Specific kinds of educational experiences provided for children by both parents and teachers, from preschool through high school, can make a significant difference in their reading ability as young adults. Two national studies have recently confirmed the particular home, school, childcare jobs and extracurricular experiences that impact an individual’s reading achievement over the course of development. These studies analyzed comprehensive data gathered from 3,959 high school students in 24 school districts across the U.S. The first study, the Kindergarten Reading Follow-up (KRF) Study, examined the long-term effects on children of being taught to read in kindergarten (Hanson and Siegel, 1988; 1991.)
The second study, the Reading Development Follow-up (RDF) Study, analyzed the same data to identify the specific kinds of experience, from preschool through high school, that foster high levels of reading achievement in high school seniors (Siegel, 1987.) The results of these two policy studies provide parents, educators, and policy makers with some straightforward guidelines for cultivating literacy development. The implications are quite clear: students who are provided with more of these specific kinds of experiences across their development will have higher reading achievement levels as young adults than those who have less.
Early language and educational experiences for children were found to be particularly critical to adult literacy levels. Although early childhood experiences have long been known to be important in terms of general intellectual development, the RDF Study confirmed that the specific kinds of early educational experiences students have are highly predictive of later reading abilities as well. That is, those high school seniors who were provided with more reading, language, and other kinds of both direct and indirect educational experiences during their preschool years had higher overall levels of reading competency than those provided with less. Such preschool activities as learning nursery rhymes and stories, watching Sesame Street, playing word and number games, being read to, attending nursery/preschool, and participating in special lessons such as swimming, dance, or music were all positively related to students’ reading ability in high school. Finally, later “high stakes” schooling experiences, such as placement in remedial/developmental classes and/or a particular type of high school academic track, could be linked to the students’ level of involvement in early educational experiences.
Public school grade school and high school are almost free. The bad side is it can be a bad ratio between teachers and students. if there are budget problems the programs for students can be cut and short cuts done. The other bad side is that the students are not all good since it’s free. Occasionally, there is the sort that would later go to jail and become violent criminals in it since they are mandated to go to school till they turn 18. But cheap and there are still a good number that get into better schools when they go into college
Child care tends to have a lot of “just passing through” workers and high turnover lends itself to lower wages. I’ve never heard anyone say “Oh, I think I’ll mop floors for a year or two before deciding on college,” whereas I know many people who do that with childcare jobs. Of course, there are “passing through” janitorial jobs such as student- custodian in the dorms. The pay is low for such jobs. Some of the pay of child care is non-monetary. It is personally rewarding. Time spent in child care is good essay material for medical school applications, scrubbing toilets isn’t. If you want a teaching job, especially in the lower grades, you can’t be hurt with some child care experience.
The time to tell you that your child may not go on a field trip because he misbehaved on the last one is immediately after the last one. It is absolutely inexcusable for them to tell you on the day of the trip, unless it is based on his behavior that day. I’m afraid I don’t have any suggestions s to what you can do about it; I think I’d probably tell him that I thought they were being unfair (unless you think this would cause worse problems in his behavior at school), and take him by himself or with a friend to the place they were going on the field trip.
Since the investment in good child care pays big dividends in reduced costs for prisons and greater income to municipalities, school boards, states and the federal government. All levels should contribute to the cost; it is in everyone’s best interest, Guillermo. At the same time, I fear relying too much on government for social services. Through our own negligence–or worse–we have allowed the government(s) to replace charity with welfare, and I’m not convinced that government is doing a very good job of it. In fact, quite the contrary: government services are much more effective at buying the votes of recipients, government employees, and kind-hearted people than they are at actually helping the needy. But the principle of subsidiary–that large, impersonal organizations should not do the childcare jobs that smaller, more human agencies can do better–carries a lot of weight.
I live in the SaltLakevalley and have found that rates correspond to housing prices. On the west side of the valley, the homes are cheaper per square footage and the rate is as low as $1/hr (ridiculous IMNSHO). Where I live on the east side I pay $2/hr for a junior high age sitter and $2.50 – $3/hr for high school age. The nanny is making more than $5/hr, but that’s her full-time job, she has experience, and she is in her twenties. If you go farther east up I-80 to Park City, the rates jump to $4+ per hour. Of course, up there you pay a minimum of $200k for a 3 bedroom house. I should mention that childcare jobs pay more up there as well (like $250/wk).
Childcare workers, school bus drivers, teachers and ministers of religion will be screened for child sex convictions under new laws to come into effect next month. All people working with children including scout leaders, private tutors and sports coaches who have direct access to children will have to make a legal declaration that they have no child-related convictions.
Your life is about to change…. In my opinion, allowances should be tied to jobs which will be her responsibility to complete (to your satisfaction). Not everyone agrees with jobs=money; some feel kids should get an allowance just because they’re part of the family…they should do chores for the same reason. I found, with my children, that money is a big motivator and also a consequence. No jobs - no money. Isn’t that the way the world works?
If women have a “lock” on the childcare jobs (a 90% rate of awarding child custody to women reflects this) and on the “educational slots” that permit them to stay at home if they choose, then should we implement affirmative action for men? Unfortunately, there *aren’t* such “educational slots”. People don’t really learn how to parent. Most mothers (as well as fathers) often feel ill-equipped for the job. There aren’t really any educational programs (Home Ec is pretty negligible) for this purpose.
So you are saying that as soon as she is old enough to have a baby she is a woman? They can do that at preteen (at least some can), have a job? I had a paper route at preteen level and many females have babysitting jobs or childcare jobs at the preteen level. I’ve even known females who were married at 13 to 14 years of age, so any girl who has started her monthly cycle is a woman eh?
