Effectiveness of Kindergarten Intervention Programs

Abstract

Psychologists and educators continue to design and implement kindergarten intervention programs unsubstantiated by previous research. The present study used meta-analysis procedures to examine the effects of kindergarten intervention programs on variables related to school success. The meta-analysis was performed on 444 effect sizes derived from 65 previous studies involving 3194 kindergarten children. The mean effect size of 0.434 indicated that test scores obtained by the treatment groups were raised from the 50th to the 67th percentile in relation to the control groups. Strong to moderate positive effects were demonstrated on all measured variables related to school success. As predicted, the effect sizes from highly structured approaches (M- 0.517) were larger than those from the less structured programs (M = 0.298; t = 4.671, d.f. = 386, p < 0.001). In general, there was no significant difference found between various levels of parent involvement (F = 0.244, d.f. = 2,385, p > 0.05). However, when only the long-term effects were compared, a significant difference was found be,ween the programs with active parent involvement (M = 0.521) and those without (M = 0.362; t 2.067, d.f. = 134, p < 0.05). Strong effects were found in studies based on behavioral (M 0.523), psychoeducational (M- 0.497), and stage referenced (M = 0.355) theories. The lack of research to support kindergarten programs based on rnaturational theories was discussed. The positive results of this meta-analysis should encourage program planners and policy-makers to support the widespread implementation of structured early intervention and prevention programs at the kindergarten level.