Teachstone Unveils Evidence-Based Tools to Help Teachers Build Strong, Positive, Equitable Relationships with Children Who Need it Most

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., July 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Teachstone, developer of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS®) included in 23 states' Quality Rating and Improvement Systems and used by Head Start programs nationwide, today unveiled "Banking Time: Investing in Relationships," a new suite of tools to improve the quality of interactions between teachers and specific children birth through third grade, and in turn, to build strong, positive, equitable teacher-child relationships.

The new tools align to a dyadic, short-term intervention strategy known as "Banking Time," created by the same researchers who developed CLASS and founded Teachstone. Banking Time prioritizes brief yet intentional one-on-one interactions each week between individual teachers and children. During Banking Time sessions, both teacher and child interact toward an activity chosen by the child, such as painting a picture, reading a book, or exploring outside.

"Banking Time was developed and tested to empower teachers; to reduce the cycle of discipline and expulsion, which disproportionately affects Black and brown boys; and to enhance students' learning and development," said Teachstone CEO and Co-Founder Bridget Hamre. "We are excited to create products that advance the practice in a meaningful way for educators and children alike."

"Banking Time is a well-known strategy in the field, but until now, there have not been resources to support its effective implementation at large scale. It has been up to the teacher to learn, plan, and do," said Amanda Williford, Batten Bicentennial Professor of Early Childhood Education at the University of Virginia, who has worked to test and refine Banking Time over the last five years. "The availability of these new tools is critical now more than ever, as we return to the classroom and navigate the educational and emotional impacts of the pandemic on our children and their learning experiences."

The tools include an online course in a bilingual format; a set of materials and resources, such as a teacher's manual, calendar, and video library; and a live training session for educators facilitated by a CLASS expert. The tools are designed to:

• Make a large impact with small investments of time. With Banking Time, teachers plan a short, intentional opportunity to connect individually with a child on a consistent basis to foster a stronger connection. This small moment adds up over time to proven benefits such as social-emotional gains, decreased challenging behaviors, and reduced stress responses.
• Build strong relationships between teachers and the children who need it most. Banking Time supports teachers in building positive relationships with the children they have difficulty connecting with, be it for racial or cultural differences, or other factors such as absenteeism. With stronger relationships, teachers can feel more empowered, programs can decrease the rapid cycle of discipline and expulsion, and children can have more opportunities for learning and feel greater success in the classroom.
• Promote positive outcomes for teachers and children. With an intentional focus on building positive relationships with research-proven strategies, both teachers and children experience positive outcomes. Teachers experience immediate gratification from success which boosts empowerment, reduces stress, and helps them feel fulfilled in their daily work of supporting all children. Children demonstrate increased confidence and social-emotional skills, decrease in disruptive behavior, and lower stress response.
• Encourage equity of interactions and opportunities for learning. There are always children in every classroom with whom teachers have difficulty connecting, be it caused by racial or cultural differences, absenteeism, or other biases. With Banking Time, teachers are provided with research-proven strategies that work to build and strengthen those relationships and help to ensure equity of interactions that drive to longer-term positive child development and learning.

The tools are now available for pre-sale through the Teachstone website.

Teachstone® was founded in 2008 to deliver the Classroom Assessment Scoring System® nationwide and around the globe. Developed through years of research, the CLASS® observation tool measures interactions between teachers and children, which have been shown to drive learning and lifelong achievement. CLASS, adopted as part of the federal Head Start monitoring protocol in 2010, is used to assess the effectiveness of teacher-student interactions. Teachstone's CLASS tool is making a difference in classrooms in 50 countries worldwide. For information visit www.teachstone.com.

SOURCE Teachstone

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https://www.teachstone.com

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