Good News for Early Childhood Education

Photo by Charles Dharapak, Associated Press

President Obama earned Ham on Wry's respect and appreciation today when he announced executive changes to the Head Start Program that don't require the approval of Congress.  Members of Congress have failed to act in the best interest of the country by their refusal consider educational issues.  The 112th Congress shall forever be known as the "Do Nothing Congress" on this blog.  That includes members from both parties.

Education policy predicts the future of America's ability to lead.  We can't afford to waste any child by ignoring the need to start educational interventions early for those students who lack some of the tools enjoyed by children from more affluent homes. While visiting Philadelphia, Obama explained his actions. "After  trying for months to work with Congress on education, we've decided to take matters into our own hands Our future is at stake. Our children deserve action, and we can't wait for Congress any longer."

Obama sees a focus on education as an economic imperative, with which I fully agree.  The new standards he announced mandate that poorly performing programs will have to compete for funding if they have deficiencies discovered in their on site review, fail to establish and use school-readiness goals for children, or demonstrate low performance in the classroom quality evaluation.  Now, Head Start grants will last for five years. At the end of the five-year period, a program's performance will be re-evaluated. If it fails to meet the established benchmarks, it must compete for another grant, thus eliminating programs that don't perform up to standard.

Ham on Wry believes that an investment in education pays dividends that transcend economic gains and last through infinity.  Readers, share your thought and education-related ideas s by posting comments.