The Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study (PEELS), funded
by the U.S. Department of Education, is examining the
characteristics of children receiving preschool special
education, the services they receive, their transitions across
educational levels, and their performance over time on
assessments of academic and adaptive skills. PEELS includes a
nationally representative sample of 3,104 children with
disabilities who were 3 through 5 years of age when the study
began in 2003-04. The children will be followed through 2009.
This report provides selected findings from the first three
waves of data collection—school year 2003-04, school year
2004-05, and school year 2005-06. Any reported differences have
been tested for statistical significance at the p < .05 level.
These data were collected through several different instruments
and activities, including a direct1 one-on-one assessment of the
children, a telephone interview with the children's
parents/guardians, and mail questionnaires to the teacher or ser