Descriptive Data on Head Start Children and Families from FACES 2014: Fall 2014 Data Tables and Study Design
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Descriptive Data on Head Start Children and Families from FACES 2014: Fall 2014 Data Tables and Study Design

OPRE Report 2017-97
Published: Dec 30, 2017
Publisher: Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation
Human Services Early Childhood Child Development Early Childhood Systems Nutrition Childhood Obesity Data Analytics Research and Evaluation Surveys and Data Collection Policy Analysis
Associated Project

Head Start: The Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES)

Time frame: 2006-2022

Prepared for:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation

Clients
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Authors

Nikki Aikens

Ashley Kopack Klein

Emily Knas

Maya Reid

Andrea Mraz Esposito

Mikia Manley

Lizabeth Malone

Louisa Tarullo

Serge Lukashanets

Jerry West

Key Findings

Key Findings:

Examples of key findings related to children’s characteristics, family demographics, and home environment include the following:

  • Sixty-six percent of children are entering Head Start for the first time, whereas 34 percent are returning for a second year.
  • Thirty-nine percent of Head Start children live in households where a language other than English is spoken, and 24 percent live in households where a language other than English is primarily spoken to them.
  • Forty-seven percent of Head Start children live with both of their biological or adoptive parents.
  • More than three-quarters (79 percent) of Head Start children were read to at least three times in the past week by a family member.

 

Examples of key findings related to child cognitive, social-emotional, and health and physical development include the following:

  • On average, Head Start children assessed or primarily assessed in English lag behind other children of the same age in language, literacy, and math skills at the beginning of the program year.
  • Children respond correctly on the pencil tapping executive function task 46 percent of the time, on average.
  • About 14 percent of all children in Head Start are reported by their teachers to have a disability at the beginning of the program year.
  • Using criteria set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 19 percent of children in Head Start are overweight, and 33 percent are overweight or obese.

This report includes key information on the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey 2014 (FACES 2014) study design and a set of data tables that presents descriptive statistics on the demographic backgrounds and developmental outcomes of children enrolled in Head Start in fall 2014. The tables also detail aspects of their home environment and family life. Data are drawn from the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES 2014).

The purpose of this report is two-fold: (1) to provide information about the FACES study, including the background, design, methodology, measures, and analytic methods, and (2) to report detailed descriptive statistics and related standard errors in a series of tables on children and their families. The data provide descriptive information from parent surveys, teacher child reports, and direct child assessments.

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