Best Beginnings

Early Learning Research and Reports

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baby brain synaptic density Best Beginnings believes research and study increase our awareness and understanding of the value of investing in young children. Although we provide links to a variety of related reports below, please note that inclusion on this list does not constitute an endorsement from Best Beginnings.

Items are organized by the following topics:






Early Learning Defined
  • Mind in the Making – The Science of Early Learning has created a document that helps explain what early learning is, some misconceptions about it, and more.



Brain Development
  • The Roots of Bilingualism - according to Krista Byers-Heinlein, Tracey C. Burns, and Janet F. Werker, when parents speak two languages during pregnancy, their baby learns about both languages prenatally. The study also shows that babies can actually register differences between the two languages.
  • Speaking in Tones - According to Diana Deutsch, professor at University of California, San Diego, music and language are so closely intertwined that awareness of music is critical to a baby’s language development.
  • The Timing and Quality of Early Experiences Combine to Shape Brain Architecture: Working Paper #5 summarizes in clear language the most recent scientific advances in understanding the importance of sensitive periods on brain development, and the implications of those findings for policy.
  • Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development presents evidence about "brain wiring" and how children learn to speak, think, and regulate their behavior. It also examines the effect of the climate--family, child care, community--within which the child grows.
  • The Baby Brain Map reveals the secrets of how early care enriches development. Organized in an easy to use Q & A format, this is a great resource to learn more about brain development.



Economic Impact of Early Childhood Development



Alaska Research and Reports
  • Kindergarten Developmental Profiles, district-by-district results of assessments of children as they enter kindergarten, compiled by the Alaska Department of Education & Early Development.
  • Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Plan represents the past, present, and future. It incorporates the thinking from several past planning efforts as well as new ideas and solutions; recognizes the needs of today’s young children and their families; promotes “best practices,” those proven to be most successful; and gives Alaskans a vision for the future.
  • Kids Count Alaska presents a broad picture of the well-being of Alaska children, providing parents, policymakers, and others interested in the welfare of children with information they need to improve life for children and families. The report is prepared annually by the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER),University of Alaska Anchorage, as part of a nationwide program to collect and publicize information about children’s health, safety, and economic status.
  • The Childhood Understanding Behaviors Survey (CUBS) surveys mothers to collect information about health behaviors and experiences of 3-year-old children in Alaska before they enter school.



Parenting
  • Growing up With Books Boosts Child's Education Attainment -- According to a 20-year study led by Associate Professor Mariah Evans, University of Nevada, Reno, parents who have books in the home increase the level of education their children will attain.
  • ZERO TO THREE National Parent Survey, conducted by Hart Research Associates, identifies what information and support sources parents turn to when facing parenting challenges, echoing some of the findings of a Best Beginnings study conducted in 2007.
  • Learning: Is There an App for That? is a three-part report from The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop which looks at new trends in smartphone apps, the results of three studies on apps as potential learning tools, and the implications of these findings. Published in 2010.
  • Why Spoiled Babies Grow Up to Be Smarter, Kinder Kids highlights three studies, which suggest the same thing: children who are shown more affection early in life reap big benefits. Researchers found kids who were held more by their parents, whose cries received quick responses in infancy, and who were disciplined without corporal punishment were kinder later in life.



Assessing and Improving Early Learning
  • Inspiring Innovation: Creative State Financing Structures for Infant-Toddler Services - Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma have developed innovative financing to support services for at-risk infants and toddlers. This policy brief from Zero to Three and the Ounce of Prevention Fund highlights these models and the valuable lessons they offer for other states. Download the order form to request a free print copy.
  • Early Childhood Program Evaluations: A Decision-Maker’s Guide is a clear, concise guide from the National Forum on Early Childhood Program Evaluation helps prepare decision-makers to be better consumers of evaluation information by posing five key questions that address both the substance and the practical utility of rigorous evaluation research.
  • Taking Stock: Assessing and Improving Early Childhood Learning and Program Quality is a report from the National Early Childhood Accountability Task Force that was formed in April 2005 by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Foundation for Child Development, and the Joyce Foundation. Their charge was to “develop recommendations for a state accountability system for early education programs for prekindergarten children and for linking such efforts to standards-based assessment efforts in kindergarten and the primary grades.”
  • Effective Early Childhood Education Programs: A Systematic Review - Early education programs are not all the same, nor do they have the same outcomes. This report systematically reviews research on the outcomes of programs that teach young children in a group setting before they begin kindergarten. Of the 28 different programs that were evaluated on specific criteria, six showed strong evidence of effectiveness and five had moderate evidence of effectiveness.



Kindergarten Readiness



Quality Early Learning and Its Return
  • Early education reduces risky health behaviors explores the link between early education programs and interventions on the cohort’s adult health.
  • The Carolina Abecedarian Project was a carefully controlled scientific study of the potential benefits of early childhood education for poor children.
  • The Chicago Longitudinal Study is in its 16th year of operation. It investigates the short and long-term effects of early childhood intervention, as well as traces the scholastic and social development of participating children and the contributions of family and school practices to children's behavior. The CPC program provides educational and family support services to children from preschool to third grade. It is funded by Title I and has operated in the Chicago Public Schools since 1967.
  • The High/Scope Perry Preschool Study examined the lives of 123 African Americans born in poverty and who were at high risk of failing in school. The study found that adults at age 40 who participated in this preschool program had higher earnings, were more likely to hold a job, had committed fewer crimes, and were more likely to have graduated from high school than adults who did not participate.



Early Learning and the Business Community

 

 

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