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REL Midwest Ask A REL Response

Early Childhood

April 2020

Question:

What research is available on the effectiveness of the following early childhood education curricula (grades K–3): Waldorf, Creative Curriculum, and HighScope?



Response:

Following an established Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Midwest protocol, we conducted a search for research reports, descriptive studies, and policy overviews on the effectiveness of the following early childhood education curricula (grades K–3): Waldorf, Creative Curriculum, and HighScope. For details on the databases and sources, keywords, and selection criteria used to create this response, please see the Methods section at the end of this memo.

Below, we share a sampling of the publicly accessible resources on this topic. References are listed in alphabetical order, not necessarily in order of relevance. The search conducted is not comprehensive; other relevant references and resources may exist. For each reference, we provide an abstract, excerpt, or summary written by the study’s author or publisher. We have not evaluated the quality of these references, but provide them for your information only.

Research References

Farver, J. A. M., Lonigan, C. J., & Eppe, S. (2009). Effective early literacy skill development for young Spanish-speaking English language learners: An experimental study of two methods. Child Development, 80(3), 703–719. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ840084

From the ERIC abstract: “Ninety-four Spanish-speaking preschoolers (M age = 54.51 months, SD = 4.72; 43 girls) were randomly assigned to receive the High/Scope Curriculum (control n = 32) or the Literacy Express Preschool Curriculum in English-only (n = 31) or initially in Spanish transitioning to English (n = 31). Children's emergent literacy skills were assessed before and after the intervention in Spanish and English. Children in the English-only and transitional groups made significant gains in their emergent literacy skills in both Spanish and English compared to the control group, The English-only and transitional models were equally effective for English language outcomes, but for Spanish-language outcomes, only the transitional model was effective. The results suggest that a targeted early literacy intervention can improve Spanish-speaking preschoolers’ preliteracy skills.”

Follari, L. (2019). Foundations and best practices in early childhood education, 4th edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Higher Education. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED594743

From the ERIC abstract: “A broad exploration of the roles and practices of working with, and for, children and families ‘Foundations and Best Practices in Early Childhood Education’ helps teachers connect early childhood education beliefs and philosophies to professional practice. It provides insights into common program models or approaches, including Reggio Emilia, Montessori, High/Scope, Head Start, Waldorf, and The Project Approach. Real classroom stories illustrate how teachers and programs integrate child-centered approaches into actual practice. Running themes emphasize teachers’ roles, views of children, inclusion, and diversity. New and experienced teachers alike will learn to define, shape, and reshape their own practices to advocate on behalf of children and families. The 4th Edition reflects the most recent changes in early childhood education, including legislative and policy changes and the latest research on effective practice. Throughout the text, content has been expanded to include even more emphasis on inclusive practices and diversity.”

Note: REL Midwest was unable to locate a link to the full-text version of this resource. Although REL Midwest tries to provide publicly available resources whenever possible, it was determined that this resource may be of interest to you. It may be found through university or public library systems.

Friedlaender, D., Beckham, K., Zheng, X., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2015). Growing a Waldorf-inspired approach in a public school district. Stanford, CA: Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED574645

From the ERIC abstract: “This report documents the practices and outcomes of Alice Birney, a public K-8 Waldorf-Inspired School in Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD). This study highlights how such a school addresses students' academic, social, emotional, physical, and creative development. Birney students outperform similar students in SCUSD on several behavioral and academic measures. The study also examines how a district supports alternative models of education while working to ensure equitable access to a high-quality education for all its students. This study provides an opportunity to learn from alternative approaches to schooling to help surface deeply embedded, often unchallenged, assumptions about public education and expand our understanding of the purpose of education and the practices that support the development of the whole child and deep student learning in public schools. This mixed methods study was conducted over the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years. Researchers interviewed nearly 40 educators, students and parents, and engaged in almost 40 observations of classrooms, out-of-classroom activities, school events, and teacher trainings. Quantitative research included an examination of multiple years of student record data from SCUSD including: (1) student demographic data; (2) student standardized test scores; (3) student attendance and behavioral data; and (4) graduation data. Quantitative analysis of student record data as well as qualitative analysis of interviews with Birney graduates, reveals that Birney successfully supports students' development. In particular, Birney produces greater gains for its low-income and African American and Latino students than for its school population as a whole.”

