Here are some of the best recent news and opinion pieces written about preschool in 2006.
See recent news coverage from 2007.
2006
December 20
Education Week Magazine: U.S. Urged to Reinvent Its Schools
Titled “Tough Choices or Tough Times,” the report was unveiled at an all-day meeting here Dec. 14 by a prominent panel whose members include former U.S. secretaries of education and labor, retired governors and mayors, state and local superintendents, and business executives...Among its proposals: High-quality early education available to all 4-year-olds and to all 3-year-olds from low-income families.
December 13
The Almanac: Holiday Fund: Family Connections helps preschoolers, parents grow together
"Always, a parent stays with their child," says Debbie Denton, community liaison for Family Connections, which provides free preschools for children from low-income families living in Belle Haven, East Palo Alto and parts of Redwood City. "This is not a drop-off center," says Ms. Denton. It's a parent-participation preschool that combines parent involvement and leadership with access for some 150 children, infants to 5-year olds, to early education and school readiness each year.
December 13
San Francisco Chronicle: Miller's focus includes student loans
At a press conference in his committee room -- standing before a huge blue banner reading, "Strengthening America's Middle Class" -- Miller ticked off a long wish list of items: universal pre-kindergarten schooling, an expanded Head Start program for young children and increased Pell Grants for needy college students.
December 12
T.H.E. Journal: NASBE Recommends Universal Preschool
The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) has released a new report recommending universal preschool and addressing strategies for states moving toward greater access to high-quality preschool programs. The report, entitled "Fulfilling the Promise of Preschool," is available now in abridged form on NASBE's Web site.
December 12
Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley: Temple Emanu-El Preschool honored for supporting children with special needs
While Temple Emanu-El Preschool, launched in 2001, was not designed specifically for children with special needs, its openness, and willingness to accommodate all kinds of children, has drawn families whose children have a variety of special needs. Last month, the preschool was awarded a “Community Resource of the Year Award,” from the San Andreas Regional Center, which serves children and adults with special needs.
December 5
Long Beach Press Telegram: Horizons opened here for 22 years
Kim Malone is sorting through cloth shapes with a half-dozen 3- to 5-year-olds in an activity that doubles as a math exercise.
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November 28
Palo Alto Daily News: Education leaders call for reform
About 150 parents, teachers and other residents of Palo Alto, Mountain View and Los Altos gathered on Monday night to hear two leading educational policymakers place local schools in a global perspective. Many in the audience at Palo Alto High School took notes as former state schools superintendent Delaine Eastin and Ted Lempert, president of the advocacy group Children Now, spoke on how to make public schools more competitive with those of other nations.
November 22
Modesto Bee: Tobacco tax generates $8.5M for Stanislaus kids programs
California's tobacco users continued to support early childhood development in Stanislaus County during the past year, to the tune of $8.5million.
November 21
San Diego Union Tribune: Military allowance disqualifies kids from preschool
Located in the midst of a large military housing development populated by young families with small children, Bay Point State Preschool should be bursting at the seams. But the publicly funded preschool at San Diego's former Naval Training Center can fill only one of its three classrooms. It's not for a lack of demand. The problem is that income eligibility rules prevent many military families from taking advantage of the school, within walking distance of their rented townhomes.
November 20
New York Times: Schools Slow in Closing Gaps Between Races
Despite concerted efforts by educators, the test-score gaps are so large that, on average, African-American and Hispanic students in high school can read and do arithmetic at only the average level of whites in junior high school...Suggestions abound for ways to narrow the score gaps faster. Since scholars have documented that minority children enter kindergarten with weaker reading skills than white children, some experts advocate increased public financing for early education programs.
November 17
San Mateo County Times: Learning Centers not just for kids
It focuses on helping parents in low-income families get involved in their child's education and at the same time learn parenting skills...Parents of children in the preschool-through-first-grade classes at these schools are required to volunteer in the classroom at least once every four weeks. They usually work with students one-on-one or in groups on different lessons they are covering in the class.
November 15
Education Week: Early-Childhood Issues Raised for NCLB Law
As states continue to add public preschool programs—in the hope that greater access to early-childhood education will improve schools’ chances of meeting the NCLB law’s targets—it’s not surprising that some organizations are pushing to increase the federal government’s role in the years before kindergarten. The federal law “does not adequately address the critical education of children under age 5. This must change,” Libby Doggett, the executive director of the Washington-based advocacy group Pre-K Now, said when she spoke this past summer to members of the Commission on No Child Left Behind.
