The study tracked nearly 900 children into adulthood who attended the program in the early 1980s, and compared them to almost 500 low-income Chicago youngsters, most of whom didn’t attend preschool.
The results were published June 9 in the online version of the journal Science. They bolster findings from similar, smaller studies and show that high-quality preschool “gives you your biggest bang for the buck,” said Dr. Pamela High, chair of an American Academy of Pediatrics committee that deals with early childhood issues. She was not involved in the study.
Though many preschool kids also got extra services in grade school, including intensive reading instruction, the researchers found the most enduring effects—particularly for non-academic success—were owing to one or two years of preschool. The authors theorize that those intensive early childhood experiences built intellectual skills, social adjustment, and motivation that helped children better navigate their high-risk environments.
To be sure, the challenges facing the children in both groups were still insurmountable to many. As adults, the average annual income for those who went to preschool is less than $12,000—and almost half of them had been arrested as adults. As dismal as those outcomes are, the numbers were still better than for the group that didn’t attend preschool. And experts not involved in the study called the results impressive.
“To still show really any advantage for such a long period of time is remarkable and noteworthy,” said Kyle Snow, director of the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s applied research center.
The study’s lead researcher, Arthur Reynolds of the University of Minnesota, said the differences between the groups are meaningful and translate to big savings to society for kids who attended preschool.
The average cost per child for 18 months of preschool in 2011 is $9,000, but Reynolds’ cost-benefit analysis suggests that leads to at least $90,000 in benefits per child in terms of increased earnings, tax revenue, less criminal behavior, reduced mental health costs, and other measures, he said.
- New research challenges fears about AI in the classroom - February 5, 2026
- How the FY25 funding freeze impacts students across America - July 24, 2025
- ‘Buyer’s remorse’ dogging Common Core rollout - October 30, 2014