The Seeds to Success Modified Field Test: Findings from the Impact and Implementation Studies
Author: Boller, Kimberly
Date: 2010-06-28
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: School Readiness,Field Tests,Child Care,Program Evaluation,Program Effectiveness,Program Implementation,Partnerships in Education,Early Childhood Education,Evaluation Methods,Research Methodology,Data Analysis,Educational Quality,Philanthropic Foundations,Public Agencies,Improvement Programs,Models,Professional Development,Faculty Mobility,Teacher Persistence,Training,Coaching (Performance),Educational Policy,Child Care Centers,Child Care Occupations,Experimental Groups,Control Groups,Incentives,Caregiver Training,Rating Scales,Curriculum,Educational Environment,Teacher Student Ratio,Preschool Teachers

In 2006, the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation launched the Early Learning Initiative (ELI) to   improve the school readiness of Washington State's children through three  main strategies:   (1) development of high-quality, community-wide early learning initiatives in two communities; (2) enhancement of statewide systems that support early learning; and (3) support for implementation of promising practices. The foundation joined with other private funders and state officials to form Thrive by Five (Thrive) Washington to energize development and support of high-quality early learning opportunities for all children in the state. In tandem with the formation of Thrive, the Gates Foundation sought two communities with a high level of need for early learning services and the capacity to develop and implement high-quality, community-wide early learning initiatives. The Gates Foundation selected East Yakima, a neighborhood in the central Washington community of Yakima, and  White Center, an unincorporated area just outside Seattle. Thrive has worked with an intermediary agency in each community to develop and implement the initiative. Educational Service District 105, through its Ready by Five project, serves as  the  intermediary in East Yakima. In White Center, Puget Sound Educational Service District (PSESD) serves as the intermediary for the White Center Early Learning Initiative (WCELI). Thrive, the two communities, and other stakeholders worked closely with the Washington State Department of Early Learning (DEL) to develop Seeds to Success, a child care quality rating and improvement system (QRIS). In spring 2009, Thrive, Ready by Five, and Child Care Resources (PSESD's partner in White Center) began a six-month field test of a streamlined version of the DEL QRIS, referred to as the Seeds to Success Modified Field Test (Seeds). This report provides a detailed description of Seeds. Chapter II provides an overview of the impact and implementation studies that comprised the evaluation; specifically, the authors describe the study designs, data collection processes, and analysis methods. In Chapter III, they present findings from the impact evaluation. In Chapter IV, they discuss findings from the implementation study. Chapter V presents lessons learned about implementing the Seeds model. Appendix A contains additional details about the evaluation methodology. Appendices include: (1) Methodological and Technical Details; and (2) Distribution of Mean ERS and Arnett CIS Scores. (Contains 3 boxes, 36 tables, 10 figures and 41 footnotes.) [This report was submitted to the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation.]