Yes, We Do Need Subsidized Childcare and Universal Preschool
Insights from Educate, 15th Edition
Welcome to Insights from Educate, a curated weekly newsletter of professional learning and inspiration from authentic voices in education.
Consider these stats: middle-class families spend 14% of their income on childcare while lower-income families spend upwards of 35%.
To be honest, this seems a little low. My husband and I are both teachers, and when our children were young, we struggled to pay for daycare while we worked. So much so that I resigned from my teaching position to be a stay-at-home mom as it didn’t make sense to spend my entire salary on daycare and preschool.
Joya Misra, Professor of Sociology and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, writes: “As a scholar who studies government support for working families in different countries, I know that the United States spends substantially less on early education and child care than comparable nations.”
Biden’s new American Families Plan has taken aim at the child care challenges in the U.S. (with a $225 billion annual price tag). The plan will provide free, universal preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds and subsidize child care for middle-class and lower-income families.
Without question, American lags behind other nations in providing affordable child care for children, especially before starting kindergarten. With a standard maternity leave of six weeks (which is absolutely atrocious), parents are left scrambling to find affordable full-time care for their children that doesn’t eat up most of their monthly salaries.
Professor Misra continues: “Based on all the evidence available, I have no doubt that higher government spending on early education and child care could dramatically change the lives of working families.”
I am hopeful Biden’s plan will have a lasting effect on the childcare landscape. America has become a dual-income society, and to support working parents, we need solutions that help families work while also strengthening educational outcomes for children.
Professional Learning and Inspiration
Virtual Teaching Practices that Stick
Joanna Schwartz writes for Edutopia:
“I’ve experimented with new strategies that worked so well in my virtual classroom that I will use them in my physical classroom. Not only do they engage students, but also they promote feelings of inclusion and belonging, both of which are so central to social and emotional learning and a positive classroom climate.”
While remote learning was new to most educators, many took to it with gusto coming away with new strategies and tools for their teaching toolboxes. Schwartz notes a few of the practices she will be using in the return to brick-and-mortar classrooms such as asking students to write by hand, connecting with students around the globe via pen pal programs, and making time for virtual performances to further connect classrooms to home.
Reading in Print vs Reading or Listening Digitally
Naomi S. Baron, Professor of Linguistics Emeritus at American University, researched the learning effects of reading in print vs reading digitally. In her recent book, How We Read Now, she posits two questions:
Is comprehension the same whether a person reads a text onscreen or on paper?
And are listening and viewing content as effective as reading the written word when covering the same material?
The answer is “no.” According to Professor Baron, “learning is generally more successful when it’s on paper than onscreen. A cascade of research confirms this finding.” When reading print, students are able to perform tasks like finding the main idea and recalling important information more easily than when accessing a digital text. People tend to rely on the location of information, such as page numbers or the location of visual aids in a text. In addition, Professor Baron notes that audio can be a distraction for students with a propensity to multi-task and less attention to active engagement with information.
Inequity in Student Discipline
Dr. Kristilynn Turney writes for The Hechinger Report:
“The 2017 Brown Center Report on American Education: Race and school suspensions found that Black students lose up to four times more days of instruction to suspensions than their white peers.”
Dr. Turney notes common policies that often lead to inequitable punishments for students of color:
Tardy Policies- some students have family responsibilities or are subject to factors beyond their control and are punished with a loss of instructional time ( such as in/out of school suspensions )
Dress Code Infractions- some families may not have the time or finances to constantly launder clothes
Poor Grades Without Parent Contact- teachers are expected to contact parents when students are struggling in their classes. However, sometimes it can be difficult to reach parents working long hours or multiple jobs
Dr. Turney advises: “review your policies and practices to identify inequities. These inequities may have a huge impact on students’ learning and academic success. We know this and we know better.”
Education News and Research
Jamil Modaffari and Laura Jimenez at American Progress examine the education data that matters most to caregivers, school staff, and the community… “Caregivers, educators, and school leaders are hungry for timely information closely tied to student learning to inform their decision-making and improve the quality of education children receive.” Caregivers are most concerned about school resources to support learning, a positive school climate, and the instructional supports in place to help students. School staff expresses concerns with student readiness and nonacademic data to support students.
Natalie Wexler writes for Forbes about a glaring gap in Biden’s recently unveiled education plan. While providing funds for universal preschool and free community college for some families, the plan fails to adequately address K-12 education reform. Wexler notes that while helping to shore up preschool programs in the U.S., there is still work to address student achievement in reading and disparities in test scores across socioeconomic lines.
Art has been a welcome therapy for students grappling with the challenges of the pandemic. Javeria Salman writes for The Hechinger Report, “advocates say art therapy can help students make sense of and cope with events of the past year.” Art therapy uses painting, drawing, and other forms to connect students with their emotions and can provide positive behavioral support.
The Latest Articles from Educate.
Holding onto Millennial Teachers: Developing Teachers as Leaders by Dr. Kami Lewis Levin
A Decline in Students’ Mental Health Is Standing in the Way of Their Success by Jessica Lucia
Great Teachers Bring the Love by Jonathan P. Raymond
Is There a “Best” College for Students with a Certain Learning Disability, Dyslexia, or ADHD? by Elizabeth Hamblet
Don’t Make Assumptions From Online College Accommodation Lists for LD and ADHD by Elizabeth Hamblet
My Top Five Strategies for Family and Community Engagement by Jonathan P. Raymond
Improv-First Learning: Designing Experiences for Structured Play by Maya Bialik
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About the Editor
Jennifer Osborne is an experienced educator with graduate degrees in Educational Leadership and Guidance and Counseling. She has taught in five countries across a wide variety of classrooms and schools. Jennifer is passionate about authentic education for students and personalized professional learning for teachers.
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