Governors and State Education Commissioners Highlight the Role of Early Education in Improving Third Grade Reading

Yesterday morning’s breakfast forum, hosted by the Washington Post, brought together governors and education commissioners from several states to raise awareness of the importance of reading well by the third grade. Multiple studies show that high-quality early education programs lead to higher reading achievement, in addition to numerous other benefits (Carolina Abecedarian Project,  Chicago Child-Parent Centers [PDF], and High/Scope Perry Preschool [PDF]). Several of the participants, including Delaware Governor Jack Markell, Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, Washington State Superintendent Randy Dorn, and Maryland State Superintendent Lillian Lowry, acknowledged this powerful evidence and the important role that early learning opportunities play in providing for successful literacy growth. High-quality early childhood education was referred to as a “game changer,” an “effective effort to improve reading,” and a way to “success[fully] narrow the achievement gap.”

Many of the speakers highlighted recent improvements that their states have made and policies that have already been implemented for early education and care, from the focus on providing holistic care for children from infancy through age five in Maryland’s Judy Centers, to investments in improving the quality of center-based care in Delaware through a tiered reimbursement rate structure that provides higher rates to higher-quality providers.

Early education should certainly be part of a strategy to ensure children are ready to read by grade three.  Yet, the effectiveness of this early education is highly contingent on the quality of service and the duration of care that children receive.  In addition, it is essential that plans for early education include the often overlooked zero to three age-group, offer opportunities for family involvement, and address children’s holistic needs.  The President’s groundbreaking early learning plan takes such an approach, with strategies for children from birth to age five, including expanded access to high-quality prekindergarten, partnerships between Early Head Start and child care to address the comprehensive needs of infants and toddlers, and voluntary home visiting programs to support parents with young children. This approach will enable more communities, families, and children to reap the innumerable benefits that high-quality early childhood care promises. It will not only help improve third grade reading, but also lead to children who are better prepared for success throughout school and life, families that are engaged in their children’s education, and a society that recognizes the responsibility to care and provide for our tiniest citizens.