Medium-term protective effects of quality early childhood education during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana

Sharon Wolf; Elisabetta Aurino; Noelle M. Suntheimer; Esinam A. Avornyo; Edward Tsinigo; Jere R. Behrman; J. Lawrence Aber

doi:10.1111/cdev.13824

Medium-term protective effects of quality early childhood education during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana

Sharon Wolf, Elisabetta Aurino, Noelle M. Suntheimer, Esinam A. Avornyo, Edward Tsinigo, Jere R. Behrman, J. Lawrence Aber

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic led to extended school closures globally. Access to remote learning opportunities during this time was vastly unequal within and across countries. Higher-quality early childhood education (ECE) can improve later academic outcomes, but longer-term effects during crises are unknown. This study provides the first experimental evidence of how previously attending a higher-quality ECE program affected child engagement in remote learning and academic scores during pandemic-related school closures in Ghana. Children (N = 1668; 50.1% male; M_age = 10.1 years; all Ghanaian nationals) who attended higher-quality ECE at age 4 or 5 years had greater engagement in remote learning (d =.14) in October 2020, but not better language and literacy and math scores. Previous exposure to higher-quality ECE may support educational engagement during crises.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1912-1920
Number of pages	9
Journal	Child development
Volume	93
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13824
State	Published - Nov 1 2022

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
Education
Developmental and Educational Psychology

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10.1111/cdev.13824

Cite this

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abstract = "The COVID-19 pandemic led to extended school closures globally. Access to remote learning opportunities during this time was vastly unequal within and across countries. Higher-quality early childhood education (ECE) can improve later academic outcomes, but longer-term effects during crises are unknown. This study provides the first experimental evidence of how previously attending a higher-quality ECE program affected child engagement in remote learning and academic scores during pandemic-related school closures in Ghana. Children (N = 1668; 50.1% male; Mage = 10.1 years; all Ghanaian nationals) who attended higher-quality ECE at age 4 or 5 years had greater engagement in remote learning (d =.14) in October 2020, but not better language and literacy and math scores. Previous exposure to higher-quality ECE may support educational engagement during crises.",

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AB - The COVID-19 pandemic led to extended school closures globally. Access to remote learning opportunities during this time was vastly unequal within and across countries. Higher-quality early childhood education (ECE) can improve later academic outcomes, but longer-term effects during crises are unknown. This study provides the first experimental evidence of how previously attending a higher-quality ECE program affected child engagement in remote learning and academic scores during pandemic-related school closures in Ghana. Children (N = 1668; 50.1% male; Mage = 10.1 years; all Ghanaian nationals) who attended higher-quality ECE at age 4 or 5 years had greater engagement in remote learning (d =.14) in October 2020, but not better language and literacy and math scores. Previous exposure to higher-quality ECE may support educational engagement during crises.

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Medium-term protective effects of quality early childhood education during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana

Abstract

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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