Using the map.
You can use the interactive map by following these steps.
1. Select one of three cities included in the study.
2. Choose a neighborhood from the selected city to view results from the study.
% of those who are ready | % of those who are vulnerable
Total number of children who participated in study
Community Assets
Educational Progress Attained (25 and older)
Years at current residence
Proportion of children developmentally vulnerable
(2 or More Domains)
Transforming Early Childhood Education, right here.
School readiness is a great predictor of a child’s future success. It’s important for child-serving institutions such as school districts, Head Starts, cities, and even workforce boards to have access to school readiness information to guide their strategies and investments. Therefore, United Way of Southern Cameron County once again lead the Early Development Instrument assessment in southern Cameron County, updating the study that was performed five years ago. The key purpose of this site is to serve as a tool to provide understanding of the strengths and vulnerabilities of kinder students in Brownsville, Los Fresnos and Port Isabel.
The EDI is a 103-item questionnaire completed by kindergarten teachers in the second half of the school year that measures children’s ability to meet age-appropriate developmental expectations in five general domains:
- Physical Health and Well-Being
- Social Competence
- Emotional Maturity
- Language and Cognitive Development
- Communication Skills and General Knowledge
After teachers complete the EDI on each individual child in their class, the results are grouped together to create a geo-map of how children are doing across schools, neighborhoods, and cities. The EDI data can be helpful for a variety of different users.
- Educators and school representatives can use EDI results to help identify the strengths and needs of the children within their communities. These data allow for creating targeted programs that affect the areas identified as the greatest need. Local groups can also use the data to better advocate for changes to policies and funding.
- Government can use EDI data to plan early childhood investment, inform policy and program development decisions, or evaluate programs. The use of EDI maps can help focus investments and identify the areas with the highest needs.
- Researchers can use EDI data to address important questions and create new research programs to help better understand the genetic, biological, and social determinants of children’s health, well-being and development. This research can help inform policy and program development.
Round Two of the EDI was made possible by a generous grant from the Valley Baptist Legacy Foundation and the cooperation of our school district partners at Brownsville ISD, Los Fresnos CISD, and IDEA Public Schools.
Please use our interactive map to learn more about the school readiness status of the children from Brownsville Independent School District, Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District, Point Isabel Independent School District and IDEA Public Schools broken down by geographic area and socio-demographic indicators.