Garner, P. W., Bolt, E., & Roth, A. N. (2019). Emotion-focused curricula models and expressions of and talk about emotions between teachers and young children. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 33(2), 180–193. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1211122

From the ERIC abstract: “Early childhood curricula reflect guiding principles or beliefs about the knowledge, skills, and behavior that are considered important for learning in the early childhood setting. This study examined linkages between teachers’ and young children’s expression of and talk about emotions during interactions in early childhood programs, using either the Creative Curriculum or the more emotion-focused Responsive Classroom approach. The research also examined teachers’ and children’s emotion-related behavior in relation to the gender composition of the interactions and teachers’ social-emotional teaching practices. Participants were 117 preschoolers (64 girls) and their teachers. Teachers and children in the Creative Curriculum classrooms displayed proportionately more negative emotional expressions than their counterparts in classrooms adopting the Responsive Classroom approach. Teachers’ negative emotional expressions were also more likely when children expressed negative emotions. Teachers’ and children’s negative expressions were less likely when teachers reported high use of social-emotional teaching practices. Teachers’ emotion talk was also more likely when social-emotional teaching practices were high. Gender composition of the interactions was also predictive of teachers’ emotion-related behavior. Discussion focuses on the important effect of curricula in supporting teachers’ and young children’s expression of and emotion talk in the early childhood classroom.”

Note: REL Midwest was unable to locate a link to the full-text version of this resource. Although REL Midwest tries to provide publicly available resources whenever possible, it was determined that this resource may be of interest to you. It may be found through university or public library systems.

Larrison, A. L., Daly, A. J., & VanVooren, C. (2012). Twenty years and counting: A look at Waldorf in the public sector using online sources. Current Issues in Education, 15(3). Retrieved from https://cie.asu.edu/ojs/index.php/cieatasu/article/view/807

From the abstract: “As the number of public Waldorf schools operating in the U.S. continues to grow, there is a need to examine the effectiveness of this approach in the public sector. This empirical study provides a beginning look at available quantitative and qualitative extant data on public Waldorf schools obtained from state and national websites. Available data included standardized tests and parent comment boards hosted by the independent source, GreatSchools.org. Public Waldorf schools were compared to their district standardized test scores in Reading and Math as well as matched comparison schools. Test score results suggested the Waldorf experience provided a slower academic build-up resulting in poorer test scores in the lower grades followed by higher levels of advanced performance in the 8th grade. Quantitative content analysis of parent comments supported the idea that public Waldorf is indeed a more holistic approach with greater emphasis on the arts, community and developmentally appropriate practice. Findings suggest standard measures of school quality may midjudge the effectiveness of holistic education particularly with regards to academics. Challenges for successfully bringing holistic education into the current cultural-political climate are discussed.”

Mueller, J. J., & File, N. (Eds.). (2019). Curriculum in early childhood education: Re-examined, reclaimed, renewed. New York, NY: Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.routledge.com/Curriculum-in-Early-Childhood-Education-Re-examined-Reclaimed-Renewed/Mueller-File/p/book/9781138103016

From the description:Curriculum in Early Childhood Education: Re-examined, Reclaimed, Renewed critically and thoroughly examines key questions, aims, and approaches in early childhood curricula. Designed to provide a theoretical and philosophical foundation for examining teaching and learning in the early years, this fully updated and timely second edition provokes discussion and analysis among all readers. What influences operate (both historically and currently) to impact what happens in young children’s classrooms? Whose perspectives are dominant and whose are ignored? What values are explicit and implicit? Each chapter gives readers a starting point for re-examining key topics, encourages a rich exchange of ideas in the university classroom, and provides a valuable resource for professionals. This second edition has been fully revised to reflect the current complexities and tensions inherent in curricular decision-making and features attention to policy, standardization, play, and diversity, providing readers with historical context, current theories, and new perspectives for the field. Curriculum in Early Childhood Education is essential reading for those seeking to examine curriculum in early childhood and develop a stronger understanding of how theories and philosophies intersect with the issues that accompany the creation and implementation of learning experiences.”

Note: REL Midwest was unable to locate a link to the full-text version of this resource. Although REL Midwest tries to provide publicly available resources whenever possible, it was determined that this resource may be of interest to you. It may be found through university or public library systems.

Nicol, J., & Taplin, J. T. (2017). Understanding the Steiner Waldorf approach: Early years education in practice. New York, NY: Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.routledge.com/Understanding-the-Steiner-Waldorf-Approach-Early-Years-Education-in-Practice/Nicol-Taplin/p/book/9781138209848

From the description: “This fully revised edition of Understanding the Steiner Waldorf Approach is a much needed source of information for those wishing to extend and consolidate their understanding of the Steiner Waldorf early childhood approach. It enables the reader to analyse the essential elements of the Steiner Waldorf Approach to early childhood and its relationship to quality early years practice. Covering all areas of the curriculum including observation and assessment, child development, play, repetition and the environment, this new edition has been updated to reflect recent curriculum changes and explore the influence of media and technology. Including a new chapter on expanding the Steiner Waldorf approach to work with children from birth to three, the book:

  • describes the key principles of the Steiner Waldorf approach to early childhood with examples from Steiner settings;
  • provides an accessible and objective overview of a key pedagogical influence on high quality early years practice in the United Kingdom;
  • highlights the key ideas that practitioners should consider when reviewing their own practice;
  • contains summaries of key points and reflective practice questions to help students and practitioners engage with the ideas in the book.
  • can be used as the basis for continuing professional development and action research.

