Early childhood learning
and development
For over three decades, the SRI Education early learning and development team has been working to improve the lives of young children and their families
We do this through conducting rigorous research and evaluation, providing technical assistance grounded in client needs and facilitating actionable strategic planning informed by our expertise. Our team is driven by an understanding of the importance of the early years and a passion to ensure all young children have the opportunity to thrive in school and in life. We strive to identify solutions to the challenges of inequitable opportunities and outcomes.
About the program
SRI Education’s seminal work in early intervention and early childhood special education has shaped our broader approach to technical assistance and research and evaluation. At the systems level, we deliver technical assistance to support administrators and policymakers in building high-quality, accessible and equitable early childhood systems. We also collaborate with intervention developers and educators to select, adapt, implement and evaluate interventions that can promote learning and development across a range of domains. Our evaluations of statewide and local preschool programs highlight the importance of equitable access to high-quality early learning environments. And we develop innovative digital technologies to help young children learn and grow.
Recent work
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Improving Participation of Children in Foster Care in Stable, High-Quality Early Care and Education
We are collaborating on a research project to advance equity in access to and delivery of stable, high-quality early care and education (ECE) for children in foster care
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Todd Grindal: Conducting policy-relevant research to support young children
A leader in education research explores how policies and programs shape young children and children with disabilities.
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Assisting Parents to Review Online Videos for Education (APPROVE)
Researchers at SRI International developed an AI-powered YouTube filter that finds educational videos for kindergarten and prekindergarten children, including math videos and reading videos.
Early childhood care and education systems
State and local agencies and community organizations are building comprehensive early childhood care and education systems that promote collaboration across the public and private sectors to support child development. To strengthen these systems, leaders need solutions that increase access to high-quality programs, ensure a well-supported workforce, promote evidence-based practices and enable all children to reach their full potential.
SRI Education supports state, local and community leaders in building stronger systems. We build our partners’ capacity to collect and strategically use data, increase systems coordination through strategies such as coordinated eligibility and enrollment, facilitate family and community engagement, strengthen the workforce and evaluate the results of their work.
Implementation and impact of early learning programs
As Head Start and state and local programs work to provide high-quality early learning opportunities for young children, program leaders need more information on which interventions are most effective and how they can be implemented with fidelity.
SRI Education’s researchers combine deep content expertise with rigorous methods to provide our partners with practical information about how programs impact the development of young children, what components yield positive impacts and where those programs might be improved.
High-quality early learning environments
Providing high-quality early care and education requires well-trained and well-supported educators as well as developmentally appropriate curricula. Early childhood programs also need support to build and sustain excellent and equitable early learning environments.
SRI Education’s early learning and development team examines the effectiveness of professional development models and resources on classroom quality and teacher practices. We also use our expertise to improve existing measures and develop new measures to assess the quality of teaching practices.
Young children with disabilities
At SRI Education, we are committed to equitable access to educational experiences and positive outcomes for all young children with disabilities. Providing high-quality equitable services and supports requires a well-functioning state and local system, strong leadership and well-trained personnel.
SRI Education applies our knowledge of child development, effective interventions and systems-building to conduct research and provide change-oriented technical assistance. Our research and evaluation projects examine what works, what does not and why at the child, program and system levels. Our technical assistance supports state agencies and other entities to examine and improve their systems through effective use of data.
Early learning digital media
Young children spend a lot of time interacting with digital media such as games, apps, and videos. Yet parents and early childhood educators often do not have clear information about whether digital media helps or hinders children’s learning.
SRI Education researchers are leading groundbreaking studies of how young children learn from digital media. Our results provide media developers with insights into how children engage with digital media and give parents and educators practical information about which media best support children’s learning. We also use our multidisciplinary expertise to develop innovative learning technologies for young children.
Recent reports and publications
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YouTube’s ABCs and 123s: Describing the quality of early literacy and math videos on YouTube
This paper describes the quality of educational videos for young children on YouTube.
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Improving Participation in High-Quality Early Care and Education for Young Arkansas Children: Perspectives of Resource Parents and Early Childhood Educators
Abstract High-quality early care and education (ECE) provides a developmentally supportive environment for children in foster care that can help address early adversities, but recent studies have shown low levels of ECE participation among these children (Klein et al., 2016; Lee, 2020). To address this important issue, the Arkansas Office of Early Childhood (OEC) is…
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A New Approach to Supporting the Quality of Early Care and Education Programs in Arkansas: Case Studies of Array
Case studies of early care and education programs participating in Arkansas’s Array initiative describe the benefits of proactively providing entire program staff with social-emotional-focused professional development that is tailored to the program’s needs.
Our experts in early childhood learning and development
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Erika Gaylor
Principal Senior Researcher and Early Childhood Program Leader, SRI Education
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Grace Kelley
Senior Principal Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Mandy Reeve
Senior Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Margaret Gillis
Principal Researcher, SRI Education
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Betsy Davies-Mercier
Senior Researcher, SRI Education
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Kirby A Chow
Senior Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Wei-Bing Chen
Senior Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Kathleen M. Hebbeler
Senior Principal Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Denise Mauzy
Project Manager & Technical Assistance Provider, SRI Education
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Cindy Weigel
Senior Technical Assistance Specialist, SRI Education
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Kathryn Morrison
Senior Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Mary Lee Porterfield
Senior Education Researcher, SRI Education
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Todd A. Grindal
Co-Director, Center For Learning & Development, SRI Education