Deck 39: Head Start

Question 1

The percentage of Head Start enrollees in homes headed by single women is

A)50%.
B)35%.
C)10%.
D)1%.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

The percentage of Head Start enrollees in homes headed by single men is

A)50%.
B)35%.
C)10%.
D)1%.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The racial makeup of the children enrolled in Head Start

A)is in rough proportion to those in the general population.
B)is in rough proportion to those in college.
C)is disproportionately African American.
D)is disproportionately white, non-Hispanic.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The percentage of Head Start enrollees also enrolled in Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program is

A)100%.
B)67%.
C)25%.
D)5%.

Question 5

The academic studies that were the intellectual justification for Head Start suggested that for every dollar spent on the program ___ would be returned to society in the form of higher taxes and lower welfare and incarceration costs.

A)$1
B)$5
C)$50
D)$100

Question 6

In 2015 Head Start's budget was approximately

A)$8.2 million.
B)$8.2 billion.
C)$820 billion.
D)$8.2 trillion.

Question 7

The notion that taxpayers would willingly vote for a program such as Head Start is explained by economists as voters recognizing the _______ of having the children in quality child care.

A)external costs
B)marginal costs
C)private benefits
D)external benefits

Question 8

The premise of Head Start is that

A)early childhood education can make a substantial difference in the future lives of children.
B)day care for the poor will allow the poor to make a better living.
C)poor parents aren't very good parents.
D)B)and C)

Question 9

In recent years Head Start spending has grown

A)much faster than enrollment.
B)on par with enrollment.
C)much slower than enrollment.
D)mainly due to the soaring costs of classroom materials.

Question 10

The income profile of the children enrolled in Head Start is such that it

A)mirrors the income profile of the general population.
B)mirrors the income profile of those in poverty.
C)suggests that enrollees are poorer than even those in poverty.
D)suggests that enrollees are wealthier than the general population.

Question 11

In order for the money spent on children to be viewed as a good investment, economists would look at the ______ of the costs and compare that to the _____ of the benefits.

A)present value; present value
B)present value; future value
C)future value; present value
D)future value; future value

Question 12

Annual Head Start costs per child served are _______ average child care costs.

A)somewhat higher than
B)about the same as
C)much lower
D)declining when compared to

Question 13

The actual dollar value of the costs would have to be ______ the actual dollar value of the benefits for an investment in early childhood education to be justified in present value terms.

A)much greater than
B)at least equal to
C)much less than
D)discounted more heavily than

Question 14

Early doubters of the claims that Head Start could end the cycle of poverty based their conclusions on

A)what they perceived to be statistical flaws in the original research.
B)the claim that the original research was fraudulent.
C)the claim that no matter how good the program was it could not make up for the home environment.
D)A)and B).

Question 15

The racial makeup of the children enrolled in Head Start

A)is in rough proportion to those in the general population.
B)is in rough proportion to those in poverty.
C)is disproportionately Hispanic.
D)is disproportionately white non-Hispanic.

Question 16

Real appropriations for Head Start have grown ________ enrollment.

A)much faster than
B)at the same rate as
C)at a rate only slightly less than the growth in
D)much slower than the growth in

Question 17

Head Start has not been "fully funded" which means

A)there wasn't enough money to pay the teachers a salary commensurate with their skill.
B)there were children who were eligible to be in the classes but no slots were available.
C)it has been run mainly by volunteers.
D)all of the above.

Question 18

In 2015 Head Start enrolled approximately

A)105,000 children.
B)945,000 children.
C)205,000 children.
D)2)5 million children.

Question 19

Most academic studies show that Head Start benefits

A)can be observed to last well beyond graduation from college.
B)don't exist at all even for the children in the program.
C)slowly evaporate over two or three years and are not seen in testing of high school age children.
D)are suspect due to the inability to test young children.

Question 20

The academic studies that were the intellectual justification for Head Start suggested that money spent on early childhood education would be a wise investment because

A)kids deserve a quality education.
B)there would be lower welfare and incarceration costs when these children grew up.
C)there would be higher taxes paid when these children grew up.
D)B)and C).

Question 21

The newest evidence on Head Start suggests that ______ participants are more likely to earn higher incomes as young adults than equally-situated non-participants.

A)all
B)African-American
C)Asian
D)white

Question 22

The opportunity cost of the $8 billion spent on Head Start is

A)the other programs that could have better used the money.
B)the other programs that are not piloted to see if other approaches would work.
C)the fact that the Head Start program is underfunded.
D)A)and B).

Question 23

In conducting statistical analysis to determine whether Head Start is effective it is imperative that researchers compare Head Start graduates with

A)the general population.
B)equally situated non-Head Start children.
C)children who are in private child care arrangements.
D)children who have stay-at-home parents.

Question 24

The newest evidence on Head Start suggests that ______ participants are less likely to be charged with a crime later in life than equally situated non-participants.

A)all
B)most
C)white
D)African-American

Question 25

The median Head Start teacher has been teaching

A)less than 6 months.
B)between 6 months and a year.
C)5 years with Head Start and 10 years total.
D)15 years with Head Start and 20 years total.

