Learn about our Research Connections project. There is wide agreement that early care and education programs should support parent engagement linked to early learning for all families, including families from diverse language and cultural backgrounds. This brief highlights research that can inform policies to expand the capacity of early care and education programs to promote […]
Author: Sheila Smith
State Policies through a Two-Generation Lens: Strengthening the Collective Impact of Policies that Affect the Life Course of Young Children and their Parents
- Post author Sheila Smith, Mercedes Ekono, Taylor Robbins
- Project Early Childhood Two-Generation State Policy Profiles;
- Publication Type Report
- Post date September 1, 2014
Learn about our Improving the Odds for Young Children project. This is an excerpt from the full brief. Two-generation approaches to promoting the healthy development and school success of young children aim to enhance the well-being and life opportunities of both parents and children. This approach is based on research that shows how conditions affecting […]
Learn about our Improving the Odds for Young Children project. High quality early care and education can play a critical role in promoting young children’s early learning and success in life, while also supporting families’ economic security. Young children at highest risk of educational failure – those experiencing poverty and related circumstances that may limit […]
Parent Engagement from Preschool through Grade 3: A Guide for Policymakers
- Post author Sheila Smith, Taylor Robbins, Shannon Stagman, Disha Mathur
- Project Expanding Opportunities for Family Engagement;
- Publication Type Report
- Post date September 1, 2013
Learn about our Expanding Opportunities for Parent Engagement project. Parent engagement in children’s education is increasingly viewed as an essential support to children’s learning in early care and education programs and throughout the school years. While there are many definitions of “parent engagement,” the term is used here to describe parents’ efforts to promote their […]
Young Children at Risk: National and State Prevalence of Risk Factors
- Post author Taylor Robbins, Shannon Stagman, Sheila Smith
- Project Early Childhood Two-Generation State Policy Profiles;
- Publication Type Fact Sheet
- Post date October 1, 2012
Learn about our Improving the Odds for Young Children project. Introduction Across the U.S., large numbers of young children are affected by one or more risk factors that have been linked to academic failure and poor health. Chief among them is family economic hardship, which is consistently associated with negative outcomes in these two domains. […]
Practices for Promoting Young Children’s Learning in QRIS Standards
- Post author Sheila Smith, Taylor Robbins, Shannon Stagman, J. Lee Kreader
- Project Expanding Opportunities for Family Engagement;
- Publication Type Report
- Post date September 1, 2012
Learn about our Expanding Opportunities for Parent Engagement project. This is an excerpt from the full brief. Introduction Quality Rating Improvement Systems (QRIS) have emerged as a central strategy in states’ efforts to improve the quality of early care and education programs and the capacity of these programs to promote positive outcomes for children. Currently, […]
Coaching and Quality Assistance in Quality Rating Improvement Systems: Approaches Used by TA Providers to Improve Quality in Early Care and Education Programs and Home-based Settings
- Post author Sheila Smith, Taylor Robbins, William Schneider, J. Lee Kreader, Christine Ong
- Project
- Publication Type Report
- Post date January 1, 2012
This is an excerpt from the full report. Introduction Quality Rating Improvement Systems (QRISs) commonly offer on-site technical assistance (TA) and coaching to help early care and education settings achieve quality improvements and a higher QRIS rating. In surveys of administrators overseeing statewide QRISs, almost all states reported the use of on-site TA and coaching […]
Building Strong Systems of Support for Young Children’s Mental Health: Key Strategies for States and a Planning Tool
- Post author Sheila Smith, Shannon Stagman, Susan Blank, Christine Ong, Kendra McDow
- Project Supporting Young Children's Mental Health;
- Publication Type Report
- Post date June 1, 2011
Learn about our Supporting Young Children’s Mental Health project. What’s Inside… This report describes key strategies for creating a comprehensive system of supports for young children’s mental health and provides examples from states using these strategies. It also includes a tool that state planners can use to assess progress and plan steps toward building […]
Quality Stars NY: Field Test Evaluation Report
- Post author Sam Stephens, J. Lee Kreader, Sheila Smith, Lisa A. McCabe
- Project
- Publication Type Report
- Post date April 1, 2011
Background QUALITYstarsNY is New York State’s Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS). The current QUALITYstarsNY standards were developed to apply to programs and providers under the regulation of one of New York’s public agencies – the State Office of Children and Family Services, the State Department of Education, or the New York City Department of […]
Features of Professional Development and On-site Assistance in Child Care Quality Rating Improvement Systems: A Survey of State-wide Systems
- Post author Sheila Smith, William Schneider, J. Lee Kreader
- Project
- Publication Type Report
- Post date October 1, 2010
This is an excerpt from the full report. Quality Rating Improvement Systems (QRIS) are now operating state-wide in 18 states. An additional 13 states are implementing QRIS in selected regions or as pilot initiatives. While highly varied in their specific features, these systems all use a set of interrelated strategies that aim to raise the […]