27.05.2024Talk by Prof. Dr. Peter Klaver

The educational opportunities of children in Switzerland depend strongly on the social background of their families. The longitudinal study ZEPPELIN - Education from birth examines the effect of the evidence-based and family-oriented early intervention program PAT "Parents as Teachers" on the educational opportunities of children from families with high psychosocial stress. 248 families with newborn children from the canton of Zurich took part in 2011 and were allocated to the intervention group (IG) or the control group (KG) in a stratified randomized procedure. The IG participated in the 3-year PAT program, while the control group had access to the normal support services. Examinations, home visits and surveys were conducted at T0 (before the intervention), after 1 year (T1), after 2 years (T2) and at the end of the intervention after 3 years (T3). There were also two surveys in kindergarten (T4, T5) and five in primary school (T7, T8, T9, T11 and T12). The data for T12 is currently being collected. Further surveys at secondary school level (T13, T15 and T16) are planned from 2025. The study focuses on the questions of 1) whether PAT has a long-term impact on cognitive and psychosocial development and educational opportunities and 2) how early education unfolds through cognitive and psychosocial development. The effects on biological stress, dental health, and the return on investment as well as participation in the classroom are analyzed in sub-studies. After 11 years, the dropout rate is 25%, which is low in international comparison. The presentation will adress the results of the effects of PAT after the end of the intervention, in kindergarten and after the transition to primary school. As an Open Research Data resource, perspectives of the ZEPPELIN research infrastructure and implications for practice are discussed.

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