Smart Start & The North Carolina Partnership for Children

K-3rd Grade Retention Costs State Millions

Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 | Author: Smart Start

In the 2008-09 school year, North Carolina spent more than $167 million dollars retaining children in kindergarten through third grade.

While the number of children held back in grades K to 3 had been gradually decreasing in the state, it’s leveled off at about 4% –a number that is still too high according to the research and costs the state millions of dollars.

Among the ways cited by education personnel to reduce retention is to start early with intervention. FirstSchool, the author of the report, is PreK through 3rd grade initative. FirstSchool has made the Powerpoint presentation available as a template for other states and organizations to use. It’s available on their homepage.

The report, which was published in 2010, is an update of 2002 data.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

Category: Raising Quality of Care & Education | Tags: early childhood, kindergarten, prek-3, retention, school readiness | Comments off

What It Takes to Build Birth-to-College Education

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010 | Author: Smart Start

The University of Chicago Urban Education Institute and the Ounce of Prevention Fund are partnering to “build a model of public education for children and their families that begins at birth and creates success in school, college, and life.”

The goal is to collaboratively and continuously align and create instructional practices, and academic and social supports, to demonstrate a new model of public education that seamlessly and successfully prepares children for college, beginning at birth.

The challenges of forming a partnership between early learning/PreK and the K-12 worlds are documented in the case study, Working Together to Building a Birth-to-College Approach to Public Education.

From the Foundation for Child Development website.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

Category: Raising Quality of Care & Education | Tags: birth to college, early childhood, early childhood teachers, kindergarten, school readiness | One Comment

Are Teacher Education Programs Aligning with PreK-3 Model?

Tuesday, November 09th, 2010 | Author: Smart Start

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University looked at how teacher education programs are aligned with the PreK-3rd approach. Not surprisingly perhaps, the researchers found tension between early childhood education and elementary teacher education programs. These tensions ranged from disrespectful attitudes to competition for placement slots.

They offer several reccommendations:

Recognize ECE as a distinct and equal discipline.
Administration support and leadership is needed.
Opportunities for collaboration between ECE and Elementary TE Programs must be enhanced.
PreK?3rd grade certificates should not overlap or compete with elementary teaching certificates.

Download the policy brief.

Read The New American Foundation’s Early Ed Blog analysis.

Read Education Week’s Early Years blog, Bridging the Divide: From Pre-K to Grade 3.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

Category: Raising Quality of Care & Education | Tags: early childhood, early childhood teachers, kindergarten, professional development | Comments off

Study shows kindergarten learning affects adult success

Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 | Author: Smart Start

New research from the National Science Foundation’s Division of Social and Economic Sciences finds that children who learn more in kindergarten go on to earn more as adults and are more successful overall.

Harvard University economist John Friedman explains in this video the impact of increasing kindergarten teacher experience looks really big for students long-term success. He says the study should highlight for policymakers the importance of kindergarten classes for students in all demographics.

Credit: National Science Foundation

Taking into account all variation across kindergarten classes, including class size, individuals who learn more–as measured by an above-average score on the Stanford Achievement Test–and are in smaller classes earn about $2,000 more per year at age 27.

Moreover, students who learn more in kindergarten are more likely to go to college than students with similar backgrounds. Those who learn more in kindergarten are also less likely to become single parents, more likely to own a home by age 28 and more likely to save for retirement earlier in their work lives.

Too Smart for Kindergarten?

Monday, August 23rd, 2010 | Author: Smart Start

Smart Start on the Radio: Listen now!

RALEIGH, N.C. – As thousands of children across North Carolina start kindergarten this month and more children are attending pre-school every year, will some kids be too smart for kindergarten, already know too much and be bored?

That’s not possible, says Stephanie Fanjul, director of the North Carolina Partnership for Children. Her organization runs Smart Start, which offers enrichment opportunities for parents and children.

“What we believe is that positive early education experiences can only help children succeed in school. That is what the science shows us and it’s why Smart Start works to provide these opportunities.”

Part of the early childhood education curriculum includes training on how to work with children at a variety of skill levels.

The bigger concern for experts like Dr. Richard Clifford of the FPG Child Development Institute at UNC Chapel Hill is the number of children who are retained every year. Statewide, about six percent of children are held back from advancing to the next grade, costing the state almost $165 million in 2007 alone for students in grades kindergarten through third.

“Rates that are reasonable rates are more in the one to two percent range than they are in the six or seven or higher percent range.”

Experts say the best way to prepare a child for school is to engage in activities that make learning a fun family activity.

Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)

Category: Raising Quality of Care & Education | Tags: kindergarten, school readiness | Comments off