
ERIC Number: ED518664
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Jun-14
Pages: 186
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Using Television as a Teaching Tool: The Impacts of "Ready To Learn" Workshops on Parents, Educators, and the Children in Their Care. Final Report. MPR Reference No. 8778-750
Boller, Kimberly; Vogel, Cheri; Johnson, Amy; Novak, Tim; James-Burdumy, Susanne; Crozier, Lindsay; Uhl, Stacey
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
In 2000, PBS contracted with Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. (MPR) to conduct a five-year evaluation of "Ready To Learn" outreach. The evaluation includes an impact study of the effects of "Ready To Learn" workshops on participating parents and early childhood educators, as well as on the preschool children in their care. Conducted in 20 "Ready To Learn" stations, the impact study includes an experimental design with random assignment of interested parents and early childhood educators to either a "Ready To Learn" workshop or a control group that did not receive a "Ready To Learn" workshop. In addition, the impact study includes a descriptive analysis of the content and quality of the 85 "Ready To Learn" workshops that study participants attended. This document, which is the second of two impact study reports, reviews the content and quality of the observed workshops and the characteristics of the parents and educators in the study, and examines the impacts of attending a "Ready To Learn" workshop on parents, early childhood educators, and the children in their care, measured six months after workshop participation. Twenty "Ready To Learn" stations were purposively selected to participate in the impact study. "Ready To Learn" Coordinators at each of these stations worked with their community partners to recruit parents or educators of children 3 to 5 years old for study workshops. From September 2002 through April 2003, stations recruited 1,415 parents and 904 educators to participate in the impact study, and MPR conducted structured observations of 85 workshops. Random assignment was successful in this study. The response rates for adults completing a baseline survey, a 3-month telephone interview, and a 6-month interview were high, with an overall response rate of 99 percent for the baseline, 90 percent for the 3-month follow-up, and 87 percent for the 6-month follow-up. The following are appended: (1) PBS "Ready To Learn" Television Service Outreach Data Collection and Reporting Requirements; (2) Chapter II Supplemental Tables; (3) Technical Notes; (4) Chapter III Supplemental Table; (5) Chapter IV Supplemental Table; and (6) Chapter V Supplemental Tables. (Individual chapters and appendixes contain footnotes, tables, and figures.)
Descriptors: Control Groups, Research Design, Learning Readiness, Preschool Children, Program Effectiveness, Interaction, Workshops, Television, Evaluation Methods, Early Childhood Education, Interviews, Feedback (Response), Adults, Parent Attitudes
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. P.O. Box 2393, Princeton, NJ 08543-2393. Tel: 609-799-3535; Fax: 609-799-0005; e-mail: info@mathematica-mpr.com; Web site: http://www.mathematica-mpr.com
Publication Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: Parents; Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: Department of Education (ED)
Authoring Institution: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.; Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A