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In this section, you'll find editorials, legislation, public policy and trends on issues relating to preschool, pre-kindergarten, childcare and the push toward universal preschool education. Particularly of note are articles concerning the states claim of a compelling interest in compulsory preschool education. Visit often for the latest preschool news.
The Evidence on Universal Preschool
Calls for universal preschool programs have become commonplace, reinforced by President Obama's call for "high-quality preschool for all" in 2013. Any program that could cost state and federal taxpayers $50 billion per year warrants a closer look.
This report reviews the major evaluations of preschool programs, including both traditional programs such as Head Start and those designated as "high quality." These evaluations do not paint a generally positive picture. The most methodologically rigorous evaluations find that the academic benefits of preschool programs are quite modest, and these gains fade after children enter elementary school.
October 15, 2014
[More Results from cato.org]
Forget universal preschool. We need a 13th grade.
In education circles, universal preschool is hot. But it's only half the answer. If we really want to raise a generation of employable kids, we need universal 13th and 14th grades too.
As taxpayers, we've decided to subsidize the education of every American child between the ages of 5 and 18. But current education funding structures reflect a bygone industrial age, when a high school diploma met or in some cases exceeded the needs of the local and national economies. Now, neither preschool nor college is a luxury, and families shouldn't have to pay for the schooling that keeps society running.
June 12, 2014
[More Results from washingtonpost.com]
Head Start's sad and costly secret
Since its inception in1965, taxpayers have spent more than $180 billion on the program.
But HHS’ latest Head Start Impact Study found taxpayers aren’t getting a good return on this “investment.” According to the congressionally-mandated report, Head Start has little to no impact on cognitive, social-emotional, health, or parenting practices of its participants. In fact, on a few measures, access to the program actually produced negative effects.
January 14, 2013
[More Results from Fox News]
Slate of four challengers battle four incumbents over preschool plan
School board races are not often one-issue fights. Typically, candidates tend to quarrel over a combination of issues, including educational ideologies, funding priorities and labor relations.
But the battle for four of five seats on the Soquel Union Elementary School District board -- one that could completely reshape the panel -- will turn, for the most part, on a single, long-smoldering controversy: Whether to build a preschool at Jade Street Park.
October 9, 2008
[More Results from San Jose Mercury News]
Lawmakers quietly considering universal preschool
After California's voters last June defeated a $2.3 billion universal preschool initiative, Proposition 82, the issue of early education seemed dead. But reports of its demise have proved premature.
The debate over how much to spend on pre-K and for which kids is now in the hands of the state politicians, and the issue will resurface this week when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger releases his revised 2008 budget.
May 7, 2007
[More Results from San Jose Mercury News (CA)]
The Price of Day Care Can Be High
There is one place in North America where parents of young children don't have to worry about child care. In Quebec, full-time day care costs just $7 a day, thanks to a government program aimed at one of the thorniest problems that workers in their 20's,
Starting in 1997, the Quebec Family Policy subsidized day care for 4-year-olds at government-approved centers around the province. By 2000, the program had expanded to cover any child not old enough for kindergarten, all the way down to infants. This is universal day care, an audacious idea that recognizes the revolution in women's work over the last 30 years.
June 14, 2006
[More Results from New York Times (Canada)]
Program Benefits Homeschool Families with Kindergarten, Preschool Lesson Plans
EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA -- Kindergarten and preschool lesson plans are now available to homeschoolers and parents who want to help their children with early reading skills.
The program focuses on reading and writing skills. The lesson plans also inspire creativity and draw from a wide variety of subject areas from the traditional preschool and kindergarten curriculum.
October 10, 2005
[More Results from American Chronicle]
I hear that kids in daycare get sick a lot. Can I do anything to prevent this?
Kids do pass infections to each other easily in a group setting such as daycare, particularly during the winter months.
You can't do much about it unless you switch to a nanny or decide to stay home yourself. [Great idea!]
July 22, 2005
[More Results from parentcenter.babycenter.com]
Action Alert - CA: AB 172 - Universal Preschool.com
AB 172 Hearing - April 20, 2005. Your mission should you decide to accept it; is to call, write and/or fax the legislators listed below in opposition to AB 172. Be sure to write your own Assembly member as well.
After you have contacted your legislator and the Education Committee members, please forward this alert to any family members or friends, who may have an interest in preschool legislation.
April 16, 2005
[More Results from Universal Preschool.com]
Much Too Early!
Realistic developmental needs in early childhood education and preschool, discussed by Professor of Child Development, Dr. David Elkind.
In one sentence, Froebel, father of the kindergarten, expressed the essence of early-childhood education. Children are not born knowing the difference between red and green, sweet and sour, rough and smooth, cold and hot, or any number of physical sensations. The natural world is the infant's and young child's first curriculum, and it can only be learned by direct interaction with things.
February 5, 2001
[More Results from Best Homeschooling.org]
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