Universal Pre-Kindergarten

Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) refers to programs that provide preschool education to all children of a certain age, typically 4 years old, although some programs may include younger children. These programs are generally voluntary rather than compulsory, aiming to expand access to early childhood education. In regions without UPK, targeted programs often serve specific groups of children deemed at risk for school failure, such as those from low-income families or with limited English proficiency. Research indicates that participation in high-quality preschool can significantly benefit children's social and cognitive development, particularly for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, helping to close the achievement gap by ensuring they start kindergarten better prepared.

The quality of preschool programs is crucial for efficacy, encompassing both process quality—how children interact and learn—and structural quality, which includes teacher qualifications and class sizes. Despite the benefits associated with UPK, there exists opposition from some groups who argue that early childhood education should not be the responsibility of the state or that children are better off at home with parents. Nonetheless, many states have begun to implement or expand universal preschool programs, recognizing the long-term societal benefits, such as reduced reliance on special education and improved economic outcomes for communities.

Published in: 2021

By: Brown, Kirsty

Subject Terms

Universal Pre-Kindergarten

Universal preschool is a program that may be offered by a state, province, or country to provide access to preschool for all children of a particular age (often 4, sometimes 3- and 4-year-olds, sometimes a wider age range). Universal programs are not necessarily (or often) compulsory; they are generally voluntary. If states or countries do not offer universal programs, they may offer targeted programs, which generally aim to provide services to particular groups of children considered at risk of school failure, due to poverty, limited English skills, or other issues.

Keywords Achievement Gap; Collaboration; Developmentally Appropriate Practice; Head Start; High Quality; Play-Based Learning; Pre-Kindergarten; Preschool; Targeted Program; Universal Program

Overview

What is Universal Preschool?

Preschool is generally understood to be school provided for children before they enter publicly funded Kindergarten to grade 12 programs. More typically, it may specifically refer to 3- and 4-year-olds. Preschool can include public school programs, private or church-sponsored daycare or child-care programs, Head Start, Early Head Start, or similar programs. Family child-care may be considered a form of preschool by some, but for the purpose of this article "preschool" will include center-based care for 3- and 4-year-olds.

Targeted Programs

Studies have shown that greater benefits of preschool accrue to low-income children or those otherwise at risk of school failure, than to children from higher income families. Therefore, some argue, scarce resources should be focused on these poorer children, to maximize the benefits of each dollar spent on programs-and because those children need programs most.

Examples of such targeted programs include Head Start, which provides services to children from low-income families; and Special Education programs supported by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) funding, which provide services to children with special needs. As indicated by the name, Head Start, these programs are thought to provide a necessary jump-start on the educational process, in order to close the achievement gap for children whose families may not have the resources to find or provide necessary services for their children before they enter public school at kindergarten.

Preschool is currently seen to be a useful addition to the array of public education, particularly for low-income children, or children otherwise at risk for school failure. Even by the time they enter kindergarten, some children may lag behind others in their knowledge, vocabulary, social skills, and achievement (Hart and Risley, 1995). Participation in high quality preschool has been shown to reduce this gap for many children (Barnett et al, 2005; Peisner-Feinberg et al, 2001), and to lead to other benefits to individual children, and to society as a whole, further down the educational line. Such benefits include:

• Reduced need for special education programs,

• Reduced grade repetition,

• Reduced participation in crime,

• Less dependence on welfare programs,

• Reduced dropout from high school,

• Less out-of-wedlock pregnancy, and

• Improved job and health outcomes over the long term. (Campbell & Ramey, 1994; Reynolds et al., 2002; Schweinhart et al., 2005).

Measuring Program Quality

It is important to note that most studies on preschool relate the quality of the programs to improved outcomes for children. Quality is defined in terms of various criteria, which may be divided into two kinds of groups.

