Current Status:
This study has been completed.
Duration:
December 2012 – March 2019
Cost:
$2,968,330
Contract Number:
ED-IES-10-C-0077
Contractor(s):
Mathematica Policy Research
Contact:
The Race to the Top—Early Learning Challenge Program (RTT-ELC) aimed to improve early learning and development programs so children enter kindergarten ready to succeed. The program awarded $1 billion in four-year grants to 20 states in three rounds between 2011 and 2013. The program promoted reform in five key areas: (1) state systems; (2) high-quality, accountable programs; (3) early learning and development outcomes for children; (4) workforce; and (5) measurement. The second area focused on the design and implementation of Tiered Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (TQRIS) that can provide parents and other stakeholders with information on the quality of early learning programs. To better understand the TQRIS that RTT-ELC grantees developed, this descriptive study: (1) examined the structure and characteristics of grantee states' TQRIS, (2) analyzed state administrative data to examine patterns in the participation and distribution of programs in TQRIS, and (3) synthesized findings from grantee states with completed TQRIS validation studies. This study focused on the nine Round 1 states, which received over $500 million in 2011.
The descriptive study collected and analyzed various data from the nine Round 1 RTT-ELC grantee states. In fall 2014, the study collected and conducted a targeted review of documents describing the structure of TQRIS, including component measures and the quality indicators used to evaluate preschool programs, and how these were combined to generate overall ratings. In fall 2014 through winter 2015, the study also conducted interviews with state administrators to confirm and clarify the information obtained from documents and gather information that could not be obtained from the document reviews.
To address the third and fourth research questions above, the study collected administrative data from the Round 1 RTT-ELC grantee states through mid-2017. The study addressed the last question by conducting a systematic review of TQRIS validation studies completed by seven Round 1 states and two Round 2 states.
Three publications addressing the third, fourth, and fifth research questions were released in April 2019:
Moving on Up? Program Quality Ratings Under Race to the Top—Early Learning Challenge
Are Ratings from Tiered Quality Rating and Improvement Systems Valid Measures of Program Quality?
Other publications from this study are listed below.
Overall, the study found that: