Course Expectations

Most CHDV/ECE courses have an advisory of Level 1 Reading and Level 1 Writing. Students are expected to demonstrate and engage in college level reading and writing. Here is a brief list of ideas to help you achieve this level.

Read with Intent 

Take notes, reread material, use a dictionary for words you aren’t familiar with, attempt to summarize what you have read (consider doing this with someone, talking and hearing yourself often helps further cement ideas).

Write Professionally 

Professionals in the field of child development need to be able to communicate with families, complete developmental assessments, and try new techniques with their colleagues. The writing you do in class mirrors what is expected of you as an early education professional who communicates with children, parents, colleagues, and supervisors.

• Please use professional wording i.e. use the word “children” rather than “kids”

• Familiarize yourself with APA - I have provided resources to assist you in the next section below. You are expected to use APA to cite sources (in-text and references) in all writing any time another person's information is quoted or paraphrased. This can be from the learning resources, your own research, or interviews with professionals and others in the field. Every time you use someone else's words, be sure to use APA format to properly give credit to the person.

• Use spell check – I STRONGLY recommend you compose your discussions, journals, and assignments in a word processing program and then copy and paste or upload them into Canvas. In doing this, you maintain a copy of your work should there be a glitch. It’s happened, every semester someone loses their work as they hit the submit button and they have to recreate potentially large amounts of written work.

• Use complete sentences when responding to questions or ideas. Avoid “I agree”, “Yes”, “No”, etc. Your responses should read as complete thoughts.

• When responding to multiple questions (in a discussion, journal, etc.) please take care to fully address each one individually in paragraph format, not as a bulleted or numbered list, unless specifically asked for in the instructions.

• Discussions are not your standard writing assignment; they are conversations with the other students in the course. It is important to write as if you are having a conversation with your classmates in the classroom. Address your post to your class in general. Do not include a title page, headings, nor the discussion questions. Read your post (preferably out loud to yourself) before submitting it and correct any errors. Bold and italics should be used for emphasis only – an entire posting in this format is not appropriate. Use basic sentence grammar and structure; this makes it easier to read and understand your thoughts.

• All writing should be well thought out, with ideas clearly stated. Use paragraphs to separate ideas and make sure you support the points you are making with quotes from the assigned learning resources - this is how you demonstrate your learning and critical thinking. Every paragraph should include a quote from the learning resources that supports or illustrates the point you are making. 

• Please avoid using a colored font – some of the colors can be very difficult to read. Please do not increase or decrease the font size of your posting – this too can make it more difficult to read.

Write Responsibly 

Own your own thinking and speak for yourself. Use “I” statements when posting. “Speak” only from your own experience – avoid statements that generalize.

Incorrect   Correct

Father’s feel…. In my experience, father’s feel….

Women feel…. As a woman, I feel….

Children today.... My experience is that children today..

Remember, you must cite ideas and work that is not your own. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. I expect you to support your ideas using quotes, reliable statistics, etc. in everything you submit. In a field with few facts, it is important to base your ideas on what you are learning from the experts in the field - this is how you demonstrate your understanding and ability to think critically about the information provided. 

Listen, accept, and respect other people's experiences and thoughts. Let people own their own stories and feelings. When strong feelings are expressed, it is important to 1) validate this is the way someone is feeling, 2) support them in working through/with the feeling rather than suppressing it, "fixing" it, or trying to talk them out of it, 3) help people do the work tasks regardless of the feelings.

In child development, we follow the American Psychology Association's (APA) rules for writing assignments (papers, discussions, etc.). The basics of APA include having a title page, using appropriate headings, including a References page, and using in-text citations to document the resources (videos, books, articles, web pages, interviews, etc.) used in the assignment.

APA specifies using Sans-Serif fonts (e.g., Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, Calibri), 12-point font or greater, double spaced with indented paragraphs (with no extra spaces between paragraphs), and 1" margins. I do take points off if you do not follow APA guidelines for the formatting of your assignments.

Title Page

The title page should contain the title of the paper, the author's name, the institutional affiliation, the course number and name, instructor name, and assignment due date. All information should be centered with the title of the paper in the upper section of the page and the rest of the information towards the bottom of the page.

• The title should be centered and written in boldface. The title should be focused and succinct and can take up one or two lines. The title should be towards the top of the page.

• Beneath the title, about 2/3s down the page, type your full name.

• Beneath your name, type Cerro Coso Community College.

• Beneath the institutional affiliation, type the course number and name (for example, CHDV C125 Diversity in Education).

• Beneath the course number and name, type Professor Elisabeth Fuller.

• Beneath the instructor's name, type the due date of the assignment.

There may be some assignments, like interviews and observations, that require an author's note below the institutional affiliation to identiy the specifics of the interview or observation. Be sure to read the Submission guidelines to see if there are any changes needed for the title page.

Headings

Headings identify the content within sections of the paper. Make the headings descriptive and concise, headings like "introduction", "analysis", or "body paragraphs" are not descriptive nor concise and should not be used. Do not label headings with numbers or letters. Double space headings and do not add blank lines above or below headings.

• The level 1 heading is the title of your paper and should be centered on the first page. This starts the paper, so there is no need for an "Introduction" heading, it is understood that the first paragraph is the introduction to the paper.

• The level 2 headings are within the text of your paper and should be left-aligned and bold. The paragraph would start directly under the heading and be indented. The level 2 headings identify the main points in your analysis and should be specific to the content being discussed. For example, "Defining Communication" or "Cognitive Theories". Do not use headings like "Analysis" or "Body Paragraphs".

• The last heading would be the "Conclusion" heading, signifying the end of the paper.

There should not be a need for any further headings on these assignments, only level 1 and 2 headings.

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

APA is commonly used to cite sources in the social sciences. Child Development is a social science. At Cerro Coso, we require APA in all of our Child Development Courses. 

APA format for in-text citations includes the author's last name, year of publication, and a page number at the end of the citation (quote or reference). For example, (Santrock, 2009, p. 134).

When do you need to cite a source? 

Any time you make reference to the words of someone else - either a book, video, interview, or any other format, you need to give credit to the person. This includes interviews with families, teachers, and other professionals related to the assignments in the course as well as any of the learning resources provided, from my lectures to the videos, articles, and chapters I include in each module. There are two components to this:

In-text citations – this is the citation you provide within your writing to directly cite the source of a quote or paraphrased section. If you make reference to a source in an in-text citation, you need to include it in the References section.

References – this is placed at the end of your work and includes information about the resources you cited in the assignment or discussion. This is important! If someone wanted to read more about the work you’ve cited, they would need this information to locate it. If you list a reference, the reader should be able to find the in-text citation in your work.

Rules for In-Text Citation (what I take points off for)

Here are the basic rules for APA for in-text citations. You will lose at least 1 point on each discussion post and/or assignment if you break any of these rules: 

1. Always start sentences in your own words - never with a quotation mark. You can start a sentence with something like, "According to Kostelnik et al. (2010)" and then include your quote, just don't start a sentence with quotation marks.

2. Citations should be only the part of the sentence that is necessary and grammatically correct with your own sentence and point you are making - do not quote complete sentences from the source you are citing. For example, when using a quote to support a point you are making the format looks like:

As an early educator it is important for teachers to "establish open channels of communication in which everyone feels valued and respected" (Kostelnik, Whiren, & Soderman, 2010, p. 183).

Put as much of the point in your own words and then use the quote to support or define the point. 

3. Watch punctuation. You will lose points if you misplace or use extra commas, periods, parentheses, and/or quotation marks.

4. Citations are part of a sentence but should not be included inside the quotation marks. Make sure periods are after the citation, not before - this is ultimately a punctuation issue. 

5. Cite either at the beginning or the end of a quote, not in both positions. Only cite each quote or reference once.

6. Cite as if you had a conversation with the authors - do not reference a page, chapter, lecture, reading, text, or any form of media. Only and always use the author's names. If you say something like, "In the lecture we read" or "I appreciated the readings" or "In the text" or "According to the professor" you will lose points.

7. Do not cite indirect (secondary) sources. I've noticed students are citing my lectures but are referring to quotes or references from the readings that I have mentioned. This is called citing an indirect source. Do not do this, be sure to read the primary source yourself and then cite from the primary source instead of from my lecture. You can cite from my lectures but only cite my thoughts and ideas, not the quotes from other sources.

8. With personal communications, like interviews and observations, you need to cite your source, but do not include personal communication in the reference list. Be sure to follow the directions listed below for personal communications.

9. Don't overthink the in-text citations and start to include too much information like the title, chapter, headings, or author first names. APA is really very simple and often seems too simple. Just follow the examples below and please ask me for clarification if you keep getting points off in your discussions and/or assignments.

