Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life
A Human Capital Integration

This volume presents research findings on the effects of early childhood programs and practices in the first decade of life.

Arthur J. Reynolds (Edited by), Arthur J. Rolnick (Edited by), Michelle M. Englund (Edited by), Judy A. Temple (Edited by)

9780521132336, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 23 August 2010

544 pages, 54 b/w illus. 57 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.8 cm, 0.73 kg

"....Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life: A Human Capital Integration brings the reader very close to the concrete reality of the academic, practical, political, social, and economic challenges that face people who are working in the field. The book is interdisciplinary in nature and seeks to develop a life-span and ecological systems perspective on childhood program investment that focuses not only on the efficacy of programs but also on the continuity of program provision throughout child development, as well as the long-term cost-effectiveness of programs into adulthood.... The book is a truly informative, challenging, and inspiring read for anyone interested in the design of our children’s future...."
–Michael Hogan, PsycCRITIQUES

Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life presents research findings on the effects of early childhood programs and practices in the first decade of life and their implications for policy development and reform. Leading scholars in the multidisciplinary field of human development and in early childhood learning discuss the effects and cost-effectiveness of the most influential model, state, and federally funded programs, policies, and practices. These include Head Start, Early Head Start, the WIC nutrition program, Nurse Family Partnership, and Perry Preschool as well as school reform strategies. This volume provides a unique multidisciplinary approach to understanding and improving interventions, practices, and policies to optimally foster human capital over the life course.

Remarks: the essential role of youth development Robert H. Bruininks
1. Early childhood development and human capital Arthur J. Reynolds, Arthur J. Rolnick, Michelle M. Englund and Judy A. Temple
Part I. Prenatal and Infant Programs: 2. WIC turns 35: program effectiveness and future directions Barbara Devaney
3. The nurse-family partnership: from trials to practice David L. Olds
4. Carolina Abecedarian Project Frances A. Campbell and Craig T. Ramey
5. Early Head Start impacts at age 3 and a description of the age 5 follow-up study Helen H. Raikes, Rachel Chazan-Cohen, John M. Love and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn
Part II. Preschool Education: 6. Project Head Start: quality and links to child outcomes Gary Resnick
7. How to take the HighScope Perry Preschool to scale Lawrence J. Schweinhart
8. Impacts and implications of the Child-Parent Center Preschool Arthur J. Reynolds, Judy A. Temple and Suh-Ruu Ou
9. Small miracles in Tulsa: the effects of universal pre-k on cognitive development William T. Gormley, Jr
10. Lessons from the evaluation of the Great Start Readiness Program: a longitudinal evaluation Marijata Daniel-Echols, Elena V. Malofeeva and Lawrence Schweinhart
11. Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effects Study (APPLES) year one findings Ellen Frede, W. Steven Barnett, Kwanghee Jung, Cynthia Esposito Lamy and Alexandra Figueras
Remarks: are we promising too much for preschool education programs? Edward Zigler
Part III. Kindergarten and Early School Age Services: 12. School readiness and the reading achievement gap: can full-day kindergarten level the playing field? Vi-Nhuan Le, Sheila Nataraj Kirby, Heather Barney, Claude Messan Setodji and Daniel Gershwin
13. Small classes in the early grades: one policy, multiple outcomes Jeremy D. Finn, Allison E. Suriani and Charles M. Achilles
14. Opportunity in early education: improving teacher-child interactions and child outcomes Andrew J. Mashburn and Robert C. Pianta
Part IV. Economic Syntheses of Early Childhood Investments: Remarks at the Early Childhood Research Collaborative Conference Gary H. Stern: 15. The cost effectiveness of public investment in high-quality prekindergarten: a state level synthesis Robert G. Lynch
16. The fiscal returns to public educational investments in African American males Clive Belfield and Henry Levin
17. A new cost-benefit and rate of return analysis for the Perry Preschool Program: a summary James J. Heckman, Seong Hyeok Moon, Rodrigo Pinto, Peter Savelyev and Adam Yavitz
18. Investing in our young people Flavio Cunha and James Heckman
19. Paths of effects of preschool participation to educational attainment at age 20: a study of the Child-Parent Centers, High/Scope Perry Preschool, and Abecedarian Project Arthur J. Reynolds, Michelle M. Englund, Suh-Ruu Ou, Lawrence J. Schweinhart and Frances Campbell
Appendix: question and answer sessions.

Subject Areas: Economics [KC], Primary & middle schools [JNLB], Educational strategies & policy [JNF], Educational psychology [JNC], Child & developmental psychology [JMC]