Can Babies Be Hardwired?

03/09/2015

It's a relief to hear the rain. It's the sound of billions of drops, all equal, all equally committed to falling, like a sudden outbreak of democracy.
Alice Oswald

Three 2007 issues of ExchangeEveryDay generated strong debates — an October 11 report on the teaching of creationism, a June 12 conversation on the pros and cons of Pre-K initiatives, and the April 18 issue on neuroscience and infants quoted below:

In a thinkpiece, "Million Dollar Babies: Why Infants Can't Be Hardwired for Success," Sara Mead of Education Sector argues that early childhood advocates have been overselling the educational opportunities of the first three years of life. She tosses barbs at the manufacturers of educational products such as Baby Einstein and Brainy Baby, saying, "For parents... the money spent on these educational toys might be better off in a college savings account or used to meet other family needs."

Turning to early childhood advocates, she observes...

"Even if neuroscience evidence did show unequivocally that the years from zero to three are the most important for children's development — and it does not — that wouldn't tell us how, or even if, governments can intervene effectively during that time to improve child development or life outcomes...

"In the end, the state of neuroscience research isn't robust enough to inform the decisions of parents or policymakers — and early childhood proponents shouldn't extrapolate beyond the evidence to justify new programs and extra funding."

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