READ: Coach K's Op-Ed on Early Childhood Education

[dukeclassof2016]

Read this phenomenal piece by Coach K on disparities in early childhood education (http://blogs.rollcall.com/beltway-insiders/coach-k-quality-preschool-is-a-win-for-everyone/?pos=eam&dczone=emailalert) and his support for recent congressional measures to reduce such disparities, published today in Roll Call.

My favorite part:


"Just eight and a half minutes into our ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament semifinal, the scoreboard read 'Notre Dame 18, Duke 5.'

Unfortunately, the grim message on the scoreboard that night in March is an apt metaphor for the situation in which many young children find themselves today.

At-risk kids who can’t access high-quality preschool experiences face an early deficit of their own — except the stakes are much higher than the outcome of a basketball game."

How lucky are we to have at the head of our program a man who uses his influence to make a difference in the lives of so many?

For those of you interested in more of Coach K's take on education, here's a link to his address to the N.C. general assembly in April of this year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwd6N7MzJrw

[MarkD83]

Read this phenomenal piece by Coach K on disparities in early childhood education (http://blogs.rollcall.com/beltway-insiders/coach-k-quality-preschool-is-a-win-for-everyone/?pos=eam&dczone=emailalert) and his support for recent congressional measures to reduce such disparities, published today in Roll Call.

My favorite part:


"Just eight and a half minutes into our ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament semifinal, the scoreboard read 'Notre Dame 18, Duke 5.'

Unfortunately, the grim message on the scoreboard that night in March is an apt metaphor for the situation in which many young children find themselves today.

At-risk kids who can’t access high-quality preschool experiences face an early deficit of their own — except the stakes are much higher than the outcome of a basketball game."

How lucky are we to have at the head of our program a man who uses his influence to make a difference in the lives of so many?

For those of you interested in more of Coach K's take on education, here's a link to his address to the N.C. general assembly in April of this year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwd6N7MzJrw

It is well worth reading the entire article from Coach K. What a stark contrast from the folks 8 miles down the road who don't even take higher education seriously.

[Gewebe14]

Any chance this article was really just expressing concern over the unc's football and basketball player educational experience?

"kids who can’t access high-quality preschool experiences face an early deficit of their own"

JK! Great piece.

[DukeBlueHeart4]

I wish the General Assembly agreed with his emphasis on the importance of education. When I was a junior in high school, I decided to become a teacher because of a quote from Horace Mann, the founder of the common school movement in Massachusetts that would spur the evolution of public education as we know it. He said, "Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance wheel of the social machinery." His words echo that sentiment, both in the article and the video. I hope that one day we can become a leader in education again. I wish more people could see the transformative power of education and realize that it is truly the best way to break down barriers. I love my career and wouldn't trade my crazy high schoolers for anything.

[MarkD83]

I wish the General Assembly agreed with his emphasis on the importance of education. When I was a junior in high school, I decided to become a teacher because of a quote from Horace Mann, the founder of the common school movement in Massachusetts that would spur the evolution of public education as we know it. He said, "Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance wheel of the social machinery." His words echo that sentiment, both in the article and the video. I hope that one day we can become a leader in education again. I wish more people could see the transformative power of education and realize that it is truly the best way to break down barriers. I love my career and wouldn't trade my crazy high schoolers for anything.

DukeBlueHeart4..God bless you for being a teacher and keep up the good fight.

[miramar]

It is well worth reading the entire article from Coach K. What a stark contrast from the folks 8 miles down the road who don't even take higher education seriously.

I guess you haven't read ol' Roy's "Quality Paper Classes Are a Win for Everyone."

[Indoor66]

I guess you haven't read ol' Roy's "Quality Paper Classes Are a Win for Everyone."

