Stop ignoring early education findings from the 1970s
Across the nation, the post-election transition period has proven to be just as angry as our bitter election, which is likely to be followed by possibly the most divisive presidency in modern America. Today’s anxiety recalls that of the 1970s, when Watergate, the collapse of the Nixon administration, the fall of Saigon and the 1973 energy crisis launched the deindustrialization of America (which was one of the legacy tragedies that recently culminated in Trumpism).
Although it occurred in October, the Potts Family Foundation and Oklahoma Early Childhood Coalition’s conference offered a message even more important after the election. Keynote speaker Nancy Fishman, deputy director of the public-policy organization ReadyNation, provided at least two more reasons why Americans should stop ignoring a 1970s scientific discovery.
Early education a smart investment, transcends partisanship
First, high-quality early education is the smartest investment Oklahoma can make. Fishman cited data from various sources in her presentation that highlight how returns on investment in high-quality early childhood range from $9 to $16 for every dollar invested. As cognitive science shows, these benefits accrue because 90 percent of brain growth occurs by age 5. Learning gaps appear as early as 9 months of age and, consequently, disadvantaged children can come to school 18 months behind.
For 20 years, public education has been engaged in a bitter edu-political civil war over the Stop ignoring early education findings from the 1970s - NonDoc:
