Population: Children and Schools

Preschool Children

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

The Latest
Issue Focus

Investing in the Early Care and Education Workforce

Even before the COVID-19 crisis, early care and education providers faced challenges attracting and retaining qualified, well-trained, and diverse early educators — and staff turnover can affect children’s early progress. Three approaches may help improve these workers’ access to professional education, their overall economic well-being, and their sometimes difficult working conditions.

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Brief

Supporting the Implementation of High-Quality Early Childhood Curricula in Preschool Programs

More children spend time in preschool now than a decade ago, but not all of them get educational programs of the same quality. This brief explores how to put new classroom curricula in place across multiple schools to bolster classroom quality, instructional practices, and children’s skills.

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Key Documents
Brief

Delivering on the Promise of Preschool: Investing in Social and Emotional Development and Early Math Skills

How do we make the most of the promise of preschool, particularly as preschool programs become universal? How do we avoid the “fade out” of early positive effects as children transition to elementary school? Part of our “Looking Forward” series, this policy memo describes how enhancing children’s social and emotional development and their early math skills may be part of the answer.

 

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Issue Focus

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.

 

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Issue Focus

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.

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