Madelyn Gardner

Researcher and Policy Advisor

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Madelyn Gardner is a member of LPI’s Early Childhood Learning Team and is a co-author of Untangling the Evidence on Preschool Effectiveness: Insights for Policymakers and On the Road to High-Quality Early Learning: Changing Children’s Lives. Her work at LPI focuses on issues of access and quality in state early learning systems, and on strategies for effective educator preparation and development. Previously, Gardner worked at the Next Generation think tank, where she supported the development of evidence-based policies affecting children and families in California. She also taught English as a foreign language at Payap University in Thailand.

She holds an M.A. in International Education Policy from Stanford University, and a B.A. with honors in Anthropology and Global Development Studies from Grinnell College.

For more about Madelyn Gardner's work, see list below.

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Showing 1 - 10 of 18 resources

Brief

Promising Models for Preparing a Diverse, High-Quality Early Childhood Workforce in California

Madelyn Gardner

Beth Meloy

Hanna Melnick

Jessica Barajas

Dec 10 2019
|
As California prepares to make major investments in its early childhood education workforce, three programs offer promising models for recruiting and preparing educators through innovative, affordable pathways. These successful programs provide lessons for the state's policymakers about how to ensure all children have teachers who meet high standards and reflect the racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic diversity of children and their families.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Educator Quality, Educator Quality: Professional Learning, Educator Quality: Recruitment & Retention, Equitable Resources and Access
Brief

Promising Models for Preparing a Diverse, High-Quality Early Childhood Workforce

Madelyn Gardner

Hanna Melnick

Beth Meloy

Jessica Barajas

Dec 10 2019
|
Three California-based programs offer promising models for recruiting and preparing diverse cohorts of early educators through innovative and affordable pathways. These successful programs provide valuable lessons for policymakers and others interested in ensuring that all children have teachers who meet high standards and reflect the racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic diversity of students and their families.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Educator Quality, Educator Quality: Professional Learning, Educator Quality: Recruitment & Retention, Equitable Resources and Access
Report

Promising Models for Preparing a Diverse, High-Quality Early Childhood Workforce

Madelyn Gardner

Hanna Melnick

Beth Meloy

Jessica Barajas

Dec 10 2019
|
The first years of a child’s life provide a foundation for long-term health and well-being. As states consider policy proposals to update credential or degree requirements for early childhood educators, they can look to promising programs and state policies that recruit and prepare diverse cohorts of educators to teach in early childhood education programs. This report includes case studies of distinct approaches offering innovative, affordable pathways to preparation for diverse candidates.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Educator Quality, Educator Quality: Professional Learning, Educator Quality: Recruitment & Retention, Equitable Resources and Access
Brief

Untangling the Evidence on Preschool Effectiveness: Insights for Policymakers

Beth Meloy

Madelyn Gardner

Linda Darling-Hammond

Jan 31 2019
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Research on early learning programs in the 1960s and 1970s revealed enormous benefits for children that lasted into adulthood, sparking investment in preschool programs, but two evaluations of large preschool programs that yielded mixed results created confusion about the wisdom of such investments. A review of rigorous and more recent research into the impact of preschool clarifies that students who attend high-quality preschool programs reap benefits that can last throughout their lives.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Equitable Resources and Access
Report

Untangling the Evidence on Preschool Effectiveness: Insights for Policymakers

Beth Meloy

Madelyn Gardner

Linda Darling-Hammond

Jan 31 2019
|
Research on early learning programs in the 1960s and 1970s revealed longlasting benefits, sparking investment in preschool programs. However, recent evaluations of two large preschool programs found mixed results, creating confusion about whether preschool programs can support student success. This report reviews these two studies and others in depth, and finds that when participants are compared to very similar students who did not attend preschool, the benefits of participation are typically found to be substantial.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Equitable Resources and Access
Book

With the Whole Child in Mind: Insights from the Comer School Development Program

Linda Darling-Hammond

Channa Cook-Harvey

Lisa Flook

Madelyn Gardner

Hanna Melnick

Oct 01 2018
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The School Development Program (SDP) established by child psychiatrist James P. Comer and the Yale Child Study Center, is grounded in the belief that successful schooling—particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds—must focus on the whole child. With the Whole Child in Mind describes SDP’s six developmental pathways and explains how the program's nine key components create a comprehensive approach to educating children for successful outcomes.

