The Impact of Universal Preschool on Family Behavior and Child Outcomes in Australia

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

Abstract

This paper considers the impact of universal preschool provision on children’s outcomes and family processes. In order to align itself with a national curriculum, the Australian state of Queensland eliminated its public provision of preschool for four-year-olds in 2007, funding, instead, a kindergarten year of schooling for five-year-olds. As a result, the use of center-based care among four-year-olds dropped precipitously between 2006 and 2007. We capitalize on this natural experiment to estimate the causal impact of preschool-aged formal childcare usage on children. We find a statistically insignificant increase in cognitive functioning among the full sample but large, positive effects on socioemotional functioning. We then explore potential mechanisms of the effects: child care quality, maternal employment decisions, and parenting.

Authors

• Sandra E. Black, The University of Texas - Austin

• Elise Chor, Institute for Policy Research - Northwestern University

• Paul Devereux, University College Dublin

• Ariel Kalil, University of Chicago