Launched in the year 1965, the Head Start program cultivates preparedness for school among kids from poor backgrounds by providing them with social, nutritional, educational, health and other relevant services. Ever since its introduction, the program has catered to over 33 million early childhood-age kids (0-5 years of age) and their family members. Figures for 2015 revealed program funding to cater to almost a million expectant mothers and early childhood-age kids at home, educational facilities, and family childcare homes within rural, urban, and suburban communities across America. The program's advantages are being closely scrutinized in the wake of congressional talks to consider reauthorizing it. How successful has the program been? Are there any areas for improvement? This paper will assume the form of a critical analysis and summary of the program; its implications will help inform formal discussions on the subject. Considerable controversy exists regarding whether or not the program has any long-term advantages, tracing back to the days of its inception. The analysis has gleaned mixed, although largely positive, proofs pertaining to the program's long-term advantages (Barnett & Hustedt, 2005).Answers to Questions
Intermediate Outcome Measures
S. No
Measure
Explanation
Unit of Measurement
1
Personnel Performance
Routinely implement performance assessment. This has been recognized as a clear strategy, indicating an interactive assessment technique incorporating the 'appraisee' and appraiser in establishing feasible annual professional goals and work plans. Formats for performance assessment are both job-specific (i.e., associated with individual roles) and generic (related to overall corporate objectives).
One task or job a day
2
Charging fees
Fees ought to recover total costs of delivering services, including direct organizational and activity connected expenses and a suitable share of support or overheads.
One patient's expenses
3
Budget Tracking
Sources of funds and expenditure ought to...
A sound system in this regard will be able to assess and collect information linking program implementer activities to outcomes achieved (Manna, Vinovskis, & Haskins, 2012).
One individual responsible
5
Cultural Modifications
Head Start's facilities are required to develop "ethnic pride," besides having in place an appropriate Programme that reflects the aided population's requirements (bicultural/bilingual, multi-ethnic and so forth). As some disagreement exists regarding whether early childhood bilingual education eventually facilitates or hampers English language acquisition, the empirical question deals with whether these programs of Head Start prove more beneficial compared to other preschools that don't mandate bilingual instruction (Currie & Thomas, 1996).
One problem dealt with monthly
6
Structural Modifications
African-American kids in Head Start reportedly exhibited greater attentiveness, lesser structured learning issues, and improved interactions and relationships with fellow students and educators (Westat, 2010).
A single patient daily
7
Allotment of Time
Programs reveal managers' lack of adequate time to commit to I am Moving/ I am Learning. This can hamper effective implementation.
Allotment of 1 hour allocated
8
Networking or establishing contacts /
Roughly 550 facilities of Head Start were contacted by researchers for ascertaining whether there was room for fictitious kids. Most facilities cited a lack of open slots for enrollment; however, they did have waiting lists for every program requirement (Kutz, 2010).
1 new contact every day
9
Material Support
Most courses performed activities in evaluation planning and objective establishment, recruitment and personnel training, documented plans and assistance, community partnership forging and…
Head Start, Social Control Theory For America's, nursery children in the ages of three years to five years and who belong to the low-income families, a complete services of progress including social services for their poor families is offered by a nationwide plan called Head Start. To meet particular requirements, about 1,400 community-based non-profit associations and school systems work out exclusive and novel programs. In 1965 the Head Start was started
Head Start preschool classrooms prominently emphasize performance standards as a way to assess educational programs for young children. However, this approach is often criticized as not appropriate for the assessment of young children (Hallam et al., 2007). Standards outlined in the Head Start Child Outcomes Framework were developed as an assessment system in response to the need for increased accountability in early childhood care and education. The Child Outcomes Framework
Public Program Quality Evaluation Overview of the Program and the Program Rationale In 2011, approximately 23% of all children in the United States were children of immigrants. Many of these children have come from countries where the educational systems have not prepared them with competitive skills that will support a good standard of living. Various policies to address this issue have been proposed. Of the feasible options, the policy most likely to
25). On the other hand, there is often an assumption on the part of the users that evaluations are "an ivory tower process…too late to be useful, too full of jargon to be understood, too lengthy [to read]…, and too likely to be answering a question quite different from the policy question originally posed" (Ibid). The last user complaint set forth by Chelimsky -- that the question answered is often not
The program was instrumental in illustrating the importance of preschool on the reduction of crime in this country and now serves as a spoke in the wheel of government funding for preschool programs throughout the nation. References Epstein, Ann S. (1999) Pathways to Quality in Head Start, Public School, and Private Nonprofit Early Childhood Programs.(Statistical Data Included) Journal of Research in Childhood Education Program Outcomes (accessed 10-20-06) http://www.ncjrs.gov/html/ojjdp/2000_10_1/page2.html Reynolds, a.J., Temple, J.A., Robertson, D.L., &
Program Evaluation EVALUATING A PROGRAM Evaluation of a project or program plays an important role in future funding or accreditation of the program and also lends credibility to the service provided. When an organization launches a new program especially in the non-profit sector, it usually requires funding from various sources and needs to attract more people to the program to make it successful, for this purpose it must adopt a sound evaluation