Preschool

Preschool education for young children is becoming a more significant issue in American society because of the increasing numbers of children enrolled by parents or care-givers in preschool learning, "Since 1985, the number of 3 to 5-year-olds attending preschool or prekindergarten programs around the country has jumped 35 percent. Last year, some 4.5 million American kids attended" (Morgan, 1997, S12). There are a few reasons fueling this increase in preschool programs. One is the increasing number of working single-parents and two-career families in this country, many whom rely on preschool programs as a form of education and child-care. Another reason for the increase in enrollment in preschool programs is based on the growing body of evidence that behavior and even academic performance fundamentals are shaped much earlier in childhood than previously thought. As a recent report by New York's Carnegie Corporation's Task Force on Learning in Primary Grades stated, "Academic self-image is shaped between the ages of 3 and 10 and children who take an early dislike of schoolwork or have doubts about their academic worth face disadvantages in all future learning" (Preschool, 1997, PG).

Despite the reasons fueling the increased enrollment in preschool programs, the debate is still ongoing in the literature as to whether there are significant benefits in learning based on preschool attendance. A review of the current liter

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adjust better if they experienced a high quality preschool program before entering kindergarten, "Preschool officials argue that even if many children stay in special education as they enter kindergarten, they would have had more problems without the early intervention. Little has been done by either public or private agencies to study the effectiveness of preschool programs. One agency, Variety, studied development of its students over time and concluded they could demonstrate improvement. Variety's research, in conjunction with Fordham University, found a �statistically significant increase' in rates of learning for 126 children observed between 1993 and 1995," (Markon, 1997, A04). There are many studies in the literature that support the increased rates of learning and the higher level of academic preparedness in students who have experiences a high quality preschool program. However, it appears from the many articles in support of preschool in the literature that time spent in preschool also greatly benefits children in later school years when it comes to behavior and socialization. Teachers of kindergarten often complain that most of the first years of conventional schooling is spent merely trying to teach children what

Category: Psychology - P