In most states kindergarten entry assessments (KEA) are employed primarily to inform parents and teachers. KEAs can serve as a key indicator of child development at formal school entry to inform education, but also could serve as a baseline for assessing progress in the early grades. However, their usefulness for this purpose is limited because…

In this report I share the results of a document-based, comparative case study aimed at increasing our understanding about the potential utility of state kindergarten entry assessments (KEAs) to provide evidence of English learner (EL) kindergartners' knowledge and skills and, in turn, inform kindergarten teachers' instruction. Using a sample of 9…

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) submits this report to the House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions pursuant to section 649(l)(3) of the Head Start Act (the Act). This report contains findings based on data collected on the U.S. Department of…

The Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) was asked to provide information on how other states are approaching the development and implementation of Kindergarten Entry Assessment (KEA) as part of a comprehensive assessment system. Specifically, the request asked for information about KEA measures used by other states, the processes…

This policy brief is a guide for state education policy leaders to use in selecting and prioritizing college- and career-ready student performance indicators. These indicators can be built into the state's accountability system through public reporting, statewide performance goals, school-level incentives, and accountability formulas used to…

Educational Policy Improvement Center (EPIC) researchers visited 38 public high schools around the United States in 2007 and 2008 with the goal of validating and operationalizing a definition of college readiness. Schools in the sample were selected because they were demonstrating success at enabling more students from underrepresented groups to…

Community partnerships serving young children and families take many forms. This article presents six community partnerships that are engaged in innovative and creative approaches to learning. These programs have varied goals, but they share a common focus on linking community resources to enhance learning opportunities for the children and…

This report examines how state welfare-to-work programs have affected young children since the 1996 welfare reform act, which moved millions of women into low-wage jobs. Researchers followed a sample of 948 mothers and young children for 2-4 years after the women entered new welfare programs in California, Connecticut, and Florida. After…