Actually, I have read the paper. I am still trying to figure out who wrote it....:confused:

[PackMan97]

The biggest problem is that the #1 factor in how well a kid does is whether or not the parents give a rats bottom about their kid and their education. Far too many don't and there is only so much you can do to help those kids. :/

[Alfred53]

Thanks for sharing the detail regarding Coach K's Op-Ed on Early Childhood Education. I think early education is extremely important for the better academic career of kids. I’ll definitely enrol my twins to the best Phoenix kindergarten (http://www.aseds.org/Page/Academics/Lower-School/Kindergarten).

[Jeffrey]

The biggest problem is that the #1 factor in how well a kid does is whether or not the parents give a rats bottom about their kid and their education. Far too many don't and there is only so much you can do to help those kids. :/

BINGO! Frequently, these same parents become aggressive (verbally, legally, etc.) against their children's teachers and administrators. Thus, their children frequently inform their teachers and administrators, "I don't have to listen to you", "there's nothing you can do to me", "touch me and you'll go to jail, I dare you". Many inner-city true drop out rates are almost 50%! This is not an early childhood education issue, it's much more about the parent's and child's attitude.

[Li_Duke]

The biggest problem is that the #1 factor in how well a kid does is whether or not the parents give a rats bottom about their kid and their education. Far too many don't and there is only so much you can do to help those kids. :/

That's true for the middle class on up, but for low income single parent households, the parent is usually far too busy with working to pay bills, so they can't help even if they do care. In some cases, the parent themselves aren't educated enough to help.

From personal experience, my mom had a 3rd grade education and worked 13 hour days, 7 days a week for bare necessities, while trying to take care of her mentally-incapable husband and 4 children. My brother even dropped out of high school after the 9th grade to help pay the bills (of course, he later went back to finish high school and attended Yale as a old undergraduate). We didn't have access to decent education options until we placed into magnet programs in high school; I still found basic gaps in what I was suppose to know even while I was at Duke. We beat the odds, but a lot of our very talented classmates did not.

[Jeffrey]

That's true for the middle class on up, but for low income single parent households, the parent is usually far too busy with working to pay bills, so they can't help even if they do care. In some cases, the parent themselves aren't educated enough to help.

From personal experience, my mom had a 3rd grade education and worked 13 hour days, 7 days a week for bare necessities, while trying to take care of her mentally-incapable husband and 4 children. My brother even dropped out of high school after the 9th grade to help pay the bills (of course, he later went back to finish high school and attended Yale as a old undergraduate). We didn't have access to decent education options until we placed into magnet programs in high school; I still found basic gaps in what I was suppose to know even while I was at Duke. We beat the odds, but a lot of our very talented classmates did not.

Very impressive!

If you don't mind me asking, what was your mom's attitude towards her children's education? Did she think you were wasting your time or was she proud of you and your great accomplishments?

[Li_Duke]

Very impressive!

If you don't mind me asking, what was your mom's attitude towards her children's education? Did she think you were wasting your time or was she proud of you and your great accomplishments?

She expected all A's while we were in school (most of her kids delivered, I was a C student until early middle school and only changed my ways then because the girl I was into was a straight A student), but also encouraged us to drop out as soon as we were able to help support the family full-time (she eventually saved and borrowed enough to purchase a little Chinese carry-out in the hood, but was heavily reliant on the kids to man the cashier and help with the cooking). My brother demanded to go back and finish high school and then applied to college on the sly (application fee waivers was crucial here). His demand to finish high school wasn't too much of a stretch, about half our aunts and uncles had done so. College, however, was considered an impossible dream. 1) you had to get into college, 2) you had to find a way to pay for it, and 3) while you were attending college, you weren't helping your family survive. The pay immediately after graduating college wouldn't necessarily be higher than what you could get as an experienced restaurant manager or savvy owner, that was my mother's dream. However, Yale gave my brother full financial aid for 4 years and was prestigious enough to warrant the risk. It gave us another option - between the 4 of us, we ended up at Duke and 3 Ivy League schools, followed it up with 1 (soon to be 2) PhDs, and a HBS degree.

