The Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY)

Abstract

The Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) is a two-year home-based early education intervention program designed to help parents with limited formal education prepare their four- and five-year-old children for school. This article begins with a brief overview of the HIPPY program and then presents the findings from a series of interconnected research studies, including a two-site, two-cohort evaluation in New York and Arkansas, a one-site case study, and a three-site qualitative study. With respect to program effectiveness, results varied across the New York and Arkansas sites and across participating cohorts at each site. For Cohort I, children who had been enrolled in HIPPY scored higher than children in the control/comparison groups on measures of cognitive skills (New York), classroom adaptation (New York and Arkansas), and standardized reading (New York); and more children were promoted to first grade (Arkansas). For Cohort II, comparison group children outperformed HIPPY children on school readiness and standardized achievement at posttest (Arkansas). Analyses to account for the differing results between cohorts were inconclusive. Qualitative analyses revealed considerable variation in parent involvement in HIPPY. Program staff identified four patterns of attrition from HIPPY: (1) early attrition within the first month after enrollment, (2) attrition between the program's first and second years, (3) attrition due to changes in the life circumstances of participating families, and (4) attrition due to turnover among the home visitors. Families were more likely to participate in in-home than out-of-home aspects of the program (for example, group meetings), but different family characteristics were associated with participation in the in- and out-of-home aspects of the program. The authors conclude with recommendations for future practice and research.

Family Literacy Programs: Where Have They Come from and Where Are They Going?

“…It found that while HIPPY children in one cohort group made significant gains in several areas of social and cognitive development and maintained these gains in a one-year follow-up study, the other cohort group made no gains by the program's end or in the follow-up. In a separate empirical study of the effects of HIPPY (Baker, Piotrkowski & Brooks-Gunn, 1999) on children not enrolled in preschool programs, similar findings were obtained. Although one cohort made significantly greater social and cognitive gains than the control group, the other cohort did not.…”

Using Behavioral Insights to Increase Parental Engagement: The Parents and Children Together (PACT) Intervention

“…Only 40% of families stayed enrolled in Early Head Start home-based programs until graduation or transition. Other programs intended to change parenting behaviors experience similarly high attrition rates (Baker, Piotrkowski, and Brooks-Gunn 1999;Gomby 1999). Even if parents are motivated to invest in their children, many are apparently not motivated to participate in programs intended to increase their investment.…”

Randomized Trial of the Early Start Program of Home Visitation

“…Evaluations of this program have shown both long-and short-term benefits. However, evaluations of a number of alternative models, including Hawaii Healthy Start, 15,16 , Healthy Families America, 11 Parents as Teachers, 12 the Comprehensive Child Development Program, 10 and the Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters, 17 have shown no benefits or small and inconsistent benefits. 13 In this article, we report the results of a randomized trial of a New Zealand-based family support service (Early Start).…”