Early Childhood Network emphasizes the need to foster quality, while building capacity, because research shows that high quality ECE programs contribute to: supporting the social, emotional, and cognitive competence of children; increasing parental resilience and knowledge of child development; building the social connections of parents; and providing concrete parental supports.

Our concentrated approach to coaching and mentoring is also supported by research. For example, early childhood research indicates that increasing a teachers’ education will not suffice in increasing the effectiveness of early childhood education; rather, education coupled with being mentored and supervised raises the effectiveness teacher practices. Further, research on adult learning suggests students absorb 20% of learning in the classroom with lecture, modeling and practice, but when coupled with coaching, approximately 90% of that learning is reflected in the teacher’s classroom.