Differential Effectiveness of Early Childhood Education Programs on Reducing Reading Achievement Gaps

• In Event: 66.053 - New Evidence on the Impacts of Early Childhood Interventions

Abstract

Research on Early Childhood Education (ECE) programs has shown short-term effectiveness on reading achievement, and mixed results for the long-term. Evidence has also suggested differential effects on subgroups (e.g. race/ethnicity). Differential benefit favoring the disadvantaged raised the possibility of reducing reading achievement gaps. Nonetheless, ECE literature lacks rigorous evaluation of short- and long-term effects of ECE programs on reducing reading achievement gaps. The goal of this paper is two-fold. Firstly, we aim to inform the policy on differential short- and long-term effectiveness of ECE program on reducing racial/ethnic-, gender-, and socio-economic status (SES)-based reading achievement gaps. Secondly, to researchers, we aim to demonstrate an application of generalized propensity score method to approximate factorial experiments.

Authors

• Metin Bulus, University of Missouri - Columbia

• Nianbo Dong, University of Missouri - Columbia