Do day care programs like More At Four, Smart Start and Head Start make a significant difference? | Eastern North Carolina Now

    The answer is "no" and they take valuable resources from programs that do make a long term difference and many for less money. So why do we keep funding them?

    As Congress looks at how to reduce the deficit and as the North Carolina Legislature debates the effectiveness of the child care programs of More At Four and Smart Start a mammoth study done on the Federally funded child care program Head Start an article as reported in Human Events should be informing both debates. But its not.

    I would suggest the reason the real research on the effectiveness of all of these programs is not being debated is that those making the decisions simply don't care about whether the programs are working or not, and especially they don't care about whether the money could be used more effectively somewhere else. All of the programs have developed a constituency that covets the programs such that it is politically risky to not support them.

    But here's the truth. There are no major valid and reliable studies that show that the money spent on child care/early childhood programs has a demonstrable positive impact much past the second or third grade.

    The most extensive (and expensive) study was done by the Department of Health and Human Service's Administration for Children and Families and it is summarized in the Human Events story. And if you want to read the original research click here. And the Executive Summary can be downloaded here.

    Here's the bottom line: All of these programs are really great ideas. They do many good things for young children and even for many of their parents. But the results don't make much difference in the long run. And these programs are tremendously expensive.

    In my opinion, if the state and Federal government had all the money it wanted then the programs might be justifiable. But the reality is that these programs are taking resources away from other programs that are also really great ideas and some of those programs have a much more long-term impact.

    Many community college programs are examples. And a specific one, in my judgment, is the dual enrollment program which allows students to get two years of college while still enrolled in high school. And they don't have to spend tons of money on research to know such programs make more sense than these day care programs, no matter how good they are.

    Let me be clear about how I interpret all this. I believe quality day-care programs are a good thing and many children benefit from them if the alternative available to those children is something of much less quality. But such programs should be justified on their merit of what is good for 3-4 year olds, not on what is good for those children when they reach later elementary, middle and high school. Then, as a public policy issue, the question becomes whether the resources spent on publically supported day-care have more utility than if those resources were spent on something else, even shrinking the size and cost of government. The issue is not whether these programs are good or useful, but rather what their "opportunity costs" are.

    And when the decision-makers weigh the balance of the costs of those resources spent on day care to what those resources could otherwise be used for, they also need some hard information about what the parents of these children are doing with the "free time" the programs afford them when the parent does not have to look after the child. If participation in the progam means that parents who would otherwise be removed from the workforce are then able to become taxpaying workers that should be factored into the equation of "value." If tax supported day care is simply a way of subsidizing a certain family's income then that should be factored in also.

    But whatever is decided, one thing seems abundantly clear: These programs cannot be justified on the basis that they make much long-term difference for either the children or the public.

    Delma Blinson writes the "Teacher's Desk" column for our friend in the local publishing business: The Beaufort Observer. His concentration is in the area of his expertise - the education of our youth. He is a former teacher, principal, superintendent and university professor.