Does "Self-Regulation" Address All We Need to Know About a Child's Sense of Agency

As I searched for information about Self-Regulations, I found a number of labels that are used to describe the same kind of “Affective” Skills: Self-Management, Self-Control, Emotional Development, and  Hot-Cognition.  Here are a few links that address Executive Function

https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/46956/why-executive-function-is-a-vital-stepping-stone-for-kids-ability-to-learn

“The data just keeps coming in about the importance of focus, self-control and working memory for learning and life,” Wexler said in an edWeb webinar. One meta-analysis of six studies found that a child’s executive functioning skills in kindergarten predicted reading and math achievement into middle school and beyond. This research is particularly important because students who have poor executive functioning skills because of trauma, poverty, or diagnosed disorders are missing out on learning. Often these children haven’t had a chance to develop executive functioning skills required for school before arriving there.

 For a more thorough discussion of Executive Function

Activities and Programs That Improve Children's Executive Functions.

Diamond A¹.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4200392/

What Path Can We Follow to Facilitate a Child's Self-Regulation?

               

How can we move from understanding the development of self-regulation to facilitating the development of self-management and other self-direction skills? 

From the May 29 2018 Posting
With a focus on the Learning aspect of Language, Literacy, and Learning, I am going to begin a series of posts on children’s ability, with our support, to become confident and successful learners.  Becoming a learner begins in infancy.  So these early posts will focus on Birth to 5. Later posts will focus on learning in K-3.  There are a number of ways we can describe the learning to learn process, for example: self-regulation, executive function, metacognition.  Here is a place to begin with a focus on self-regulation.

Here’s one pathway to follow:

Begin with a Tentative Definition

Understand Normal Development of Cognitive/Social/Emotional Learning

Exploring Models of Self-Regulation (Self-Direction, Self-Management...)

Translating the most promising model into Context-Based Instruction

                *Begin with a Plan to Understand and Collaborate with Individual Children

    *Choose Instructional Principles

    *Sequence Goals and Objectives

                *Engage in Diagnostic Teaching 

                *Monitor Progress

    *Work toward Generalization

    *Apply to A Domain and then Across Domains

Continue to Grow By Following the Literature (Reference List)  

Self-Regulation Development 3-5

Self-Regulation Interventions in Early Childhood Programs (3-5 years) (4)

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/acf_report_4_final_rev_11182016_b5082.pdf

“In considering self-regulation interventions for children during the preschool years, it is first helpful to reflect on the key characteristics of normative development at this age when self-regulation demands are manageable and developmentally typical. As described in Box 6a below, several cognitive regulation skills are developing rapidly along with language skills which support impulse control and rule following. Skills in managing emotions increase and allow young children to calm themselves and tolerate some frustrations and distress. However, in situations where adversity or stressors are prolonged or severe, self-regulation development may lag. To support self-regulation development, co-regulation through the activities listed in the table is needed. Such supports can be provided by caregivers (i.e., parents, teachers, mentors, or program staff) through interacting with young children either at home or in child care settings such as Head Start.

It is also useful to briefly review some of the specific data for self-regulation intervention studies and outcome results for this age group (see Box 7b), the details of which can be found in Report 3 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/resource/self-regulation-and-toxic-stress-report-3. Interventions in this developmental group include several well-established social-emotional programs like PATHS, Incredible Years, ParentCorps, Head Start REDI, Tools of the Mind, and the Chicago Schools Readiness Project (CSRP). Specific intervention studies reviewed and their outcomes across domains can be found in Tables C3-C5 in Report 3, Appendix C.”

Characteristics from the above link:

"Focused attention increases but is still brief
Begins to use rules, strategies and planning to guide behavior appropriate to situation
Delay gratification and inhibit response for longer periods
Perspective-taking and empathy support protocol goals
Language begins to control emotional response and actions
Tolerate some frustration and distress apart from caregiver (self-caring skills emerge}"

See link above for "How Caregivers Can Provide Co-Regulation

A Quick Read on My First Posting on Self-Regulation: The Highlights

Seven Key Principles of Self-Regulation and Self-Regulation in Context:

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/srts_7_principles_brief_revised_2_15_2017_b508.pdf

Self-Regulation has several “titles/labels/reference points"):  WILL POWER, EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, FLEXIBILITY, EFFORTFUL CONTROL, EMOTIONAL REGULATION, SELF CONTROL, SELF-MANAGEMENT)
  

And…..several Principles:…(I quote…)

1.       Self-regulation serves as the foundation for lifelong functioning across a wide range of domains…

2.       2. Self-regulation is defined from an applied perspective as the act of managing cognition and emotion to enable goal-directed actions such as organizing behavior, controlling impulses, and solving problems constructively

3.       3. Self-regulation enactment is influenced by a combination of individual and external factors including biology, skills, motivation, caregiver support, and environmental context.

4.       4. Self-regulation can be strengthened and taught like literacy, with focused attention, support, and practice opportunities provided across contexts….

5.       5. Development of self-regulation is dependent on “co-regulation” provided by parents or other caregiving adults through warm and responsive interactions in which support, coaching, and modeling are provided to facilitate a child’s ability to understand, express, and modulate thoughts, feelings, and behavior.

6.        6. Self-regulation can be disrupted by prolonged or pronounced stress and adversity including poverty and trauma experiences….(and, I would add: frequent struggling as a learner).

7.       7. Self-regulation develops over an extended period from birth through young adulthood (and beyond) (Bold mine)

February 2017 OPRE Report: 2016-39 Project Officer: Aleta Meyer, PhD. OPRE Prepared by: Tyler Hatch Suggested Citation: Murray, D.W., Rosanbalm, K., and Christopoulos, C. (2016). Self Regulation and Toxic Stress: Seven Key Principles of Self Regulation in Context. OPRE Report #2016-39. Washington, DC: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, US. Department of Health and Human Services.

A Focus on Learning: Birth to 5, K-3

With a focus on the Learning aspect of Language, Literacy, and Learning, I am going to begin a series of posts on children’s ability, with our support, to become confident and successful learners.  Becoming a learner begins in infancy.  So these early posts will focus on Birth to 5.  Later posts will focus on learning in K-3.  There are a number of ways we can describe the learning to learn process, for example: self-regulation, executive function, metacognition.  Here is a place to begin with a focus on self-regulation.

From https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/opre/srts_7_principles_brief_revised_2_15_2017_b508.pdf

“This brief provides a framework for understanding self-regulation and its development in an ecological-biological development context. It is derived from a larger report on work conducted by the Duke Center for Child and Family Policy for the Administration for Children and Families. …..”  7 Principles of Self-Regulation….

Some current research:

From http://fpg.unc.edu/sites/fpg.unc.edu/files/resources/reports-and-policy-briefs/CurrentGapsAndFutureDirectionsForSelf-RegulationInterventionResearch.pdf

“Current Gaps and Future Directions for Self-Regulation Intervention Research  In the process of developing a series of reports and briefs based in existing theory and research on toxic stress, self-regulation, and self-regulation interventions, a number of gaps in the existing knowledge base were identified. Research shows the value of interventions to strengthen self-regulation, yet there are many unanswered questions. This brief addresses key gaps in interventions and intervention research examined in a recent literature review. In addition, the brief highlights work needed in intervention design and development to enhance programs intended to strengthen self-regulation, particularly those that serve vulnerable children and youth. We expect that this brief will be of greatest interest to prevention scientists, funders, and policy-makers.”