Economists, researchers and advocates talk a lot about the economic return of good quality early learning, but few are as compelling and clear as University of Chicago professor James Heckman.

The Nobel-Prize winning economist explains the importance of putting returns of early learning efforts, such as teaching self-discipline and other soft skills, in the correct context, in a question-and-answer on the Washington Post’s “Economics and Domestic Policy, and lots of it” blog.

So what you’re learning is self-discipline, to stay on task, you’re learning social relationships, because you’re doing this assessment collectively, and you’re building a set of life skills that turn out to be important. So we looked at what the consequences were of these changes early in life for the child. And we see that those patterns are there.
It leads to less aggression, more socialization, what sometimes psychologists call externalizing behavior, and it promotes a lot of productivity down the line. So you’re changing the character of these children. – “It’s just a question of using the same dollars wisely.” 8/25/10.

During the talk, the economist also calls on President Barack Obama – Heckman advised the Obama campaign on early learning issues, according to the blog – to take a stronger lead role in improving early learning.

It is a great and in-depth read for a Q&A and worth checking out.

You can follow Heckman at the Heckman Equation on Twitter (@heckmanequation) and on Facebook.

Today, Gov. Chris Gregoire announced cuts of $51 million to the WorkFirst program for the rest of state fiscal year 2011 (which ends June 30, 2011). WorkFirst is our state’s “welfare to work” program, which helps low-income families become self-sufficient through training and support services. WorkFirst includes the Working Connections Child Care program, which offers child care subsidies to low-income families who are working, looking for work or in job training.

Read more about today's announcement on the Department of Early Learning's blog, DEL Connect.

The federal government increased spending on children’s programs in the last year, but these programs will have a tough time winning a bigger share of the federal pie in the future, a new report says.

Without the 2009 economic stimulus package, federal children’s programs would have received a smaller share of the overall federal budget, First Focus’s report, Children’s Budget 2010, found.

“Unless Congress makes children a higher priority, these programs will be forced to scale back to pre-2009 levels,” the group’s president, Bruce Lesley, said in a statement.

The report was one of two released this month that forecasted a rough budget outlook for children’s programs in coming year. Another report also found the federal share of spending on children’s programs has been falling for decades.

The reportshows that over the longer term, ten-year projections reveal an overall decline in federal spending on children. The report explains that if current law continues unchanged, the federal budget will grow as a whole, but a smaller share of the budget will be directed to children.

“In addition, Kids’ Share 2010 reveals that since 1960, the children’s share of the federal budget has diminished by a quarter, while spending on the non-child portions of entitlement programs has more than doubled.” – Kids' Share 2010: Report on Federal Expenditures on Children Through 2009.

Both reports are worth a read.

Each month the economic argument for quality child care, preschool and pre-kindergarten seems to grow stronger and this week another writer linked investments in early learning with a stronger economic future.

In the Huffington Post piece, Pat Earley highlights many of the benefits of spending money on early learning, but she also explains that investments don’t always follow.

The United States currently faces serious education and budgetary problems. There is a growing body of work that shows that high-quality early childhood development and education is a powerful way to help address these problems and lay a foundation for human and economic growth.

…

Although most policy makers agree on the importance of early childhood education, budgetary constraints, as well as an inability to view these programs as fiscally sound investments in tomorrow's future workforce, continue to stand in the way of redirecting funds toward the early years. – “Teach Your Children Well,” Huffington Post, 7/21/10.

The story also argues that early education isn’t only about teachers, classrooms and curriculums. It needs programs that “integrate the family into the solution.”

In a related development, the College Board reports today that the U.S. has fallen to 12th in the proportion of adults ages 25 to 34 who hold postsecondary credentials.

"The growing education deficit is no less a threat to our nation's long-term well-being than the current fiscal crisis. It requires the same kind of attention and action at the highest levels of our education institutions and national and state governments," Gaston Caperton said in a statement. "To improve our college completion rates, we must think 'P–16' and improve education from preschool through higher education."

Some would say there is a connection.

The United States stacks up poorly with many developed nations on key measurements of childhood well-being, such as poverty and birth weight, and should invest more in programs that help kids age zero to six, a report found.

The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development study found the U.S. has the fourth worst infant mortality rate among its member countries, the sixth worst rates of low birth weight and a teen birth rate three times the average among its members, in a summary of U.S. findings. In addition, U.S. child poverty rates are double the average of its members, 21.6 percent compared to 12.4 percent.

The United States should spend more on young children and disadvantaged teenagers to improve poor child health, poor basic education and high rates of child poverty, according to the OECD’s first report on child well-being. "Despite the United States' strong research and policy tradition in the area of child well-being, too many American children are still left behind", according to co-author of the OECD report, Mr Simon Chapple. – “Doing Better for Children,” 1/09.

