Citizens for Excellence in Early Education - South Bend (CEEE-SB)

Early Education News Roundup 3/5/11

2011-03-05T09:10:00.000-05:00

March 4, 2011 (Erie Times-News, Erie, PA)
Casey introduces bill to help states invest in early learning
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., introduced a bill Thursday aimed at helping states invest in early learning so that more low-income children have access to high-quality education.

March 2, 2011 (The Daily Advertiser, Lafayette, LA)
Pre-K successes may go away if money not found
Students who enroll in prekindergarten classes will be better prepared for kindergarten and future school success, Cecil J. Picard Center for Child Development and Lifelong Learning officials will tell the Lafayette Parish School Board tonight. The prekindergarten report comes at a critical time. Eight school system prekindergarten classes will lose funding at the end of this school year as federal stimulus funding dries up.

March 2, 2011 (WFMZ TV, Allentown, PA)
Pa. lawmakers urge gov. to keep education funding in budget
The caucus said early education programs give students better reading, language, and social skills; enhance the workforce by attracting skilled workers who are more productive; and return $16 for each taxpayer dollar invested.

March 2, 2011 (Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN)
All-day kindergarten nears 'tipping point'
Minnesota, which funds half-day kindergarten, is one of about a dozen states without extra funding for full-day programs. Early education advocates say this latest state push signals that Minnesota is a step closer to following states such as Wisconsin and North Dakota, where all-day, every-day kindergarten is state-supported.

March 1, 2011 (Juneau Empire)
Committee to begin hearing budget requests
Advocates of pre-kindergarten and other programs hope to win funding from the Alaska Legislature when the House Finance Committee begins to take testimony on the state budget today. A subcommittee of the committee last week cut a $2 million pre-kindergarten pilot project which helped fund pre-kindergarten programs in six school districts around the state.

March 1, 2011 (The Seattle Times)
Opinion: Invest now in early learning for better lives and a better workforce
Certainly, we need to make every effort to train and retrain our national workforce, and we must continue to improve our K-12 and postsecondary education systems. But investing in a more educated workforce requires quality early education experiences to lay the foundation for the skills businesses will need.

February 28, 2011 (Daily Record, Parsippany, NJ)
Opinion: The case for preserving Head Start
Education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty, and the Head Start preschool program has a proven record of success over more than 45 years. That success now is endangered because of a "meat axe" approach to federal and state spending. No doubt we need to bring to a halt the uncontrolled growth of governmental spending, but also there is no doubt that we need to keep those programs that benefit society.

February 28, 2011 (The Connecticut Mirror)
Panel recommends expanding early education to address achievement gap
The co-chair of the state's budget-writing committee is proposing requiring the state's poorest school districts provide full-day kindergarten and pre-kindergarten for all low-income students by July 2013 -- with the state and communities sharing the bill.

February 27, 2011 (Rome News-Tribune, Rome, GA)
Ga. families faced with scaled-back pre-k
A plan to scale back Georgia's free, full-day pre-kindergarten program — the first of its kind in the U.S. — to a half-day has teachers fearing shrunken paychecks and working parents scrambling to find day care for their 4-year-olds.

February 27, 2011 (Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
Editorial: Want prosperity? Invest in the youngest kids
There's a widely acknowledged domino effect: Kids who get a good start on school are more likely to stay out of trouble and graduate, enabling them to be more productive citizens who earn more money, pay more taxes and improve their families' economic situation. A 2006 report by the Bush School at Texas A&M University concluded that Texas would receive $3.50 in return for every dollar invested in "universally accessible, high-quality pre-kindergarten."

February 26, 2011 (The Answer Sheet (Washington Post))
D.C. reaches pre-school milestone
Today in Washington D.C. there are enough preschool and Pre-K slots for every 3- and 4-year-old child seeking a spot. We now must work to ensure that all children not only have access to free preschool and Pre-K in their neighborhood, but that the early education they receive is of the highest quality.

February 22, 2011 (Times-Herald, Vallejo, CA)
Head Start program could face severe cuts
Faced with a 22.4 percent cut, Head Start programs could lose an estimated 48,000 staff members to layoffs across California, a California Head Start Association official in the agency's communications office said.

NIEER Hot Topics March 5, 2011

2011-03-05T09:06:00.000-05:00

Michigan Pre-K Saved State More Than $1 Billion in 2009
Michigan's preschool program for at-risk children save the state at least $1 billion in 2009 alone says a new report from the Citizen's Research Council of Michigan. The analysis points out that about 80,000 adult high school graduates age 18 to 29 are in the labor force who likely would have dropped out of school if not for the state's investment in their school readiness. Their collective economic impact is about $1.3 billion annually, including $584 million in reduced spending on things like special education, criminal justice expenses and welfare spending. About $700 million in additional wages were accrued by the state in 2009 due to their higher productivity. The issue of prioritizing funding for pre-K, currently being weighed in a number of states, is the subject of NIEER Co-Director Steve Barnett's latest Preschool Matters … Today! blog post.

Vanderbilt Study: Kids Attending Tennessee Pre-K Made Strong Gains
The Commercial Appeal reports that a new study from Vanderbilt University found that children who attended Tennessee's public pre-K program gained an average of 82 percent more on early literacy and math skills than comparable children who did not attend. Gains were highest in literacy and relatively modest in math. Tennessee legislators have proposed cutting the program, saying such gains fade out by 3rd grade but Vanderbilt professor Mark Lipsey says research pointing to fade-out is flawed.

No Nap or Meals in Georgia Pre-K?
Kids in Georgia's state pre-K program won't likely have meals or a nap, not to mention a full day of instruction, if cuts to the program proposed by Governor Nathan Deal go through, reports The Florida Times-Union. Deal wants to reduce the program to a half-day, meaning children would spend four hours in pre-K instead of the current six-and-a-half. Deal's plan would also increase access to the program for an additional 10,000 kids and reduce work days for pre-K teachers from eight to five-and-a-half hours. Communities wishing to keep the longer school day would have to make up the money on their own. Deal's plan is reportedly moving through the legislature quickly. Meanwhile, a report from the Southern Education Foundation says the program is paying off, with fewer students being held back a grade, dropping out of school and landing in special education classes.

Connecticut Budget Panel: Expand Early Education
The Connecticut Mirror reports that the state's Senate appropriations committee co-chair Toni Harp, who also leads the state's Achievement Gap Task Force, has proposed requiring the state's poorest school districts to provide full-day kindergarten and pre-K for all low-income students by 2013 and to receive state help in doing so. Connecticut has the largest achievement gap as measured by the National Assessment of Education Progress in the nation. The education committee considers the proposal next.

New America Foundation: 12 Ideas for Congress to Consider
The New America Foundation just released its bi-annual issue brief containing recommendations for the U.S. Congress. This year's installment includes fresh ideas, including a call for research on digital technology, improvements in the professional development of principals, and changes to the "adequate yearly progress" provisions under No Child Left Behind. It also updates ideas the organization's Early Education Initiative first issued in 2009.

Rave Reviews: The Influence of Teachers: Reflections on Teaching and Leadership
The above-titled new book by PBS Newshour education correspondent John Merrow on how schools and teachers can change to keep up with the current educational landscape has garnered enthusiastic reviews from, among others, former Secretary of Education Richard Riley, Marian Wright-Edelman and Jim Lehrer. Merrow draws on his experiences as a reporter for the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio to discuss new possibilities and solutions for our education system and, in his words, transform rather than reform it. Merrow is president of Learning Matters, an independent production company. He hosts his own documentaries on The Merrow Report.

He may be kidding - but many aren't

2011-01-23T10:42:00.003-05:00

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2011-01-07T15:25:00.000-05:00

De-legitimizing public education

2010-11-15T10:47:00.000-05:00

...what Erica Goldson said in her June valedictory speech at Coxsackie-Athens High School in New York:

"We are so focused on a goal, whether it be passing a test, or graduating as first in the class. However, in this way, we do not really learn. We do whatever it takes to achieve our original objective.

"Some of you may be thinking, "Well, if you pass a test, or become valedictorian, didn't you learn something? Well, yes, you learned something, but not all that you could have. Perhaps, you only learned how to memorize names, places, and dates to later on forget in order to clear your mind for the next test. School is not all that it can be. Right now, it is a place for most people to determine that their goal is to get out as soon as possible.

"I am now accomplishing that goal. I am graduating. I should look at this as a positive experience, especially being at the top of my class. However, in retrospect, I cannot say that I am any more intelligent than my peers. I can attest that I am only the best at doing what I am told and working the system."

Full Washington Post post here:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/answer-sheet/guest-bloggers/de-legitimizing-public-educati.html

“Why Public Education is More Important Than Wall Street, and What We Must Do”

2010-11-08T10:29:00.000-05:00

NIEER Early Ed news roundup - Volume 9, Issue 21

2010-11-06T08:40:00.000-04:00

October 26, 2010 (Montgomery Advertiser, Montgomery, AL)
Community partnership a recipe for success
Gov. Bob Riley, who will hand the reins of state government over to someone else next year, said that for the state to make bigger gains in increasing the state's graduation rate there must be more investment in early childhood education.
October 24, 2010 (The Star Press, Muncie, IN)
Opinion: Early childhood education and the economy
In terms of investment, we found early childhood education outweighed virtually everything else government could do to boost long-run economic performance and enhance educational outcomes.
October 21, 2010 (Press of Atlantic City)
Preschool class open to abled, disabled kids
The class looks like a typical preschool, but the program has a crucial difference. It's an inclusion class of both able and disabled children, ages 3 to 5. And some of their parents have paid for them to be here.
October 21, 2010 (The News & Observer, Raleigh, NC)
Opinion: The payoff from early education
Just as parents baby-proof the top of the stairs to prevent a dangerous fall, policymakers must protect the economy from making a major misstep. Investments in early childhood education are the economic equivalent to investments in gates for stairs and covers for electrical outlets.
October 20, 2010 (The Virginian-Pilot)
Va. part of plan to improve military families' access to care
Virginia was chosen to participate because of its high concentration of military families, a network of community partners willing to work on improving education, and the existence of its Smart Beginnings programs and Star Quality Initiative.
October 19, 2010 (The Salt Lake Tribune)
Editorial: Education plan
The commission rightly emphasized expanded early-childhood education, including all-day kindergarten; better curriculum alignments between public schools and higher education; better use of technology; coordinating curriculum with the needs of the business community; improving teaching; and strengthening post-secondary opportunities.
October 19, 2010 (The Hartford Courant)
Governor's commission proposes dozens of education reforms
The Connecticut Commission on Educational Achievement today proposed dozens of reforms designed to close the state's academic achievement gap, from providing quality preschool education for all low-income students to requiring high school students to pass a test before they can graduate.
October 19, 2010 (Los Angeles Times)
Proposal would restore state funding for child care
The program pays child-care costs for working parents who take jobs to move off welfare but can't afford day care. The governor's action means child care for 60,000 families will end Nov. 1 unless a stopgap measure is found.
October 17, 2010 (The Tennessean)
Follow-up: TN pre-K programs's effectiveness fades by 3rd grade
The Tennessee Comptroller's Office last week issued another in a series of reports on the effectiveness of pre-kindergarten education in Tennessee. The report shows students who participated in the state-funded pre-K program outperformed their peers in kindergarten and first grade. By second grade, the advantage fades, and it's undetectable by third grade.
October 17, 2010 (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Report shows early learning programs are succeeding
The Pennsylvania Department of Education on Friday released a year-end report showing that Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts spent $86.4 million on early learning programs serving nearly 12,000 at-risk children ages 3 and 4 in school districts, Head Start, child care centers and nursery schools in 62 counties in 2009-10. The report noted that more than 98 percent of the children showed "age-appropriate or emerging age-appropriate proficiency" in literacy, numeracy and social skills after attending the programs.
October 14, 2010 (The Boston Globe)
Play school
Play is the occupation of childhood, the way young minds learn, authorities on development say. But as kindergarten programs grow increasingly academic, educators differ on whether preschool play should be molded and focused, or given free rein.
October 13, 2010 (Education Week)
Denver's Achievement Gap Narrows With Advanced Kindergarten
The Denver Public Schools' advanced-kindergarten program, now in its seventh year, draws families who want a faster academic pace for their children, and it helps retain some who might otherwise choose private schools or other districts.
October 11, 2010 (The Washington Post)
Opinion: Finally, Obama administration is putting Head Start to the test
A recent evaluation sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that at the end of the first year of school, children who had attended Head Start did no better than similar children who did not attend Head Start. The bottom line is that taxpayers get little for their annual investment of $8 billion in Head Start.

NIEER Hot Topics Volume 9, Issue 21

2010-11-06T08:38:00.000-04:00

The Case for Data-Driven Reform is Gaining Steam
For years, experts have called for data-driven reform of early childhood programs. That push has gained steam in the wake of bold proposals from the Obama administration and the release of Investing in Children: New Directions in Federal Preschool and Early Childhood Policy, the NIEER/Brookings report, released to critical acclaim in Washington on October 13th. Drawing the attention of many is the recommendation from the co-editors, NIEER Co-Director Steve Barnett and Brookings Senior Fellow Ron Haskins, that calls for the federal government to waive some regulations for Head Start and other programs to foster innovation and more effective program delivery — and to conduct randomized trials on programs operating under the waivers. Lisa Guernsey, director of the early childhood initiative at New America Foundation, discusses the issues in her latest Early Ed Watch blog post.

Time for ECE Public Policy and Practice to Align Better with Research
Preschool in the U.S. narrows the achievement gap by as little as 5 percent — largely due to the prevalence of low-quality programs — at a time when research suggests they could be narrowing it by 30 to 50 percent. That assessment and recommendations to start early education on a new quality-based agenda are part of an article appearing in Psychological Science in the Public Interest, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The authors are Robert C. Pianta, University of Virginia, Steve Barnett, Rutgers University (and NIEER), Margaret Burchinal, University of North Carolina, and Kathy R. Thornburg, University of Missouri.

1 in 5 New York City Kids Misses at Least a Month of School Each Year
The pattern begins in the early grades and continues from there: Last year more than 25 percent of school children in 12 of New York City's 32 school districts were chronically absent, missing more than a month of school per year. In five of those districts, 30 percent of kindergarten through fifth grade kids were absent more than 10 percent of the time. Those statistics and a set of recommendations aimed at addressing the problem appear in a new report from the Center for New York City Affairs.

What Works Clearinghouse: RDD Now On a Par with Randomized Trials
The U.S. Department of Education's What Works Clearinghouse is broadening its definition of what constitutes the "gold standard" in research to include regression discontinuity design, a method that uses cut-off points to establish comparison groups rather than randomization. The clearinghouse says some single-case studies also make the grade. Some researchers welcomed the broadening of the standards but others urged caution. Speaking to Education Week, Jon Baron, president of the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, pointed out that there have been few attempts to replicate the results of randomized trials with the other methods.

Colombians Greet NIEER Study with South American Hospitality
Do a study in a U.S. city and you get good cooperation if you do things right; do one in Santa Marta, Colombia and you get the keys to the city! That's the report from Milagros Nores who is just back from visiting NIEER's research partners in Colombia, where a new long-term randomized study of preschool education is set to begin. She writes about the study and conditions on the ground in Colombia in our latest post at Preschool Matters … Today!

School takeover proposals flawed

2010-11-06T07:45:00.000-04:00

By ALISSA WETZEL
Viewpoint
South Bend Tribune

On Oct. 29, the Indiana State Board of Education met in Indianapolis to consider the future of two local high schools that produced low scores in standardized tests for five consecutive years, making them candidates for state takeovers. Of course, the board was not merely considering the future of Washington and Riley high schools, it was considering the fate of hundreds of local students and teachers.

Yet the options put on the table by Republican State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett are troubling. One option would outsource the management of the schools to for-profit groups — a move that would result in a de facto privatization of public high schools. Another option would close the schools all together. Such proposals are deeply flawed.

Both of Bennett's proposals could result in a mass firing of teachers. Theoretically, teachers could reapply for their jobs. But in the face of Gov. Mitch Daniel's recent $300 million cut to the education budget, teachers with little experience would logically have a competitive advantage over more experienced, better-paid teachers. In the short term, teachers at the twilight of their careers could find themselves unemployed simply because they made the decision to devote their careers to teaching in a struggling school. In the long term, talented new teachers may avoid accepting jobs at the most at-risk schools because those schools would offer little, if any, job stability.

Either move would have the net result of breaking up schools that, for many students, provide much-needed stability and a safe neighborhood haven. Gone could be the sports team or extra-curricular activity that gave a struggling student a reason to stay in school, along with the caring teacher who played a critical role in turning a kid's life around. These are important elements that no standardized test can measure and the elements that would certainly be eliminated if schools were to close.

Also, these are the types of intangibles that a for-profit company has no incentive to pursue. A school is much more than a business and should be concerned with doing much more than making a profit and hitting a test taking metric. If struggling schools close or become run by outside management firms, a vital sense of community would be lost in a time when that is the very thing the most troubled regions of South Bend need.

Bennett alleges he is protecting students from ineffective teachers who have failed them. But bad teachers are not the reason city schools are failing. It's no secret that parental involvement is a major factor in student performance, so it's no surprise that the most troubled schools in South Bend and across Indiana are also in low-income, high-crime areas. Students enter high school with difficult home lives and under-involved parents.

To be sure, solving the real issues that plague struggling schools is costly and difficult. It involves common-sense approaches, such as individualized attention for troubled students and smaller class sizes for all students. But these are measures that are unappealing to a superintendent intent on targeting teachers' unions and a governor intent on protecting his fiscal record for an eventual White House run.

Recently, Bennett accused a South Bend teachers union of putting "adult comforts and desires over the needs of the students." What's really happening is that Bennett and his Republican allies are pursuing a political agenda aimed at weakening teachers' unions while avoiding the real reasons why some students fail and others succeed.

Alissa Wetzel is an Elkhart native. She lives in Indianapolis.

Chicago's school chief to hit the road

2010-11-04T14:09:00.001-04:00

WBEZ News

Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman will leave his job on Nov. 29, after just one year and 10 months at the helm of the nation's third largest school district.

Huberman’s announcement comes during a chaotic time, as the district prepares to negotiate a new evaluation system with the Chicago Teachers Union and battles a court injunction on the layoffs of tenured teachers. The news also comes as the No. 2 spot at CPS, the chief education officer, is also vacant.

full story

South Bend School Board Elections: endorsements

2010-11-01T17:26:00.002-04:00

(part 4 of 4)

Don Wheeler

The three previous posts attempted to set the scene and assess the contest for the South Bend School Board. Now I’ll give my views on the individual races.

Three out of the seven seats are contested -- Districts 1, 2 and 5. The District 1 race features challengers Jay Caponigro and Nikki Hutchinson, and incumbent Sheila Bergeron. Ms. Hutchinson is up against a well heeled challenger and an entrenched incumbent. Though she seems a perfectly reasonable person to serve, it’s hard to see her having any chance at victory. Narrowing to the two remaining candidates, the call is a bit closer than one might think.

Ms. Bergeron is easily the weakest of the incumbents. Her stint as President was marked by out of control public meetings and other problems. I’m sympathetic to the idea governing boards should evolve, but I also think challengers should show expertise and ideas. This is a case where I think the challenger does.

Jay Caponigro has nine years of community connected experience in the educational realm as director of the Robinson Community Learning Center at the University of Notre Dame. In March, he became Notre Dame's director of community engagement, where he'll oversee the center and support the university's educational and community outreach efforts. He strikes one as a thoughtful, careful person – clearly assets needed in a Trustee.

The reason that it isn’t as easy a call as one might think, is his connection to the local Democratic “machine”. Also, one could worry about potential conflicts of interest due to his Notre Dame employment.

The latter could (conversely) be an asset. Notre Dame has, for the most part, proved itself a responsible citizen of the community. As to the former, one has to hope Mr. Caponigro will exert independence from Mr. Parent and the attendant organization. If I lived in District 1, I would vote for Jay Caponigro.

The other two contests are more clear-cut.

In District 5, challenger Michelle Engel faces incumbent Marcia Hummel. Ms. Engel touts her past experience as an attorney in South Bend city government. That’s pretty much it. She wants us to think she would make the board work better because she is an attorney.

She seems pretty unfamiliar with educational law issues, or how the Board operates. It has been noted that she’s not attended a School Board meeting since she announced for office. In four citizen forums, she’s only deigned to attend two – sending representatives to the other ones.

Marcia Hummel is arguably the strongest incumbent running. She has consistently been the Trustee pointing out applicable state law – when the Board might go against it. As its current President, meetings have returned to civil parliamentary discourse. Ms. Hummel warned long ago of the danger of state takeover if aggressive measures were not pursued. She was a voice in the wilderness then, but now we see she was right. Ms. Hummel has been neither combative nor conciliatory – she has been the glue which held the body together. We should be pleased she’s willing to continue this thankless job. If I lived in District 5 I would vote for Marcia Hummel.

District 2 features a race similar to that of District 1. Again we have a challenger with some hands on education experience in Michael Voll, facing a well-known incumbent, Ralph Pieniazkiewicz and a well financed machine candidacy of John Stancati. Mr. Voll has little chance given these circumstances.

Mr. Pieniazkeiwicz taught and coached in the South Bend School System for over thirty years. As a Trustee, he has been a vocal advocate for early education, and the development of a more comprehensive vocational program for high schoolers. This advocacy is still needed.

Mr. Stancati gives his reason for running in the South Bend Tribune: “He said he became interested in the school board seat after reading that the state put three South Bend high schools on academic probation because ISTEP scores didn't meet state standards, including Riley, which is in District 2.” I’ve now heard him at two forums - the Century Center, and more recently at Hamilton Primary Center – and he failed to go any further. He also did not offer any significant proposals, seems unclear as to the source of school funding these days and responded to a number of questions by saying that he didn’t know much about the subject, so wouldn’t offer a response. Some of these questions were given to him in advance.

It’s been pointed out that Mr. Stancati has not attended any Board meetings. These might have been of some help in understanding some of the issues alluded to in the questions he had trouble with.

A campaign is like a job interview. One should be prepared, research likely issues and be able to at least discuss them intelligently – even if he/she has not formed a definite view. To do otherwise doesn’t indicate much commitment.

Mr. Stancati’s supporters tout his lengthy service as head of the South Bend Water Works. (He retired about a year and a half ago).That’s not an organization with much of a reputation for customer service – though it seems better lately. More to the point, it’s hard to see the relevance for a position as school corporation trustee. He doesn’t speak well in public either – to the point of being difficult to understand at times.

In my opinion, Mr. Stancati is the weakest candidate in the entire field. I will vote for Ralph Pieniazkeiwicz.

Links to earlier installments:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

The South Bend School Board Elections - analysis

2010-10-30T13:04:00.001-04:00

Don Wheeler

In the background installment of this series, we explored local issues leading up to where we are now. In part two, outside influences were explored. Now I’ll attempt to tie these factors into the current race for school board trustee seats.

Three seats are contested this year: The Adams High School District (District 1), the Riley High School District (District 2) and the Clay High School District (District 5).

As previously alluded to, this race features a slate of candidates sponsored by local Democratic Party regulars. Since I hail from the Chicago area originally, I’ll use the term “machine” for convenience. The machine candidates have been provided significant resources – both in terms of money and organization. Should we worry about this? Maybe.

If we think (and are given evidence) that the sponsoring organization has identified candidates who are clearly superior to their opponents and are beholden to no one, then this looks pretty good. But one needs to consider the merits of both the sponsors and the candidates. Clearly caveat emptor should apply.

