Teachers' views of the impact of the Good Start, Grow Smart Early Childhood Initiative on Head Start programs in a western Maryland community

AbstractDespite their potentially central role in fostering school readiness, executive function (EF) skills have received little explicit attention in the design and evaluation of school readiness interventions for socioeconomically disadvantaged children. The present study examined a set of five EF measures in the context of a randomized-controlled trial of a research-based intervention integrated into Head Start programs (Head Start REDI). Three hundred fifty-six 4-year-old children (17% Hispanic, 25% African American; 54% girls) were followed over the course of the prekindergarten year. Initial EF predicted gains in cognitive and social–emotional skills and moderated the impact of the Head Start REDI intervention on some outcomes. The REDI intervention promoted gains on two EF measures, which partially mediated intervention effects on school readiness. We discuss the importance of further study of the neurobiological bases of school readiness, the implications for intervention design, and the value of incorporating markers of neurobiological processes into school readiness interventions.

Download Full-text

Infusing Indigenous Knowledge and Epistemologies: Learning From Teachers in Northern Aboriginal Head Start Classrooms

McGill Journal of Education ◽

10.7202/1056281ar ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 53 (1) ◽

pp. 26-46

Author(s):

Shelley Stagg Peterson ◽

Soon Young Jang ◽

Jayson San Miguel ◽

Sandra Styres ◽

Audrey Madsen

Keyword(s):

Early Childhood ◽

Head Start ◽

Indigenous Knowledge ◽

Early Childhood Educators ◽

Residential Schools ◽

Indigenous Languages ◽

Indigenous Language ◽

Classroom Teaching ◽

Family Stability ◽

The Impact

Five Aboriginal Head Start early childhood educators from a northern Canadian community participated in interviews for the purpose of informing non-Indigenous teachers’ classroom teaching. Their observations and experiences highlight the importance of learning from and on the land alongside family members, and of family stability and showing acceptance of all children. Additionally, participants talked of the impact of residential schools on their families in terms of loss of their Indigenous language, and their attempts to learn and to teach the children in their classrooms the Indigenous languages and teachings.

Download Full-text

Head Start and Families’ Recovery from Economic Recession: Policy Recommendations for COVID-19

10.31235/osf.io/zgbkr ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

William Scarborough ◽

Caitlyn Collins ◽

Leah Ruppanner ◽

Liana Christin Landivar

Keyword(s):

Head Start ◽

Young Children ◽

Great Recession ◽

Economic Recession ◽

State Level ◽

Policy Recommendations ◽

The Great Recession ◽

Level Data ◽

Head Start Programs ◽

The Impact

Objective: This article examines whether the availability of Head Start during the Great Recession mitigated the impact of this crisis on poverty rates among families with young children.Background: The first two decades of the 21st century have witnessed two major economic crises: the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic. Poverty rates among families with young children grew substantially during the Great Recession. Families with young children are also more vulnerable to instability during the COVID-19 pandemic as job losses have been steeper and childcare availability has been significantly curtailed. Programs like Head Start that support at-risk families may mitigate such negative consequences.Method: This study uses data from the American Community Survey from 2006 through 2016 and state-level data on Head Start availability from Program Information Reports. Growth curve modeling is used to examine how the availability of Head Start predicted poverty growth during the Great Recession and the speed of recovery post-recession.Results: States with higher rates of Head Start enrollment had a smaller increase in family poverty during the Great Recession and a more stable recovery than states with lower Head Start enrollment.Conclusions: These findings suggest that greater access to Head Start programs prevented many families from falling into poverty and helped others exit poverty during the Great Recession.Implications: The findings provide clear, evidence-based policy recommendations. Increased federal funding for Head Start is needed to support families during a COVID-19 recession. States should supplement these allocations to expand Head Start enrollment for all eligible families.

Download Full-text