Issues: P-12 Education

Preschool

MDRC is looking at programs to enhance the quality of preschool settings through innovative teacher-training and evidence-based strategies, in order to promote low-income children’s social and emotional development and behavioral and academic readiness for school.

The Latest

Brief

Incorporating Children’s Lived Experiences in the Classroom

Communities of color and those with high poverty rates have disproportionately few high-quality options for early education. In this study, preschool teachers were interviewed about equity and inclusion in their classrooms. The findings suggest that curricula and professional development could provide more guidance on incorporating children’s lived experience in classroom learning.

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Brief

Young Children's Resilience in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic

There is a lack of consistent evidence on the extent to which the pandemic affected preschool-age children. This brief summarizes the initial results from a study led by MDRC that is examining the post-pandemic language, literacy, math, and executive functioning skills of children enrolled in Acelero Learning programs.

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Key Documents

Report

Impacts of Social-Emotional Curricula on Three-Year-Olds

Exploratory Findings from the Head Start CARES Demonstration

This report suggests that evidence-based approaches can improve 3-year-olds’ social-emotional competence in mixed-age preschool classrooms. While the findings are promising, further research is needed to confirm the results and to better understand how these benefits are generated.

Seeking Answers to Big Questions

MDRC’s Portfolio in Early Childhood Education

Today, leaders from across the political spectrum are calling for new investments in early childhood education. But many important questions remain about how to make the most of the promise of preschool and related interventions. MDRC’s portfolio of research and demonstration projects is tackling some of the biggest ones.

Three Approaches to Preschoolers’ Social and Emotional Competence

A Summary of Impact and Implementation Findings from Head Start CARES

This two-page issue focus summarizes the main findings from Head Start CARES, a test of three distinct classroom-based approaches to enhancing children’s social-emotional development: Incredible Years Teacher Training Program, Preschool PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies), and Tools of the Mind–Play.

Measures for Early Success Focus Area: Preschool Population: Children and Schools	Research-Practice Partnership with Acelero Learning, Inc. Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Population: Families	Building and Sustaining the Early Care and Education Workforce (BASE) Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Job Retention and Advancement Population: Children and Schools Populations with Low Incomes Families
Variations in Implementation of Quality Interventions (VIQI): Examining the Quality-Child Outcomes Relationship in Child Care and Early Education Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Population: Children and Schools Families	Jumpstart’s Foster Grandparent Program Evaluation Focus Area: Preschool Population: Children and Schools Intervention: School Readiness, Classroom Services Locations: California	Head Start Connects Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Two-Generation Programs Work Support and Asset Building Population: Children and Schools Families Populations with Barriers to Employment Populations with Low Incomes Intervention: Case Management
What Matters Most for Teachers and Young Children Focus Area: Preschool Population: Children and Schools Intervention: School Readiness, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services Locations: New York	The Expanding Children’s Early Learning (ExCEL) Network Focus Area: Preschool Elementary and Middle School Child Care and Early Education Population: Children and Schools Intervention: School Readiness, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: Massachusetts	The High 5s Project Focus Area: Preschool Elementary and Middle School Child Care and Early Education Population: Children and Schools Intervention: School Readiness, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms
Making Pre-K Count Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Population: Children and Schools Families Intervention: School Readiness, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services Locations: New York	Head Start CARES Project Focus Area: Preschool Child Care and Early Education Two-Generation Programs Population: Children and Schools Families Intervention: School Readiness, Professional Development/ Teacher Training, Classroom Services, Curricular/Instructional Reforms Locations: California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas

MDRC

Issues: P-12 Education

Preschool

Incorporating Children’s Lived Experiences in the Classroom

Young Children's Resilience in the Wake of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Impacts of Social-Emotional Curricula on Three-Year-Olds

Seeking Answers to Big Questions

Three Approaches to Preschoolers’ Social and Emotional Competence

Measures for Early Success

Research-Practice Partnership with Acelero Learning, Inc.

Building and Sustaining the Early Care and Education Workforce (BASE)

Variations in Implementation of Quality Interventions (VIQI): Examining the Quality-Child Outcomes Relationship in Child Care and Early Education

Jumpstart’s Foster Grandparent Program Evaluation

Head Start Connects

What Matters Most for Teachers and Young Children

The Expanding Children’s Early Learning (ExCEL) Network

The High 5s Project

Making Pre-K Count

Head Start CARES Project

Foundations of Learning Project

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Preschool

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