1. Massachusetts Early Care and Education and School Readiness Study
Wendy Wagner Robeson, Ed.D.
Joanne Roberts, Ph.D.
Nancy Marshall, Ed.D.
Wellesley College Center for Research on Women

2. Research Questions
What are the characteristics of the preschool classrooms that make a difference in school readiness outcomes for children?
How does this vary by race, ethnicity, gender and income differences among children?
What are the relative impacts of the quality of infant care and preschool care on children’s school readiness?
How do the hours of early care and education relate to children’s school readiness outcomes?

3. Sample
Employs two samples
236 children followed since infancy (ACF grant # 90YE0048 Family Income, Infant Child Care and Child Development)
160 low-income children recruited during the preschool year before kindergarten

4. Defining School Readiness
Five domains
Health and physical development
Social and emotional development
Approaches to learning
Language development and communication
Cognition and general knowledge

5. Conceptual Framework: Logic Model 1
Inputs
Processes
Short-term Outcomes
Long-term Outcomes
Children: gender, age, race/ethnicity, hours of care
Families: Income, Household structure, Parental employment & education, Literacy & relational environment
Centers: Teacher qualifications, center size, type of center (half-day, part-week, full-time)
early literacy environment
early math environment
caregiver-child interactions
social environment
curriculum
safety and health environment
language development and communication
cognition and general knowledge, including early math skills
social and emotional development
approaches to learning
health and physical development
School performance
Reduced grade retention
Reduced need for special education
Reduced delinquency
Healthy adult relationships and employment
 Proposed study 

6. Overview of Approach: Logic Model 2
Assumptions
Inputs
Data
Sources
Assessments
Outputs
Outcomes and Impact
Research
Questions
and
Hypotheses
•Advisory
Board
•Research
Team
•Centers
•Children
& Families
•ACF
Infant
Outcomes
Sample
(N=236
children)
•Low
Income
(N=160
•Observations
of classroom
environments
•Assessments
of children’s
•Analyses
to address
research
questions
hypotheses
•Journal
articles
•Community
•New
knowledge
•Improved
policies
& strategies to
address school
readiness

7. Links among Research Questions, Hypotheses, Data Sources & Variables
RQ1. What are the characteristics of preschool classrooms that make a difference in school readiness outcomes for children? How does this vary by race, ethnicity, gender and income differences among children?
H1. Children who attend preschool classrooms higher quality characteristics (early literacy and math environments, caregiver-child relationships, social environment, curriculum, safety and health environment) will have better scores on school readiness measures.
ACF Infant
Outcomes
Sample
Low-Income
• Preschool classroom variables
• Preschool children’s school readiness: health and physical development, social and emotional development, approaches to learning, language and communicative abilities, and cognition and general knowledge
H2. The characteristics of preschool classrooms will have a greater impact on school readiness for low-income children than for higher-income children, and a greater impact on race/ethnic minority children than for non-Hispanic white (majority) children.
• Family income and household membership, race/ethnicity
• Preschool children’s school readiness (see above)

8. Links among Research Questions, Hypotheses, Data Sources & Variables
RQ2. What are the relative impacts of the quality of infant care and preschool care on children’s school readiness, assessed in the preschool year?
H3. Children from higher quality infant classrooms will have better scores on school readiness measured in their preschool year.
ACF Infant Outcomes Sample
• Infant classroom variables
• Preschool children’s school readiness
H4. Children in higher quality preschool classrooms will have better scores on school readiness measured in their preschool year.
Low-Income Sample
• Preschool classroom variables
•Preschool children’s school readiness
H5. Concurrent environments (preschool classrooms) will have a greater impact on school readiness than infant classroom environments.
H6. Children in higher quality infant classrooms will show greater improvement over time (change) in language outcomes and social outcomes.
• Language and social emotional development at 12-, 24- and 36-months

