What Is the Penny Buying for South Carolina?: Longitudinal Studies of Later Academic Achievement

This report presents the results of a longitudinal study comparing the academic achievement of child development program participants with that of their non-participant peers. Children who were in the four-year-old child development program during the 1995-1996 school year were tracked to the third grade in the 1999-2000 school year. Children were also tracked through fourth and fifth grades. Data provide consistent Statewide evidence that the South Carolina State-funded early childhood program has a long-term positive impact on children’s academic performance. The impact was sustained six years after the participants had left the program. Test performance by program participants differed among demographic groups. Female participants scored significantly higher than their male peers in English language arts and mathematics at both grades four and five. Family income was positively related to students’ academic performance. No performance differences were shown by the test scores of fourth- and fifth-grade students served by full-day programs and those served by half-day programs. Program participation appeared helpful in significantly narrowing the performance gap between Caucasian and non-Caucasian participants. Appendices include: (1) “Districts Providing MAT7 Test Data, Spring 2002”; and (2) “Summary of Longitudinal Studies on South Carolina Early Childhood Development Programs for Four-Year Olds, 1986-2004.”