The machine sponsored candidates are Jay Caponigro (Adams), John Stancati (Riley) and Michele Engle (Clay). Caponigro has been endorsed by the Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Leucke has sponsored at least one fund-raiser for Engle, and my wife and I recently received a letter from Roger Parent strongly endorsing Stancati.

It’s interesting that the Chamber only endorsed in one race. (It was explained that endorsements must be unanimous.) Even more interesting is the local NEA (our teachers’ union) has been silent. The South Bend Tribune endorsed the machine slate recently – without offering much reason to agree with them.

There is certainly room for discussion about how much influence a city Mayor should have on a School Board and/or Superintendent. Though it’s fashionable these days, the actual results are highly mixed. Further complicating things, because the borders are different, many school corporation constituents aren’t eligible to vote in South Bend mayoral races – thus, the Mayor cannot be held to account by these folks.

Last July, Trustee Roger Parent had a Viewpoint article published in the Tribune entitled School trustee hopes to build on lessons of first 18 months which had to be viewed as a campaign piece. That seemed curious, since he’s not up for election until 2012. He indicated his purpose was to the outline the difficulties he’d encountered, identify what he felt he’d accomplished, and …? Mostly he stated things nobody would disagree with while gently criticizing many oft heard points of view. Political strategists would refer to this as “building value”. If you view this July 2 piece, note the use of “I”, “I’ve”, etc., about a dozen and a half times - then do a word search for “we”. Good luck on the latter. In retrospect, it appears Parent wants to make this election about him and his allies.

So let’s do that. As mentioned in an earlier installment, Parent raised and spent an unheard of amount of money for a non-paying Trustee position. (Indications are machine candidate spending are at similar levels this time around). Parent often made it clear that his campaign was a typical political race when it came to money – and seemed to exclude other considerations. For example, when I complained that a local radio station was insisting on a $100 fee for attendance to what was being advertised as a candidates forum (a clear violation of equal time requirements), Parent’s take was that one had to spend money in campaigns.

Also mentioned previously, Parent was one of the few candidates to oppose the strategy of a deliberate search for a new Superintendent. Robert Zimmerman had been dismissed – which had much of the citizenry in an uproar – but the naming of James Kapsa as Interim Superintendent had mollified many of these folks. Now having the gift of some time, the School Board voted narrowly to do a conventional, nationwide search for a permanent Superintendent. Outside funding was offered and under consideration. At the time, no one knew whether Mr. Kapsa was interested in the permanent post – but I don’t think anyone thought he should not be eligible.

Parent was adamant that Kapsa should be named, which didn’t make any sense. If Kapsa turned out to be the best choice after completing the search -and wanted the post - then fine. But to not consider any candidates with actual track records before naming a permanent Superintendent seemed irresponsible at best. A cynical person might wonder if Mr. Parent calculated Kapsa would feel beholden to him, if Parent engineered the appointment. That’s not something any of us can know, obviously.

From the Parent Viewpoint: “With the help of many people I was able to ‘encourage’ trustees to establish a New Tech high school.” I like the use of quotations on 'encourage'. It shows honesty.

The Trustees had been considering a New Tech program for years. Current and prior Board members had visited operating programs, worked on many proposals and locations for a SBCSC program – but securing funding AND a solid concept simultaneously had eluded them. Still, the general sentiment was to keep trying.

As agreement by a narrow majority of Board members seemed imminent, word has it Mr. Parent lost patience. It was at that point he revealed his intention to “go it alone” (with backers) on a charter school based on the program. This was enough, reportedly, to turn one Trustee’s vote from yes to no. By this account at least, New Tech was delayed by Mr. Parent’s actions – rather than achieved. Many would argue it was implemented in spite of him.

I want to stress that I believe Mr. Parent has good intentions. But I have concerns, obviously.

The next installment will address the current races, and the folks in them.

Some thoughts on the South Bend School Board elections - part 2

2010-10-29T10:16:00.001-04:00

Don Wheeler

In the background piece, I tried to set the local stage to where we are now. Complicating matters, lurking on the periphery is one Tony (or is it toney) Bennett.

This Tony Bennett is not the renowned singer; rather, the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the state of Indiana. His conduct would seem to indicate he aspires to higher office than the one he holds, however.

Mr. Bennett is full of righteous indignation about the state of public education. He blames local school boards and teachers unions for gross dereliction of duty and characterizes their decision making as being self-serving. He claims he can swoop in and make all things as they should be. His forums are characterized with catch phrases and zingy one-liners. They are just for show.

The State of Indiana has many policies which make things very difficult when it comes to educating our young. I’ve written a lot about this in the past. As evidence, compare Indiana’s student outcomes with those of other states and it is pretty clear that our local challenges are not unique in the state. But Mr. Bennett never discusses anything the state legislature can do correct this situation. Instead (as far as state policy goes), he’d prefer to distract us by screwing around with teacher licensing and things of that nature.

Mr. Bennett would have us believe that if his department takes over management of our High Schools on Probation, dramatic improvement will occur as a result. He doesn’t explain how this magic will occur, but since he’s not a particularly imaginative fellow and pretty representative of the Daniels administration, he’ll likely pick an approach which is considered fashionable. The most likely: He will retain a for-profit management company to run the schools. (This would be consistent with the Daniels strategy of privatizing seemingly everything). Less likely, but possible, he’ll appoint some Hotshot who reports directly to him.

There’s a lot that could be discussed about these types of approaches – they’ve been attempted many times in recent years. For an exhaustive analysis, I’d refer you to The Death and Life of the Great American School System, by former United States Assistant Secretary of Education, Diane Ravitch. Anyone who cares about public education - what works and what doesn’t - should read this book. Spoiler alert: The approaches described above have (up to now) not benefited children’s overall education.

There are two aspects shared by imposing these outside management strategies I think people need to consider carefully. The first is that both are top-down concepts which, for the most part, leave the people actually working in the buildings out of any role in policy making. Secondly, these typically make operations nearly opaque to citizens and the people in charge don’t have to answer to anyone locally.

I think it very likely Mr. Bennett will intervene. My guess it’s in his political interest to do so. So it becomes important to consider who sits on our school board in this context.

More to come…

Some thoughts on the South Bend School Board race - background

2010-10-28T09:33:00.000-04:00

Don Wheeler

It’s pretty well known that I was one of fifteen candidates for two at-large School Board seats in 2008. I was also seriously considering a run for a district seat in 2010. That turned out to be too difficult with my other responsibilities. But before I came to that conclusion I prepared myself for a run by watching local events, and reading about what other communities have attempted, and how those attempts worked out.

It’s easy to understand citizen frustration with our public school system, but in some ways this frustration lags behind events. Test scores have generally improved and last years High School graduation rate was around ten points better than the year prior.

Unfortunately, this frustration seems to have offered challengers the strategy of being “change agents’, without offering any serious proposals likely to create improvements. The chorus seems to be “things are bad, but I’ll do better”. They’d have us believe that they are inherently better, more capable people than those they would replace. But they don’t offer much evidence they’re right about that.

In my view the operating problems of the South Bend School Board are unlikely to be mitigated by the results of the upcoming election. But the possibility exists they may be exacerbated.

Despite the calls for a “vision” or similar expressions, the fundamental problem the School Board faces on an operational level is that they have no functional decision making model. Instead, complicated, important, (generally) expensive proposals are rolled out piecemeal and in isolation. In roughly a year’s time the School Board pondered the questions of The Early College program, the New Tech High School Program, shifting school scheduling from semesters to trimesters, and funding full day Kindergarten. Again, all these were discussed independently- and outside the context of the already passed budget.

I don’t see how coherent policy can be made this way. The Board needs to adopt a mechanism - which parallels their budget process – for policy. There are organizations that specialize in helping governing boards do this sort of thing, and one should be retained for this purpose.

As to the issue of who sits on the Board, one member has consistently served as an agent provocateur. Bill “Common Sense” Sniadeki has engaged in a stunning level of bad behavior – and he’s not up for re-election. Unfamiliar with conventionally accepted civil discourse, disdainful of parliamentary procedure, Mr. Sniadeki was particularly disruptive when Sheila Bergeron chaired the meetings as President. I was in attendance at two meetings where there seemed to be some choreography in the audience. The group was appreciative when Bill S spoke and vocally disdainful when other members spoke in opposition. These were like no business meetings I’d ever witnessed.

Mr. Sniadeki has voted in opposition to state law – he won’t vote in favor of low bids when the company bidding is not local. (State law requires School Boards to accept low bids). Mr. Sniadeki is known to leak information from Board Executive Sessions, (which is illegal), and security personnel are always just outside the door of these sessions, because at least some fellow Board members fear his temper.

The case of Roger Parent is far more complicated. Former South Bend Mayor Parent raised and spent around $37,000 to win his seat on the Board. The darling of the local Democratic Party machine, many people fear he intends to put together a cabal for which he is the leader.

Two-plus years ago the South Bend Community School Corporation Board narrowly decided to conduct a nationwide search for a permanent replacement for Dr. Robert Zimmerman – having already named James Kapsa as Interim Superintendent. The reasoning was that the SBCSC had some seemingly intractable problems, and it made sense to many of us we should seek someone with experience dealing with similar situations. Funding for such a search was offered from an outside source.

Mr. Parent, however, campaigned against such a search – insisting Mr. Kapsa was what we needed. Though Mr. Kapsa had Superintendent Credentials, he’d never been one. Also, as an insider, he seemed unlikely to shake things up in a way that most folks thought needed to be done. To be clear: No one suggested he was not a good administrator.

The other eventual winner of an at-large seat, Stephanie Spivey, campaigned advocating for the hiring of what she called a “turnaround specialist”. She was adamant about it.

There had always been strong sentiment by some Board members to name Mr. Kapsa to the post permanently, and since the decision to search had been a narrow one, the sitting Board consulted the incoming Board members about the issue. Obviously I was not in on these private discussions, but Ms. Spivey assured me her position had not changed – up to and including the day of the Board meeting.

She and I walked into the building together. We parted company in the lobby – she to huddle with the Board members and I to find a seat in the gallery. Imagine my surprise when the motion to name Mr. Kapsa (permanent) Superintendent came up, to hear Ms. Spivey speak in support of it.

So there’s a case to be made that the public should be somewhat wary when it appears that a highly influential person is attempting to “stack the deck” on a governing board, while arguably having the Chief Administrator in a position of at least some obligation.

This continues.

2010-08-30T14:29:00.002-04:00

In The Know: Are Tests Biased Against Students Who Don't Give A Shit?

NIEER early ed hot topics 8/27

2010-08-28T10:08:00.001-04:00

Race to the Top Winners: Pre-K Part of Their Plans but Not a Deciding Factor
Seven of the 10 winners in Phase 2 of the Race to the Top (RTT) competition addressed the early learning challenge priority in their applications even though this section didn't accrue points toward winning. Reforms cited ranged from improving the quality of state pre-K in Georgia to linking early learning standards with K-3 curricula and assessments in Massachusetts. As with any competition of this type, there were disappointments. New Jersey narrowly lost due in part to a data error in its application. Colorado also came close but lost, in part because the state's plan for developing a collaborative for school readiness content contributed nothing toward its point total. Lisa Guernsey discusses RTT in her Early Ed Watch blog post.

Research: Youngest Kids Get Mislabeled with ADHD
Two recent studies point to a tendency for the youngest children in class to be diagnosed as having attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) when their inattentiveness and impulsiveness is probably due to immaturity. Todd Elder, Michigan State University, found that the youngest kids in kindergarten were 60 percent more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than their oldest classmates. He estimates the costs of unneeded medication alone at as much as $500 million annually.

Another article in press at Journal of Health Economics studied children born just a few days apart, finding that those born before the kindergarten cut-off date had an ADHD diagnosis rate of 9.7 percent and those born after it had a 7.6 percent diagnosis rate.

Schott Foundation: Only 47 Percent of Black Males Graduate from High School
The 50-state report on black males in public education from the Schott Foundation says nationally, only 47 percent of this group graduate from high school. New York City, home of the nation's highest enrollment of black students, graduates 28 percent of black males. Among school districts with more than 10,000 black males enrolled, Newark, New Jersey has the highest graduation rate at 76 percent. Among states with more than 100,000 black males enrolled, New Jersey has the highest graduation rate at 69 percent. The report credits the state's "Abbott" school finance and education reforms for achieving these rates. The report makes an interesting juxtaposition to the news on Race to the Top (RTT) awards and raises questions about an apparent lack of attention to school finance in RTT.

Arizona's Home Language Survey Could Miss 18 Percent of ELLs
A Stanford University study of Arizona's home language survey, used to identify potential English Language Learners (ELLs), found that as many as 11 to 18 percent of students who are eligible for ELL designation could be denied services to which they are entitled if a single home language survey question is used to identify potential ELLs. The researchers said it is also highly unlikely that a fail-safe mechanism established by the state, whereby teachers can nominate potential ELLs for language testing, will successfully identify most students the survey fails to identify.

Can Preschoolers Be Depressed?
Parenting author Pamela Paul attempts to answer that question in this weekend's New York Times Magazine. Among her sources are Joan Luby, professor of child psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine; Daniel Klein, professor of clinical psychology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook; and Arnold Sameroff, developmental psychologist at the University of Michigan's Center for Human Growth and Development. Luby is one of the first researchers to systematically study the criteria for preschool depression. Diagnosing it in children so young is controversial.

New on Preschool Matters...Today!

Three Easy Pieces (of Research) for Budget Deciders
In today's blog post NIEER Co-Director Steve Barnett points out three recent, easy-to-understand pieces of research that look at different impacts of investments on young children and underscores the importance of prioritizing investments in early learning and development.

IN State Education Dept. needs to address its own deficiencies

2010-08-20T12:37:00.001-04:00

Don Wheeler

I was heartened to read the editorial of the South Bend Tribune July 25, which declared "Early start is key to children's school success." Two years ago, as a candidate for South Bend Community School Corp. Board of Trustees, conversations with neighbors made it clear to me that almost no one knew that kindergarten is optional in Indiana. It was only a slightly smaller group that was aware the state didn't fully fund all-day classes for kindergartners.

Here's how my wife and I found out. After narrowing our options for our daughter's kindergarten year, we met with the Hay Primary Center principal. We wanted our daughter to be in a full-day class and asked him about the possibility.

He smiled a bit wistfully and said, "Any time I'm having a conversation like this with both a mother and father, I can be sure their child will not be in a full-day class." That's because full-day classes were either at magnet schools, which Hay was not, or were U.S. government-funded Title I programs. The principal had correctly assessed that our daughter was not a Title 1 student. Undaunted, we enrolled her there in afternoon-only kindergarten, and have not regretted it ever.

Thanks to the decision by the SBCSC board, principals won't have to say that anymore. But it should have been the state's responsibility to have made that happen. Other school systems unwilling or unable to do what SBCSC did still are still shortchanging their kindergartners.

The editors correctly point out that students can enter formal education as late as age 7 in Indiana. Our daughter turned 7 in March and was evaluated as having the reading skills of a beginning fifth-grader. She was one of four children in her 20-student first grade class judged to have achieved that level of competency. What's the likely outcome for kids just entering our school system at that age?

The National Institute of Early Education Research (of Rutgers University) exists to track what works and doesn't work in the effort to get our children off to good starts. Many states have had available state-sponsored preschool programs for quite some time — some over 10 years. NIEER's research shows that — particularly for children from challenging situations — early structure and nourishment of their innate curiosity pays big dividends.

Our child has many advantages. One of them was two years of private pre-school taught by professionals. Am I completely nuts to think that all kids should have access to resources like that?

Sadly, what I see from our state government is posturing and fingerpointing. In some ways this isn't new — I've seen little progress on this front in my 20 years as a resident. On the other hand, people who haven't done anything to improve conditions, yet who are imposing themselves as "the solution," strike me as throwing an anchor to a drowning person.

We have plenty of our own work to do locally. There's no doubt of that. Were we to have a real partner at the state level, they might realize the same holds true for them.

2010-08-11T17:38:00.000-04:00

US SCHOOLS FACE PERFECT STORM

2010-08-08T12:06:00.000-04:00

Early start is key to children's school success

2010-07-26T15:36:00.000-04:00

The Editors
South Bend Tribune

It's not surprising that Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett has focused little attention on expanding early childhood education in his mission to increase achievement in Indiana schools.

The General Assembly, after all, is not likely to support adding expense for full-day kindergarten or pre-kindergarten in this troubled economy.

About 30 percent of Indiana kinder-gartners still attend kindergarten half days. And fewer than 20 percent of pre-kindergartners are enrolled in pre-school.

It all makes for a tremendous disparity among first-graders. Children who've had no formal lessons, who've not learned numbers or colors at home or been read to by parents enter the classroom alongside children with years of preschool under their belts, and parents who have exposed them to museums and travel.

Failing to level the playing field means some students will forever have been cheated out of a solid foundation on which to build a lifetime of successful education.

The solution is to mandate kindergarten for every child now, and to fully invest in full-day kindergarten and pre-school programs as soon as the state budget allows.

The governor, Bennett and early childhood experts from around the state should be teaming up to convince legislators that investing more heavily in early childhood education is smart.

Bennett has said that he doesn't think pre-school is a cure for what's ailing the state's K-12 schools — though he's a proponent.

He supports full-day kindergarten, too, as evidenced by the Department of Education's website. It lists eight benefits of full-day programs, including significantly greater progress in literacy, math, general learning and social skills.

Because of such benefits, South Bend Community Schools made the transition to a full-day program for all its kindergartners last year. The state pays schools the same tuition for kindergartners, regardless of whether they're taught for a full or half day. But school systems receive an additional $1,000 grant for each full-day kindergartner.

It isn't enough to encourage some schools to make the switch even though credible studies say full-day kindergarten significantly improves outcomes in the early grades.

And clearly, the status quo isn't good enough. IDOE earlier this year reported that 24 percent of Indiana third-graders were moving to fourth grade without demonstrating minimal proficiency in state English and language testing.

In response, the General Assembly charged Bennett with developing reading standards that every third-grader must meet before being promoted.

Increasing school accountability and raising expectations for student success are essential. We've argued in the past, however, that we believe providing more support for children as they begin their school career is preferable to rebuilding from failure.

Most children now enrolled in Indiana's federally funded pre-kindergarten classes have special physical or developmental challenges. Many more Hoosier pre-schoolers need and deserve this preparation.

Every child should be required to attend kindergarten.

And to us, universal full-day kindergarten plus pre-school adds up to a sure-fire formula for boosting student success.

NIEER early ed hot topics 7/16

2010-07-18T06:55:00.000-04:00

Study: Georgia Child Care is Low Quality, State Pre-K Somewhat Better
On average, the quality of infant/toddler classrooms in Georgia child care centers is low and children in the lower quality classrooms likely experience environments that are inadequate for their health and safety. Such classrooms do not promote children's cognitive and social-emotional development, concludes a study by the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina. FPG also studied Georgia state pre-K, finding overall classroom quality was at the "medium" level but that the quality of instructional support was low. Even though many pre-K teachers had college degrees and reported participating in training, it has not yet translated into high-quality classroom practices, the study said. The data were collected in 2008 and 2009.

Precedent-Setting ELL Rules for Pre-K Slated to Take Effect in Illinois
When the Illinois Board of Education adopted rules requiring public preschools to identify kids who are English Language Learners and provide them with transitional bilingual education, some wondered if they would really take effect. After all, doing so would make Illinois the first state to take such prescriptive measures and some educators had pointed out some parents of ELLs say they prefer their kids taught in English. Education Week's Mary Ann Zehr reports the last hurdle to enforcement fell when a panel of lawmakers with the power to object to the rules issued a certificate of no objection. School districts will be required to select a screen for establishing ELL status that meets state standards and provide the transitional bilingual instruction if 20 or more kids in a center are found to be ELLs.

New Review of Curriculum Effectiveness Finds More Winners
A report from Johns Hopkins University evaluates the effectiveness of preschool curricula many of which also appear in the What Works Clearinghouse ratings. Several programs with low ratings from WWC, which has been criticized by curriculum developers, do better in the Johns Hopkins effort. Of the 28 programs included, 11 receive favorable ratings, with six showing "strong" evidence of effectiveness and five showing "moderate" evidence of effectiveness.

The challenges and limitations of these types of reviews are the subject of NIEER co-director Steve Barnett's latest Preschool Matters…Today! blog post.

First Quarter Brings Revenue Gains for States — With Caveats
States' overall tax revenues rose 2.5 percent in the first quarter of 2010 on a year-over-year basis, marking the first such gain since the third quarter of 2008, reports the Rockefeller Institute of Government. The gain does not suggest a broad recovery, however, because it was largely due to tax increases in California and New York. Revenues for the second quarter of this year will be weaker than the first if data from early reporting states are an indication. The institute forecasts states' full fiscal recovery will take years.

Celia Ayala Appointed CEO of Los Angeles Universal Preschool
Long-time education leader and teacher Celia C. Ayala is the new chief executive officer of Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP), the organization's board announced last week. Ayala has served as LAUP's chief operating officer since 2007, leading the organization's day-to-day operations, working with more than 330 LAUP network preschools to enhance and expand early educations services. She succeeds Dr. Gary Mangiofico, who had been CEO since 2007.

Next Week: 2010 U.S. Department of Education Reading Institute
The Early Learning and Development: Birth to Third Grade strand of the U.S. Department of Education's 2010 Reading Institute kicks off next Monday, July 19 in Anaheim, California. NIEER-affiliated presenters at the conference include Co-directors Steve Barnett and Ellen Frede, Distinguished Research Fellow Dorothy Strickland, and Scientific Advisory Board Member Margaret Burchinall, University of California, Irvine. View the agenda here.

When did the AFT become Al Qaida?

2010-06-27T14:29:00.000-04:00

NIEER early ed hot topics 6/25

2010-06-26T07:33:00.000-04:00

VOICES Analysis Shows Contrast Between Federal, State Assessments of Reading
A new analysis of federal and state measures of children's reading proficiency shows the tendency of states to find that more of their kids are performing above average while the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows only one-third of 4th graders reading at a proficient level. Bill Bentley, CEO of VOICES for America's Children, which did the analysis, says the states show a "Lake Wobegone Effect" in which their children are above average and doing so is incentivized by federal dollars. He said the new common core standards represent a first step toward higher standards and true evaluation.

Study: Cell Phone Towers Don't Cause Early Childhood Cancers
Children born to mothers who lived near cell phone towers while pregnant had no higher risk of childhood cancer than those not living near towers, say researchers writing in the British Medical Journal. They examined the records of more than 1,000 children up to 4 years old who had leukemia or brain or central nervous system tumors, compared them to similar kids who didn't have cancer, and measured how far the pregnant moms lived from cell towers. They caution that their results don't say anything about whether exposure to cell tower radio frequencies might affect the kids' future propensity to develop cancer.

Texas Republican Platform: Repeal Government-Sponsored ECD Programs
The Texas state Republican Party has released its 2010 platform containing the following language: "Early Childhood Development – We believe that parents are best suited to train their children in their early development and oppose mandatory pre-school and Kindergarten. We urge Congress to repeal government sponsored programs that deal with early childhood development." (NIEER notes that no state mandates preschool attendance.)

Money Saved From Wisconsin Child Care Fraud Effort Goes to Other Programs
Raquel Rutledge, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter who won a Pulitzer for her reporting on fraud in state child care, now reports that the $100 million in projected saving from the state crackdown is being used for other purposes such as keeping state parks and highway rest stops open.

