McCauley 1

Silvia R. McCauley

Dr. Adrienne Cassel

English 1202

1 November 2018

The Necessity of a Required Preschool for at Risk Children

My topic of investigation is early education. Reading readiness is key to multiple skills

that later in life, defining the path that we follow. Strong reading skills are the basis for learning

in all subjects. This matter is especially worrying when we talk about the children in at-risk

groups, and their level of literacy by the time they reach kindergarten, compared to their peers.

The Pew Research Center in 2016 reported that Hispanics and African Americans are still

lagging behind other groups in education. I am interested in how preschool and literacy

interventions before kindergarten are still not required by law, this being a crucial part of

children at-risk education. What are the programs that are already in effect and what are their

results, and the difference they made?. And finally what are the socio-economic benefits of

helping these children.

Anderson, Monica. “The Race Gap in Science Knowledge.” The Pew Research Center,

2015, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/09/15/the-race-gap-in-science-

knowledge/.Accessed 30 Oct. 2018.

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The case is the same in science and STEM degrees, which seems to be a continuity of the

literacy problem for at-risk groups. Once that the gap in education grows bigger, fewer Blacks

and Latinos achieve higher education degrees like Bachelors or Masters. 63% of science and

engineering degrees awarded in 2011 went to white students, compared with roughly 10% to

Hispanics and 9% to blacks, according to a report by the National Science Board.

This panorama gives us an idea of the education level among a group. In this research, I will

focus in the Hispanics and African American boys.

Bumgarner, Erin, and Meiko Lin. “Hispanic Immigrant Children’s English Language

Acquisition: The Role of Socioeconomic Status and Early Care Arrangement.” Early

Education and Development, vol. 25, no. 4, Jan. 2014, pp. 515–529. EBSCOhost,

sinclair.ohionet.org:80/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&d

b=eric&AN=EJ1030894&site=eds-live.

This study focuses on the comparison of how much benefit Hispanic at-risk children from first

and second generation immigrants, can get from early childhood education services. Some of the

variables of this study focus on the results in first and second generation immigrants, and how

proficient they become in English under these services. The study also finds the difference in

literacy levels, first generation children from lower-income Hispanic families can achieve under

the program. Different factors were evaluated around the families assessed: the mother’s

education, their income, and stress levels in the family.

This results would be relevant when defining the type of services that these children are

receiving, and how the school system is trying to administrating them and, approach the families.
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Not all Hispanic children are in the same “at-risk” situation, and maybe this is why the programs

for helping them, change so much from state to state. This information considers the critical

issue of the culture that surrounds the living situation of these kids. It examines factors that are

probably going to show in many Hispanic households, and the barriers the caretakers face when

trying to help their children in school related issues.

Tufts and Columbia University did the study, and it was published by Routledge, a leading

academic publisher in the Humanities and Social, a reliable publisher of quality academic books,

journals & online reference.

Krogstad, Jens Manuel and Radford, Jynnah. “Education levels of U.S. immigrants are on the

rise.” The Pew Research Center, 2018, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-

tank/2018/09/14/education-levels-of-u-s-immigrants-are-on-the-rise/./Accessed 30 Oct

2018.

The Pew Research center is a good start to find out who is, in fact, a risk group, and in these

reports. Among Hispanics and African Americans the share with a bachelor’s degree had tripled.

Now about 15% are college graduates. Even so, the Hispanic-white gap in college completion

has persisted; whites today are more than twice as likely as Hispanics to have a college degree,

as was the case in the early 1970s. These results show improvement, and while positive still

shows a big gap in the educational area, it seems to be that the environment and economic status

is a cycle that if not broken, repeats itself in the next generation.

The Pew Research Center is an investigation institute that collects data and research from

demographics, and opinions of its participants. Its unbias because does not hold a particular
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position on topics. The institution does not hold motivation to skew research results in the

interest of perpetuating their policies or opinions on the issues on which they are reporting.

Oghenekohwo, Jonathan E., and Ekima A. Frank-Oputu. “Literacy Education and Sustainable

Development in Developing Societies.” International Journal of Education and Literacy

Studies, vol. 5, no. 2, Apr. 2017, pp. 126–131. EBSCOhost,

sinclair.ohionet.org:80/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&d

b=eric&AN=EJ1149291&site=eds-live.

This research is from the International Journal of Education & Literacy Studies. They got

together enough evidence to explain why literacy needs significant investments from the

governments to aspire for sustainable development, economic and positive social change.