Process quality refers to activities and processes that occur in the program, including what the children do; how teachers communicate with children and each other; and parent involvement. Structural quality refers to elements of the quality that are more fixed, such as teacher-child ratios, class size, teacher qualifications, teacher pay, and the physical structure of the program areas. Both have found to have an impact on outcomes, and there are measurements and assessments for all kinds of quality measures (Espinosa, 2002).

Opposition to Universal Preschool

As preschool programs of all kinds have developed and expanded, they have faced opposition, for various reasons. Some people believe that young children should be at home with a parent, rather than out in school for all or part of the day, for example. Others believe that it is not the job of the state (or any political entity) to provide resources for care or education to very young children.

Historically in the U.S., the state has generally been prepared to provide education and care to children of poor parents, in order to transmit mainstream values and models of behavior, and to provide care for children while parents worked outside the home (Barnett et al., 2004, p. 2). This was continued and institutionalized with the development of Head Start, in 1964, a comprehensive child care program designed to provide high quality preschool education - along with additional health, nutrition, and parental work training services for parents - to children from poor families, as part of the "War on Poverty" begun in the 1960s. The state has not, however, necessarily been prepared to offer such services to families who are considered able to find such resources and fund them without state assistance.

Private providers of child care may also be opposed to universal programs in states where collaboration is not encouraged or supported. Some states, however, have worked hard to collaborate with existing providers to raise standards in all programs, provide high quality care, and serve all children. This can be helpful for states as it eases problems related to lack of space to start programs, and provides an existing set of teachers already committed to the field and working in a range of neighborhoods.

For the current generation of children, staying home with a parent may not always be an option. Many children are already placed in child care programs and/or preschools from a very early age, since their parents are working. State-funded or state-managed universal preschool programs can provide a means of ensuring that the care they do receive outside the home is of high quality, is beneficial to them, and is preparing them for K-12 education and for their future as contributing citizens of the country.

Applications

Which States Have Universal Preschool Programs?

In his 2013 State of the Union Address, President Barak Obama called for substantial expansion of preschool education in the United States, including increasing the number of children age 0 to 3 served by the Early Head Start Program, and providing universal pre-kindergarten programs for 4-year odds from families whose income is 200% or less of the federal poverty level. This proposal builds on a pattern of expanding access to preschool programs that has already begun in many states. State programs generally use one of two approaches to move towards providing universal pre-kindergarten: building on existing programs, or by beginning with targeted programs and adding on to them as funds and other resources allow. However, the resources to expand these programs have not always been available, due to limited state revenues, particularly since the recession that began in 2007.

According to The State of Preschool 2012, a report by The National Institute for Early Education Research at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education, in 2012, over 1.3 million children enrolled in 52 state-funded preschool programs in 50 states, including Head Start programs; 32 of the 52 programs included an income requirement. Nationally, 4% of 3-year-olds and 28% of 4-year-olds are enrolled in state pre-kindergarten or Head Start programs. This is a substantial increase over 2002, when 3% of 3-year-olds and 14% of 4-year-olds were enrolled in a preschool program, but a slight decrease from 2011, as enrollment in 2012 was not sufficient to keep up with population growth. Total preschool spending came to over $5.1 billion, with an average expenditure of $4,596 per child enrolled, with state spending per child enrolled coming to $3,841, a substantial decrease from the $5,020 per child (in 2012 dollars) spent by states in 2002.

Georgia was one of the first states to develop a universal preschool model, in 1993. Funded by state lottery, the program began by serving low-income 4-year-olds, and was opened to all 4-year-olds in 1995. Private providers of child care were included in the program to increase access, and the program has continued to grow, and serve as an example to other states considering universal programs.

Henry et al (2006) compared the achievement of participants in Head Start, to that of eligible participants who attended the state pre-k program in Georgia instead, and found that "children who attended pre-k began kindergarten better prepared than children who attended Head Start on all six standardized assessments of skills and 11 of 14 ratings by their kindergarten teachers" (p. 93).

They concluded that among the low-income children in their study, those who had attended state preschool were "at least as well prepared for school when they entered kindergarten as were the children who attended Head Start" (p. 93).

