Not only will this have dire consequences for them as future employees, parents, and citizens, but it will also pose grave consequences for our democracy. Recognizing this crisis in early childhood education, experts in the field have formed a coalition called Defending the Early Years. Their goal is to advocate for certain preschool practices that have been proven beneficial.
These include play, exploration, hands-on learning, social interaction, sensory activities, and real-world experiences. Experts criticize current practices that are not developmentally appropriate and cause young children needless stress, confusion, and frustration: teacher-directed lessons, long circle times , paper-pencil tasks, assessments, rote memorization, technology, and standardized tests.
We have decades of research in child development and neuroscience that tell us that young children learn actively — they have to move, use their senses, get their hands on things, interact with other kids and teachers, create, invent. The best things about preschool—children painting at easels, playing dress up, riding tricycles, and digging for dinosaur fossils in a sandbox—are slowly being replaced by memorization and paperwork.
Bernard Hermant via Unsplash. The group mission of Defending the Early Years is to inform parents of young children and the public at large about the importance of letting kids be kids.
They want people to realize there's no benefit to early academics, but there are indeed many drawbacks. The truth is that early academics might have the opposite effect: They may, in fact, cause children—especially boys—to eventually drop out of school, either mentally or physically.
Lilian G. Katz, professor emerita of early childhood education at the University of Illinois explains:. On the contrary, especially in the case of boys, subjection to early formal instruction increases their tendency to distance themselves from the goals of schools, and to drop out of it, either mentally or physically.
America's preoccupation with speeding up learning has resulted in an escalated curriculum , meaning activities once reserved for older students are now used with younger ones. We shouldn't be asking: What's wrong with these little kids at preschool?
The appropriate question is: What's wrong with our preschools? Bill Gates is wrong. American education is not 'broken. It is educational malpractice. Assistant Secretary of Education. Finland is known across the globe for its outstanding education system, and other countries seek to duplicate its success. The Economist Intelligence Unit EIU conducted a study in to assess the education systems in 50 countries, taking in consideration factors such as standardized test scores, literacy rates, and graduation rates.
Finland ranked number one, while the US ranked 17th. You'd think, therefore, we'd be wise to follow Finland's lead in early childhood education but, no, we stubbornly insist on doing the very opposite.
If we love our children and want them to thrive, we must allow them more time and opportunity to play, not less.
Yet policymakers and powerful philanthropists are continuing to push us in the opposite direction — toward more schooling, more testing, more adult direction of children, and less opportunity for free play. Many preschools in the US are doing more harm than good. Denis Lesak via Unsplash. Unfortunately, the US can no longer guarantee the bare minimum in early childhood education: Do no harm! Preschools are now doing lots of things that hurt children's love of learning, squash their innate desire to explore and play , and stunt their budding creativity.
There's no doubt that in the US, children in poor socio-economic circumstances are hurt more profoundly by the new obsession with early academics than those in wealthier areas. More often the teachers in these underfunded schools have less training. They are more dependent on the standardized tests and scripted curricula and more willing to impose them. I wish you could see the faces of kids in the low-income communities I visited this year.
They are scared, sad, and alienated. I see on them an expression that says, 'School is not fun, and it is not for me. I want out of here. Here's a list of 10 Warning Signs of a Bad Preschool you might find useful. Childhood is not a race to see how quickly a child can read, write, and count. Childhood is a small window of time to develop at the pace which is right for each individual child. In the US today, we've tried to silence those who've spent a lifetime working with and studying young children.
We've pushed common sense to the side and replaced it with fear—fear our children won't be smart enough, fear they won't succeed at school, fear they won't get good paying jobs. We've let these worries overcome us, stopping us from doing what's best for our youngest, most vulnerable learners. But, luckily, the experts' voices can still be heard.
Peter Gray makes it crystal-clear that our kids and society are paying a high price for early academics. He links the increasing rates of depression, anxiety, narcissism, and suicide among our children and teens to a decline in free play and exploration. With too many teacher-directed lessons and not enough opportunities for kids to be kids, our young people are experiencing a loss of control which, in turn, makes them feel down and disheartened.
Preschoolers in Finland are fortunate to have adult leadership that advocates for joyful learning. Sadly, our preschoolers in the US don't, and their joy is eroding, creating long-term problems for them and for our society Question: How do we prepare for kindergarten if our child does not attend Pre-K? Answer: You have the power to make learning fun and interesting for your child by tapping into her curiosities. Instead of enduring a month-long unit on dinosaurs or planets for which she has no passion , you can focus on what intrigues her, whether it's dogs, cooking, making vehicles, or rainforests.
