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Impact evaluation of three types of early childhood development interventions in Cambodia

Author

Listed:
  • Bouguen, Adrien
  • Filmer, Deon
  • Macours, Karen
  • Naudeau, Sophie

Abstract

Scaling up early childhood development services has the potential to increase children's cognitive and socio-emotional development and promote school readiness in a large segment of the population. This study used a randomized controlled trial approach to evaluate three scaled-up programs designed to widen access to early childhood development services: formal preschools, community preschools, and home-based services. The impacts of all three programs fell short of expectations because of two key flaws in how they were scaled up. First, implementation did not receive due attention; as a result, school facilities were not completed as planned, community-based programs were not always established, and low, irregular stipends created difficulties in hiring and retaining teachers. Second, the services that were available were not promoted and thus not used as widely as anticipated. The results imply that the quality of programs supplied is critical, as is attention to the demand side of the problem. The finding that these programs fell short of expectations does not mean that interventions such as these are ineffective. Rather, it indicates that quality and demand require careful attention in attempts to scale up early childhood development interventions, and any problems should be addressed prior to evaluating effectiveness.

Suggested Citation

  • Bouguen, Adrien & Filmer, Deon & Macours, Karen & Naudeau, Sophie, 2013. "Impact evaluation of three types of early childhood development interventions in Cambodia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6540, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:6540
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Karen Macours & Norbert Schady & Renos Vakis, 2012. "Cash Transfers, Behavioral Changes, and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 4(2), pages 247-273, April.
    2. Norbert Schady & Jere Behrman & Maria Caridad Araujo & Rodrigo Azuero & Raquel Bernal & David Bravo & Florencia Lopez-Boo & Karen Macours & Daniela Marshall & Christina Paxson & Renos Vakis, 2015. "Wealth Gradients in Early Childhood Cognitive Development in Five Latin American Countries," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 446-463.
    3. Elizabeth M. King & Jere R. Behrman, 2009. "Timing and Duration of Exposure in Evaluations of Social Programs," World Bank Research Observer, World Bank Group, vol. 24(1), pages 55-82, February.
    4. Norbert Schady & Jere Behrman & Maria Caridad Araujo & Rodrigo Azuero & Raquel Bernal & David Bravo & Florencia Lopez-Boo & Karen Macours & Daniela Marshall & Christina Paxson & Renos Vakis, 2015. "Wealth Gradients in Early Childhood Cognitive Development in Five Latin American Countries," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 446-463.
    5. Ghuman, Sharon & Behrman, Jere R & Borja, Judith B & Gultiano, Socorro & King, Elizabeth M, 2005. "Family Background, Service Providers, and Early Childhood Development in the Philippines: Proxies and Interactions," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 54(1), pages 129-164, October.
    6. Jeffrey R. Kling & Jeffrey B. Liebman, 2004. "Experimental Analysis of Neighborhood Effects on Youth," Working Papers 1, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    7. repec:idb:brikps:publication-detail,7101.html?id=32886 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Karen Macours & Norbert Schady & Renos Vakis, 2012. "Cash Transfers, Behavioral Changes, and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 4(2), pages 247-273, April.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Adrien Bouguen & Deon Filmer & Karen Macours & Sophie Naudeau, 2018. "Preschool and Parental Response in a Second Best World: Evidence from a School Construction Experiment," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 53(2), pages 474-512.
    2. Barrera-Osorio, Felipe & Raju, Dhushyanth, 2017. "Teacher performance pay: Experimental evidence from Pakistan," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 75-91.
    3. World Bank, 2017. "Pre-Primary Education in Mongolia," World Bank Other Operational Studies 26402, The World Bank.
    4. Jung, Haeil & Hasan, Amer, 2014. "The impact of early childhood education on early achievement gaps : evidence from the Indonesia early childhood education and development (ECED) project," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6794, The World Bank.
    5. El-Kogali,Safaa El Tayeb & Krafft,Caroline Gould & Abdelkhalek,Touhami & Benkassmi,Mohamed & Chavez,Monica I. & Bassett,Lucy Katherine & Ejjanoui,Fouzia & El-Kogali,Safaa El Tayeb & Krafft,Caroline Go, 2016. "Inequality of opportunity in early childhood development in Morocco over time," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7670, The World Bank.
    6. Bouguen, Adrien & Filmer, Deon & Macours, Karen & Naudeau, Sophie, 2014. "Preschools and early childhood development in a second best world: Evidence from a scaled-up experiment in Cambodia," CEPR Discussion Papers 10170, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    7. Brinkman,Sally Anne & Hasan,Amer & Jung,Haeil & Kinnell,Angela & Pradhan,Menno Prasad, 2015. "The impact of expanding access to early childhood services in rural Indonesia : evidence from two cohorts of children," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7372, The World Bank.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Primary Education; Educational Sciences; Education For All; Youth and Governance; Adolescent Health;

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