November 6
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco: Janet L. Yellen: Economic Inequality in the United States
Recently, researchers led by James Heckman from the University of Chicago have argued that these funds should be targeted at even younger children. Family background factors are critically important in student achievement, and recent evidence suggests that the cognitive and social skills associated with college attendance are developed very early in life.
November 5
Auburn Journal: Preschool owners seek to impact young lives
"Children, they learn so much in the first five years of life," Mai-Ling said. "We truly believe in preschool because we feel they can come here for socialization, for structure, for academics and the fun in just those couple hours, and they learn a lot, and by the time they leave here they want to come back for more."
November 3
Harvard Education Letter: Recent Research on the Achievement Gap
There’s been enough progress to establish firmly that these gaps are not written in stone. Even IQ gaps are narrowing. Measurements of the intelligence of kids less than one year old show virtually no racial or social-class differences, yet racial and social class achievement gaps are firmly established by the time students start kindergarten.
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October 30
Marketplace American Public Media: Investing in the kids
Host Scott Jagow and Marketplace economics correspondent Chris Farrell look at a new trend in corporate philanthropy: giving to early childhood development programs.
October 23
Sacramento Bee: Preschool: Part lab, part opportunity
Part enrichment program and part living lab, the school's goals range from research to social justice.
"Our mission is to eradicate the inequalities of public education," said former basketball star Kevin Johnson, whose St. Hope organization wants the preschool to complement its K-12 charter schools.
October 18
Press Enterprise: Quality Time for Kids
"The mission is to provide a quality education and to prepare children for kindergarten," he said. "It's a safe place where parents know their children are being cared for in a reputable and loving manner. And they know there is educational value to what is being done."
October 16
Slate Magazine: Sharing at the Sand Table 101: Do you need a college degree to teach preschool?
So, do you need a degree to teach preschool? Study after study shows that 3- and 4-year-olds are better served by more-educated teachers in myriad ways. As you might expect, these teachers tend to offer superior curricula and formal teaching. But they're also, on average, "more stimulating, warm, and supportive" and "provide more age-appropriate experiences."
October 12
Santa Rosa Press Democrat: Head Start employees push for pay hike
Like most who work for the federally funded preschool program, Bañuelos, a single mother, is struggling to make ends meet, even after 14 years on the job, five of them in her current teaching post.
October 10
Daily Californian: Campus to Open New Child Care Facility
The facility will be open to children who are not yet old enough to go to kindergarten and will be a center for campus research on early childhood development.
October 10
Redding Record Searchlight: Grant boosts Tehama's Hispanic outreach
Flush with $345,000 from a state grant, the Tehama County Department of Education and the Tehama County Education Foundation are focusing their attention on schooling the region's undereducated Hispanic population. The county's program pays for adult and early childhood education, and teaches parenting skills and parent-child interaction.
October 10
Napa Valley Register: Even Start program puts whole families on path to literacy
“The whole family wins in Even Start,” she said, referring to the classes available for parents and the free preschool for children. “Many of the parents come to this city without any support system, and are in need of socialization. A couple months into the program they are laughing and talking and have marvelous accomplishments ... they are a testimony to themselves of how strong they are.”
October 6
Ontario Inland Valley Daily Bulletin: Educators whoop it up for reading
The Cat in the Hat and Clifford the Big Red Dog made a special appearance at Linda Vista Elementary School in Ontario to kick-off a program designed to get kids excited about reading.
October 4
New York Times: Early Repairs in Foundation for Reading
Children with severe reading problems usually struggle for years before getting the help they need. But a growing number of neurologists and educators say that with the latest diagnostic tests, children at high risk for these problems can be identified in preschool and treated before they ever begin to read.
October 3
USA Today: Q-and-A: 'Building Blocks' are keys to learning
Even as Americans worry about low graduation rates in high school and college, education journalist Gene Maeroff says it's time to go back to the beginning. In his new book, Building Blocks: Making Children Successful in the Early Years of School, he says we should pay more attention to the benefits of preschool — and consider creating more pre-K-to-third-grade (PK-3) programs that cater to children under 9.
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September 27
San Bernardino County Sun: Young readers boosted
Programs that help low-income youngsters read got a major boost with more than a half-million dollars in grants announced Tuesday by the state Department of Education. The money is used to help teach pre-school students and their parents about reading.
