Search Results
Title: The Impacts of an Early Entry Age Into the Head Start Program on Children's Developmental Outcomes
Resulting in 1 citation.
| 1. |
Lee, Kyunghee |
|
The Impacts of an Early Entry Age Into the Head Start Program on Children's Developmental Outcomes Ph. D. Dissertation, Columbia University, 2007. DAI-A 68/06, Dec 2007 Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79 Publisher: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) Keyword(s): Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Childhood Education, Early; Head Start; Home Observation for Measurement of Environment (HOME); Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Math); Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Reading) Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. Many children are attending early educational programs at an earlier age than ever before. This trend is reflected in the age composition of enrollees in the Head Start program. Despite these changes, evaluations of Head Start have not acknowledged children's entry ages until recently. The present study was designed based on a theoretical foundation that presumes the positive effects of an earlier intervention and the understanding of ecological human development. The aim of the proposed study is to examine how entering the Head Start Program at an early age impacts children's short- and long-term developmental outcomes. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) data, a sample of 603 children was selected from those who participated in Head Start in 1988, 1990, 1992, and 1994. The specific study questions addressed were: (1) Is there a relationship between the age of entering Head Start and children's academic and behavioral outcomes at ages 5-6?; (2) Is there a relationship between the age of entering Head Start and children's academic and behavioral outcomes at ages 11-12?; and (3) Is there an association between the short-term and long-term outcomes? Additionally, this study will consider how each of these associations differs depending on maternal education, controlling for individual, family, and contextual characteristics. Findings indicated that entering Head Start at age 3 was positively associated with both short- and long-term outcomes; additionally, the short-term outcomes were significantly associated with the long-term. These positive effects were more pronounced for children whose mothers had higher levels of education. Policy implications suggest that children should be enrolled in Head Start by age 3 with concurrent family support systems in order to maximize their short- and long-term benefits. Additionally, future evaluation studies of Head Start should include both short- and long-term outcomes and consider various individual, fam ily, and societal characteristics to determine its true benefits. |
|
|
Bibliography Citation
Lee, Kyunghee. The Impacts of an Early Entry Age Into the Head Start Program on Children's Developmental Outcomes. Ph. D. Dissertation, Columbia University, 2007. DAI-A 68/06, Dec 2007. |