The Issue: Whether universal Pre-K, as proposed by President Obama, would be helpful to American kids.
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I am an early-childhood educator for over 40 years, and I can tell you that Pre-K education is worthwhile (“The President’s Pre-K Poppycock,” Rich Lowry, PostOpinion, Feb. 19).
What child would not benefit from a Pre-K program stressing speech, cognitive and physical activities?
Children at this age need to have many experiences to develop their thinking skills.
If a child does not get in a program and lags behind by second grade, it is too late to catch up. They get frustrated and find school too difficult.
I founded a preschool for special-ed students ages 3 to 5. With an appropriate curriculum and help, 60 percent of the students returned to regular classrooms.
Think of the savings — a one-year jail term costs more than one year of Pre-K.
Elaine Pasternack
Lake Mary, Fla.
It doesn’t take “one of the most ambitious, methodologically rigorous, and expensive federal-program evaluations” to determine whether quality Pre-K education produces positive outcomes in children, especially children from low-income, educationally deprived backgrounds.
It is self-evident. The challenge is to define and then deliver quality Pre-K to all of our children if we want to maximize our nation’s potential.Barbara Glasser
Yonkers