This report summarises the most recent research into effective pre-kindergarten interventions in the USA. It may be of particular interest to policy makers and primary school teachers and leaders.
The current state of scientific knowledge on pre-kindergarten effects
Synopsis
This report from the Pre-Kindergarten Task Force focuses on the state of early years education interventions in America. The task force complied findings from major studies into pre-kindergarten programmes, and found convincing evidence that children involved in early years education schemes were more ready for school than other children.
The task force found that involvement in pre-kindergarten programmes led to strong improvements in literacy and numeracy, as well as some modest gains in children’s social-emotional and self-regulatory development. They also cite studies that found participation in pre-kindergarten programmes led to greater improvements for economically disadvantaged children and dual language learners, compared to children from more advantaged backgrounds.
They conclude that there is uniformly positive evidence for the impact of pre-kindergarten programmes in preparing young children for formal education.