A Vision for Universal Preschool Education

Abstract

Decades of research point to the need for a universal preschool education program in the U.S. to help give our nation's children a sound cognitive and social foundation on which to build future educational and life successes. In addition to enhanced school readiness and improved academic performance, participation in high quality preschool programs has been linked with reductions in grade retentions and school drop out rates, and cost savings associated with a diminished need for remedial educational services and justice services. This 2006 book brings together nationally renowned experts from the fields of psychology, education, economics and political science to present a compelling case for expanded access to preschool services. They describe the social, educational, and economic benefits for the nation as a whole that may result from the implementation of a universal preschool program in America, and provide guiding principles upon which such a system can best be founded.

Early Childhood Education: The Long-Term Benefits

“…The first limitation of the past research is that it is based primarily on projects conducted in the 1970s and 1980s and, whereas these were hallmark programs that were highly respected projects, according to Zigler, Gilliam, and Jones (2006), they were basically model demonstration projects rather than large-scale programs. A second limitation is that preschool programs may have different effects on different students: in other words, programs that serve middle-income families may not have the same magnitude of effect on child outcomes as programs serving low-income families.…”

Multiple Dimensions of Biological Development: Implications for Kindergarten Readiness Among Young Children in Poverty

“…Studies show that low-SES children score lower on math and reading assessments, on behavioral assessments, and on measures of health status when compared to higher SES counterparts (Isaacs, 2012). The negative effects of poverty can be seen as early as the second year of life and extend through elementary and into high school (Entwisle, Alexander, & Olsen, 2005).When the risk factors associated with poverty are present during preschool, they affect kindergarten readiness which has been shown to set the trajectory for future school performance and success (Zigler, Gilliam, & Jones, 2006). "School readiness has been shown to be predictive of virtually every education benchmark (e.g., achievement test scores, grade retention, special education placement, dropout, etc)" (p. 21).…”

Bioecological Theory, Early Child Development and the Validation of the Population-Level Early Development Instrument

“…Taking a sociological/epidemiological approach, a few Canadian studies examined the relationship Kohen et al 1998) and early child development outcomes (Kohen et al 2002). Examples from the educational or early intervention field are the Head Start program (Zigler et al 2006) and the Perry/High Scope Preschool program from the US (Schweinhart et al 1993), and the Better Beginnings, Better Futures program in Canada (bbbf.queensu.ca), all of which have been examined with respect to their effects on children's school readiness. A number of longitudinal studies have examined the relationships between school readiness and later academic achievement (see Duncan et al 2007, for a meta-analysis), with some of them including a wide range of individual and family variables (e.g., child behavior, parental support, family socioeconomic status) as control or predictor variables.…”