Relationship of EPPE findings to other research
In many ways the EPPE findings are not new; for example the adverse impact of social
disadvantage on children’s development has been established wherever it has been studied.
Other areas in which the EPPE findings are supported elsewhere include:
1. Short-term, positive effects of pre-school education have been shown conclusively in the
U.S., Sweden, Norway, Germany, Canada, Northern Ireland and New Zealand (Melhuish,
2004a).
2. The effects of greater staff training and qualifications have been shown in the U.S.
(Peisner-Feinberg, 1997; 2001) and in Northern Ireland (Melhuish et al., 2000a and b).
3. The contribution of quality to children’s developmental progress has been shown in many
studies, often using the ECERS observational scale (Melhuish 2004a and b).
4. Early day care was found in EPPE to relate to increased cognitive outcomes better
Independence, Peer sociability at age rising 5, but also increased anti-social behaviour. These
findings are similar to those in the U.S. (NICHD, 2002) Norway (Borge & Melhuish, 1995) and
Northern Ireland (Melhuish et al., 2000; 2002).
5. The findings on disadvantage are mirrored elsewhere (see Melhuish, 2004a) and are the
basis of policy initiatives all over the world (Young, 1996).
6. EPPE is one of few studies (the only in the UK) to demonstrate the role of pre-school
education as an effective means of early intervention in SEN (Sammons, 2002c).
7. EPPE is the first study to show convincingly that individual pre-school centres have
lasting effects on children’s development. This thread runs through the theoretical work of
educationalists such as Jerome Bruner (1996) but previously had not been empirically
demonstrated in a large representative sample.
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