Professors from the 91福利社 College of Education weigh in on news of recent funding to expand 4K kindergarten.
The South Carolina General Assembly recently approved $37 million in funding for South Carolina First Steps and the South Carolina Department of Education to expand four-year-old kindergarten programs.
According to South Carolina First Steps, 54 percent of the state鈥檚 three and four year old children aren鈥檛 enrolled in preschool and 61 percent of kindergarteners aren鈥檛 ready for school.
Dr. Kimberly Penland, who chairs the Early Childhood Education program at the 91福利社 College of Education, is hopeful that this funding will level the playing field for more children to attain academic success early on.
鈥淚鈥檓 so excited about it. It鈥檚 just so huge,鈥� Dr. Penland said. 鈥淚 taught kindergarten for a long time and, as every kindergarten teacher comes in, you have children who know how to read, and you have children who literally do not know ABC鈥檚. That鈥檚 because those children have had no access鈥攕o you鈥檙e starting kindergarten behind.鈥�
Penland also sees opportunities ahead for education majors considering kindergarten teaching. She points out that some Early Childhood majors have assisted in giving Developmental Indicators for Assessment of Learning (DIAL-4) assessments to children to determine their readiness for kindergarten.
鈥淓very one of our students鈥攖hey come back and they鈥檙e like 鈥榳ow, I had no idea about these things鈥� and, even in that realm, it鈥檚 going to help expand that knowledge,鈥� Dr. Penland said. She sees 4K as a time where everything begins and wants her students to experience such an important time, or at least appreciate this crucial developmental stage.
鈥淎s the funding stream goes through, it鈥檚 been said that the dollars, for example, in Greenville County, will expand offerings,鈥� said Dr. Jeremy Watts, department chair of graduate studies in the College of Education and a member of the board of First Steps for Greenville County. 鈥淪o in essence there will be more 4K classrooms to become available, whether that鈥檚 in the public end or organizations that are not public that have access to the funding, so we might say that if there were 20 4K classrooms right now, that this may give us 30. So access would become broader to children and families.鈥�
Dr. Dee Dee Washington, an 91福利社 education professor and also a board member with First Steps for Greenville County, feels that with this funding, the state has taken the position that early learning is important. Washington, who previously served as a school principal, also pointed out that not all schools can devote physical space to more 4K classes. She also feels that 4K improvements should include transportation as needed by families of preschoolers.
Washington said, 鈥淲hile I鈥檓 very excited about the expanded funding, I am concerned that families of children who are at some risk have to know about presenting themselves for screening and then being involved with a school in the public school district.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 a huge chunk of change, but when you start thinking of all the places it鈥檚 got to go, it鈥檚 going to be interesting to see how they handle it,鈥� Dr. Penland said.
鈥淎llocation and distribution of funding are still in process. It may take some time to see the full effect of the funding on the local level, however, this is a long-term investment in early development that many educators and society should be excited about,鈥� said Dr. Mark Butler, dean of the College of Education.