She'll have plenty of time for a standard curriculum in the years ahead, but early childhood education needs to be individualized. All learning should stem from her interests in an organic way. Reading books about what interests her will make all the difference in the world. Good reading involves "scaffolding," finding out what she already knows on the topic and building from there. Unlike a preschool teacher with 20 kids, you can stop during reading and ask her questions, see if she's comprehending, and relate what you read to her own life experiences.
That's so powerful compared to kids sitting criss-cross applesauce and zoning out while the teacher reads! Of course, real-world experiences are best for productive learning. Taking your child to the market introduces her to so much as she counts apples into a bag and weighs them on a scale. She can investigate the different varieties of apples, and you can make apple juice, apple pie, or caramel apples. The possibilities are endless. Preschool learning has become so narrow because parents want their kids prepared for kindergarten.
This is truly tragic because preschool should be expanding their world and preparing them for life. There's no long-term advantage to the academic rigor we're imposing on young children. There are only negatives: less creativity, less critical thinking, and more depression, anxiety, and suicide. I hope that parents will see the folly in our country's preoccupation to prepare preschoolers for kindergarten. Research shows the early years should be about play, exploration, communication, and socialization, not workbooks, circle times, and teacher-directed lessons.
Question: How does early education make children do poorly in school later in life? Answer: A preschool education hurts children at school and in life when the scope of instruction is too narrow and the goals too limiting. A good preschool is all about expanding the child's universe through play, hands-on learning, exploration, and socializing.
A good preschool teacher wants her students to get energized about learning, knowing it comes from their own curiosity and is not spoon-fed to them by an adult. Unfortunately, play-based preschools are dwindling. Because of the academic rigor in the primary grades, parents want their kids prepared for kindergarten. This preparation includes writing in workbooks, sitting still for long teacher-directed lessons, learning letter names and sounds, and learning how to count and recognize numerals.
There is no evidence that teaching these skills early has any long-term benefit. There is evidence, however, that it causes stress and turns kids off to school. We are seeing higher rates of depression and anxiety among children and the lack of play in early years is one likely culprit. Parents and teachers need to look at the big picture of education so kids will become life-long learners, knowing how to think critically, work cooperatively, and solve problems in creative ways.
These are all more important than knowing that "t" makes the "tuh" sound. Answer: A co-op preschool typically has one paid employee, the teacher, and a handful of parent volunteers who run the activity stations.
The parent helpers take turns working at the preschool typically days per month as a requirement for their child's attendance. There is a parent board elected by the other moms and dads that makes decisions on school policy such as the cost of tuition, food choices for snack time, fundraising efforts, and upkeep of the facility.
The teacher makes the day-to-day classroom decisions: curriculum, discipline, daily schedule, and field trips. The advantages of a co-op preschool are numerous: the incredibly low adult to student ratio something like 1 to 5 , the commitment of like-minded parents who believe their involvement makes a huge impact in their children's education, the multitude of activities the kids get to experience each day, and the low cost compared to other programs.
A co-op preschool is both democratic and transparent. It's an ideal place for moms and dads who want to meet other parents, set up play dates, and be involved in a tight-knit community. The primary disadvantage is that belonging to a co-op preschool is quite challenging for working parents unless they're self-employed or have extremely flexible bosses.
In my current position, I visit dozens of early childhood education facilities each year, and I'm most impressed by the co-op preschools. The youngsters get a wide-range of experiences that are fun and developmentally appropriate because of the parent helpers.
Children aren't cruelly subjected to practices that are designed for older kids such as writing in workbooks, sitting still for long circle times, and listening to boring lessons about the calendar and weather. They're constantly moving, playing, pretending, interacting, exploring, and communicating. At the co-op preschool, I visited last week, there was one parent who supervised outside while kids pedaled their tricycles and splashed at the water table.
There was a second parent who assisted with the children painting at the easels. A fourth parent helped with kids in the play kitchen, and a fifth was in charge of a group that was building with little hammers, nails, and pieces of wood. The teacher walked throughout the school, talking to the kids, asking them questions, and making sure everything was running smoothly.
Everyone child was fully engaged, happy, and productive. It was what I would hope for every preschooler. Question: Will this preschool situation get fixed if most parents start complaining about preschool? Answer: Without a doubt, parents are the solution to the current problem of academic preschools in the United States and should let their voices be heard. They are the consumers and wield all the power.
