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In an editorial in Education Week (January 25, 2006; www.edweek.org), “Universal Pre-K: What About the Babies?,” Samuel Meisels challenges the value of current initiatives by states to establish universal pre-K services. In part he observed…
“…everyone who worked to encourage widespread availability of quality pre-K programs for 4-year-olds deserves our thanks and praise. But what about children younger than 4 years of age? If we know that even in infancy – if not utero – children are establishing critical pathways to later learning and development, what about the babies? One of the most startling statistics about pre-K programs is that 25 states devote no funding whatsoever to those younger than 4. Their funds are committed solely to the year prior to kindergarten.
“Given what we know, is it wise policy to focus on providing care for just 20 percent of the preschool population? Do the pre-K advocates who are working so hard on behalf of the nation’s 4-year-olds not care about babies?
“Of course they do. The issue is not whether babies are lovable and engaging, or even whether the first years of life are extremely important. Indeed some advocates within the pre-K movement explain their focus on 4-year-olds by pointing out that their efforts on behalf of pre-K will provide a lever for eventually expanding services to younger children….
“But if we allow public policy to turn age 4 into the magical year on which later school success is built, what will we do if nation-wide universal pre-K for 4-year-olds fails to deliver on its ambitious promise?”
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