The debate over whether and how benefits of high-quality preschool fade in elementary school is one of the most important in early learning, and it may be flawed.

At its core, the argument centers on research that suggests benefits of preschool and pre-kindergarten fade by first, second, third and fourth grades as measured by math and reading tests. But, economist Tim Bartik writes today that this approach may be too narrow, and research shows pre-k’s benefits may re-emerge in adulthood.

Bartik proposes that benefits re-emerge partly because a good early education develops soft skills - perseverance, self-control and an ability to relate to others - that are more visible once these students become adults and enter the workforce, and harder to measure on grade-school tests.

These soft skills may then lead to further soft skills and hard skills development later on in K-12, and lead to greater success in adulthood.

However, this soft skills development may not be fully reflected in results on most tests, which tend to emphasize “hard skills." (By “hard skills”, I mean whatever is measured by reading, math, and other academic tests.) This does not mean that how students do on hard skills is not important. It simply means that looking at effects on hard skills alone understates the long-run effects of early intervention. -- “The fading and re-emergence of preschool’s effects,” Investing in Kids. 9/21/11.

The analysis is a little technical in the beginning, though I would suggest reading the top because it will help you understand flaws of shorter-term arguments about fade out, and you can get the essence of Bartik’s argument in the final four paragraphs.

To support that argument, Bartik cites one of the newest and more comprehensive reports on long-term benefits of high-quality early ed that showed students who attended Child-Parent Center Education Programs in Chicago were more likely to graduate high school, less likely to land in jail and report other positive outcomes 25 years later than a control group.

With all of the debate swirling around the effectiveness of Head Start and potential reforms of the 46-year-old program already being discussed, it’s an excellent time to define what we really mean when we say fade out in early education.