After thorough analysis, I would say that the ECD program report submitted by the chairman, Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, restructuring and District of Columbia, Committee of Government affairs, US Senate was generally comprehensive yet accommodative to the task given to the committee. However there are a number of additions and subtractions to make on the report.
On the positive side the report acknowledges that while sourcing for funds to pump in child care programs could be a success story, there is need to emphasize on the use of the same funds. In quantifying this, the report acknowledged the importance of the passage of Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) which was passed in 1993 hence able to monitor the way agencies assess effectiveness of their programs.
While the report is justified in categorizing impact evaluation into experimental and quasi-experimental, the report did not provide exhaustive information on the nine programmes it dealt with. This should have been done this way to ensure that policy makers in children development field have a variety of practical examples to use.
While the report rides on the belief that to improve the availability and quality of child care services, there is need to increase the level of knowledge and the information on systems of child care. It should also have put in mind that psychological change on looking at child care should also be an issue to deal with as one can only learn of new techniques when they are willing to.
The report argues that impact evaluation lead to isolation of a program being studied from other exterior influences, one must agree that by looking at a specific influence this could be a clue to the status of the other influences for example Care is closely related to family. While the report should have acknowledged that quasi-experimental impact evaluation is less rigorous its outcome might not show the real situation on the ground. This is due to the fact that selection of individuals with similar characteristic is no easy joke as for example people might be living in the neighborhoods yet their lifestyles are far much different.
