High Quality Early Education
TOM AND "HQEE"
A little more than a week has passed since Tom Egan - community activist (half of the formidable Tom and Eleanor Egan duo) and former member of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of Trustees - published an excellent commentary in the Daily Pilot on the value of High Quality Early Education (HQEE), which can be read HERE. And, like so many children in our educational system, it slipped through the cracks in my busy life and I just finally got around to reading it.
HELLO! ANYBODY HOME?
Egan's observations in that commentary are so spot-on that I thought I'd find many comments supporting his views and, perhaps, a few that didn't. However, ten days since publication and there are zero comments. Astounding! Then, again, we're in the middle of one of the most heated political seasons in my memory, so folks probably don't have time to contemplate an issue without a political scalp at stake.
I UNDERSTAND
I, personally, understand the value of an early jump-start on education. As the first born in my family, with loving and supportive parents who understood the value of an education, I spent hours on the lap of my mother or my aunt, reading with them from the Book House For Children series that my folks bought when I was about three years of age. Those twelve books were tiered for progressive (not in the political sense, but in the practical sense) learning from early nursery rhymes through about the sixth grade level. And, of course, this was in the days before television, so by the time I started kindergarten I could read every word in every one of those dozen volumes and understand the contents.
THANKS, BUT...
Thanks to Tom Egan for bringing this very important subject up front for us to consider. Too bad so many of us seem uninterested...
A little more than a week has passed since Tom Egan - community activist (half of the formidable Tom and Eleanor Egan duo) and former member of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of Trustees - published an excellent commentary in the Daily Pilot on the value of High Quality Early Education (HQEE), which can be read HERE. And, like so many children in our educational system, it slipped through the cracks in my busy life and I just finally got around to reading it.HELLO! ANYBODY HOME?
Egan's observations in that commentary are so spot-on that I thought I'd find many comments supporting his views and, perhaps, a few that didn't. However, ten days since publication and there are zero comments. Astounding! Then, again, we're in the middle of one of the most heated political seasons in my memory, so folks probably don't have time to contemplate an issue without a political scalp at stake.I UNDERSTAND
I, personally, understand the value of an early jump-start on education. As the first born in my family, with loving and supportive parents who understood the value of an education, I spent hours on the lap of my mother or my aunt, reading with them from the Book House For Children series that my folks bought when I was about three years of age. Those twelve books were tiered for progressive (not in the political sense, but in the practical sense) learning from early nursery rhymes through about the sixth grade level. And, of course, this was in the days before television, so by the time I started kindergarten I could read every word in every one of those dozen volumes and understand the contents.Thanks to Tom Egan for bringing this very important subject up front for us to consider. Too bad so many of us seem uninterested...
Labels: Eleanor Egan, High Quality Early Education (HQEE), Tom Egan
posted by The Pot Stirrer at 10/13/2014 10:07:00 AM
4 Comments:
Tom and Eleanor always have something intelligent to say about the issues of the day. Which is probably why the rigbots don't like them..
Just for the record, I read and appreciated Tom's Commentary in the Pilot. However, since I don't have a Facebook account, I'm not able to comment on the Pilot's website. I agree about the vital importance of high quality early education. The quality of our education system has a direct impact on the quality of our society. And it's one of those things that's never too early to get a good start on. Thanks, Tom.
As I said at the candidate forum in Mesa Verde last week, we don't have to guess about the value of early education. Numerous reputable studies have proven a direct correlation between early ed and improved academic performance and I support the concept. (Disclosure: I am a candidate for a seat on the school board in Area 1.)
Perry --
More power to ya, bud. I've no facebook account either, nor do I write on men's rooms walls. I consider the two to be akin, if not equivalent.
Read to your kids, instead of writing on the wall of your stall, and you will reap multiple rewards, not the least of which will be peace of mind over their future ability to care for and support themselves.
Post a Comment
<< Home