The Independent School Magazine Blog Early Childhood Education: What Is Its Goal?

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Editor’s note: This is the last in a series of blog posts reflecting on the educational pipeline by Karen Gross, former president of Southern Vermont College. She has taught students from preschool through graduate school. Her first piece covered breaking down pre-K–20 silos, her second covered changes in the college admission process, and her third focused on college athletics.

I vividly remember one preschool open house I attended in Manhattan, although it occurred more than 30 years ago. After the school’s director gave a short presentation on the school’s philosophy and approach, it was time for questions.

One parent asked: Will my child learn to read or at least learn her letters and do math? Another parent asked: Will my child be afforded an opportunity to learn a second language? A third asked about the track record for admission to elite K–12 private schools.

I am not kidding. And this was a school for three- and four-year-olds.

I remember the director’s answers, too. In a nutshell, she said, “Our goal is to enrich the lives of your children, to help them experience the creative nature that rests within. And that means we do not focus on letters or reading or foreign languages, although many other preschools do. And our students do well when they leave us.”

That was all I needed to hear. That was the school for our child. . .

A Closer Look at Play v. Academics

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