As the longest-running longitudinal study in early education, The Perry Preschool Project continues to prove that investing in high-quality early education yields positive results for children and families. It started in 1962 with the aim to determine if access to high-quality education could have a positive impact on preschool children and their communities.
The results were irrefutable: children in the preschool education group had a higher high school graduation rate, lower incarceration rate, earned a higher income, as well as were less likely to be arrested. The Perry Preschool Project established the lasting human and financial value of early childhood education and led to the establishment of the HighScope Educational Research Foundation and one of the first early childhood programs in the US intentionally designed to increase school success for preschool children living in poverty.
For More In-Depth Information:
https://highscope.org/perry-preschool-project/
The longitudinal study found that at age 40, the participants who experienced the preschool program:
The Abecedarian Project was started in 1971 at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, by Craig Ramsey, PhD (In Psychology) and Joseph Sparling, Senior Investigator and associate professor and former school principal. Investigators Ramsey and Sparling wanted to expand on The Perry Preschool Project to include infants to 5 years. The Abecedarian approach focused on four key elements: Language Priority, Conversational Reading, Enriched Caregiving, and Learning Games. Aside from the educational aspect, the children received their healthcare onsite from staff pediatricians.
Ramsey and Sparling tracked these children into their 40s and are continuing their study of the effects of early influences on a child’s development. The findings are undeniable, and include: higher IQ tests by age 3, less likely to fail a grade by age 8, by ages 12-15, they had better math, reading, and writing scores, and by age 21 more likely to attend college.
Once the test subjects reached their 40s, the assessments measured not external milestones, but focused on the health of the alumni, showing that the graduates had lower blood pressure, and none of the men had any issues that would put them at risk for heart attack or stroke.
For More In-Depth Information:
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/science-of-preschool/
This article details how the Abecedarian Project, one of the longest-running educational experiments in history, got its start and is continuing to produce critical information related to the importance of early childhood education and development. “[R]esearch that is still changing how we think about intelligence, poverty, and the child brain.”
https://abc.fpg.unc.edu/
The Abecedarian Project, one of the world’s oldest and most oft-cited early childhood education programs, marked its 42nd anniversary last year with groundbreaking findings from principal investigator Frances A. Campbell, Nobel laureate James J. Heckman, and their colleagues—as well as several new international initiatives that showcase adaptations of the curriculum that the project first developed four decades ago.
https://abc.fpg.unc.edu/follow-up-studies/
The economic benefit [is] clear. For every dollar spent on the program, taxpayers saved $2.50 as a result of higher incomes, less need for educational and government services, and reduced health care costs. In short, the project has demonstrated that high-quality, enriched early education environments can help children surmount some of the disadvantages of poverty. Not only can the effects be far-reaching as children progress through adulthood, but the long term savings to society also can be considerable. And 2014’s new findings suggest those benefits both to people who receive high-quality education and care and to society at large may be even more comprehensive than research previously has shown.
James Heckman, Nobel Laureate economist, using data from several long term studies, including the Perry Preschool Project, the Abecedarian Project, CARE program, as well as many others, proves the value of investing in high quality early care and learning for disadvantaged children.
For More In-Depth Information:
https://heckmanequation.org/resource/perry-intergenerational-effects-summary/
Preschool helps 3 generations: the preschooler’s family, the preschooler, and the preschooler’s future family. By providing resources for all children to attend preschool, we can help end the poverty cycle, resulting in less costly social services. Helping families with early care and learning helps grow a more vibrant economy.
https://heckmanequation.org/www/assets/2020/11/F_Heckman_FFN_OnePager_110320.pdf
Investing in early childcare and education produces significant economic returns. Research by Nobel Laureate economist James Heckman shows the value of investing in high-quality early care and learning for disadvantaged children. He finds that every dollar spent on high-quality, birth-to-five programs for disadvantaged children can deliver a 13% per annum return on investment from better education and health outcomes for children, employment gains for parents, greater economic productivity and reduced spending on healthcare and crime.
The Blue Rose Foundation believes that equal access to resources starts children on an early pathway to success, and strengthens our families and communities. By awarding preschool scholarships to children from economically disadvantaged families, we foster a life-long love of learning and provide the children with the tools to reach their full potential.
A world where every child has the ability to attend an accredited, respected preschool to help prepare that child for a successful educational career.
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