(Download) "Preparing for Change: A Case Study of Successful Alignment Between a Pre-K Program and K-12 Education (Case Study)" by Childhood Education ~ eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Preparing for Change: A Case Study of Successful Alignment Between a Pre-K Program and K-12 Education (Case Study)
- Author : Childhood Education
- Release Date : January 22, 2009
- Genre: Education,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 219 KB
Description
Policymakers across the globe have taken an increased interest in the expansion of early childhood education and care services; with this interest, policies that further define and regulate the fields of early education and care have proliferated (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2006). For instance, policies implemented across Great Britain (e.g., Clark & Waller, 2007; Jones & Osgood, 2007) and Australia (e.g., Fenech & Sumsion, 2007; Hatch & Grieshaber, 2002) have led to increased training requirements for early educators and to more clearly defined early childhood curricula, assessment, and program expectations. Policymakers and advocates in the United States also are focusing on these issues (e.g., Kagan & Scott-Little, 2004; Stipek, 2006) and considering ways to increase access to early education. Such programs as state-funded prekindergarten (pre-K) are framed within this discussion as education opportunities that may prepare young children for later school success (Barnett, Hustedt, Friedman, Boyd, & Ainsworth, 2007; Pre-K Now, 2006). This expansion of early childhood education programs, specifically in the United States, is heading toward their encapsulation within larger kindergarten through grade 12 (K-12) education systems. As this occurs, early childhood educators are being asked to put into place policies that mimic K-12 education reforms. (1) These policies, such as the Bush Administration's Good Start, Grow Smart initiative (Office of the White House, 2002), which emerged shortly after the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act, exemplify this point. This initiative required state agencies to establish early learning standards (2) for specific programs serving children ages 3-5 in alignment with their state's K-12 content standards. Additionally, this initiative required the implementation of the Head Start National Reporting System. Such reforms are designed to create a transparent policy environment in which specific outcomes in particular content areas are to be named and measured as a means to evaluate the program effectiveness.
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