When they decide to finally take a stand for developmentally appropriate practices children learning through play, social interaction, and hands-on materials , preschool directors will take notice and change.
Preschool directors already know that academic preschools are misguided and go against everything taught in early child education classes. They want to stay in business, though, so they offer what parents are seeking—namely, academic preparation for kindergarten.
Parents today seek academic preschools out of fear. They're worried their children will suffer if they don't attend a preschool that prepares them for kindergarten. Other moms and dads warn them that kindergarten is now what first grade used to be and that many kids begin the school year already knowing how to write their names, count to , and recognize the letters and sounds of the alphabet.
Parents get scared that their youngster will be placed in the low reading group in kindergarten, feel dumb, and struggle with low self-esteem. While their concerns are not unwarranted, it's never wise to parent out of fear. Good decisions are based on intellect, not emotion. Most smart and well-informed parents know that a preschool should be play-based.
They know it should be about making friends, learning social skills, and discovering the power of team work. They know it should be about curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking and not ABC's, patterns, number recognition, teacher-directed lessons, and workbooks. Today, though, it takes strong and determined parents to go against the tide of academic preschools and not worry about keeping up with the Joneses who send their kid to a preschool that teaches Mandarin, computer science, and yoga.
They must reject what everyone else is doing and chart their own course. They might do this by sending their children to a play-based preschool, doing home-schooling, or setting up regular play dates with like-minded parents.
They need to relax about getting their child prepared academically for kindergarten and look at the big picture—getting their child excited about learning. Thanks so much for your question. Parents in the United States are unique in their desire to have their children grow up so fast and learn so much at an early age.
In other countries such as Germany, their preschools and kindergartens emphasize unstructured play. Academics aren't introduced until first grade. Their approach is a lot more respectful of children and how they develop. Hopefully, we'll soon return to that! Question: I've heard this same philosophy applied to children up to age seven.
Would you recommend homeschooling kindergarten which we are considering , or do you think the transition to the classroom at grade 1 is too sharp?
Our pediatrician is concerned that our daughter will have a hard time adjusting by not being in preschool. Answer: It would be interesting to know if your pediatrician is also concerned about the number of young children in the United States today who are getting traumatized by school shooting drills. Thirty-nine states require lock-down active shooter drills, and some use simulated gunfire. While these drills are upsetting enough to older students, they're even more frightening for little ones who don't always comprehend the concept of a drill, even after it's been explained to them.
I know this is not the subject of your question, but it just struck me odd that a pediatrician would be concerned about a loving and motivated mother teaching her child at home. You can offer your daughter one-on-one instruction and a curriculum designed to her unique interests and curiosities. Many people don't realize that home-schooled kids now have many opportunities to socialize.
There are homeschooling groups that meet regularly in most communities. There are local play groups. There are parent co-ops. There are programs at public libraries. There are classes through parks and recreation dance, gymnastics, martial arts that are offered during the middle of the day, catering to the home-schooled population. I don't imagine you're planning on keeping your daughter isolated and will have plans in place for her to interact with other kids. So much of what's taught at preschool and kindergarten today isn't developmentally appropriate and is largely a waste of time.
However, studies show that preschoolers aren't ready to handle concepts of time such as yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Young children acquire skills taught during calendar time counting, patterning, sequencing much more effectively by using hands-on materials, not by sitting on a rug and listening to a teacher.
You know your daughter better than anyone, have her best interest at heart, and know what works well for you and your family. Keep an open mind, check out your options, and know that you can always change course. I know your daughter is in good hands! These three types of preschool are exceptional because of their robust philosophies. While each one is unique, they all have a framework that shapes their program.
Everyone--administrators, teachers, parents, and kids--are on the same page and share a common goal. What I warn parents about are preschools that have no philosophy at all. Without a framework to guide them, teachers fall into the trap of pleasing parents. These adult-centered programs are what parents need to avoid. Montessori, Waldorf, and co-ops are all child-centered and, therefore, are all good options.
Thanks for the question! Answer: I could tell you to write your state and national representatives, but I have done that myself with disappointing results—not even receiving a lousy form letter in response. The fact of the matter is most of our politicians know little or nothing about early childhood education, and it's certainly not a priority for them. Their ignorance on the subject is one of the reasons why we're in this mess in the first place.
In their minds, academic rigor sounds good in 12 grade, 8th grade, 4th grade, and preschool with no distinction. They are clueless about the devastating effects a lack of play, creativity, and socialization in the early years has on young people and society. There are wonderful articles written by leaders in the movement such as Dr. Nancy Carlsson-Page and Dr. Diane Levin, who advocate for play-based preschools and developmentally appropriate practices.
