This dissertation addresses the knowledge gap about the dosage feature of preschool programs and its relationship to kindergarten readiness by asking: Does the degree of center-based preschool attendance—more than 20 hours/week (full-day), more than zero and less than 20 hours/week (part-day), or zero hours/week (no attendance)—of 4-year old children in the United States have a discernible effect in mathematics, reading, and socio-emotional tests administered at the beginning of kindergarten? I used the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Birth Cohort (ECLS-B) to answer my research question. This high quality probability sample collected a wide range of data on young children and their families rather than assigning them to conditions. In the absence of experimental data, the quasi-experimental design that best fits the research question is a non-equivalent control group. In this design, two treated and an untreated group are compared on pre and posttest data on the same units. To minimize selection bias I first identified critical covariates that matter for selection into treatment and can be reliably measured. Then, I used propensity score analysis to match the treatment and control groups’ pretest scores and observable characteristics before directly comparing their outcomes. Results from this dissertation make evident that preschool level of attendance matters for kindergarten readiness compared no preschool. First, children who attended full-day preschool outperform their peers who did not attend in reading and math test scores at the beginning of kindergarten. Second, children who attended part-day preschool outperform their peers who did not attend in reading, math, and eagerness to learn tests scores at the beginning of kindergarten. However, results show that full-day preschool compared to part-day preschool had no statistically significant effect on cognitive skills, and had negative socio-emotional effects at the start of kindergarten. Children who attended full-day preschool performed the same in reading and math test scores- yet showed less eagerness to learn- compared to their peers who attended part-day preschool. These findings are aligned with existing literature stating that preschool has a positive effect on cognitive outcomes, particularly for low-income groups, and a negative or non-significant effect on socio-motional skills. They build upon and advance this knowledge base by empirically demonstrating the strong academic foundation that all young children develop when exposed to even a small number of hours of preschool per week. These results support the case for investments in our education system’s response that transcend the K-12 oriented approach. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester 2019. / April 3, 2019. / early childhood, ECLS-B, full-day, part-day, preschool, propensity score matching / Includes bibliographical references. / Stephanie S. Zuilkowski, Professor Co-Directing Dissertation; Toby Park, Professor Co-Directing Dissertation; Beth M. Phillips, University Representative; Carolyn Herrington, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_709317 |
| Contributors | Paredes Drouet, Carla Maria (author), Zuilkowski, Stephanie Simmons (Professor Co-Directing Dissertation), Park, Toby J. (Professor Co-Directing Dissertation), Phillips, Beth M. (University Representative), Herrington, Carolyn D. (Committee Member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Education (degree granting college), Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (degree granting departmentdgg) |
| Publisher | Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text, doctoral thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (159 pages), computer, application/pdf |
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