Topics Deeper Learning, Deeper Learning: Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment
Book

On the Road to High-Quality Early Learning: Changing Children's Lives

Marjorie Wechsler

David L. Kirp

Titilayo Tinubu Ali

Madelyn Gardner

Anna Maier

Hanna Melnick

Patrick M. Shields

Jun 22 2018
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The book provides a comprehensive examination of how states can build high-quality early education systems: It discusses design and implementation, themes to guide program development, effective management and collaboration with state agencies, and the central role that teachers play in improving children’s lives. There is no single roadmap to excellence, but the varied experiences of states can provide important insights into the policies and practices that lead to quality early learning.

Topic Early Childhood Learning
Blog

Quality and Access Depend on Developing California’s Early Learning Workforce

Madelyn Gardner

Mar 07 2018
|
As California policymakers look to strengthen the state’s early care and education workforce, the state could take a page from New Jersey’s playbook. In 1999 the Garden State launched an initiative to strengthen and increase compensation for its pre-K teacher workforce. Within 10 years, nearly every preschooler in the state program was taught by a fully credentialed teacher being paid a public school teacher’s salary.

Topic Early Childhood Learning
Brief

Building an Early Learning System that Works: Next Steps for California

Hanna Melnick

Beth Meloy

Madelyn Gardner

Marjorie Wechsler

Anna Maier

Jan 23 2018
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This brief provides California policymakers with recommendations on how to improve access to high-quality early childhood education (ECE) for all children. It is based on a report that examines the ECE practices in 10 counties that vary by region, population density, and child care affordability. The report upon which this brief is based describes the landscape of ECE at the local level as it is shaped by federal and state policies, illuminates challenges that counties face in providing access to high-quality programs, and highlights promising practices.

Topic Early Childhood Learning
Report

Building an Early Learning System that Works: Next Steps for California

Hanna Melnick

Beth Meloy

Madelyn Gardner

Marjorie Wechsler

Anna Maier

Jan 23 2018
|
There is overwhelming evidence that children’s early years, from birth through preschool, are a crucial time for their development, and that high-quality early learning opportunities support children’s school readiness, promote later life success, and yield a return of up to $7 for every $1 invested. Providing access to high-quality ECE for all children in California will require a comprehensive approach to turning an uncoordinated set of underfunded programs into a true system of supports for children, families, and providers. A complement to LPI’s earlier report Understanding California’s Early Care and Education System, this report examines the challenges California’s counties face in providing ECE and provides recommendations for improving access to high-quality ECE for all children.

Topic Early Childhood Learning

Pages

Report

The Road to High-Quality Early Learning: Lessons From the States

Jun 29 2016

Considerable research exists on the elements of high-quality early childhood education and its many benefits, particularly for low-income children and English learners, but little information is available to policymakers about how to enact their visions of good pre-k programs. This report fills that gap by describing and analyzing how four states—Michigan, West Virginia, Washington, and North Carolina—have built high-quality early education systems.

Report

Effective Teacher Professional Development

Jun 05 2017

Well-designed and implemented professional development is an essential component of a comprehensive system of teaching and learning that supports students to develop the knowledge, skills, and competencies they need to thrive in the 21st century. This report details key components of effective professional development and offers rich descriptions of model programs to inform education leaders and policymakers seeking to leverage professional development to improve student learning.

Report

Understanding California’s Early Care and Education System

Jun 01 2017

Early care and education (ECE) can have a positive effect on many aspects of children’s development, including the language, literacy, mathematics, executive functioning, and social-emotional competencies needed for a smooth transition into kindergarten and later life success. But for many families, high-quality ECE is out of reach. California has established a range of programs to support the development of children from birth to age 5, but these programs are uncoordinated, insufficient in scope, and of variable quality. This report provides a comprehensive overview of the state’s ECE system, describing its administration and funding, access to care, program quality, and data limitations.

Pages

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