Volume 2 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal of K-12 Educational Research - Page 30

28 was a significant difference between the two groups. Figure 1 shows the t -test results for all grade levels. The first research question sought to determine if there is a difference in achievement in grades 3, 4, and 5 on the reading portion of the STAAR between groups of students. The first group of students were those who were ED or ELLs who par - ticipated in pre-kindergarten. The second group of students fit the same criteria, but did not participate in pre-kindergarten or attended less than 150 days. To compare the two groups, an inde - pendent t -test was performed for each grade level. The respective 2-tail significance value was used for each grade level, resulting in identification of significant differences between the two groups in Grades 3 and 5. While the difference was not significant for Grade 4, the result was borderline, being just above a p -value = .05 with a result of p -value=.055, or .06. The second research question sought to determine if ED and ELL students who participated in pre-kindergarten have reading achievement levels closer to the achievement levels of the top performing group on STAAR reading than ED and ELL students who did not participate in pre-kindergarten. An ANOVA test was used to compare the three groups. For Grade 4, the top performing group performed significant - ly different than either the pre-kindergarten and non-pre-kinder - garten student populations. However, the true value of the mean of the students who attended pre-kindergarten is closer to the top performing group than the true mean of the students who did not attend pre-kindergarten. Additionally, for Grades 3 and 5, students who participated in pre-kindergarten performed significantly different than students who did not participate in pre-kindergarten and significantly different than the top performing student group. The mean per - formance of the pre-kindergarten students was closer to the mean performance of the top performing group than were the students who did not attend pre-kindergarten. Implications The body of research on the benefits of pre-kindergarten supports the results of the current study. A quality program is particularly beneficial for low-income students. Children from low-income families who enroll in an early childhood program are less likely to be retained in later grades than their peers who do not enroll in early childhood programs (Gilliam & Zigler, 2001; Hanover Shea Stanfield-McGarrah, Ed.D. Figure 1. Independent t-test Results Figure 2. ANOVA Test results for Grade 3, Grade 4, and Grade 5