There's information on how you can get involved. There are so many misconceptions that parents and the public at large hold that need to be set straight. Many misguided folks believe that kids today are smarter than ever before because of early academic rigor and technology. They don't realize that the decrease in play during the early years corresponds to the rise in serious health issues among children and teens: depression, anxiety, obesity, suicide, and narcissism.
They don't realize the decline in creative and critical thinking. Answer: I think all three poll questions are true, but I favor the second answer intense pressure for children to succeed academically like the majority of voters.
It's said that when we wake up in the morning, each one of us is confronted with this fundamental question: Will I approach this day with love or fear? The United States has chosen to approach early childhood education with fear while other countries such as Finland have chosen to approach it with love.
The United States and Finland have the same long-established research in early childhood education at their disposal: that preschoolers learn best through playing, interacting with peers, doing hands-on activities, and following their unique interests and curiosities. While Finland embraces this research and uses it as the foundation for their preschools and kindergartens, we do not. We go against the research because we're acting out of fear—fear that our children will not succeed unless they're force-fed early academics.
This collective fear is irrational, not grounded in reality, and isn't swayed by decades of research to the contrary. When I talk to parents of preschoolers, most of them say they'd like their kids to play, explore, and socialize at school. However, they're afraid that this will result in their children being unprepared for kindergarten and not being able to compete with their peers.
They're willing to sacrifice what's best for their kids and have them subjected to pre-reading, math, and handwriting in preschool rather than play. I know we'll return to play-based preschools in the United States someday because the research supports it. I hope it's soon. Question: How does preschool cause a child to have a bad attitude towards education later in life?
Answer: Career experts agree that it's imperative for workers of the future see themselves as life-long learners; always acquiring new skills and new information as the world around them changes rapidly. Unlike our parents and grandparents, they won't be staying in the same job for fifty years and receiving a gold watch upon retirement.
They'll move from job to job, learning to adapt and getting new training. Now, more than ever, it's important that children develop a love of learning at an early age, because they'll need to continue learning throughout their lives.
Preschool should be an empowering experience for children as they construct their learning and let curiosity be their guide. If they feel helpless at school sitting still as the teacher talks, writing in workbooks, learning about things that have little meaning to them such as numerals and letters , they'll develop a bad attitude about learning. They'll see it as something outside themselves--something to please adults. A preschool teacher with a background in early childhood education not K education understands child development.
She knows that preschoolers have just transitioned from parallel play to interactive play and need plenty of time to socialize with one another, practice their new-found verbal skills, and use their imaginations. She knows the preschool years are truly special, not just a time to prepare kids for kindergarten.
She sees preschool as the time to prepare them for life and get them excited about all there is to learn and discover. Answer: While dwindling in numbers, there are still some good options for preschools that emphasize play, hands-on learning, and socialization. You want teachers and administrators with a background in early childhood education not k who understand what's developmentally appropriate for preschoolers. Many K teachers only see preschool as a means to an end i. You also want a preschool with a strong philosophy Waldorf, Montessori, co-op that guides instruction, discipline, nutrition, and play.
A shared philosophy creates a community of like-minded parents who want a similar experience for their kids, are willing to work for it, and don't expect an education to be served up on a silver platter from teachers. My older son attended a wonderful co-op where moms and dads took turns volunteering in the classroom times per month.
We also participated in monthly parent meetings when the teacher educated us about child development and what to expect at each stage. The motto of the school was "together we're better. This sense of community is also found in many homeschooling groups where parents come together to share resources, take field trips, and meet for play dates.
I'm also excited about the rise of "forest schools" in the US. They're popular in the UK and let kids spend the vast majority of time outside, enjoying the benefits of nature.
This technology-free approach is about promoting healthy, well-rounded individuals for life, not just preparing them for kindergarten. Question: What are your thoughts on Transitional Kindergarten? My son turns five this May, and I am not putting him in Kindergarten in August. He is a second language learner, and I just don't feel he'll be ready. But I am trying to decide if I should keep him in his play-based daycare or put in him in TK.
Answer: First, let me congratulate you for waiting until your son is five before starting kindergarten. Sadly, kindergarten has become very academic with students learning to read, writing paragraphs, and doing teacher-led structured activities throughout the day.
Many kindergarten classes are now all-day, and there's little time for play except at recess. Many classrooms no longer have a play kitchen, a puppet theater, or a dollhouse where kids can use their imaginations, which is so crucial for their mental and emotional well-being.
