On July 3, 2015,
W. Steven Barnett, Ph.D., Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (Rutgers University, New Brunswick, USA), presented the study APPLES (The Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effects Study) at the Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories (LIfBi). This longitudinal study examines the way in which a change in preschool care system will affect the development of competencies—and hence also the future success in terms of learning and school—of 3- and 4-year-old children in 31 cities throughout New Jersey.
First, W. Steven Barnett, Ph.D, outlined the background and history of the APPLES study. Among other things, he introduced the changes that were made regarding the system of preschool education in participating cities throughout New Jersey in order to improve the quality of educational offerings and to give children a better start in school. Afterwards, he presented results concerning the development of competencies, showing, for example, that children who took part in the program for two years benefitted more than children who took part for one year only. During the ensuing discussion, the differences between the German and the US-education system were also debated.