GUIDING CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR and MORAL DEVELOPMENT
ECED 15
Course Description
This focuses on the importance of fostering the social, emotional and moral development
of young children, developing the teachers’ positive dispositions of care, respect and integrity to
develop skills in identifying and analyzing the developmental, environmental and cultural factors
that impact the behavior of young children. This course emphasizes developmentally
appropriate principles and strategies for cultivating moral values; and guiding children’s
behavior in positive and non-violent discipline in managing learner behavior.
Course Credit: 3 units
Course Learning Outcomes:
At the end of the course, the pre-service teachers can:
A. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the importance of fostering social, emotional
and moral development of children;
B. demonstrate knowledge of positive and non -violent discipline strategies in the management
of learners’ challenging behaviors;
C. demonstrate positive disposition of care, respect, and integrity in guiding young children’s
behavior;
D. apply principles and strategies in developing moral values in young children through
observations and simulations;
E. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of differentiated teaching to suit learners
gender, needs, interests and experiences.
TOPICS :
Child Guidance: Developmentally Appropriate Practices
Child Guidance: Applying Knowledge of Child Development
Observing Behavior in Child Guidance
Positive Guidance and Discipline Strategies
DAP Early Childhood Learning Environment: Indirect Guidance
Authentic Self-Esteem and Moral Identity
Resilience and Stress in Early Childhood
Emotional Intelligence and Anger Management
Preventing Violent Behavior and Understanding Aggression in Children
Guidance and the Development of Prosocial Behavior
Minimizing Challenging Behavior
Connecting Theories with DAP Guidance
Using the Decision-Making Model of Child Guidance
Module 1 Eced 15 Guiding Children’s behavior and Moral
Development
Course topic Child Guidance: Developmentally
Appropriate Practice.
Time allotment: 3 Hours MT
Course objectives: Expected outputs:
demonstrate knowledge of the theoretical Uncover:Self-analysis: identify and describe
and philosophical foundations the caregiving styles used by one’s own
developmentally appropriate practice; parents and caregiver
b. explain how parenting/ caregiving styles
can affect children’s development and
adjustment; Brainstorm: Observe in different places and
scenarios and find examples of positive
c. explain basic processes through which authoritative parenting/ caregiving/ teaching
adults influence children; and
d. name the steps in the decision making
model of child guidance Instill: Discussion on the Parenting Styles
Video analysis
Apply:Own case study about parenting
Nutshell: article to read for the enhancement
of lesson tackled and in preparation for the
next lesson in module 2
Before we proceed to the lesson proper about parenting, let us watch first the video below,
given is the link.
[Link]
Activity: Self-analysis
After watching the video, try to make a self-analysis on how parents practice parenting styles.
Write your observation in a Venn diagram organizer to compare what is on the video and what’s
yours. Do not forget to identify the similarities (where the circle intersects) and differences
(inside the other portion of the circle) in the Venn Diagram.
Let us view this video that would teah us more about developmentally appropriate practice.
[Link]
Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) is an approach to teaching grounded in the
research on how young children develop and learn and in what is known about effective early
education. Its framework is designed to promote young children's
optimal learning and development.
What are some simple ways to explain developmentally appropriate practice
to parents? For example, parents sometimes ask, “Why aren’t you teaching
my kid how to read?”
It can be hard to answer questions from parents who look for evidence of learning in really
different ways than preschool teachers who have studied child development. I’ve been asked
the same question and, when I was put on the spot, found it difficult to explain the basics of
developmentally appropriate practice.
Families are sometimes anxious about their child’s success and achievement in school. They
start thinking about which college their child is going to go to and forget that, at the moment,
their child is still learning to tie his shoes and wash his hands.
Start by acknowledging that you can understand why parents might be concerned when they
don’t see teachers focusing on literacy in the way they expect by, say, tracing letters or
memorizing sight words. In this era of academic anxiety, parents are sometimes looking for
skills in preschool that usually come later. Then explain that children learn differently before age
8 than they do after age 8, and that preschoolers are at the younger side of even the early
learning spectrum.
The earliest years are all about relationships. Infants and toddlers crave and develop
attachments to the special people in their lives. Depending on how parents, early childhood
educators, and others treat them, babies also develop expectations about people and
themselves.
Young infants (0 to 9 months) seek security.
Mobile infants (8 to 18 months) are eager to explore.
Toddlers (16 to 36 months) are working on their identity; they want to know who they
are and who’s in charge.
In child care programs, relationships with families are critical. Caring teachers and caregivers
learn from the experiences, knowledge, culture, and childrearing beliefs of family members.
Partnerships grow when teachers value the family as the primary source of information about
the child and as the constant in the baby’s life, and when families value the knowledge and
personal characteristics of their child’s teachers. Good communication is essential.
