This is the sixth and final report from the Georgia’s Pre-K Longitudinal Study that 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.
The fourth-grade results make clear that Georgia’s investment in early education is paying off and should continue. While the students continued to gain skills and overall were still performing at or above the national average at the end of fourth grade, most skills were not acquired as quickly as they were in Pre-K and kindergarten, continuing the trend from first grade. 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