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Cincinnati.Com  » The Enquirer  »  Local news  »  Early-school advocates say local children unprepared

Last Updated: 5:23 am | Friday, May 26, 2006

Early-school advocates say local children unprepared

BY REBECCA GOODMAN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

Success By 6 released two reports Thursday that contain dreary statistics about the literacy readiness of preschool children in Hamilton County and Cincinnati. It also has a plan to address their deficiencies.

One of the main findings is that children from low-income families are at risk of being unprepared to succeed in kindergarten. Literacy readiness includes such skills as being able to rhyme words, and differentiate between upper- and lower-case letters. Fifty-six percent of all kindergartners in Cincinnati public schools couldn't answer 65 percent of the questions on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment-Literacy screening given in September.

These "early gaps persist and widen at great cost to the disadvantaged and taxpayers," according Jonathan Lippincott, author of one of the reports based on a number of national and local sources, including Rand Corp. tables.

A high school dropout costs society $243,000 to $388,000 and a career criminal costs $1.3 million to $1.5 million, according to the report. The cost of providing a child with quality early education is $20,000-$30,000, the report claims.

After studying model programs around the country, Lippincott recommended regular home visits to support parents, coupled with "carefully designed preschool experiences staffed by trained professionals."

Less than 25 percent of Hamilton County children from low-income families participate in programs that increase kindergarten readiness, the report said.

Using Rand studies of benefit-cost ratios of model programs as a guide, Lippincott determined that investing $70 million could bring a return of $210 million or more.

Currently, high-performing agencies and preschools are serving 5,110 children in Hamilton County. Success By 6 would like to double that number by 2011, at an estimated cost of $19 million a year over the next five years.

The second report by the Success By 6 measurement and professional advisory committees looked at the quality of early care and education programs in Hamilton County and found that of the 375 licensed programs, 231 had no professionally recognized measure of quality assurance.

Among those who attended the presentation Thursday were Cincinnati City Council members David Crowley and Chris Bortz, and David Pepper, candidate for Hamilton County Commission.

"The message was loud and clear and the studies proved it," Pepper said. "For cities and counties that figure out how to help children under 6 - that investment will pay off 10-15 years down the road."

E-mail rgoodman@enquirer.com