You may be differentiating by reading level, interest, and learning style, but are you
differentiating based on student development?
Teachers use “developmentally appropriate practice” — a method praised by psychologists and
education researchers alike — to personalize instruction based on cognition, social-emotional
development, and each student’s approach to learning. While traditionally thought of as an early
childhood education practice, the concept has implications for middle and high school students
too. As former high school English teacher Kristen Singer explains, “Developmentally
appropriate teaching is important for middle and high school students. A student can be 17
years old chronologically, but may have experienced a trauma that stunted their emotional or
cognitive growth in ways that aren’t always obvious at first glance. If teachers are able to assess
developmental delays early on, they can catch them and adjust their teaching.”
The following checklist was designed to help you identify student growth in terms of cognition,
approach to learning, and social-emotional development. Gauge individual development at the
beginning of the year by observing each learner and translating the checklist below into
student-friendly statements to track and support student growth.
Please follow the given link to give more insights about DAP
[Link]
[Link]
To give us more insights about parenting styles, let us watch the given video.
Analyze the content of the video how parenting styles affect children’s life and behavior.
[Link]
Activity video analysis
Make an analysis on the video given. How do parents show their concern towards their children
and how do parents apply their parenting/care giving styles to their children. Using the graphic
organizer below, observe whether the scenarios in video are present in the following styles.
AUTHORITARIAN PARENTING AUTHORITATIVE PARENTING
PERMISSIVE PARENTING UNINVOLVED PARENTING
Developmental psychologists have long been interested in how parents affect child
development. However, finding actual cause-and-effect links between specific actions of parents
and later behavior of children is very difficult.
Some children raised in dramatically different environments can later grow up to have
remarkably similar personalities. Conversely, children who share a home and are raised in the
same environment can grow up to have very different personalities.
Despite these challenges, researchers have posited that there are links between parenting
styles and the effects these styles have on children. And some suggest these effects carry over
into adult behavior.
The Four Parenting Styles
In the 1960s, psychologist Diana Baumrind conducted a study on more than 100 preschool-age
children. Using naturalistic observation, parental interviews, and other research methods, she
identified some important dimensions of parenting.1
These dimensions include disciplinary strategies, warmth and nurturing, communication styles,
and expectations of maturity and control. Based on these dimensions, Baumrind suggested that
the majority of parents display one of three different parenting styles. Later research by
Maccoby and Martin suggested adding a fourth parenting style. Each of these has different
effects on children's behavior.
1. Authoritarian Parenting
In this style of parenting, children are expected to follow the strict rules established by the
parents. Failure to follow such rules usually results in punishment. Authoritarian
parents don't explain the reasoning behind these rules. If asked to explain, the parent might
simply reply, "Because I said so."
While these parents have high demands, they are not very responsive to their children. They
expect their children to behave exceptionally and not make errors, yet they provide very little
direction about what their children should do or avoid in the future. Mistakes are punished, often
quite harshly, yet their children are often left wondering exactly what they did wrong.
Baumrind says these parents "are obedience- and status-oriented, and expect their orders to be
obeyed without explanation." They are often described as domineering and dictatorial. Their
approach is "spare the rod, spoil the child." They expect children to obey without question.
2. Authoritative Parenting
Like authoritarian parents, those with an authoritative parenting style establish rules and
guidelines that their children are expected to follow. However, this parenting style is much more
democratic.
Authoritative parents are responsive to their children and willing to listen to questions. These
parents expect a lot of their children, but they provide warmth, feedback, and adequate support.
When children fail to meet the expectations, these parents are more nurturing and forgiving
rather than punishing.
Baumrind says these parents "monitor and impart clear standards for their children’s conduct.
They are assertive, but not intrusive and restrictive. Their disciplinary methods are supportive,
rather than punitive. They want their children to be assertive as well as socially responsible, and
self-regulated as well as cooperative."
The combination of expectation and support helps children of authoritative parents develop
skills such as independence, self-control, and self-regulation.
3. Permissive Parenting
Permissive parents, sometimes referred to as indulgent parents, make very few demands of
their children. These parents rarely discipline their children because they have relatively low
expectations of maturity and self-control.
According to Baumrind, permissive parents "are more responsive than they are demanding.
They are nontraditional and lenient, do not require mature behavior, allow considerable self-
regulation, and avoid confrontation." Permissive parents are generally nurturing and
communicative with their children, often taking on the status of a friend more than that of a
parent.
4. Uninvolved Parenting
In addition to the three major styles introduced by Baumrind, psychologists Eleanor
Maccoby and John Martin proposed a fourth style: uninvolved or neglectful parenting.