September 21
Santa Cruz Sentinel: El Jardin offers a garden of bilingual opportunities
The name of the preschool is a mouthful, but in the coming years its students should be able to say it in both Spanish and English.
September 12
San Francisco Chronicle: Teach them early
Any kindergarten teacher can tell. When the school year starts, it's easy to spot a youngster who went to preschool and began the learning process -- and a kid who didn't and is already behind.
September 11
Fontana Herald News: Phil's Findings: It may look like child's play, but...
A program which prepares children to become better persons at home and at school, to develop into better students, to learn desirable social skills, to adapt to fairness when playing, and to recognize their own ego strengths is the Preschool Program offered at the Fontana Unified School District elementary schools.
September 8
The Desert Sun: Governor visits local school touting early education initiative
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger visited Two Bunch Palms Elementary School on Thursday, touting a $100 million early education initiative for children in poor-performing schools and economically struggling areas.
September 8
San Francisco Chronicle: Governor signs into law funding for preschools
"I think there is a lot of momentum in California right now ... and working together, we can do some important things in coming years," said Catherine Atkin, president of Preschool California, a nonprofit in Oakland that has been campaigning for a publicly financed preschool system for three years.
September 8
Los Angeles Times: Gov. Signs Preschool Funding Bill
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday signed legislation that provides $50 million to expand preschool opportunities for thousands of low-income children.
September 8
Oakland Tribune: Governor: Thumbs up to preschool bill
"Preschool gives our kids the strong foundation they need to be successful in school and in life," said Schwarzenegger during a signing ceremony at the Para Los Ninos Vermont Child Development Center in South Central Los Angeles.
September 1
Whittier Daily News: Legislature OKs preschool bill
Supporters hailed as "wonderful news" the passage Thursday by the state Legislature of a bill that would allocate $50 million for programs in underperforming preschools.
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August 31
Wall Street Journal: Notable Absence: High Teacher Turnover Can Take Emotional Toll on Preschoolers
Starting new classes in the fall is change enough for most small children. But an estimated one in three kids in child-care centers and preschools will face yet another, unplanned transition during the school year: A teacher or classroom aide will quit his or her job to move on to a better-paying opportunity.
August 29
La Opinión: Padres latinos tienen altas expectativas
Contrario al estereotipo, los padres de familia latinos están tan interesados en el éxito educativo de sus hijos, y en que reciban una educación universitaria, como padres de otras etnias, según una encuesta publicada por New America Media.
August 28
Asian Journal: Poll of Latino, African-American and Asian-American Parents Reveals High Educational Aspirations for Their Children
There is also strong support for early education programs, according to the poll. "This survey clearly shows that parents of all backgrounds want their children to have the best education possible, starting with quality pre-school," said Graciela Italiano-Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of Los Angeles Universal Preschool (LAUP).
August 24
Harvard Education Letter: The School Readiness Gap
For decades now, educators, researchers, and policymakers have puzzled over so-called achievement gaps—the disparities in academic performance by race and ethnicity that consistently show up on standardized tests, grade-point averages, and a host of other measures. A growing body of research, however, suggests that any serious effort to eliminate disparities at the primary and secondary school levels must also address what some researchers call the school readiness gap—the variations in academic performance and certain social skills among children entering kindergarten and first grade.
August 24
Whittier Daily News: Poll: Minority parents value education
A majority of African-American, Asian-American and Latino parents interviewed were not satisfied with merely having their children attain a high school diploma. They want and expect their offspring to achieve bachelor's degrees or higher, the poll, which was conducted in several languages by New America Media, showed.
August 24
San Francisco Chronicle: Nonwhite parents' high hopes
California parents who are black, Latino and Asian American voiced big aspirations for their children and support for early childhood education in a new poll commissioned by New America Media, a national media association based in San Francisco.
August 24
KSBY Channel 6: Preschool for all in Santa Barbara
Studies show that kids who go to preschool are better prepared and have more success in the classroom later in life. While a statewide initiative failed at the ballot box, the Santa Barbara School District is not giving up on the idea of "Preschool for all."
August 23
Sacramento Bee: Sergio Bendixen: Fresh expectations for state schools
In addition, nearly three-quarters of ethnic minority parents in California believe that children need to attend an educational program before age 5 to prepare for kindergarten.
