Preschool? "Yes"; Expensive? "No"

I am inclined to believe that there is too much emphasis on creating the “ideal” learning environment; however I believe that an “enriched” early childhood experience is necessary in order to succeed in today’s society.  I believe that preschool is necessary, but it does not have to be expensive.

The cost of today’s preschools left me dumbfounded.  Ten years ago I spent approximately $500 per month to send my daughter to preschool, and I thought that was outrageous.  Recently our class toured a 5-star preschool that cost $1300 a month.  It was nicer than my daughter’s preschool, but not extensively.   Granted everything from the building to the toys was newer, but I don’t think the curriculum was worth 3 times what I originally paid.

What do the newspapers say about preschool?  A July 2011 article in The Fiscal Times called “Rich Baby, Poor Baby” says that parents are sacrificing to send their children to expensive preschools.  See  website The article states that there is no proof that spending more actually helps a child to be more successful later on in life. The article states that families spent roughly $4000 (2% of family income) on education for children from the ages of 0-17 in 1960; whereas, in 2010 families spent over $38,000 (17% of family income) on education children.  These figures merely prove that families were willing to spend more, not necessarily that they received more.

Another thing that I noticed was that there didn’t “appear” to be any differently abled children at the more expensive preschool.   We owe it to our children to provide quality learning environments for children of all abilities.

Is $1300 a month for education reasonable?  The answer lies in a combination of esthetics and marketing.  Service providers only charge what the market will bear.  If a couple is able to afford a product and they believe they “owe” it to a member of their family to provide that product, they will pay the asking price. 

Should we even bother to send our children to preschool?  I believe yes.  The national Research Council says that “Children who spend more months in preschool do better on achievement tests in second grade, have fewer behavior problems in third grade, and are less likely to have to repeat a grade.”  See  http://www.4children.org/issues/2000/september_october/preschool_builds_school_readiness/

In that same article the Abecedarian Project says that  not only did children from low-income families score better on reading tests if they went to preschool, but that even at age 21 they had a higher IQ.  So the value of preschool is far-reaching. 

What exactly are the benefits of preschool?  According to the California Children and Family Commission (see http://www.ccfc.ca.gov/contact_us.asp)  This website states that children who attend preschool do better in elementary school, are more likely to graduate high school, more likely to get a good job, and less likely to be involved in crime!  The National Association of Child Advocates claims that a quality preschool has “long term” effects on a child’s success later in life.  See http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/recordDetails.jsp?searchtype=advanced&pageSize=10&ERICExtSearch_SearchCount=1&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=Making+Investments+in+young+children&eric_displayStartCount=11&ERICExtSearch_Operator_1=and&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_1=kw&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=kw&_pageLabel=RecordDetails&objectId=0900019b800c1b7c&accno=ED448863&_nfls=false

I believe that a preschool experience is vital for a child’s success, but I do not believe that experience should not be achieved at all costs.  Parents need to use a little common sense when determining how much money they are willing to spend on early childhood education.