Evaluation of Georgia’s Pre-K Program
The Georgia’s Pre-K Longitudinal Study followed a statewide sample of 1,169 children from Pre-K to fourth grade. The six-year study, covering 2013–2019 and conducted by researchers at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, examined the children’s learning outcomes through standardized assessments and the quality of their school experiences over time through classroom observations. The study also included a subsample of English-Spanish dual language learners and a comparison sample of children who did not attend any Pre-K. Reports and summaries from the studies are found here.
Children in the Pre-K longitudinal sample had better language, literacy, and executive function skills in fourth grade than children in the comparison sample who did not attend any Pre-K. Overall, results suggest that a key strength of Georgia’s Pre-K Program is building foundational literacy skills for reading.
Longitudinal Study of Georgia’s Pre-K Program: Pre-K through 4th Grade Report
Executive Summary