Effects of Public Quality Ratings on Parents’ Early Childhood Program Preferences

• In Event: Early Care and Education Quality Indicators, Implementation, and Policy

Abstract

Government agencies have undertaken substantial efforts to improve early childhood education (ECE) quality, which is both highly variable and predictive of child outcomes (Bassok et al., 2016; Yoshikawa et al., 2013). One common approach to improvement, adopted by nearly all states, is the Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS). These systems encourage programs to improve through direct supports and incentives, but they also are intended to create market pressure by collecting and publicizing program quality information. The success of this approach requires that parents access quality ratings before selecting a program and prioritize this information when making ECE choices. In this study, we examine whether Louisiana’s public ratings influence parents’ ECE choices. Louisiana began assessing all ECE programs with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS; Mashburn et al., 2008) in 2015-16 and made these ratings widely available in 2017-18.
We examine ECE choices in New Orleans, which uses a centralized online application for Head Start (ages 0-4), state-funded PK4, and K-12 schools (families have no default neighborhood school assignments and must actively choose a school). Families apply for up to eight programs in rank order and are matched to a program using a strategy-proof algorithm. We compare ECE program rankings in 2015-16 and 2016-17, when CLASS-based quality was assessed but not publicly released, with 2017-18 through 2019-20, when ratings appeared on the application.
We use a rank-ordered logit model (Allison & Christakis, 1994) to predict the likelihood of a program’s ranking in a given year as a function of the CLASS rating, the distance between the child’s home and the program, and for PK4 applicants, the School Performance Score (SPS), which is a letter grade (A-F) assigned to public schools based on state test scores. We also use an interrupted time series model to examine changes in program demand when program quality information becomes available.
Prior to the release of CLASS ratings, Head Start applicants showed a preference for higher-rated programs, indicating that they acquired information about programs’ quality without receiving explicit information from the state. Their preference for these programs did not change as the ratings became public. PK4 applicants, on the other hand, showed no preference for higher-rated programs prior to the ratings’ release. With publicly available ratings, we see some evidence supporting an increased preference for higher-rated programs, but only in some years. However, across all years, PK4 applicants strongly preferred programs in high-scoring elementary schools. PK4 parents’ probability of ranking an A/B over a C school is about 70%, with no decrease upon the introduction of CLASS ratings.
Even with access to PK4 quality information, parents select PK4s based on elementary quality. Head Start applicants can only select on one quality metric, and do prioritize quality in their choices, but appear to acquire and use that information at the same rate without public ratings. Our findings indicate that at least in this context, CLASS ratings have minimal effects on parents’ preferences among public ECE programs.

Authors

• Lindsay Bell Weixler, Tulane University
  Presenting Author

• Jane Lincove, University of Maryland Baltimore County

• Matthew Larsen, Lafayette College

• Catherine Balfe, University of California Los Angeles