The Case For Universal Pre-K Just Got Stronger
When SVP Portland began to identify a Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal, decades of research data greatly influenced our decision to focus on early childhood. The benefits of quality early learning experiences on a child’s brain development, school readiness, and lifelong wellbeing are numerous. In short, investing in kids age 3-5 brings high returns, not only to children and families, but to entire communities.* The most recent research** only reinforces this. NPR’s Planet Money took a closer look.“
According to the National Institute For Early Childhood Research, nearly half of all 3-year-olds and a third of all 4-year-olds in the United States were not enrolled in preschool in 2019. That's in large part because many parents can't afford it. Imagine a future where we changed that. A future where every American child had access to two years of preschool during a critical period of their mental development. How would their lives change? How would society change? ... it turns out, we kind of already know.”
Two decades of data from Boston’s randomized lottery for preschool admittance provided accidental but valuable data.”The most eye-popping effects the researchers find are on high school graduation and college enrollment rates. The kids who got accepted into preschool ended up having a high-school graduation rate of 70% — six percentage points higher than the kids who were denied preschool, who saw a graduation rate of only 64%. And 54% of the preschoolers ended up going to college after they graduated — eight percentage points higher than their counterparts who didn't go to preschool.“
Read about all the positive outcomes afforded by preschool in the full article here
*Benefits include:
Less crime, incarceration, and substance abuse
Better health outcomes and lower teen pregnancy
Higher graduation rates and workforce readiness
Increased wages and lifetime incomes
**The same research by economists Christopher R. Walters, Guthrie Gray-Lobe and Parag A. Pathak was published at the following: