New study finds "Sesame Street" improves school readiness
Tuesday, June 9, 2015 - 07:00
in Psychology & Sociology
New research, coauthored by University of Maryland economist Melissa Kearney and Wellesley College economist Phillip B. Levine, finds that greater access to Sesame Street in the show's early days led to improved early educational outcomes for children – and adds evidence to the argument that television can have a positive impact on society. While previous targeted studies conducted by the Educational Testing Services (ETS) in the early 1970s found that exposing children to Sesame Street increased preschoolers' test scores, the new study provides evidence that the generation of children who were of preschool age when the show aired did better in school once they got there.