Effects of the Perry Preschool Program on Youths Through Age 15

Abstract

The Perry Preschool study is a longitudinal experiment designed to reveal the effects of early educational intervention on children at risk. The study, begun in 1962, has been following 123 children from age 3 to their current age of 19. They were assigned on a random basis either to an experimental group, who received a program of preschool education and home visits, or to a control group, who received no early childhood program. The children who attended preschool showed long-lasting improvements in their commitment to school, scholastic achievement, and school placement. Placements In programs of special education were cut in half—39% of the control group versus 19% of the experimental group. The scholastic achievement of those who attended preschool was consistently higher than that of those who did not attend preschool, even 10 years later. Children who attended preschool demonstrated higher motivation, placed a higher value on schooling, and did more homework. Teenagers who had attended preschool engaged in less delinquent behavior. The Perry Preschool Program was found to be cost-beneficial. The cost per child for a two-year program was $5,984 in 1979 dollars. The benefits were (a) $3,353 per child saved by the public schools because children with preschool required fewer years of special education, (b) $10,798 per child in increased lifetime eamings projected from improved educational status, and (c) $668 per child estimated as the value of the mothers' released time while their children attended preschool. These benefits amounted to a 248% return on the original investment.