The Work, Families & Children team has conducted a series of studies for the Boston Public Schools (BPS), including the BPS K1 and K2 Programs Needs Assessment, and a 2007-08 follow-up study.

In 2006, the Boston Public Schools Department of Early Childhood commissioned a needs assessment of current kindergarten (K2) and preschool (K1) programs [1] to inform the BPS Department of Early Childhood about professional development needs to improve the quality of existing K1 and K2 programs, and [2] to inform the Department of additional classroom resources necessary to expand the K1 program to provide universal access for Boston 4 year olds to accredited, full day programs. In 2007, BPS commissioned two studies: [1] a study of children’s language growth and development over their K1 or K2 year in school; [2] a study of classroom practices in K1 and K2 classrooms.