New York has been committed to preschool for some time as well. Their universal preschool program complemented an existing targeted program when it was begun in 1997 (Lekies & Cochran, 2004). It has expanded over the years, despite strong resistance from some quarters, and a prolonged struggle for adequate resources.

New Jersey began implementing a program in 1997, in response to a court case, Abbott v. Burke, begun many years earlier, arguing that children in the state's poorest districts needed additional assistance to succeed in school. The Court agreed that high quality preschool would be an appropriate way to begin to address that inequality. The New Jersey program is offered to all preschoolers within the states poorest school districts. Various studies have outlined the beneficial outcomes for students in the program (Barnett et al, 2002; Frede et al, 2007; Lamy et al, 2005).

California's efforts to begin a universal program were widely publicized, due to the support of prominent figures, including Rob Reiner. Although a referendum in 2006 voted down universal preschool in the state, public support for the program has led to increased state funding for preschool programs.

Oklahoma was an early entrant into the universal preschool realm, beginning a pilot program to support preschool programs in 1980. Ten years later, funding became part of the state aid funding formula, meaning that all districts could apply for funds to start preschool programs. The state encourages collaboration among school districts, Head Start programs and private providers. Various studies have determined that the program has been highly beneficial to preschoolers in the state (Gormley & Phillips, 2005; Lamy et al, 2005).

In 2004, Florida passed legislation to provide preschool to all 4-year-olds. The road to implementation has been rocky, as it has for many states, partly as a result of funding issues. Since 2000, Alabama has theoretically offered state-funded preschool to all 4-year-olds in the state, but implementation has been limited due to lack of funds.

In 2007, the Maryland Task Force on Universal Preschool Education recommended expanding state preschool programs to include all 4-year-olds, regardless of family income, and 3-year-olds at risk for school failure or who are in foster care, homeless, or economically disadvantaged; however, budgetary constraints have prevented full implementation of this program.

Viewpoints

Problems with Targeted Programs

There are concerns associated with targeted programs (as summarized in Barnett et al., 2004). One problem is that targeted programs may not actually serve all children within the targeted group who need the services, since family incomes may change from time to time, making children ineligible. Or, families may move, or may not know of services available to them.

Targeted programs also may be under-funded in some cases, and therefore offer lower quality programs than are necessary for maximum positive impact for children, or be unable to serve all children who need the services. The National Institute for Early Education Research at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education established ten quality standards for pre-kindergarten programs, covering aspects such as class size (20 or lower), staff-child ratio (1:10 or better), teacher degree (BA), and monitoring (site visits at least every five years). According to the National Institute's report, The State of Preschool 2012, none of the standards was met by all 52 programs, with some being met by as few as 15 (assistant teachers should have a Child Development Association credential).

Since targeted programs tend to serve the poor, or other groups who may be removed from advocacy and lobbying arenas, the programs may lack political support from some segments of the middle class, which may lead to insufficient long-term funding. This, in turn, may lead to poorer quality programs, which are less helpful to children and less helpful reducing the achievement gap.

Although at-risk children show the most gain from preschool programs, on average, middle-class children can also benefit in terms of early identification of special needs, reduced risk of dropout, and reduced need for special education services later in their school careers. Arbitrary income cut-offs can mean that many children who could benefit from programs will not, especially from families living only slightly above the poverty line or another cut-off point.

In addition, children from low-income homes may benefit from participating in schools with children from higher-income families, rather than being segregated by income or language in targeted programs.

Who Supports Universal Preschool?

Business Groups

The Committee for Economic Development (CED) is just one of many economic and business groups supporting the idea of high quality universal preschool. They have spearheaded a highly publicized campaign to promote universal preschool, noting that such programs will ultimately pay off in terms of economic benefits to individuals and to states, and that the programs help today's students prepare well to participate in the global economy the U.S. faces today. They emphasize the value of universal programs in reaching all children, and in enhancing quality of programs for all children (CED, 2006).

