$500 million in federal funds for early childhood programs
It’s a big day in the early childhood world: The funding for a Race to the Top competition in early childhood programs was announced yesterday. Here’s an excerpt from the release: The Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge will reward states that create comprehensive plans to transform early learning systems with better coordination, clearer learning [...]
Kumon, hurry up and learn to multiply
Recently, a new branch of Kumon, the tutoring company that is increasingly targeting young children, according to yesterday’s New York Times article, opened in my neighborhood, replacing an African American-owned clothing boutique. The neighborhood, Prospect Heights in Brooklyn, is one of the fastest changing neighborhoods in New York according to recent census numbers. The neighborhood [...]
The evidence disconnect in early childhood
During a recent BAM! Radio podcast, I discussed the topic of a blog post I wrote about the evidence disconnect in education with host Rae Pica, who asked why, when there’s so much good research, no one seems to be paying attention to it. My fellow guests responded: Virginia Casper, Dean of Bank Street College, [...]
Early education in a tight spot; Funding falls for first time in years
The recession hit early education hard last year, according to a survey of state spending released today by the National Institute for Early Education Research. For the first time since NIEER started keeping track in 2002, total spending by states on early childhood education declined. There were a few bright spots – Alaska and Rhode [...]
As Indiana pushes ed reform, pre-k lags
There may be a lot of talk about education reform in Indiana right now, but it’s become increasingly clear that Tony Bennett, the new superintendent of instruction, won’t be emphasizing early childhood. And he’s citing the usual issue: lack of money. Indiana has long trailed other states when it comes to public support of pre-kindergarten; it’s [...]
With cuts looming, defense of Head Start
Kathleen McCartney, dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, is expressing concerns about the potential cuts to the national school readiness program Head Start, considered, in her words, “one of the lasting legacies of President Lyndon Johnson’s war on poverty.” In an essay for CNN.com, McCartney notes that “early childhood education is the single best investment we can [...]
To earn a BA or not a BA, is that the question?
There has been a movement in recent years to beef up the credentials of early childhood teachers. New Jersey has been at the forefront, requiring bachelor’s degrees for preschool teachers who work in its poorest districts, and the federal Head Start administration is currently increasing its higher education requirements for teachers. But do a teacher’s [...]
One more try to fund early learning in the federal budget
The Obama administration budget has offered some hope to preschool advocates once again with the inclusion of the Early Learning Challenge Fund, an idea similar to the Race to the Top contest at the K-12 level. The bill failed last year in a Democrat-controlled contest, however, so it would be a surprise if it has [...]
Washington State going forward with early learning
Money for early childhood education may have stayed relatively stable last year, despite the fiscal crisis hitting many states, but there are concerns that this year the bottom could fall out as states grapple with growing deficits and the end of federal support via the stimulus. In Washington state, however, it looks like there are [...]
Grading parents from pre-K to third grade
A Florida bill that would require teachers to grade parent performance on their children’s report cards is causing an outcry this week. Does it make sense to judge parents on how well they’re doing given the importance of parental involvement, or is it counter-productive? The bill is meant to “set standards for parental accountability,” and [...]
