My earliest memories are of school.
I had the great fortune to attend public preschool starting at the age of three. I remember circle time in preschool at the start of every day, when we would draw a picture on a whiteboard of something we wanted to share. I remember sitting at the kidney bean table and tracing my name to work on my letters. I remember playing on the swings and my beloved preschool teacher, Ms. Jennie.
My freshman year of high school, I returned to my preschool teacher’s classroom as a volunteer. I got to experience firsthand what it is really like teaching preschool and the impact it has on students.
The classroom I was in had a very high Hispanic population. For many of these kids, preschool was one of their first introductions to learning in English. I absolutely adored those students. They were excited to learn and enjoyed reading, solving puzzles, and working on their numbers with me. I love the drawings they gave me and have them hanging on my bedroom wall.
But preschool isn’t just something that makes memories and connections; it is credited with many long term benefits. A 25-year-long study in Chicago measured the effects of a preschool program available at all the inner-city schools, studying how this program affected academic achievement, socioeconomic status, health, and crime. The results consistently showed benefits for students who began preschool at 3 or 4 compared to students who started kindergarten without any preschool. These preschool students showed higher levels of education, socioeconomic status, and rates of health insurance compared to their kindergarten peers. They also showed lower rates of substance abuse and felony arrests.
In the United States, preschool is not a universal right. To qualify for public preschool in Kentucky, students must be four years old with a family income of, at most, 160% of the poverty line, or be at least three and have a developmental delay or learning disability. If you do not qualify based on income or disability, preschool isn’t always feasible for every family. Some districts offer paid spots for students that don’t qualify initially, but the tuition can be costly and drive away families.
A report by the state Legislative Research Commission showed that preschool students that qualify for free and reduced price lunch (FRLP) had higher kindergarten readiness rates by 15% compared to their non-preschool peers. The report also showed that black FRLP students had higher kindergarten readiness than white FRLP.
Preschool has obvious benefits, but with the current funding, universal access simply isn’t feasible. On average, districts spend $4,395 more per child than what is covered by state funds. In addition, transportation funds are not covered by the state, so districts must cover the cost. In other countries, access to universal preschool has shown an increase in preschool enrollment and overall increase in kindergarten readiness. For universal preschool to become feasible, an increase in funding is critical.
Ultimately, sufficiently funding universal preschool and making it an opportunity for every student could lower achievement gaps and lower the risk of substance abuse and felony charges. Preschool provides a foundation for students to be successful both in and out of the classroom. Every student should have access to an early childhood education and the opportunity to learn and grow before starting kindergarten. We learn these basic ideas of sharing and helping everyone in preschool. It’s time to enact these lessons we learned and help everyone by removing these barriers.