McNeil (2007), however, in reviewing statements from the CED, reports that although states are often inclined to develop such programs, they may struggle to find the resources to commit to them up front. Programs can be expensive and well-trained teachers and space for programs may be hard to find.

Early Childhood Educators

The Alliance for Childhood (2006), a group of scholars and professionals involved in early childhood issues, has announced in a one-page article, their support for the idea of state-provided early childhood programs. However, they emphasize the need for "early education that emphasizes early education experiential, hands-on activities, open-ended creative play, and caring human relationships" (Alliance for Childhood, 2006, p. 37).

This concern is expressed in response to a concern common to the group and other educators, that schools, "fueled by political pressure, are leading to an emphasis on unproven methods of academic instruction and unreliable standardized testing that can undermine learning and damage young children's healthy development" (Alliance for Childhood, 2006, p. 37). They encourage a return to a focus on play-based learning, rather than an emphasis on standardized testing and academically focused curricula.

These ideas are supported by many early education professionals. Indeed, a critical concept for educators is that children's programs are based in "developmentally appropriate practice," meaning that programs are geared to the developmental needs of the children who are participating in them, not on the needs of schools and teachers to assure high test scores.

Crimefighters

Fight Crime Invest in Kids (2007), a national organization dedicated to fighting crime by investing in programs that steer children away from crime, supports universal preschool, based on the evidence of reduced participation in crime of preschool participants. Various experimental and quasi-experimental studies of programs (Campbell & Ramey, 1994; Reynolds et al, 2002; Schweinhart et al, 2005) have shown that high quality programs can reduce participation in crime later on in life.

Conclusion

Evidence suggests that preschool can be beneficial in terms of social and cognitive skills in preparing children for kindergarten and life beyond. This applies not only to poor or disadvantaged children, but also to preschoolers from more privileged backgrounds.

Along with benefits accruing to children and their classmates in subsequent years, there are significant benefits to schools and states when universal preschool is provided, including:

• Reduced reliance on special education,

• Reduced participation in welfare and crime, and

• Increased productivity; all resulting in meaningful economic returns to states.

There is some political opposition to universal preschool, from those who believe that 3- and 4-year-olds are too young for school, that the government should not provide education at that age, and that targeting resources would be more worthwhile. Nevertheless, many states have begun to implement universal programs. Research has demonstrated the benefits of high quality programs, and, has also begun to show the beneficial impact of larger programs serving more children.

Terms & Concepts

Achievement Gap: Achievement gap refers to a difference in performance on standardized tests, in graduation, in grades, etc., between groups of children in school; often between white children and African-American and Hispanic children.

Collaboration: In this context, collaboration refers to efforts to include private and federal preschool programs in state-funded preschool programs

Developmentally Appropriate Practice: Developmentally Appropriate Practice is the idea that a child is taught in ways appropriate to his or own stage of development, strengths and weaknesses, and culture.

Head Start: Head Start is a federal program providing comprehensive early childhood programs to children from low-income families, and their parents.

High Quality: High quality programs are necessary for preschool to have an impact on closing the achievement gap. Quality incorporates teacher pay and qualifications, the physical size and resources of a preschool, and the activities occurring in the preschool, including teacher-child relationships and communication

Play-Based Learning: Many early childhood educators express concern that a focus on academics at a very early age can be detrimental to children and discourage them from learning. It is considered developmentally appropriate for young children to learn through doing and playing, rather than by sitting at desks and working on worksheets

Targeted Program: A targeted program is one that provides service for a targeted group of individuals, based on some characteristic, such as age, income, or special needs.

Universal Program: A universal program is one that is provided across all members of a particular group (e.g. 4-year-olds), without regard to income, developmental or language issues.

Bibliography

Alliance for Childhood. (2006). A call to action on the education of young children. Encounter, 19 , 37. Retrieved November 7, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Academic Search Premier. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=21723982&site=ehost-live

Barnett, W.S., Brown, K., & Shore, R. (2004). The universal versus targeted debate: Should the U.S. have universal preschool for all? Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://nieer.org/resources/policybriefs/6.pdf

Barnett, W. S., Lamy, C., & Jung, K. (2005). The effects of state prekindergarten programs on young children's school readiness in five states. NIEER Policy Report. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research.