The study defined the correlation between literacy levels and the continual development goals of

a country.

The research focuses on how literacy facilitates to reduce the vulnerability and increase the self-

sufficiency of the people. It states that higher levels of literacy contribute to the participation of

the people in diverse areas of social life. It indicates that literacy education gives people a

collection of experiences that manifest in a level of proficiency that can be measure. Their theory

includes positive outcomes with problem-solving and informed decision making. It analyzes the

effect of literacy on economic development, environmental protection, social development, and

governance peace and security

It states that investing in literacy and development of the human capital of a country is one of the

most critical parts of progress.

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I think this would be a great counter argument when talking about the cost of all the school

readiness programs for at-risk children. It gives a perspective about all the benefits that a literate

population brings to the table. Also, why is so important to reach the problem when the solution

can be easier to apply and more meaningful, like it is when it comes to children’s learning. It

would help provide a bigger panorama about how big of an issue literacy is, and how much it

affects all aspects of our social life. Considering that we are living now in a time where

technology and connection is the base for many thing, not being able to use all the resources that

are offered to make our lives easier and more productive because people don't have the literacy

skills, is a significant loss for everybody.

The Australian International Academic Centre published this study. It was done by two Nigerian

academics, who also based their research in the United Nations 17-point Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs), it follows a proved model to the sustainable development of

countries.

Rashid, Hakim M. “From Brilliant Baby to Child Placed At Risk: The Perilous Path of African

American Boys in Early Childhood Education.” Journal of Negro Education, vol. 78, no.

3, Summer 2009, pp. 347–358. EBSCOhost,

sinclair.ohionet.org:80/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&d

b=ehh&AN=45323703&site=eds-live.

For Africans Americans the panorama is not the difference of language at home. This research

shows an essential issue with African Americans. The way boys developed in school from an
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early age and the social and economic factors that continue to affect their literacy development

thru life. For African Americans, the "at-risk" group are the boys.

The preschool and early elementary years play an essential role in transforming young African

American boys from "brilliant babies" into "children placed at risk." It runs from preschool

settings, through elementary and middle school and into the high schools from which young

African American men continue to drop out in large numbers. Many critical factors affect the

status of African American boys in early childhood education.

This research gives an in-depth view of the variety of social factors that intervene in the

difference between African American boys’ early literacy environments and their peers. Like

Hispanics, African Americans also are at risk for their income level. But their at-risk situation

leads to a dangerous consequences, like the prison system.

The study gives multiple well-fundamental options on how to help these young African

American kids to avoid being part of the negative statistics that they are part of.

The research was published in the Journal of Negro Education, a Howard University Quarterly

Review of Issues Incident to the Education of Black People

Waldfogel, Jane. “The Role of Out-of-School Factors in the Literacy Problem.” Future of

Children, vol. 22, no. 2, Jan. 2012, pp. 39–54. EBSCOhost,

sinclair.ohionet.org:80/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&d

b=eric&AN=EJ996186&site=eds-live.

This study is a relevant view regarding the at-risk groups and the importance of the factors

surrounding the exterior elements, and the balance of the outside factors and the school programs

designed to aid these children. When U.S. children enter school, their reading skills vary widely
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by their socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, and immigrant status because these literacy

gaps exist before children start school. They come from outside factors from the children’s

families and communities. These factors may continue to influence children's reading skills as

they progress through school.

What the Waldfogel study found was that some elements are more critical across certain groups.

For example, differences in parenting styles can help explain black-white literacy gaps as well as

gaps associated with socioeconomic status. Also, the factors can differ by group. For instance,

the critical influences on early literacy for immigrant children are the language spoken at home,

parental proficiency in English, and whether a child participates in preschool. This part of the

investigation is a significant part of the paper I want to write because it explains the social

characteristics of this group.

Waldfogel concludes with several solutions to close the gap in literacy between this at-risk

groups and gives one crucial conclusion. Although out-of-school factors contribute to literacy

disparities, schools have a responsibility to try to close such gaps. The investment that

governments make to help early literacy is essential. Research on the out-of-school sources of

literacy problems can help practitioners and policymakers to understand which children are

likely to encounter difficulties in literacy and why. Jane Waldfogel is a professor for the

Compton Foundation Centennial for the Prevention of Children and Youth Problems at

Columbia University School of Social Work and published by

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