Kudos: Governor Bredesen, Dolly Parton Joint Effort Tops 10-Million-Book Mark
The Tennesseean reports that thanks to a joint effort by Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen's Books from Birth Foundation and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, more than 214,000 kids age 5 and under have received more than 10 million books. A person making a $24 donation to the governor's foundation ensures that some child receives one free book a month in the mail for a year. All Tennesseans under age 5 are eligible to participate.

Make grades meaningful

2010-06-25T07:23:00.000-04:00

The Editors
South Bend Tribune

Dislike for a plan to label schools with single letter grades should not be mistaken for dislike of clarity and accountability. We hope Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett realizes that.

Bennett is right to defend clarity and accountability. We join him in doing so. Where we disagree with the superintendent is in how he would report success and failure in schools.

For the purposes of this discussion, schools aren't buildings. They are people: children, teachers and administrators. All perform at different levels and with varying degrees of competency. Students are graded for their work. Bennett thinks teachers and administrators should be graded, too, and that their grade should take the form of a letter, A through F, that reflects the performance of their students. The letter would be applied to the school.

While we have no objection to grading educators, to label a school with a single symbol of success or failure is wrong. Simple though the idea is, it doesn't even merit points for clarity. That's because a single letter grade, based on student ISTEP scores, is too general to impart much useful information.

We hope the Indiana State Board of Education listened carefully to Mishawaka school board President Larry Stillson on June 16. He was one of two people representing the Indiana School Boards Association to the state board. Stillson was there not only to tell the trustees what's wrong with Bennett's plan, but to offer a better idea.

The school board president proposes that schools receive multiple grades in several areas, rather than be painted with a single broad ISTEP-based stroke. Not only would that impart useful information to anyone honestly trying to understand a school's strengths and weaknesses, but it would spare schools (and communities) glaring, hurtful and mostly meaningless labels.

If the state board is bent on finding a simple answer, it might not like Stillson's idea. To devise a plan for grading schools on a broad spectrum could be complicated. It would take some effort. But it would be effort well spent, not effort that would do more harm than good.

My comment:

Today's editorial is right on the mark. Tony Bennett's tenure has been characterized by shifting all responsibility away from his department and by making extremely complicated problems appear to have simple solutions.

I also appreciate the Tribune pointing out someone with a viable (in this case, better) alternative. We should all be prepared to do so when opposing a proposal or action. But it's good to notice when people actually do it. Hopefully, it will encourage them to continue doing so.

2010-06-24T21:45:00.000-04:00

NIEER early ed hot topics 6/14

2010-06-14T06:34:00.000-04:00

The 'Great Recession' Will Give Millions of Kids a Tougher Row to Hoe
After the country begins to recover from the "Great Recession," many kids whose misfortune was to be young during it will suffer lasting impacts, says the latest report from the Foundation for Child Development's Child and Youth Well-Being Index. It predicts the number of children in poverty will rise to 15.6 million this year, a jump of three million in just four years. More families in poverty means more kids entering school without the benefit of high-quality early education. In five years, when they enter fourth grade, they'll likely have lower reading and math scores. In another decade, they'll be more likely to drop out of high school, says the report's author, Kenneth Land of Duke University.

GAO Finds a Decrease in Child Care Subsidy Usage
A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that examined trends in child care subsidy receipt found that from 2006 to 2008, the average number of children served by the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) declined by about 170,000 children, or 10 percent. Among the reasons cited for the decline are state policies that can affect resource allocation, decreases in the number of regulated providers, increased requirements for participating providers, and rising unemployment's effect on work-related eligibility.

LAUP Study Finds a Higher Rate of School Readiness
A study of kids who attended Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP) classrooms found that after one year of pre-K, 72 percent of children tested for near proficiency in school readiness skills, including social expression and self-regulation, compared to 22 percent when they started. The gains were particularly significant for English Language Learners (ELLs). They started the year with lower school readiness skills than their non-ELL peers, but after a year of LAUP pre-K, the gap had closed.

Common Core Standards Completed; State Adoption Comes Next
Now that the K-12 Common Core Standards for Math and Reading have been completed, the push is on to get the states to adopt them. Already, a number of education groups, including the Council of State Governments and National Association of State Boards of Education, have joined the coalition urging adoption. While 48 states agreed to participate in the effort to create the standards, that did not obligate them to adopt them. Former New Jersey education commissioner Lucille Davy has been hired by the Hunt Institute to spearhead its outreach effort aimed at helping states make well-informed decisions regarding adoption.

Regular Bedtimes, Adequate Sleep Linked to Better Literacy, Math Skills in Pre-K
A study of 8,000 kids who were assessed at age 4 found that among sleep habits, having a regular bedtime was the most consistent predictor of better scores in receptive and expressive language, phonological awareness, literacy, and early math. The data also showed that many children are not getting the recommended amount of sleep. The findings were reported at SLEEP 2010, the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends preschool children get a minimum of 11 hours of sleep each night.

2010-06-02T11:52:00.002-04:00

NIEER early ed news roundup 5/28

2010-05-31T09:58:00.000-04:00

May 28, 2010 (Erie Times-News, Erie, PA)
Erie business leaders urged to invest in early childhood education
Speakers at the region's first Economic Summit on Early Childhood Investments said that money spent on preschool education pays dividends in economic and work-force development.

May 26, 2010 (The Daily Advertiser, Lafayette, LA)
Pre-K progam puts students on right course
Data shows that students perform better in school after some early childhood education. Students are taught how to behave in school, basic skills, numbers, colors and precursors to reading during a year of pre-kindergarten.

May 26, 2010 (The Birmingham News)
Most Alabamians favor state spending for pre-kindergarten
A coalition dedicated to expanding quality pre-kindergarten education for 4-year-olds in Alabama has found voters support spending more money on the effort -- regardless of party affiliation. Jan Hume, executive director of the alliance, said the results were a surprise to pollsters -- Alabama support for pre-kindergarten education remains as strong as it was four years ago, even in the face of high unemployment and a tepid economy.

May 25, 2010 (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Pre-k program's popularity fuels waiting lists
Georgia's voluntary pre-kindergarten program started in 1993 with 750 students and now has some 81,068 students in public schools and private day care centers in all 159 counties. Waiting lists, however, are becoming more common, especially in the metro areas.

May 23, 2010 (The Des Moines Register, Des Moines, IA)
Should taxpayers foot the bill for preschool?
Preschool spending has climbed at a time when public schools have been forced to raise property taxes, lay off teachers and combine classes to deal with their most difficult budgets in years. Universal preschool is in addition to Head Start and other government-run preschool efforts that target low-income families.

May 20, 2010 (EmaxHealth)
Depression Among Preschool Children
Preschool children not only suffer with depression, their symptoms are often unnoticed and thus the condition goes undiagnosed. Recent findings on preschool depression indicate that it is not a temporary condition and that early detection is important.

May 20, 2010 (Babble)
Raising Bilingual Kids
These days most experts agree that the developing mind can easily handle the double input. And research is beginning to show that, in addition to the linguistic benefits, learning multiple languages might provide valuable mental exercise for kids that could have positive long-term effects.

May 20, 2010 (WFMY TV, Greenesboro, NC)
North Carolina ranks among nation's top two states for pre-K education
For the second year in a row, North Carolina ranks among the nation's top two states for preschool education. The state tied Alabama for first, scoring a perfect 10. It's also the fifth time the state placed in the top 10.

May 19, 2010 (Bloomberg BusinessWeek)
Meaningful Conversations Boost Kids' Language Skills
Parents who engage their young children in conversational give-and-take help their offspring gain a significant leg up in terms of language acquisition, new Dutch research reveals. The boost to childhood language proficiency appears to be predicated on allowing children to engage in so-called "serious" conversations with their family members -- dialogues that permit them to make meaningful contributions to the subject at hand.

May 18, 2010 (The Sentinel, Lewistown, PA)
Business leaders address early childhood education
Return of investment of early childhood education includes school success, graduation, work force readiness and job productivity, [former president and CEO of Weis Markets Inc. Norm] Rich said. "Investing in children is investing in America," he said.

May 18, 2010 (The Christian Science Monitor)
Report: Reading skills in early grades are crucial to success
A new report argues that third-grade reading proficiency heavily influences later achievement, including high school graduation. What's needed, say the report's authors and other education advocates, is more focus on children's 0-8 years, as well as a system that does a better job of integrating early-childhood education, K-12, parental support, and health and human services.

May 17, 2010 (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)
States' budget problems cut into help for children
All over the country, the financial crisis has forced states to make cuts to close what the National Conference of State Legislatures found was an overall budget gap of $174.1 billion this fiscal year and has lawmakers looking to cut another $89 billion next year. That means slashing services to children, the one population they have long protected.

May 16, 2010 (The Journal Gazette, Fort Wayne, IN)
Editorial: Learning from the START
The economic tailspin forcing states to look closely at spending priorities didn't keep 29 states from increasing enrollment in their preschool programs last year. Regrettably, Indiana still languishes among the handful of backward states with no support for high-quality pre-K.

May 16, 2010 (The Charleston Gazette)
Op-Ed: Child's first years are key to success -- or failure
What West Virginia needs is greater investment in early childhood education, especially for the poorest and most disadvantaged of children. Almost one-third of West Virginia's youngest children under 5 live in poverty. If we do not address their needs, we will never achieve the prosperity we all desire.

Resources

Child Development, Volume 81, Issue 3 (May/June 2010)
Among the articles in this issue are the results from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development that tracks children to the age of 15, finding that the positive effects from high-quality child care last into the teenage years. Another article discusses findings of a study looking at very young children's topographic representations of their own bodies, finding that children possess an explicit, if rudimentary, topographic representation of their own body's shape, structure, and size by 30 months of age.

Leadership Matters FY11
The latest edition of this annual report from Pre-K Now finds that if all of the governors' FY 2011 budgets were to pass as proposed, total state pre-K funding would remain roughly the same as FY 2010 – about $5.3 billion. Beyond the national total lie big variations, ranging from expansion plans in Alabama to elimination of state pre-K in Arizona. Nine governors propose expanding pre-K, 10 propose flat-funding it, and 12 propose cutting funding.

Listening and Learning About Early Learning Tour
This web page gathers in one place presentations made by prominent education experts who participated in U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services (HHS) recent Listening and Learning About Early Learning meetings. The presentations address four subject areas: Understanding Preschool–Grade 3 Structures, Workforce and Professional Development, Family Engagement, and Standards and Assessments.

Among the 16 presenters were Jerry Weast, superintendent of the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland; Ellen Galinsky, president of the Families and Work Institute in New York; Marcy Whitebook, Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, University of California, Berkeley; Eugene Garcia, vice president for education partnerships at Arizona State University (and a NIEER scientific advisory board member); Ruby Takanishi, president of the Foundation for Child Development; Deborah Leong, Metropolitan State College, Denver, Colorado (and a NIEER senior research fellow); and Linda Espinosa, associate professor, University of Missouri, Columbia (and a former NIEER co-director).

NIEER early ed hot topics 5/28

2010-05-31T09:41:00.001-04:00

Volume 9, Issue 11

May 28, 2010

To subscribe, http://nieer.org/resources/newsletter/
Contact: Carol Shipp (732) 932-4350 x225 cshipp@nieer.org or Pat Ainsworth (732) 932-4350 x229 painsworth@nieer.org

Study Finds Young Children with Autism Use Different Brain Regions
The Wall Street Journal reports that researchers scanning the brains of sleeping babies say autistic children as young as 14 months of age use different brain regions than more normally developing children. In typically developing babies, both the right and left temporal areas of the brain were active but in autistic children, the left temporal area, which deals with language, was far less active. While only 43 children were in the study sample, it appears to confirm why poor language comprehension is a red flag for autism in young children.

There's No Benefit in Delaying Immunizations in Children
Parents who delay children receiving a portion of the vaccines they are supposed to get out of fear that “vaccine overload” will negatively affect development are doing their kids no favors. If fact, they may be exposing them to disease, say University of Louisville School of Medicine researchers who studied data from speech, behavior and intelligence tests conducted years after children received their vaccines. Analyzing the data from more than 1,000 kids, they found there wasn’t a single variable where the kids with delayed vaccination did better than the kids who received 10 shots by the age of seven months. The authors also refuted the concept of vaccine overload. Their study is published in the May 24 online edition of the journal Pediatrics.

Kids Who Were Cognitively Stimulated in Three Settings Did Better in Math
Researchers who studied more than 1,000 children on the basis of the settings in which they were cognitively stimulated found that kids who were consistently cognitively stimulated at home, in preschool or child care, and in the first grade classroom had higher math achievement. Kids who were consistently cognitively stimulated at home and in preschool or child care had higher reading achievement. These effects were more pronounced for low-income children.

GAO Sting Turns Up Fraudulent Enrollment Practices in Head Start Centers
When the Government Accountability Office (GAO) used fictitious identities and bogus documents to attempt to register over-income children at Head Start centers in six states, they found that in eight out of 13 attempts, Head Start staff fraudulently misrepresented information, including disregarding part of the families' income to register over-income children into under-income slots. It its report, the GAO concluded over-income children may be getting enrolled in Head Start while legitimate under-income children are put on waiting lists. At no point was information submitted by the GAO's fictitious parents verified, suggesting parents are able to falsify earnings statements and other documents to qualify.

Will Early Education Be a Part of ESEA Reauthorization?
At least the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is considering it. This week, University of Virginia professor Robert Pianta, a NIEER scientific advisory board member, testified that "Incorporating high-quality early childhood education into reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act would produce policies that would create a new portal into the education system." He and other experts, including fellow NIEER scientific advisory board member Lawrence J. Schweinhart from the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, went before the committee to address how federal policies can foster alignment between early childhood and K-12 education. A webcast of their testimony is available here.

Annie E. Casey Foundation Calls for Renewed Emphasis on Literacy
In its new KIDS COUNT Special Report, the Annie E. Casey Foundation calls for a renewed emphasis on reading success and spells out four steps aimed at achieving grade-level reading proficiency for all children by third grade. They include development of a coherent system of early childhood education that coordinates what happens from birth through third grade, parental supports, turning around low-performing schools, and solving the problems of chronic school absence and summer learning loss. The report provides state-level data to help parents, policymakers, educators, and concerned citizens rally around the effort.

Early Ed news roundup 5/15

2010-05-27T14:17:00.000-04:00

May 14, 2010 (The Washington Post)
Study finds that effects of low-quality child care last into adolescence
Low-quality care in the first few years of life can have a small but long-lasting impact on a child's learning and behavior, according to new results from the largest, most authoritative assessment of child rearing in the United States.

May 12, 2010 (WFAA TV, Dallas/Fort Worth, TX)
DISD outlines pre-kindergarten expansion plan
The Dallas Independent School District is discussing whether to make pre-kindergarten available for a full day system-wide. Doing so would nearly double the number of full-day classrooms, but it could also mean cutting the number of teachers.

May 11, 2010 (The Washington Post)
Full-day preschool found to benefit boys, black students more
The study found that among African American students and boys in general, those who attended full-day pre-kindergarten classes outperformed their Head Start peers who had only half-day programs on reading benchmarks. But the results also applied more broadly.

May 11, 2010 (The Oklahoman)
Editorial: Oklahoma's pre-K, scholarship programs making marks
Oklahoma is the only state where almost every 4-year-old can attend a quality pre-K program, according to the report.

May 7, 2010 (The Baltimore Sun)
Editorial: Excellence at an early age
Last year, the Maryland General Assembly passed a bill directing the state education department to plan a gradual expansion of pre-K eligibility that would eventually include every child in the state. The first stage would have seen the eligibility limit on family income rise from 185 percent to 300 percent of the federal poverty line, increasing the programs' current $101 million cost by $19 million.

NIEER early ed hot topics 5/15

2010-05-27T14:12:00.000-04:00

High-Quality Early Care Yields Gains When Kids Are Teenagers
The latest report from the NICHD child care study that has tracked more than 1,000 kids from birth to age 15 finds benefits of high-quality child care last into the teenage years. "The effects (from high-quality programs) didn't fade away," said NIEER Scientific Advisory Board member Deborah Lowe Vandell, the report's lead author and chair of the Department of Education at the University of California, Irvine. Although the effects were small, teenagers who had the higher quality care did better academically than those given low-quality care or no care outside the home.

The study, which appears in Child Development, also found that the more time children spent in child care outside the home, the more they were likely to engage in risky or impulsive behaviors at age 15 regardless of the quality of early care they had received. Those effects were also relatively small, and benefits did not differ between advantaged and disadvantaged children. The study's finding of persistent effects is consistent with the results of NIEER's meta-analysis of the entire literature, but also reinforces the notion that intensive educational programs are required if preschool is to make a substantive difference in the poor achievement of disadvantaged children.

Full Day of Head Start Pre-K Translated to Better Readers
Children were more likely to become better readers and need less in the way of special education if they attended a full day of Head Start pre-K in the Montgomery County, Maryland public schools, according to a research report issued by the district's Office of Shared Accountability. Pupils in the full-day program were 44 percent more likely to meet the district's reading benchmark Level 4 by the end of kindergarten than those in the half-day Head Start program. The full-day program favored African-American and male kids on meeting the reading benchmark.

Study: Latino Children's Social Skills Strong at Kindergarten Entry
A study in the May issue of Developmental Psychology reports that Latino children entering kindergarten have similar or only slightly lower levels of various social skills compared to white non-Latino children. The researchers also reported an association between Latino children's approaches to learning and their gains in math skills during the kindergarten year.

Vigorous Exercise Strengthens Hip Bones in Young Children
Researchers from the UK say they used advanced scanning technology to study more than 200 6-year-olds and found that there was a relationship between the amount time the kids spent in vigorous activity and the strength of their hip and thigh bones. The increased bone density resulting from the increased exercise was independent of factors such as diet, lifestyle, and physical size. They said the findings could inform public health strategies aimed at preventing osteoporosis later in life.

Universal Pre-K Part of Michigan State Board of Education Recommendations
The Detroit Free Press reports that the Michigan state Board of Education has unanimously approved a long-range plan for education that includes provision of pre-K for all 4-year-olds and mandated kindergarten for all children. The product of months of testimony and debate, the board's report says increasing the number of college graduates and reducing drop-outs are essential to reviving the state's economy. While the recommendations, which include tax increases, received bipartisan support on the board, they are expected to receive a mixed reception in the legislature.

The Hechinger Report Takes Media Outreach a Step Further
The Hechinger Report, a web publication recently launched by the Hechinger Institute on Education and the Media, brings a new dimension to the organization's media-centric mission by providing articles written in collaboration with leading titles like Education Week, U.S. News & World Report, and The Washington Post. Richard Lee Colvin, Hechinger's director, says The Hechinger Report represents a change of focus that reaches beyond the organization's traditional mission of outreach journalists to "informing the public about education through quality journalism."

Among articles in the current issue are a piece about the declining fortunes of state pre-K by Liz Willen and another addressing whether President Obama's commitment to early education has waned by Linda Jacobson.

New on Preschool Matters...Today!

NIEER Researchers Offer Insights
NIEER Research Project Coordinator Alex Figueras-Daniel reflects on a recent lecture by Linda Darling-Hammond on the NJ Abbott preschool program while NIEER Assistant Research Professor Dale Epstein tells us there's more than meets the eye in her post about the print and online editions of The State of Preschool 2009.

2010-05-25T18:40:00.002-04:00

2010-05-12T15:16:00.002-04:00

NIEER Releases Yearbook Findings, Calls on Obama to Create Early Education Fund

2010-05-08T15:12:00.002-04:00

NIEER co-director Steve Barnett released findings of The State of Preschool 2009 at a press conference today at the AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. Barnett said this year's yearbook data show that, nationally speaking, the recession is affecting states' ability to continue the trend toward expanding pre-K that has predominated in recent years. "The immediate future of pre-K seems much more perilous than past trends might suggest," he said, pointing out that some states have cut pre-K enrollment to levels not seen in years and that so far, 11 states are considering pre-K cuts for 2011.

Barnett outlined the difficult choices middle-income families, who have the least access to public pre-K, are facing in providing for their young children. He reminded President Obama of his campaign promise to guarantee access to quality, affordable early childhood education for every child in America and called on him to create an Early Education Fund designed to help states provide more services. Investing $1 billion in the fund would, by Barnett's calculations, enable states providing matching funds to serve an additional 500,000 children.

Joining him at the podium were Marci Young, a project director for the Pew Center on the States, and Julia B. Isaacs, The Child and Family Policy Fellow at the Brookings Institution. The new edition of the yearbook, the news release, and parent videos are available on the NIEER web site. Barnett wonders about the future of state pre-K in our Preschool Matters…Today! blog post.

You can follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

2010-05-06T07:49:00.002-04:00

Early education news roundup

2010-05-02T22:52:00.000-04:00

April 22, 2010 (The Kansas City Star)
Missouri Senate approves plan to merge education boards
Missouri senators have endorsed a plan that would merge the state's two education oversight boards into one responsible for education from kindergarten through doctoral programs.

April 21, 2010 (Lansing State Journal, Lansing, MI)
Focus on early childhood education still urged
But even as educators and others recognize the importance of focusing on early childhood enrichment, tight state and local budgets are making it tough to maintain current programs and start new ones.

April 20, 2010 (The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA)
Expert says the path to literacy starts with babies
Word play through rhyme, poetry, song and repetition is important because it reinforces the patterns and parts of word sounds. This is known as phonological awareness, which children need in order read.

April 20, 2010 (WJXT, Jacksonville, FL)
Advocates Fear Voluntary Pre-K Cuts
With every letter and every activity, the goal of Voluntary Prekindergarten is to get children ready for elementary school at no cost to parents. But a new proposal to slash VPK funding could affect children and the quality of their education.

April 19, 2010 (The Providence Journal, Providence, RI)
Child care found wanting in R.I.
A first-ever study of childcare centers in Rhode Island shows that only 10 percent of preschool classrooms and 4 percent of infant-toddler rooms provide "high-quality" programs that nurture development through purposeful interactions between adults and youngsters.

April 19, 2010 (Los Angeles Times)
L.A. study affirms benefits of preschool
Children enrolled in Los Angeles Universal Preschool programs made significant improvements in the social and emotional skills needed to do well in kindergarten, according to a study released Monday. The gains were especially pronounced for English language learners, the study showed.

April 18, 2010 (Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, MA)
Preschool years can be 'perfect storm' for language learning
The stories show that many preschool children focus intently on the words they hear and that most are primarily dependent on parents for clarification. Preschool years can, in fact, be a "perfect storm," a short window of opportunity in which factors come together so parents can best provide the basis of language growth.

April 16, 2010 (Chicago Tribune)
Early education program may face big cuts
The governor's proposal would slash the state's early childhood education block grant by 16 percent, which means 6,000 students in Chicago public schools could be shut out of the Preschool for All program, which targets academically at-risk children. Though not mandatory, Preschool for All is hailed for giving 3- and 4-year-olds a jump-start with its 2 1/2 hours a day of free instruction.

April 15, 2010 (Brattleboro Reformer, Brattleboro, VT)
Taking care of business
Just like every other division in the Agency of Human Services, early child care is facing cuts as the state tries to balance its budget. Early child care advocates understand that money is tight in Montpelier this year, but this week they are reminding lawmakers and business leaders that dollars taken away from programs around the state trickle up into other parts of Vermont's economy.

April 13, 2010 (Kalamazoo Gazette, Kalamazoo, MI)
Ready or not for kindergarten: How to assess your child
Kindergarten readiness isn't strictly a matter of age, say the experts. Instead, it involves a combination of cognitive, emotional, social and physical factors that can affect a child's academic success.

