The new partnership will support parents in building a habit of engagement at home to boost children’s school readiness.
A new partnership formed by The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and the Behavioral Insights and Parenting (BIP) Lab at the Harris School of Public Policy will deliver a text messaging program called Chat2Learn designed to boost school readiness.
The program will engage up to 50,000 parents and caregivers of preschool-aged children in Illinois Preschool For All and Preschool For All Expansion programs. Parents can start signing up now and on a rolling basis. Text messages begin on Dec. 6 and continue through June 30, 2021. The project is funded through $370,000 in federal funding from the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund.
“I’ve set a goal for our state that Illinois will be the best state in the nation for families raising young children. I’m pleased to announce this innovative partnership with the University of Chicago that will help us achieve that mission,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “As governor, even as I made difficult decisions to balance our state’s budget and choose which projects to prioritize, I knew that our youngest children were one of the most important investments in our future. While the ongoing pandemic has changed the way kids are learning, this program will help make sure our youngest students receive the support they need.”
The Chat2Learn program aims to establish a habit among parents of engaging in the development of their children’s foundational skills for school readiness at home. This is especially important while in-person learning at early childhood centers remains limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program draws on behavioral science to reduce informational and cognitive barriers to parents’ engagement in their children’s learning. Chat2Learn applies behavioral tools to prompt natural conversations between parents and children that inspire learning, exploration, social-emotional connection, and creative thinking.