January 13, 2010 4:34PM # Head Start EPIC FAIL By [Adam B. Schaeffer](https://www.cato.org/people/adam-b-schaeffer) --- SHARE Andrew’s earlier [post](../2010/01/13/head-starts-impact-evanescent-hhs-study/) is a great overview of the context for the Head Start findings. I thought we should also highlight the description of the Head Start Impact Study findings in the [report](http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hs/impact_study/reports/impact_study/hs_impact_study_final.pdf) itself (p.215/4–31): > Looking at effects on *participants* does not change the overall patterns found in the main analysis, which show that Head Start improved children’s language and literacy development during the program year but not later and had only one strongly confirmed impact on math ability in a negative direction. (For the 3‑year-old cohort, kindergarten teachers reported poorer math skills for children in the Head Start group than children in the control group.) This is a devastating report for proponents of [government-run early childhood initiatives](https://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10384). It’s past time we turn to the education reform that has [proven](http://jaypgreene.com/2009/04/27/voucher-participant-effects-updated-42609/) itself through multiple random-assignment studies; school choice. ##### Related Tags [Education](https://www.cato.org/education), [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Center for Educational Freedom](https://www.cato.org/center-educational-freedom) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).