Hispanic Students Benefit Most From Prekindergarten Programs, Speaker Says
Georgetown University researcher studied Tulsa schools
Last updated Friday, October 26, 2007 9:41 PM CDT in News
By Lana F. Flowers
THE MORNING NEWS
FAYETTEVILLE -- Hispanic parents who want their preschoolers to learn English faster and do better in kindergarten should enroll their children in prekindergarten programs, said William T. Gormley Jr., professor of government and public policy at Georgetown University.
Gormley also is co-director of the Center for Research on Children in the U.S. He spoke Friday at the University of Arkansas regarding research on students in state-funded Oklahoma prekindergarten programs. Gormley in 2003 and 2006 studied programs in Tulsa, Okla., public schools.
Prekindergarten programs for 4-year-olds benefit Hispanic students more than black or non-Hispanic white students, Gormley said the research revealed.
Tulsa schools have about 2,500 students in prekindergarten programs. About 21 percent of those students are Hispanic, Gormley said.
He focused research on Hispanic students because they face substantial education deficits. Hispanics are less likely to graduate from high school than non-Hispanic whites or Asian Americans and are less likely to graduate from college, Gormley said.
In 2000, 44 percent of Hispanic children had mothers who had not graduated from high school, compared with 9 percent of non-Hispanic white children, Gormley said.
Those factors mean Hispanic children are less likely to be enrolled in preschool and are "deprived of a potential educational benefit," Gormley said.
Hispanic children often are English-language learners with immigrant parents who primarily speak Spanish at home, Gormley said.
Prekindergarten programs may help Hispanic students in part by teaching them more English skills, Gormley said.
Few of Tulsa's teachers speak Spanish but its prekindergarten programs benefited Hispanic students more than black or non-Hispanic white students, Gormley said.
Teachers who spoke some Spanish likely formed emotional bonds with students, who then felt more welcome or encouraged in the classroom, Gormley said.
About 30 states fund prekindergarten programs, and Oklahoma has one of the best, Gormley said. Oklahoma's prekindergarten teachers are paid the same salaries and benefits as any grade school or high school teacher.
"It's been a very powerful magnet for some very talented young people who decided not just to make teaching their vocation, but to make early childhood their vocation," Gormley said.
Marcus Winters, a doctoral fellow at the University of Arkansas, asked Gormley if students benefited from programs simply because it was their first formal education.
Winters also asked if such programs would benefit children as young as 1 to 3 years old.
Gormley said programs would benefit any child.
"Earlier is better, especially for disadvantaged kids who may not get that intellectual stimulation at home," Gormley said.
Gary Compton, Bentonville schools superintendent, attended Gormley's lecture. The Bentonville School District has a prekindergarten center under construction at Old Tiger Stadium.
The center will open in January for 280 children, with 240 spots reserved for poverty-level children whose tuition will be free.
The center will have 24,500 square feet and care for children 3 to 5 years old. The district has a $2.18 million grant from Wal-Mart and Sam's Club Foundation to pay for the center.
Compton said Gormley is well known and respected in education circles and it's not every day someone of his caliber speaks in Northwest Arkansas.
"I was really taken by his comments that Spanish students did better when the teacher spoke at least some Spanish," Compton said.
Gormley said researchers are doing a longitudinal study to examine test scores and performance of students who now are in third grade and were in Tulsa's programs.
However, Gormley said he is not optimistic about those study results. It appears programs jump-start students' minds so they go to kindergarten better prepared, but effects seem to fade as students progress to higher grades, Gormley said.
AT A GLANCE
Oklahoma's State-Funded Pre-K
Oklahoma has funded programs since 1999.
Teacher Requirements: All classrooms must be led by a degreed teacher certified in early childhood education.
Teacher Pay: Prekindergarten teachers are paid the same salaries as elementary or high school teachers with comparable education and experience.
State Funding: $4,000 per student per year for prekindergarten programs. School districts supplement state money with local tax dollars or use of local school buildings for prekindergarten classes.
Source: William T. Gormley Jr. of Georgetown University, Staff Reports
Web Watch
Students' Achievement
To read more about research on students' achievement in the Tulsa, Okla. prekindergarten program, go to www.crocus.georgetown.edu
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Tspud wrote on Oct 28, 2007 12:06 PM:
adabell wrote on Nov 5, 2007 5:41 PM:
Not already registered?
masonstorm1958 wrote on Oct 27, 2007 9:44 AM: