Learning & Development
Journal Article
Preschool: The Most Important Grade
Date
April 1, 2003
“Preschool: The Most Important Grade” by W. Steven Barnett and Jason T. Hustedt
“…preschool will fulfill its promise only if educators take on the hard work of developing and implementing sound policy. This challenge will require higher standards, greater accountability, and increased public funding.” NIEER Director Steven Barnett and NIEER Research Associate Jason Hustedt’s article in the April issue of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development’s Educational Leadership magazine presents evidence of the benefits of early education, takes a look at state initiatives such as universal pre-k, and offers policy recommendations for the future of early education programs including Head Start.
The Authors
W. Steven (Steve) Barnett is a Board of Governors Professor and the founder and Senior Co-Director of the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) at Rutgers University. Dr. Barnett’s work primarily focuses on public policies regarding early childhood education, child care, and child development.