Heckman et al. discuss how cost-benefit analysis of prekindergarten education programs demonstrates that the highest per child benefits stem from programs that focus on economically disadvantaged children. Indeed, studies have shown that these children make significant gains in cognition, social-emotional development, and educational performance…

In light of the continuing debate surrounding bilingual education, there has been a renewed interest to examine the perceptions and views on the subject from various constituents. The purpose of this study was to examine the group who is the target of and most affected by this controversy--English language learners. The study surveyed 280 Latino…

The Comprehensive Services Program of Palm Beach County, Florida, was an ambitious and innovative effort to improve the school readiness of low-income children in Palm Beach County by identifying needs early and providing early intervention services to support physical, cognitive, and emotional health and development. Services were delivered to…

The Observational Study of Early Childhood Programs, which examined 119 preschool programs in 5 states, was designed to describe the classroom experiences of economically or educationally disadvantaged 4-year-olds and to examine linkages between characteristics of early childhood programs and activities of children and teachers in the classroom.…

A study was conducted involving 213 children who were either in junior kindergarten in 1978 and first grade in 1980 (69 children) or in senior kindergarten in 1978 and second grade in 1980 (144 children). Of these, 76 children had been identified by their kindergarten teachers as "thriving," 80 as "making average progress," and…

To make Head Start studies more accessible and to inform concerned audiences about major findings in the research, this volume provides a review of 124 Head Start studies published since 1970 and presents an annotated bibliography containing 1,448 entries on Head Start research undertaken since 1965. The literature review summarizes findings…

Explored within-group effects of mother-infant attachment and day care on children's social and emotional development in a high-risk, low income sample of mothers and infants who entered day care early, and a home-reared, middle-class sample of infants and their mothers. Found that the effects of early day care are influenced by security of…

This paper deals with Nurture Groups, which are a specialist form of provision for pupils with social, emotional and learning difficulties. The paper outlines the theoretical underpinnings of the NG approach and describes the practical arrangements and operations features of this form of provision. Evidence from research studies exploring the…

This article examines two programs chosen by the Early Head Start National Resource Center (EHSNRC) Pathways to Prevention (PTP) initiative to participate in a study of their mental health services. Both Wyoming's The Learning Center and Colorado's Developmental Opportunities found that working with the PTP mental health consultant catalyzed…

PROJECT HEAD START WAS CONCEIVED IN PART, TO INCREASE THE ORDINARILY REDUCED NUMBER OF CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE CHILD AND OTHER PEOPLE. FOUR QUESTIONS WERE ASKED. (1) WOULD THE DEVELOPMENT OF SELF-SOCIAL CONSTRUCTS OF HEAD START CHILDREN DIFFER FROM THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN IN A CONTROL GROUP. (2) WOULD HEAD START CHILDREN DEVELOP APPROPRIATE…

The principal objective of this part of the multimethod Head Start bilingual/bicultural curriculum evaluation (Juarez and Associates, 1980) was to determine the effectiveness of four early childhood bilingual/bicultural curriculum models developed for Spanish-speaking children. The eight programs assessed had implemented the Alerta, Amanecer,…

The New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) launched services under its Out-of-School Time (OST) Programs for Youth in September 2005, with the award of funds to support more than 500 programs across New York City. Together, DYCD and the city's nonprofit community, working closely with the New York City Department of…

A 3-year experiment evaluated the effectiveness of the Pyramid program, an educational program for young children from deprived situations and based on two concepts: psychological nearness (principles of attachment theory) and psychological distance (derived from developmental distancing, or the growing ability of a child to comprehend that an…

This action research project implemented an intervention program to increase prosocial skills among 3- to 5-year-olds in at-risk prekindergarten classrooms. Participating were 65 students from 2 prekindergarten classrooms in 2 schools. Evidence of problems in social skills was gathered through anecdotal records and observational checklists…

Uses case studies to assess extent to which the "Bubble Dialogue," an application supporting role-play within a comic strip environment, helps abused, adopted, and foster children express feelings, reflect, and debate pertinent issues. Study of the application with comparison group in primary school provides baseline data. Issues arising…