Two Citation Styles

There are only 2 ways to cite in APA - either at the beginning OR at the end of the quote. Again, make sure you choose one of these, do not do both.

An example of an in-text citation at the beginning of a quote:

According to Kostelnik et al. (2010), "the key to achieving more consistency between home and the program is to establish open channels of communication in which everyone feels valued and respected" (p. 183).

An example of an in-text citation at the end of a quote: 

While building collaborative relationships with families is important, "the key to achieving more consistency between home and the program is to establish open channels of communication in which everyone feels valued and respected" (Kostelnik et al., 2010, p. 183).

Citing Personal Communications

For interviews, letters, emails, and other person-to-person communication, cite the communicator's name, the fact that it was personal communication, and the date of the communication. Do not include personal communication in the References list.

For example,

Including families in the preschool classroom is difficult because of their busy schedules and other family demands (E. Robbins, personal communication, January 4, 2001).

If citing before the quote, there is a slightly different format which includes the first initial of the interviewee's first name:

Similarly, E. Robbins (personal communication, Jan 4, 2001) agreed it is important to include families in the preschool classroom.

or

As E. Robbins (personal communication, Jan 4, 2001) noted, "continuing my professional development has had the biggest impact on my growth as a supervisor".

Be sure to always refer to the interviewees by their first initial and last name - every time you mention them. This is how APA structures personal communications. Do not use familiar names, only the first name, nor titles like Mr., Ms., or Mrs.

Organizations as Authors

Many of the learning resources I have included are from government or other organizations. The first time you cite the source, be sure to write out the organization's name, but for later citations you can use the abbreviations.

First Citation: (California Department of Education [CDE], 2002).

Second and Later Citations: (CDE, 2002)

Two or More Works by the Same Author in the Same Year

There are many sources that have the same author that have been written in the same year, many of my lectures, for example. For this reason, you will see a letter after the year of publication in order to distinguish the references. Be sure to include the letter when you cite a source, so it is clear which source you are using. You can refer to the course References page to see why the resources are lettered.

(Fuller, 2020c)

Missing Information

No Year of Publication

If there is no year of publication listed for a source, use (n.d.), which stands for no date, instead of the year of publication. 

No Page Numbers

If using a direct quote (meaning you are using quotation marks) and there are no page numbers, then use paragraph numbers. For example, (para. 3) or (paras. 4-5).

According to Kostelnik et al. (2010), "the key to achieving more consistency between home and the program is to establish open channels of communication in which everyone feels valued and respected" (p. 183).

If you are only referencing information (not direct quoting) you do not need to include a page number nor paragraphs, only the author names and year of publication.

According to Kostelnik et al. (2010), it is important to maintain open communication with families in order to provide consistency and build relationships.

Using Indirect (Secondary) Sources

Indirect sources are when you are using a quote from an author you are reading, but you have not read the source yourself. I have provided primary sources for the learning resources; however, I have noticed that students cite my lectures and the quotes I include instead of turning to the primary sources I have provided. This is bad form. If I have included a quote, please do not cite the quote I have included. Instead, read the primary source and then cite the primary source since you have now read it.

If you do choose to cite an indirect source, make sure you follow proper APA format, which differs depending on if the original source is making a reference (no quotes) or a direct quote (uses quotation marks):

Here is an original paragraph from a source that references (does not use direct quotes) Berns (2009) and Gallagher (2005):

During early childhood, the immediate context of the family has the greatest influence on the child. The family is responsible for meeting children's physical needs and for socializing the younger generation. Family members provide children with their first social relationships, their models for behaviors and roles, a framework of values and beliefs, and intellectual stimulation (Berns, 2009; Gallagher, 2005). All these functions take place through direct and indirect teaching, in constructive and sometimes destructive ways, more or less successfully.

And I want to quote the middle sentence. The proper citation is as follows:

According to Kostelnik et al. (2011), "family members provide children with their first social relationships, their models for behaviors and roles, a framework of values and beliefs, and intellectual stimulation" (p. 7).

Notice that I still used Kostelnik et al. (2011) as a reference since that is the source I personally read. I did not include the references to Berns and Gallagher because I have not personally read those sources. The purpose of citation is to give credit to the author of the resource YOU are reading.

