Research findings: In recent decades, pre-kindergarten and early elementary instruction have shifted toward a more structured and academic approach, yet little evidence suggests children's outcomes have improved as a result. Emergent curricula, an alternative model for education, put children's interests and questions at the center of learning and…

As states and districts expand access to publicly funded PreK programs, researchers and policymakers have been grappling with experimental evidence demonstrating that the benefits of PreK on academic skills are not likely to last into early elementary school. A leading hypothesis to explain this phenomenon is that PreK and the elementary grades…