Focus On Early Learning Yields Far-Reaching Benefits
EWA asked participants to contribute blog posts from some of the
sessions at our 65th National Seminar, held May 17-19 at the University
of Pennsylvania. This entry is from Kay Luna, education reporter for the Quad-City Times.
Session: Early Learning - The Key to Success?
Participants: Kathryn Baron, co-writer of "Thoughts on Public Education" (moderator)
Steven Hicks, special assistant, U.S. Dept of Education
Milagros Nores, assistant research professor, National Institute for Early Education Research
Lindsey Allard Agnamba, founder and director, School Readiness Consulting
Some people might think early childhood education pertains only to parents of younger learners. But the most current research supports the theory that everyone is impacted by high-quality options for children from birth to age 5, and the panelists in this session encouraged reporters to tell that story.
Some questions to ask:
* How does this public investment impact the child and society as a whole?
* If this is so important, how are states funding early childhood education?
* What does a high-quality preschool classroom look like?
Milagros Nores, assistant research professor for the National Institute for Early Education Research, reviewed what research shows: a child's early experiences greatly influence brain development, especially in the first five years.
Children receive short- and long-term positive effects of attending a high-quality prekindergarten program, she said. They do better on achievement tests, and are less likely to end up in special education tracks, drop out or engage in risky behavior.
They are more likely to have better employment, higher earnings and are less likely to depend on welfare than those who didn't have high-quality early childhood education.
That also leads to decreased government costs because they don't require the law enforcement, special education schooling, social services and health care as others.
But Nores cautions that many states are moving backward in funding this because of the recession.
States at risk include California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma (national leader, but cut spending more than 10 percent), Kentucky and Pennsylvania, she said.
The federal Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge has influenced some state policies, though, said Steven Hicks, special assistant on early learning with the U.S. Department of Education. The department is looking closely at access to early learning programs, workforce pay and professional development in early childhood education and assessment and accountability (such as screenings and observations), Hicks added.
"We're looking at a cradle-to-career continuum at the department," he said. "We're focused on developing the cognitive, health and social/emotional outcomes for children from birth to third grade, zero to 8 years old."
Story ideas from Hicks included:
* New office of early learning at the U.S. Department of Ed
* Look at how Race to the Top, and the Early Learning Challenge has influenced state policies
* How the RTT ELC state winners are balancing reform efforts with state budgets
* What are the non-winning states doing?
Meanwhile, what does high quality look like? Lindsey Allard Agnamba, School Readiness Consulting suggests we need to "focus on telling stories of exemplary programming." First, look at teacher workforce and qualifications, she said.
"Early childhood may be the hardest level to teach. Period," Agnamba said. "To think about all the areas of children's learning and development ...This is a huge task."
Curriculum should go beyond colors and shapes, and instead build on real-life experiences and integrate a host of other lesson material, while prompting the child into critical thinking.
Qualified, engaging teachers are needed to do that, and "they should make at least as much as the teachers make in their school districts," Agnamba said.
"I think slowly we're moving away from school readiness," Nores added, "to a much more encompassing aspect of the whole developing of the children."
Session: Early Learning - The Key to Success?
Participants: Kathryn Baron, co-writer of "Thoughts on Public Education" (moderator)
Steven Hicks, special assistant, U.S. Dept of Education
Milagros Nores, assistant research professor, National Institute for Early Education Research
Lindsey Allard Agnamba, founder and director, School Readiness Consulting
Some people might think early childhood education pertains only to parents of younger learners. But the most current research supports the theory that everyone is impacted by high-quality options for children from birth to age 5, and the panelists in this session encouraged reporters to tell that story.
Some questions to ask:
* How does this public investment impact the child and society as a whole?
* If this is so important, how are states funding early childhood education?
* What does a high-quality preschool classroom look like?
Milagros Nores, assistant research professor for the National Institute for Early Education Research, reviewed what research shows: a child's early experiences greatly influence brain development, especially in the first five years.
Children receive short- and long-term positive effects of attending a high-quality prekindergarten program, she said. They do better on achievement tests, and are less likely to end up in special education tracks, drop out or engage in risky behavior.
They are more likely to have better employment, higher earnings and are less likely to depend on welfare than those who didn't have high-quality early childhood education.
That also leads to decreased government costs because they don't require the law enforcement, special education schooling, social services and health care as others.
But Nores cautions that many states are moving backward in funding this because of the recession.
States at risk include California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma (national leader, but cut spending more than 10 percent), Kentucky and Pennsylvania, she said.
The federal Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge has influenced some state policies, though, said Steven Hicks, special assistant on early learning with the U.S. Department of Education. The department is looking closely at access to early learning programs, workforce pay and professional development in early childhood education and assessment and accountability (such as screenings and observations), Hicks added.
"We're looking at a cradle-to-career continuum at the department," he said. "We're focused on developing the cognitive, health and social/emotional outcomes for children from birth to third grade, zero to 8 years old."
Story ideas from Hicks included:
* New office of early learning at the U.S. Department of Ed
* Look at how Race to the Top, and the Early Learning Challenge has influenced state policies
* How the RTT ELC state winners are balancing reform efforts with state budgets
* What are the non-winning states doing?
Meanwhile, what does high quality look like? Lindsey Allard Agnamba, School Readiness Consulting suggests we need to "focus on telling stories of exemplary programming." First, look at teacher workforce and qualifications, she said.
"Early childhood may be the hardest level to teach. Period," Agnamba said. "To think about all the areas of children's learning and development ...This is a huge task."
Curriculum should go beyond colors and shapes, and instead build on real-life experiences and integrate a host of other lesson material, while prompting the child into critical thinking.
Qualified, engaging teachers are needed to do that, and "they should make at least as much as the teachers make in their school districts," Agnamba said.
"I think slowly we're moving away from school readiness," Nores added, "to a much more encompassing aspect of the whole developing of the children."
Labels: #ewa12, early_childhood
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