The Role of Program Quality in Determining Head Start's Impact on Child Development: Third Grade Follow-Up to the Head Start Impact Study

To what extent does variation in the quality of children’s Head Start experiences affect children’s development? The Head Start Impact Study (HSIS) has demonstrated that children who participate in Head Start experience improved preschool quality on average and improved school readiness compared with similar children who do not have access to Head Start. This report uses data from the Head Start Impact Study (HSIS) to examine variations based on Head Start center quality in the program’s impact on children’s development.