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Office of Shared Accountability Reports

Impact of Full-day Head Start Prekindergarten Class Model on Student Academic Performance, Cognitive Skills, and Learning Behaviors by the End of Grade 2

Description:

This brief describes an evaluation study about the impact of the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) 2007–2008 full-day Head Start prekindergarten (pre-K) class model on student academic performance, cognitive skills, and learning behaviors by the end of Grade 2. By Grade 2, students who attended the full-day Head Start pre-K classes in 2007–2008 performed at the same level on most of the outcome measures, when compared to the three comparison groups: 1) the half-day Head Start pre-K group, 2) the MCPS partial-day pre-K group, and 3) their peers who entered the MCPS kindergarten in 2008–2009 with no MCPS pre-K experience.

Recommendations:

  • Examine the pre-K curriculum to ensure that critical thinking skills are included.
  • Focus on instruction of critical thinking skills in pre-K through subsequent grades.
  • Explore and develop strategies to improve student's learning skills through collaboration with teachers and parents.
  • Continue to monitor the progress of students who received pre-K services in MCPS, and provide support when appropriate to sustain their academic gains as they transition to Grade 1 and beyond.

    File Name: Impact by Grade 2 Brief_final_3_19_2013.pdf (232KB PDF)