According to research, the difference in learning resources both within and outside the home for children growing up in low-income households and children from more affluent homes is associated, on average, with gaps in their cognitive development that

Our new national report, Pre-K in American Cities, finds a growing number of large US cities enacting new local funding streams to establish and support Pre-K, yet many programs fail to meet minimum quality standards or serve only a small percentage of

Most of us want to tell the world about the success of our early childhood program. We especially want to tell others how we built it into a good program, the difficulties we overcame, and the lessons learned. We hope our experience will help others av

When I arrived at the Vermont Department of Education in 1991 to assume responsibilities as the Early Childhood Education Coordinator, I was eager and well-intentioned – but pretty much clueless. Where do I begin as a public servant leader? What do I d

This blog was originally published by New America in conjunction with publication of its policy report A Focus on Teaching and Learning in Pre-K through Second Grade: Lessons from Boston. Despite growing pre-K enrollment across the country, there is an

Our National Teacher of the Year Program (NTOY) recognizes educators across the country and empowers them to participate in policy discussions that will have a direct impact on their students. Through this program and other educator engagement initiati

NIEER’s new state-by-state analysis evaluates how well 59 state-funded preschool programs satisfy a list of “essential elements” characterizing high-quality programs—and finds widespread change is needed to provide the high-quality early learning oppor

In India, there is a high demand for affordable private preschools (APSs). Unfortunately, despite the motivations of parents and their investments, students’ learning outcomes remain poor. PIPE: A case study of systems approach for scaling quality earl

I have owned an accredited early learning center for the past 13 years, serving 150 children and employing approximately 30 people. But this year we, like many others in the childcare field, are struggling to hire teachers, as early childhood centers c

As voters consider whether to continue investing public dollars in the  Seattle Preschool Program, our multi-year evaluation indicates that, so far, it has been money well spent. Four years ago, Seattle voters approved a $58 million property tax levy t

Fall is a harbinger of so many things.  For some, it’s the start of a new school year and the promise of new learning and skills.  For others, it’s the start of football season and the possibility of the NY Giants making the playoffs (I know, I know…bu

Family involvement programs can look great on paper and yet fail miserably. Programs can have defined goals, a well-defined time frame and program structure, research-based curricula, proven results for a specific target population, and still fail to p

This blog was first published by New America. Since Bright Horizons Family Solutions announced a new initiative this summer to pay for its teachers to obtain an AA or BA degree, about 200 employees have started classes, and more have meetings set with

The annual CEELO/NAESC-SDE Roundtable brings together state early education specialists, national experts and advocates to share ideas, generate new ones, and reboot our collective enthusiasm for the challenge of improving children’s lives through educ

The State of Preschool 2017 report makes it easy to figure out how many children in your state attend public pre-K. Or whether your state, or others, permits bilingual instruction in pre-K classrooms. And if  someone with only a high school diploma is

Support for public funding of high-quality preschool is near universal; elected officials from both parties at all levels of government, business people, law enforcement professionals, military leaders, pediatricians, neuroscientists, educators and dev

This post re-published with permission from New America. High-quality teachers are an essential component of an effective pre-K program. After all, young children’s learning depends on the quality of interactions they have and the relationships they fo

This week NIEER released its 15th State of Preschool report, providing information on enrollment, spending, and policies related to quality during the 2016-2017 school year for 61 state-funded preschool programs across 43 states, the District of Columb

“Due, perhaps, to the many points of view of those cooperating in the work, the committee has found it a difficult task to outline the minimal essentials for nursery schools without apparently determining procedures which could be interpreted as typica

This guest post from New America and the Education Commission of the States underscores the key role states play on early education policy. Get detailed information about state-funded pre-K programs in The State of Preschool 2017 coming soon! Last mont