69ý

Early Childhood

Study: Pre-K Teachers Need 4 Years of College

By Linda Jacobson — October 01, 2003 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

The best action policymakers can take to foster high-quality prekindergarten programs is to make sure classrooms are led by teachers with four-year degrees, preferably with a concentration in teaching young children, concludes a report released last week.

The report’s conclusions have significant implications for the reauthorization of the federal Head Start program, which is currently awaiting action in the Senate, said Amy Wilkins, the executive director of the Trust for Early Education, the Washington-based advocacy group that commissioned the study.

Read the report, is available from . (Requires .)

“What we know about Head Start kids and all poor kids is that vocabulary is a big building block toward later literacy skills,” Ms. Wilkins said during a conference call with reporters.

As a consequence, she said, it’s important to get teachers with “big fat” vocabularies who speak in more complex sentences to work with those children.

The report is an analysis of eight research studies on preschool quality.

“The evidence to date suggests that the most effective teaching in center-based settings and the skill and knowledge that defines it, are best achieved through a four-year college degree, which includes specialized content in early-childhood education or child development,” writes Marcy Whitebook, the author of the report. She is the director of the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment, located at the University of California, Berkeley.

Ms. Whitebook’s report cites research showing that adults with associate’s degrees are twice as likely to have less-than-competent literacy skills than adults who have bachelor’s degrees.

A Republican-sponsored bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives over the summer—called the School Readiness Act—would require half of all Head Start teachers to have four-year degrees by 2008, and the rest of them to have two-year degrees.

While Head Start advocates generally welcome efforts to improve teacher quality, they criticize the bill as lacking authorization of additional funds to pay teachers higher wages for completing four years of college. And they estimate that it would take $2 billion over five years for 50 percent of Head Start teachers to have salaries comparable to those of public school teachers.

Head Start Debates

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., has introduced a bill in the Senate that would also require higher credentials for teachers. But his proposed Head Start School Readiness and Coordination Act would provide additional money to act as an incentive to keep better-trained teachers from leaving the program.

Sen. Dodd’s bill has been referred to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.

But Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., who chairs the committee, would still prefer to have a bipartisan bill to bring before the other members, Erin Rath, his spokeswoman, said last week.

Meanwhile, two Democratic governors joined others last week in denouncing the Republican plan for Head Start changes, which would give as many as eight states control over program funding.

“We want to strengthen Head Start, but frankly, we don’t want to preside over it,” Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa said during a separate conference call.

Gov. Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania added that a block grant usually signals a decline in spending.

Events

School & District Management Webinar Crafting Outcomes-Based Contracts That Work for Everyone
Discover the power of outcomes-based contracts and how they can drive student achievement.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in 69ý
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
School & District Management Webinar EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?
What issues are keeping K-12 leaders up at night? Join us for EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Early Childhood Head Start Teachers Will Earn More—But Programs Might Have to Serve Fewer Kids
A new federal rule will raise wages for Head Start employees—but providers won't get any additional funding.
7 min read
Preschool teacher with kids sitting nearby while she reads a book.
iStock/Getty
Early Childhood EdReports Expands Curriculum Reviews to Pre-K
Non-profit EdReports will review pre-K curricula to gauge its alignment with research on early learning.
2 min read
Boy raises his hand to answer a question in a classroom; he is sitting on the floor with other kids and the teacher is sitting in front of the class.
iStock / Getty Images Plus
Early Childhood The State of Teaching Young Kids Are Struggling With Skills Like Listening, Sharing, and Using Scissors
Teachers say basic skills and tasks are more challenging for young students now than they were five years ago.
5 min read
Young girl using scissors in classroom.
E+ / Getty
Early Childhood Without New Money, Biden Admin. Urges States to Use Existing Funds to Expand Preschool
There's no new infusion of federal funds for preschool, so the Biden administration is pointing out funding sources that are already there.
4 min read
Close cropped photo of a young child putting silver coins in a pink piggy bank.
iStock/Getty