Following up on the attention paid to the new Bill Gormley study of the effects of the state's $7,000 per year prekindergarten program I came across this ABC television report from May. It shows the power of television when done well. I particularly liked the video of a kindergartner who had attended pre-k writing letters (steady, clear, nicely formed) while, on a split screen, a kindergartner who had not gone to pre-k tried to do the same. (wobbly lines, some unrecognizable letters, slower).

The ABC report quoted candidate Obama saying he supported pre-k because it would return $10 for every dollar invested. I've now come across economic returns estimates of between $2.36 and $17 for each dollar invested. (See Clive Belfield's report as well as this oneby Steve Aos at the Washington State Institute for Public Policy.)

Not sure where Obama's number comes from but what's important is that each of these studies makes different assumptions, uses different methodologies for evaluating costs and savings, and covers different time periods. Point is that even the lowest estimate shows a better than one-to-one return. That return has to be evaluated against the returns from other social interventions, some of which are highly targeted and others, such as public schooling in general, that are universal.

National survey by the advocacy organization Pre-K Now shows strong voter support for a greater federal investment in state pre-kindergarten programs.

Early childhood expert Jeanne-Brooks Gunn of National Center for Children and Families at Teachers College offers new research on program effectiveness)

As ambitious state-funded pre-kindergarten programs are stalled or halted by fiscal woes, early childhood education experts gathered with government officials and business leaders from 14 states last week to learn more about child development and gain a deeper understanding of children's learning, behavior and health from top experts.

Such partnerships are a positive development at a time when budget uncertainties are halting plans for pre-kindergarten expansion in states like Virginia and Tennessee.

The conference -- sponsored by the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University -- included findings of A Science-Based Framework for Early Childhood Policy.

Discussions included an overview of the impact of early experience on brain development and lessons learned from public-private partnerships. A gold mine of research and reports presented at the conference are well worth the time of journalists and others interested in early education policy, including papers that look at early childhood program effectiveness by, among others, Jeanne-Brooks Gunn of the National Center for Children and Families at Teachers College.

A story about the conference can be found in Education Week .

(Kindergarten students who have had some preparation have a big advantage in Ohio)

Edith Starzyk of the The Plain Dealer in Cleveland did the kind of story on Monday that really helps illuminate why and how pre-kindergarten can make a difference -- and why the public should care.

Starzyk compared the kindergarten readiness of students in the Bay Village district -- where eight of 10 students shows up with the skills needed to start reading -- with those who are coming from Cleveland's public schools. In a series of interviews, she found the poor quality of child-cCare centers in the city poses obstacles for city students, as does the lack of pre-kindergarten.

Some 70 percent of students in the more affluent Bay Village district have attended preschool, an opportunity not as readily available in Cleveland -- although Starzyk did an excellent job of explaining how and why that is changing, and who is behind the push for improvement.

She also pointed out that success in kindergarten rises for children who have attended high-quailty pre-school -- an important point to bring home in communities where there is some skepticism about spending public money on such programs.

Kindergarten students in some areas learning Chinese, Arabic and other 'critical' languages)

As a time when some states offer no publicly funded pre-school progams, some kindergartners are getting the chance to learn Chinese, Arabic and Japanese. An Associated Press story widely picked up this week descriped a Fairfax. Virginia classroom where students were playing "Jeopardy,'' using clues in Chinese.

The langugae classes are part of a $114 million effort known as the National Security Language Initiative aimed at increasing the number of Americans learning languages such as Russian, Hindi and Farsi, in addition to Arabic and Chinese -- languages deemed critical to U.S. security and foreign policy interests.

The initiative recognizes that deficits in U.S. foreign langauge learning "negatively affect our national security, diplomacy, law enforcement, intelligence communities and cultural understanding.''

Jay Mathews of the Washington Post has noted the classes often serve another purpose: some of the Arabic language classes offered in Washington D.C. area schools were filled with students whose families came from countries where Arabic was the most common language -- and wanted to improve their reading and writing in their native language.

The Associated Press, piece, meanwhile, did a nice job of showing how quickly young children pick up languages -- and how much they enjoy it. Journalists who live in areas where such classes are offered should consider asking to sit in on a class and find out which languages are most popular -- and why -- and who is registering to take them.

