Resource Library

Interest in the quality of provider-family relationships in early care and education (ECE) settings has sharpened the focus on defining and measuring elements of these relationships across settings for program improvement purposes.  In this brief, authors examine the alignment of research-based elements of family-provider partnerships with professional and performance standards from three national ECE organizations as well as selected professional competencies and Quality Rating and...

The INQUIRE Toolkit grows out of the growing awareness of the importance of collecting data related to early care and education.  The Quality Initiatives Research and Evaluation Consortium (INQUIRE) Data Work Group was convened to address a request from stakeholders for information on building an effective data infrastructure to support activities including monitoring, continuous program improvement, reporting, validation and evaluation in Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) and...

Many factors influence parents’ decision-making in their child care choices. This literature review provides an overview of empirical knowledge about the factors that influence parents’ decision-making in their child care choices. Findings from the literature are organized into four main sections reflecting empirical findings about: 1) parents’ child care decision-making processes, 2) parents’ preferences and priorities in selecting a care arrangement...

Child care survey data and analyses can be improved by stepping away from terminology which may have unclear or multiple meanings to different audiences. This brief, which draws from the Design Study of the National Survey of Early Care and Education, reviews the importance of child care data, as well as some of the pitfalls of misinterpretation of survey items. Through a review of literature, cognitive testing, and feasibility testing, the brief considers terminology issues as they... 

There is increasing emphasis on coordination and collaboration across early care and education sectors to provide consistent, high-quality services to meet the needs of families with young children. This brief presents work on the conceptualization and measurement of collaboration in the field of early childhood.  The brief identifies key components of collaboration and encourages the development and use of measures of collaboration in the early childhood field.  The brief presents...

Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) are only useful if their ratings are valid.  This brief provides detailed examples and findings from QRIS validation activities in four states: Indiana, Maine, Minnesota and Virginia. The brief demonstrates how different states have approached QRIS validation, compares findings, and highlights challenges in designing and conducting QRIS validation studies. 

Authors use a framework provided by Zellman and Fiene through the Quality Initiatives...

Dosage, or the amount of intervention delivered, is an important factor in understanding implementation...

To ensure implementation of early childhood interventions with fidelity, implementation strategies must be aligned...

Quantity measures are far more prevalent than quality measures in implementation research...

Quality Rating and Improvement Systems’ administrators are seeking resources and technical assistance...