Betty Liebovich
Betty is a lecturer and tutor in Early Years Education and teaches on the Primary PGCE course, MA Education, and Education, Culture and Society degrees. She also teaches and tutors for the PhD programme in the Educational Studies Department.
Research interests
Betty’s research work for her doctoral study concentrated on preservice early childhood students’ perceptions of advocacy. Other research involved contemporary issues affecting teaching early years education to include parent and family involvement, investigating current social and political issues affecting early years education, and the challenges associated with early years education being female dominated and undervalued by society. The research she conducted on child study and the history of Kindergarten in the United States were collaborative efforts involving professors and other doctoral students, leading to publications in books and on-line journals. Her current research focuses on the history of the Open-Air Nursery.
Betty has presented at the National Association for the Education of Young Children annual conference (2009, 2001, and 1999), American Educational Research Association annual meeting (2002 and 2004), the annual international Reconceptualization conference (2003), and at an international symposium to honour Lilian Katz, Ph.D. (2000). She also trained incoming Teaching Assistants at the University of Illinois at Urbana—Champaign and supervised preservice early childhood teachers in their field placements.
Selected publications
Liebovich, B. J. & Adler, S. M. (2009). Teaching Advocacy in Early Childhood Teacher Education Programs. Forum, 2009.
Liebovich, B. J. (Fall 2008) Book review in International Journal of Early Years Education of Standardized Childhood: The Political and Cultural Struggle over Early Education by Bruce Fuller (2007)
Liebovich, B. J. (2007) “Get Together Times, Special Celebrations, and Reasons to Celebrate” in Faith in Children: Stories from Faith-Based Children's Centers (Roberta R. Owens, Ed.). Franklin, TN: Providence House Publishers. ISBN: 978-1-57736-385-9
Liebovich, B. J. (2006) Early childhood preservice teachers' perceptions of advocacy. New York: ProQuest / UMI. ISBN: 0542230267
Liebovich, B. J., and Adler, S. M. (forthcoming). Advocacy in the Early Childhood Teacher Education Curriculum: A Proposal (article)
Liebovich, B. J. Contributor to Collins, J. W., and O’Brien, N. P. (Eds.). (2003)The Greenwood Dictionary of Education, Westport, Connecticut, Greenwood Press
Liebovich, B. J., and Walsh, D. W. (2003) Early childhood education preparation of teachers. In James W. Guthrie (Ed.) Encyclopedia of Education, 2nd Edition New York, McMillan Reference
Liebovich, B. J. (2002) Children's self-assessment. In D. Rothenberg (Ed.), Issues in early childhood education: Curriculum, teacher education, and dissemination of information. Proceedings of the Lilian Katz Symposium, Champaign, IL, ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education