If you are quoting a direct quote from the author, and not just paraphrased work like above, you will need to cite the secondary author. For example, let’s say that you want to quote two sentences that you read on page 18. The quote looks like this:

More young children find themselves sitting at desks, filling out worksheets, and taking tests to get into kindergarten or first grade because "teachers feel pressured to engage in classroom practices they believe are not in the best interests of young children" (Wein, 2004, p. 34).

First, you need to remember, you always cite the source you are reading. So, in this case, Wein was actually cited in a textbook written by Kostelnik, Soderman, & Whiren (2010). This is referred to as an indirect or secondary source. The material you want to mention is Wein’s, but you found it in Kostelnik, Soderman, & Whiren. 

In this case, you might write:

Wein (2004) observed that, “teachers feel pressured to engage in classroom practices they believe are not in the best interests of young children" (as cited in Kostelnik et al., 2010, p. 18).

In this way, you are acknowledging the work that is Wein’s as well as identifying the source that you read it in. If you were to just reference Wein, it would appear that you read that work – it would be incorrect and technically plagiarized.

When to Use et al.

In general, every author needs to be given credit for the produced source - whether a text, video, website, or any other learning resource. The first time you reference a learning resource with more than one author, include all of the names: (Kostelnik, Whiren, & Soderman, 2010, p. 20). Every other time you can use et al. to shorten the reference: (Kostelnik et al., 2010, p. 20).

Watch punctuation with et al. - punctuation is where most students lose points.

References

A reference list is required at the bottom of your original posts in the discussions as well as the last page of all of the assignments (except learning logs since they are based on your personal thoughts and experiences). You can look at the grading rubric to see if a reference list is required or not.

References need to have a hanging indent and be double spaced, however, Canvas does not support hanging indents in the discussions, so follow the guidelines I have provided for the discussions to meet the APA requirements.

I have provided a course reference list for all of the learning resources I have included. You are welcome to copy and paste from the class list to make sure you meet APA guidelines.

Here is a summary of the basic rules of APA I pay attention to when I am grading (you will lose at least 1 point if you make any of these mistakes):

• Include a title page with the listed information. Sometimes the requirements change depending on the assignment.

• Headings are appropriate and identify the topic being discussed. Do not include headings like "introduction", "body paragraphs", "analysis", or any other general information. Headings should be specific to the information being discussed, for example, "Defining Communication". "Conclusion" is an appropriate heading for the last section of the paper.

• Always start sentences in your own words, not with a quotation mark.

• Put as much as you can in your own words - only quote part of a sentence, not entire sentences.

• Watch punctuation and when to use '&' vs. 'and'.

• Citations are part of the sentence, but not part of the quote. Periods are after the citations.

• Cite either at the beginning or the end of the quote, not both.

• Cite as if you had a conversation with the author(s), do not mention texts, chapters, videos - these can't 'say' anything, only the authors can.

• Only cite the source you read - not secondary sources cited in what you are reading.

• If you cite a source, include it in the References list. If you didn't cite it, don't put it in the References list.

• Cite personal communication using APA - and do not include in the References list.

• The references in the References list include all required information, as provided in the course References.

If you have questions about citations, references, or APA, please contact me via Pronto, Canvas Inbox, or email (LFULLER@cerrocoso.edu) so I can clarify and provide more specific feedback.

There are Library Workshops available throughout the semester to assist you in learning APA and how to cite sources, you can earn extra credit for attending these workshops.

When in the classroom:

• Be non-obtrusive. Please find a spot that doesn't infringe on the children's space.

• Please sit so you are at the child’s level.

• Observe quietly and respectfully. You are there to observe, please refrain from conversation with others (including children). You may respond to children, but please do not initiate or encourage interaction with them. 

• Respect the child’s space. If a child seems upset that you are near, remove yourself from the area. 

• Walk around the periphery of the yard or classroom rather than through them.

Confidentiality

You will be observing children, families, and teaching staff. In accordance with Principle 2.9 in the Code of Ethical Conduct (NAEYC, 1998), all efforts should be made to protect the privacy of children, parents, students, and staff. It is of utmost importance that you respect the right of each child, family, and staff member to keep information confidential. You may NOT discuss or reveal the information to anyone outside of the school setting. When discussing experiences in these class meetings, change the names of individuals and the center to protect privacy.

Breach in ethical conduct and/or confidentiality will lead to disciplinary action up to and may include expulsion from the course.