Our Education Gap: Where We Are Losing Our Children

Jeremy Masters

ENG 101

Tara Warman

29 June, 2008

Our Education Gap: Where We Are Losing Our Children

Today our young children face a deficiency in regards to their education. This dilemma begins even before their compulsory education is slated to begin. The majority of children entering kindergarten today are under prepared for the academic challenges that will be presented to them. The Trust for Early Education (TEE) states, "Today, we are asking our children to do more in kindergarten than in previous generations. Kindergarten is no longer preparation for school-it is school" (2). In recent years, researchers have found that educating pre-kindergarten (pre-K) children (ages three to five) provides a direct link in the development of further scholastic success. Children are naturally curious during the early stages of their lives. It is during this time that we must fuel their curiosity and passion for learning to ensure they are prepared for the education challenges that lie ahead.

Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office on Air...

Photo portrait of President Lyndon B. Johnson in t...

Union Baptist Harvey Johnson Head Start Program Gr...

Margaret Spellings, current U.S. Secretary of Education, stated, "We cannot prepare students for the global economy if we don't get them to grade level first" (para.1). The predicament lies in correcting current pre-K programs for children to ensure an even education foundation is achieved prior to kindergarten. By improving compulsory early childhood education programs, we can ensure all future students are afforded essential learning skills as well as emotional and social development.

As our economy continues to shift, the percentage of families with two parents working full time increases each year. A study conducted in 2002 by the Department of Health and Human Services established 44% of families with children, ages three through six, had two full-time employed parents. This study verifies that many of our children are spending the greater part of their early lives away from...