As a report finds that U.S.

childhood development
rates are on the decline, many are calling for
increased funding for preschool.
http://www.mintpressnews.com/does-poverty-impact-a-childs-development/172042/
Does Poverty Impact A Childs Development?

As the nation grapples over the need and cost of universal preschool, a new
report has drawn a link between poverty and childrens cognitive skill sets,
highlighting a trend that puts low-income children at risk of falling short of crucial
development benchmarks.
The report, The First Eight Years, takes a look at the impact early cognitive
stimulation has on a child. Funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the report is
aimed not only at addressing the nations poverty and its impact on children, but
also on the steps the U.S. can take to help mitigate the issue.
According to the report, federal spending on programs for children aged 8 and under
is declining, so much so that in 10 years, the U.S. will be spending less than it did in
the Great Depression.
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Decreasing funding will make it even harder for poor children to keep up. Just 68
percent of U.S. fourth graders do not meet adequate reading benchmarks, but for
those living in poverty, 82 percent fall short of the mark.
For the nations minority children, the situation is even more dire. More than 80
percent of Hispanic, Native American and Black children do not meet reading
standards by fourth grade, which is considered a crucial year to grasp the skill.
Ninety percent of minority children living in poverty do not have adequate reading
skills.
Transitioning effectively into elementary school depends largely on a childs
development across critical areas of well-being, the report states.
Yet, a new analysis shows that by age 8, most children in the United States are not
on track in cognitive knowledge and skills, and many lag in the areas of social and
emotional growth, physical well-being and engagement in school.

Why are low-income students falling behind?

When it comes to a childs cognitive development, the report highlights the issues
low-income parents, who are key to nurturing that development, face.
All children need nurturing and plentiful opportunities to develop during their
crucial first eight years, CEO and president of the Annie E. Casey Foundation,
Patrick McCarthy, said in a press release. Todays complicated world can strain
families ability to ensure their children are receiving all the stimulation and care
they need to develop to their full potential.
Parents who are strapped for cash are preoccupied with making ends meet,
according to the report, which could have an impact on the opportunities for and
time devoted to their children.
During his 2013 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama addressed the
nations need for publicly funded preschool services a call that drew criticism
among those who pointed to the potential high costs associated with universal
preschool.
Ill keep pushing to make high-quality preschool available to every 4-year-old in
America not just because we know it works for our kids, but because it provides a
vital support system for working parents, Obama said.
According to the Center for American Progress, doing so would require roughly
$98.4 billion in funding from the federal government over ten years.
While some claimed the presidents proposed policy fell in line with a big
government mentality, those around the country familiar with the costs of
preschool overwhelmingly supported the idea.
A poll released in July by Public Opinions Strategies and Hart Research indicated
that 70 percent of Americans supported universal preschool. Fifty percent of
respondents claimed they strongly supported the measure, while just 21 percent
said they strongly opposed it.
According to a Child Care Awareness Report cited by MSN Money, preschool costs
on average can range from $3,900 to $11,700 for full-day preschool services tailored
for four-year-olds.
For families living on a strict budget, that could be a deal-breaker and statistics
show that in many cases, it is.
An Annie E. Casey Foundation report released in 2012 associated with the Kids
Count Project found that just 53 percent of U.S. children attended preschool during
their third and fourth years. The report looked only at the years 2008-2010.

According to Todd Grindal, a Harvard Graduate School of Education expert,

cognitive skills learned in preschool are vital building blocks to a childs future
success. By the time a child reaches age 5, the brain has grown to 90 percent of its
adult potential.
Children need to develop a healthy and strong brain architecture, Grindal
told MSN Money. The experiences kids have in the early years have profound
effects on their futures.

What does this mean for the future?

The latest report includes information gathered by the Early Childhood Longitudinal
study, which looked at 13,000 children who enrolled in kindergarten during the
1989-1999 school year.
The analysis indicated that of those children, 36 percent were meeting cognitive
benchmarks by the third grade. Fifty-six percent met physical well-being
benchmarks by the same age, while 70 percent had met appropriate social and
emotional growth levels.
Children coming from families whose income levels fell below 200 percent of the
poverty level were in an even tougher situation just 19 percent of those students
were meeting appropriate cognitive skill levels by third grade. For children of color,
that percentage dropped to 14 percent.
Children who dont meet these key developmental milestones often struggle to catch
up in school and graduate on time and are less likely to achieve the kind of economic
success and stability necessary to support a family themselves, an Annie E Casey
Foundation press release states.
The report encourages state and federal governments to recognize the key role
investment in early education has on society, highlighting that a lack of focus now on
young childrens development could create more costs for the government down the
line, in terms of funding for social services.
Some states have already taken on the challenge.
According to the National Institute for Early Education, 28 percent of 4-year-olds
throughout the nation were enrolled in state-funded preschool programs in 20102011. According to the organization, that was roughly the same figure recorded the
year before, marking a point of stagnation that the Institute claims is due to a
nationwide drop of $500 million in funding for government-supported preschool
services.

According to the New York Times, five states are in the midst of seriously exploring
universal preschool Oklahoma and Georgia have declared they will do so, while
Republican leaders in Alabama are calling for robust increases to the states early
education budget. In February, Gov. Robert Bentley (R) called for a 60 percent
increase in funding for early education, with the goal of delivering preschool to the
states children.
The closest thing the nation has to universal preschool is the federally funded
program Head Start, which enrolls roughly 1.1 million students, according to
the New York Times. The program has been controversial, and has been used by
those who oppose universal preschool as evidence that pouring money into early
childhood education doesnt pay off.
While the program is noted as improving preschool access to low-income
families, studies claim it has no impact on students when they reach kindergarten to
third grade. That, however, isnt a valid argument, according to Lisa Guernsey,
director for early education at the America Foundation, who claims the Head Start
program has been modeled to pay teachers less-than-acceptable salaries.
When I hear people say, Weve tried to replicate high-quality preschool programs,
and it hasnt worked, I always stop and say, We havent yet tried to replicate highquality preschool programs, because we havent yet tried to pay preschool teachers
the same that were paying our K-12 teachers, Guernsey told the New York Times.
Regardless, the level of cognitive ability developed by the nations children is
dropping and unless the government steps in like it is in Alabama, the trend is
expected to continue on its downward spiral thats sure to impact the future of the
country.
Were trying to invest in a workforce that can compete in 20 years with other states
and nations, Alabama School Readiness Alliance executive director Allison de la
Torre told the New York Times.