Teacher–child interaction quality and Chinese children’s academic and cognitive development: New perspectives from piecewise growth modeling

This longitudinal study utilized piecewise growth modeling to examine how teacher–child interaction quality contributed to children’s academic and cognitive growth in a stratified random sample of Chinese children. Data on the classroom teacher–child interaction quality (the three domains of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System: Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support) and child outcomes (Chinese reading, native vocabulary, math, and executive functioning) were collected three times (T1, T2, and T3) during K2 through K3 years. Findings showed that the Instructional Support (IS) score at the second semester of kindergarten 2 (T1, K2-2) was significantly related to preschool K2-2 children’s initial levels of native vocabulary, math, and executive function scores. More importantly, IS predicted preschoolers’ math growth during Stages 1 (K2-2 to K3-1) and 2 (K3-1 to K3-2), and predicted executive function growth during Stage 2 (K3-1 to K3-2). Findings are discussed in the context of Chinese early childhood education policies and practice, as well as limitations and future research directions.