Written to support the work of all those in the field of early years education and childcare, this text is essential reading for students, practitioners, leaders, managers and all those wanting to improve their early years practice.”

Note: REL Midwest was unable to locate a link to the full-text version of this resource. Although REL Midwest tries to provide publicly available resources whenever possible, it was determined that this resource may be of interest to you. It may be found through university or public library systems.

Oberman, I. (2007, April). Learning from Rudolf Steiner: The relevance of Waldorf education for urban public school reform. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Education Research Association, Chicago, IL. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED498362

From the ERIC abstract: “The author of this paper investigates the relevance of Waldorf education for public urban school reform. Based on analysis of survey data from over 500 graduates of private U.S. Waldorf schools, review of documents from the Gates Foundation, and staff-interview and student-achievement data from four public Waldorf-methods schools, she develops the following three-part argument: (1) New three R’s and Waldorf: Waldorf graduate survey data suggest that alumni identify something that might be summarized as ‘rigor,’ ‘relevance’ and ‘relationship’ as key outcomes of Waldorf education; (2) New three R’s and urban public school youth: The goals have shifted over the past ten years for funders and policy makers alike to encompass more than high test scores. Now, what was ‘special’ for ‘special children’ begins to gain attention as valuable for all. Bill Gates, Jr., and the Gates Foundation are leaders in articulating this shift. Founder and foundation argue for the new three R’s for all. Importantly, for the purposes of this analysis, they backed up their talk with dollars. In 2007 they approved funding for the first public Waldorf methods high school, in the Sacramento Unified School District; and (3) Three key findings on urban public schools with Waldorf methods: (a) In their final year, the students in the study’s four California case study public Waldorf-methods elementary schools match the top ten of peer sites on the 2006 California test scores and well outperform the average of their peers statewide; (b) According to teacher, administrator and mentor reports, they achieve these high test scores by focusing on those new three R’s—rather than on rote learning and test prep—in a distinct fashion laid out by the Waldorf model and (c) A key focus is on artistic learning, not just for students but, more importantly perhaps, for the adults. The author concludes by outlining key areas for further research.”

Preschool Curriculum Evaluation Research Consortium. (2008). Effects of preschool curriculum programs on school readiness (NCER 2008-2009). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED502153

From the ERIC abstract: “A variety of preschool curricula is available and in widespread use, however, there is a lack of evidence from rigorous evaluations regarding the effects of these curricula on children’s school readiness. The lack of such information is important as early childhood center-based programs have been a major, sometimes the sole, component of a number of federal and state efforts to improve young at-risk children’s school readiness (e.g., Head Start, Even Start, public pre-kindergarten). In 2005, nearly half (47%) of all 3- to 5-year-old children from low-income families were enrolled in either part-day or full-day early childhood programs (U.S. Department of Education 2006). In 2002, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) began the Preschool Curriculum Evaluation Research (PCER) initiative to conduct rigorous efficacy evaluations of available preschool curricula. Twelve research teams implemented one or two curricula in preschool settings serving predominantly low-income children under an experimental design. For each team, preschools or classrooms were randomly assigned to the intervention curricula or control curricula and the children were followed from pre-kindergarten through kindergarten. IES contracted with RTI International (RTI) and Mathematica Policy Research (MPR) to evaluate the impact of each of the 14 curricula implemented using a common set of measures with the cohort of children beginning preschool in the summer-fall of 2003. This report provides the individual results for each curriculum from the evaluations by RTI and MPR. Specifically, the research evaluated the impact of each of the 14 preschool curricula on: (1) preschool students’ early reading skills, phonological awareness, language development, early mathematical knowledge, and behavior; (2) outcomes for students at the end of kindergarten; and (3) preschool classroom quality, teacher-child interaction, and instructional practices. Chapter 1 describes the PCER initiative and details the common elements of the evaluations including the experimental design, implementation, analysis, results, and findings. Chapters 2-13, respectively, provide greater detail on the individual evaluations of the curricula implemented by each research team including information on the curricula, the demographics of the site-specific samples, assignment, fidelity of implementation, and results.”

