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.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Hot Topics (NIEER) 6/4
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.
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.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Hot topics (from NIEER) 5/21
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.
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
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
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
Saturday, May 9, 2009
NIEER newsletter 5/8
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.
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.
Friday, April 24, 2009
NIEER newsletter 4/24
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.
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.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Early Education News Roundup
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.
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.
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