Teacher-Child Interaction and Cognitive Development in Rio de Janeiro Preschools

Authors

• Tiago Bartholo Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Mariane Koslinski Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Renata Gomes Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Felipe Andrade Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Keywords:

teacher-child interactions, CLASS, cognitive development, early childhood education

Abstract

Previous research has found that the quality of teacher-child interactions is considered one of the primary mechanisms to foster children’s language, mathematics, socioemotional, and self-regulation development. The study describes the quality of teacher-child interactions measured with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) in 59 preschool classrooms in Rio de Janeiro public schools. It estimates the impact of classroom interactions on children’s cognitive development. The data is a subsample of a longitudinal study that tracked children over two years in preschool and presents a probabilistic single-stage cluster sample (school as the primary sampling unit) from the Rio de Janeiro municipal public system with 2716 children assessed. Confirmatory factor analysis provides evidence to support three specific domains of teacher-child interactions in Brazil. Multilevel models estimated the relationship between teacher-child interactions and cognitive development with cross-sectional and value-added models. Results suggest that instructional support positively correlates with language and mathematics development, even after controlling for baseline measures. Implications for educational policy are discussed.