The idea of preschool can seem so sweet and nice. And, at first glance, it may appear that those of us who stayed home for five years and only began formalized school at age six were underprivileged somehow. Or maybe it seems reasonable that given the advancement in technology, early schooling is essential now when it wasn’t before. But both ideas have been proven wrong. Current research on preschool is pretty abysmal!
A quick survey of research reveals a startling fact: starting formal academics too early can hurt a child! Early benefits disappear by third to fifth grade so that test scores become identical among children who started schoolwork early and those who didn’t even start academics until age eight! In fact, early academics has been shown to cause burn-out by about third grade when children from preschools actually fall behind their non-preschooled peers. Recent decades of early education have just not improved our educational outcomes by high school graduation!
High school test scores are worse than they were in my day. The United States is falling further behind other nations academically—a fact that we actually hear quite often during political debates to argue for more financial investment in public schools—including preschool. The problem is that these statistics are rarely connected to real practical data.
For instance, we fall far behind Japan academically, but not because Japanese children have a head start. Japan actually delays formal education to age six. Cambridge University researchers are recommending that English formal education be delayed to nearer age seven (from the current age four in England) via a “Too Much, Too Soon” campaign signed by around 130 early childhood education experts.
Maybe it’s time to rethink preschool! We don’t have to forego learning just because we don’t choose formal preschool. Rather, informal opportunities and play-based learning appear optimal in these early years! Family life provides an ideal educational environment!