April 11, 2010 (The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Early childhood dollars targeted
Proposed cuts to early childhood programs have come as lawmakers grapple with how best to eliminate a budget shortfall in Kansas exceeding $400 million. Both House and Senate proposals for closing the budget gap include cuts for early childhood education.

NIEER early ed hot topics 4/28

2010-05-02T22:49:00.002-04:00

News Alert: NIEER's New State of Preschool Yearbook to be Released May 4th
The new edition of NIEER's annual State of Preschool yearbook will be released next Tuesday, May 4 at the AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. As anticipated, the new edition fills in the blanks about how pre-K is faring as the states cope with the recession and it also represents a new high in terms of data collected. Our research staff has added new categories on curriculum and family involvement to our state-by-state database. You can follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Science Article: Teacher Quality Moderates the Genetic Effects on Early Reading
An article in the journal Science reports that when children receive more effective instruction in early reading, they will tend to develop at their optimal learning trajectories but when instruction is less effective, children's learning potential is not optimized and the genetic differences that make it possible for some kids to read better than others are left unrealized. Said another way, poor teaching impedes the ability of children to reach their potential. In conducting the study Florida State University researchers followed 280 identical and 526 fraternal twin pairs in the first and second grades.

K-12 Common Core Standards Need Work, Say Early Ed Professionals
The K-12 Common Core State Standards proposed for comment by the Center for Best Practices at the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers have received plenty of feedback from the early education community. The mainstream consensus seems to be that while they are step in the right direction, there needs to be significant modification to accommodate children's learning in the early years. This week, NIEER co-director Ellen Frede's blog post is about achieving a "Goldilocks" set of standards in Preschool Matters … Today!

Florida’s VPK Program Escapes Big Budget Cut
The Florida Senate has agreed to a House plan that cuts the state's Voluntary Prekindergarten Program by less than 1 percent rather than the 15 percent called for in a previous legislative proposal. The old proposal would have forced programs to increase class sizes to as many as 24 kids in a pre-K classroom. Nationally, Florida ranks near the bottom in state spending for pre-K. Current funding is about $20 million less than it was when the program was launched in 2005 even though VPK now serves about 40,000 more kids, reports the Orlando Sentinel's Leslie Postal.

Illinois ELL Rules Would Require Bilingual Education in Some Pre-K Classrooms
Education Week reports that if approved by the state board of education, new rules proposed by the Illinois education agency would require districts to survey parents of preschoolers to determine language spoken at home, screen the kids for English proficiency, and provide transitional bilingual education in preschools where 20 or more pupils with limited English proficiency speak the same native language.

The Economy: Revenue Declines Less Severe, A Glimmer of Recovery
After undergoing a record five consecutive quarters of declines, tax revenues to the states are currently at roughly the same level as they were 10 years ago, while during that period the nation's population has increased by approximately 10 percent, says a new report from the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government. However, the severity of the declines has moderated. The National Association of Realtors reports that home purchases increased by 6.8 percent in March and home prices rose 4 percent. Meanwhile, the Labor Department says initial claims for unemployment have begun falling.

Obama Administration Decides to Do Some More Listening
The U.S. Department of Education is embarked on a listening tour to discuss critical topics in early learning. The meetings, which some see as a reaction to criticism that the Obama blueprint for re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act is light on early education, take place in Washington, D.C., Denver, CO, Orlando, FL, and Chicago, IL.

2010-05-02T19:59:00.002-04:00

2010-04-21T05:14:00.002-04:00

2010-04-13T17:14:00.000-04:00

2010-04-10T07:57:00.000-04:00

NIEER Hot Topics 4/9

2010-04-09T15:13:00.000-04:00

Major Meta-analysis: Pre-K Improves Cognitive, Social-Emotional Development and Schooling Outcomes
A broad-based meta-analysis of 123 studies reported in the Teachers College Record found that preschool education had positive effects on cognitive and social and emotional development as well as schooling outcomes. The largest effects were observed for cognitive outcomes. Specific aspects that positively correlated with gains included teacher-directed instruction and small-group instruction. "If we focus on the rigorous studies, we find that the immediate impact is to close about 70 percent of the achievement gap. After third grade, it's about 30 percent of the gap," said study co-author and NIEER co-director Steve Barnett, who adds, "This should put the final nail in the coffin of the idea that preschool education's effects fade out after third grade." Watch the video here.

Promise Neighborhoods Program Gets a Boost in Obama's FY 2011 Budget
If approved by Congress, the federal FY 2011 budget will add $200 million to the $10 million allocated to the Promise Neighborhoods program in the current budget. The idea behind Promise Neighborhoods is to replicate the Harlem Children's Zone (HCZ), which claims to have successfully raised disadvantaged children's achievement — sometimes spectacularly so — through a network of high-quality schools and services. The money will go for planning grants for communities that show they have what it takes to develop a feasible plan for replicating HCZ. That will be easier said than done, points out New America Foundation's Lisa Guernsey who looks at HCZ and what it might take to assemble those ingredients elsewhere in this week’s Early Ed Watch blog.

New Report: Time to Refocus New York State's Universal Pre-K Effort
Thirteen years after New York state adopted its universal pre-K initiative, it's time to refocus the effort, says a report just out from Winning Beginning NY, the statewide early learning coalition. The report points out that while New York Universal Pre-K (UPK) now serves 109,000 children, there are some 120,000 kids who don’t yet have access. Among its recommendations are developing a five-year plan to prepare an early childhood workforce, revising the UPK funding statute so pre-K funding is sustainable and able to support full-day services, and enacting legislation to implement a quality improvement system.

Pew Launches Home Visiting Policy Campaigns in Four States
Beginning this year, the Pew Home Visiting Campaign will support statewide advocacy and public education efforts aimed at expanding and improving home visiting programs in Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, and Washington. John Schlitt, who directs the effort, says those states were chosen because they have a variety of approaches to home visiting and leaders there have voiced a desire to expand and improve these services. He and his team are also involved in field research aimed at bridging gaps that exist in the home visiting research literature, particularly as regards what program ingredients generate the most positive results, home visiting's effect on school readiness, and how best to engage fathers.

Researchers: Head Start Impact Study Delayed, Ignored by Press
Russ Whitehurst of the Brookings Institution and Nicholas Zill, a consultant and former director of Head Start's Family and Experience Survey (FACES), say the Head Start Impact Study was delayed in its issuance and ignored by the press. Whitehurst said the six-year delay between the time key data were gathered and the report's issuance as well as the appearance of a positive bias in reporting the findings suggests the Office of Management and Budget needs to get involved in setting standards for agencies on conducting and issuing evaluation reports. They spoke at a recent Heritage Foundation event.

Lessons from the First Round of Race to the Top
A timely new report from The New Teacher Project reviews the process by which the U.S. Department of Education reviewed Race to the Top applications and chose Delaware and Tennessee as the first round winners. The analysis provides a detailed look at the scoring and draws lessons for states to consider in applying for the $3.4 billion in funding that is available for Round 2. Among its insights is this: politics appears not to have entered into the decision making since none of the three states considered political battle grounds (Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida) won and three of the six top-scoring states went to candidate Sen. John McCain in the most recent presidential election.

Died: Harold W. McGraw, Jr., Former CEO of the McGraw-Hill Companies
Harold W. McGraw, the grandson of a school teacher who headed McGraw-Hill during the company's most dramatic growth years in the 1970s and 1980s and who urged employees to think like teachers, died recently at 92. Under his leadership McGraw-Hill became a world class publisher of books and curricula for education, including early education. McGraw's philanthropy focused heavily on literacy. In 1983, he established the Business Council for Effective Literacy that enlisted corporations in the fight for literacy. He also funded The McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning at Princeton University.

New on Preschool Matters...Today!

Interview with Lt. General Norman R. Seip (Ret.)
Lt. General Norman R. Seip (Ret.) answers questions on why he believes that expanding public pre-K is critical to addressing the skills gap that exists among many military recruits and to maintaining our nation's future security. Seip, who was a fighter pilot and Commander of the 12th Air Force, serves on the Executive Advisory Council of Mission: Readiness.

Also featured: NIEER Consultant Marcie Weber reviews Good Morning Children: My First Years in Early Childhood Education by Sophia Pappas, a Teach for America volunteer who taught pre-K in New Jersey's Abbott Preschool Program. Pappas was also a blogger for the national advocacy group Pre-K Now.

Smaller Learning Communities Initiative Enters its 8th year in Chicago

2010-04-09T13:52:00.000-04:00

This spring, Millennia consultants Brenda Bannor and Karen Snyder will be completing their 8th year as the independent evaluators for a U.S. Department of Education sponsored Smaller Learning Communities Initiative.

Since 2001, 19 large Chicago public high schools have participated in this reform strategy which systematically pairs rigorous, research-based curricular and instructional programs with comprehensive structural change. For more information contact Brenda at Bannor@ConsultMillennia.com.

2010-04-09T09:44:00.000-04:00

GOOD LOOK: Art Class

2010-04-08T19:53:00.000-04:00

Is this what we want?

2010-04-02T17:56:00.003-04:00

A cautionary tale from Detroit

Stop the violence (early)!

2010-03-28T14:10:00.000-04:00

NIEER - Early Ed Hot Topics 3/26

2010-03-26T17:39:00.002-04:00

Early Learning Challenge Fund Eliminated from Health Reform Bill
The Early Learning Challenge Fund that many considered the most progressive aspect of the Obama administration's early childhood agenda didn't survive the reconciliation process needed to pass health care reform — reportedly because some Congressional leaders felt keeping it might endanger passage. However, $1.5 billion for expansion of home visitation did survive. The Early Learning Challenge Fund's loss leaves some in the early childhood community wondering how much clout early childhood issues have on Capitol Hill these days. That's the subject of today's post on NIEER's Preschool Matters ... Today!

Connecticut High Court Ruling Establishes Need for Quantifying Education Quality
The Hartford Courant reports that the Connecticut Supreme Court has opened the door to changing the way the state funds public education. In a 4-3 ruling, the court found that the Connecticut Constitution guarantees students not only a public education, but one that prepares them for employment, higher education, and civic responsibilities such as voting and jury duty. The ruling doesn't prescribe changes but does set forth a new framework that says students have a right to a certain level of education. In siding with plaintiffs in the 2005 education equity lawsuit, the court sent the case back to Superior Court for trial.

Richardson's Surprise Veto Nixes Money for New Mexico PreK
Just when advocates were feeling good about the prospects for expanding New Mexico PreK, Governor Bill Richardson used his line item veto to eliminate a provision in tax legislation that would have earmarked part of a 75-cent increase in the cigarette tax for early childhood programs. The earmark was for one year and would have generated $11 million for pre-K and other early childhood programs. Richardson also made the cigarette tax hike, which was to have been in effect for four years, permanent.

NAEP: One in Three Kids Unable to Read at Basic Level by Fourth Grade
Reading scores for American students have hardly budged, says the latest report from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Fourth grade reading scores were unchanged from 2007. Achievement gaps between racial and ethnic groups remained unchanged as did the gaps between children who are and are not eligible for free lunch. Eighth grade children scored only one point higher in 2009 than 2007.

Common Insecticide Linked to Childhood Developmental Delays
New research confirms that even when adjustments are made for environmental factors such as poverty, exposure to the insecticide chlorpyrifos is linked to delayed mental and motor skill development in children. Commonly used to control insects in crops like corn, cotton, apples, oranges, and almonds, chlorpyrifos was banned in 2001 for use in the home, where it was primarily used for termite, mosquito, and flea control.

Died: Doctor Who Prevented Childhood Blindness
Arnall Patz, the doctor who in the 1950s figured out that too much oxygen administered to premature infants caused overdevelopment of blood vessels, consigning a great many of them, including Stevie Wonder, to a lifetime of blindness, died last week. To prove his point, he conducted the first controlled clinical trial in ophthalmology.

Calling All Doctoral Students: Dissertation Funding Available
Child Care Research Scholars grants are available to support graduate students as a way of encouraging child care policy research. Eligible applicants include doctoral level graduate students. For information about previous Child Care Research Scholars, see http://www.researchconnections.org/childcare/federal/ccb.jsp. Those with questions can email the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation child care research grant review team at ChildcareScholars@icfi.com or call 1-877-301-6977. Visit the HHS Grants Forecast site at https://extranet.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/index.cfm to learn about upcoming funding opportunities from the OPRE.

An inner-city schoolteacher examines the lack of parental involvement.

2010-03-26T07:53:00.000-04:00

from Good Magazine

We're in the midst of parent-teacher conferences here in New York City public high schools.

Between last night and this afternoon, family members from 20 of my 78 students' families attended meetings. Of those 20, 16 made the honor roll, which unscientifically shows a correlation between parental involvement and academic success as well as a lack of involvement by parents of struggling students.

I can count on both hands the number of family members who have contacted me in the past year and a half, despite having given out my cell phone number and e-mail address to them all. My e-mails seem to be sent into an abyss; about one in 10 of the voicemails I leave with parents is ever returned. And even though my students’ grades are posted online and all parents or guardians are given login information, about three out of 25 students’ families ever check their progress. (And just in case you’re wondering, it's not for a lack of Internet access—I take a survey at the beginning of the year.)

Based on conversations I've had with colleagues at similar schools throughout the Bronx, this low-level of involvement is more or less par for the course.

But there are exceptions to this trend—heroic mothers, fathers, grandmothers, aunts and siblings who provide strong support—and, as for the rest, it's not their fault. Not yet.

Just as I believe all students want to succeed, so I (need to) believe that all parents want their children to succeed. Yet just like my students, I have found that some of their families aren't sure of what they need to do to be successful. If schools expect families to be involved, it falls to teachers and administrators to teach them.

Am I recommending that schools teach parents how to carry out their responsibilities? Absolutely. Condescending as may it sound, evidence suggests that someone must intervene if we—teachers, schools, supporters of better public schools generally—expect family involvement to increase.

(I’m inclined at times to abandon laborious efforts to engage parents and relatives and just work directly with my students, who at 16-, 17- or 18-years-old should be held responsible for their academics. Deep down, however, I understand that the kind of dramatic improvement we are seeking will only come if all parties are engaged.)

There are endless ways teachers and schools can increase families’ engagement (and I’d love to read your ideas in the comments section below). First, prove to them their participation makes a significant difference in their students’ achievement. Next, provide different ways they can get involved. Furthermore, incentivize involvement. For instance, a middle school where a friend of mine works raffles off computers and flat-screen TVs on parent-teacher conference nights. Another friend’s school offers free ESL classes to parents on Saturdays. Many parents have a lot going on, especially single-parent households and heads of low-income households. We must appeal to their self-interest.

Lastly, exhibit interest in families, too. Parents are people, not just the number to call when their child breaks a rule. Many families only hear from their children's teachers when they've done something wrong, which complicates the relationship between families and schools. Try calling home to reinforce positive behaviors or academic achievement. I don’t make enough positive calls home—I’d say about three in 10 calls are solely to deliver praise—but the ones I do make have a dramatic impact. One mother woke her daughter up at 1:30 am after hearing my message about her daughter winning the Student of the Week award. Such calls also add weight to more critical calls I may need to make in the future.

So, fellow teachers, let’s extend the four walls of our classrooms, to include parents and families in our pursuit of increased academic achievement.

Brendan Lowe is a Teach for America corps member who is in his second year of teaching high school in the South Bronx. His dispatch for GOOD will appear on Fridays. Last week's essay can be gotten here.

2010-03-26T07:48:00.002-04:00

2010-03-25T16:24:00.000-04:00

Schools with Legacy of Institutionalized Fraud - 3-05-2010 Democracy Now!

2010-03-24T16:09:00.001-04:00

2010-03-23T06:56:00.002-04:00

Diane Ravitch - DemocracyNow - March 5 2010

2010-03-23T06:43:00.001-04:00

How We Reform Schools: Bill Maher Versus John Legend

2010-03-19T06:54:00.001-04:00

GOOD Education > Amanda M. Fairbanks on March 17, 2010 at 12:30 pm PDT

Ever since Central Falls High School in Rhode Island fired 93 teachers and staffers for poor performance, the debate around school reform has taken all sorts of interesting twists and turns.

President Obama voiced his support. Newsweek devoted a cover story to it, whose headline "The Key to Saving American Education," was nearly obscured by the subtle refrain: We must fire bad teachers. We must fire bad teachers. We must fire bad teachers.

If schools are failing, how do we reform them? And are teachers solely to blame?

Enter Bill Maher, stand-up comedian versus John Legend, pop star.

On Friday night's Real Time with Bill Maher, he criticized Obama's stance on backing the Rhode Island superintendent.

Some highlights of Maher's rebuke: “Let's not fire the teachers when students don't learn—let's fire the parents. Isn't it convenient that once again it turns out that the problem isn't us, and the fix is something that doesn't require us to change our behavior or spend any money?"

Full clip below:

Hey Bill,

So, from one man without children to another, I think you were pretty off base in your closing monologue about education on Friday.

You were right about some things: Parental involvement really matters. Parents should turn off the TV, encourage reading, talk with their kids about their day, help with their homework, hold them accountable, and get involved in their education.

However, a child’s academic success does not only depend on parenting. Parents control what happens at home. But parents do not control what happens at school where students spend a large portion of their day being educated. Parents don’t determine whether the books are woefully out of date, whether the school and surrounding neighborhood are safe, whether there are too many kids in the classroom, and whether the teacher leading the classroom knows what they are doing. Individual parents can’t always influence those factors, especially when they themselves may be struggling in poverty or working double shifts just to make ends meet.

In the battle to reform schools, whose side are you on—Maher's or Legend's?

Read more: http://www.good.is/post/how-we-reform-schools-bill-maher-versus-john-legend/#ixzz0icPGysoo

2010-03-18T05:37:00.000-04:00

NIEER - Early Ed hot topics 3/12

2010-03-13T09:43:00.000-05:00

A First: Proposed National Standards for K-12 Math, English
Kindergartners should, among other things, be able to count to 100, says a set of proposed national learning standards released this week. The standards, drafted at the behest of the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, are an evidence-based list of what children should learn at each grade level. They are intended to replace the patchwork of standards that now exists across the country and enable more standardization of textbooks and testing. While some have criticized the effort as representing a step toward nationalizing education, most welcome it. Only Texas and Alaska chose not to participate. The public comment period runs until April 2.

Immunizing Kids for Flu Protects the Whole Community
A vaccination trial conducted in isolated Canadian Hutterite colonies found that immunizing children for the flu protected the entire community. Children ages 3 to 15 in 25 colonies received the flu vaccine while children of the same ages in 24 colonies received a hepatitis A vaccine instead. More than 10 percent of the people of all ages in the colonies receiving the placebo contracted the flu while less than 5 percent of those in treatment group colonies came down with it. Experts say the study confirms that when it comes to the flu, vaccinating children goes a long way toward conferring "herd immunity" on the entire community. It also affirms the wisdom of the Centers for Disease Control H1N1 flu shot recommendations that called for vaccinating children.

Impact of Poverty in Early Childhood Lasts Well into Adulthood
A study tracking the lives of children born between 1968 and 1975 found that poverty during the period when children are infants to age 5 has a lasting detrimental impact on outcomes related to attainment such as earnings and hours worked. Negative impacts from poverty during this early period could be measured as late as age 37. Subsequent periods of poverty, when children were older, had fewer effects. Greg Duncan, University of California, and colleagues found that an increase in income of $3,000 per year between a child’s prenatal year and fifth birthday is associated with 19 percent higher earnings and an increase in hours worked.

Pearson Report: Mobile Digital Devices Changing Early Literacy Dynamics
A new white paper by Arizona State University's Jay Blanchard and Terry Moore says that developmental milestones are changing as a new generation of young children approach learning and literacy in ways not thought possible in the past because of the availability of mobile digital devices such as cell phones. Funded by the Pearson Foundation, the report was released at the annual Consortium for School Networking international symposium. Blanchard says new opportunities to develop emergent literacy skills are occurring worldwide, in such disparate places as video game rooms in Mumbai, cybercafés in Nicaragua, and Internet-enabled schools in Senegal.

New Pew Report: Pre-K Teacher Training a Significant Factor in School Readiness
Teachers with bachelor’s degrees and specialized training in early childhood education support stronger social-emotional and cognitive development for children, says Linda Darling-Hammond, professor of education at Stanford and co-author of a new report from the Pew Center for the States. She and Danielle Gonzales, formerly of Pre-K Now, examined the research on pre-K teacher preparation, children's learning and program quality to determine how preparedness influences effectiveness. The report recommends that states move toward requiring a bachelor's degree and specialized training in early education, and highlights some models for doing so.

New on Preschool Matters...Today!

Why School Reform Should Begin With Pre-K
The latest issue of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) quarterly journal American Educatorpost on Preschool Matters ... Today! features two articles devoted preschool education, including "The Promise of Preschool," by NIEER Co-Directors Ellen Frede and Steve Barnett. Read about it in today's blog

2010-03-13T09:32:00.002-05:00

Young Turks: Rewriting the textbooks

2010-02-20T15:42:00.000-05:00

Behind the numbers

2010-02-20T14:40:00.005-05:00

Don Wheeler

As I pored over the 2008-2009 Annual School Performance Report recently published by the South Bend Tribune I found a lot to think about. We recently learned that the South Bend Community School Corporation realized a ten percent improvement in High School graduation in one year, which is great cause for celebration. That sort of thing can’t happen solely because of what happens in the High Schools – it must start earlier. The achievement would seem to indicate the whole SBCSC has made strides that really matter.

But when one throws in the No Child Left Behind program and the test scores which have been elevated to an almost dictatorial status, suddenly the waters muddy. Suddenly it looks as though we’re actually doing worse.

I’m going to use examples of two particular schools – not because I think they are necessarily the best; rather, just that I know a bit more about them.

Warren Primary Center on the west side and Hay Primary Center to the south are clearly two of the top non-magnet programs in the SBCSC. Their test scores have historically topped state averages – but not in the most recent report. Suddenly by this measure they have become inferior to mediocrity.

I know less about Warren than Hay, but here’s what I do know. Someone I work with voiced great frustration last year because his son who attended Wilson Primary Center seemed to be doing fine but was told just ahead of summer break that he must attend summer school – or be held back. Since Wilson is on probation, I suggested he look into other options for his son. His son now attends Warren and by his father’s reports is doing fabulously well. Other Warren parents seem happy too and last year’s Indiana Teacher Of The Year, Tania Harman just happens to work there.

Our daughter is a First Grader at Hay. My wife is Co-President of the PTO there. We chose this school over all the magnet programs and we’ve not been disappointed. Principal Craig Haenes is not just an inspired administrator and team leader – he is the reason the Wilson LiPS reading program exists in the SBCSC. Sarah’s teachers Debbie Fraser (this year) and Dixie Eichorst (last year) are dedicated, caring professionals. The school flat feels good when you walk in the door.

But the test scores are down in both these schools – fairly dramatically over the prior year. By this measure they would seem to be in crisis. I don’t think they are.

I think that these schools are victims of their success – by test score standards. Warren and Hay were designed to educate neighborhood kids and have done so with aplomb. As nearby schools were designated as being in probationary status, both became destinations for students whose parents were looking for a better option. Some of these students naturally had some learning deficits, so their test results would drag down the average numbers.

I sense this turn of events is a bit discouraging for educators at Warren and Hay. But I hope they can hang with this and ride out an ill-conceived program to its death. Getting kids a better opportunity for success at the cost of a lowered institutional test average seems like a fabulous trade-off to me. Just as long as these folks doing what we absolutely need them to do aren’t penalized.

