DIAL EE’s research focuses on relevant and timely issues on early education in California’s school districts and understanding their LEA context. Our research is informed and reviewed by the DIAL EE Fellows, DIAL EE advisory committee and content experts.

A Survey of ECE Visibility and Alignment in California School Districts

In the fall of 2020, The Center for District Innovation And Leadership in Early Education (DIAL EE) conducted a study that examined how visible early childhood education (ECE) was in the California school districts in the fall of 2020. The Early Education Visibility in California School Districts report is a follow-up to that report and examines what has changed in the past year, as well as looks at some of the ways school districts are preparing for the expansion of preschool through Universal Transitional Kindergarten (UTK).

1. Fall 2021 school district website scan of school districts with CSPP contracts
2. Survey of ECE district leaders
3. Review of the state’s Contract and Tracking System (CATS) reports
4. Conversations with DIAL EE fellows who are current ECE school district leads.

Our findings in the two reports and feedback from DIAL EE Fellows lead us to develop a Visibility Toolkit for school districts to help them increase the visibility of early education within their districts.

Early Education Visibility

The visibility of early education on a district’s website speaks to how it is valued. As part of our work to align early education and K-12, we are tracking how visible early education is on the websites of school districts with CSPP contracts. These data were collected as part of our fall 2020 and fall 2021 surveys.