Children Benefit More From A High Quality Full Day Pre K Program

Statement of Issue: Many minority children and children from low-income families enter kindergarten without the academic skills they need to succeed. Math and reading abilities at kindergarten entry are powerful predictors of later school success. Research shows kids who start school already behind are unlikely to ever get caught up to standards. Hispanic and African American children are anywhere from 7 to 12 months behind in reading and 9 to 10 months behind on math when they enter kindergarten. Access remains extremely low to high-quality early education do to a couple of problems. First, rates of access to early education vary widely as a function of children’s socioeconomic backgrounds. Secondly, the quality of most early education programs is not high enough to substantially improve academic readiness. Considering the tremendous potential for high-quality preschool to improve children’s outcomes, this policy brief will consider how a universal publicly funded pre-kindergarten program in the United States could decrease both disparities in access to early learning and achievement gaps at kindergarten entry.

Recent studies on early childhood education have shown that children who have access to quality pre-kindergarten education tend to have higher educational attainment than those who do not have the opportunity. While the literature is by no means uniform on this, the bulk of current evidence suggests that such policies will likely be helpful, especially for students in low - income and minority school districts. Only time will tell, of course, if such programs can help to make inroads into the seemly intractable achievement gaps, but based on current evidence, it is a policy worth

Universal Pre-K is a development inside the American training framework to make access to preschool accessible to all families. The main difference that is driving these authors apart is the end results that Pre-K will leave on the child. In an article written by John Stossel, Catherine Brosseau, and Andrew Kirell, called “Universal Pre-K This Whole Thing is a Scam”: the three author see Universal Pre-K as a “flagrant waste of money”, they want parents to understand that this whole thing is a scam. On the other hand, in an article written by Nicholas Kristof called: “Pre-K the Great Debate, he believe that Universal Pre-K is “The best investment we can make in a child’s life”, he fully supports the program.

The Abecedarian Project researchers extended the research done with the Perry Preschool Project, the Early Training Project, and Head Start school outcomes. Although extensive research had been done in the areas of early childhood education and benefits later in life, none had been done when children were in an intensive classroom setting for an entire day, five days per week, as opposed to half days or even a few days per week in prior studies.

The Heritage Foundation report noted that 45 early childhood education programs already existed, costing an estimated $45 million each year, and that many of the programs are “duplicative and ineffective, failing to serve the needs of children from low-income families” (Burke and Sheffield, 2013). In addition, the evidence showing that the public sector is a good provider of early childhood education is lacking. The 2001 Gilliam study reviewed state-run preschool programs and found that “less than half of the current state-funded preschool programs have, or are currently conducting, impact evaluations of the effectiveness of their programs” and that “of these

Many researchers spend time studying if the benchmark is raised for children that spent time in a quality daycare center before entering into a public school. One research study conducted by Santos, Rocha, Marques, Corsi and Rocha (2013) stated that "The fine motor, gross motor and cognitive performance of children from the same economic class was lower among children attending public compared with children attending private daycare centers" (Santos et al., 2013). This research provides textual information in support of the effectiveness of private daycare center. This study also demonstrates methods used in analyzing information to make a concrete decision for or against the effectiveness of daycare centers. Educators and parents alike spend time reading documentation from this research that supports the claim that daycare provider has always believes that quality care coupled with smaller class size can show a difference in a child cognitive development. Moreover, educators and parents are still concern about the long-term effect of daycare centers that may affect a child long into their elementary

This White Paper is to discuss the importance of passing the bill H.R.1041, which gives more funding to Pre-K education. It will discuss the importance of funding Pre-K education and why it will help close the educational achievement gap. Throughout studying children in various settings significant research shows that young children’s early learning experiences have long term effects on them. research it has shown that young children’s earliest learning experiences can have powerful long-term effects on their learning and development. (Tavernise2012). Unfortunately, research also shows that most American preschoolers do not have access to quality early learning opportunities (Mead2012) This in return causes significant disparities in

Does a lengthened day make a difference? Kindergarten plays a crucial role in the growth and development of a child. It is at the kindergarten level where the child begins the basis for the rest of their path through education. Educators are constantly looking into new ways of improving the kindergarten curriculum and environment in order to provide their students with the most adequate education possible. There is always some criticism when it comes to change; as in the case with changing half-day to full-day kindergarten. After extensive research, I have found a number of studies comparing full-day and half-day kindergarten programs that show young children benefit more from a developmentally structured full-day kindergarten program, most notably in terms of academic achievement. Having the extra hours during the school day allows students to learn more and apply what they have learned. In this paper, I propose to answer the question of whether it is more beneficial for young children to attend full-day as opposed to half-day kindergarten programs, in relation to academic achievement, while exploring some of the attitudes and opinions that surround full-day and half-day kindergarten programs. I would also like to make note that the majority of research used in this paper is derived from studies conducted within the United States, and the purpose of improving education in the United States is slightly different than that in Canada.