Walters, C. (2014). Inputs in the production of early childhood human capital: Evidence from Head Start (NBER Working Paper No. 20639). Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED578979

From the ERIC abstract: “Studies of small-scale ‘model’ early-childhood programs show that high-quality preschool can have transformative effects on human capital and economic outcomes. Evidence on the Head Start program is more mixed. Inputs and practices vary widely across Head Start centers, however, and little is known about variation in effectiveness within Head Start. This paper uses data from a multi-site randomized evaluation to quantify and explain variation in effectiveness across Head Start childcare centers. I answer two questions: (1) How much do short-run effects vary across Head Start centers? and (2) To what extent do inputs, practices, and child characteristics explain this variation? To answer the first question, I use a selection model with random coefficients to quantify heterogeneity in Head Start effects, accounting for non-compliance with experimental assignments. Estimates of the model show that the cross-center standard deviation of cognitive effects is 0.18 test score standard deviations, which is larger than typical estimates of variation in teacher or school effectiveness. Next, I assess the role of observed inputs, practices and child characteristics in generating this variation, focusing on inputs commonly cited as central to the success of model programs. My results show that Head Start centers offering full-day service boost cognitive skills more than other centers, while Head Start centers offering frequent home visiting are especially effective at raising non-cognitive skills. Head Start is also more effective for children with less-educated mothers. Centers that draw more children from center-based preschool have smaller effects, suggesting that cross-center differences in effects may be partially due to differences in counterfactual preschool options. Other key inputs, including the High/Scope curriculum, teacher education, and class size, are not associated with increased effectiveness in Head Start. Together, observed inputs explain about one-third of the variation in Head Start effectiveness across experimental sites.”

What Works Clearinghouse. (2009). The Creative Curriculum for preschool (WWC Intervention Report). Princeton, NJ: Author. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED506156

From the ERIC abstract: “The Creative Curriculum[R] for Preschool is a project-based early childhood curriculum designed to foster the development of the whole child through teacher-led small and large group activities. The curriculum provides information on child development, working with families, and organizing the classroom around 11 interest areas. Child assessments are an ongoing part of the curriculum, and an online program provides record-keeping tools to assist teachers with the maintenance and organization of child portfolios, individualized planning, and report production. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) reviewed eight studies of The Creative Curriculum[R]. One of these studies meets WWC evidence standards, and two of these studies meet WWC evidence standards with reservations. Five studies do not meet either WWC evidence standards or eligibility screens. Based on the three studies, the WWC found no discernible effects of The Creative Curriculum[R] on oral language, print knowledge, phonological processing, and math. The conclusions presented in this report may change as new research emerges.”

Wiltshire, M. (2011). Understanding the HighScope approach: Early years education in practice. Florence, KY: Routledge. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED530637

From the ERIC abstract: “‘Understanding the HighScope Approach’ is a much needed source of information for those wishing to extend and consolidate their understanding of the HighScope Approach. It will enable the reader to analyse the essential elements of the HighScope Approach to early childhood and its relationship to quality early years practice. Exploring all areas of the curriculum including the learning environment, plan-do-review, adult child interaction and assessment this book: (1) describes the key principles of the HighScope approach to early childhood with examples from HighScope settings; (2) provides students and practitioners with the relevant information about a key pedagogical influence on high quality early years practice in the United Kingdom; (3) highlights the key ideas that practitioners should consider when reviewing and reflecting on their own practice; and (4) can be used as the basis for continuing professional development and action research. Written to support the work of all those in the field of early years education and childcare, this is a vital text for students, early years and childcare practitioners, teachers, early years professionals, children’s centre professionals, lecturers, advisory teachers, head teachers and setting managers.”

Note: REL Midwest was unable to locate a link to the full-text version of this resource. Although REL Midwest tries to provide publicly available resources whenever possible, it was determined that this resource may be of interest to you. It may be found through university or public library systems.

Methods

Keywords and Search Strings

The following keywords and search strings were used to search the reference databases and other sources:

  • Creative curriculum

  • High/Scope

  • Waldorf

Databases and Search Engines

We searched ERIC for relevant resources. ERIC is a free online library of more than 1.6 million citations of education research sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). Additionally, we searched IES and Google Scholar.

Reference Search and Selection Criteria

When we were searching and reviewing resources, we considered the following criteria:

  • Date of the publication: References and resources published over the last 15 years, from 2005 to present, were included in the search and review.

  • Search priorities of reference sources: Search priority is given to study reports, briefs, and other documents that are published or reviewed by IES and other federal or federally funded organizations.

  • Methodology: We used the following methodological priorities/considerations in the review and selection of the references: (a) study types—randomized control trials, quasi-experiments, surveys, descriptive data analyses, literature reviews, policy briefs, and so forth, generally in this order, (b) target population, samples (e.g., representativeness of the target population, sample size, volunteered or randomly selected), study duration, and so forth, and (c) limitations, generalizability of the findings and conclusions, and so forth.
This memorandum is one in a series of quick-turnaround responses to specific questions posed by educational stakeholders in the Midwest Region (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin), which is served by the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL Midwest) at American Institutes for Research. This memorandum was prepared by REL Midwest under a contract with the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES), Contract ED-IES-17-C-0007, administered by American Institutes for Research. Its content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of IES or the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.