Effects of Prekindergarten Curricula: Tools of the Mind as a Case Study
Nesbitt KT, Farran DC · 2021
grade Arctindependentfailed
Sample
60 classrooms (32 Tools, 28 control), about 1,200 children across 40 schools in 6 districts and 2 states, pre-K through end of first grade
Population
United States; pre-K children followed for three years.
Design
The peer-reviewed monograph reporting the Vanderbilt trial. School-level randomisation, business-as-usual control, three-year follow-up.
Key findings
There were no positive effects for Tools on any of the outcomes - academic, executive function, self-regulation or social - through the end of first grade. No consistent associations between fidelity of implementation and any child outcomes. And a finding that generalises well beyond this programme - teachers varied as much WITHIN treatment and control classrooms as they did BETWEEN conditions on most aspects examined, which is a direct challenge to the premise that adopting a curriculum changes what happens in a room.
Genetic confound
Low. School-level randomisation.
Replication notes
Failed replication of the developer-involved positive results. The monograph issue carries commentaries by Nguyen and Bailey on drawing general conclusions from null curricular effects and by Bierman on fifty years of preschool curriculum research.
DOI / URL
10.1111/mono.12425
Effects
| Outcome | Metric | Value | Measure | Timing | Vs | Horizon | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All child outcomes through end of first grade | direction | no positive effects on academic, EF, self-regulation or social outcomes | standardized | pre-K to end of first grade | business-as-usual | over-2yr | near-transfer |
| Implementation fidelity and child outcomes | association | no consistent associations | standardized | pre-K to first grade | business-as-usual | over-2yr | near-transfer |
| Within-condition versus between-condition teacher variation | comparison | teachers varied as much within treatment and control classrooms as between conditions | researcher-designed | pre-K | business-as-usual | end-of-treatment | behaviour |
Cited by
- Can executive function be trained, and does it transfer to learning?no effectconf: highgc: low