Child and Adolescent Development in Your Classroom

Covering development from early childhood through high school in an easy-to-follow format, this book provides future teachers with authentic, research-based strategies and guidelines for their classrooms. The authors apply child development concepts to topics of high interest and relevance to teachers, including classroom discipline, constructivism, social-emotional development, and many others. A strong emphasis on diversity among children is reflected throughout. Case studies and real-world vignettes further bridge the distance between research and the classroom, helping future teachers be better prepared to create an environment that promotes optimal development in children.

Christi Bergin earned a Ph.D. in child development and early childhood education at Stanford University and is a developmental psychologist. Her research focuses on the socio-emotional development of typical children as well as the physical, cognitive and socio-emotional development of infants and children in families struggling with poverty, drug use and child abuse. She has observed hundreds of parent-child interactions, including in-home visits to so-called "crack houses." Dr. Bergin has conducted research in both schools and medical centers. She has published in journals such as the Journal of Literacy Research, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, Child Maltreatment, Journal of Adolescence and Infant Mental Health Journal, among others. Through her research, experience as a preschool teacher and work as a community volunteer, she has extensive experience with children from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. She is the co-founder of the Network for Educator Effectiveness, which has 302 member school districts. Through this network she has trained hundreds of principals to accurately measure teaching practices and provide useful feedback to help teachers grow professionally. Dr. Christi Bergin directs the nation’s premiere research lab on prosocial education, that is, improving the social interaction and positive behavior of school-age children. She is president-elect of the social-emotional learning group of the American Educational Research Association.

David Bergin earned a Ph.D. in education at Stanford University and is an educational psychologist. He has been a teacher-educator for over 30 years. His research focuses on motivation and achievement, including talented youth of color. He has helped engineering professors evaluate science curricula. He is a past president of Division 15 Educational Psychology of the American Psychological Association and has published in journals such as Journal of Educational Psychology, Contemporary Educational Psychology, Journal of Negro Education, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, IEEE Transactions on Education and Journal of Adolescent Research, among others. He has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Educational Psychology, Journal of Counseling Psychology and Contemporary Educational Psychology. Like his co-author, David Bergin has extensive experience working with a diverse range of children. He speaks Spanish, has lived in Central America and has done university outreach in Mexico and Guatemala. He was a Fulbright scholar in Chile.