NIEER Feb. Hot Topics

2010-02-19T12:46:00.000-05:00

Teach the Scientific Method in Pre-K? Here's How …
Two Rutgers University professors affiliated with NIEER have co-authored Preschool Pathways to Science, a new book that serves as a guide for implementing science in preschool classrooms. In addition to writing the book, Rochel Gelman, a NIEER scientific advisory board member known for her research on children's causal and quantitative reasoning, and Kim Brenneman, NIEER assistant research professor and lead author of the policy brief Math and Science in Preschool: Policies and Practice, are content advisers to the popular PBS show Sid the Science Kid. They explain in the video in this week's post on Preschool Matters … Today!

Mothers Influence How Children Develop Executive Functioning
A new longitudinal study finds that the way mothers act when they are playing and solving puzzles with their babies can explain some of the differences in how their children develop executive functions such as controlling impulses and showing mental flexibility. Children of moms who answered their children's requests for help quickly and accurately and talked to the kids about their thoughts and memories during play performed better on tasks requiring executive function.

Pew Center Report: How the Recession Might Change States
The states are running out of short-term fixes for the deficits plaguing most of them, forcing them to consider downsizing government and re-examining delivery of services and outdated tax policies, says the State of the States 2010 report just out from The Pew Center on the States. It takes a clear-eyed look at the economic drama unfolding in many states and predicts it will take years for states to return to normal in part because the recession reduced the base for future revenue for many states.

Art Rolnick to Retire from Minneapolis Fed This Summer
The Star Tribune reports that Art Rolnick, senior VP and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, is retiring from the bank in July after 40 years of service. Rolnick, who has focused attention on cost-benefit analysis of early childhood education, will become co-director of the Human Capital Resource Collaborative at the Humphrey Institute, University of Minnesota. He said he hopes to raise funds and develop pilot early education programs in Minneapolis, his home town of Detroit, and perhaps other cities.

Online Early Ed Degrees Seventh Most Sought After
The distance education web portal eLearners.com says that online degree programs for early childhood education rank seventh on its list of top 10 online degree searches. The company says it has seen an increase in searches for the "helping professions" since the downturn in the economy began.

New on nieer.org

State Pre-K: Will Tight Budgets Threaten Progress?
In the latest issue of Preschool Matters, NIEER looks at state budgets and preschool education, one of many areas where the funding progress seen in recent years has taken a considerable blow. Other articles in the new issue include:
• Yet More Evidence: Time to Beef Up Math and Science in Pre-K
• Long-Term Studies Show Lasting Gains from Pre-K
• The Benefits of Investments in Early Development Around the Globe
• Preschool's Role in Fighting Childhood Obesity

NIEER - Early Ed hot topics 1/15

2010-01-16T09:01:00.000-05:00

Head Start Study: Gains Made by 4-Year-Olds Don't Show Up in First Grade
The latest results from the Head Start Impact Study were released this week. As originally reported, providing access to Head Start has modest benefits for both 3- and 4-year-olds in the cognitive, health, and parenting domains, and for 3-year-olds in the social-emotional domain. However, the advantages of Head Start are no longer evident at first grade. NIEER Co-Director Steve Barnett said that, like the 2005 findings from the same study, the new results are likely to be taken out of context by opponents of publicly funded preschool education. He writes about the subject in his recent post on Preschool Matters ... Today!

White Students are No Longer a Majority in the South's Schools
Public schools in the American South no longer enroll a majority of white students when people of other backgrounds are considered, says a new report released by the Southern Education Foundation (SEF). Whites now comprise 49 percent of the student population while Blacks comprise 27 percent, Hispanics 20 percent, Asian-Pacific people 3 percent and Native Americans and others 1 percent. The SEF also says that in 2007, children eligible for free or reduced-price lunch became a majority in the South's public schools.

Universal Pre-K Recommended for Michigan Economic Development
If Michigan invested the additional $300 million per year required to raise participation of 4-year-olds in state pre-K from the current 18 percent level of attendance to 70 percent, the present value of that investment in enhanced workforce productivity would be $834 million, says Timothy Bartik, senior economist at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research in Kalamazoo. The universal pre-K recommendation is one of eight Bartik presented at the University of Michigan economic forecast conference. They're detailed in his new working paper What Should Michigan Be Doing to Promote Long-Run Economic Development?

NACCRA Report: The List of State Budget Cuts to Children's Program is Long
State Budget Cuts: America's Kids Pay the Price is a report just published by the National Association of Child Care Resources and Referral Agencies (NACCRA) that provides a state-by-state run-down of early childhood programs that have fallen victim to the budget axe. California and Connecticut are leading the pack by cutting nine programs each. Included are recommendations for future investment.

Jerlean Daniel to Become NAEYC Executive Director
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) has announced that Jerlean Daniel is the executive director designate of the association. She will replace outgoing Executive Director Mark R.Ginsberg on July 1 of this year. Dr. Daniel has most recently served as a deputy executive director of the association and is also a past president. A member of NAEYC for more than 30 years, she joined NAEYC as a staff member after 21 years at the University of Pittsburgh where she served as a Chair of Psychology in Education. In addition, she was director of the University Child Development Center for 18 years and it received NAEYC accreditation under her leadership. Dr. Ginsberg, who has been NAEYC executive director since 1999, will become Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University. We wish both of them great success in their new endeavors.

A serious proposal

2010-01-12T17:39:00.001-05:00

By BOB HERBERT
New York Times

The president of the American Federation of Teachers says she will urge her members to accept a form of teacher evaluation that takes student achievement into account and that the union has commissioned an independent effort to streamline disciplinary processes and make it easier to fire teachers who are guilty of misconduct.

In a speech to be delivered Tuesday in Washington, Randi Weingarten plans to call for more frequent and more rigorous evaluations of public schoolteachers, and she says she will assert that standardized test scores and other measures of student performance should be an integral part of the evaluation process. The use of student test scores to measure teacher performance has been anathema to many teachers. Ms. Weingarten is not proposing that they be the only — or even the primary — element in determining teacher quality.

But she told me in an interview over the weekend that she wants to “stop this notion” that her membership is in favor of keeping bad teachers in the classroom. “I will try to convince my members that, of course, we have to look at student test scores and student learning,” she said.

The use of test scores, as Ms. Weingarten sees it, would be part of a new, enhanced process of teacher evaluation that would offer clear professional standards for teachers. It would replace current practices, which in many districts across the country are lax, haphazard and, in the words of Ms. Weingarten and others, often amount to little more than “drive-by” evaluations.

It is not uncommon for teachers to be observed in the classroom just a couple of times a year for only a few minutes each time and then get a satisfactory rating. Under those circumstances, hardly anything is learned about the quality or effectiveness of the teachers. Most teachers are routinely rated as satisfactory, and many are never evaluated at all.

Ms. Weingarten is urging school administrators to observe teachers more closely and more frequently. (The enhanced, clearly articulated professional standards she is calling for are already in use in some districts. There is no need to reinvent the wheel.) Experts trained in best practices and using a variety of objective data, including measures of student achievement, would do the evaluating. Teachers who are struggling would be given an opportunity to improve their performance. If, after remedial efforts, they still did not measure up, they would be fired, whether tenured or not.

As Ms. Weingarten put it, “We would have to say, ‘Look, we helped you. We tried. You’re just not cut out to be a teacher.’ ”

Ms. Weingarten also addresses the fact that it is sometimes scandalously difficult to remove teachers who have engaged in serious misconduct. While emphasizing the need for due process, she bluntly asserts, in a draft of her speech: “We recognize, however, that too often due process can become a glacial process. We intend to change that.”

The union has asked Kenneth Feinberg, the federal government’s so-called pay czar, to develop a more efficient protocol for disciplining — and when necessary, removing — teachers accused of misconduct.

This would be a big deal. Mr. Feinberg is highly respected and widely viewed as independent. He administered the government fund that compensated those who were injured and the families of those who were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks. He also administered a fund set up in the wake of the mass shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007.

He is not the kind of guy to go into the tank for the teachers’ union. (John Ashcroft chose him to lead the 9/11 fund.) It will be very interesting to see whether the union actually goes along if Mr. Feinberg fashions a workable plan to streamline teacher discipline that is viewed favorably by school administrators.

“We look forward,” said Ms. Weingarten, “to working with Mr. Feinberg on this critical undertaking.”

If the union follows through on Ms. Weingarten’s proposals, it would represent a significant, good-faith effort to cooperate more fully with state officials and school administrators in the monumental job of improving public school education. More than 90 percent of American youngsters go through the public schools. The schools were struggling and failing too many youngsters even before the latest economic downturn, which is taking a terrible toll.

My view is that America’s greatest national security crisis is the crisis in its schools.

Ms. Weingarten’s ideas for upgrading the teacher evaluation process are good ones and should be embraced and improved upon where possible by those in charge of the nation’s schools. The point is not just to get rid of failing teachers, but to improve the skills and effectiveness of the millions of teachers who show up in the classrooms every day.

If the union chooses not to follow through on these proposals, its credibility will take a punishing and well-deserved hit.

NIEER - Early ed news roundup 11/13

2009-11-14T08:27:00.000-05:00

Early Education News Roundup

November 13, 2009
Va. keeps focus on early-childhood education, official says
Despite tough economic times, Virginia has taken a strong interest in maintaining its programs for early-childhood education, according to a member of the Virginia Board of Education.

November 10, 2009
Editorial: Pre-K program is doing what it should
Nevertheless, getting the pre-K students ready for kindergarten and first grade, it would seem, satisfies a major objective of the program, and that is what the report found. The program was not designed to create super students who would show up their peers for the next dozen years but to put disadvantaged students on a par with those who were tutored at home or attended private preschool programs.

November 9, 2009
State to rate child-care providers on star system
The state of Montana is gearing up to roll out a program next year that would take the guesswork out of finding top-notch early childhood programs. Called STARS to Quality, the voluntary program would rate early childhood programs, either centers or in-home providers. Programs would be evaluated based on early childhood education research.

November 9, 2009
Opinion: Parental anxiety is ruining playtime
It is well known that many preschool parents have become super-anxious trying to give their kids a leg up on kindergarten, but I didn't realize just how nutty things had become until I talked to several dozen preschool program directors. The preschool directors wanted to discuss the worsening anxiety they see in parents who recognize that children are being required to read and write in kindergarten and want to make sure little Johnny and Joanie stay on track -- whether or not they are developmentally ready (and lots aren't).

November 8, 2009
Editorial: Don't mess with success: Gov.-elect Chris Christie should catch up on preschool
Today, more than 50,000 kids are in these programs, most of them in the poorest urban districts. Class size is limited to 15, and teachers must be college graduates with special training in the workings of the young mind and how it learns.

November 7, 2009
Alarm raised on early education
Sherri Killins, commissioner of the Department of Early Education and Care, told a group of legislators at the Statehouse Thursday only 15 percent of children who apply for subsidies for early education or after-school programs receive state aid. There are 22,774 children on the waiting list, according to Killins, who estimated the cost for subsidizing tuition for all of the children at $214 million.

November 5, 2009
Study: Preschools Could Save Prison Costs
According to a new study, the state could save millions of dollars in prison costs by getting more children in preschool. The study also found that 28 percent of kids who did attend preschool were sent to jail in their lives while 52 percent of those who didn't attend preschool went to jail.

November 4, 2009
Opinion: Early education: Aim for quality across spectrum of providers
There are currently a variety of options for delivering high-quality early learning opportunities to Massachusetts' children. This "mixed delivery system" is comprised of community-based child care centers, public preschool programs, after-school and out-of-school-time programs, family child care homes, Head Start programs, and child care provided by families, friends, and neighbors.

November 4, 2009
Editorial: Investment in early childhood good use of stimulus dollars
Gov. Rick Perry recently named his appointees to the newly formed Texas State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care, a new council mandated by the federal Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007. The council will direct spending on a pending $11.3 million federal stimulus grant and work towards developing a comprehensive system of early childhood education and care that ensures coordination and collaboration among early childhood programs throughout Texas.

November 2, 2009
Report: Tenn. Pre-K Not Effective After Second Grade
A new report shows the effectiveness of Tennessee's pre-kindergarten program diminishes after the second grade, but supporters say it still provides a valuable foundation that will help at-risk children succeed. The report commissioned by the state comptroller's office late last week reveals kindergarten students who participated in the pre-K program performed better academically than a group of those who didn't.

October 30, 2009
State budget crisis threatens pre-K programs
If Illinois pre-K administrators and educators are given the same budget they received last year — which amounted to a 10 percent reduction from the previous year — cuts would have to be made across the state. More than 9,500 3- and 4-year olds could go without pre-kindergarten.

NIEER - Early Ed hot topics 11/13

2009-11-14T08:22:00.001-05:00

Growing Fear: Middle Class Kids Are Being Left Out of Public Pre-K
Pre-K program expansion is in retreat or at risk in a number of states, and dire warnings are already being issued for future state budgets. At the same time, new federal resources are aimed primarily at disadvantaged populations. Understandably, fear is growing that more working families who don't qualify for targeted programs, yet can't afford private pre-K, will increasingly have no pre-K. Cutting back on pre-K for working families, as Ohio has already done by eliminating its Early Learning Initiative, is a policy mistake since there is no sharp differentiation in school readiness or later educational success between those above and below the poverty line, says NIEER co-director Steve Barnett. Instead there is a strong linear gradient along which school readiness, achievement, and graduation rates increase with income. Barnett blogs on the subject this week in Preschool Matters … Today!

Top Brass Call for more Public Pre-K to Help Address Shortage of Recruits
Retired military leaders belonging to the group Mission: Readiness delivered a shocker recently when they released a report saying that 75 percent of young people in the U.S. can't join the military because they are too poorly educated, are overweight or have a criminal record. Calling the situation a threat to our national security, they made a strong case for devoting more resources to public pre-K to help address the problem. The group called on Congress to act this year. Former NATO Supreme Commander General Wesley Clark issued something sounding like a direct order, telling Congress it "must pass" the Early Learning Challenge Grant. That bill, which would provide $1 billion in funding for early childhood programs each year over the next 10 years, passed the House but is unlikely to be taken up in the Senate until it finishes with health care reform.

NIEER International Study: Early Interventions in Many Countries Have Positive Effects
Early childhood interventions around the world vary widely and not much exists in way of research reviews looking at their effectiveness. To help address that gap, NIEER recently completed a meta-analysis of studies looking at 30 interventions in 23 countries, finding that conditional cash transfers, early care and education, and nutritional interventions all had moderate positive effects in all domains of development. Educational interventions had the largest effects on cognitive abilities. NIEER Assistant Research Professor Milagros Nores, who led the study which appears in Economics of Education Review, says studies looking at effects at later ages found the gains were lasting. She blogs on the subject in Preschool Matters … Today!

Cause for Alarm? Preschoolers Watching Loads of TV
Data released this week by Nielsen News shows that American children aged two to five are spending more than 32 hours a week — or more than 4.5 hours a day — watching television. That's four more hours per week than kids six to eleven. The younger kids are also more likely to watch advertising in playback mode than the older group. The Lehrer NewsHour took up the issue in a segment recognizing the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street. It featured Michele Obama, Big Bird, Sesame Workshop CEO Gary Knell and Lisa Guernsey, author and director of the early education initiative at New America Foundation. Read the transcript here.

Early Lessons Radio Program Revisits Perry Preschool, Charts Pre-K's Progress
American Radio Works producer Emily Hanford traveled to Yipsilanti, Michigan, to capture the essence of the Perry Preschool Program, interview Perry teachers, and document the advances in early education that emanated from it and other programs that are the basis of so much high-quality research. Her program, called Early Lessons has been drawing rave reviews. Read articles by Hanford about the project and download the program at the American Radio Works web site.

Late Oct. Early Ed. news roundup

2009-11-03T11:33:00.002-05:00

Bill to link preschool with economic development
[South Dakota state Sen. Tom] Dempster and a committee have been working to draft a bill that would not ask for an appropriation this year; it would simply set up a structure for preschool standards that would at least enable the state to start receiving federal money designated for such programs.

October 28, 2009 Too much TV for children, U.S. and local experts say
According to a report released Monday by Nielsen, a TV ratings organization, the amount of television kids watch has reached an eightyear high, with children ages 2 to 5 watching more than 32 hours a week and those ages 6 to 11 watching more than 28 hours. The study was based on children's consumption of live TV, recorded TV programs and game-console use. Child experts say that's just too much television.

October 28, 2009 Preschools, parents forced to adjust amid cuts
The state's fiscal crisis is striking some of its most vulnerable residents -- 4-year-olds whose private, nonprofit preschool programs are losing state funding. A 50% cut in grants, part of the school aid budget that became official last week, means more than 20 programs won't get their funding renewed and 2,000 slots will be lost.

October 27, 2009 Oregon among 13 states increasing preschool spending
Oregon's Legislature was among 13 state legislatures that increased spending on prekindergaten education, the Pew Center reports this month in an annual report on legislative action affecting prekindergarten. The Oregon Legislature in 2007 put an additional $37 million into Oregon Head Start, nearly doubling the number of 3- and 4-year-olds from low-income families served by the state to 6,550.

October 25, 2009 Opinion: What's missing from the N.J. gubernatorial debate? An economic plan for the future.
New Jersey was poised to expand this preschool program to even more children when the recession devastated state revenues. Whoever occupies the governor's mansion next year needs to appreciate the value of this resource and build on it by making New Jersey's highly effective early education programs available to children who need them in school districts across the state.

October 25, 2009 New kindergartners: Many kids not ready to learn
Across the Columbus school district, tests given each fall show that more than three of every four kindergarten students aren't ready to learn. This is a particularly difficult challenge for two reasons: Preparing small children for school isn't usually the responsibility of a K-12 school district, but it still must spend time and money to help kids catch up.

October 23, 2009 Ohio led states in preschool cutbacks
Ohio slashed preschool programs more than any other state in the nation, according to a new report. The state-by-state analysis found that Ohio cut the largest percentage of funding from preschool education and, as a result, will deny services to the largest number of children.

October 23, 2009 Study: Preschool education beneficial
A three-year, statewide study of 10,002 preschoolers from low-income families has shown a good education before kindergarten vastly improves a child's ability to learn.

October 23, 2009 Education Department - desperate to fill pre-K seats or lose funds - posts ad on craigslist
With a deadline looming next week to either fill the seats or lose state funding, the Education Department is scrambling to reach parents by any means possible. Up for grabs are the 5,400 pre-K spots for 4-year-olds, including more than 900 for coveted full-day programs.

October 22, 2009 Pre-K funding up, despite state budget woes
Despite declining revenues and budget shortfalls, state funding for prekindergarten is expected to increase by about 1 percent, or $5.3 billion, nationally in fiscal 2010, says a report from a group that advocates high-quality early-education programs.

October 22, 2009 State disputes report on cuts to prekindergarten spending
The report found that Massachusetts this fiscal year cut 22 percent of the budget for prekindergarten education, more than every state but Ohio, which cut 33 percent of its money for such programs. Massachusetts state officials called the report skewed.

October 21, 2009 Preschool exercise aids learning, Head Start says
The program is designed to fight childhood obesity by teaching kids exercise and nutrition, the younger the better. The program's design is based on brain research, which shows movement fosters proper brain development in young children.

October 20, 2009 R.I.'s first public preschool program teaches cooperation, perseverance
Rhode Island was one of 12 states that had no investment in early childhood education until the opening this fall of seven state-sponsored pre-kindergarten classrooms in four cities — Providence, Warwick, Central Falls and Woonsocket.

Hot Topics - NIEER

2009-11-03T11:28:00.002-05:00

from Rutgers University

Michigan Pre-K Funding: The Plot Thickens
We previously reported that the new FY 2010 Michigan budget calls for cuts to the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) of about 7 percent — a figure that, while unpleasant, seemed to ensure the program would remain largely intact. That's not such a sure thing now that budget language has surfaced enabling school districts to opt out of providing state pre-K and apply their GSRP funding toward shortfalls in their K-12 budgets. The temptation to opt out of providing state pre-K could be high since per-pupil K-12 education received across-the-board cuts ranging from $292 to as much as $600 per pupil depending on the district. Michigan school funding does not rely on local real estate taxes the way other states do, so districts have less leeway to make up for shortfalls. Lori Higgins of the Detroit Free Press explains.

Nationally Speaking, the Recession has Shut Down Progress in State Pre-K
Total state investments in pre-K will be effectively flat in FY10 rising slightly more than 1 percent to $5.3 billion, says Pre-K Now's recently released Votes Count: Legislative Action on Pre-K Fiscal Year 2010 report. After accounting for inflation, that is a decline in real dollars devoted to pre-K. Of course, some states fared better than others. Among the highlights are these: • Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia increased or are projected to increase pre-k investments by a total of more than $187 million. • Thirteen legislatures increased investment in existing programs by nearly $130 million: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. • Ten states decreased funding: Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina and Washington. • Among the best news is that two states with no state pre-K approved pilot initiatives: Alaska and Rhode Island.

Where Pre-K Was Cut the Consequences Will Be Deeply Felt
Whether you're an Ohio parent with a child slated to attend the Early Childhood Education program before it was eliminated or a North Carolinian whose preschooler is denied access to the state's down-sized More at Four program, the consequences are deeply felt — and all to often, lasting. NIEER co-director Steve Barnett addressed implications of the cutbacks in a recent guest blog for Thrive By Five Washington.

Latina Paradox: Despite Healthy Births a Cognitive Lag Shows Up in Toddlers
Poor immigrant Latina moms live healthier-than-average lifestyles and have healthy babies but by the time their kids are 2 or 3 years old, lags appear in cognitive skills such as understanding words, speaking in more complex ways and performing simple tasks say Bruce Fuller (University of California) and other researchers who analyzed data from a nationwide tracking study of more than 8,000 infants born in 2001. They point to low maternal education, large family size and home learning practices as causes. The article appears in the Maternal and Child Health Journal.

The Race is on with H1N1 Flu and Pre-K is a Critical Line of Defense
President Obama's declaration of a state of emergency regarding H1N1 flu comes on the heels of news that the virus may be spreading faster in some areas than the flow of H1N1 vaccine. That puts more pressure parents and child care and preschool providers to prepare. This week's Preschool Matters ... Today! blog post addresses the issue. We welcome your thoughts. Click here for the blog: Preschool Matters ... Today!

Pew Request for Proposals
With generous support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Pew Home Visiting Campaign – a project of the Pew Center on the States – is requesting research proposals to build the evidence needed to inform public policy decisions and advance effective practice in maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs. Pew is interested in large- ($125,000-$250,000 total award) intermediate- ($50,000-$125,000), and small- (less than $50,000) scale research projects that can be completed over an 18-24 month period. The full RFP and application materials are available on the Pew web site. Deadline: December 21.

Success By 6 event to be held 11/10

2009-11-02T09:39:00.001-05:00

The Literacy Council of St. Joseph County is teaming up with the Michiana Family YMCA to bring you a FREE literacy "Success by 6" program for children ages three to six and their parents.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 from 10am - 11am at the Michiana Family YMCA, 1201 Northside Blvd. South Bend, IN between IUSB and Farmers Market.

This program is open to all YMCA members and the general public. Non-members can register by calling the front desk at 574-287-9622 (YMCA). YMCA members can register online at www.michianaymca.org under special events.

Success By 6 is identified with a community's activities undertaken to ensure that children under the age of six enter school prepared to be successful throughout the years that follow. The initiative is spearheaded by the United Way as a neutral convenor in the community capable of bringing business and civic representatives to the table as powerful friends of children.

David Kollar
Membership & Marketing Director
Michiana Family YMCA

Getting tough on education?