August 23
San Francisco Chronicle: David Gergen: What you can do to close the learning gap
The results are telling: by first grade, children from low-income families command a vocabulary of about 5,000 words, while children from middle-income families know some 20,000 words -- an astonishing difference. Fully a third of the country's children now show up for kindergarten unprepared to succeed in school, ill-prepared for the journey ahead.
August 21
Christian Science Monitor: Free preschool will help Latinos and US
We generally think of kindergarten as a time of possibilities and fresh starts. But kids don't begin their formal education on equal footing: When they arrive at the schoolhouse door, poor and minority students often lag behind their peers by as much as 18 months.
August 20
San Luis Obispo Tribune: Free preschool options increasing
Mercedes Zatarain is a native speaker of Spanish with limited knowledge of English, but her 5-year-old twins are already bilingual — something she attributes largely to preschool.
August 19
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Arthur Reynolds: A coordinated approach to early childhood education works
In order for children to get the most out of growing public investments in early learning, we must align standards, curriculum and assessment from pre-kindergarten through kindergarten and into the early elementary grades. That's the PK-3 approach.
August 17
North County Times: San Pasqual Union starts classes with new preschool
When San Pasqual Union School started the new academic year Thursday, the diminutive kindergartners for once weren't the smallest students to set foot on the K-8 campus at the city's eastern edge. A new preschool program also began there Thursday that school officials are targeting specifically at the children most at risk of falling behind in school, those whose first language isn't English.
August 16
Auburn Journal: Gazing into Class of 2019
Sarah, whose first day of kindergarten is today at Alta Vista Elementary School, thinks she's ready for school because she knew Tuesday what she wanted to wear today. Sarah's parents are confident she's ready for a number of other reasons - she's a preschool pro - and they're happy to see her starting kindergarten now and think she's ready for it.
August 9
Los Angeles Times: Crisis Looms for Quality Child Care in California, Report Says
California faces a crisis in the availability of quality child care over the next decade with an aging workforce approaching retirement even as demand is rising for experienced teachers, according to a new study.
August 9
San Jose Mercury News: Survey: Child care at risk
A statewide survey released Tuesday by First 5 California found that low salaries, high turnover rates and an aging workforce threaten the availability and quality of child care in the state.
August 8
ABC 7 News: Study Shows Pre-School Teacher Shortage
The number of toddlers entering preschool is expected to grow significantly while the number of teachers is expected to drop. A new study spells trouble for parents and kids.
August 6
Washington Post: Late Learner
I've tried hard to become fluent in the lingua franca of contemporary motherhood: boppy, Baby Bjorn, Bugaboo, breast-feeding, Ferberizing, co-sleeping, attachment parenting, Dr. Sears, Super Baby Food and the sleep sack. But, in all my research, I never realized I should have started looking for preschools last fall, when my son was barely walking.
August 3
Merced Sun-Star: Youngsters to get academic foundations
All 12 of the Merced City School District's elementary schools will be offering a preschool program this fall, with the goal of equipping youngsters to be more successful in an increasingly rigorous kindergarten setting.
August 3
Appeal-Democrat: Smart Start eases Barry students
Classmates Olaitan Coker and Grecia Rodriguez squatted in the spacious garden on a sloping field at Barry Elementary School in Yuba City, dirt clinging to their blue jeans, and poked at the small green sprouts peeking out of the ground.
August 2
North County Times: New program offers free outdoor preschool
The free program, called Preschool in the Park, began July 1 and is intended to prepare children for kindergarten who otherwise might not get the opportunity to go to preschool.
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July 26
Chicago Public Radio: Analyzing Preschool for All
Child development expert Arthur Reynolds analyzes Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s “Preschool for All” program, which he signed into law on Tuesday, July 25.
July 26
Stockton Record: Crossing the bridge to kindergarten
Preschool gives students a year to get a jump on learning colors, shapes and how to write their names, but it also teaches them how to interact with their fellow students, follow directions and otherwise be primed to start learning when they get to kindergarten, said Brandi Harrold, Tracy Unified School District's school-readiness coordinator.
July 23
New York Times: David L. Kirp: After the Bell Curve
When it comes to explaining the roots of intelligence, the fight between partisans of the gene and partisans of the environment is ancient and fierce. Each side challenges the other’s intellectual bona fides and political agendas.
July 21
Ventura County Star: Panel urges local effort for universal preschool
California voters may have turned down free preschool for all 4-year-olds earlier this year, but proponents are trying to keep the idea alive locally.
