Posted on: Monday, June 9, 2003

EDITORIAL
Value of preschool becomes more obvious

The debate over the value of preschool would appear to be fairly well settled. Almost every educator agrees that a quality preschool experience pays off for the child.

Hawai'i is gradually moving toward a system of universal preschool, with elements including Head Start, Pre-Plus, private schools and others.

The major obstacle to putting a universal system in place today appears to be money. Yes, such schools cost money and not every family can afford them.

But the money argument should be a non-starter. It is increasingly obvious that preschool dollars are among the best investment we, as a society, can make.

The Sacramento Bee recently commented editorially on a new report from Arthur J. Reynolds of Chicago, who runs something called the Chicago Longitudinal Study. The study is the nation's longest-running study on preschool education, with some 22 years of data on 1,000 poor children. It also tracks some 400 similar youngsters who did not get into preschool.

The study says that by age 20, graduates of preschools had a 29 percent higher rate of school completion and a 33 percent lower rate of arrest. They were 40 percent less likely to be in special education.

Reynolds estimates that for every $1 invested in preschool, some $7 has been saved on intervention programs, jail, welfare and other costs associated with failure.

That's a pretty good return on investment. Local officials should keep it in mind as they are asked to pay for expansion of preschool in Hawai'i.