Monday, May 27, 2013

Research Can be Positive!



A positive research experience includes the one that I am currently a part of.  United Way of Metropolitan Nashville funds a School Readiness Initiative with three-star rated child care centers. Part of my job as a literacy coach (the liaison between the centers and United Way) is to collect data on the progress of the children in our program.  The teachers implement the curriculum year round and I assess the children in the Fall, Winter, and Spring in order to assess the usefulness of the curriculum. 
The methods employed do not place greater than minimal harm on our children.  The data collected from the assessments not only support that the curriculum at hand provides sufficient kindergarten readiness preparation, but it also highlights the areas in which the curriculum is weak thus affording the teachers the ability to supplement said areas.
Data collected proves the program yields approximately 94% success rate in accomplishing the goal of preparing our children for kindergarten.  Outside of the research, graduated parents return to express gratitude on the investment we put in their children because it is now paying off in elementary school.

1 comment:

  1. I am curious to understand what type of information you are collecting and what type of curriculum the teachers are teaching/following. I think that it is great that you are creating successful children when entering kindergarten. I think this is very important. I am an big advocate of education before kindergarten!

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