Back Up Off Me

Wednesday's Emergent Literacy class brought up the modern debate of preschool:  play-based or academic-based?  As an educator with no children of my own, my first reaction is academic-based.  But when it comes to the academic community do my beliefs truly match those of the supporters of an academic-based preschool?

I did some research into play-based and academic-based preschool theories in order to identify my own philosophy.  An article on nbcnews.com does a very good job of briefly identifying the discrepancies in what we believe when we say play-based or academic-based.  The following statement from the article caused me to reflect on what I really mean when I say "academic-based".

"According to Marcon and other researchers, children who are subjected to overly academic environments early on have more behavior problems later and are less likely to be enthusiastic, creative learners and thinkers."  

The key word in this quote is "overly".  Growing up, my mother loved to say, "all things in moderation".  I believe that can be directly applied to this debate.  When I say academic-based preschool I am picturing a colorful, literacy rich environment with children in multiple age ranges working independently, collaboratively, or with a teacher to explore the world with a direct correlation to academics.  I see children engaging in meaningful conversations about relevant life information.  I see children participating in fun and exciting games about letters and numbers that engage all of their senses and learning needs.  I see children on the playground, at snack time, and at rest time.  I see art work hanging on the wall and science experiments growing in a corner of the room.  What I learned from my research is that this is NOT necessarily an academic-based classroom according to some researchers.  

When teaching kindergarten in a state I will not mention in order to protect their anonymity; I was a liaison between our public schools and Head Start programs.  I was supposed to go to quarterly meetings with the intention to share what preschoolers need to know coming into kindergarten to be successful.  But what I really participated in was various circus shows of Head Start students "showing what they know".  My first experience went a little like this:

A group of four and five-year-old children were paraded into the conference room wearing matching black t-shirts. The t-shirts had the student's name on the front and the words "back up off me" on the back.  The "teachers" (and I say this in quotes because they had not attended any type of education preparation program) lined the children up and began what can best be described as an army cadence.  

Teacher:  "Who are you?"
HS Students:  "We are students in Head Start."

Teacher:  "What is your phone number?"
HS Students:  They recite  the phone number for Head Start.

Teacher:  "What is your address?"
HS Students:  They recite the address for Head Start.

Teacher:  "Can you count?"
HS Students:  "Yes, we can count.  1, 2, 3, etc. to 50."

Teacher:  "Can you spell?"
HS Students:  "Yes, we can spell."

Teacher:  "Spell kangaroo."
HS Students:  "k-a-n-g-a-r-o-o"

This continued for quite some time.  I am sure you get the point.  At the end of the "show" the students participated in a chant where they ended with "We're bad and we know it and we're not afraid to show it."  After the show we were invited to participate in a walk through of the Head Start classrooms.  We saw children sitting at tables and writing on worksheets.  There were no books displayed, no manipulatives, no art work, no TALKING!

My point is that the debate on preschool can go on for a very long time unless we begin specifically stating what it is we are expecting from a preschool.  This Head Start program claimed to be "academically-based".  But I think all of us who are true educators know that this is not the case.  I believe in all things in moderation.  Preschool students do need exposure to academic skills, but they also need play time and socialization.