(Thanks to CLASP for highlighting this report in an excellent summary.)

The poor U.S. scores also are found in a country where spending on children and family income are among the highest in all OECD states, the report says.

Good beginnings are crucial. But in spite of having above average overall child spending, the United States spends one third less than the OECD average on young children….  

Check out both the report and the broader CLASP story, which includes other coverage and useful links.

California is still struggling with a massive budget deficit, but advocates have scored some success in defeating Governor Schwarzenegger’s proposed funding cuts that would eliminate child care slots and support for providers, according to reports.

After the governor proposed the cuts last month, advocates launched the Campaign to Save Child Care and then gained legislative support in recent weeks.

In less than a week after the Governor proposed the total elimination of state general fund support for child care subsidies and support services as well as total elimination of CalWORKs, the Assembly budget subcommittees (in a joint hearing) on Education and Health & Human Services voted on May 19th to reject both May Budget Revision proposals. At the May 25th Senate Budget & Fiscal Review Committee hearing, Senators also voted to reject both proposals. – California Child Care Resource and Referral Network.

The budget cycle, though, is not over. Still, the tone among legislators is a hopeful sign for advocates still worried about deep cuts to child care programs.

“The CCCRRN (California Child Care Resource and Referral Network) and the California Department of Education estimate that a total 200,000 children would be affected by the (governor’s) cuts; 100,000 working parents would have to leave their jobs to care for their children; and 130,000 jobs in the child care field would be eliminated.” – “Child Care Funding on the Potential Chopping Block of State Budgets,” CLASP, 6/10.

This Sunday is Father’s Day and here are a few of the nation’s top dad bloggers to help you keep track of news about the modern dad:

• Daddytypes: A Weblog for New Dads.
• Dadcentric: Join the Movement
• RebelDad: Putting Fatherhood Under the Microscope.
• Evolution of Dad (Website with a blog about a new film by the same name.)

The Great Recession may be over, but states face several more years of tight budgets, a new report says, and that’s bad news for early learning.

The U.S. economy was so weak that overall state spending declined in 2009 and 2010, marking only the second time state spending fell in the three decades the National Association of State Budget
Officers and the National Governors Association have produced the report. State spending is expected to drop to $612.9 billion in 2010 from $657.9 billion the year before.

State budget woes may only get worse as roughly $135 billion from the federal economic stimulus package largely dries up by the end of fiscal 2011, the report suggested.

...Loss of these (federal) funds combined with the anticipated slow recovery of state revenues is expected to result in the continuation of difficult state fiscal conditions for the next few years. – “The Fiscal Survey of the States.” 6/10. Fiscal 2010 presented the most difficult challenge for states’ financial management since the Great Depression and fiscal 2011 is expected to present states with similar challenges.

What does this ongoing budget crunch mean for early learning? It is too early to tell. But, Washington State struggled this year to maintain its commitment to improving child care, preschool and pre-kindergarten this year, even as a leading supporter, Gov. Christine Gregoire, sat in the governor’s mansion.

Thanks to Politics K-12 for highlighting this report. The Education Week blog adds that “a majority of states are contemplating cutting K-12 education next year as they brace for overall spending reductions for what could be the third year in a row.”

“Governors and state lawmakers have been trying to protect K-12 education and health care, but that just might not be possible anymore, according to Scott Pattison, the executive director of NASBO. (Check out the whole story.)

Early learning can’t be far behind, if not in front, of K-12 in the budget-cutting line.

The U.S. economy still may be weak, but the nation’s governors want to preserve funding for pre-kindergarten next year, proposing roughly the same spending as this year, $5.3 billion, Pre-K Now reports  today.

Overall, nine governors proposed boosting pre-k spending in fiscal 2011, totaling $78.5 million, while ten governors wanted to cut spending, ($100.5 million), according to the report “Leadership Matters FY11.” Ten states want to keep funding flat, while three others and Washington, D.C., expect spending to rise but are waiting on school funding formulas. (Overall, state pre-k spending would rise slightly by $8.2 million.)

Around the country, governors are increasingly embracing the research that shows high-quality pre-k is as important to children's learning as kindergarten or first grade. – “Leadership Matters FY11.” When times are tough, states need to recognize the threat and act to protect policy priorities that have the greatest return on investment.

But, the report may have buried the lead. When you look at the graphic of state pre-k spending over the last five years you see it jumped 83 percent, or $2.4 billion, from $2.9 billion in 2005 to $5.3 billion this year.

The report is far from a final scorecard. For example, it gives Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire a mixed review for initially proposing deep cuts in early learning and then restoring cuts and supporting an expansion of pre-k.

