Learn about our Research Connections project. In November 2014, the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 was signed into law, reauthorizing the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)–the federal child care subsidy program–for the first time since 1996. In December 2015, the U.S. Office of Child Care issued a Notice of […]
Author: Daniel Ferguson
Learn about our Research Connections project. Of the elements in a strong professional development system, one promising approach is coaching, which typically involves on-site, ongoing individualized expert technical assistance. Literature reviews on the sizable body of research on early childhood coaching conducted by Mathematica and Child Trends, both published in 2011, show it can have […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. August and September mark the start of the school year for America’s children, and for the more than 3.7 million children who the U.S. Department of Education estimates will enroll in public kindergarten this fall, this time represents a critical period of transition. Child care and early education programs […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. Under the School Improvement Grant (SIG) program, states have the ability to competitively award funds from the federal Department of Education to local school districts to improve the lowest-performing schools. While past grantees incorporated early learning into school turnaround efforts, SIG requirements did not formally sanction using funds to […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. President Obama signed the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 into law on November 19, reauthorizing the federal child care program for the first time since 1996. The law will have important implications for child care policy across the United States, in areas including provider […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. An accumulation of strong messages from policymakers and advocates suggests that preschool expulsion is becoming an important target for change. In May 2014, the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force–part of an initiative to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. To improve data-driven decision making, states and localities are beginning to integrate administrative data systems that have historically been developed and maintained independently by the programs that serve young children. A number of federal initiatives, such as State Advisory Councils on Early Childhood Education and Care, American Recovery and […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. Each September marks Attendance Awareness Month, which recognizes the important role attendance plays in supporting children’s development, learning, and academic achievement. Research has examined this role extensively for attendance during children’s K-12 school years. For children’s early years there is a wide range of research exploring topics related to […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. Child care plays an important role in supporting families, from children’s development to parents’ employment. The complex process by which families find child care arrangements is informed by their preferences for features of care arrangements and constrained by such factors as availability, accessibility, affordability, and awareness of supply. A […]
Learn about our Research Connections project. The concept of parent engagement has been used to describe parent behavior, expectations, and activities that have the potential to promote children’s learning and development. Here the term is used to refer to parents’ support for their young children’s learning fostered through relationships with child care and early education […]