Biography

Ruby Takanishi is senior research fellow in the Early and Elementary Education Policy division at New America in Washington, DC. Takanishi was the president and CEO of the Foundation for Child Development, and executive director of the Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development of Carnegie Corporation of New York.

She chaired the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine consensus committee on the education of dual-language learners from birth to age 21.

Takanishi has received awards from the American Psychological Association, American Sociological Association (Division of Children and Families), and SRCD in recognition of her contributions to connecting research with public policies. The American Education Research Association honored her with its Distinguished Public Service Award.

Takanishi received her BA and PhD from Stanford University, and taught at UCLA, Teachers College-Columbia University, Bank Street College of Education, and Yale University.

3-105 - Lighting Candles in Dark Rooms: Hidden Issues in Research on Primary Education (PreK-Grade 5)

Session Type: Invited Address

Integrative Statement

Determining the short- and long-term effects of early education (Head Start, PreK) on children at risk for low educational outcomes has been a central concern of researchers and policymakers for over 50 years. When positive outcomes are found to be lasting, the influences of children’s experiences in early education and in the following primary grades (K-5) are not well understood. Hypotheses about how some early education efforts yield lasting effects while others do not, will be identified, including evidence-informed conceptions of children as learners and how those conceptions affect classroom learning opportunities and alignment of instruction. The demographic diversity of young children, specifically racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic, present challenges to current approaches to studying the influences of early education and how primary school learning opportunities are designed.

Sub Unit

• Invited Program

Chair

• Ritika Rastogi, University of California, Los Angeles

Speaker

• Ruby Takanishi, New America