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Multiple IES-funded projects have demonstrated that students from low-income backgrounds significantly benefitted from receiving the Pre-K Mathematics intervention. Each study revealed that children exposed to Pre-K Mathematics had significantly higher main scores than students in classrooms with business-as-usual math curricula. In fact, the achievement gap was narrowed at the end of pre-K and this finding persisted at the end of kindergarten! Participating students scored at the national average on mathematics achievement tests at the end of kindergarten.
Pre-K Mathematics has been found to be effective in 5 gold standard randomized controlled trials and meets the What Works Clearinghouse evidence standards without reservations
WWC Intervention Report What Works Clearinghouse
Validation of the Effectiveness of an Innovative Early Mathematics Intervention for High-Need Students, Thomas, J., Cook, T. D., Klein, A., Starkey, P., & DeFlorio, L. (2018). The sequential scale-up of an evidence-based intervention: A case study. Evaluation review, 42(3), 318-357.
A Longitudinal Study of the Effects of a Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics Curriculum on Low-Income Children’s Mathematical Knowledge, Klein A., Starkey, P., Clements, D., Sarama, J., & Iyer, R. (2008). Effects of a pre-kindergarten mathematics intervention: A randomized experiment. Journal of Research on Educational
DeFlorio, L., Klein, A., Starkey, P., Swank, P. R., Taylor, H. B., Halliday, S. E., Beliakoff, A., & Mulcahy, C. (2019). A study of the developing relations between self-regulation and mathematical knowledge in the context of an early math intervention. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 46, 33–48.
Pre-K Mathematics has been found to be effective at scale
Scaling Up the Implementation of a Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics Curriculum in Public Preschool Programs, Starkey, P., Klein, A., & DeFlorio, L., (2014). Promoting Math Readiness through a Sustainable Mathematics Intervention. In Bierman, K.L. & Doivin, M. (Eds.) Promoting school readiness and early learning: the implications of developmental research for practice. New York: Guilford.
Starkey, P., & Klein, A. (2012). Scaling up the implementation of a pre-kindergarten mathematics curriculum in public preschool programs (IES Grant R305K050004): Final report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.
Starkey, P., Klein, A., Clarke, B., Baker, S., & Thomas, J. (2022). Effects of early mathematics intervention for low-SES pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students: A replication study. Educational Research and Evaluation, 27(1-2), 61-82.
Pre-K Mathematics has been found to be effective when implemented as part of a comprehensive curriculum
A Randomized Study of the Efficacy of a Two-Year Mathematics Intervention for At-Risk Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Students, Lonigan, C.J., Phillips, B.M., Clancy, J.L., Landry, S.H., Swank, P.R., Assel, M., Taylor, H.B., Klein, A., Starkey, P., Domitrovich, C.E., Eisenberg, N., de Villers, j., de Villers, P., Barnes, M.A., and the School Readiness Consortium (2015). Impacts of a comprehensive school readiness curriculum for preschool children at risk for educational difficulties. Child Development, 86 (6), 1773-1793.