Relations between early problem behavior in preschool classrooms and a comprehensive set of school readiness outcomes were examined for a stratified random sample (N = 256) of 4-year-old children enrolled in a large, urban school district Head Start program. A series of multilevel models examined the unique contribution of early problem behavior in structured learning activities, peer interactions, and teacher interactions to reading, mathematics, and approaches to learning at the end of the year, accounting for child demographic variables (child age, sex, and ethnicity). Early problem behavior in structured learning activities consistently predicted lower academic outcomes (early reading and mathematics ability) as well as lower motivation, attention, and persistence in academically focused tasks. Early problem behavior in peer situations predicted lower attitude toward learning, reflecting children’s difficulties self-regulating and engaging appropriately in socially mediated classroom learning activities. Implications for intervention within early childhood educational programs serving low-income children are discussed.

In accord with a strength-based, eco-cultural model, the present study examined the validity of the Penn Interactive Peer Play Scale-Teacher report (PIPPS-T; Fantuzzo, Coolahan, Mendez, McDermott, & Sutton-Smith, 1998 ) for use with Latino preschool children from low-income backgrounds. Capitalizing upon a large, statewide sample of Latino children ( N = 824, M age = 52.54 months (SD = 8.73)), exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses identified three reliable and distinct dimensions of peer social competence: Play Interaction, Play Disruption, and Play Disconnection. Findings from multilevel models controlling for program, family, and child demographic variables, provided criterion-related validity for the three dimensions with some differential associations to concurrent assessments of children's learning-related and pre-academic skills at the end the Head Start year. Study findings extend prior research, supporting the utility of the PIPPS to assess the construct of peer social competence for Latino children from low-income backgrounds. Implications for early childhood research, practice, and policy are discussed.

Classroom engagement plays a crucial role in preschoolers' development, yet the correlates of engagement, especially among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and developmental delays (DD), remains unknown. This study examines levels of engagement with classroom social partners and tasks among children in three groups ASD, DD, and typical development (TD). Here, we asked whether children's vocal interactions (vocalizations to and from peers and teachers) were associated with their classroom engagement with social partners (peers and teachers) and with tasks, and whether the association between classroom engagement and vocal interactions differed between children in the ASD group and their peers in the DD and TD groups. Automated measures of vocalizations and location quantified children's vocal interactions with peers and teachers over the course of the school year. Automated location and vocalization data were used to capture both (1) children's vocal output to specific peers and teachers, and (2) the vocal input they received from those peers and teachers. Participants were 72 3-5-year-olds (M-age = 48.6 months, SD = 7.0, 43% girls) and their teachers. Children in the ASD group displayed lower engagement with peers, teachers, and tasks than children in the TD group; they also showed lower engagement with peers than children in the DD group. Overall, children's own vocalizations were positively associated with engagement with social partners. Thus, although children in the ASD group tend to have lower engagement scores than children in the TD group, active participation in vocal interactions appears to support their classroom engagement with teachers and peers.