Author Archives: timbartik

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About timbartik

Tim Bartik is a senior economist at the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, a non-profit and non-partisan research organization in Kalamazoo, Michigan. His research specializes in state and local economic development policies and local labor markets.

Podcast at Early Ed Watch

Posted on March 22, 2011 by timbartik

A podcast interview with me is now up at the blog Early Ed Watch. I was interviewed by Lisa Guernsey, who directs the New America Foundation’s Early Education Initiative, and edits the blog Early Ed Watch. Early Ed Watch is … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs, Economic development | Comments Off on Podcast at Early Ed Watch

Good preschool teaching: what is it?

Posted on March 21, 2011 by timbartik

Several readers have asked me to comment on a recent article in Slate magazine by Alison Gopnik. The article was titled “Why Preschool Shouldn’t Be Like School”. The subtitle was “New research shows that teaching kids more and more, at … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood program design issues, Early childhood programs | Comments Off on Good preschool teaching: what is it?

New evidence for large state and local returns from investments in preschool and child care: Duke University study of North Carolina’s programs

Posted on March 18, 2011 by timbartik

New findings (released March 16) provide important new information on the “medium-run” test score effects of investments in preschool and child care. These new findings are from an ongoing study by Kenneth Dodge, Helen Ladd, and Clara Muschkin at Duke … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs | 2 Comments

Early childhood programs as one component of the solution for long-run, broad-based economic prosperity

Posted on March 17, 2011 by timbartik

At a recent presentation I made on early childhood programs, one person asked the following question: “How do we restore the American middle class?” Although some might perceive this question as “off-topic”, I do not. We need to be thinking … Continue reading →

Posted in Business incentives, Early childhood programs, Economic development | Comments Off on Early childhood programs as one component of the solution for long-run, broad-based economic prosperity

Why should someone support investing in “other people’s children”?

Posted on March 16, 2011 by timbartik

I previously commented in a blog post on a quotation from conservative writer Dinesh D’Souza. He expressed a frequent popular objection to early childhood programs: why should the average taxpayer want to invest in early childhood programs that might help … Continue reading →

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What data are most needed to support meaningful evaluation of pre-k programs?

Posted on March 15, 2011 by timbartik

Sara Mead links to the recent report from the Early Childhood Data Collaborative. This report provides an overview of states’ progress towards better data systems for early childhood programs. Such data systems have multiple uses. Economists tend to be bottom-line … Continue reading →

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Early childhood programs can work on a large-scale, without inordinate expense, and without other educational reforms

Posted on March 14, 2011 by timbartik

Linda Perlstein, a well-known education writer, provides a useful review of two recent books on educational improvements: David Kirp’s Kids First, and Wendy Kopp’s A Chance to Make History. The review focuses on the political tension between proposals to improve … Continue reading →

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The economic development benefits of improving early childhood teacher preparation

Posted on March 11, 2011 by timbartik

Laura Bornfreund of the New America Foundation has a useful recent report on improving teacher licensing and preparation for pre-k and early elementary grades. Some highlights of this report include: *** Too many teacher education programs set too low a … Continue reading →

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Philosophical objections to early childhood programs, part 3: what’s the market failure?

Posted on March 10, 2011 by timbartik

The natural question that any trained economist asks about government support for early childhood programs is: what’s the “market failure”? Economics holds that as a general rule, competitive private markets on their own will promote economic efficiency.  Unless “markets fail” … Continue reading →

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Philosophical objections to early childhood programs, part 2: are early childhood programs unfair to the more competitive parents?

Posted on March 9, 2011 by timbartik

I am considering various philosophical objections to early childhood programs. This topic is explored in chapter 11 of Investing in Kids. Yesterday, I considered the issue of excessive governmental control over parental choice. Today, I consider whether early childhood programs … Continue reading →

Posted in Early childhood programs | 3 Comments