July 20
Calaveras Enterprise: Preschool collaboration continues West Point tradition
HRC Calaveras Head Start/State Preschool and Calaveras Unified School District have joined forces with First 5 Calaveras to offer the new program, which continues the availability of preschool begun in West Point more than two decades ago.
July 19
Ledger Dispatch: First 5 California Chairman visits newly opened preschool in Jackson
According to a packet compiled by Preschool Director/Teacher Karyn Gregorious and members of the preschool's parent board, Amador Cooperative Preschool is a "newly forming nonprofit preschool" that will be the "first and only state licensed parent cooperative preschool in Amador County."
July 17
Whittier Daily News: State budget allots $100 million for preschool aid
Although voters rejected universal preschool at the ballot box last month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has included $100 million in the state budget to provide preschool for an estimated 43,000 California 4-year-olds.
July 11
La Opinión: Gestión pro educación de calidad
Una de las alternativas educativas que también se promovieron en la conferencia del NCLR, que se lleva a cabo en el Centro de Convenciones de Los Ángeles desde el pasado sábado y que concluye hoy, fue la educación prekindergarten. Es decir, la educación pre-preescolar.
July 10
Sierra Sun: Kinder camp: a boost for future kindergartners
This summer, and for the past three, the Alpine Winters Summer Camp has provided classroom exposure for children with funding through a variety of community partnerships. The program is geared toward children who have not had the opportunity to attend preschool or who need further support in building their cognitive and behavioral skills.
July 10
Napa Valley Register: Napa college program gives new teachers a boost
The ECE program partners with Napa Valley College to provide an introductory college course in early childhood development, as well as a variety of support resources, including job market information, career counseling, financial aid, and academic counseling. Rafael says the combined approach of college classes, on-the-job training, and support services helps motivate participants to continue their education and training toward an early childhood development career -- as Torres is doing.
June 29
San Jose Mercury News: Infusion of education funds welcomed
Local and state education officials on Wednesday applauded the state budget now before the governor, saying the infusion of desperately needed cash comes after years of slashing that have cut classrooms to the bone...The budget adds $50 million in ongoing funds to expand enrollment in the state's preschool system, as well as $50 million in one-time preschool facilities funding.
June 28
San Francisco Chronicle: State's budget called a victory for all sides
The state Legislature on Tuesday night approved a $131 billion budget that uses $7.5 billion in unexpected revenue to give victories to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative Democrats and Republicans by funding their key priorities. Preschool education will see $100 million, with half of it going to expand programs in high-need areas.
June 27
The Bakersfield Californian: Classes help parents bridge language barrier
Moreno is one of about 35 adults who spend four hours a day in a small building next to the fairgrounds learning English -- one word at a time. The Bakersfield Adult School provides the English teacher, and the Bakersfield City School District sends the pre-kindergarten teacher.
June 19
Tahoe Daily Tribune: Rite of passage
The 22 students of the graduating class of 2006 sat impassively as cameras flashed, video cameras zoomed and parents smiled. Although there was no valedictorian speech, the students harmoniously recited their ABC's to perfection.
June 19
Modesto Bee: Learning the ropes
If you bump into someone on the playground, it's polite to say "I'm sorry." If you want to borrow a classmate's red crayon, you should say "please" and "thank you."
June 14
KXTV - ABC News Sacramento: Governor Wants Preschool for 4-Year-Olds in Low-Performing School Districts
The governor is promoting using Proposition 98 funding to enable 43,000 4-year-olds who live in low-performing school districts to attend preschool.
June 12
San Bernardino Sun: Early education still an option in local district
California voters have decided that free preschool is not for everyone, but one school district already offers a free early-education program for future students.
June 5
New America Media: John Springer: Who Asked Us? Preschool Laid a Foundation
Nap time. Snack time. Free time. Silent time. There are many "times" in preschool that I remember adoringly. Looking back on my early years in this world, I can see that my years in preschool were essential to my personal development.
June 5
Christian Science Monitor: John Funk: Pre-K success depends on teachers
Universal preschool would work better if teachers had adequate pay and proper training.
June 4
Los Angeles Daily News: Deborah Stipek: Investment in preschools makes kids better citizens
Studies have shown that children who had the advantage of a quality preschool experience are less likely to be convicted of crimes and also less likely to repeat a grade in school and to require special-education services. Rigorous analyses by the Rand Corp. indicate that for every $1 invested in preschool, we save $2 to $4 in such costs.
