RESEARCH

Yes. Children who participated in HCM’s School Readiness Program scored significantly higher on the Kindergarten entrance screening exams compared to the children in the remaining two cohorts (those who attended a different preschool program or attended no preschool program). HCM also analyzed the Dynamic Indicators of Early Literacy (DIBELs) scores, a set of short instruments for assessing the acquisition of early literacy skills. Overall, students who attended any preschool had higher Kindergarten DIBELS scores than students from the same demographic who did not attend a preschool program. Based on the end of year 3rd grade DIBELS score results, we found that the majority of children who participated in HCM’s School Readiness Program scored at or above benchmark levels whereas the majority of children who attended no preschool scored below benchmark. Additionally, students who participated in any preschool program had higher SAGE math scores in 4th grade than students who did not attend a preschool program.

When looking at English language acquisition we found that children who attended HCM’s School Readiness Program were more likely to be designated as English Language Learners (ELL) (86%) compared to children who attend other preschool programs (63%). In fact, they were designated as ELL at a higher rate than children who attended no preschool programs (80%). We see this as a great opportunity for program improvement.

Greater parent participation has the potential to help children sustain gains acquired in preschool and improve long term academic outcomes. Regardless of whether students attended preschool or not, there was a strong correlation between parent involvement and their elementary school students’ short term and long term academic success. High parent participation was connected to positive academic outcomes and low parent participate was connected to poor academic outcomes.