Grantee: LENA
Study Type: Descriptive study
Principal Investigator: Jill Gilkerson – LENA
Project Description: This study examined the impact of LENA Grow on young children’s school readiness outcomes in three school districts in South Carolina, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Each state has its own corresponding study. The research team examined the kindergarten readiness assessment scores in each state for 1) children who had been in early childhood classrooms using LENA Grow during their three- and/or four-year old Pre-K year; and 2) comparison group children who had not been exposed in any way to LENA Grow. The researchers used demographic data on these children—including whether they were ever enrolled in a formal Pre-K program—to create matched groups. Results of the matching suggested that the groups were equivalent on observed demographic characteristics, but there were some differences in the extent to which the groups had been exposed to a formal Pre-K program prior to kindergarten.
Key Findings: Findings suggested benefits of enrollment in a Pre-K program incorporating LENA-Grow for children’s kindergarten readiness outcomes. In Cherokee County, SC, the study found that children exposed to LENA Grow were 1.6x more likely than their comparison group peers to demonstrate kindergarten readiness overall and 1.8x more likely to demonstrate readiness in language and literacy. In Henderson County, KY, the researchers found that LENA Grow children were 2.7x more likely to be at or above average in language development at the start of kindergarten relative to comparison group peers. And in Memphis, TN, LENA Grow participants in one charter school system were 2.4x more likely than children in a matched control group to be at kindergarten level in English-language arts.
Study Citation: Gilkerson, J., Govoni, P., & Hannon, S. (2024). Measuring LENA Grow’s impact on kindergarte readiness. LENA research brief. Retrieved from: https://www.lena.org/lena-grow-kindergarten-school-readiness-data/.
Full report here.
The Key Findings above were reproduced from the published report and do not necessarily reflect interpretation of Overdeck Family Foundation staff.
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