One Teacher’s Story

This weekend I am in Boston…having presented at Diane Levin’s Media Madness Institute at Wheelock College. The institute went well! For me, reconnecting with Diane and others doing excellent work on behalf of children is always energizing. But…no time to write! So, for today, here is a testimonial from an experienced head start teacher. Her story helps paint the picture of some of the struggles we are facing across the country in the early childhood arena. Thanks, Jayne, for letting me share your words!

I was a head start teacher 23 years ago. I got so frustrated that I was testing and documenting and I didn’t have a chance to be with the children that I quit. …. In my area, children are encouraged to begin attending school all day when they are four years-old. Since they have begun this program Many of us have noticed that:

1. We now more fifth graders that read on a second grade reading level.
2. We now have fourth graders that don’t know their own address.
3. We see children experiencing burn-out by third grade.
4. Our teachers are no longer allowed to use teachable moments to expand a lesson while the children are interested. They must teach the plan in the allotted time slot.
5. Children are experiencing more anxiety, less playground time.
6. Yet instead of backing up and letting the primary grades be a time of exploration; they are trying to solve the problems through drugs, therapy, and expecting the teachers to adapt to every individual child’s learning style.

Evidently educators have decided that children can be programmed like computers. I believe that if we would back off of our expectations with children until they are at least 10 years old then we would be able to teach children more in the following years. Unfortunately, my state is wanting to build bigger schools so we can accommodate all day programs for three year-olds.

While this is voluntary, many parents are told that if they don’t get their children in these preschool structured school programs that their children will be lagging behind by the time they go to Kindergarten. I tell parents “Yes, your child will be behind in ulcers, high blood pressure, and obesity.” We need to support parents that read to their children, assist their children in cooking in the home, and playing outside. We need to empower parents to know that talking with your child as they shop for groceries, and play with legos, and sort laundry, and plant flowers, and go for walks is much better than putting your child into a structured environment that removes all the “white spaces”.

Jayna Coppedge
Preschool/Children Coordinator
First Baptist Church Tahlequah, OK