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Comparing the School Readiness Skills of Public Pre-Kindergarten and Head Start Participants: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Robert C. Carr,
Margaret Burchinal,
Lynne Vernon-Feagans

A systematic review of the literature (1965–2022) and meta-analysis were undertaken to compare the school readiness skills of children participating in public pre-kindergarten (pre-K) or Head Start. Seven quasi-experimental studies met the inclusion criteria for the meta-analysis and 38 effect sizes were analyzed. Results indicated no reliable meta-analytic effect in relation to children’s school readiness skills overall nor in relation to language, mathematics, or social-behavioral skills specifically. A small, positive meta-analytic effect favoring public pre-K compared to Head Start participation was found in relation to children’s emergent literacy skills (Hedges’ g = 0.17). Strategies are discussed to further equate the benefits of public pre-K and Head Start programming by facilitating greater cross-sector collaboration.

Keywords
Head Start; pre-K; school readiness
Education level
Early childhood
Topics
Student Learning
Tags
Early childhood education
Download 03/2023
Document Object Identifier (DOI)
10.26300/r0y2-b579
EdWorkingPaper suggested citation:
Carr, Robert C., Margaret Burchinal, and Lynne Vernon-Feagans. (). Comparing the School Readiness Skills of Public Pre-Kindergarten and Head Start Participants: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (EdWorkingPaper: -740). Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://doi.org/10.26300/r0y2-b579

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