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Early Childhood Intervention Programs: What Do We Know?

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  • Janet Currie

Abstract

It is disappointing that numerous studies have not produced more consistent evidence of the long-term effectiveness (or lack of effectiveness) of early intervention. However, all studies are not created equal, and better studies tend to find larger and more significant long-term effects. Moreover, we show below that the proven short- and medium-term benefits of Head Start already pay back much of the cost of the program.

The existing literature also provides some guidelines for the design of early intervention programs. Specifically, it suggests that while it may be useful to intervene before 3 years old, interventions for preschool and school age children can also be effective. Second, the effects of early intervention are generally larger for more disadvantaged children, which provides a rationale for targeting such programs to these children. Third, the most important aspect of child care quality is the nature of the interaction between the teacher and the child. Small group sizes, better teacher training, and other regulable aspects of quality all make positive interactions more likely. Moreover, even rather loose federal oversight of these observable aspects of quality can be effective in eliminating poor-quality programs.

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by Northwestern University/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research in its series JCPR Working Papers with number 169.

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Date of creation: 25 May 2000
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Handle: RePEc:wop:jopovw:169

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References

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  1. Janet Currie & Duncan Thomas, 1993. "Does Head Start Make a Difference?," NBER Working Papers 4406, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  2. Eliana Garces & Duncan Thomas & Janet Currie, 2002. "Longer-Term Effects of Head Start," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(4), pages 999-1012, September.
  3. Janet Currie, 1998. "The Effect of Welfare on Child Outcomes: What We Know and What We Need to Know," JCPR Working Papers 26, Northwestern University/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research.
  4. Hotz, V.J. & Kilburn, M.R., 1995. "Regulating Child Care: The Effetcs of State Regulation on Child Care Demand and its Cost," Papers 95-03, RAND - Labor and Population Program.
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Cited by:
  1. Pierre Lefebvre & Philip Merrigan, 2000. "The Effect of Childcare and Early Education Arrangements on Developmental Outcomes of Young Children," Cahiers de recherche CREFE / CREFE Working Papers 119, CREFE, Université du Québec à Montréal.
  2. Daniel Miles, . "Can we teach civic attitudes?," Studies on the Spanish Economy 225, FEDEA.
  3. Alan Krueger, 2002. "Inequality, Too Much of a Good Thing," Working Papers 845, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
  4. Pierre Lefebvre & Philip Merrigan, 2005. "Low-fee ($5/day/child) Regulated Childcare Policy and the Labor Supply of Mothers with Young Children: A Natural Experiment from Canada / La politique des services de garde à 5 $/jour et l’offre de," CIRANO Working Papers 2005s-08, CIRANO.
  5. Matthew J. Neidell, 2000. "Early Parental Time Investments In Children's Human Capital Development: Effects Of Time In The First Year On Cognitive And Non-Cognitive Outcomes," UCLA Economics Working Papers 806, UCLA Department of Economics.
  6. Currie, Janet & Neidell, Matthew, 2007. "Getting inside the "Black Box" of Head Start quality: What matters and what doesn't," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 83-99, February.
  7. Corak, Miles, 2001. "Are the Kids All Right? Intergenerational Mobility and Child Well-being in Canada," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2001171e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
  8. Gosta Esping-Andersen, 2008. "Childhood investments and skill formation," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 19-44, February.

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