(Budget cuts can lead families toward crowded, ad-hoc quality child care options)

A story in today's Newsday did a great job of illustrating how painful New York State's budget cuts are for the working poor, who depend in many cases on subsidized day care so they can hold onto their jobs.

Reporter Michael Amon found a particularly telling anecdote: a single mother who earns just $300 a week as an animal caretaker at a shelter and will no longer get assistance with the $150 in child care costs for her 6-year-old daughter. The key quote?

"It seems like it would be easier for me to just quit my job and go on welfare, because I can't afford the day care,'' a mother in the story tells Amon.

The situation Amon described is one increasing numbers of families across the U.S. are finding themselves in, as fuel and food costs rise and state budgets are slashed. While the program in Suffolk County is the only one to freeze the program as a result of $51 million in state child care fund reductions, many others across the state are being forced to make reductions.

Reporters covering early childhood issues and state budgets alike should find people to illustrate the impact of reductions and cuts on both the state and federal levels.

Such stories - especially if they come with an explanation of why cuts were made, and what the consequences are for families who seek alternative, and often substandard child care -- are important to help the public understand what happens to our youngest children during tough times.

The Patriot Ledger of Quincy earlier this year did a great job in a three-part series of explaining how and why parents make such decisions and balance finances around child care in Massachusetts -- and how and why they, and the programs they choose, often fall short.

(In New Hampshire, the Long Wait for Kindergarten Continues)

At a time when some states are pushing for publicly funded pre-kindergarten and promoting its value, New Hampshire is struggling to get a new requirement of public kindergarten for all off the ground. The state has been locked in an interesting battle over who should pay for kindergarten, which the state legislature included as a requirement for all schools in their definition of an adequate education that was adopted last year.

An Associated Press piece this week noted that that Gov. John Lynch extended the deadline for starting programs and agreed to provide financial help to the towns trying to start such programs.

There are fascinating stories to be told behind this kindergarten battle in New Hampshire, the only state in the U.S. that does not offer public kindergarten in all of its school districts. The state whose motto is "Live Free or Die,'' -- and whose residents often reject any programs that will raise taxes -- is also home to a fast growing population of young families who have moved to southern New Hampshire from the Boston area in search of more affordable housing and a better lifestyle. Many are shocked to learn they must home school their children for kindergarten or find private day care options.

National Public Radio did a terrific job in 2005 of describing the disbelief and anger of many parents who showed up to their local elementary school to register their children -- only to learn there is no kindergarten.

The law signed last week extending the deadline and giving communities without kindergarten another year to offer programs means more delays-- and more families with fewer options for giving their child the best start in school.

(If presential hopeful Barack Obama had his way, schools would teach two languages in kindergarten)

Last week, an Associated Press story widely picked up about a Virginia school teaching Chinese in kindergarten caught my eye, and piqued my interest in President George Bush's National Security Language initiative aimed at teaching the youngest students foreign languages he deemed critical to U.S. security.

Spanish was not among those languages. But Presidential candidate Barack Obama believes it should be, and he's ignited something of a debate on blogs and other media after suggesting last week that every U.S. child should be bilingual.

Obama noted the importance of teaching languages earlier in school, and pointed out that being bilingual can be "a powerful tool to get a job.'' He noted that young children learn foreign languages far easier and acknowledged his own shame that he doesn't speak a language. Almost instantly, he found himself under attack by conservative media and right-leaning blogs along with groups advocating English as the official U.S. language.

Obama defended himself against the criticism earlier this week, but the debate over what languages should be taught when and who should decide has ignited further discussion and debate all week that is instructive -- and reveals how controversial the teaching of languages can be in the U.S.

Education Week has an interesting forum, asking how vital is it for schools and districts to provide opportunities to study another language?

(presidential candidates views on public funding for pre-kindergarten disappointingly vague)

While Presidential candidate Barack Obama offered his perspective on learning more than one language at an early age last week, Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain was readying his speech before the NAACP convention, which he delivered on Thursday.

Not one mention of his views on pre-kindergarten, a disappointment to advocates and duly noted and commented upon by Sara Mead in Early Education Watch. Mainly, McCain used his speech to make clear his support for school vouchers in largely minority and underperforming school systems -- an idea Obama is adamantly against.

