I don't have kids. I have 3 step-children who are way past preschool and all doing very well in school. We live in a suburb with relatively decent public schools.
I have a 5-year old nephew who was in preschool. It was paid for by the government because he was considerably behind in terms of development in comparison to other 3 and 4 year olds. My sister called one day last year with joy in her voice "We have to pay for pre-school now because he is all caught up!" I have never heard somone so happy to pay for something before. I love him dearly. I am glad they were able to afford preschool once the government funding was no longer technically necessary.
I have the feeling most parents love their children just like my sister loves her son. They would love to pay for preschool if they could. But not everyone has this luxury.
I would like to see nationally funded preschool for all 4-year olds. It would not be mandatory. But it would be a great opportunity for children. Right now, the opportunity does not exist.
NEA leader Patricia Reeves, a long-time advocate of early childhood education, was on hand to help announce the results of the second annual survey of state preschool programs, which found a huge disparity in availability from state to state.
The report concludes that "across our nation, high-quality and readily available state-funded preschool programs are the exception rather than the rule."
http://www.nea.org/earlychildhood/preschoolyearbook04.html
This is very disappointing. Education is not a primary focus in this country. The Republicans don't have time for it because they can't get rich from it. But the reality is education is the great economic equalizer in a democracy such as ours. But when children start out behind their peers in school. they are at an instant disadvantage in school. They have to play catch up and this is not always possible.
Reeves, a kindergarten teacher for 29 years and current chair of NEA's Early Childhood Education Caucus, said students who come to kindergarten without preschool education are behind already and usually end up staying behind for the rest of their school careers.
"A child who enters kindergarten educationally behind other children not only has problems but creates problems for the whole class," she said. "That child needs extra attention and takes time away from the rest of the class."
I know people would be concerned about the costs. How can we pay for preschool? We can barely pay for the schools we have now. Well, I think this statement is bullshit. We can pay for the schools we have now and more. It is simply a question of priorities.
Research has actually shown a cost savings for schools with students who have attended preschool.
One of the better known of those studies is the Abecedarian Early Childhood Intervention Project. It began in the 1970s at the FPG Child Development Institute (FPG) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
A recent benefit-cost analysis of the long-running research program concluded that taxpayers can expect four dollars in benefits for every dollar spent on high-quality early education programs.
The researchers' benefit-cost analysis found:
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Children in high-quality programs are projected to make roughly $143,000 more over their lifetimes than those who didn't take part in the program.
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Mothers of children who were enrolled can also expect greater earnings - about $133,000 more over their lifetimes.
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School districts can expect to save more than $11,000 per child because participants are less likely to require special or remedial education.
http://www.nea.org/earlychildhood/research-earlychildhood.html
Let's see. More money for the child. For the mother. For the school. Wow. Why are we not providing preschool for all 4-year-olds?
The conservative think-tank, CATO institute doesn't like the idea of universal preschool. Here is an apalling statement from them:
Public preschool for younger children is irresponsible, given the failure of the public school system to educate the children currently enrolled. The desire to "do something" for young children should be tempered by the facts, and proposals for universal preschool should be rejected.
http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-333es.html
Who are these people? If our public schools are such a failure, then why doesn't the Republican-controlled congress fix them? Their logic is horrible. If our schools are struggling to edcuate the children, let's help them and our children by starting the education process earlier.