Developmental psychology/Chapter 5/Early-Childhood Education

Early Education: Is it Legit?

Looks like children in Norway have got a great path!

Three class programs, Perry, Abecedarian, and Child-Parent Centers, provided teaching to children from low SES families. These programs showed stellar benefits in children as they grew older (3rd grade+), with children placed in these programs less likely to be held a year and improved mathematics and reading scores.

In most developed nations, 90% of 3yrs-5yrs attend a school that is paid for by the gov't. In a country where there is barely any government funding for school [US], 54% of 3yrs-4yrs are in an educational program paid for by either federal/local gov't or "privately funded programs".

In Norway, the government dramatically reduces the cost of preschool education for every child 1yrs+. Over 90% of Norwegian children show no cognitive defunctions.

This does not mean that every child should be placed in daycare. Some may benefit from learning at home if the daycares are too crowded/teachers are not trained. Expensive daycares are not always the best daycares, it matters about the "training, warmth and experience" of the daycare providers.

Quality: Child-centered or teacher-directed?

• Child-centered programs: These educational programs emphasize on a child's development and exploration skills. They need to follow their own interests and desires. This stems from Piaget and Vygotsky's thinking, where the former believed a child will form an interest if given a chance to explore and the latter believed that a child will develop interests in a mentor's guidance. These programs are more "artsy", allowing children to express themselves in the form of art or music. Montessori schools aimed to give children steady tasks to complete giving them a sense of pride and accomplishment. Another type of school is Reggio Emilia and Waldrof (centered around imagination and nature).
• Teacher-directed programs: These educational programs emphasize on academics, usually one adult teaching a group of children. The goal of these programs is to prepare them for elementary school. These are inspired by behaviorism (reinforcements and punishments), studies showing that children who do not learn vocab and listening skills fall behind within their first year and legislators who stress that basic concepts essential to learning are mastered through this program. Head Start is a federally funded childhood educational program that assists low-SES families. Only 12% of 3yrs-4yrs are in the Head Start program, while other children are in private programs or state-sponsored programs.