2009-10-17T16:53:00.000-04:00

Don Wheeler

In a pretty stunning story October 7, 2009 reporter Joseph Dits summarized presentations made by state education officials and their consultants at a Chamber of Conference of St. Joseph County summit.

I call it stunning because, though Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tony Bennett, revealed he had some quibbles with state policy, he chiefly laid the blame for poor results at the feet of local schools and their boards. And this exchange reported by Mr. Dits was very troubling.

Businessman Perry Watson III told the leaders they failed to speak of the importance of preschool and primary education. He also said he believed they need to talk about educating parents, saying, "There's a disproportionate burden on the system, and parents always get a pass."
Bennett said he is a proponent of preschool but doesn't think it's a cure for what's ailing education in kindergarten through 12th grade.

If Bennett really believes that, then he needs to be introduced to the vast number of studies which will pretty much unanimously confirm he has no idea what he's talking about. He can start with the National Institute of Early Education at Rutgers University. They routinely cover the results of state sponsored universal pre-kindergarten programs, which invariably provide measurably improved outcomes. The states of Oklahoma, New Mexico and others have had such programs in place for years. And Indiana....?

This state won't even fund universal full-day Kindergarten. Heck, Kindergarten attendance in Indiana is optional. Don't feel like enrolling your kid? No problem.

Additionally, Indiana cuts off admittance to grade level (by birthdate) earlier than any other state. This means children in Indiana begin their state provided education later than in anywhere else in the country. Add this all up, and it’s clear that one of the hardest jobs in the world is being a First Grade teacher in Indiana. In your classroom you'll find children with two years of pre-school - plus Kindergarten - under their belts, and possibly children who are in a school setting for the first time in their lives. There will be at least twenty of them altogether.

I wonder how Mr. Bennett figures these children who start late will make up these deficits. Does he think that it’s the job of these valiant First Grade Teachers to even the odds by the years end? Does he think these kids need to pull themselves up by their book straps? Neither will happen.

And this wisdom comes from a man who proposes that it isn't that important to know how to teach in order to teach. His claim is that people who major in the subject area they plan to teach, will learn more about the subject than an education major will. (I guess he thinks folks will figure out that teaching stuff on the job). This was neatly refuted by the Dean of the School of Education of Indiana University who pointed out that it is often the case that education majors are required to take more hours on the given subject than is required of students majoring in the subject.

And of course Mr. Bennett has tried to be helpful in so many other ways. Like insisting that school corporations can no longer have any half days in lieu of full days. This effectively eliminated the twice a year parent teacher conferences, because it would have required renegotiating teacher contracts in order to add days to the school calendar. As my daughter's first grade teacher pointed out, if what he wanted was to make sure children received a minimum time period in classes in a given year, he could have instituted an hour requirement - as Michigan uses. All a school system would need to do is lengthen the school day by a few minutes - not subject to contract amendment.

And you'd think if Mr. Bennett was looking for success for students, he'd advocate that all school systems utilize programs with proven track records - and admonish the legislature to fund such programs. Wouldn't you?

The Wilson/LiPS reading program, which focuses on the decoding and encoding of English words and stimulating phonemic awareness, has a stunning record of success. Introduced to the South Bend School Corporation by Hay Primary Center Principal Craig Haenes, through private donations it has become available in three other schools - but the School Corporation has no money to take it system wide. On the other hand, Wilson LiPS might be useful to our High Schoolers if we ignore early education.

In short, Mr. Bennett inspires little confidence he’s up to the task of improving our schools.

BPA in plastics linked to female aggression

2009-10-12T14:44:00.000-04:00

The first study to examine the effects of bisphenol A (BPA) on children's behavior found that girls whose mothers had the highest levels of the chemical during pregnancy were more aggressive at age 2 than other girls. BPA is commonly used to make plastic bottles durable and reusable. The findings closely match previous animal studies.

Neurobiologist Louann Brizendine told USA Today she fears small amounts of BPA, which mimics estrogen, contribute to "masculinizing" the female brain at a critical point in its development.

October 7 early ed news round-up

2009-10-12T09:02:00.002-04:00

October 7, 2009 Pre-K'ers Are Stepping Out
This year Georgia will see the enrollment of its one-millionth pre-k student and the entire state is celebrating. This year, the Georgia pre-k program will serve 82,000 children in approximately 4,100 classrooms in Georgia, according to information provided by Dade Elementary School counselor Tinena Bice.

October 7, 2009 Commentary: Fund Early Childhood Education
Despite the impressive funding gains, though, less than 30% of the nation's 3- and 4-year-olds are served by publicly funded early education. Federal action is needed urgently to reinforce states' progress and accelerate the growth of early learning programs.

October 6, 2009 Tax shortfall means cut in Denver preschool tuition aid
A tax-supported program that helps Denver families pay for preschool will cut its tuition reimbursements by 25 percent next fall — another victim of the economy. Early-childhood education advocates also fear greater cuts to the statewide Colorado Preschool Program that pays for preschool for the state's neediest children.

October 6, 2009 Governor Jim Doyle signs mandatory kindergarten into law
It's a law that some hope will put more teeth into the effort to get kids in school, and get them there early. Supporters says early education pays off by not only preparing kids [for] the first grade, but higher graduation rates later.

October 5, 2009 Educators start children on computers as early as pre-school
For these 5- and 6-year-olds, technology is a way of life, no different than using a crayon for their writing lessons. Technology has become increasingly prominent in classrooms and ever more important for the young generation.

October 4, 2009 Initiatives promote reading skills
In August, nearly 200 kits in the "Reading for All: Born Learning Lending Library" program were provided to local child care providers. The purpose of the Lending Library kit is to encourage early literacy among the children in child care and to promote literacy within the child's home.

October 1, 2009 Teachers stand by early education
A joint House-Senate committee recommended last week to keep funding that is designated for Great Start Readiness and other specific programs, but if the proposal passes, school districts may eliminate or downsize these programs to make up for a $218 per pupil cut.

October 1, 2009 Panel: Early child care, education remains key
Early child care and education is a growing concern for people across the nation. Two local groups recently undertook a survey that identified various issues and needs surrounding early child care in the Yankton area.

September 29, 2009 Official: Preschool could be provided to all at same cost
Preschool programs could be made available to all of Arkansas' 3- and 4-year-olds without additional state funding, the state's new education commissioner said Monday.

September 27, 2009 It's never too young to learn, advocates say
Debra Lore, a nurse with the state Nurse-Family Partnership program, brought the book. Lore worked with [LaSarah] Todd through her pregnancy, helped her graduate from high school, and is now showing her how to give her daughter an early start on learning.

Pre-K works in New Mexico

2009-10-12T08:47:00.002-04:00

from the National Institute of Early Education Research (NIEER) - Rutgers University

Continued Impacts of New Mexico PreK on Children's Readiness for Kindergarten: Results from the Third Year of Implementation

By Jason T. Hustedt, W. Steven Barnett, Kwanghee Jung, Alexandra Figueras-Daniel
September 2009

The third report in NIEER's multi-year study of New Mexico's prekindergarten program shows that children who attended the New Mexico PreK initiative scored higher in early math, language, and literacy than children who did not attend the program.

The authors of the report found that:

Children who attended New Mexico PreK during the 2007-2008 school year scored higher on assessments of early math and literacy skills in comparison to children who did not attend. These skills include addition and subtraction, telling time, knowledge of letters, and familiarity with words and book concepts. Gains in early math and literacy at kindergarten entry can be attributed to participating in New Mexico PreK programs the previous year.

Separate sets of analyses conducted for PreK programs offered by the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED) and the Children, Youth and Families Department (CYFD) show that PED and CYFD PreK programs produce similar results.

When the researchers combined child assessment data from the first three years of the New Mexico PreK program, they found further evidence that New Mexico PreK produces positive impacts on children's early math, language, and literacy skills.

Read the complete report

Early education news round-up... mid July

2009-07-18T16:19:00.000-04:00

July 17, 2009
Editorial: The value of preschool / One study, two lessons
The study found that Abbott students who attended preschool entered kindergarten significantly ahead of students who did not attend preschool. The advantages were most obvious in vocabulary, basic literacy skills and math, and the advantage lasted through second grade.

July 17, 2009
Preschool businesses get city tax break
Licensed, for-profit preschools and infant/toddler day care centers will receive property tax exemptions from the city under a bill passed Wednesday by the City Council. Supporters of the bill call it a matter of fairness, pointing out that K-12 schools already are exempt from property tax, other than a $100 minimum tax.

July 16, 2009
Opinion: Early education hones high skills
Tennessee's Voluntary Pre-K program is designed to teach children about their world, to understand relationships between other children and adults outside the family circle, to learn how to work together, solve problems and be successful, productive citizens.

July 16, 2009
Pre-K program will enroll millionth child
his fall, Georgia's Pre-K Program will become the first in the nation to serve its millionth child, Georgia first lady Mary Perdue said Wednesday.

July 15, 2009
Bill Would Spend More To Make College Affordable
Besides Pell Grants, $10 billion of the estimated $87 billion in savings from eliminating subsidies would go toward early childhood education, increasing the number of poor children with access to pre-kindergarten, among other things.

July 13, 2009
Are they ready for kindergarten?
Quite simply, school officials and others say, the need for preschool services is far greater than the resources available.

July 13, 2009
Gov unveils study that shows Abbott preschool program is working fine
The Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effects study found that children who participated in the Abbott preschool education program outperformed their peers in the first and second grades.

July 13, 2009
Towards Universal Pre-K: An Update from West Virginia
But West Virginia -- like Georgia, Oklahoma, Illinois and New York -- is also committed to building towards a voluntary, universal pre-k program for four-year olds.

July 12, 2009
State program to get 4-year-olds ready for school still a work in progress
With one of the highest access rates in the nation for 4-year-olds, Florida's program has been held up as a nationwide model, but with one of the lowest rates of per-child spending, experts say it has a long way to go.

July 12, 2009
Letter-to-the-editor: Helping Students, in and Out of School
Policy should instead be built on two undisputed foundations: only students who can read well can be educated well, and reading is a skill learned early, by third or fourth grade.

Resources
The Role of Technology in EC Teacher Education: Global Perspectives
This report from the World Forum Foundation's 2008 Working Forum for Teacher Educators discusses the role of distance education in delivering education for teachers. Authors Selena Fox and Chip Donohue share perspectives instructors should consider when launching a distance education program.

Kindergarten Readiness Data: Improving Children's Success in School
This policy brief from Children Now looks at the various aspects of using kindergarten readiness observation tools and the benefits of doing so for local and state education stakeholders. It draws on data from counties in California that have kindergarten readiness observation projects. The projects have enabled the counties to monitor their success in prepring children for school. The brief also looks at the ramifications of building the local endeavors into a statewide system.

Why Isn't Johnny in Preschool?
This report from Chicago-based POWER-PAC looks at why preschool attendance lags among children who are at most risk. Drawing on more than 5,000 interviews in low-income neighborhoods, it provides recommendations on how to increase enrollment.

NIEER news roundup

2009-07-03T07:06:00.004-04:00

July 2, 2009 Poll shows that when it comes to children, Michigan taxpayers don't mind spending a little more
The Lake Research Partners' poll showed that 74 percent of Michiganders are in favor of investing in early childhood development even if it raises their taxes. According to the Lake Research Partners poll, half of Michiganders believe the state already spends too little on early childhood development and education; six percent said the state spends too much.

July 2, 2009 Report Calls For New Initiative To Improve Math Education For Preschoolers
To ensure that all children enter elementary school with the foundation they need for success, a major national initiative is needed to improve early childhood mathematics education, says a new report from the National Research Council. Opportunities for preschoolers to learn mathematics are currently inadequate, particularly for those in low-income groups, says the report, which is intended to inform the efforts of Head Start, state-funded preschool programs, curriculum developers, and teachers.

July 1, 2009 Now preschoolers, too, are immersed in Chinese in Woodstock
The Yu Miao Chinese Immersion Preschool, at the former Our Lady of Sorrows School — just two blocks from Woodstock Elementary — offers an array of activities that help children learn Mandarin and gain skills in preparation for kindergarten. The preschool believes that just as young sprouts grow into great plants when given good nutrition and a good environment, so young children grow into great people when given good education within a caring context.

July 1, 2009 A tale of two preschool programs
Two programs, two departments, one goal: Give low-income children a head-start on their education by engaging the family in a subsidized preschool program. As the Even Start early childhood program lies on the chopping block, its close cousin, Head Start, is receiving billions in new stimulus funds.

June 30, 2009 As Many as 27,000 Children Cut From Preschool in New State Budget Plan
The latest budget proposed by the Illinois General Assembly cuts as many as 27,000 children -- most of them from low-income families -- from Preschool for All programs. High-quality preschools, like the programs funded through Preschool for All, provide valuable learning opportunities that far too many low-income children don't otherwise get.

June 29, 2009 Colo. education officials take early step in setting new standards
Next, the State Board of Education and the Colorado Commission on Higher Education plan to implement the definition as mandated by a bill passed in 2008. The bill, titled "Preschool to Postsecondary Alignment," directed state agencies to create a plan to expose students to options for life after high school graduation.

June 29, 2009 Editorial: Make preschool a funding priority
What may be Minnesota's most important educational report card was issued earlier this month, and the marks weren't good. The fall 2008 results of a yearly school readiness assessment of new kindergartners were down from 2007 on all five aspects of development measured.

June 29, 2009 Relationships Improve Student Success
When students are underachieving, school policymakers often examine class size, curriculum and funding, but University of Missouri researchers suggest establishing relationships may be a powerful and less expensive way to improve students' success. In a review of the research they show that students with positive attachments to their teachers and schools have higher grades and higher standardized test scores.

June 28, 2009 Letter-to-the-editor: Early learning cuts dropouts and crime
Research shows that high-quality early learning is an effective strategy to increase graduation rates. Long-term studies of high-quality preschools have found that at-risk kids who do not attend these programs tend to drop out of high school and abuse illegal drugs. They are 70 percent more likely to be arrested for a violent crime by age 18 and five times more likely to be repeat offenders by age 27.

June 25, 2009 Opinion: Preschool is a key to boosting graduation rates
The good news is that we know how to put our kids — and with them, our families, communities and economy — on the path to success. A new report by the RAND Corp. underscores what I have seen in almost four decades of working in education: We must start early.

June 24, 2009 Some Nashville schools will test smaller class size
The plan calls for no more than 25 students per teacher in grades 10-12, 20 students per teacher in grades 4-9 and 15 students per teacher in prekindergarten through third.

June 24, 2009 Study evaluates school readiness in Minnesota
The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) recently released results of its 2008 school readiness study, which has received some criticism by the Legislature for its data collection process and results analysis. This year's results show, based on information collected in 2008, that between 87 and 96 percent of 5-year-old children in the state were "in process" or "proficient" in physical development, the arts, personal and social development, language and literacy, and mathematical thinking, according to a press release from the MDE.

June 24, 2009 Preschool program faces ax from possible state budget cuts
The vote on the budget is Tuesday. If passed in its current form, [Early Learning Initiative] programs around Ohio would be phased out by Aug. 21.

NIEER Hot Topics 7/2

2009-07-03T07:00:00.002-04:00

New NRC Report: National Initiative Needed to Address Math Education in Pre-K

Opportunities for children in pre-K to learn mathematics are currently inadequate, a situation that needs to be addressed through a national math initiative, says a report released today by the National Research Council (NRC). Intended to inform the efforts of Head Start, state pre-K, curriculum developers and teachers, the report says the amount of time devoted to math needs to be increased in all public and private pre-K settings. Among its recommendations are that instruction concentrate on two areas — the concept of "number," including activities such as counting and determining relative quantities, and geometry, including activities that promote spatial thinking and measurement. Many of the issues brought up in the report are addressed in NIEER's new brief, Math and Science in Preschool: Policy and Practice.

Texas Governor's Surprise Veto Leaves Many Disappointed

When Texas Governor Rick Perry vetoed House Bill 130 late last month, it came as a surprise to many in politics and early education. The bill, which included $268 million to raise pre-K standards and provide full-day instruction, was sponsored by fellow Republican Representative Diane Patrick. The bill enjoyed what one advocate termed the broadest bipartisan support of any bill in the last session of the legislature, and its framers had consulted the governor's office. Perry defended the veto, saying any new funding for pre-K might better go toward expanding access to half-day programs for disadvantaged children. He left $25 million in the budget for that purpose.

Illinois Budget Battle Threatens Progress of Preschool for All

Trouble is brewing for Illinois' acclaimed Preschool for All Program. This week, Governor Pat Quinn said he'll veto the latest budget proposed by the state's General Assembly because it cuts human services such as early childhood programs. According to the Ounce of Prevention Fund, the Assembly budget would cut as many as 27,000 children from Preschool for All. Quinn wants to generate $4 billion through an income tax increase — something the legislature is resisting. House Speaker Mike Madigan says he will call lawmakers back in mid-July to override the Governor's veto. Illinois isn't the only state facing big cuts. Ohio Governor Ted Strickland is recommending elimination of the state's Early Learning Initiative launched in 2005 to provide full-day, year-round pre-K to children of working families.

Joan Lombardi Joins Administration for Children and Families

Well-known early childhood expert Joan Lombardi has been appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary and Inter-Departmental Liaison for Early Childhood Development in the Administration for Children and Families. Lombardi, who is the founding chair of the Birth to Five Policy Alliance, also served in the Administration for Children and Families in the 1990s.

NIEER Early Ed. news roundup

2009-06-05T06:39:00.001-04:00

June 3, 2009Generals: Youths unfit for military
The future strength of America's military may rest with our pre-school children. And unless things change, that worries a group of senior retired military officers who foresee a generation that is incapable of defending the nation.

June 3, 2009Nationally, statistics show Head Start programs work
A national Head Start impact study by the Society for Research in Child Development for the Department of Health and Human Services found evidence of the program's benefits on low-income families. The study found nationally, Head Start reduced the achievement gap by 45 percent in pre-reading skills between Head Start children and the national average for all 3- and 4-year-olds.

June 3, 2009Editorial: Invest in early childhood ed
The City of San Antonio recently awarded new contracts for its Head Start Program, and the Texas Legislature approved $25 million for a grant program to allow school districts to expand their half-day pre-k programs to full-day if they want. The bill, however, carries a stipulation that a school district would have to use at least 20 percent of the grant funds to contract with one or more community providers.

June 3, 2009Recession May Have Lasting Impact On Kids
The current recession could be over by the year's end, but its impact on children will continue through next year and may virtually erase decades of improvements in American children's well-being, according to a new report by the Foundation for Child Development. The recession's impacts -- especially on poor and very young children -- could be profound unless policies are changed to help strengthen families in times of hardship and to acknowledge the importance of early childhood education, child advocates said Wednesday.

June 2, 2009Inclusion for preschoolers with disabilities
Until this year, Denver Public Schools would have placed Arianna with other preschool kids with disabilities in a self-contained classroom staffed by special-education teachers and therapists. This year the district tried out a pilot program to include 50 kids with disabilities in six of its preschools, and Arianna is in one of them.

June 2, 2009TV Interferes With Infants' Language Development
Television reduces verbal interaction between parents and infants, which could delay children's language development, says a U.S. study that challenges claims that certain infant-targeted DVDs actually benefit youngsters.

June 2, 2009Stop the Violence: The Preschool Problem
Some believe access to high-quality early education may be the key to helping stop the violence. The problem is those children considered to have the greatest need for preschool are the least likely to be enrolled.

June 1, 2009A Changing Student Body
A study tracking a group of children born in 2001 found that those living in poverty are less likely to have someone read to them, tell them stories or sing to them. At age 4, children in families at or above the poverty line were better able to recognize letters, numbers and shapes.

June 1, 2009Budget crunch delays preschool expansion
Governor Corzine's preschool expansion plan — a major part of the new school funding law that won constitutional approval by the state Supreme Court last week — is on hold, with no funds for new classes included in next year's recession-crunched budget.

May 29, 200953 preschools launch this fall, but state misses goal
Another 53 Iowa schools will launch preschool programs in the upcoming school year despite a 23 percent reduction in state money that was promised two years ago, education officials announced Thursday.

Hot Topics (NIEER) 6/4

2009-06-05T06:24:00.003-04:00

CWI Creators: Recession to Wipe Out Most Family Well-Being Gains Since 1975

The data won't be available for another two or three years, but The Foundation for Child Development (FCD) has issued a special report that projects the extent of impacts of the current recession on family well-being. The report says the percentage of children in poverty is expected to peak at 21 percent in 2010. At some point next year, 27 percent of children will have at least one parent not working full-time year-round. Median annual family income will decline from $59,200 in 2007 to $55,700 in 2010. While income for female-headed households will drop, the steepest drop will be for male-headed households. The FCD predicts social and health consequences as well.

Study Says California Needs to Work on Quality, Streamlining of Pre-K

The last in the series of RAND reports from the California Preschool Study recommends the state take measures to increase the quality of programs and make sure they get delivered to the state's 4-year-olds from families with income up to 240 percent above poverty level and 3-year-olds from families below poverty level. Among the near-term steps the report recommends are developing a quality rating system, providing web-based reports accessible to parents, and modifying contract rules for government-subsidized programs that reduce the amount of available funds that go unused.

Full-Day Head Start Pays Off in Montgomery County, MD

When Maryland's Montgomery County Public Schools offered the district's Title 1 schools the opportunity to expand Head Start half-day pre-K to full-day, the idea was to improve the prospects for non-English speaking children and those affected by poverty. It worked. A research report from the district suggests the kids in full-day programs made significantly larger gains in reading skills compared with children in the half-day programs.

Pre-K to 3: How One School Builds on Pre-K Gains

Another example of leadership from Montgomery County Public Schools comes by way of a 7-minute boots-on-the-ground video from the New America Foundation. It follows education blogger Christina Satkowski on her visit to Broad Acres Elementary School where third grade classes have made a startling turn-around in reading and math. It's the result of a plan implemented by Superintendent Jerry Weast to expand high-quality pre-K and rewrite and align curricula through third grade in an effort to maintain the momentum of gains made in pre-K. He says these days, those gains at Broad Acres continue to build rather than fade.

Hot topics (from NIEER) 5/21

2009-05-21T19:30:00.001-04:00

May 21, 2009
Raising kids with global intelligence
According to Mary Lynn Redmond, director of foreign language education at Wake Forest University, young children pick up a foreign language easier than older children and adults. "[Children in] elementary grades and preschool are very much in development stages. Their linguistic, cognition and emotional ability changes over time," she said, emphasizing the teaching approach is more "playful" and conversational.

May 21, 2009
Letter to the Editor: Is Universal Pre-K a Good Deal?
A Rand Corp. study in California found that children from all income strata attended poor-quality programs unless they could get into state-funded preschool. This says that government should help give families access to effective preschools.

May 21, 2009
Early Childhood Educators Fear Doomsday Budget
Staff at Illinois pre-schools are singing a sad tune after seeing the governor's plan to cut funding. If the state takes those funds away 100,000 Illinois children would be affected.

May 20, 2009
Governor cancels most tax rebates to trim budget
The state would also raise income taxes on people earning $400,000 to $500,000 and those earning over $1 million and cancel the expansion of a preschool program as part of Gov. Jon Corzine's plan to close a multibillion-dollar budget gap, the treasurer said.

May 20, 2009
Kids learn language from other kids
A new study, published in the journal Child Development by researchers from University of Virginia and Ohio State University demonstrates that classmates and peers play a role in the formation of both receptive (listening) and expressive (speaking) language skills. The researchers found that when a child's classmates had more advanced language skills, the child would be able to speak and understand words at a faster pace.

