School Quality, Stability, and the Long-Term Effects of Early Intervention

Introduction:

Although a large body of research corroborates the positive effects of school quality on children’s well-being, its contribution to the long-term effects of early childhood intervention is unclear. This study investigates the mediational and direct effects of several measures of school support subsequent to an early childhood intervention. The positive impacts of the CPC have been well-documented and will be highlighted in this proposed symposium. Subsequent educational decisions may have a significant impact on later life outcomes; these impacts could either bolster or depress the impacts of the CPC program.

Methods:

We investigate the impact of school support using several measures of school and classroom quality, including school mobility in elementary through high school and composite variables of school characteristics of elementary and high school. We also use teacher-directed/child-initiated curricula to attempt to capture classroom quality. Our dependent measures include: reading achievement in 3^rd and 8^th grade, educational attainment, crime, occupational prestige, and health. We use mediation analysis to determine which factors may serve as mediators to CPC participation. We also use propensity score matching to identify the direct effects of variables that do not serve as mediators.

 

Results: Preliminary results indicate that CPC has a direct, significant impact on all the life course well-being measures examined. Mobility, elementary school quality and curriculum type all serve as mediators for the CPC program. High school quality did not appear to be a mediator, but has significant direct effects on the well-being outcomes. Mobility between 4^th and 8^th grade has an average mediation effect of 28%, with the largest impact on occupational prestige. Similarly, mobility between 4^th and 12^th grade has an average effect of 23%, with the largest mediation effect on occupational prestige or 36%. Curriculum has an average effect of 18%, with the largest effect on 3^rd grade reading test scores, 37.2%. Elementary school quality has an average effect of 19%, with the largest effect on occupational prestige of nearly 20%. High school quality had an average direct effect of 14%, with the largest direct effect on occupational prestige, 32%.

 

Conclusion: These results indicate that CPC participation helps mitigate the impacts of school mobility and attendance at lower quality schools later in life. This suggests that for interventions to have strong and enduring effects integration of services between preschool and the elementary grades is an important feature.