But, the report doesn’t note that Washington State lawmakers finished their work last month, preserving spending on child care subsidies and making a relatively small cut in the state preschool program, the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program. Overall, early learning enjoyed a decent budget season, considering the state of the economy.

In neighboring Oregon, meanwhile, the state’s Head Start Pre-Kindergarten program would receive a 5.7 percent increase in 2011 under the biennial budget plan.

These state efforts should encourage the Obama administration and Congress to add early learning to the debate over education reform, making pre-k the first stage in that effort, the report proposed.

The economic benefits of early learning are becoming clearer. In Georgia, the industry helps parents earn more than $10 billion and generates billions of dollars in economic activity annually, a report found.

The report’s tally of early learning’s annual economic benefits in the Peach State is impressive: $4.1 billion in economic activity; $117 million worth of federal, state and local tax revenue; support for between $13.6 billion and $32.7 billion in earnings by parents and 61,203 jobs in the industry, according to the report.

“As part of the economic fabric of Georgia, the early care and education industry
may be unparalleled in terms of its support of short- and long-term economic development in the state.” – Economic Impact of the Early Care and Education Industry in Georgia.

Of course, the downside of this economic equation is the low wage many child care workers earn. In Georgia, center-based teachers earn, on average, $10.45 an hour ($21,736 a year, assuming paid vacations and a 40-hour week, which are not always the rules) and other staffers earn $7.94 an hour ($16,515 a year).

Now, you may wonder why I write about so many reports on the economic impacts of early learning, since the numbers may change but the song remains the same.

I continue to highlight this research because as it piles up it become harder to reject the arguments that early learning matters and that teachers and staff should earn higher wages. 

(Thanks to Child Care and Early Education Research Connections for highlighting this report.)

Preschool Works: Check out a new report that shows the success a preschool program in California had getting kids ready for kindergarten.

“…The percentage of children who scored between the In Progress and Proficient levels across all readiness skills (students who were “Combined Proficient”) increased from 22% in the fall to 72% in the spring.” – The Successful Kids in Pre-K Project (SKIPP) Phase II: An Assessment of Los Angeles Universal Preschool Students’ Progression Toward School Readiness.

Check out Early Ed Watch’s view of the report here.

Where will play fit into the effort to rewrite the No Child Left Behind Act?

Proponents argue the increasing focus on testing and curriculum in kindergarten – and the idea this can become part of preschool and pre-kindergarten – actually counters goals of early education. It threatens a student’s chances at long-term success in school and health, according to play-focused advocacy group The Alliance for Childhood.  This argument gained momentum in recent years, but this year’s congressional debate over reforming the key federal law for elementary and secondary education could show how much traction the argument has gained.

Research shows that children who engage in complex forms of socio-dramatic play have greater language skills than nonplayers, better social skills, more empathy, more imagination, and more of the subtle capacity to know what others mean. They are less aggressive and show more self-control and higher levels of thinking.  – “Crisis in the Kindergarten Why Children Need to Play in School,” – Alliance for Childhood. 3/09.

Before you dismiss the report as the brainchild of a group with the stated agenda of restoring “play to kindergartens and preschools” remember two things: The report is based on nine studies and there is plenty of other research that play is an important element of an early childhood curriculum.

And the report is not talking about free-for-all kindergartens and preschools where kids choose whatever activities they want.

 We are not calling for a simple return to the practices of an earlier time. We now understand much better the kinds of rich experiences that young children need in order to become avid learners. Teachers need to understand the ways in which child-initiated play when combined with playful, experiential learning leads to lifelong benefits in ways that didactic drills, standardized tests, and scripted teaching do not.

A few other items from the report:

• Classic play materials like blocks, sand and water tables, and props for dramatic play have largely disap­peared from the 268 full-day kindergarten classrooms studied.
• (The pressure to meet new standards once  reserved for first grade and the loss of play creates a) double burden, many experts believe, is contributing to a rise in anger and aggression in young children, reflected in increasing reports of se­vere behavior problems.
• On a typical day, kindergartners in Los Angeles and New York City spend four to six times as long being instructed and tested in literacy and math (two to three hours per day) as in free play or “choice time” (30 minutes or less).

While the report focuses on kindergarten it makes it clear that if the problems are not recognized and remedied, the same ills will be passed on to preschools and even to programs for children ages birth to three.

It also connects its findings to the emerging idea of a U.S. economy where imagination is a key skill and economic driver.

...The leaders of major business corporations are saying that creativity and play are the future of the U.S. economy.

Now the report is a year old, but it has more relevance today as Congress begins to debate what went wrong and right with No Child Left Behind.  In fact, the report is generating a buzz on Twitter among early childhood educators.

The summary and recommendations are available here and worth a read.