ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews some striking evidence of gains outside the cognitive area. It addresses the question of why the weight of evidence seems to have shifted so strongly in favor of preschool programs and what the implies for the future of child development and children. The principal major longitudinal studies of early intervention begun in the sixties have extensive data on these children. The direct evaluation of large social programs has many times resulted in uninterpretable data because in large programs the caregivers' first concern is invariably to help the children they serve. The acceptance can be seen not only in the grass roots support for Head Start which sustained it in its years of adversity, but also in the phenomenal rise in nursery schools, preschool programs in the public schools, and quality day care for middle class children. The chapter also presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book.
