Making the Case

A Path to Equity: From Expanded Pre-Kindergarten Access to Success in Elementary School

Do district policy changes that increase access to full-day school-based pre-kindergarten relate to improved 2nd grade academic outcomes? How? A study from Start Early, NORC at the University of Chicago, and the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research examined these questions based on a set of Chicago Public School (CPS) policy changes that began …

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What Happens After Preschool Matters for Sustaining the Preschool Boost

Under what conditions do the benefits of large-scale public preschool last? How should elementary schools be designed to build on the gains in preschool? This post reviews recent studies of Boston Public Schools that find the quality of a child’s elementary school is a consistent predictor for whether the preschool “boost” lasts. The authors also …

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Teachers, Schools, and Pre-K Effect Persistence: An Examination of the Sustaining Environment Hypothesis

This paper provides compelling evidence that Tennessee PreK students who subsequently experienced “sustaining environments” – meaning they attended high performing K-3 schools and were taught by highly effective teachers – significantly outpaced their peers who also attended high performing schools and had highly effective teachers but who had not attended Tennessee’s Voluntary PreK program.

North Carolina Should Focus on Early Childhood Learning in Order to Raise Achievement in Predominantly Disadvantaged School Districts

To raise achievement in predominantly disadvantaged school districts, the Program Evaluation Division (PED) of the North Carolina General Assembly recommended focusing on early childhood learning, defined as the years birth through 3rd grade. The PED summarized their work: “predominantly disadvantaged districts that perform well [average or better on standardized state tests] are already demonstrating above …

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Effects of Sustained Quality in PreK, Kindergarten and First Grade in Dallas ISD

This study, conducted in Dallas Independent School District (TX), shows that students in consecutive years of high-quality classrooms (PreK, Kindergarten, and 1st grade) outperform their peers in lower-quality classrooms. The district has adopted a data-driven instructional coaching approach that provides targeted support to early elementary teachers.

The Current State of Scientific Knowledge on Pre-Kindergarten Effects

This report, authored by a task force comprised of esteemed social scientists from Brookings and Duke University, includes six consensus statements on what is known about the effects of PreK. Not surprisingly, but of great importance, the scholars agree that what happens before, during, and after PreK all matter.

The Path to Lifelong Success Begins with P-3

Comprehensive PreK-3rd grade approaches hold tremendous potential to dramatically change the trajectory of achievement gaps and set young children on sturdy pathways to educational and lifelong success. Elementary principals are the lynchpin of effective P-3 work, as they set the tone and priorities both inside and outside of their buildings. 

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