When you walk into a high-quality pre-kindergarten program, you immediately see that learning is taking place. Children are engaged in small groups reading books, building interesting structures with blocks, and determining what sinks and what floats at the water table. Teachers are asking questions, rewarding successes and guiding learning. The room has a sense of purpose, organization, and excitement.
High-quality pre-k can be found in many settings: schools, faith-based centers, Head Start Programs, and public and private childcare centers. However, without a commitment from states to building and supporting high-quality systems, families often struggle to find well-designed programs that prepare their children for kindergarten, elementary school, and beyond.
Research shows that children who attend high-quality pre-k programs perform better in school and throughout life. They have more advanced language and math skills and enter kindergarten with an understanding of the classroom environment. The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) has created a ten-point checklist that evaluates the quality of pre-k programs nationwide. The key components of a high-quality program include:
Well-Educated Teachers
The professional development of teachers, both before they enter the classroom and once there, is intimately related to the quality of early-childhood programs. The most effective pre-k teachers have earned bachelor's degrees and have additional, specialized training in early-childhood education. Once hired, pre-k teachers who receive salaries and benefits comparable to K-12 teachers are incentivized to perform at a high level and to pursue continuing education. Highly educated and fairly compensated pre-k teachers are more likely to develop strong, responsive, interpersonal relationships with their students, which affects each child's motivation to learn, social competence, and school achievement. Pre-k classroom aides should, at a minimum, have a child development associate credential, and both the teacher and aide should devote at least 15 hours per year to improving their skills through comprehensive, well-designed professional development opportunities.
Low Teacher-Child Ratios and Small Class Sizes
Young children learn best in small groups of no more than 20 children in which they can ask and answer questions and receive individualized attention from the teacher. In such environments, children are more likely to initiate activities on their own. Teachers with fewer children to manage are less restrictive and controlling, are more supportive of each child's learning style, and have time to develop students' language skills, guide their social interactions, and encourage exploration and problem solving. A ratio of one teacher for every ten or fewer children is crucial to the success of everyone in the classroom.
Research-Based Curriculum Aligned to K-12 Standards
A thorough but flexible curriculum helps teachers organize daily learning activities. While no one curriculum has been identified as best, high-quality pre-k programs are consistently built around curricula with specific goals that integrate learning across all aspects of a child's development: cognitive, physical, social, and emotional. Superior curricula provide a variety of daily opportunities for language and reasoning, science, math, block play, dramatic play, art, and music. Each day, children have occasion to participate in whole class activities, small groups, and individual interactions with the teacher. In this way, a strong curriculum provides opportunities for each child to reinforce individual strengths and cultivate new skills and enables teachers to meet the realities of diverse languages and cultural groups.
Engaged Families
Parents and extended family members are an integral part of any high-quality pre-k program. The most common component of family engagement is direct communication with classroom teachers. Through parent conferences, home visits, and regular reports, families and teachers can exchange information about a child's strengths and successes, favorite activities, and learning progress. In addition, high-quality programs encourage even more family involvement, and a variety of avenues for that participation are typically available. These might include opportunities to: serve on a governing board or committee, assist in the classroom, help with field trips, or share expertise. Most importantly, high-quality pre-k programs respect the role of families as a child's first and most important teachers and support efforts toward greater learning at home.
Focus on the Whole Child and Family
Children cannot learn when their basic needs are unmet or when special needs go undiagnosed. If a child is undernourished, cannot see the pictures in a book, or hear what is said to them, learning cannot take place. High-quality pre-k programs should screen children's vision, hearing, and general health in order to identify problems and make appropriate referrals early. Pre-k programs should offer children breakfast and/or lunch in order to ensure proper nutrition. When needed, families should be given access to social services or to information about nutrition, parenting, and family support. For such support services to be effective, it is crucial that they be administered by trained professionals and not be solely the responsibility of teachers who may lack the necessary expertise, extra time, and specialized resources.
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