INQUIRE Data Toolkit
The INQUIRE Data Toolkit revolves around the growing awareness of the importance of collecting data related to early care and education. The Toolkit provides tools to support data collection and the use of data to answer child care and early education (CCEE) policy questions and fulfill reporting requirements. Originally produced in 2013, the 2023 update expands the focus of the original toolkit on CCEE quality initiatives to include CCEE access, the workforce, and stabilization of CCEE programs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The toolkit provides policy questions and standardized data elements that can be used for monitoring, engaging in continuous program improvement, reporting, evaluating CCEE activities at the state, regional, and local levels, and conducting data needs assessments and data collection planning.
The INQUIRE Data Toolkit supports state and local efforts to build a strong data infrastructure that informs 1) the completion of reports on the use of federal funds, 2) the collection and analysis of data to answer policy questions, 3) the development of new data elements and sources, and 4) regular sharing of data with constituents and the CCEE system.
