“INTERGENERATIONAL LONG TERM EFFECTS OF PRESCHOOL – STRUCTURAL ESTIMATES FROM A DISCRETE DYNAMIC PROGRAMMING MODEL”

This is the title of Working Paper 19077, published by James J. Heckman, Department of Economics, The University of Chicago and Lakshmi K. Raut, Social Security Administration, for the National Bureau of Economic Research.

“The paper finds that a tax financed free preschool program for the children of poor socioeconomic status generates positive net gains to the society in terms of average earnings and higher inter-generational earnings and schooling mobility.”

This is the guise covered by the truth that the earlier we begin to educate our children the better it will be for everyone. Again, convincing us of what we already know.

However, in removing the cover of the truth, we expose the lie that everyone will benefit from their form of preschool education. In fact, only those investing in the system will benefit from it and the poor and disadvantaged are not investors in the system, they are not counted among the benefactors.

In fact, as of 1991, the data used to formulate this paper no longer included poor and disadvantaged whites in their survey groups, further expanding the racial disparities within their system of education.

The paper juxtapositions two studies done on early childhood education, the High Scope/Perry Preschool Program, of which the authors say, “the participants in these programs are not representative of the US population” and the Federally funded Head Start Program, of which the authors say, “the benefits disappear for black children because most of the Head Start black children attend low quality public schools.”

Given their research and data, the estimated gain in educational success is less than 7% of the population of children attending public school.

While the paper supports guaranteeing the right to a public education is says nothing about the fact that the current system of education is not only ineffective and inefficient, it is unequal and unjust.

The only way to insure our children receive an excellent education is by providing a child centered system of education to ALL of America’s children.

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