Question 26

If you grant that the long-term benefits of Head Start are in doubt and focus, instead, on the short-term benefits you find that

A)Head Start has no effect there either.
B)children in Head Start are more likely to need special education classes.
C)children in Head Start are less likely to repeat first or second grade.
D)Head Start children do much worse in Kindergarten.

Question 27

The newest evidence on Head Start suggests that ______ participants are more likely to graduate from high school than equally situated non-participants.

A)all
B)African-American
C)Asian
D)white

Question 28

The percentage of households with a Head Start enrollee where there are two parents present and where both have jobs is

A)20%.
B)33%.
C)50%.
D)67%.

Question 29

The percentage of households with a Head Start enrollee where no one in the household has a job is

A)5%.
B)33%.
C)50%.
D)67%.

Question 30

The newest evidence on Head Start suggests that it is

A)enormously effective in the long run.
B)curiously counterproductive in the long run.
C)completely irrelevant for all populations in the long run.
D)modestly effective for specific populations in the long run.

Question 31

A typical Head Start teacher must have completed

A)only 8th grade.
B)only high school.
C)high school and a two-year certification degree called a CDA.
D)a bachelor's degree in early childhood education.

Question 32

Economists and the Congressional Budget Office find that

A)there are many national studies of Head Start effectiveness and nearly all show it to be effective.
B)there are no national studies of Head Start that show its effectiveness.
C)there are national studies that generally, but not conclusively, suggest the program is effective.
D)there has been no study on the subject of Head Start effectiveness.

Question 33

The newest evidence on Head Start suggests that ______ participants are more likely to go to college later in life than equally-situated non-participants.

A)all
B)Asian
C)white
D)African-American

Question 34

The evidence on the question of Head Start effectiveness suggests that

A)there is no effect of the program whatsoever.
B)Head Start children have an advantage over equally situated children on first-grade tests of reading and verbal skill.
C)Head Start children have an advantage over equally situated children on tenth-grade tests of reading and verbal skill.
D)Head Start children have an advantage over equally situated children on the SAT.

Question 35

The percentage of households with a Head Start enrollee that get no other government assistance other than Head Start is

A)1%.
B)16%.
C)36%.
D)76%.

Question 36

If you grant the argument by Head Start program proponents that we would be spending about half of the money we currently spend on the program on subsidized day care anyway, then the savings attributable to the reduced need for special education and the reduction in the repeats of first and second grade

A)are still substantially short of what would be required to justify Head Start spending.
B)are about what would be necessary to justify Head Start spending.
C)are substantially more than what would be necessary to justify Head Start spending.
D)clearly justify doubling current levels of Head Start spending.

Question 37

Suppose Head Start proponents could show that it saves $2000 per child in reduced need for special education, $3000 per child in reduced need for children to repeat first or second grade, but that these benefits accrue two to three years after program participation. Suppose there are no other benefits and that the program costs $6000 per child. With this data, you

A)could not conclude that the program makes sense, because present values depend on the interest rate.
B)could conclude that the program makes sense as an investment.
C)would have to concede that the program is not worth the costs.
D)would insist that Head Start is simply the "right" thing to do for the kids.

Question 38

Suppose Head Start proponents could show that it saves $2000 per child in reduced need for special education, $3000 per child in reduced need for children to repeat first or second grade, but that these benefits accrue two to three years after program participation. Suppose there are no other benefits and that the program costs $4000 per child. With this data, you

A)could not conclude that the program makes sense, because present values depend on the interest rate.
B)could conclude that the program makes sense as an investment.
C)would have to concede that the program is not worth the costs.
D)would have to argue that Head Start is simply the "right" thing to do for the kids.

Question 39

If you grant that the long-term benefits of Head Start are in doubt and focus, instead, on the short-term benefits you find that

A)Head Start has no effect there either.
B)children in Head Start are less likely to need special education classes.
C)children in Head Start are more likely to repeat first or second grade.
D)Head Start children do much worse in Kindergarten.

Question 40

When using present value to examine Head Start, a dollar worth of the short-term benefits _________ a dollar worth of long-term benefits.

A)has the same present value as
B)has a smaller present value than
C)has a greater present value than
D)is more uncertain than

Question 41

What is the economic concept that suggests that using money for one children's program comes at the price of the lost ability to use that money on another children's program that might be more effective?

A)Equilibrium
B)Supply and demand
C)Fixed cost
D)Opportunity cost

Question 42

The application of the concept of opportunity cost to an analysis of Head Start might be that

A)money spent on Head Start is fixed.
B)money spent on Head Start is money that could be spent on a better program.
C)money spent on Head Start is in short supply.
D)you can't put a price on helping children.

Question 43

Suppose someone is concerned that money spent on one children's program could be more effectively spent on another program. She is describing

A)equilibrium.
B)supply and demand.
C)fixed cost.
D)opportunity cost.

Question 44

Suppose analysts are arguing about Head Start. The male analyst argues that the money spent on Head Start per person is worth it because current spending on it is less than current spending on the expected reduction in jail costs. The female analyst argues that the money was spent long ago and saved today and it would necessarily be worth it.

A)The female analyst (alone)is properly advocating employing present value analysis.
B)The male analyst (alone)is properly advocating employing present value analysis.
C)Neither analyst is properly advocating employing present value analysis.
D)Both analysts are properly advocating employing present value analysis.