She's proud now, but still wonders what could have been. My 4 aunts/uncles (1 HS grad and a GED between them) each ended up better off financially going the restaurant owner route than the Yale grad and the 2 PhDs combined (but not the HBS grad, she has them beat). Meanwhile, the 4 of us are happy with the route we took; there's so much more you can appreciate when you're well educated (it isn't all about money).

[BLPOG]

Does anyone know of good data on the subject of the outcomes of early-childhood education? Specifically, I'd be interested in seeing research studying the age at which formal education (as well as pre-schooling) is initiated against some educational outcome variable, preferably tracked over time, as well as a list of other factors known to influence the outcome variable.

My limited understanding from what I've read is that preschool per se does not significantly enhance cognitive outcomes but that it is correlated with other factors that might, particularly family income and time available to parents, and that there are additional non-cognitive outcomes that have somewhat more sustained benefits.

[Jeffrey]

She expected all A's while we were in school (most of her kids delivered, I was a C student until early middle school and only changed my ways then because the girl I was into was a straight A student), but also encouraged us to drop out as soon as we were able to help support the family full-time (she eventually saved and borrowed enough to purchase a little Chinese carry-out in the hood, but was heavily reliant on the kids to man the cashier and help with the cooking). My brother demanded to go back and finish high school and then applied to college on the sly (application fee waivers was crucial here). His demand to finish high school wasn't too much of a stretch, about half our aunts and uncles had done so. College, however, was considered an impossible dream. 1) you had to get into college, 2) you had to find a way to pay for it, and 3) while you were attending college, you weren't helping your family survive. The pay immediately after graduating college wouldn't necessarily be higher than what you could get as an experienced restaurant manager or savvy owner, that was my mother's dream. However, Yale gave my brother full financial aid for 4 years and was prestigious enough to warrant the risk. It gave us another option - between the 4 of us, we ended up at Duke and 3 Ivy League schools, followed it up with 1 (soon to be 2) PhDs, and a HBS degree.

She's proud now, but still wonders what could have been. My 4 aunts/uncles (1 HS grad and a GED between them) each ended up better off financially going the restaurant owner route than the Yale grad and the 2 PhDs combined (but not the HBS grad, she has them beat). Meanwhile, the 4 of us are happy with the route we took; there's so much more you can appreciate when you're well educated (it isn't all about money).

Thank you, very much, for sharing! I'm extremely impressed by you and your entire family!

IMO, your family is very unusual (in a very good way!) and way ahead of your time analyzing the cost/benefits of advanced education. I'm afraid the rapidly advancing higher education cost will motivate many more people to do the cost/benefit analysis in the future. I'd also expect more to analyze the cost/benefit of specific majors and degrees.

Your family has an amazing work ethic!

[Jeffrey]

Does anyone know of good data on the subject of the outcomes of early-childhood education? Specifically, I'd be interested in seeing research studying the age at which formal education (as well as pre-schooling) is initiated against some educational outcome variable, preferably tracked over time, as well as a list of other factors known to influence the outcome variable.

My limited understanding from what I've read is that preschool per se does not significantly enhance cognitive outcomes but that it is correlated with other factors that might, particularly family income and time available to parents, and that there are additional non-cognitive outcomes that have somewhat more sustained benefits.

You might like this:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2013/11/20-evidence-raises-doubts-about-obamas-preschool-for-all-whitehurst

[BLPOG]

You might like this:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2013/11/20-evidence-raises-doubts-about-obamas-preschool-for-all-whitehurst

Thanks, that was very informative.

[phaedrus]

You might like this:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2013/11/20-evidence-raises-doubts-about-obamas-preschool-for-all-whitehurst

Or this or this:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2013/03/05/does-head-start-work-for-kids-the-bottom-line/

https://www.aei.org/publication/head-start-effectiveness-varies-important-question/

Mixed results that show preschool is not a panacea but has promise when done the right way.