Education policy has been in the news quite a bit lately. You may have seen the headlines, due to Betsy DeVos’ nomination to be Secretary of Education, about controversial topics such as voucher programs, charter schools, gun-free zones in schools, and the proper role of the federal government in determining educational policy across all states. These are all critically important national and state issues. No question. How we solve these debates will impact the lives of millions of schoolchildren, as well as state and federal budgets, for years to come. It’s also safe to say that there has never been an education secretary as controversial as Betsy DeVos. Yet both her most ardent supporters and her fiercest critics agree that Secretary DeVos was nominated for one purpose: to shake up the educational status quo. For right now, I will leave aside the questions of DeVos’ qualifications to lead our nation’s schools. I will also leave aside the controversial, political debates about education policy. If I could speak to Secretary DeVos, here is what I would say to her, as the mom of two young children and a former teacher with a doctorate in development and educational policy: Our current system of educating our youngest kids is not working, and it absolutely does need a serious shakeup. Policymakers are not using what we know – and learn more about each year, from new scientific research – about young kids’ brains and how they learn, develop, and thrive. For example, early childhood educators and experts – the ones who know and see young children’s development most closely – were not included in the writing of the Common Core standards for grades K-3. Out of 135 people on the committees that wrote and reviewed these standards, now adopted by more than 40 states, none of them were K-3 teachers or early childhood professionals. Those standards have been criticized by hundreds of prominent educators, pediatricians, psychologists, and researchers (all early childhood specialists) for their development inappropriateness. In our schools, we continue to set unrealistic goals for our youngest students. We harm young children when we give them educational experiences that don’t fit their stage of development or their learning needs. In future debates about educational policy in a new administration, I hope that we don’t forget the littlest students.
Here’s what I hope every policymaker remembers about young children and how they learn
Earlier is not better
In today’s competitive world, it’s tempting to believe that because academic achievement can be so important for future adult success, it’s never too soon to start academic learning in young children. Sometimes it’s difficult to shake the notion that if you’re not giving your kid “an early start” with academic preschools, enrichment programs, and competitive sports, it’s your fault as a parent if your child is “left behind” by his peers. Increasingly, our schools reflect that focus on academic rigor at an early age. Today’s kindergarten (and even preschool) is actually more like the first or second grade of a decade or two ago. One recent study concluded that “kindergartners are now under great pressure to meet inappropriate expectations, including academic standards that until recently were reserved for first grade.” Today, kindergarteners devote much more of their days to practicing reading and math skills, often with textbooks and worksheets, and less to recess, music, art, and gym. Research suggests that an early start to academics is not what kids need to become successful, engaged learners. In fact, studies have shown that an early focus on formal instruction (instead of play-based learning) can have negative consequences for kids: more negative, long-term attitudes toward school, fewer attention skills, and more anxiety and stress. In many countries that outperform the United States in international tests – such as Sweden and Finland – formal schooling does not begin until at least age seven.Early readers have no advantage over late readers
The Common Core State Standards include more than 90 academic standards for kindergarten. The Standards include “ a strong expectation that by the end of kindergarten children should be reading basic books on their own with purpose and understanding.” They should also be able to use the conventions of English – capitalization, spelling, punctuation – correctly in their own writing. However, research has shown that kids who are taught to read later, at age six or seven, can read just as well by fourth grade. On some measures, such as reading comprehension, they perform better than kids who are taught to read early.Other things are just as important as academics
When a young child’s school day focuses on reading and other academic skills, other areas of development are neglected. The real focus of a child’s “work” during preschool, and kindergarten particularly, should be experimentation and play as well as “talking and listening,” rather than reading and writing, according to Erika Christakis, early childhood educator and author of “The Importance of Being Little”. She states, “We forget how vital spontaneous, unstructured conversation is to young children’s understanding. By talking with adults, and one another, they pick up information. They learn how things work. They solve puzzles that trouble them.” When that relationship-building and early exploration are sacrificed, kids might show earlier “school readiness” skills, such as the ability to recognize letters and numbers, but their enthusiasm for school and passion for learning eventually suffers. They often lack the language, emotional development, and socialization skills that earlier generations possessed. Frequent movement, and not having to sit still for long periods, is crucial for young children’s learning and memory skills.
