Classroom Processes

Examining the qualities of schools and classrooms that affect children’s development has become one of the most important pursuits in educational [Page 263]research today. Classrooms provide the context in which children learn and develop. Children do not learn simply by sitting in a classroom. Rather, the interactions that children engage in with teachers, peers, and tasks are the force that propels children to develop. Much research has been undertaken to increase understanding of these classroom processes. This entry focuses on the classroom processes that take place in typical preschool classrooms. Given the fact that, at least in early childhood, teachers structure the environment and are the primary drivers of the interactions that take place, the entry places special emphasis on the interactions that children have ...