FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Birth to Five Matters

Cheryl Fountain, Ed.D. Professor and Executive Director

Florida Institute of Education University of North Florida

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

6 Year old

Newborn 6 Year old

Birth to Five Matters 2 Birth to Five Sets the Stage for Future Success or Failure

Newborn br ain size proportionate to 6 year old brain.

Newborn neural networks compared to networks of a 6 year old.

Early experiences from Birth to Five profoundly affect children’s future learning, behavior, and health.

Paul Lombroso. (1998). “Development of the cerebral cortex. VI. Growth Factors I.” Journal of the American Academy of child and Adolescent Psychiatry 37(6): 674-675. 2

Median Abilities of Entering Kindergarteners by Family Income

--Math

--General

45•00 t-- -d.:..-!!~ ,:::_ ________________ ----J L_ __ K_no_w_le_d_g_e ...J

Lowest 20¾ 4th Quintile Middle 20¾ 2nd Quintile Highest 20%

FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION at the University of North Florida

Median Social Skills of Entering Kindergarteners by Income

Lowest 20 o/, 4th Qu intile Middle 20 o/, 2nd Quintile Highest 20¾

Birth to Five Matters 3 Differences in Early Experiences Result in“Readiness Gaps” between children of poverty and their more affluent peers.

Cognitive Development Gap Social Skills Gap

Barnett, W. S. (2007). Original analysis of data from the US Department of Education, National Cent er for Educational Statistics, ECLS-K Base Year Data files and Electronic Codebook (2002)

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-o 40 million (3 Professional 0 -

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

0 12 24 36 48

Age of Child in Months

Differences in Language Experiences Language Experiences Matter Greatly

Hart, B., & Risley, T. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore: Brookes.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36

Age of Child in Months

Differences in Vocabulary Size Cumulative Vocabulary Words

Hart, B., & Risley, T. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experience of young American children. Baltimore: Brookes.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Differences in Access to Books

Books at Home and in Classroom Libraries

Income Books at Home Books at School Middle Income 199 392 Low Income 2.6 54 Lowest Income 0.4 47

Smith, C., Constantino, R., & Krashen, S. (1997). “Differences in Print Environment: Children in Beverly Hills, Compton, and Watts.” Emergency Librarian, 24 (4), 8–9.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Children Birth to 5: Learning Sponges

• Children learn what they hear most frequently – Amount Matters

• Children learn words for things and events that interest them – Experiences Matter

• Interactive and responsive environments build language – Talking With, not at, Matters

• Vocabulary and language development are reciprocal processes - Engaging in Frequent Conversations, Matters

Source: Kathy Hirsh-Pasek. (2001). Language for reading: Lessons from the crib for the classroom.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Birth to Five Matters 4

Children Who Start School Behind are UNLIKELY to Catch Up Children who enter kindergarten with limited readiness skills are more likely to develop reading difficulties and require remedial education.

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~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~

FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

“Readiness Gaps” Often Turn Into “Achievement Gaps”

If 50 third graders are poor readers, then 37 of them are still poor readers in ninth grade.

Third Graders Ninth Graders

Juel, Connie. (1988). Learning to read and write: A longitudinal study of 54 children from first through fourth grades. Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol 80, 437-447.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Conclusive Research Findings

• Long term studies tracking outcomes for children receiving high-quality Early Childhood Education (ECE)

• Overwhelming evidence showing strong positive impact of quality ECE

Studies include: –Perry Preschool Project –Abecedarian Project –Barnett Study of Studies –Entwisle Socialization Study –Federal Reserve Economic Impact Analysis

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Return on Investment is High

Dollars invested in quality ECE yield extraordinary public returns resulting in better working public schools, more educated workers, and less crime.

Short Term Long Term Fewer retentions Higher rate of school completion

Fewer special education referrals Preparedness for future labor force

Increase in early education jobs Higher income and tax payments

Employees spend wages, pay taxes Lower criminal justice and prison costs

Centers purchase goods and services Fewer social welfare payments

Art Rolnick and Rob Grunewald, Federal Reserve Bank

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Return on Investment is H igh 2

Schools can expect to save more than $11.00 per child for children who

benefit from quality early learning experiences because these children are less likely to require special or

remedial education.

National Institute for Early Education Research, 2002.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Return on Investment is H igh 3

The return to society for each dollarinvested in quality early childhood

programs range from $1.80 - $17.07.

Karoly, L. A., Kilburn, M. R., & Cannon, J. S. (2005). Early childhood interventions: Proven results, future promise. RAND Labor and Population, RAND Corporation.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Birth to Five Matters 5

Investing in Quality ECE is Less Expensive than the Alternatives

About 82% of all Americans in prison are high school dropouts. It costs about $20,000 a year to house a prisoner. In comparison, a year of high-quality preschool costs about $4,800 and hasbeen shown to decrease the rate of arrests

during the teenage years by 40%.

The Committee for Economic Development, 1991.

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FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION = at the University of North Florida

Birth to Five Matters 6

Investing in Quality Early Care and Education is a Wise I nvestment

High-quality early childhood programs serving children Birth to Five can lead

to improved child, school, and community outcomes.

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