The Effective Provision of Pre - School Education ( EPPE ) Project : Final Report

The Effective Pre-School and Primary Education 3-11 (EPPE 3-11, 2003 – 2008) project willcontinue to build on the extensive data collected in the original EPPE study, following thechildren up to the age of 11 at the end of Key Stage 2. EPPE 3-11 is interested in the continuingeffects of pre-school education, the characteristics of effective primary schooling, the learningtrajectories of resilient and vulnerable children and the contribution to pupil progress of out ofschool learning. This quantitative data will inform school observations which will document thepractices and processes at classroom level which influence children’s cognitive andsocial/behavioural development. The study combines statistical analyses of pupil outcomes(attainment, attitudes, SEN, etc.), observational and interview data on educational processes. The main EPPE research officially ended in August 2003. The research findings have hadimpact at national, LEA and practitioner level. EPPE has provided evidence for two Treasuryspending review rounds and has helped secure significant additional resources for early yearseducation and care. The roll out of the new Children’s Centre programme has been influencedby the research findings. As EPPE have a unique sample of 3,000 children, with plottedindividual learning trajectories, the opportunity to use the sample to answer further researchquestions presented itself. The Effective Pre-School and Primary Education 3-11 (EPPE 3-11)Project is an extension to the main EPPE study and follows the same cohort of children to theend of Key Stage 2. This five year extension has been developed to explore four related themesin a series of embedded research tiers.The four main research questions are:1 Do the effects of pre-school continue through to Key Stage 2?2 What are the characteristics of ‘effective’ primary classrooms and schools?3 Who are the resilient and the vulnerable children in the EPPE sample?4 What is the contribution of ‘out-of-school learning’ (homes, communities, internet) tochildren’s development?The following figure describes the breadth and depth of the research. Tier 1 – Primary School Effectiveness studyThe aim of the first tier is to compare the effectiveness (and trends in effectiveness) across KeyStage 2 of all primary schools in England. This study will provide effectiveness measures for theschools in the EPPE sample and allow us to place the schools EPPE children attend in thecontext of all other schools in England. This study will constitute the first major multilevel valueadded study of the effectiveness of primary schools in England.