Crosswalks Research

A multi-faceted research design, developed by project evaluator Susan Maude of the University of Vermont, is being used to determine progress in achieving four specific Crosswalks outcomes. These are:

1. Increased knowledge and skills of faculty on the values, content and pedagogy necessary to prepare students to work effectively with culturally and linguistically diverse young children and families.
2. Increased emphasis on culturally and linguistically diversity in early childhood/early intervention coursework, practica and programs.
3. Increased comfort and capability of early childhood/early intervention graduates to work effectively with culturally and linguistically diverse young children and families.
4. Stronger linkages among early childhood/early intervention preservice programs, family members and community partners.

Data will be collected and analyzed to determine the extent these outcomes are achieved.

Eligible "subjects" for the Crosswalks study are preservice programs offering bachelor's level Birth-Kindergarten (B-K) licensure and their community partners (program graduates, family members, local agencies and organizations). A total of five groups, known as Campus-Community Teams, were selected to participate in Crosswalks and were then randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group. The University of North Carolina at Pembroke and Western Carolina University anchor the teams in the experimental group. Three Campus-Community Teams form the control group, led by Lenoir-Rhyne College, University of North Carolina Charlotte and University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Crosswalks will be tracking pre/post changes in the members of all five Campus-Community Teams. Team members will complete diversity-related measures including:

• Crosswalks Multicultural Attitude Survey
• Crosswalks Assessment of Knowledge, Skills and Instructional Strategies
• Crosswalks Coursework, Practica and Program Evaluation

A second population will be student participants on each of the five participating campuses. Students will also complete a set of diversity-related measures, including

• Crosswalks Multicultural Attitude Survey-Student Version
• Crosswalks Student Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (CASKS)
• Crosswalks Coursework, Practica and Program Evaluation-Student Version.

Both the control and experimental groups will take pre-, post-, and retrospective post-test assessments to determine change, improvements and/or impact. These data will help to identify baseline as well as impact and/or change made by Campus-Community Team members, programs and students.

Qualitative data (structured interviews, focus groups, open-ended responses, document review) will be gathered from control and experimental groups. To assist with validation of both the quantitative and qualitative data, member checks with faculty and students will be conducted. Cross-site comparisons will be conducted to look at contextual and institutional factors that may influence implementation efforts.

Consistent with effective evaluation practices, detailed case studies will be completed to document the barriers, facilitators, costs, needed personnel, training and sequence of implementation successes in the experimental communities. These case studies will assist with both replication and dissemination efforts.

Taken together, these analyses will enable us to measure the effectiveness of Crosswalks methods and materials.