Early Childhood Education Essay

When raising their child, parents often question whether or not they should allow their child to participate in an early childhood education program, such as Pre-K. Usually, it's because they are skeptical of the effectiveness of these programs, what with all the debate surrounding the subject. Many claim that these programs do nothing to benefit a child’s success. However, that is not true. Early childhood education programs actually provide a stable head-start for a child’s future success.

The Abbott Preschool Program is administered through New Jersey’s Department of Education and the Department of Human Services. It was designed to provide all of New Jersey’s children an opportunity to succeed. The Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effect Study (APPLES), published in 2013, investigated the impact of the Abbott program on children’s learning through the end of kindergarten. The findings of this study demonstrated that children who attend the Abbott Preschool Program, whether in public schools, private settings or Head Start, improve in language, literacy, and math at least through the end of their kindergarten year.

Many of these children, however, do not get the chance at an education during the most important years of their lives. They are being deprived of learning basic social skills, along with reading and writing, which are essential qualities that are needed as they advance in school. The future of this country lies in the hands of our children. In our lifetime, we have seen chaos and tragedy occur within the borders of the United States, and leaders that have done nothing to prevent it from happening again. In order for our children to be the groundbreakers of society and help our country move forward, they need an educational foundation. Together, we will make Head start and Pre-K universal programs, readily available to any child. Giving each and every child the opportunity to learn, explore, and discover will help our country

As the sensible Robert Ehrlich once illustrated, “Experts tell us that 90% of all brain development occurs by the age of five. If we don’t begin thinking about education in the early years, our children are at risk of falling behind by the time they start Kindergarten” (1). Preschool should be universal in America. Preschool programs available in America today are subpar. Experts agree that attending preschool produces numerous benefits for children, and that preschool is where the achievement gap begins to form.

A primary purpose of preschool intervention programs is generally to assist at-risk students before they experience academic challenges, through enhancing foundation skills necessary for subsequent academic success. Basic literacy skills, pro social behaviors, and socio emotional development are often emphasized in pre-school programs. By enhancing skills for academic success through preschool programs, retention maybe prevented (p.52)

My philosophy of Early childhood education is based on research that indicates that a child’s growth is developmental. Every child is unique in terms of life experiences, developmental readiness, and cultural heritage. A high quality early childhood program that provides a safe and nurturing environment, which promotes physical, social, emotional, language and cognitive development will ensure a positive continuation of the child’s education process

The purpose of this policy is to ensure that all children in the state of Georgia have quality Early Childhood Programs that are accessible, affordable, comprehensive, and sustainable. Crafting strategic and thoughtful policy in the forefront will ensure the academic achievement, social development and future success of the state’s youth.

Early years in a child’s life ( when the brain is forming) represents a critically important window to develop a child’s full potential and shape academic, social, and cognitive skills. The Universal Prekindergarten Initiative urges each state to provide access to state funded preschool programs for four year olds. These programs would vary due to teacher qualifications, number of students, staff-child ratio, and operating schedule. Economic analysis ( Bowman) indicates that a better educational investment is in preschool education is in preschool education. To have a successful program states would need to support the prek. President Obama has called upon Congress to expand access to high quality preschool

Over the years, the development of research surrounding early childhood education has expanded, showing indicating individual and societal benefits of implementing early education programming for at-risk children. Quality early education programming can lead to long-term benefits including an increase in early language, literacy, and math development, educational attainment, economic growth as well as a decrease in crime and learning gains by children of different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds (Barnett, 2008; Gormely et al., 2005; Hustedt et al., 2007; Lynch, 2007; Robin et al., 2006). Considering the implications of early education research, Neuman’s seven essentials accurately depict the necessary programmatic principles needed to ensure the continued success of the at-risk children served in the Virginia Preschool Initiative Plus. These seven principles include: 1) Targeting, 2) Developmental Timing, 3) Intensity, 4) Professional Training, 5) Coordinated Services, 6) Compensatory Instructional Benefit, And 7) Accountability. Individually, these practices provide an outline for the development and implementation of quality early education programs that lead to sustainable benefits for children. Categorized into three stages, 1) Pre-program implementation, 2) Program Implementation, and 3) Post program implementation, this section will seek to apply the principles outlined by Neuman to VPI+.

In conclusion after this research I am well aware of how one issue that the child is no way in control of can affect them in the classroom and as well later in life. That Elementary Education is the foundation of a student’s future and can make or break a student. We as educators need to make sure that everything we do is for the children. Programs are created to make sure every child has an education no matter what circumstances or the background children come from. In America

The benefits of starting a pre-school program have shown that children that participate have better social skills and excel at learning better than those who did not attend pre-school before kindergarten.

“Diverging incomes among families lead to diverging destinies among children, undermining the promise of equal opportunity.” – Nancy Folbre. Early Childhood Education has many current issues and trends but one that I found interesting is the issues of poverty/ low income families with children attending school. These families struggle with providing their children the best education that they need and deserve. Parents need to be able to have access to quality programs for their children to attend. Low income parents might seem that they don’t want to be involved but it’s the complete opposite of that. These parents need access and an equal opportunity in order to provide the best for their children.

The parents of today’s society are signing up their children for preschool and head start programs more than ever. “About seventy five percent of the nation’s four year old attend a preschool center, as do fifty percent of three year olds.” (Barnett, 2008, page 3). Preschool has long been though to shape a child’s academic life, putting a child ahead of the curve in kindergarten and leading them into a successful school career. The primary reason for attending preschool in past decades was the known benefits of socialization, but preschool has changed a lot over the years putting much more emphasis on cognitive development. Gone are the days when children only focused on colors, shapes, and numbers. Today’s preschoolers are learning music and second languages. Questions still remain about how successful these programs are when it comes to preparing children for their future academic careers. This paper will examine the known advantages and disadvantages of sending a child off to preschool as well as what qualities a preschool should have.

I firmly regard that the introductory level of academics in public schools such as elementary can be challenging for copious amounts of children. Some children don’t attend a pre-learning program like Pre-K before they begin elementary school. Leaving them deprived of the basic knowledge that other children in the class have already acquired. This may not be the schools fault, but the school system does not halt for children or award special attention to those who lack certain academic abilities. School systems may not always alert the parents of the child when they are struggling, but often times lend help but not necessarily knowing where the child struggles. Young students often times don’t know when to

Research conducted from economist to neuroscientist, educational leaders and public policymakers have confirmed that early education matters. Studies like the High Scope/Perry, Abecedarian and Chicago Child- Parent Centers indicate that children who attended preschool were comparatively ahead in early reading and math skills (Barnett M. N., 2013). Similar studies have also revealed that depending upon various factors; such as preschool quality, social class and race, educational boost can continue through K-12 and well into adulthood. Various studies have shown that high-quality preschool saves schools and states money, and provide long-term benefits to children and communities (Magnuson, 2013; Heckman, 2010; Mead, 2012).