Teachers spend a lot of time assessing students, even though studies show the results they garner are largely meaningless at this tender age. Young children, especially little boys, are not made to sit still for long periods of time. They need to move about, explore, and learn by doing. Their own curiosity should be their guide, not a rigid academic curriculum in which everyone learns the same thing at the same time. Unfortunately, too many parents today are getting the message from inexperienced kindergarten teachers that there's something wrong with their kids usually boys when it's simply not true.
I would certainly check out the transitional kindergarten to see if play, discovery, and social interaction are emphasized or if it's simply about getting children academically prepared for kindergarten. That's the folly in early childhood education today as many preschools are just training grounds for elementary school with ridiculous activities such as calendar, letter of the week, rote learning, and teacher-directed crafts.
Please share the link on your social media sites if you find it helpful. I want as many parents as possible to know about the dangers of America's early academic push!
You have your head on straight, and I admire you for questioning what's happening in early childhood education today. Many outstanding preschool and kindergarten teachers have abandoned the profession because they know this crazy emphasis on early academics is detrimental to young children, and they want no part of it.
It turns kids off to learning and has no long-term benefits. You can also ask how the teacher handles the first tear-filled days. How will the first week be structured to make the transition smooth for your child? While acknowledging this important step your child is taking and providing support, too much emphasis on the change could make any anxiety worse. Young kids can pick up on their parents' nonverbal cues. When parents feel guilty or worried about leaving their child at school, the kids will probably sense that.
The more calm and assured you are about your choice to send your child to preschool, the more confident your child will be. When you enter the classroom on the first day, calmly reintroduce the teacher to your child, then step back to allow the teacher to begin forming a relationship with your child. Your endorsement of the teacher will show your child that he or she will be happy and safe in the teacher's care.
If your child clings to you or refuses to participate in the class, don't get upset — this may only upset your child more. Always say a loving goodbye to your child, but once you do, leave promptly. Don't sneak out. As tempting as it may be, leaving without saying goodbye can make kids feel abandoned. A long farewell, on the other hand, might only reinforce a child's sense that preschool is a bad place.
A consistent and predictable farewell routine can make leaving easier. One study with a followup when the students were in their mids found that they were likelier to have eventually attended and completed college. This is an area where research is fiercely debated — and really important.
If one set of studies is wrong, that has profound implications for how we should be spending that money instead. In the past few years, early childhood education has taken a beating in studies of its effects a few years down the road. In the to school year, when Tennessee had to assign spaces in their early childhood education program by lottery, it created the conditions for the perfect natural experiment. There are studies out there which have found lasting benefits to test scores.
But in general, the better-conducted the study, the more discouraging the results. How is that compatible with the impressive list of positive long-term effects discussed above?
One explanation commonly entertained in the debate over early childhood education is that the studies for one side or the other are just wrong. Pessimists about education interventions have pointed out that the recent studies, which found no effects from early childhood education interventions, are randomized control trials RCTs , which are considered the gold standard for research into policies like these.
Meanwhile, the findings of long-term benefits come from longitudinal studies, tracking all of the kids in a program. RCTs are generally more reliable on a complex question like this one. So maybe the RCTs are right, the longitudinal studies are all turning up noise, and there are no effects from preschool. But defenders of early childhood education can retort that the evidence base for the long-term effects is actually quite solid. Some of the studies that find a long-term advantage from education are very carefully designed to avoid the methodological problems associated with not having a control group.
They even found that Head Start improved parenting practices for the next generation. A different analysis by the National Bureau of Economic Research used a regression discontinuity design — exploiting the fact that Head Start was provided to the poorest counties but was not provided to some nearly identical counties just over the income threshold.
They found effects from Head Start on child mortality, graduation rates, and college attendance. There are some studies in which researchers found persistent gains from early-childhood school programs. It might be that a few standout programs actually do deliver academic results.
But they seem to be rare, small, and hard-to-scale. In general, education in kindergarten just does not predict performance by the end of elementary school very well. One more thing to look into is health interventions. Early childhood education programs have life-affecting long-term health outcomes , which is likely because the education interventions are often packaged with health interventions. Head Start, thought of as a preschool intervention, also provides meals, social services, parenting services, immunizations, and thorough health screenings that catch diabetes, anemia, and hearing and vision problems.
It seems possible that much of the benefits from early childhood education are actually from the health interventions — which is a big deal because those parts of the program are much less expensive than the preschool parts.
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