| Citation: | Mathematica Policy Research. (2001). Building their futures: How early Head Start programs are enhancing the lives of infants and toddlers in low-income families. Princeton, NJ: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/buildingvol1.pdf |
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This large-scale randomized controlled trial examined the impact of the Early Head Start program on children and families. The Early Head Start program is a two-generation program that works with new mothers and their children up to age three to improve childrenÕs cognitive and language development, social-emotional behavior, and health. Individual program sites may select from a number of program options, including home visits, center-based care, case management, and group parenting activities. Among the 17 sites included in this study, seven were home-based, four were center-based, and six used a mixed approach. The study involved approximately 3,000 children and their low-income families in 17 sites across the United States. At each site, families were assigned randomly to the Head Start program or to a control group. Assessment instruments included the Bayley scales of infant development, MacArthur communicative development inventories, other child assessments, parent service interviews, and the HOME questionnaire for assessing the family environment. The study found that, after a year or more of intervention services, 2-year-old participants performed significantly better on a range of measures of cognitive, language, and social-emotional development than did children in the control group. Their parents scored significantly higher than control group parents on many measures of the home environment, parenting behavior including literacy-supportive activities, and knowledge of infant-toddler development. In addition, families from the intervention group were more likely to attend school or job training and to report reductions in parenting stress and family conflict. The authors noted, ÒAlthough these impacts are generally modest in size, the pattern of positive findings across a wide range of key domains important for childrenÕs well-being and future development is promisingÓ (p. iii). The study also found that local sites characterized as Òearly implementersÓ tended to demonstrate larger impacts both on familiesÕ use of services and on child and family outcomes than did programs described as Òlate implementersÓ or Òincomplete implementers.Ó
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