TY  - JOUR
AU  - Elango, Sneha
AU  - García, Jorge Luis
AU  - Heckman, James J
AU  - Hojman, Andrés
TI  - Early Childhood Education
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 21766
PY  - 2015
Y2  - November 2015
DO  - 10.3386/w21766
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w21766
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w21766.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Sneha Elango
Department of Economics
University of Chicago
1126 E. 59th Street
Chicago  IL  60637
E-Mail: selango@uchicago.edu

Jorge Luis García
John E. Walker Department of Economics 
Clemson University
205 Sirrine Hall
Clemson, SC 29634
US
E-Mail: jlgarci@clemson.edu

James J. Heckman
Center for the Economics of
Human Development
University of Chicago
1126 East 59th Street
Chicago, IL 60637
Tel: 773/702-0634
Fax: 773/702-8490
E-Mail: jjh@uchicago.edu

Andrés P. Hojman
Department of Economics
University of Chicago
1126 E. 59th Street
Chicago  IL  60637
E-Mail: andreshojman@gmail.com
M1  - published as Sneha Elango, Jorge Luis García, James J. Heckman, Andrés Hojman. "Early Childhood Education," in Robert A. Moffitt, editor, "Economics of Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States, Volume 2" University of Chicago Press (2016)

M3  - presented at "Means-Tested Transfer Programs", December 5-6, 2014
AB  - This paper organizes and synthesizes the literature on early childhood education and childcare. In it, we go beyond meta-analysis and reanalyze primary data sources in a common framework. We consider the evidence from means-tested demonstration programs, large-scale means-tested programs and universal programs without means testing. We discuss which programs are beneficial and whether they are cost-effective for certain populations. The evidence from high-quality demonstration programs targeted toward disadvantaged children shows beneficial effects. Returns exceed costs, even accounting for the deadweight loss of collecting taxes. When proper policy counterfactuals are constructed, Head Start has beneficial effects on disadvantaged children compared to home alternatives. Universal programs benefit disadvantaged children.
ER  -