Webliography: Early Brain
Development
Jeanette Schwartz
Spring 2003
Rating system:
Five stars ***** An excellent site containing current research and useful for professionals. Information is from credible sources, and is updated frequently.
Four stars **** A good site, useful to professionals and something they may recommend to parents that provides reliable information in an understandable form.
Three stars *** A site created by organizations that care about children, but may not provide very much information itself. May have links and references to other sites.
Two stars ** A fair site with basic information possibly useful to parents. Information probably gathered from secondary sources and may not be updated very frequently. Likely to contain ads.
One star * A site that contains a bit of factual information, but mainly advertises products and links to other sites.
No stars – A site developed primarily for advertising
purposes with possibly untrue and/or harmful information.
All of the following sites were found through web searches
for “early brain development”, or links from those sites. They all claimed to
contain information about brain development in infants.
Sites and
Descriptions:
A national, non-profit organization with prominent professionals, researchers, and physicians dedicated to “advancing the healthy development of babies and young children. Contains a new infant mental health research center. Lists classic and current articles, as a reference, not in full-text.
Brain Wonders link with brain development FAQ’s. Includes parent and professional sections. *****
Research Network on Early Experience and Brain Development. These people conduct research on early childhood experiences in relation to brain development and it effect on behavior. The network consists of an impressive list of psychiatrists, psychologists, and other professors and physicians. A listing of activities and studies can be found, as well as publications of their past research. An excellent site if you are looking for current early brain development research. *****
A website written by Phyllis Porter, M.A., an educator in early childhood topics who has a passion for infants and their care. The site offers information about brain development through full-text articles, recommended books, and related links. ****
An organization and website made up of educators, psychologists, and other professionals concerned about positive change in education. Website contains a “news from the neurosciences” section, some great full-text articles about brain development, as well as recommended reading and related links. ****
A primarily medical site sponsored by professionals with input from physicians. Site provides credentials and has a “who we are” section to verify authors of information. Contains a parenting news section and an option to type in a topic to search for links and articles. I typed in “early brain development” and found several full-text articles which had been reviewed by physicians. Information is updated monthly. ****
A national non-profit organization founded by Rob Reiner which has helped develop two White House conferences on early brain development and child care. Provides educational resources and products about critical issues in early childhood. Contains links to other “parent” sites. ***
http://www.jnjpediatricinstitute.com/
The Pediatric Institute is an organization within Johnson & Johnson that supports research in pediatrics, infant development, and maternity care. It has an advisory board of physicians and other professionals. In the “For Professionals” section, an educational resource library is available which provides a list of books and resources specifically about early brain and child development. In the “For Parents/Caregivers” section, a booklet about early brain and child development can be ordered and looked like a nice resource to give to families. ***
www.envisagedesign.com/ohbaby/smarthtml
Basic information for parents on the topic of “building baby’s intelligence”. Promotes “stimulating” toys. This is a page from the “Oh Baby” site, written by two parents who are graphic designers. Provides links to other commercial resources and latest “research” in the media. **
A sponsored site created by a consulting company with a free newsletter that anyone can subscribe to. Very focused on “making your child smarter”. Advertises books, CDs, and videos. Contains a disclaimer that the accuracy of the information is not guaranteed. The webzine is poorly proof-read. *
“The one source for having a smarter baby”. A commercial site with propaganda about increasing your baby’s brain power and IQ. Encourages parents to buy CDs, flashcards, and videos that help you to teach your baby to read. No information about who wrote the site, aside from “The Smart Baby”. No stars, as it contains no real helpful information.
Other interesting sites:
I used this site to link to http://www.brazelton-institute.com/. The Brazelton site explains the Clinical Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (CLNBAS), developed in 2001. Provides information about training workshops, ordering materials, and ongoing research at the Brazelton Institute. Not a brain development site, per se, but relevant to the topic.
Attachment Theory and Research at Stonybrook. Contains a library of publication lists and online articles from prominent attachment researchers—Bowlby and Ainsworth. Not a brain development site, but relevant to class material.