May 19, 2009
Column: Where do preschoolers learn most?
What we do know is that high-quality early childhood education has been proven to save up to $17 for every dollar it costs because it leads to better academic success, fewer special-education expenditures, greater chances for employment and productivity, and less risk of ending up in jail. We have known for decades that the key to school readiness and becoming a lifelong learner lies in the early experiences that help develop important qualities such as persistence, perseverance, curiosity, the capacity to tolerate frustration and the self-esteem to keep on trying even after making a mistake.

May 19, 2009
$244M cut proposed for Ohio pre-K programs
Early childhood advocates say planned cuts to Ohio's pre-kindergarten programs will shortchange children at the most critical time in their development, but the Ohio Senate says it simply has no more money to offer.

May 19, 2009
Gov. signs Wash. school reform plan
A plan to overhaul Washington's K-12 education system was signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Chris Gregoire, but she vetoed parts of the measure focusing on preschool and gifted education.

May 18, 2009
Kids who learn math skills early have lasting advantage
Two Wilfrid Laurier University professors have found that when parents play with their young children, they hardly spend any time teaching them about amounts and numbers. Yet if parents knew how to talk about math concepts, they'd give their children an advantage that would last all through their school years.

May 16, 2009
Early foundation: Pre-k gives students much-needed boost
The early bird catches the worm, but Mississippi remains one of the few states in the nation without a state-funded pre-kindergarten program, which likely would go a long way toward moving the state up from the bottom rankings of educational progress.

NIEER newsletter - May

2009-05-21T19:11:00.004-04:00

Hot Topics

Voters Give California Proposition 1D Thumbs Down
Proposition 1D, the California ballot measure that would have temporarily redirected up to 50 percent of the tobacco tax revenue dedicated to early childhood programs to plug holes in the general budget, went down in defeat this week. Early childhood became a target as the state's economic circumstances grew dire and political leaders recognized that California's First 5 Commission, which receives the tobacco tax revenue, currently have about $2.5 billion in unspent funds. California faces a deficit in the neighborhood of $20 billion.

Latest New Jersey Budget Cuts Pre-K Expansion
New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine's most recent budget proposal eliminates $25 million that was dedicated to expanding state pre-K. Until now, Corzine had spared the pre-K expansion initiative from the budget knife, but he said the widening deficit the state faces necessitated postponement of the expansion and elimination of property tax rebates for most homeowners.

Washington Governor Vetoes Pre-K Portion of State Education Bill
Chris Gregoire, the pro-pre-K governor of Washington state, surprised many when she vetoed the portion of the state's new education reform bill that focuses on preschool education. Gregoire, who had informed preschool advocates in advance, said she vetoed the pre-K part because it targets state pre-K to at-risk children only and doesn't recognize that all children in Washington deserve state-funded preschool education. She said provision of state pre-K requires further study.

New Study:

Preschoolers' Language Development Influenced by Classmates' SkillsUniversity of Virginia researchers have found that children’s abilities to speak and understand words developed faster when they were with classmates with better language skills. Andrew J. Mashburn and colleagues studied preschoolers in more than 450 pre-K classrooms in 11 states, testing their skills in receptive language and expressive language at the start and end of pre-K. The authors say that while the positive effects from classmates were small, they have implications in such areas as the desired composition of children in pre-K classrooms and how much emphasis language curricula place on teacher-managed instruction. The article appears in Child Development, Volume 80, Issue 3.

Melendez de Santa Ana Nominated for Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary EducationPresident Obama has nominated Thelma Melendez de Santa Ana to serve as Assistant Secretary of Elementary and Secondary Education. The nominee is currently the superintendent of the Pomona Unified School District in California. Over her career she has served in various roles, including as a bilingual teacher, elementary school principal, and executive at the Stupski Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to education reform and innovation. Melendez de Santa Ana will oversee a number of programs that intersect with early education.

New on nieer.org

Ted Kennedy Talks with Preschool Matters about Challenges in Early Ed Senator Ted Kennedy is our Newsmaker in the issue of Preschool Matters just off the press. He talks about investing in a more coherent system of early education, the federal role in it, and bi-partisanship.

Other articles in the new issue include:

• Can State Pre-K Be Saved?
• Illinois: Building a Better ECE System
What Leads to Literacy?
• Discoveries: Predictors of Peer Victimization in Preschool

NIEER newsletter 5/8

2009-05-09T07:35:00.002-04:00

Hot Topics

Early Education Gets a Boost in Department of Education's FY 2010 BudgetThere were pleasant surprises for early education in the Department of Education FY 2010 budget proposal released yesterday. Among them were two new programs — one to fund Title I preschool programs and another to help states raise pre-K program quality. Highlights include:

• $500 million for a new program of Title I Early Childhood Grants, which would encourage local education agencies to use a portion of the increase in Title I Grants to start or expand Title I preschool programs.
• $300 million for the new Early Learning Challenge Fund, a component of the president's Zero-to-Five initiative that will provide grants to state education agencies for the development of state plans and infrastructure to raise the quality of publicly funded early learning programs.
• $370.4 million for an expanded Striving Readers program that, in addition to promoting the development and implementation of research-based interventions that improve the skills of teenage students who are reading below grade level, would provide demonstration grants to local education agencies to implement comprehensive and coherent programs of reading instruction for children in the elementary grades.
• $162.5 million for Early Reading First, an increase of $50 million, for support of an additional 52 grants to enable early childhood programs to improve the quality of their early literacy services for preschool-aged children.
• $10 million for the Promise Neighborhoods initiative to provide 1-year planning grants to non-profit, community-based organizations to enable them to develop plans and establish partnerships for the development of comprehensive neighborhood programs for children and youth, from birth through college.

The proposed budget eliminates Even Start, the 20-year-old program supporting family literacy through early childhood education and adult education. National evaluations have found that children and adults participating in the program made no greater literacy gains than non-participants. The Obama administration said the resources dedicated to Even Start ($66.5 million in FY 09) would be better directed to other early childhood programs. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services has budgeted $124 million for competitive grants for home visitation programs. DOE's budget summary is available on the web.

Majority of Governors are Increasing or Protecting Pre-K

A national analysis of state-funded preschool released this week by Pre-K Now finds that as governors confront the fiscal crisis, the majority of them are either increasing or protecting their state's investments in pre-K for the coming fiscal year. Highlights of the analysis:

• Fourteen governors are proposing to increase pre-K funding.
• Thirteen are proposing to flat fund early education.
• Governors of three states with no public pre-K are proposing new programs.
• Five governors are proposing to cut pre-K funding.
• Total proposed state investment in pre-K for FY 2010 is four percent greater than FY 2009 appropriations.

Steering Stimulus Money to Pre-K is No Simple Matter

With funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) now allocated among the states, the push is on to develop plans for accessing the money. Since the intent is to be temporary, stimulative and beneficial to program quality, uses like teacher training and developing quality improvement and rating systems rise to the occasion. Less certain are other uses such as applying stimulus money toward keeping kids in state-funded pre-K where states are cutting funding. A number of resources have been developed in recent days that offer guidance on the various pots of funding contained in ARRA, what the stipulations are, and ways to go about qualifying for funds. The National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center makes them available at its web site. Meanwhile, a new report from Learning Point Associates and Mission Measurement, titled The Education Stimulus: Too Big to Fail, examines challenges and concerns that are emerging among education leaders regarding application of the stimulus money.

Imaging Study Finds Brain Abnormalities in Toddlers with Autism

Science has known that an enlargement of the brain in young children often correlates with autism. A study reported in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry points to enlargement of the amygdala, the brain area associated with functions such as processing faces and emotion, as correlating with autism. A brain imaging study of 50 autistic children and 33 control children at ages 2 and 4 found that those with enlarged amygdalas at age 2 were more likely to demonstrate autistic behavior. The report said the autistic children had enlarged amygdalas prior to age 2 and they stayed enlarged through age 4.

Denver Preschool Program Ahead of Schedule

Denver Preschool Program CEO James Mejia reports that after 16 months of operation, enrollment has passed the 5,000-children mark, a milestone planners hadn't expected to reach this soon. In 2007, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper pushed for and voters approved a sales tax increase to fund preschool for all in the city.
Vinci is New Chief at the National Head Start AssociationYasmina Vinci has taken the helm as executive director of the National Head Start Association. She takes over from Michael McGrady who stepped in as interim executive director 17 months ago following the departure of Sarah Greene. Vinci was the executive director of the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) where she served for 11 years.

Nazario Tapped for Post at HHS

President Obama has nominated Carmen Nazario to serve as the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services. Nazario served as Administrator of the Administration for Children and Families for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico from 2003 to 2008. During the Clinton administration she was Associate Commissioner for Child Care in the Administration on Children, Youth and Families and later became Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Administration for Children and Families. She's currently an assistant professor at the Inter American University of Puerto Rico.

NIEER newsletter 4/24

2009-04-24T17:00:00.002-04:00

Hot Topics

U.S. Senator Casey Introduces Bill That Would Boost State Pre-K
Congressional Quarterly reports that Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania has introduced a bill (S. 839) that would provide grants for states to provide at least one year of voluntary high-quality pre-K to low-income children. Among its provisions, the Prepare All Kids Act calls for programs to use research-based curricula, have children-to-teacher ratios no greater than ten to one and require teachers to have bachelor's degrees within six years. Casey proposes housing the program in the U.S. Department of Education. He is quoted as saying "…what's lacking is a real strategy for early education beyond what we have in Head Start." The bill is similar to one by the same name that he introduced in 2007. He did not provide an estimate of the program's cost.

North Carolina's More At Four Program Remains in Danger
A budget plan passed in the North Carolina Senate calls for More at Four, the high-quality preschool program created by former governor Mike Easley, to be cut by $40 million and shifted from the Department of Public Instruction to the Department of Health and Human Services. The Senate budget is now in the House but Speaker Joe Hackney has as yet made no assurances the funding will be restored.

California Proposition 1D Would Siphon Money Out of Fund for ECE
It was more than a decade ago that Rob Reiner successfully championed Proposition 10, the measure that financed early childhood development programs through a 50-cent-per pack cigarette tax. Now a new ballot measure, Proposition 1D, asks voters to approve shifting nearly $1.7 billion out of the surpluses in that fund to help balance the state's general fund. Another ballot measure, Proposition 1E, would siphon $460 million from surpluses in a fund for mental health services. Senate President Pro Tem, Darrell Steinberg, a supporter of early childhood education who pushed for Prop. 1D termed it a "temporary sacrifice" but Reiner doesn't see it that way.

World Bank Report: Latin America Needs Early Childhood Development Programs
A soon-to-be published report from the World Bank says early childhood development services across Latin America cover only a small fraction of the beneficiary populations, noting that in terms of inequality of opportunity between the haves and the have-nots, the region is second only to sub-Saharan Africa. Titled "The Promise of Early Childhood Development in Latin America and the Caribbean," it addresses the substantial returns to be gained from investment in early childhood services in the various countries in the region and makes policy recommendations. Details are available at the World Bankweb site.

PNC Announces "Grow Up Great with Science"
The PNC Foundation announced this week it is pledging up to $6 million in three-year grants to regional science centers and nonprofits to expand science opportunities for preschoolers. Called "Grow Up Great with Science," it is part of PNC Financial Services Group's 10-year $100 million philanthropic effort in early education that started in 2004. Bank officials and guests, including Elmo from Sesame Street, celebrated the program's launch at the National Air and Space Museum - one of the 14 science centers to receive funding. A recent NIEER working paper shows that teachers tend not to support science and math learning in pre-K.

In Japan, Preschoolers are Attending "Cram Schools"
The Christian Science Monitor reports that in order to compete for the best primary schools Japanese parents are now sending their preschoolers and kindergartners to ojuken, or cram schools, where they take special classes and complete workbooks. The schools are viewed as supplements to Japan's play-based early education policy. Read the full story here: http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0423/p06s01-woap.html.

Early Education News Roundup

2009-04-09T08:54:00.002-04:00

courtesy of the National Institute of Early Education Rresearch - Rutgers University

April 8, 2009
Recession Stalls State-Financed Pre-Kindergarten, but Federal Money May Help
One of the most drastic expansions of public education in recent American history unfolded quietly in this decade, as dozens of states added free pre-kindergarten classes to their traditional kindergarten to high school offerings.

April 8, 2009
Playing Nice: Teachers Learn to Help Kids Behave in School
Daily playtimes are a centerpiece of the curriculum used in Ms. Randle's Head Start classroom, "Tools of the Mind" -- which incorporates training in "executive function," or the mental ability to control impulses and focus on new information, into children's routine.

April 2, 2009
Opinion: Easy does it with early childhood changes
North Carolina leaders have for some time recognized the critical role of early education in improving the later lives of young children. High-quality early education programs reduce the need for later remedial services, increase completion rates of high school and higher education, lower the rate of "retention in grade" and generally help those children who participate to lead more productive lives. The General Assembly is considering changes in our services to young children that will undo years of progress that have led to improved school performance.

March 30, 2009
State budget cuts threaten autism services for children
Early intervention and preschool special education programs were created to solve problems for children before they enter the public school system. Successful early intervention can decrease school failure and crime and increase economic productivity, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research.

March 30, 2009
Helping kindergarten transition
Public schools in Ohio and across the nation need to do more to help youngsters make the move from preschool to kindergarten, according to a report released today by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Education Commission of the States.

March 29, 2009
Educators explore kindergarten standards
How do you know if a child is ready for kindergarten? That's a loaded question among educators, but the Ready For School Council in the Holland-Zeeland area is determined to come up with a common definition since Michigan school officials have not.

March 27, 2009
Stimulus Providing Big Funding Boost For Early Childhood
Advocates for early-childhood education are taking President Obama at his word that the billions of dollars for programs like Head Start included in the recent economic-stimulus package are merely a "down payment" on future expansion. So, while other education officials are weighing the risks of starting new programs with federal money that may dry up in two years, early-childhood programs are ramping up for expansion after years of being underfunded, their supporters say.

March 26, 2009
New formula for funding N.J. schools ruled legal
A Superior Court judge declared the state's school-funding formula constitutional yesterday, ruling in favor of the Corzine administration and against advocates for poor students. The decision could abolish the controversial Abbott program, which has sent billions of state tax dollars to 31 low-income districts including Elizabeth, Perth Amboy and Newark.

NIEER newsletter

2009-04-09T08:48:00.001-04:00

Hot Topics

NIEER Releases State of Preschool 2008 Yearbook
NIEER's annual analysis of state-funded preschool programs, released today at the Oyster-Adams Bilingual School in Washington, D.C., shows impressive expansion in enrollment and spending. Key findings in The State of Preschool 2008 include these:

• Enrollment increased by more than 108,000 children. More than 1.1 million children attended state-funded preschool education, 973,178 at age 4 alone.
• Thirty-three of the 38 states with state-funded programs increased enrollment.
• Based on NIEER's Quality Standards Checklist, 11 states improved the quality of their preschool programs. Only one fell back.
• State funding for pre-K rose to almost $4.6 billion. Funding for state pre-K from all reported sources exceeded $5.2 billion, an increase of nearly $1 billion (23 percent) over the previous year.

The new yearbook is available online.

Ed Secretary Arne Duncan Speaks at Preschool Yearbook Release
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joined NIEER Director Steve Barnett for the yearbook release. "Early childhood education is an economic stimulus package," he told the crowd. Duncan underscored the need for high-quality programs if they are to be effective and outlined the various ways the economic stimulus package invests in early education, from expanding Head Start and Early Head Start to doing more for children with special needs to providing first time parents with home visits.

Duncan said President Obama's Zero to Five initiative supported by the fiscal year 2010 budget will leverage investments in early childhood education across the country to increase program quality, support coordination among programs and provide parents with information to choose the best programs for their children. He reiterated the president's plan to establish a Presidential Early Learning Council to examine better ways to integrate preschool programs and resources. "We are eager to listen ... but we are also issuing a challenge," Duncan said, referring to the need to raise program quality and the administration's plan to issue Early Learning Challenge Grants to reward quality and innovation. "Your preschool yearbook shows even though the quality of state preschool is up, five states meet fewer than half of the NIEER quality benchmarks. That's five too many," he said. Video of the yearbook release is available from C-SPAN.

Barnett: Outlook for State Pre-K is Uncertain, Proposes Federal Initiative
The difficult economy and sharply declining state revenues have combined to darken the outlook for the immediate future of state-funded preschool, NIEER Director Steve Barnett warned the group. He pointed out that in most states expenditures on pre-K are entirely discretionary and therefore easier to cut than expenditures for K-12 education. Barnett warned that several of the biggest states are considering enrollment cuts, reductions in program standards, and/or postponement of expansion plans — this despite the availability of new federal stimulus funds. Nine states have already cut funding for state pre-K and more have cuts under consideration. Perhaps the most disastrous proposal so far is legislation in the North Carolina Senate that proposes to zero out funding to the North Carolina Department of Education for More at Four, one of only two programs in the country that meets all 10 of NIEER's benchmarks for quality standards. The state Senate would substitute more poorly funded services through child care, though supposedly with the same standards.

Barnett pointed out that state pre-K receives no direct help from the federal stimulus package and that a new federal program to support state pre-K would be a big plus for expanding quality and enrollment. "We propose that the federal government commit to doubling the rate of growth in state pre-K while raising state quality standards so that by the year 2020 all 4-year-olds in America will have access to a good education," Barnett said. To do this, he said the federal government should match state spending with up to $2,500 for every additional child enrolled in state pre-K programs meeting basic quality standards. In addition, the federal government should facilitate increased integration of child care, Head Start, and state pre-K. NIEER's news release is available online.

Internecine

2009-03-20T09:18:00.003-04:00

Don Wheeler

One of my supporters in the most recent school board elections, Fern Hamlin, used this word in a letter of endorsement. Here's what she said:

"I have had children in the South Bend schools for the last 20 years, and I continue to be appalled by the school board's inability to address the problems that plague our schools and hamper our children's achievement and success. We need school board members who can move beyond internecine squabbles and imagined personal slights. We need school board members who can identify and focus on the most important problems our schools face, investigate these problems thoroughly and rationally, work together to solve them, plan creatively for the future, and work in harmony with the school corporation administration."

I was intrigued by the word "internecine" - it was totally unfamiliar to me. So I consulted Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary - Unabridged, for some help.

I quickly dismissed the first definition. The reference to "great slaughter" seemed off her point. But the second one looked to be a better fit: deadly to both sides; mutually destructive.

I thought of this when a new squabble surfaced regarding school security advisory committees. From Joseph Dits and the South Bend Tribune:

School board President Sheila Bergeron is setting up a committee to look at security issues in the South Bend Community School Corp. She said it will include principals, teachers, students, parents, community members and school resource officers, along with board trustees Stephanie Spivey, Ralph Pieniazkiewicz and Bill Sniadecki.

She announced it at Monday's board meeting. Bergeron said the idea is to balance out the perspectives of a safety committee that Superintendent James Kapsa had just announced last Friday. Kapsa's committee includes the corporation's security director, Bill Bernhardt, board trustee Roger Parent, and four community members with experience in police work, education and Latino affairs: Michael Carrington, Charles Hurley, Carlis Phillips Sr. and Federico Thon. They said Friday they'll be talking with teachers, parents, students, juvenile court judges and anyone with a stake in school safety.

Trustee Bill Sniadecki said Monday he was disappointed, having learned about Kapsa's committee via an article in The Tribune. Sniadecki said he's shown an interest in security and was surprised to see Parent on Kapsa's committee. Parent explained that he'd shown an interest in security during last fall's elections. Kapsa said he was following through on goals and priorities he'd discussed with the board March 4, which include reaching outside the corporation for help.

It sounds like we're going to have rival groups addressing the same issues. Does this sound nuts to anyone else?

I don't know how this situation arose, but someone or some people made a mistake in communication. We should agree on that, figure out a way to blend these groups that is acceptable to all concerned, and concentrate on the important task.

People make mistakes. Grownups should be able to accept responsibility, accept good faith efforts of remediation when they feel wronged, and move on to the work.

Episodes like this cause a great deal of impatience in the community - and a deadly attitude of fatalism. And we just can't afford it.

A decision about our values

2009-03-16T12:43:00.001-04:00

Don Wheeler

remarks as prepared for the business meeting of the South Bend Community School Corporation Board of Trustees - 3/16/09

I strongly favor treating Kindergarten as being of equal value to all other classes taught in the SBCSC, therefore; I urge you to fund universal normal school day length classes for our Kindergartners.

I think that it is unfortunate you are put in the position where a choice is necessary. I believe it is a dereliction of duty of the state that causes this. The State, while claiming the primal importance of public education, still considers Kindergarten optional, won’t fund it properly, and lets our children leave the system (of their own accord) both before they have enough experience to make an informed decision and before their education is anything like complete.

What the state ought to be doing is taking a hard look at programs like the State of Oklahoma has. For ten years, Oklahoma has offered an optional pre-Kindergarten year. The program has a sixty percent participation level at this point, and has paid many dividends to citizens of the state. Universal normal school day length Kindergarten classes are a given there.

Clearly, Indiana has a way to go ... and so here we are. You are the ones left to pick up the pieces.

I’m sensitive to those who voice budget concerns about this measure. But I’d point out that a budget is the clearest statement of values any organization or community can make. By passing this, the Board of Trustees will tell us that they understand a true commitment to successful outcomes for all our children requires maximum effort towards getting our youngest citizens off to the best start possible…even when it’s not easy to do. You will also be making a strategic, proactive decision – rather than a reactive one.

Should the Board fail to take this step – again – the message will be quite different – but equally clear. But I have confidence you won’t do that.

Since I have a daughter in Kindergarten, and some of you may not, I’d like to share some observations about the current program.

Sarah attends Hay Primary Center. Her principal, Craig Haenes championed and pioneered the Wilson LiPS reading program in the corporation. Her teacher, Dixie Eichorst, is one of those people who are both supremely good at what they do and seem to love it as well. And she’s done it quite a while. We have no worries for our daughter.

Sarah’s class only meets for about two and a half hours a day. When there are half days scheduled, her class typically doesn’t meet at all. But the expectations are the same for all Kindergartners - which means that there’s a fair amount of homework. As five-year-olds, Sarah and her classmates need to complete two pages (both sides) every day to keep up. Plus, her mother and I had to figure out how to cover the part of the day she would have been in class. We have the means and the flexibility to pull this stuff off, but what about the children in more challenging situations? Those children’s parents, parent, or guardian may not have the sort of advantages our family has.

Those children may not have the guidance it takes to form this new homework routine. Those children might not have two years of high quality pre-school (ECDC at St. Mary’s) behind them – as Sarah does – which could help them offset these problems. Some of those young citizens may be starting their public education experience at a disadvantage because of our current program. I am aware of no point in our current program designed to address that deficit.

Mr. Kapsa, Board members, let’s take this important step towards getting our children off to the best start possible. Let’s use this decision as a foundation to form a solid early education strategy, where all our students take a trip down Light Bulb Lane and gain the benefits of the Wilson LiPS reading program. And let’s look for other opportunities in the future.

We can’t try to play catch-up with High Schoolers as our main strategy for good outcomes. If we’re ever to break the cycle of too many of our children failing to graduate High School, we have to take every opportunity to get them to High School ready for High School – and to Intermediate Centers before that.

Clearly, the only way we can achieve transformational change in student outcomes is to concentrate on ensuring our children leave Primary Centers ready for the next step. The best way to achieve that is to give our youngest students the best start possible.

I ask that you adopt item 9.04 of tonight’s agenda.

