Program Effectiveness
Research Report
The New Mexico PreK Evaluation
Results from the Initial Four Years of a New State Preschool Initiative
Date
November 1, 2009
By Jason T. Hustedt, W. Steven Barnett, Kwanghee Jung, and Linda D. Goetze
November 2009
State-funded prekindergarten programs now play a major role in children’s educational experiences during the year before kindergarten entry. Established in 2005, New Mexico’s state-funded prekindergarten initiative, New Mexico PreK, is one of the most recently started prekindergarten initiatives in the United States and has expanded quickly during the past four years.
The state of New Mexico funded the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) to carry out a comprehensive evaluation of the New Mexico PreK initiative, beginning in its first year of operation. This evaluation has included four main components:
- Examining the benefits received by children who participate in PreK
- Investigating PreK classroom quality
- Conducting an analysis of the economic impacts of the PreK program
- Gathering information about parent and provider perceptions toward the PreK
initiative through focus groups
Key findings from this research include:
- New Mexico PreK produces meaningful impacts on young children’s language, literacy, and math development
- Overall classroom quality is good, but some improvements are needed, particularly in classroom support for early mathematics
- Impacts of PreK and classroom quality are similar for PreK program sites administered by the state Public Education Department and the state Children, Youth and Families Department
- An estimated $5 in benefits is generated in New Mexico for every dollar invested in New Mexico PreK
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.
Kwanghee Jung, an assistant research professor, brings to NIEER expertise in quantitative data analysis and is working on studies that analyze the effect of participation in state-funded preschool on children’s learning and development.