Research Report

Improving Early Education Programs Through Data-based Decision Making

By Shannon Riley-Ayers, Ellen Frede, W. Steven Barnett, and Kimberly Brenneman (2011)

While state-funded preschool programs have been growing, reliable guidance on how best to study program effectiveness remains limited. This working paper from NIEER presents five options for studying program effectiveness, summarizing each option in chart form and providing estimated costs for each evaluation.

The Authors

W. Steven (Steve) Barnett is a Board of Governors Professor and the founder and Senior Co-Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. Dr. Barnett’s work primarily focuses on public policies regarding early childhood education, child care, and child development.