Quality Standards: Gains and Losses in Tough Times

Posted on 06/22/2011 @ 01:09 PM

In their annual report of state-funded preschool programs, NIEER (National Institute for Early Education Research) examined three key features of each state pre-K initiative: access, quality standards, and resources. They provided a big picture look at the one of these features, quality standards, in an effort to analyze the nation’s commitment to offering high-quality preschool experiences at the state level.

Of Florida, they said, "children attend programs that must meet only three benchmarks. For children in states with lower quality programs, they are potentially missing out on the most meaningful early education experiences.  In our experience, program standards are much less likely to change year to year than are either access or funding, perhaps due to how they are legislatively established."

What do you think about their analysis?

Read the full report here.