9. Links among Research Questions, Hypotheses, Data Sources & Variables
RQ3. How do the hours of early care and early education relate to children’s outcomes?
H7. For low-income children, hours of preschool will be positively associated with greater school readiness. For moderate- and higher-income children, hours of preschool will not be significantly associated with school readiness.
ACF Infant Outcomes Sample
Low-Income Sample
• Number of hours of preschool care
• Family Income and household structure
• Preschool children’s school readiness
H8a.Greater hours of child care and early education in infancy and preschool will be associated with better cognitive outcomes in the preschool year.
• Number of hours of care in infancy
• Number of hours of care in preschool
• children’s cognitive and language outcomes
H8b.Greater hours in child care and early education in infancy and preschool will be associated with more externalizing behaviors in children. These relationships will be moderated by centers’ group size, ratios and quality of supervision and classroom management.
• Number of hours of care in Preschool
• Infant classroom variables
• Preschool classroom variables
• Children’s externalizing behavior in preschool

10. Family & Child Characteristics Variables & Measures
Time Point
12-, 24-,36-mnths
Preschool[1]
Family income and household structure
Family income; household structure X
Family race/ethnicity, language spoken in home
Language spoken in the home; Race/ethnicity
Family employment, education
Child gender, age
Child gender, age in months
Family literacy environment
StimQ Read
Parenting environment
CES-D
[1] Data collected in the Preschool Year will be collected on both Samples. Data collected at 12, 24 and 36 months applies only to the 236 children followed since infancy (ACF grant # 90YE0048 Family Income, Infant Child Care and Child Development)

11. Hours of Care Variables Infant Classroom Variables & Measures
Time Point
12-, 24-,36-mnths
Preschool[1]
Number of hours of care in infancy
Hours of care in infancy X
Number of hours of Preschool care
Hours of care; type of care
Infant classroom environment
Infant Observation Protocol: ITERS
Infant caregiver-child relationships
Arnett Global Caregiving Rating Scale
Infant staff:child ratios & group size
Observed staff:child ratio; Group size
Infant teacher education
Caregiver education and training
[1] Data collected in the Preschool Year will be collected on both Samples. Data collected at 12, 24 and 36 months applies only to the 236 children followed since infancy (ACF grant # 90YE0048 Family Income, Infant Child Care and Child Development)

12. Preschool Classroom Variables & Measures
Time Point
12-, 24-,36-mnths
Preschool[1]
Preschool early literacy and math environments
ECERS-R Language-Reasoning Subscale; ECERS-E; SELA X
Preschool caregiver-child relationships
Arnett Global Caregiving Rating Scale; Pianta Child-Caregiver Relationship Scale
Preschool social environment
ECERS-R Interaction subscale
Preschool curriculum
ECERS-R Activities and Program Structure subscales
Preschool safety and health environment
ECERS-R Space & Furnishings and Personal Care Routines subscales
Preschool staff:child ratios & group size
Observed staff:child ratio; Group size
Preschool teacher education
Caregiver education and training
[1] Data collected in the Preschool Year will be collected on both Samples. Data collected at 12, 24 and 36 months applies only to the 236 children followed since infancy (ACF grant # 90YE0048 Family Income, Infant Child Care and Child Development)

13. Child Outcome Variables & Measures
Time Point
12-, 24-,36-mnths
Preschool
Language and social- emotional development at 12-, 24- and 36-months
MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory; ASQ:SE; Child Health Condition Survey X
Preschool children’s school readiness: health and physical development
School Readiness Protocol: Child Health Condition Survey; Height & Weight (BMI)
Preschool children’s school readiness: social and emotional development
School Readiness Protocol: ASQ:SE; SSRS
Preschool children’s school readiness: approaches to learning
School Readiness Protocol: ECLS-K Approaches to Learning
Preschool children’s school readiness: language and communicative abilities
School Readiness Protocol: PPVT-R; Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening; EVT
Preschool children’s school readiness: cognition and general knowledge
School Readiness Protocol: Bracken Basic Concept Scale; Woodcock Johnson III: Applied Mathematics
Data collected in the Preschool Year will be collected on both Samples. Data collected at 12, 24 and 36 months applies only to the 236 children followed since infancy (ACF grant # 90YE0048 Family Income, Infant Child Care and Child Development)

14. Significance The proposed study will yield findings:
Impact of varying hours of early care and education on children’s school readiness
Specific factors in both infant and preschool classrooms that promote children’s school readiness.