A surprising review of today's early
childhood educational services for all socioeconomic groups answered a
questioned I have pondered upon for many years. Why do students continue to struggle academically and drop
out of high school despite the increased funding for education and development
of early intervention/educational programs? Comparing per student spending from 1990 to 2010, schools
spent $7,259 more dollars per student in 2010 (Digest of Educ. Stats, Table 214). James Heckman, an economics' professor specializing in human
development, revealed an answer that did not focus on money, but on the importance
of character development and good parenting skills (2008). Heckman's research revealed that high
socioeconomic status with poor parenting and poor character development
resulted in the same difficulties of crime and lack of success seen in children
raised in poverty. Likewise, children living in poverty who
received early education (3-5yrs of age) and a weekly home visit were later
found to experience higher levels of academic achievement than their peers despite
no significant changes in intelligence (Heckman). These children also had a decreased need for special
education, lower crime rates, decreased use of social programs, and an improve
healthier lifestyles, higher employment rates, and higher completion of high
school (Heckman). This results in
significant savings for society, an increased quality of life, and a way to
break the cycle of poverty (Heckman).
My first reaction is joy and hope.
What is your reaction? Do
you believe it has the potential to empower communities?
If
you answered, yes, you will be thrilled to learn that in 2011, Missouri was
awarded the "Early Learning Challenge Grant" and the "Child Care
Development Fund Grant" providing financial means to set new and higher
goals for existing preschool providers and to increase the number of early
intervention services providers (Thornburg, 2011). Thornburg shared the vision of developing an integrated data
system to track all children at risk due to poverty, disabilities, or injuries
throughout Missouri. Another goal
is to design curriculum for a standardized preschool program educating children,
ages three through five, to ensure they are ready for Kindergarten (Thornburg).
This will also enable future
program evaluations, training, and research.
I
believe the most ambitious goal, shared by Thornburg, is the implementation of
a statewide screening program by 2020, for all children by their third birthday.
I believe mandatory educational
screenings will be as beneficial as yearly wellness exams. Do you? As a special education teacher, I saw
firsthand the benefits of working with a preschool screening team (speech
therapist, a psychologist, an occupational therapist). I have consistently witnessed
throughout my years of working with families, regardless of socioeconomic status
and educational levels, resistance and denial concerning possible developmental
delays in their child. It was not
unusual to hear parents share that their child just needed more time to
develop, or even worse, that they just had a bad child who was choosing to not
learn and was stubborn. Do you
think children chose to not learn or to behave badly? Do you believe early educational opportunities for
preschoolers, without cost, may provide immeasurable benefits to society? Do you think it should be mandatory for
parents to send their child to preschool or should it be a choice? Personally, I believe it should be a
choice and should be free to those who qualify.
There
are numerous community programs in and around Saint Louis. They are: Headstart, Child Care Aware
of Missouri, Child Care and Parenting Resources, Father's Support Center,
Hilltop Child Development Center, and Nurse family Partnership-Building Blocks,
Lutheran Family and Children’s Services
of Missouri, and St. Louis Crisis Nursery. If your clients has an unmet need and resources are not
available, a program may be developed by working with the Children's Defense
Fund.
References
Children's
Defense Fund, Children in Missouri (2012, March). Retrieved from http://www.childrensdefense.org
Child Care and Parenting
Resources. Child Care Assistance/ Early Childhood Services. Missouri Department
of Social Services. Retrieved from
www.dss.mo.gov/cd/childcare
Child Care Aware of Missouri.
Retrieved from http://mo.childcareaware.org
Dr. Kathy
Thornburg (2011, August). Early learning
childhood grant presentation. Department
of Secondary Education. Retrieved
from http://dese.ed.gov
Digest of
Educational Statistics (Table 214). National Center for Education Statistics
(2012 Tables
& Figures). Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov
Father’s Support Center. Retrieved
from htpp://www.fatherssupportcenter.org
Head Start. Retrieved from http://www.ywcastlouis.org
Hickman,
J. (2008). Schools, skills, and synapses. Economic Inquiry, 46(3),
289-324.
Hilltop
Child Development Center, Saint Louis, MO. Retrieved from http://childcarecenter.us
Lutheran Family
and Children’s Services of Missouri.
Retrieved from http://www.lfcsmo.org
Nurse-Family
Partnership National Service Office--Nonprofit. Retrieved from http://info@nursefamilypartnership.org
Nurses for
Newborns Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.nfnf.org
Saint Louis
Crisis Nursery.
http://www.crisisnurserykids.org
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