me developing countriesùsee the job of educating young children as a public responsibility, not simply a family issue. In France, for example, more than 80 percent of youngsters between the ages of three and six years old attend preschool programs. These children learn language skills and how to socialize with other children. The cost is based on a family's income. In the United States, the Head Start Program has been helping poor preschoolers and their families for more than 25 years. In spite of the proven success of the program, however, the federal program has the money to serve only 28 percent of eligible children. Families earning too much to qualify for Head Start and too little to afford private preschoolsùin other words, most American familiesùmust scramble to find acceptable programs. Many cannot. Othe
...