and as children transition into kindergarten.

Implications for Policy and Practice

Our study extends an understanding of the experiences of preschool children from low-income households as they navigate classroom demands. The study provides insight into potential mechanisms within early childhood classrooms that can promote positive language and literacy outcomes for children displaying challenging behaviors. Prior research indicates that high-quality teacher–child interactions can support positive language and literacy outcomes of all children (Mashburn et al., 2008). However, for children with challenging behaviors, the quality of emotionally supportive interactions is particularly important. In fact, as suggested above, language and behavioral needs often co-occur (Chow et al., 2018) and may be bidirectionally related (Bichay-Awadalla et al., 2019). Teachers who recognize that children with behavioral needs may also have language delays, can incorporate sensitive, warm, and responsive interactions in the context of language and literacy instruction, to better support children with behavioral needs throughout daily activities (Chow et al., 2020); or intentionally scaffold children’s learning—both social-emotional as well as language, through supporting peer-mediated exchanges in small group pretend play or read alouds (Leong & Bodrova, 2012; Wasik & Jacobi-Vessel, 2017).

Findings highlight the importance of using a contextual assessment approach for early identification. Children in our study who entered preschool displaying challenging behaviors within learning contexts such as circle time, small group work, and art/creative activities, showed lower language skills at the end of the year. Use of contextual assessment can support program efforts to identify those children who are having difficulty navigating the demands of classroom learning and social situations so intervention steps can be taken. In some cases, for children with early challenging behaviors, negative literacy outcomes persisted, regardless of the teacher–child interaction quality that children experienced in their classroom during the year. For these children, targeted and individualized interventions may be needed to support their literacy skills.

Conclusion

The use of a contextually based tool such as the ASPI situational problem scales provides an opportunity to identify opportunities within the classroom where targeted interventions can be most effective. In accord with an ecological approach, challenging behaviors are seen not as static, stable, or occurring within the child but rather as occurring in transaction with the demands of classroom situations or expectations. It is important to understand children’s behavior as it emerges within classroom demands and to use these data to help teachers identify and tailor supports. Early childhood programs can use the ASPI’s situational scores to assess behavior as it occurs within early learning and social contexts, in combination with tools like the CLASS to provide information about strategies teachers can implement to address challenging behaviors and engage children in classroom learning activities with teachers, peers, and materials that promote language and literacy skills.

Supplemental Material

Supplemental_Table_1 – Supplemental material for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills

Supplemental material, Supplemental_Table_1 for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills by Rebecca J. Bulotsky Shearer, Krystal Bichay-Awadalla, Jhonelle Bailey, Jenna Futterer and Cathy Huaqing Qi in Topics in Early Childhood Special Education

Supplemental Material

Supplemental_Table_2 – Supplemental material for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills

Supplemental material, Supplemental_Table_2 for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills by Rebecca J. Bulotsky Shearer, Krystal Bichay-Awadalla, Jhonelle Bailey, Jenna Futterer and Cathy Huaqing Qi in Topics in Early Childhood Special Education

Supplemental Material

Supplemental_Table_3 – Supplemental material for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills

Supplemental material, Supplemental_Table_3 for Teacher–Child Interaction Quality Buffers Negative Associations Between Challenging Behaviors in Preschool Classroom Contexts and Language and Literacy Skills by Rebecca J. Bulotsky Shearer, Krystal Bichay-Awadalla, Jhonelle Bailey, Jenna Futterer and Cathy Huaqing Qi in Topics in Early Childhood Special Education

Footnotes

Acknowledgements

A very special thank you to the Miami-Dade County Human Services Action Agency Department HeadStart/Early Head Start Program, for their collaboration in this project.

Authors’ Note

Rebecca J. Bulotsky-Shearer, Jhonelle Bailey and Jenna Futterer, Department of Psychology, Child Division, University of Miami. Krystal Bichay-Awadalla is now at the Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Cathy Huaqing Qi, Department of Special Education, University of New Mexico.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research project was funded by a Provost’s Research Award from the University of Miami (2009–2010) and a Society for the Study of School Psychology Research Early Career Award (2009–2011) to the first author.

ORCID iD

Rebecca J. Bulotsky Shearer

Supplemental Material

Supplemental material for this article is available online.

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