Congress debates benefits of early childhood development programs
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2014 13:40 PM

The debate over the effects of early childhood development on IQ scores continues as members of Congress discuss prekindergarten programs. President Barack Obama's education initiative to expand early childhood programs remains one of the major talking points in legislative committees. However, certain stumbling blocks exist that may hinder the implementation of the president's plans, and his program is not expected to pass into law this legislative year. In spite of this minor setback, early childhood advocates will still have the opportunity to use funds awarded through the Child Care and Development Block Grant.

The program will have access to approximately $5 billion to help low-income parents pay for child care costs, from infancy to after-school services. The Senate education committee revamped the Child Care and Development Block Grant and did not hesitate to approve the bipartisan version of the grant in the summer of 2013. Many members of Congress felt improvements to the grant should focus on program quality, not just access to early childhood services. According to Clare McCann, a policy Senate education committee analyst for the New America Foundation, Congress approves of the grant because it aims to develop a more skilled generation of future workers.

"I think that [the child-care block grant] has a lot more friends on Capitol Hill in part because lawmakers view it as a workforce-development program, not just an education initiative," McCann told Education Week. "It's probably got a lot more potential for going somewhere in immediate future." 

Studies support benefits of early education programs
While some people on the Hill deny the positive effects of early education, science cannot. Researchers at Stanford found that 5-year-old children who live in low socioeconomic conditions score more than two years behind their peers on standardized language development tests. Further studies show that these disadvantages begin at an even earlier stage. By the time children living in high socioeconomic environments are 18 months of age, they have a several-month advantage over children of the same age with a lower socioeconomic status.

Anne Fernald, associate professor of psychology at Stanford, spearheaded the study. She believes that slower growth stems from the amount of language stimulation provided by parents. During a critical period of language development, children whose parents talk to them more show increased improvement in verbal skills and vocabulary depth. A large part of scoring well on IQ tests requires quick recall and a deep library of vocabulary. 

Developing young minds for success in school and careers
As Fernald's research shows, childhood development begins at an early age. Even before a child is 4 or 5 years old, significant developments occur. Children coming from lower-income households might not have the opportunity to practice speech and vocabulary with their parents. However, if early childhood development programs continue to exist, gaps in learning and achievement might close.