28th International Congress of Psychology August 8 ... - U-netSURF

program efficacy. The focus is on how psychology can help to develop programs that adapt to
individual and cultural differences in the developmental pathways of complex cognitive (school)
skills, to the neurobiological timing of development and to the core process of motivational
self-regulation in development and learning.
2048.5 Two programs with cognitive effects, S. Gulgoz, Koc University, Istanbul, Turkey
Intervention programs for underprivileged groups have attempted to empower participants by skill
acquisition activities. Two studies evaluating the effectiveness of intervention programs will be
discussed. In one program, children participated in weekly activities developed on the basis of
cognitive research. The effects of program participation were tested after 8 weeks using a control
group. In the other program, adult women participated in government literacy program or a
program developed by researchers in cognitive psychology. The effects of participation was
evaluated compared to a non-participating control group. The overall results showed support for
intervention programs. The implications for cognitive psychology applications in program
development will be discussed.
2049 INVITED SYMPOSIUM
The transition to school: International perspectives on a natural experiment
Convener and Chair: H. Wellman, USA
Co-convener: F. Morrison, USA
2049.1 School transition in America: The interaction of child and instruction, F. Morrison,
C.M. Connor, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
We present the results of a series of studies that examine the effect of language arts instruction on
growth in children’s early reading skills and the degree to which the impact of instruction depends
on the language and reading skills children bring to the classroom. Overall, the effect of
instruction depended on children’s fall language and reading scores. For example, children with
average to low fall scores achieved greater reading growth in classrooms with more time in
teacher-managed instruction. Children with higher fall scores demonstrated stronger growth in
classrooms with more child-managed instruction.
2049.2 Preschool experience and early literacy and quantitative skills: Evidence from Asia, N.
Rao, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
This paper considers the influence of preschool experience on academic skills by comparing: (a)
children who have attended preschool in India with those who have not; (b) children in Hong
Kong with differing amounts of preschool experience; and (c) children with differing home and
preschool literacy environments in Hong Kong, Beijing and Singapore. Taken together, these
studies illustrate the critical role of early education in preparing children for the transition to
school, help disentangle the influence of maturation versus schooling on development, and
highlight the importance of home environments and explicit teaching for early attainment.
2049.3 Age- and schooling-related influences on the development of number concepts and
addition skills; evidence from Japan, M. Naito, Joetsu University of Education, Niigata, Japan
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