The recession may be over because the media is spending a lot of time lately analyzing its impact on the country, including two stories in the last several days about how it has affected families and early education.

At the Huffington Post, one story talks about the need to invest in early learning now, even though state and federal budgets are tight, because the economic downturn has already impacted school readiness and will drag down the national economy.

A declining U.S. economy leads directly to poorer school performance and lower school readiness. The FCD (The Foundation for Child Development) report points to recent history as a guide, pinpointing the two recessions of 1981-82 and 1990-91 as the key culprits for drops in reading and math scores during subsequent time periods, the mid-1980's and mid-1990's. – “The Children of the Great Recession.”  Huffington Post. 8/6/10.

On Sunday, The New York Times Magazine ran a column, “Home Economics: What the Great Recession has really done to family life,” which takes a critical view of analysis that suggests the economic downturn has had a major positive influence on the U.S. family.

The author, Judith Warner, highlights findings of shorter maternity leaves, large percentages of unemployed people saying the recession has strained family life, major losses of wealth among middle-class families and reports of parents working longer hours.

That the Great Recession could then bring hope for a major recalibration — a resetting of all the clocks — is not surprising. Unfortunately, though, it’s not happening in any meaningful way. The poor are getting poorer, and the rich, despite stock-market setbacks, are still comparatively rich. The most devastating losses in household wealth over the past two years have been suffered by the middle class. And families are fraying at the seams.  – “What the Great Recession has really done to family life.”

You can also check out The New York Times Motherlode blog’s take, and join its conversation about the intersection of families and the recession.

School readiness is one of the bigger topics in early learning today. But, it turns out only seven states actually assess students when they start school to get an idea of statewide trends, a new report found.

Still, all 50 states have guidelines on what kids should know when they enter school, the report adds. So, why do assessment tests matter?

The answer is the achievement gap – the academic divide between too many at-risk students and other students – remains a persistent challenge, one that quality early learning programs are trying to narrow and eventually help eliminate.

One study found that the average cognitive scores of our nation’s most affluent children are 60 percent higher than those of our poorest children before they enter kindergarten.4 Furthermore, low-income children are more likely to attend lower-quality schools, making it unlikely that these gaps can be closed later through schooling alone. – “A Review of School Readiness Practices in the States: Early Learning Guidelines and Assessments.” Early Childhood Highlights, Child Trends, 6/17/10. (See brief for footnotes.)

Overall, the issue brief examines the state of school readiness efforts and what should be considered when conducting assessments. It is not only about reading, writing and arithmetic, as many teachers and researchers know. Social-emotional and behavioral skills are important.

And students are not the only group that needs to be ready for school. Schools and families also need to be ready, the brief suggests.

“Statewide school readiness assessments help policymakers monitor how “ready for school” children are over time.  But without high-quality services for at-risk children during the early years, and schools that are ready to receive children from diverse backgrounds and with varying needs, it is likely we will continue to see wide variation in children’s school readiness skills upon entering kindergarten,” Dr. Tamara Halle, author of the brief, said in a statement.

Quality Progress: The excellent EarlyStories blog has a good and quick review of efforts to improve quality in early learning programs, “In some states, quality issues step to head of the class.” (EarlyStories has a new Internet address, so you may want to update your bookmark.)

Check it out.      

School readiness is a core goal of teachers and parents, but those two simple words capture one of the most complex challenges in early learning, as experts struggle to define what it means and why it matters.

School readiness could cover everything from listening skills and social development to early literacy and even mathematics. In practice, Oregon officials are learning it’s not easy to measure, the Statesman-Journal reports in “Tracking Children’s Readiness for School Proves Complicated: State struggles with consistency in assessments.”

The story devotes a lot of space to Oregon’s various school readiness assessments and the idea that it remains a work in progress. It also highlights why school readiness matters: It can shape public policy, set priorities and help a child get a good or a bad start to school.

"It changes people's perceptions. It can change a teacher's perception of likely success in school. It can create parental anxiety. Worst of all, it can make a small student feel stigmatized and less capable," (Samuel) Meisels, (president of the Erickson Institute, which focuses on early learning) said. "If any one of those consequences occur, based on a poorly designed test, it's inexcusable to me."

In Washington, the definition of school readiness surely will remain a major topic in the state’s still emerging comprehensive early learning plan. Congress will also confront the issue when lawmakers debate the core federal K-12 law, No Child Left Behind, maybe next year.

What do you think should define school readiness at this critical juncture in early learning? Do not limit yourself to existing terms. Let’s add some new thinking to this debate.

More Babies: The American Academy of Pediatrics reports U.S. births hit a record level in 2007 - more than 4.3 million babies were born – up one percent from the year before. 

The report also found:

Teen births rose roughly one percent, running against a long-term decline.

Cesarean births were up two percent.

Infant mortality remained relatively stable, and the United States still ranks poorly in this critical area.

 

 

If you think early learning debates are reserved for teachers, parents, academics and advocates, you weren’t paying attention this campaign season.

At one point in the New Jersey governor’s race, eventual winner Republican Chris Christie compared state pre-kindergarten to babysitting, The Star-Ledger reported. Christie clarified his position that preschool is worthwhile, but there isn’t funding for expansion, according to the newspaper.

Not surprisingly, his opponent, outgoing Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine, used Christie’s comments in a campaign ad.

“He (Corzine) is still putting money in universal pre-k,” Christie is seen saying with apparent surprise during a television interview.

