Project Activities
The researchers will evaluate the efficacy of the combined, Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics and Early Learning in Mathematics curricula at pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, respectively, through two studies. In the main study, 72 elementary schools will be randomly assigned to use the Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics and Early Learning in Mathematics curricula over a two-year period, or to implement their business-as-usual mathematics curriculum. The results from the main study will provide evidence of the impact of the combined curricula on low-income students' mathematical knowledge. In the normative comparison study, a quasi-experiment will be conducted to determine whether the performance levels of low-income students in the treatment group are similar to the performance levels of middle-income students in the comparison group at the end of Kindergarten. The results from the Normative Comparison study will provide evidence about the degree to which the two-year intervention closes the income-related gap in students' mathematical knowledge.
Structured Abstract
Setting
The setting for this study includes ethnically and socioeconomically diverse urban pre-kindergarten and elementary schools in California and Nevada.
Sample
The main study sample includes 72 elementary schools with at least one public pre-kindergarten classroom and one kindergarten classroom in the same school. Approximately 864 students will participate in the main study and all students will be from low-income families. The research sample for the normative comparison study will consist of 36 elementary schools from the same school districts as the schools in the main study. Approximately 432 students will participate in the normative comparison study and will be from middle-income families.
Intervention
The Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics curriculum consists of 32 small-group math activities with concrete manipulatives. Teachers typically conduct small group math activities twice per week for 20–25 minutes with time during a third day for review. The units and activities are aligned with the kindergarten clusters of standards included in the Common Core State Standards for mathematics. The Early Learning in Mathematics (ELM) curriculum includes 120 math lessons, 45 minutes in duration, supplemented by a daily 15-minute calendar activity. ELM includes daily activities that are sent home to parents to provide their children with additional practice outside of school. ELM content strands include whole numbers, operations, geometry, and measurement. All activities incorporate a variety of math models for children to build conceptual understanding.
Research design and methods
In the main study, a cluster randomized control trial will be conducted in 72 elementary schools that have at least one public pre-kindergarten classroom and one kindergarten classroom on the same elementary school campus. Schools will be randomly assigned within the district to receive the two-year, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten intervention or to serve as part of the control condition. Within each school, one pre-kindergarten and one kindergarten classroom will participate in the study. A sample of 12 pre-kindergarten children will be randomly selected from participating pre-kindergarten classrooms at each school at the beginning of Year 1, and then the research sample will transition into the participating kindergarten classroom at the same school in Year 2. Students will also be followed-up at grade 1 to determine the long-term impact of the two year intervention.
Control condition
Schools in the control condition in the main study and schools in the normative comparison study will continue to implement their business-as-usual mathematics curriculum and instruction.
Key measures
Key student outcome measures include two proximal measures, the Child Math Assessment and the Proximal Early Learning in Mathematics Measure, administered during prekindergarten and kindergarten, respectively. The distal student outcome measure, the Test of Early Mathematics Ability, will be administered at prekindergarten, kindergarten, and grade 1.
Data analytic strategy
Since the data collected represents longitudinal and nested observations, differential gains between treatment and control groups on measures of student math knowledge will be analyzed using mixed model analysis. For the main study, analyses using a three-level hierarchical linear model with observations nested within students within schools will be conducted. For the normative comparison study, analyses using a two-level hierarchical linear model with students nested within schools will be conducted.
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
Products: The products of this project include information on the combined efficacy of the Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics and Early Learning in Mathematics curricula for improving mathematics outcomes for low-income early elementary school students, and peer-reviewed publications.
Related projects
Supplemental information
Co-Principal Investigators: Klein, Alice; Baker, Scott K.; Clarke Ben
For the normative comparison study, a middle-class normative comparison sample of 36 schools will be recruited from the same school districts as the treatment schools in the main study. This quasi-experiment will use a nonrandomized noninferiority design to attempt to determine whether the performance levels of low-income students in the treatment group are similar to the performance levels of middle-income students in the comparison group at the end of kindergarten. Within each kindergarten classroom, all students who do not meet the income criteria for free or reduced lunch will be recruited up to a maximum of 12 students per classroom. The mathematics outcomes for students in the normative comparison study will be compared to outcomes for students in the treatment group of the main study.
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