June 4
Tracy Press: Maryann O'Sullivan: Say "yes" to quality preschool
We have a chance to do something good for our children, and great for our schools, Tuesday.
June 4
Marin Independent Journal: Ethel Seiderman: What is good for the children?
I knew this was only the beginning and wanted to become a permanent part of the educational fabric of the district, dreaming of the day when my state and nation would invest in an appropriate child development-focused education for children, even under age five. I know that learning begins at least at birth.
June 3
San Mateo County Times: Ted Lempert: California is ready for Proposition 82
As Election Day approaches, the debate around Proposition 82, which would provide quality preschool for tens of thousands of California 4-year-olds who currently don't have access, has reached its peak. The facts the voters need to know to make an informed decision on Prop. 82, however, are being misrepresented.
June 1
San Francisco Chronicle: David Kirp and Deborah Stipek: Preschool is a smart investment
If the research matters, the answer is a no-brainer: pre-kindergarten is a smart investment to make in our children's futures. A library-shelf's worth of studies confirm what every parent already knows -- that the early years of a child's life make an enormous difference.
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May 31
San Francisco Examiner: Robert A. Corrigan: Proposition 82: Two views on preschool funding
Why invest in educating 4-year-olds? Because study after study has shown that children who have the benefit of preschool complete their education more quickly, effectively and at a higher level than those who don’t have that small one-year investment.
May 27
Sacramento Bee: Letter to the Editor: Measuring preschools
Daniel Weintraub has confused quality with quantity. He lauds the governor's proposal to increase spending on the state preschool program without recognizing that what's needed are stronger quality standards and better programs for children.
May 24
Los Angeles Times: Arthur Reynolds: Preschool: the best policy money can buy
Are public investments in preschool good for children's educations and for their well being? Do they make sense for society? After five decades of research, the answer is unequivocally yes.
May 21
San Jose Mercury News: Deborah Stipek: Statewide preschool would help all, not just the poor
Question: What do California's prison inmates have in common, aside from having been convicted of a crime? Answer: Poor literacy skills. On average, prison inmates read at about the seventh grade level. If we had invested in their education earlier, many of them would be employed and paying taxes rather than in jail costing taxes, and our prisons would not be overflowing.
May 20
San Luis Obispo Tribune: Dr. Julian Crocker: Invest in our children's future
We want all of our children to be successful in school. However, about half of the 2,400 children who enter kindergarten in our county each year are not as prepared as others to be successful.
May 20
Napa Valley Register: Nancy Jordan: Pre-kindergarten: The kindergarten of 20 years ago
Although they remain blissfully unaware, California's 4-year-olds are in the middle of a heated debate. The debate centers on Proposition 82, the "Preschool for All" act. Regardless of one's political position, this proposition raises a significant idea whose time has come.
May 20
Sacramento Bee: An early start
Like most 4-year-olds in California, Megan and Nathan Cruz spend their days away from home, in a bright colorful room where they draw, sing, socialize and learn the letters of the alphabet.
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April 30
Ventura County Star: Charles Weis: Preschool for All deserves passage
Study after study, published over the past 20 years, has pointed to the educational, crime-reduction and economic benefits of attendance at a high-quality preschool.
April 26
Los Angeles Times: Benefits of preschool come with every dollar
Our study concluded that making a high-quality preschool program available to every 4-year-old would generate an estimated $2 to $4 in benefits to California society for every $1 spent. And the cost of such a universal preschool program is more than outweighed by the benefits — even using very conservative assumptions.
April 23
Sacramento Bee: Dr. Edward Zigler: A growth investment
As one of the founders of Head Start, the 40-year-old federal program targeted to children in poverty, I fervently believe that publicly supported preschool available to all children is the best strategy to ensure everyone has the chance at a strong start in elementary school. It is without question the fairest policy, and it also is the only way to ensure that quality preschool is available to at-risk children who need it most.
April 22
Los Angeles Times: David Kirp: Letter to the Editor
The research by the National Institute for Early Education Research demonstrates that children, poor and middle class alike, benefit academically from quality preschool.
April 19
USA Today: High costs of childcare can lead to lifestyle adjustments
Margaret Schwartz would like to spend more time at home and maybe even take a day or two off work now and then to be with her sons. But she can't. She spends $1,330 a month on child care and preschool for her two 4-year old boys, Rupert, and Nicki.
April 4
Stockton Record: Letter to the Editor: Preschool can preclude some poverty problems
However, early-childhood interventions such as preschool have been prove to combat some negative effects of poverty.
April 3
Children's Advocate News Magazine: Preschool Search Even Tougher for Immigrants
"It's hard finding a place you feel comfortable leaving your kids!" says Willow Lancaster of San Francisco. Lancaster, like many other immigrants, wanted a place where her kids would be safe and could continue to speak both Spanish and English—a place close to home that she could afford.
April 1
La Opinión: Policías respaldan el acceso a preescolar
Steve Krull, presidente de la Asociación de Jefes de Policía de California y jefe de la Policía de Livermore, precisó que estudios realizados demuestran que los niños que van al preescolar son menos propensos a involucrarse en crímenes violentos y en el narcotráfico.
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March 26
San Jose Mercury News: Ted Lempert: Legislative paralysis hurts children
As the economy improves, other states are making significant investments in expanding health care and early childhood education. Last year, total funding for preschool increased almost 40 percent nationwide. And last year, Illinois passed a law to provide health insurance to all children.
March 15
San Francisco Chronicle: Preschool wait puts parents in panic
Like teenagers nervously awaiting college-acceptance letters, parents of preschool-age children are hovering around their mailboxes this month to see whether their applications to Bay Area preschools have paid off.
March 9
La Opinión: Pocos pueden pagar educación preescolar
Si las familias de todo el estado tuvieran acceso a educación preescolar calificada para sus hijos, las tasas de delincuencia juvenil se reducirían en un 19%, menos niños sufrirían abusos, alrededor de 10 mil estudiantes proseguirían sus estudios cada año sin pensar en la idea del abandono escolar y otro 19% no tendría que repetir algún curso.
March 2
Los Angeles Times: Giving Kids a Headstart
As a teacher and a mother, Nancy Linaweaver knows that prekindergarten is good for young children.
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February 17
San Francisco Chronicle: Study of youngsters links aggression, reading difficulty
Children who have trouble reading in their early grades are found by their teachers to act more aggressively later on, Stanford University researchers have found.
February 15
Voice of San Diego: Get that kid to preschool
Last year, economists at the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit research organization providing analysis of issues facing the public and private sectors, released a study showing the economic benefits to our state if most children attended a quality preschool.
February 13
San Francisco Chronicle: Why quality preschool matters
We know from decades of solid research and teacher observations that children who have been lucky enough to go to quality preschool enter kindergarten excited about learning, ready to share, communicate and cooperate with others. Perhaps most important, these lucky kids have a good foundation for learning to read -- the skill they will most need to thrive through high school and beyond.
February 2
Los Angeles Times: L.A. Unified to Provide Space for Preschool Classes
Los Angeles school officials Wednesday announced a partnership with early childhood educators to provide classrooms for thousands of preschoolers in underserved communities.
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January 28
North County Times: State-funded preschool sites flourishing in San Marcos
Four months after three state-funded preschool programs opened in the city, two are full and there has been an increase in parent involvement, preschool officials said Friday.
January 16
San Diego Business Journal: Andrew Clark: Invest in Preschoolers
Imagine if we could decrease the likelihood that our children would need special education, repeat grades, drop out of high school and enter into a life of crime at a young age.
January/February Issue
Harvard Education Letter: Degrees of Improvement (pdf)
The short- and long-term benefits of quality preschool education are well documented by research dating back decades.
January 11
New York Times: The Need to Invest in Young Children
For while many American educators and policy experts have spent four decades in a slow push for universal prekindergarten programs and affordable child care, Britain's Labor government has leapt into the full agenda.
January 6
Wall Street Journal: James J. Heckman: Catch 'em Young (pdf)
It is a rare public policy initiative that promotes fairness and social justice and, at the same time, promotes productivity in the economy and in society at large. Investing in disadvantaged young children is such a policy.
January 6
National Public Radio: Preschool teacher pay
Work and Family correspondent Sarah Gardner looks at why preschool teachers, on average, make less money than animal trainers.
January 5
Los Angeles Daily News: Jerri Hemsworth: Universal preschool would aid kids, county
When I interview a job applicant, I know that person has had more formative experiences than his or her resume can hold. To find out more, I sometimes ask, "Did you go to preschool?"
January 1
Santa Cruz Sentinel: Carole Mulford: Preschool for every child
If we want our education system to be one that offers true opportunity to all children, we have to commit to building a strong learning foundation for every child. In education, that foundation is preschool.
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