Wait a minute. Whatever your political position, a lot of governors are still putting money into state-supported pre-k, as shown in a report released last week, “Facing Grim Economy, Most State Legislatures Continue to Prioritize Pre-K.” Check out Corzine’s campaign ad on YouTube here.

EarlyStories highlighted political shifts in early learning agendas in “New Jersey, Virginia Could Face Pre-K Setbacks,” posted today.

Raw Data on Kindergarten Test Scores: Last month the Education Department released a report showing children from child care centers scored higher on math and reading tests when they entered kindergarten.

Students who primarily spent their time in non-Head Start child care centers the year before kindergarten scored, on average, 47 points in early reading assessments, while children who had no early care or education outside their parents scored 40 points. On math tests, those center-based kids scored 46 points compared to the parental group who scored 41 points.

Also, children who participated in regular early care and education arrangements the year prior to kindergarten scored higher on the reading and mathematics assessments than children who had no regular experience in early care and education the year prior to entering kindergarten. – “The Children Born in 2001 at Kindergarten Entry: First Findings from the Kindergarten Data Collections of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort (ECLS-B), First Look.”

Before anyone jumps to conclusions, the report warns against making causal inferences based on its findings. I guess these are simply more tea leaves researchers can scrutinize for clues about benefits of early learning.

Thanks to Child Care & Early Education Research Connections for finding this report.

What if the benefits of quality pre-kindergarten fade by second grade?

A new report out of Tennessee found that while state pre-k helped to prepare students for kindergarten benefits were nearly impossible to see in later grades. Measurable differences among students who attended those programs and those who did not were virtually non-existent by second grade, according to a report released by the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury’s Offices of Research and Education Accountability.

Pre-K participation is associated with a small but reliable effect on student outcomes in Kindergarten, specifically among economically disadvantaged students. These effects are detectable (but diminished) in First Grade and by Second Grade the difference between Pre-K students and a reasonably comparable group of non-Pre-K students is negligible.—“Assessing the Benefits of Tennessee’s Pre-Kindergarten Program: Annual Report 2008-2009.”

Of course, this is a complex question, but it may help some political positions. “Some Northeast Tennessee GOP lawmakers have stressed that taxpayer-funded investments in 4-year-old children attending pre-K classes might be better placed in higher education,” according to The Kingsport Times-News, which first reported the story last week.

The 71-page report sparks a lot of questions for politicians, researchers and advocates. Near the top of the list is: What is the goal of pre-k?  This study found state pre-k helped to get children ready for kindergarten, but it was hard to see what it did a few years later. It also questioned the definition of school readiness.

Many studies claim that Pre-K improves “school readiness” but the definition of “readiness” can be so broad as to be rendered almost uninterpretable.”

While the review is sure to draw scrutiny, it recognized pre-k may have benefits that are hard to assess in later years.

 This is not to say that the benefits of the program do not persist in the long term, but due to many additional sources of variation that come into play over time, they are increasingly difficult to isolate—particularly in an analysis of secondary data, which does not benefit from methodological controls—and may ultimately be overshadowed by other, more potent sources of variation such as socioeconomic disadvantage.

Finally, the report focused on only one stage of a quality early learning system. What about quality child care and preschool? In fact, the review raises the work of North Carolina’s Abecedarian Project and the Perry/Highscope Program, highlighting that these are intensive interventions and different than contemporary pre-k.

Once again a thoughtful report raises many questions at a time when researchers, teachers and politicians are trying to figure out what works in pre-k classrooms.

Thanks to the Kingsport Times-News for covering this news and the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies for highlighting the development.

With most children now back in school, I thought it would be a good time to check on how they make the transition from early learning to the first stage of K-12 and the overall state of kindergarten, which appears headed towards a crossroads.

While there isn’t fresh research floating around the internet, there is excellent commentary and reporting that raise important questions about how kindergarten has changed for parents and their kids. What should and shouldn’t we do to help ease the transition? Are kindergarteners and their teachers too stressed out struggling to meet federal and state standards? (How will this influence the upcoming debate over rewriting the No Child Left Behind Act?)

Here is some fodder to chew on:

• Lisa Belkin wonders whether we spend too much time easing our children into preschool over at The New York Times Motherlode blog in “Do Preschoolers Need So Much Phase-In Time?” I agree with Belkin on this topic. We spent a lot of time helping our kids adjust to their new classrooms with shortened days and playdates, even though I thought they were ready to handle more on their own.
• Over at EarlyStories, Liz Willen asks important questions about the pressure we place on kindergarteners and their teachers today in “Kindergarten Rebellion: Let Five Year-Olds Be Five.” It examines a thoughtful story in the North Platte Telegraph, “What should kindergarten be like?”
• Family writer Sue Shellenbarger asks “Do Preschools Need Mental-Health Help?” in the Wall Street Journal blog The Juggle and explored the topic yesterday in a full column, “Therapy in Preschools: Can It Have Lasting Benefits?”

“The specialists' purpose isn't to diagnose or treat mental illness in individual children. Instead, they provide targeted, expert help to teachers, and sometimes to parents, on ways to interact with children and reorganize classrooms that improve behavior and the emotional climate.” – “Therapy in Preschools,” 9/08/09.

• Finally, Swine Flu is on parents’ minds as school begins and the federal Department of Health and Human Services offered a “Know What to Do About the Flu Webcast – Parents and Child Care Providers.” (The department promises to offer an on-demand version shortly.)

Post your thoughts on early learning transitions and the state of kindergarten here or join any of the other forums mentioned above.