Co-Principal Investigators: Kim, Hyoun K; Buchanan, Rohanna

Partnership Institutions: Oregon Social Learning Center (SLC); South Lane School District (SLSD); United Way of Lane County (UWLC)

Purpose: The partnership focused on the following project objectives:

1. Establishing a sustainable practitioner-researcher partnership between SLSD, OSLC, and UWLC;
2. Developing a better understanding of
1. incoming kindergarteners' early childhood education (ECE) and childcare experiences and associations of these experiences with school readiness, academic achievement, and social-emotional outcomes in kindergarten;
2. the early childhood education and childcare experiences of the highest risk children in the district; and
3. Exploring the school readiness goals, needs, and perspectives on alignment of the providers in the district.

Project Activities: To accomplish the first objective, the members of the partnership created an infrastructure to support the planned activities of the partnership and sustain the partnership as the members met and worked together to translate the findings from this study into long-term efforts and programming to improve student outcomes. To accomplish objectives 2a and 2b, the members of the partnership used existing data and collected additional information to describe the ECE and childcare usage of incoming kindergarteners. They used data from three yearly cohorts (2013-2015) of children. The partners investigated the associations between ECE and childcare experiences and school readiness and adjustment outcomes for three subgroups: socioeconomically disadvantaged children, ethnic minority children, and children with developmental disabilities. To accomplish the third objective, the partners examined the perspectives of local ECE and care providers on school readiness, their needs for assistance in preparing children for school, and how the district could work with them to help children be better prepared for kindergarten and long-term academic success.

Key Outcomes:

• The partners developed and administered the Kindergarten Parent Questionnaire to the parents of all kindergarteners that featured questions on the duration, frequency, and types of the children's ECE and care experiences, parental literacy practices at home, and parent perspectives of the children's school readiness.
• This partnership led to the establishment of a full-time Prenatal-20 Coordinator position in the district.

Structured Abstract

Setting: In this study, the project team  conducted research using educational records of kindergarteners in five elementary schools in a rural district in Lane County, Oregon. Primary data collection was with early care and education (ECE) programs and childcare providers in the district. Focus groups with ECE and care providers took place at elementary schools in that district.

Sample: The study involved analyses of the de-identified records of approximately 600 SLSD students entering kindergarten in three successive cohorts from 2013-2015. Additionally, approximately 25-30 ECE and care providers were invited to participate in focus groups. Groups included center-based and family-based providers.

Education Issue: Children in rural areas are at high risk for deficits in school readiness skills, which could negatively affect school performance and adjustment across the elementary school years and beyond. Access to good information about the early care and education experiences of students who attend their elementary schools is one way that rural districts can better serve those students. However, basic information about the early childhood education (ECE) and childcare experiences of children in rural school districts is not widely available, and links to the children's academic and social-emotional outcomes have not been explored thoroughly. The South Lane School District (SLSD) is a rural district in Oregon, serving a large percentage of socioeconomically disadvantaged children and a small but growing group of ethnic minority children. The district considered it essential to involve ECE and childcare providers in these efforts and to improve alignment between the ECE and K–12 systems. To achieve these goals, the district needed to acquire basic information about the range of ECE and care experiences of their students and how such experiences are associated with subsequent school adjustment. Second, they needed more detailed information on the providers, their school-readiness goals, and their attitudes towards greater alignment.

Research Design and Methods: The project included a mixed method study that used both correlational and regression analysis and focus groups interviews.

Key Measures: Key measures included childcare access, childcare experiences, and school readiness.

Data Analytic Strategy: ?Researchers conducted data analyses that employed both univariate (e.g., analysis of variance) and multivariate (e.g., structural equation modeling) approaches. Using data from the KPQ, researchers examined the rates of ECE and childcare experiences. In addition, the research team investigated the extent to which early childhood experiences were associated with children's school readiness skills at kindergarten entry. Researchers conducted separate analyses for high-risk subpopulations. Also, the research team conducted qualitative analyses and transcribe and code focus group content for sub-themes such as school readiness goals, needs, and perspectives on alignment.

Products and Publications

ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.