States and organizations design preschool programs to ensure children have basic academic and learning skills needed for a kindergarten classroom. In addition to learning numbers and letters and creating art, preschoolers receive a curriculum of activities that teach them to follow instructions and participate in a classroom environment. However, while an Oregon State University study found that children who are able to focus in the classroom are twice as likely to graduate from college, a Reason Foundation study found that benefits of preschool education “fade out” by third grade.
Preschool programs benefit both advantaged and disadvantaged children, according to the National Institute of Early Education Research. Studies have found that preschool programs improve language and mathematics development, bridging socioeconomic gaps by the end of kindergarten. Also, the more preschool learning provided a child, the more language and cognitive benefits the child sees. While that is true for all children, children from low-income families benefit the most from early education.
Studies and experts disagree when it comes to whether preschool is necessary, which benefits it provides, its negative consequences and whether its effects last beyond grade school. According to a Policy Analysis for California Education study, preschool actually impaired social skill development for white, middle-class children. The same study states that these consequences are not apparent with families in all socioeconomic levels, and that Hispanic children in the study did not experience the same lack of development.
Although teachers and parents might disagree on the definition of “readiness” in regard to kindergarten admission, the individual child and learning setting most affect the area needed to achieve most skills: cognitive and language development. For example, children offered independent “free” learning activities over group learning activities in preschool scored higher in language performance at age 7. For this reason, public and private preschool programs are not equivalent, and a variety of methodologies exist. Goddard schools, for example, promote learning through play while Montessori schools focus on self-paced learning activities.
Since children from low-income families benefit most from preschool programs, assistance is available to put this early education in financial reach. Federal Head Start programs exist in all states, providing free or low-cost development support and school preparedness for children through age 5. In addition, some states subsidize child care and preschool, and some organizations, state departments of education and preschools offer grants or scholarships to qualified families.