The Effect of Early Childhood Programs on Third-Grade Test Scores: Evidence from Transitional Kindergarten in Michigan

The data used for this research was structured by the MERI-Michigan Education Data Center (MEDC), and is not identical to data collected and maintained by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) or Michigan’s Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI). Results and opinions presented here do not reflect the views or positions of MDE or CEPI. This research was funded by the Smith Richardson Foundation, as well as training grants R305B20011 and R305B170015 from the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences. We thank MDE and CEPI for their partnership, especially Thomas Howell and Richard Lower. We also thank Katia Cordoba Garcia and Samuel Owusu for excellent research assistance and Jasmina Camo-Biogradlija for assistance with data agreements and project management. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Bureau of Economic Research.