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Early Learning
Topic

Preschool

Preschool is any program designed to help 3- and 4-year-old children develop social, emotional and academic skills. Research shows that high-quality preschool programs can have a long-lasting positive effect. There’s an ongoing debate about whether large public programs can achieve the quality necessary to have a similar impact.
Legislation
April 19, 2021

Why does California disappoint in preschool access and quality?

The report arrives just as momentum builds to expand access to both transitional kindergarten and state-funded preschool.

Karen D'Souza
Early Learning
February 24, 2021

California educators pay a wage penalty for working with younger children, report shows

Preschool teachers and child care workers earn 38% less than their colleagues in the K-8 system, the report says.

Karen D'Souza
Early Learning
January 19, 2021

How one California preschool program is helping youngest learners with math

A state-funded program is designing strategies for families to keep kids learning at home even when in-person preschool is canceled.

Sydney Johnson
Early Learning
January 5, 2021

Why California needs to ban preschool suspensions and expulsions, experts say

Harsh discipline at such an early age can have lasting consequences.

Karen D'Souza
Commentary
December 8, 2020

New Master Plan for Early Learning and Care points way to California for all

When children have access to quality care and learning, parents also have the ability to seek more education, participate in the workforce, earn more and invest more in their children.

Linda Darling-Hammond and Kim Johnson
English Learners
December 7, 2020

Preschoolers learning English need to be identified, supported, says California’s master plan

The plan for the first time calls for requiring preschool programs to identify and report the languages spoken by children enrolled.

Zaidee Stavely
Policy & Finance
December 1, 2020

Inside California’s new master plan to reshape early education and child care

Gov. Gavin Newsom made early childhood education a central focus of his administration.

Karen D'Souza
Federal Education Policy
November 7, 2020

President-elect Joe Biden’s expansive education agenda expected to draw greater scrutiny

With Senate likely to remain in GOP hands, it is not clear how much of his detailed pro-teacher agenda, with a heavy emphasis on community colleges and affordability, could be implemented.

Louis Freedberg
Early Learning
October 1, 2020

Outdoor classes and ‘forest schools’ gain new prominence amid distance learning struggles

Can outdoor schools offer lessons at a time when being indoors is so risky?

Karen D'Souza
Early Learning
September 15, 2020

Fearing distance learning, many parents opt for preschool instead of kindergarten

Some parents are also opting for preschool because a more familiar environment offers comfort during the pandemic.

Zaidee Stavely
Early Learning
September 2, 2020

Many parents fill in gaps for preschoolers unable to go to in-person programs

Preschool students facing a learning loss because Covid-19 closed their nursery school and child care programs are getting help from parents and teachers trying to keep them learning.

Betty Márquez Rosales
Coronavirus
August 13, 2020

Ask a reporter: Back to school in California during Covid-19

EdSource reporters and readers met Wednesday in a virtual town hall to discuss what education will look like this fall in California. 

Sydney Johnson
Early Learning
August 3, 2020

California child care providers losing money, risking health during pandemic

Many providers are missing rent payments and racking up credit card debt, in addition to worrying they will be infected with the coronavirus.

Zaidee Stavely
Early Learning
July 17, 2020

Coronavirus cases spike in California child care facilities

Close to a fifth of the cases were among children, about a third were among staff and another third were among parents.

Zaidee Stavely And Daniel J. Willis
Commentary
July 6, 2020

California must commit to funding coronavirus protections for child care workers

Our economy cannot successfully reopen if we do not support the health and safety of child care providers in the coming months.

Anna J. Markowitz, Rashmita Mistry and Deb Valentine