A Science-Based Framework for Early Childhood Policy

This paper builds on a process of systematic analysis that began with the publication in 2000 of a landmark report by the National Academy of Sciences entitled From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development, followed by the ongoing work of the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child and the National Forum on Early Childhood Program Evaluation, both of which are based at the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. These groups of scientists and scholars engage in active debate about what the rapidly advancing biological and social sciences do and do not say about early childhood, brain development, and the impact of intervention programs. As agreement is reached on each issue, the groups integrate findings across disciplines and communicate this integrated information to policymakers and civic leaders to bring accurate knowledge to bear on public decision-making aimed at enhancing children’s learning, behavior, and health.

Neuroscience and child development research address the why and what questions about investing in young children. The applied sciences of intervention and program evaluation attempt to answer questions about when and how. Four decades of data from a small number of intensive programs demonstrate that it is possible to improve a wide range of outcomes for vulnerable children well into the adult years, as well as generate benefits to society that far exceed program costs. But evaluations also have shown that many programs, particularly if they are designed or implemented poorly, have generated few to no beneficial effects. Together, these findings provide an instructive and continuously growing body of knowledge about both successful and ineffective investments.

For the first time, researchers are now able to present a unified framework that can guide priorities for science-based early childhood policies and practices that are grounded in a combination of cutting-edge neuroscience, developmental-behavioral research, and program evaluation. Drawing on the best and most widely accepted evidence from all of these fields of study, we can confidently articulate the following findings.