An uninvolved parenting style is characterized by few demands, low responsiveness, and very
little communication.2
While these parents fulfill the child's basic needs, they are generally detached from their child's
life. They might make sure that their kids are fed and have shelter, but offer little to nothing in
the way of guidance, structure, rules, or even support. In extreme cases, these parents may
even reject or neglect the needs of their children.
The Impact of Parenting Styles
What effect do these parenting styles have on child development outcomes? In addition to
Baumrind's initial study of 100 preschool children, researchers have conducted a a number of
studies about the impact of parenting styles on children. Among the findings:2
Authoritarian parenting styles generally lead to children who are obedient and proficient,
but they rank lower in happiness, social competence, and self-esteem.
Authoritative parenting styles tend to result in children who are happy, capable, and
successful.
Permissive parenting often results in children who rank low in happiness and self-
regulation. These children are more likely to experience problems with authority and
tend to perform poorly in school.
Uninvolved parenting styles rank lowest across all life domains. These children tend to
lack self-control, have low self-esteem, and are less competent than their peers.
The Advantages of Authoritative Parenting
Because authoritative parents are more likely to be viewed as reasonable, fair, and just, their
children are more likely to comply with their parents' requests. Also, because these parents
provide rules as well as explanations for these rules, children are much more likely to internalize
these lessons.
Rather than simply following the rules because they fear punishment (as they might with
authoritarian parents), the children of authoritative parents are able to see why the rules exist,
understand that they are fair and acceptable, and strive to follow these rules to meet their own
internalized sense of what is right and wrong.
The parenting styles of individual parents also combine to create a unique blend in each family.
For example, the mother may display an authoritative style while the father favors a more
permissive approach.
This can sometimes lead to mixed signals. In order to create a cohesive approach to parenting,
it is essential that parents learn to cooperate and combinetheir unique parenting styles.
Limitations and Criticisms of Parenting Style Research
Links between parenting styles and behavior are based on correlational research, which is
helpful for finding relationships between variables but cannot establish definitive cause-and-
effect relationships. While there is evidence that a particular parenting style is linked to a certain
pattern of behavior, other important variables such as a child's temperament can also play a
major role.
There is also some evidence that a child's behavior can impact parenting styles. One study
published in 2006 found that the parents of children who exhibited difficult behavior began to
exhibit less parental control over time. Such results suggest that kids might misbehave not
because their parents were too permissive, but because the parents of difficult
or aggressive children gave up on trying to control their kids.3
The researchers have also noted that the correlations between parenting styles and behaviors
are sometimes weak.3 In many cases, the expected child outcomes do not materialize;
parents with authoritative styles have children who are defiant or who engage in delinquent
behavior, while parents with permissive styles have children who are self-confident and
academically successful.
Cultural factors also play an important role in parenting styles and child outcomes. "There is no
universally "best" style of parenting," writes author Douglas Bernstein in his book Essentials of
Psychology. "Authoritative parenting, which is so consistently linked with positive outcomes in
European American families, is not related to better school performance among African
American or Asian American youngsters."4
A Word From Very well
Parenting styles are associated with different child outcomes, and the authoritative style is
generally linked to positive behaviors such as strong self-esteem and self-competence.
However, other important factors including culture, children's temperament, children's
perceptions of parental treatment, and social influences also play an important role in children's
behavior.
Activity Case Study {personal way}
Make your own case study about parenting while observing the real situation nowadays.
Choose one relative close to you. Identify the basic information (ask permission if he/she wants
to disclose this for academic purpose). Have an observation within his/her own family then have
it in written form. Make sure to answer the following questions:
1. What’s the style of parents in dealing with children?
2. How do they practice appropriate care giving?
3. Do the child/children adhere to the parenting/care giving style of their parent?
4. What are the effects of the parenting/care giving style to the individual?
5. Compare the parenting/care giving style you have experienced and the parenting/care
giving style you have observed.
6. If you are given the chance to choose the style of parenting or care giving, which among
them will you consider?
Please read the following articles concerning parenting and caregiving.
Then make an analysis after you have read it.
1. Trapped between madness and motherhood: Mothering alone
2. Struggling with one's own parenting after an upbringing with substance abusing parents
References:
Fields, V. M., Perry, M. N., & Perry, N. J. (2009). Constructive guidance and discipline:
Preschool and primary education. New York, NY:
Prentice Hall Gootman, M. E. (2009). The caring teacher’s guide to discipline: Helping young
students learn self-control, responsibility, and respect. Calabasas, CA:
Corwin Press Marion, M. (2019). Guidance of Young Children. New York, NY:
Pearson Cronin, A., & Mandich, M. (2016). Human Development and Performance throughout
the Lifespan (2nd ed.). Boston, MA, USA: Cengage Learning.
Ellis, S., & Todd, J. M. (2018). Behaviour for Learning: Promoting Positive Relationships in the
Classroom (2nd ed.). London: Routledge,
