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Impact of an Early Reading First program on the language and literacy achievement of children from diverse language backgrounds
Wilson, Sandra Jo, Q3 2013
Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 28(3), 578-592

This study used an age-cutoff regression discontinuity design to examine the impact of a well-resourced Early Reading First prekindergarten program designed to foster the language and literacy development of 4-year-old children from low-income homes. A special challenge for the application of the language-rich curriculum and professional development package implemented in this study was the presence of a large proportion of ELL children in essentially English-speaking classrooms. We, therefore, sought to determine whether the program was effective for improving English language and literacy outcomes for English-language learners as well as native English speakers. There were large and significant differences between treatment and control groups on literacy outcomes for all students. On the literacy tasks, ELL students in the treatment groups performed nearly as well or better than non-ELL students at the beginning of kindergarten, and reached national norms on standardized tests. There were also significant program impacts on some language outcomes for all students. ELL students who received the intervention significantly outperformed ELL students in the control groups on English receptive and expressive vocabulary. On the more complex oral comprehension skills, preschool did not have a significant impact for ELL students. Intervention effects on receptive vocabulary and oral comprehension for native speakers were found only for the third cohort and were not found for expressive vocabulary. These results provide evidence that, given material supports, coaching, professional development, and the use of a language and literacy-focused curriculum, prekindergarten classrooms can enable low-SES children from diverse language backgrounds to enter kindergarten with literacy skills at or near national norms and can significantly impact some language skills. While non-native speakers of English continued to score lower on language measures than their native-speaking peers, results show that 1 year of preschool can put all children on a positive trajectory for long-term success in school.

Reports & Papers

Trends in group child care home licensing regulations and policies for 2011
National Center on Child Care Quality Improvement, April, 2013
(Research Brief No. 3). Fairfax, VA: National Center on Child Care Quality Improvement

An analysis of state group child care home licensing requirements and policies, including those related to staffing, group size, health and nutrition, inspections, monitoring, and enforcement, based on a survey of state child care licensing agencies and a compilation of state licensing requirements

Reports & Papers

Trends in child care center licensing regulations and policies for 2011
National Center on Child Care Quality Improvement, April, 2013
(Research Brief No. 1). Fairfax, VA: National Center on Child Care Quality Improvement

An analysis of state child care center licensing requirements and policies, including those related to staffing, child-adult ratios, health and nutrition, inspections, monitoring, and enforcement, based on a survey of state child care licensing agencies and a compilation of state licensing requirements

Reports & Papers

The state of preschool 2012: State preschool yearbook
Barnett, W. Steven, 2012
New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research.

An annual review of access to, quality standards in, and resources devoted to state-funded preschool programs for 3- and 4-year-old children in all 50 states and the District of Columbia during the 2011-2012 program year, based on a survey of administrators of state-funded preschool programs

Reports & Papers