Successful Data Collection in Early Childhood Settings: Lessons from Boston Universal Pre-K

Rigorous research in early care and education requires high-quality data, often gathered through intensive in-person fieldwork. The COVID-19 pandemic upended the ECE sector, making it much more challenging to safely and successfully collect data in ECE settings. Although the immediate crisis has passed, these disruptions continue. In this brief, we offer 5 lessons from our experiences collecting data in community-based centers participating in Boston’s Universal Pre-K (UPK) expansion between September 2019 and June 2022.

• Boston Early Childhood Research Practice Partnership