Here is a quote that I think everyone involved in early childhood studies should take into consideration.
"If you're going to equalize the academic playing field, you've got to get the kids in early childhood programs."
- Paul Vallas quotes
In my opinion, Paul Vallas speaks a lot of truth. As our lives get faster and busier, we often forget that we set academic success often in the earliest years. If you work int he field you know that children who have books in their lives early on have advantage over children that do not. If you have some college education, you probably will have heard that the most neural connections are formed within the first 3 years. Yet, all that is talked about in the news is K-12 system and how it has failed. So much changes have been made to the school system but most people are still unaware that their set the standards with children in their early years. It saddens me when I hear that children are still growing up without books. I think early childhood programs are absolutely essential to help all children succeed academically and I am a great advocate for them. Early childhood programs can teach social skills as well as cognitive skills. If children learn to succeed and work with each other during the early years, we can set the stages for later years.
Anna,
ReplyDeleteYou are so right that equalizing the academic playing field does require involving young children in early childhood programs. I do think however, that the type of program is what ensures success. The push for academic success can often take the focus of the importance of play and unknowingly parents place their children in programs that do not support the development of the whole child. Such programs are the reason the field of early childhood needs regulations and policies that hold centers accountable for providing high quality and developmentally appropriate care.