Standardized tests and classroom grades find that full day students achieve higher and improve student attendance. There is better attendance in full-day kindergarten due to the parents understanding that there is so much more information and teaching provided during a longer day and does not want their child to miss, supporting a childs literacy and language development has long lasting effects that are greater in children that attend full day kindergarten (Villegas 2). One study showed higher reading achievement persisting through third grade and in some cases even seventh grade (Villegas 1). Enrolling a child in full-day kindergarten benefits them socially and emotionally. Full day gives children a balance of structured play and self play. Being with classmates for more hours in a classroom forces them to build positive relationships. Those relationships last sometimes all the way through twelfth grade. Decreases costs by reducing retention and remediation rates (Villegas 1, 2). One study, which found full day students to be more than twice as likely to remain on grade through third grade, showed that this academic benefit helped to offset 19 percent of the first year’s cost of extending the kindergarten day (Villegas 2).

Overall, 56% of kindergarten-age children in the US attend a full day kindergarten program. About 54% of children who attend public schools are in a full day program, while 67% of children who attend private schools are enrolled in a full day program (“Full…Half”, 2004). In the US 67% of private schools offer a full day program, while only 57% of public schools do. Catholic schools are more likely to offer full day programs than other private schools, with 78% of Catholic schools offering full day programs and only 63% of other private schools. Fifty-two percent of public schools offer half day programs which is more compared to only 29% of Catholic schools and 40% of other private schools (“Full…Half”, 2004). Some schools offer only full day programs (53%) but fewer offer only half day programs (39%) and 7% of schools offer both full and half day programs. In the US 61% of schools with a kindergarten program offer at least one full day program and 47% offer at least one half day program (“Full…Half”, 2004).

There are numerous preschool or Pre-K options available for young children throughout the U.S. At this time only Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma have truly universal preschool for all four year olds as nearly half of states with state pre-K programs limit enrollment to just low-income children (Mead, 2015). “Under universal pre-K, not only would more children of all backgrounds have access to high-quality early childhood education, they would have the chance to learn in an effective type of preschool environment that is currently rare among both public and private programs: an integrated classroom” (Potter, 2014, par. 6). More parents are placing their children in preschool due to the revelation that important brain development occurs in the early years of life, preschool has long-term benefits for children, and it helps prepare children for the increased demands of kindergarten (Stipek, 2016). There is a good deal of evidence that shows that preschool is beneficial for all children, especially more so for low-income children (Koonce, 2016). Low-income students who attend public pre-K are often 11 months ahead of their peers when entering kindergarten (Potter, 2014). Unfortunately, more than half of low-income three-year-olds and a third of low-income four-year-olds do not attend preschool even with the availability of programs such as Head Start and state-funded pre-K (Potter, 2014). This could be due to barriers such as a lack of information about care, a limited supply of

A common misconception about full day kindergarten is that there is a long term academic advantage for those who went to full day vs those who went to half day. Many studies on the topic have come back as negative. Though the students who do go to full day kindergarten do better in first and maybe second. There is no academic advantage from going to full day kindergarten by the time they go to third grade. There are both pros and cons for full day and half day kindergarten. Many views on full day kindergarten have come out due to certain states not providing the option of half day kindergarten. Many families are conflicted on the two options of schooling for their children.

Most education stakeholders support the extended day of FDK because they believe it provides long-term and short-term academic advantages, behavioral benefits, as well as support to parents in the workforce.

Kindergarten was first established in Germany, in 1837. The meaning of kindergarten in German means, “Garden for children.” It was first established for working parents. The learning environment was based more on interactive learning, such as, singing, playing, drawing, etc. Kindergarten first came to the United States in Wisconsin, in 1856. The National Education Association then began a kindergarten department in 1874. While kindergarten has been around for many years, and even been full-day before, it has been a half-day school for many states. However, a lot of schools are now trying to switch it over to full-day. With this raising issue, the question we should be asking is, will sending kindergartners to school full-day benefit them?

The cognitive development of children is one of the most important topics being studied by researchers. Making sure our children develop properly is extremely important, and a lot of research revolves around trying to give children their best possible chance, by determining what helps and what limits them. Since their brains are so sensitive to information at this age and at a key age of development, it is crucial to ensure their learning is effective. One factor of this type of research is the debate over children attending full-day kindergarten and half-day kindergarten, and whether or not parents should have the option of which one to send their child to. More and more parents are moving into the workforce, which is making full-day kindergarten