What’s going on inside the “black box” of pre-K education? High quality pre-K programs seem to play an important role in improving later outcomes, particularly for children from more disadvantaged families, but what produces such wide variations in impact? What’s the best way to train teachers to be effective in these programs? And what are the key components of a high-quality program?

Last month Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School (WWS) and the Brookings Institution, a research and policy organization based in Washington, D.C., examined the effectiveness of pre-K education in the fall issue of the journal The Future of Children. 

According to Cecilia Rouse, WWS dean, economics professor, and co-editor of that issue, the journal’s articles suggest that “we need to focus much more on improving the quality of pre-K programs” and, in particular, “when it comes to pre-K to K-3 integration, we need much more evidence on what works and what does not work.” She noted that there is little agreement or understanding on how to ensure a smooth transition into kindergarten.

“Policymakers, educators, and parents are increasingly focused on the importance of the early years in children’s lives,” Ms. Rouse said. “Growing evidence suggests that the years before kindergarten can be critical for future success in school and beyond.”

In emphasizing the lack of integration between Pre-K and K-3, the journal asserted that “We must start considering the education of young children to be part of the educational system, and integrating it with elementary and secondary education.” One article pointed out that “educational preparation, compensation, and professional development look very different for preschool teachers than they do for the elementary school teaching workforce, with preschool teachers at a disadvantage in every respect.”

The journal concluded that teacher-student interactions are crucial in pursuing the essential and elusive goal of enhancing the quality of preschool programs. “The key indicator of quality in early childhood classrooms,” it stated, “is teacher-student interactions that are characterized by teachers’ sensitivity to individual needs, support for positive behavior, and stimulation of language and cognitive development.”

How to prepare teachers to fill these roles effectively and how to multiply the high-quality programs that exist remain unanswered questions. Three different articles, devoted to different areas of the curriculum, all concluded that young children can learn more than they are currently being taught and that more teachers can be trained to use proven curricula and practices to achieve that goal.

Seeking “to bridge research and practice, “the WWS Education Research Section (ERS) is organizing a conference for next spring to follow up on key issues highlighted in last month’s Future of Children journal. The event, which will attract those interested in education policy, practitioners, and education decision makers from both the pre-K and K-3 sectors, will present current research on pre-K education and highlight the best practices in the field.

Lisa Markman-Pithers, also co-editor of the fall Future of Children journal, WWS professor, and associate director of ERS, will be organizing the spring conference, which she stated will bring together researchers and practitioners, pre-K, and K-3 educators to discuss the crucial education issues facing the younger grades.