EDC supports the development of engaging and safe educational programs for young children.
From birth to age eight, children take the first steps in a lifelong learning journey. EDC speeds them on their way by designing, studying, supporting, and scaling up programs that enhance school readiness and success. We have a special focus on meeting the needs of children from disadvantaged communities and dual language learners, engaging and supporting families, and building the capacity of educators and communities to sustain improvements.
In the United States, we work to create strong, coherent preK-Grade 3 systems and advance knowledge of how to improve early science, mathematics, and literacy learning. Around the world, we implement innovative early childhood programs that build literacy and numeracy skills, excite interest in learning, and help educators, volunteers, and parents enrich early learning.
Read "A Fair Start for Every Child" to learn more about EDC's work to support early childhood learning.
Learn about EDC’s work with Family STEM Communities.
Learn about EDC’s work to strengthen early childhood interventions with Continuous Quality Improvement.
Learn about the work of EDC’s Center for Children and Technology.
Related Content
A New Language for Mathematics
Young children often struggle to write down their mathematical ideas. Could computer programming be an easier language for them?
EDC Talks: Making Time for Family Math
What are some fun, easy activities that families can do to encourage math learning at home? (Hint: You are probably already doing some of them.)
Tapping, Swiping, and Learning Science
Research findings on The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!™ have implications for parents, educators, and educational media developers.
Helping All Children Learn and Thrive
EDC’s David Jacobson discusses his ideas for changing—and improving—early childhood services.
Tools to Support Preschool Learning
New resources support educators on integrating technology and working with emergent bilingual learners.
The Other Side of the Screen
As a researcher, Tiffany Maxon gets to help develop the next generation of children’s television shows.
Projects
Resources
Here are a few of our resources on early childhood development and learning. To see more, visit our Resources section.
This resource library from the Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO) contains policy reports, briefs, annotated bibliographies, and other tools targeted to help early childhood educat
This collection of six essays shares insights and strategies from EDC’s work to close opportunity gaps in mathematics education and support teachers in improving instruction.
This brief draws on research and development supported by the National Science Foundation to highlight important considerations about STEM educational experiences for young children and professional learning for educators who provide those experiences.
In this brief, the authors examine potential differences between child care providers engaged in formal collaborations organized through state-level initiatives versus informal collaborations that are self-directed.
This report explores the potential benefits of theory-based logic models in trauma-informed initiatives
Rwanda has made commendable efforts to improve basic education, including literacy in the early grades.
This report presents findings from a study that examined whether child care providers that partnered with Head Start programs showed improvements in the quality of their services compared with similar child care providers that did not partner with Head Start. The authors report that partnership predicts improved classroom quality; partnership duration predicts observed quality; and partnership predicts some improvements in school readiness outcomes.
This presentation describes the innovative strategies, accomplishments, and lessons learned of the Child Safety Collaborative Innovation and Improvement Network at EDC.
This study of Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI), written for the World Bank by EDC staff, shows that radio is an accessible and effective tool for active learning inside and outside of the classroom.
This EDC brief spotlights the challenges that home visiting programs face in recruiting and retaining staff.