As I wrote recently, one of the major deficiencies in our public education system is the paucity of early education opportunities for our children. The educational process, of course, is a cumulative matter, with our teachers helping students build upon knowledge they previously obtained. In Indiana, we let far too many of our children begin schooling without the basic skills that they could attain in both kindergarten and pre-kindergarten.
We have to ensure that Hoosier students have the opportunity to attend both pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classes. My opponent’s solution of increased technical and vocational training, which in and of itself is a good thing, falls far short of addressing our early education woes. I believe that every child should be prepared and have the opportunity to attend college if he or she wants to do so. Our students should have the opportunity to make that decision themselves; it should not be forced upon them because we failed to prepare them to take that next step.
Now is the time to expand early education programs, while we have a budget surplus. If not now, when?
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As a teacher, I certainly appreciate your push towards early education. What I would like to know is your ideas on how we can implement this logistically. This is not just a money issue. This is a space issue. Most schools are already packed to the gills. Where will we house all these new students and teachers? The cost of building new buildings and re-districting our school boundaries is the main reason why early education has not been a priority yet. Most corporations have the money to fund the teachers but lack the available space necessary to add 2-3 classrooms of preschool students. How would you handle this lack of space to house these programs?
Traci, as you note, infrastructure is certainly a huge challenge not only for expanding early education, but for you and other teachers in your daily work. I do think that this is an area where the State can assist, and supplement the funding that many corporations have available to fund additional teachers. Whether it takes new construction or expansion of current buildings, I consider this to be a good investment at a time when we have a surplus, which will yield an immediate economic benefit for both the construction aspect and in funding additional teachers, but also a long-term benefit with the boost that expanded early education will provide students. You’re right, it’s not just a money issue, but if we make this a priority as a State, we can address the space issue with additional funding and make progress on this front.
I want to include teachers, administrators, parents, and our communities in this discussion, as I know many people have a lot of well-developed ideas on this topic, and I know that I can learn a lot from all of you, as well.