Barnett, W.S., Hustedt, J.T., Hawkinson, L.E.., & Robin, K.B. (2006). The state of preschool 2006. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research. Retrieved November 8, 2007, from http://nieer.org/yearbook/pdf/yearbook.pdf

Belfield, C. (2007). Does it pay to invest in preschool for all? Analyzing return-on- investment in three states. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://nieer.org/resources/research/DoesitPay.pdf

Campbell, F.A. & Ramey, C.T. (1994). Effects of early intervention on intellectual and academic achievement: A follow-up study of children from low-income families. Child Development, 65 , 684-698. Retrieved November 8, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=9405315161&site=ehost-live

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Committee for Economic Development. (2006). The economic promise of investing in high-quality preschool: Using early education to improve economic growth and the fiscal sustainability of states and the nation. Washington, DC: Committee for Economic Development. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://www.ced.org/docs/report/report_prek_econpromise.pdf

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Espinosa, L. (2002). High-quality preschool: Why we need it and what it looks like. NIEER Policy Brief. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education. Retrieved November 8,2007, from http://nieer.org/resources/policybriefs/1.pdf

Fight crime, invest in kids (2007). Early Education. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from http://www.fightcrime.org/issue_earlyed.php

Frede, E., Jung, K., Barnett, W.S., Lamy, E.S., & Figueras, A. (2007). The Abbott preschool program longitudinal effects study (APPLES). New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research.

Gormley, W.T., & Phillips, D. (2005.) The effects of universal Pre-K in Oklahoma: Research highlights and policy implications. Policy Studies Journal, 33 , 65-82. Retrieved November 8, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Business Source Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=15751550&site=ehost-live

Hart, B. & Risley, T.R. (1995.) Meaningful differences in the everyday experiences of young American children. Baltimore, MD: Brookes Publishing Company.

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Lamy, C., Barnett, W.S., & Jung, K. (2005). The effects of Oklahoma's early childhood four-year-old program on young children's school readiness. New Brunswick, NJ: National Institute for Early Education Research. Lamy, C., Frede, E., & ELIC. (2005). Giant steps for the littlest children: Progress in the sixth year of the Abbott preschool program. Trenton, NJ: New Jersey Department of Education. www.nj.gov/njded/ece

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Peisner-Feinberg, E. S., Burchinal, M.R., Clifford, R. M., Culkin, M. L., Howes, C., Kagan, S.L., & Yazejian, N. (2001). The relation of preschool child-care quality to children's cognitive and social developmental trajectories through second grade. Child Development, 72 , 1534-1554. Retrieved November 8, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=5548944&site=ehost-live

Reynolds, A. J., Temple, J. A., Robertson, D. L., & Mann, E. A. (2002). Age 21 cost- benefit analysis of the Title I Chicago child-parent centers. (Discussion Paper no. 1245-02). Madison, WI: Institute for Research on Poverty. Retrieved November 8, 2007, from http://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/dps/pdfs/dp124502.pdf

Schweinhart, L. J., Montie, J., Xiang, Z., Barnett, W. S., Belfield, C. R., & Nores, M. (2005). Lifetime effects: The High/Scope Perry Preschool study through age 40 (Monographs of the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation, 14). Ypsilanti, MI: High/Scope Educational Research Foundation.

Universal Pre-Kindergarten

On this Page

Subject Terms

Universal Pre-Kindergarten

Overview

What is Universal Preschool?

Targeted Programs

Measuring Program Quality

Opposition to Universal Preschool

Applications

Which States Have Universal Preschool Programs?

Viewpoints

Problems with Targeted Programs

Who Supports Universal Preschool?

Business Groups

Early Childhood Educators

Crimefighters

Conclusion

Terms & Concepts

Bibliography

Suggested Reading