A better vehicle for reformist passions

K-12 education reform is an "exhausted, blood-soaked battlefield," writes Nicholas Kristof in The New York Times. Yet something everyone can agree on, and surely a better place to channel reformist passions, is early childhood education. Abundant evidence shows that education early in life can break the poverty cycle. Interventions typically produce cognitive gains that last at least a few years, and produce better life outcomes in terms of incarceration, teen pregnancy, and high school graduation. Education inequity is America's original sin, in Kristoff's view. A majority of American children in public schools receive free or reduced-price lunches, and often have second-rate teachers in second-rate schools -- even as privileged kids have superb teachers. Early education offers a chance for reform progress because it hasn't been politically polarized. That said, there will be battles. Some advocates emphasize the first three years of life, while others focus on four-year-olds. Some target the most at-risk children, while others emphasize universal programs. But early childhood is not (yet) a toxic space. So let's redeploy some of our education passions, on all sides, to an area where we can find common ground, and provide a foundation for young children aged 0 to 5. More

Source:  Public Education News Blast

Published by LEAP

Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is an education support organization that works as a collaborative partner in high-poverty communities.