2009-03-12T07:57:00.000-04:00

NIEER recommends early childhood stimulus proposals

2009-01-16T15:46:00.003-05:00

NIEER Recommends Early Childhood Stimulus Proposals for Obama Administration

At the request of President-elect Obama's transition team, NIEER Co-Directors Steve Barnett and Ellen Frede have developed recommendations on federal investments in preschool education and child care. They made the following four recommendations for the President-elect to consider implementing in the first 100 days of his administration.

Stop thinking small when it comes to young children. Pass a stimulus package
that includes $15 billion in construction over two years for early care and
education for 1 million children under age 5.
Offer states up to $3 billion over two years in matching grants to maintain and increase their early care and education spending. • Increase funding for Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant.

• Create the presidential Early Learning Council alluded to during the campaign to coordinate federal early care and education programs and facilitate federal-state cooperation. Read all of their recommendations in this brief.
Economic Stimulus Proposal Includes $4.7 Billion for Early Ed

House Democrats on Thursday unveiled an $825 billion economic recovery plan, the American Recovery and Reinvestment bill, designed to stimulate the economy. The House Appropriations Committee released a summary of the bill, providing details on the bill's nine major components, one of which is titled "Education for the 21st Century." Specifically, the bill calls for these investments in early education:

• $2 billion invested in the Child Care Development Block Grant to provide child care services for an additional 300,000 children in low-income, working families.
• $2.1 billion invested in Head Start to provide comprehensive services for an additional 110,000 infants, toddlers and preschoolers from low-income families.
• $600 million invested in IDEA Infants and Families to provide grants to states serving children with special needs from birth to age 2. In addition, the bill proposes more than $140 billion to improve the quality of K-12 education and to support higher education. Some of the K-12 investments include improving teacher quality, providing comprehensive services to homeless children, and increasing the federal share of special education costs.

National Early Literacy Panel Identifies Early Skills That Predict Later Literacy

A much-anticipated report from the National Early Literacy Panel draws on a large body of research to illuminate early skills that best predict later success in decoding, reading comprehension, and spelling achievement. Developing Early Literacy also identifies interventions and instructional approaches that improve children's early literacy skills as well as areas where further research is needed.

"This report provides important clues about early skills that are associated with later learning, but the results need to be viewed with caution as they are mostly corelational. For example, the report finds that a young child who can rapidly identify letters or remember a string of letters will likely be a better reader. However, it does not follow that if we drill 4-year-olds in rapid letter naming or memorizing strings of letters, this will result in better reading. These types of discrete skills are indicative of cognitive processing speed, which is likely the underlying ability that affects both rapid letter naming and later reading skill. The one is unlikely to cause the other," says NIEER Co-Director Ellen Frede.

Serving on the National Early Literacy Panel was NIEER Senior Research Fellow and Rutgers Professor Dorothy Strickland. She and NIEER Assistant Research Professor Shannon Riley-Ayers co-authored Early Literacy: Policy and Practice in the Preschool Years.

What Should Be Learned in a Preschool Curriculum?

The Albert Shanker Institute answers that question in their new report Preschool Curriculum: What's In It for Children and Teachers?. Drawing on the research, Tanya S. Wright and Susan B. Neuman offer guidance to practitioners and policymakers, covering key content areas such as oral language, pre-literacy, mathematics and science. The Institute is endowed by the American Federation of Teachers.

Minnesota Study: Lack of School Readiness Costs K-12 System $113 Million

Findings from a Bush Foundation cost-benefit study in Minnesota peg the costs incurred by the state's K-12 system due to children who are unprepared for kindergarten at $113 million. That's a big piece of the $377 million the study estimates it would cost to provide two years of high-quality pre-K to all low-income 3-year-olds not currently getting early education.

Vermont Governor Recommends Budget Cuts and Hike for Pre-K

Like many governors these days, Vermont Governor James H. Douglas is talking about painful cuts that must be made in the state budget. When it comes to early education, his tone changes, however. In his inaugural address, Douglas said spending for public education reveals a "startling imbalance" in spending for early education, K-12, and higher education. He is recommending a 20 percent increase in funding for early education and higher education as a first step toward correcting that imbalance.

Top Brass Push for Early Ed Investments to Improve Recruitment Pool

Writing in Politico, former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair General Hugh Shelton and former Navy Secretary John H. Dalton paint a stark picture of the pool of candidates from which the military draws recruits: more than 72 percent of 17- to 24-year-olds do not meet the basic educational, physical and moral standards required for service. They call for providing at-risk children with high-quality early education as the most reliable way to improve the pool. Not providing it could pose a threat to our national security, they say. Shelton and Dalton have joined with other retired military leaders to form a nonprofit organization aptly named "Mission: Readiness" that will advocate for this and other remedies.

High School scheduling decision likely tonight

2009-01-12T12:56:00.003-05:00

In all likelihood, the South Bend Community School Corporation Board of Trustees will vote to change the school year and class length at their business meeting tonight. The change will be to a trimester program (rather than the current quarter/semester format). Classes will be organized into seventy-five minute blocks, five per day. I'm not clear how lunch fits into this scheme - is it also an hour and fifteen minutes? A split period?

I think everyone agrees that students would be able to take more classes (throughout their matriculation) than under the current arrangement and that total instruction time in each class would be reduced. This is a summary prepared by Toni Fein of the Adams High parent group:

Trimesters –At Elkhart Central it means students take 5 x 75 minute classes in each of three trimesters. Each trimester students finish one semester of 5 classes. Teachers teach 4 of 5 classes /day and have one 75 minute plan. Ideally, students will have finished 15 semesters of classes in one year. All trimesters accelerate/condense classes at least some classes into shorter time frames with longer class periods.

Students have a trimester (and summer) off from band, language and math classes each year. Music, Language and Math profs. believe that many students have difficulty retaining information/playing ability when they have long breaks from studying a subject. This break could be as long as 6 months, 1 trimester plus, summer.

Some schools have students take Band, World Languages, and Math on regular semesters and use trimesters for electives. This “fix” results in few if any added electives relative to a six period day.

Per Elkhart's guidance counselor, it is extremely difficult for students to move between schools with trimesters and semesters because students lose credits that are not complete. This is a serious problem for the SBCSC where we have significant mobility among our at-risk students between South Bend and neighboring districts on semester calendars.
It is rarely used in I.B. programs in the U.S. because finishing required classes in February is not compatible with the IB program which tests all students worldwide only in May. Students who struggle to learn may find it difficult to learn more material each day and they may also have difficulty retaining information during breaks in learning that are part of the trimester system. It is more expensive than our current schedule, but less expensive than block 8 to implement because fewer teachers are needed than in block 8.

At least some of the impetus for a scheduling redo came from the situation that it was not possible to satisfy the requirements of Adams' International Baccalaureate Program and the State of Indiana graduation requirements. But as Ms. Fein points out, there are still challenges for IB students under this setup. And a bigger question is, what does this do to improve prospects for enhanced graduation rates? At best, it seems to allow for more class failures without jeopardizing (completely) prospects of graduating (for a given student).

I'll be interested to hear what new trustee Roger Parent thinks of this. I take him at his word that he wants policy to create world class schools and this action seems to set the bar a bit low. The Board (with the exception of Ralph Pieniazkewicz (opposed) and Bill Sniadecki (favoring) seemed pretty noncommittal so far, but I have to wonder if the administration would steam forward in the face of strong opposition from the incoming newbies Mr. Parent and Ms. Spivey.

I don't have strong views of my own about all this, and Lord knows the SBCSC will radically change High School scheduling at least twice before our daughter gets that far, but a lot of this just doesn't make sense to me.

For one thing, why did Elkhart Central decide this concept didn't work? This question is typically brushed off as not applicable, for some reason.

As mentioned earlier, this concept will cause problems for any student leaving the district - since few others use it.

This format is inconsistent with that of the Primary and Intermediate Centers. That could make personnel transfers more challenging mid-year.

An hour and fifteen minutes for every class a High School Freshman takes is a very long time. Unless the teacher is awfully good, a great deal of the time will be filled with daydreaming (oops, visualization). And the format assumes that every class requires the same amount of time to successfully master. That's very unlikely to be true.

Sadly, the most persuasive argument I've heard is that this will be easy and relatively cheap for the implementers.

I'll end this by making the same entreaty I seem to have to make over and over again to this group: Give us reason to support your decision.

That's all most of us want.

A tip of my cap to Ann Rosen

2009-01-02T12:34:00.006-05:00

My decision to run for school board significantly predated the dismissal of Robert Zimmerman as Superintendent of Schools. That decision; however, certainly broadened the field of candidates. It also stirred a hornet's nest of public indignation.

I've looked into this matter about as deeply as one can - who wasn't directly involved - and I can't say with any certainty whether that decision was proper. I will once again say, though, that the School Board gave the community little cause to have confidence in their decision.

That result caused a level of outrage which seemed to overwhelm sober reflection for a lot of people. This "throw the bums out" mentality made campaigns seriously challenging for two incumbents - Kim Barnbrook and Ann Rosen, and they each reacted in very different ways.

Ms. Barnbrook maintained a low profile and didn't appear at any of the sponsored events I attended. Ms. Rosen, on the other hand, was at most of them, sought endorsements and ran a very active campaign. Picture someone power walking upstream, making steady progress.

On top of that, Ms. Rosen's presence at these events was quite valuable in and of itself. Several times she gently reminded everyone of the boring, mechanical, yet critical aspects which burn up time and resources for the school corporation and its leadership. She didn't try to discourage anyone from vision strategy, but I think she knew from her own experience that it could be quite discouraging for someone unfamiliar with the day to day drudgery involved in just making the machine run.

In fact, Ms. Rosen had and has a vision of her own. And thanks to Joe Dits and the South Bend Tribune more people know about it:

SOUTH BEND -- As the minutes closed on her last school board meeting last week, Ann Rosen spoke of "the elephant in the room that we don't talk about."

Over several years, she said, the students of the South Bend Community School Corp. have changed. More of them are poorer and are minorities. As a result, the needs of students have changed. The schools must do a good job of educating both the kids with these needs and the kids who excel, said Rosen, whose term on the board is ending.
Rosen pointed to research from 1998 that found that children in welfare families heard one-half to one-third as many spoken words as children in more affluent households. And the kids' vocabulary reflected that.

"This language gap deeply affects children's ability to read," said Rosen, a consultant with a local group called the Family Connection.

Indeed, numbers from the Indiana Department of Education show that minorities have grown steadily in the school corporation since 1990, from 35 percent of the student body to 59 percent. During the same time, minorities grew from almost 14 percent of students across Indiana to 24 percent.

Hispanic youth grew from 7 percent of the school corporation's student body to 15.5 percent.

And the percent of South Bend students on free lunch programs has grown from 42 percent in 1996 to a high of 58 percent this year -- while students with reduced-price lunches have gone from 6.5 percent to a high of 10 percent in that time, according to the DOE.

"If I had one wish for the community," Rosen said, "it's that it would invest in quality early childhood education." She said James Heckman, a Nobel Laureate economist at the University of Chicago, argues that it's wise for communities to invest in good early childhood education to ward off social problems.

I think somebody else has been talking about sort of thing. Hmm...

The editors of the South Bend Tribune put it very nicely:

Outgoing South Bend Community School Corp. Trustee Ann Rosen called the growing privilege gap among students "the elephant in the room that we don't talk about."

It should be a subject South Bend trustees talk about again and again. Nothing is more important. That is because the number of schoolchildren living in impoverished households is growing steadily. So is the number of minority children and the number of children whose first language isn't English.

Rosen's point, that it is important for school systems to invest in quality early childhood education in order to close the education gap, has not gotten nearly enough of the current school board's attention. Much of the board's time has been spent debating the merits of contracts — for buildings, buses or superintendents — instead of talking about kids' educational needs.

We hope that will change, and that those with knowledge of this serious issue — including Rosen — will make themselves heard. As Rosen noted before leaving the trustee stage for the last time, minorities in the South Bend schools have grown from 35 percent to 59 percent since 1990. And just since 1996, the proportion of students receiving free lunches has grown from 42 percent to 58 percent. Poverty is by far the biggest factor in students' failure to learn.

A Dec. 21 interview with Superintendent James Kapsa by Tribune staff writer Alicia Gallegos also touched on the impact that poverty has on achievement. That, in Kapsa's words, is something "we need to keep in mind on a daily basis."

Whether this will be a successful community — with crime under control, a pool of skilled workers able to meet the needs of professional and industrial employers, and a generally high quality of life — will depend
very much on how well public education meets the challenges facing it. We are glad Rosen mentioned that fact and hope it will get much more than a mention in the months and years ahead.

Had I known of Ms. Rosen's quality earlier (and thought it would do her any good), I may well have decided to leave the race and publicly endorse her. That ship has sailed.

I salute her hard work, her gentle, determined nature - and hope to be able to work with her in the future on these issues we both feel so strongly about.

Crossposted from Progressives, South Bend

We should teach both English and multiculturalism

2009-01-02T07:19:00.000-05:00

VIEWPOINT (South Bend Tribune 1/2/09)

By MELISSA BEBOUT

Last month, I asked my French class a basic question: "What did you eat for Thanksgiving dinner?" Many ate turkey, but not all. Some gathered with their families for ham or tacos. One had rice with shawa. I didn't even know what shawa, a traditional African steak dish, was.

Here, in this perfectly normal Midwestern public school, we get students from every corner of the globe, and we teach them all — whether or not they actually eat turkey on "Turkey Day" or use another language to give thanks. In fact, for the majority of students in my class, French is now their third language.

Despite these multilingual honors students who swarm my classroom, according to the state we are failing because our students fail the state-mandated tests. These are tests they must pass whether they have been here for 10 years or two weeks. The tests are in English.

It's a familiar plight for schools across the United States. According to the Census Bureau, 20 percent of the population speaks a language other than English at home, while public high schools struggle to provide a quality education to everyone. We teach the new arrivals English as quickly as possible to "catch them up" to their English-speaking peers so they can perform better on tests, succeed academically and go on to college.

Other languages are discouraged so students can focus on learning English, the language of American education, business and law.

Even bilingual education programs, which provide content in the first language while students develop English skills, have been eliminated from many American schools because, as the author of California's Proposal 227 that banned it points out, most bilingual education is provided in Spanish, and Californians speak more than 140 languages.

Meanwhile, Hispanic students are one of the lowest-performing student populations. He says "the reason they're doing so badly is they don't learn how to read or write English properly in the schools."

Supposedly, English- only policies treat students equally since they emphasize English and do not support one language more than others. This policy seems directly related to the "colorblind" attitude that we teachers are encouraged to take: Ignore racial and cultural differences, otherwise you could be perceived as racist. Treat everyone the same.

But not everyone is the same. Being "colorblind" does not recognize the differences in experiences students bring that affect their education. This is not to say we should support stereotypes by expecting certain student groups to perform in certain ways — all students are individuals that have the ability to succeed.

There is another way.

Experts say the key to making minority students successful is to value their differences and treat their cultural heritages and bilingualism as assets to academia and society, rather than deficits. Our students are not a problem to be fixed.

"Multicultural education takes into account the culture, language, and experiences of all people and promotes those attitudes and critical skills that empower all learners to lead productive and meaningful lives in an increasingly interdependent society," says Dr. Gina P. Cantoni, director of International Programs at Northern Arizona University.

The Young Interpreters Program, implemented in a San Francisco Bay school where 65 percent of students learn English as a second language, is one program that uses a multicultural approach that has been very successful. Noah Borrero says this elective class works because students are "identified as important members of the school community, they (are) taught important literacy skills (such as paraphrasing), and they (are) put in authentic learning experiences where their bilingualism (is) utilized and valued." In addition, students have improved significantly on testing and in overall academic achievement as a result of their participation in this program.

But the beauty of a program like Young Interpreters is not just that it raises test scores and helps immigrants integrate successfully into American schools. Multiculturalism teaches students about understanding and respecting the fundamental differences in values between cultures, which fosters understanding between peoples and leads to peace between nations.

Cantoni explains, "In the microcosm of the multicultural classroom, students can learn to reject racism and prejudice and begin to respect and appreciate one another as contributors to a common pool of knowledge. ... It is a small beginning, but it may lead to a willingness to suspend judgment against a group ... and to a reluctance to engage in warfare against them."

Multicultural education offers students a way to communicate with people from other cultures, a skill essential in this global economy.

So, should we insist students learn English? Of course, because the system isn't going to change, and the tests aren't going away. But, I take heart in knowing that when we also teach children how to respect others and use their talents and experiences to contribute to society and resolve problems peacefully, we cannot fail.

Melissa Bebout teaches at Goshen High School. She lives in Goshen.

British Research Confirms Benefits of Preschool for All

2008-12-20T15:00:00.003-05:00

Myth of Fadeout Refuted By Long-Term Positive Effects of High-Quality Pre-K

New research findings refute the myths--used by opponents of preschool for all--that pre-K benefits ultimately fade out and are of no benefit to middle-income children. Instead, the evidence concludes the opposite--that high-quality pre-K sets the stage for later success and for children from middle- and low-income families.

Edward Melhuish and colleagues found that 10-year-olds who had attended high-quality preschool scored 27 percent higher in math skills and performed better in other subjects compared to their peers who had attended low-quality preschools. Earlier studies comparing the preschoolers to children who had attended no preschool produced similar findings.

Researchers determined that the benefits for children who attend a good preschool include improved mathematics, reading and social skills over several years. Melhuish, a professor of human development at Birkbeck, University of London, says he and his colleagues found that high-quality preschools offer learning opportunities over and above what most homes can provide. Children's ability to work independently improves significantly as a result of preschool, something he points out is a high predictor of future academic success.

"Providing pre-K for all children would mean higher test scores, less school failure and increased high school graduation and college attendance," said NIEER Co-Director Steve Barnett. Melhuish agrees, saying the boosts in children's cognitive, language and social development his research found means children will benefit more from their experiences when they start school and that is likely to result in better math scores.

The U.K. study had a relatively large sample of 3,000 children from 141 preschools. The sample was divided into high- and low-income groups to discern any differences between the two. The results were remarkably similar for both.

In addition to studying the effects of preschool, the research also evaluated the influence of home environments and the effectiveness of pre-K and primary school on children's development.

Melhuish showed that all three are critical to children's development and that preschool is an important element in maximizing children's development, regardless of family background.

"The U.K. study is one of the best examples of a large study showing that children across the economic spectrum benefit from high-quality preschool education," said Barnett. What's more, it isn't the only study to show such results.
Independent reviews of all the research on preschool education's effects find that they are long lasting. Scientific research that averaged across all the studies of preschool's effects in the United States since 1960 found substantial positive effects on achievement, special education, grade retention and social behavior at ages 10 and higher.

"The idea that preschool effects fade out by third grade originated with one flawed study in the early 1960s, and a small number of weak studies continue to be cited to support the idea," said Barnett. "Those opposed to public pre-K ignore the preponderance of evidence from more rigorous studies that refute their position."

South Bend schools’ challenge: Gaps in ability

2008-12-20T10:54:00.002-05:00

By JOSEPH DITS
South Bend Tribune

SOUTH BEND — As the minutes closed on her last school board meeting last week, Ann Rosen spoke of "the elephant in the room that we don't talk about."

Over several years, she said, the students of the South Bend Community School Corp. have changed. More of them are poorer and are minorities. As a result, the needs of students have changed. The schools must do a good job of educating both the kids with these needs and the kids who excel, said Rosen, whose term on the board is ending.

Rosen pointed to research from 1998 that found that children in welfare families heard one-half to one-third as many spoken words as children in more affluent households. And the kids' vocabulary reflected that.

"This language gap deeply affects children's ability to read," said Rosen, a consultant with a local group called the Family Connection.

Indeed, numbers from the Indiana Department of Education show that minorities have grown steadily in the school corporation since 1990, from 35 percent of the student body to 59 percent. During the same time, minorities grew from almost 14 percent of students across Indiana to 24 percent.

Hispanic youth grew from 7 percent of the school corporation's student body to 15.5 percent.

And the percent of South Bend students on free lunch programs has grown from 42 percent in 1996 to a high of 58 percent this year — while students with reduced-price lunches have gone from 6.5 percent to a high of 10 percent in that time, according to the DOE.

"If I had one wish for the community," Rosen said, "it's that it would invest in quality early childhood education."

She said James Heckman, a Nobel Laureate economist at the University of Chicago, argues that it's wise for communities to invest in good early childhood education to ward off social problems.

Earlier in the meeting, John Ritzler touched on a similar theme.

When it comes to ISTEP results, the biggest challenge the school corporation faces is the achievement gap between whites and minorities and between income levels, said Ritzler, director of research and evaluation.

When you look at all South Bend schools together, the number of students who passed the ISTEP this year dropped 1.4 percent from last year. But it was up 3.5 percent from five years ago, Ritzler said. If you look at particular grades and schools, you'll see ups and downs in those five years.

But overall, the achievement gap hasn't diminished, Ritzler said. For example, in those five years:

-Fewer students on free or reduced-price lunches have been passing the 10th-grade English/language arts portion of the test than kids with paid lunches — by 27 to 34 percentage points.

-Fewer Hispanic students have been passing 10th-grade English/language arts than white kids — by 33 to 40 percentage points.

-Fewer black students have been passing third-grade English/language arts than white kids — by 22 to 29 percentage points.

Ritzler said individual ISTEP results were mailed last week to families' homes.

School board member Dawn Jones agrees with Rosen's points and says the achievement gaps are driven by poverty. It just so happens that many low-income families tend to be minorities, she says.

Jones, who is black, says: "Education changes your perspective on things around you. You're able to identify resources to help you get to the next level."

She tries to help families to identify those resources as director of the YMCA Urban Youth Services.

For example, she says, poor families are less likely to afford and have Internet access in their homes, which normally helps kids to do their homework and learn so much more.

She acknowledges that immigrant Hispanic students may not hit the same ISTEP scores as other kids, which she attributes to culture and communication gaps. But she gives them credit for working hard to learn English in a short time.

Trina Robinson, president of the local NAACP branch, says there always will be achievement gaps until the schools understand the family dynamics of poor, struggling households — that is, what it takes just to get a child to school. And, she adds, there needs to be teachers whose passions are to work with these kids.

Staff writer Joseph Dits:
jdits@sbtinfo.com

Universal preK brings new challenges for public elementary schools

2008-12-20T10:03:00.004-05:00

A recent Harvard Education Letter by David McKay Wilson, outlines some challenges posed by incorporating a universal pre-K progam into existing institutions:

In 2005, when Boston mayor Thomas Menino announced his plan to make prekindergarten available to all four-year-olds in the city, parents and early childhood advocates applauded this initiative to add a 14th year to the city’s public school system.

Three years later, after preK classrooms were established in 50 of the city’s 67 elementary schools, educators say implementing the mayor’s vision has proved to be a major challenge. There were facility issues: none of the classrooms had running water or bathrooms, so administrators lobbied to build toilet facilities in the rooms—at the cost of $35,000 each. There were oversight issues: many of the elementary school principals weren’t sensitive to the needs of four-year-olds, so Boston established a professional development academy for administrators faced with the prospect of educating preschoolers.

Then there was the impact on the elementary schools where those four-year-olds were getting ready for kindergarten. When those students turned five, they were so well prepared that the district had to retool its kindergarten curriculum to keep pace with children much more ready to learn.

http://www.edletter.org/insights/collide.shtml

There are many states with extensive experience implementing universal pre-K ciricula. Oklahoma has ten years. That gives Indiana a chance to learn from the body of work of others. We should go beyond the debate about universal full day Kindergarten if we're really serious about better outcomes for our children.