State-Funded Preschool in the Last Frontier: Alaska's Pre-Elementary Grant Program. REL 2021-093

Autor/inn/en	Pierson, Ashley; Rooney, Kathryn
Institution	National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE) (ED/IES); Regional Educational Laboratory Northwest (ED); Education Northwest
Titel	State-Funded Preschool in the Last Frontier: Alaska's Pre-Elementary Grant Program. REL 2021-093
Quelle	(2021), (18 Seiten) PDF als Volltext (1); PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei (2) Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	Weitere Informationen
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	State Aid; Preschool Education; Grants; School District Autonomy; Minority Group Students; Program Evaluation; School Readiness; Program Implementation; Educational Finance; Disadvantaged; Rural Schools; Alaska Natives; Low Income Students; English Language Learners; Special Needs Students; Individualized Education Programs; Language Proficiency; Attendance; Mathematics Achievement + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Pre-school education; Vorschulerziehung; Grant; Finanzielle Beihilfe; School district; School districts; Autonomy; School autonomy; Schulautonomie; Programme evaluation; Programmevaluation; Readiness for school; School ability; Schulreife; Bildungsfonds; Rural area; Rural areas; School; Schools; Ländlicher Raum; Schule; Schulen; Inuit; Sonderpädagogischer Förderbedarf; Individualized education program; Individualisierendes Lernen; Language skill; Language skills; Sprachkompetenz; Anwesenheit; Mathmatics sikills; Mathmatics achievement; Mathematical ability; Mathematische Kompetenz
Abstract	Created in 2016, Alaska's Pre-Elementary Grants (PEGs) allow school districts to design, develop, and expand affordable and accessible preschool in their communities. PEGs aim, in particular, to serve historically disadvantaged students. This study aimed to help Alaska stakeholders better understand how districts implemented the grants and what were the characteristics and outcomes of children who participated in PEG programs. Based on analyses of documents, interviews, and administrative data, the study found that PEG districts served a higher proportion of Alaska Native students, English learner students, and students in rural remote schools than did non-PEG districts and that these differences increased between 2016/17 and 2018/19 as more districts received funding. PEG districts used the program's flexibility primarily to provide or support part-day preschool. In addition, students' participation in state-funded preschool between 2013/14 and 2017/18, including PEG participation, was positively related to kindergarten readiness, kindergarten and grade 2 English language proficiency, kindergarten and grade 1 attendance, and grade 3 assessment scores in math but not to grade 3 assessment scores in reading. The study findings have important implications for Alaska's efforts to expand preschool and might also be of interest to other predominantly rural states that are considering similar efforts. Specifically, the implementation findings can help practitioners, program directors, and state agency staff members in Alaska provide more targeted support to districts and modify the grant program in future years. The promising findings on the relationship between PEG participation and student outcomes point to the need for more rigorous research on this topic--an effort that would benefit from improved data collection. [For the Study Snapshot, see ED614561. For the appendixes, see ED614563.] (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Regional Educational Laboratory Northwest. Available from: Institute of Education Sciences. 550 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20202. Tel: 202-245-6940; Web site: https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/regions/northwest/index.asp
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01