The Importance Of Head Start In Early Childhood Education

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Head Start is a quality preschool program and maintains high standards; it creates a safe environment with educated teachers and staff to provide education, nutrition, health screenings, and resources to enable families with the means to improve their own lives and the lives of their children. Head Start was established in 1965, and recently celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. “Since its beginning in 1965 as part of the War on Poverty, Head Start’s goal has been to boost the school readiness of low-income children. Based on a “whole child” model, the program provides comprehensive services that include preschool education; medical, dental, and mental health care; nutrition services; and efforts to help parents foster their child’s development. …show more content…

There continues to be a misinterpretation about the short-term and long-term gains. “There was strong evidence that the Head Start group demonstrated better skills on the following six child outcomes related to children’s language and literacy development: vocabulary, letter-word identification, spelling, pre-academic skills, color identification and letter naming” (Puma et.al 11). With long-term gains “finds long-term impacts of Head Start on outcomes such as educational attainment, crime, and mortality”. (Deming 114) This are proven examples amongst others of both, short-term and …show more content…

This program may not be considered as valuable to others, but they tend to forget that the children that Head Start serve begin school less fortunate than an average middle or upper class child. Children in Head Start may enter with emotional trauma, economic stress, parents with high needs, mental health issues, or other obstacles that create a barricade to self-esteem and confidence. These children that receive an education and early intervention through Head Start receive more than an academic lead, they receive health, nutrition, family services, a safe, consistent and stable environment, build social skills, are motivated and most importantly are aware of their worth. The Program enables parents who did not graduate, go back to school, they helped parents receive English classes if needed or wanted, I have witnessed parents receive support for housing, food, clothing and everyday

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