Child Care and Early Education Research Connections

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The child care & early education glossary defines terms used to describe aspects of child care and early education practice and policy; the research glossary defines terms used in conducting social science and policy research, for example those describing methods, measurements, statistical procedures, and other aspects of research.

A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W
Preschool
Programs that provide early education and care to children before they enter kindergarten, typically from ages 2.5-5 years. Preschools may be publicly or privately operated and may receive public funds.
Preschool Development Grant (PDG)
A program authorized by the ESSA of 2015 that provides competitive grants, managed jointly by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Education, for states to improve coordination, Quality, and Access to early childhood education for low- and moderate-income children from birth to age five. The ESSA’s Preschool Development Grants (PDG) are also geared towards increasing Parent Choice and supporting high need and rural communities. ESSA's PDG succeeded the U.S. Department of Education’s prior Preschool Development Grant Program, which provided 2 years of funding for a select number of states to expand access to high-quality Pre-k for four year olds from low-income backgrounds.
Process Quality
Refers to the features of an early childhood setting related to caregiver-child interactions that affect children's development. Compare with: Global Quality; Structural Quality.
Professional Development (PD)
Refers to a continuum of learning and support activities designed to prepare individuals for work with, and on behalf of, young children and their families, as well as ongoing experiences to enhance this work. Professional development encompasses education, training, and Technical Assistance (TA), which leads to improvements in the knowledge, skills, practices, and dispositions of early education professionals.
Protective Factors
Refers to characteristics that reduce the impact of Risk Factors on children's learning and development. Protective factors can exist at the family, child and community level, such as attending high quality early childhood programs and having strong Family Engagement.
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