"For all the best efforts of teachers and administrators, the worst problems of our public school system are often found in black communities," he told nearly 3,000 members of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People gathered at its 99th annual convention, according to the Baltimore Sun.

Both candidates have yet to full flesh out their views on early childhood education; Obama has said he'd put billions of dollars into early childhood education to make sure minorities and poor youth "are getting the help they need,'' and wants to increase Head Start funding, but specifics are yet to come.

Mead has her own ideas about some early childhood proposals should believes McCain might support; she's also taken a good look at Obama's.

(Sara Mead of the New America Foundation and Albert Wat of pre-k Now speak to reporters in New York City last weekend at Hechinger Institute on Education and the Media)

Journalists who write about education often find themselves bogged down in coverage of multiple school districts, and don't have the time or inclination to pay attention to early childhood education. They are making a mistake, two experts on pre-kindergarten told reporters who attended a Hechinger Institute on Education and the Media seminar aimed at helping reporters new to the education beat last weekend.

"Pre-k is where all the action is right now,'' said Sara Mead, whose own blog about the policies that impact young children is filled with resources and story ideas. Mead noted that 36 states have increased spending on pre-kindergarten and gave pointers on what to watch for in the coming election, along with ways the candidates might support an early education agenda.. Mead spoke about what to look for when visiting a pre-kindergarten classroom, and noted that what happens in such classrooms merits the attention of journalists because it "matters a lot and really resonates for parents,'' and for the public.

Albert Wat of Pre-K Now also offered tips and advice about covering early childhood education, and invited journalists to sign-up for a daily news clip service and monthly research roundup on the pre-k now website. He also presented a helpful powerpoint presentation aimed at providing reporters with a detailed look at pre-kindergarten trends.

(Siblings shut out of pre-k can now attend the same school as their big brothers and sisters)

It's been a long haul for New York City parents whose children have been shut out of pre-kindergarten -- in many cases, from the same schools their older siblings attend. That's led to months of anxiety, soul searching, protests and letter writing campaigns. It's also led to a resolution, according to the New York Daily News.

Daily News staff writer Carrie Melago, who has done a fine job keeping tabs on this difficult story, reported today that the New York City Department of Education has decided to honor its commitment to place siblings in the same school where parents wanted them to be. It's going to be costly for the city -- they'll have to spend $1.4 million on additional paraprofessionals to staff what will now be larger pre-kindergarten classes of up to 20 kids.

The DOE's policy calls for giving preference to highly coveted pre-kindergarten seats to those with siblings in the same school. For unknown reasons, that did not happen in many cases. The kids who were accepted for the spots that were supposed to be earmarked for siblings will not be sent packing -- they will just be in larger classes, but with additional staff.

In a city where the average price of renting a two-bedroom was $5,265 in March (caveat: that figure is for Manhattan, not the other four boroughs, and is in a doorman building) and where parents scramble to identify and find places for their children in decent public schools, the pre-k mess added even more worries. Private pre-kindergarten in the city can cost upwards of $23,000 a year.. The admissions process can involve securing letters of recommendations for toddlers, long waits just to get applications and multiple interviews.

In New York, It helped to have the press keep the pressure on education officials by asking repeatedly how the issue would be resolved.

(The trends in child well-being are well worth watching, as they reflect larger social and economic changes.

While studies are often just a starting point for journalists, it was surprising to find so little coverage of the new Duke University ">study of children's well-being underwritten by the Foundation for Child Development.

The study, released at the New America Foundation in Washington D.C. last week, found that progress in American children's quality of life has stalled after an eight-year upward trend -- and that a worsening economy is likely to negatively affect U. S. children for years to come. Areas to watch range from infant mortality rates to publicly financed childcare and health and education programs.

One interesting finding -- the eight year upward improvement trend may have been related to a post 9/11 sense of common purpose in the country. Another important -- and somewhat frightening -- trend to watch will be the many ways an economic downturn may worsen conditions for children.

The study is an excellent starting point, and hopefully will spur coverage and original reporting about these trends throughout the U.S. One mention came in a Houston Chronicle blog item. The study raises critical questions and introduces data that should be localized by journalists.

At the very least, much of the data can be incorporated into important stories on everything from birth rates and infant mortality to pre-school enrollment -- which, by the way, improved according to the report.

(Pre-k battles in South Dakota, Mississippi worth watching and reporting on)>