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Early Childhood
Sifting Through the Mississippi Evidence
Publication Date
July 14, 2026
Authors
Gregory Camilli, Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University
Research Areas
Assessment & Accountability; Early Childhood; Curriculum & Instruction
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
New review uses Progressive Policy Institute report as starting point to try to better understand the impact of literacy reforms and other factors that may have influenced the state's NAEP fourth-grade reading scores.
Review of The Persistence of Religious Discrimination in Publicly Funded Pre-K Programs
Publication Date
May 1, 2025
Authors
Nicole Stelle Garnett, Tim Rosenberger, and J. Theodore Austin; Joshua Weishart, Suffolk University Law School
Research Areas
Early Childhood; Equity & Civil Rights; School Choice & Vouchers; School Funding
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from the Manhattan Institute asserts that many religious pre-K providers are being unconstitutionally excluded from publicly funded education programs that remain open to other private schools. But incomplete research and methodological flaws render the report of relatively little value to policymakers or the public.
Review of Off Track: An Assessment of Wisconsin's Early Care and Learning System for Young Children
Publication Date
January 31, 2023
Authors
Angela Rachidi; W. Steven Barnett, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Early Childhood; Equity & Civil Rights
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Badger report presents data on trends in Wisconsin's ECE system. It then identifies government regulations-particularly those focused on improving teacher-child interactions--as a problem, concluding that those regulations have limited supply, decreased parental choice in providers, and increased costs. Its recommendations include reducing continuous improvement efforts focused on quality while increasing performance accountability (aka testing burdens), consolidating state agencies, and increasing parental control over use of government childcare subsidies.
Review of The Drawbacks of Universal Pre-K: A Review of the Evidence
Publication Date
April 20, 2021
Authors
Max Eden
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The Manhattan Institute recently published a brief, The Drawbacks of Universal Pre-K: A Review of the Evidence, which reviews evidence relating to both means-tested and universal early childhood care and education programs.
Review of Comparing Ed Reforms: Assessing the Experimental Research on Nine K-12 Education Reforms
Publication Date
May 26, 2020
Authors
Paul DiPerna; Bruce D. Baker, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Equity & Civil Rights; Assessment & Accountability; Early Childhood; Governance & Public Education; School Choice & Vouchers
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A recent report from EdChoice, working with Hanover Research, identifies and reviews studies that use Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) to determine student achievement or educational attainment outcomes of nine broad "education reform" areas.
2018 Teacher Prep Review, National Council on Teacher Quality
Publication Date
June 12, 2018
Authors
Robert Rickenbrode, Graham Drake, Laura Pomerance, and Kate Walsh; Marilyn Cochran-Smith of Boston College, Elizabeth Stringer Keefe of Lesley University, Wen-Chia Chang of Boston College, and Molly Cummings Carney of Boston College
Research Areas
Early Childhood; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) released its “2018 Teacher Prep Review,” examining whether U.S. teacher preparation programs are aligned with NCTQ’s standards. This alignment, the report insists, will produce teachers “ready to achieve individual successes, but also [ready] to start a broader movement toward increased student learning and proficiency.”
A review of two reports on early childhood education (ECE) teacher preparation.
Publication Date
May 8, 2018
Authors
Marnie Kaplan / Emily Workman, Lisa Guernsey, and Sara Mead; Adam Winsler, George Mason University
Research Areas
Early Childhood; Teacher Workforce
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
Two recent reports examined the current state of early childhood education (ECE) teacher preparation at the university and community college levels. Both reports raise awareness about the challenges facing the ECE workforce. A new review out today finds both reports to be mostly sound and useful, although some limitations in research and length were identified.
Do We Already Have Universal Preschool?
Publication Date
November 12, 2015
Authors
Grover J. (Russ) Whitehurst and Ellie Klein; W. Steven Barnett, National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
A Brookings Institution project called “Evidence Speaks” claims in a recent report that advocates exaggerate unmet need as well as the cost of universal pre-kindergarten. Unfortunately, an academic review of the report released today finds the report vastly underestimates unmet need and costs. The report estimates that 69 percent of all four-year-olds already attend preschool and that universal access tops out at 80 percent enrollment. The report estimated that only $2 to $4 billion per year would be needed.
Seeds of Achievement: AppleTree’s Early Childhood D.C. Charter Schools
Publication Date
September 16, 2014
Authors
C. Stillings Candal; W. Steven Barnett and Cynthia E. Lamy, National Institute for Early Education Research
Research Areas
Charter Schools; Early Childhood
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report, funded by the Pioneer Institute and written by Cara Stillings Candal, presents a case, based on anecdotes and basic data, that the AppleTree model, a well-regarded early childhood program in the Washington D.C. area, is “unusually effective” and should be replicated across the nation.
Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking—Preschool Education
Publication Date
November 13, 2012
Authors
William Mathis, University of Colorado-Boulder
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
Dr. William Mathis, managing director of the National Education Policy Center, summarizes research findings on the effects of high-quality preschool programs. This three-page brief is part of Research-Based Options for Education Policymaking, a multipart brief that takes up a number of important policy issues and identifies policies supported by research.
Preschool Education and Its Lasting Effects: Research and Policy Implications
Publication Date
September 10, 2008
Authors
W. Steven Barnett, Ph.D., National Institute for Early Education Research Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Policy Brief
Summary
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How Sound an Investment? Analysis of Federal Prekindergarten Proposals
Publication Date
March 24, 2008
Authors
W. Steven Barnett, Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report considers current proposals for federal involvement in prekindergarten (pre-K). It concludes that federally funded preschool program for all children would be unnecessarily expensive, provide little benefit to most children, decrease options for parents and could likely impair the social development of many children.
Assessing Proposals for Preschool and Kindergarten: Essential Information for Parents, Taxpayers and Policymakers
Publication Date
May 31, 2006
Authors
W. Steven Barnett, Rutgers University
Research Areas
Early Childhood
Publication Type
Think Twice
Summary
This report reviews studies and accounts of early childhood programs and presents an argument against universal pre-school and all-day kindergarten programs.
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