As Bush focuses on early childhood education, critics call his efforts misguided, underfinanced

WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Bush's plan to improve the nation's early childhood education system is being criticized as misguided and insufficient, even as he vows to train thousands of teachers

Wednesday, April 3rd 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Bush's plan to improve the nation's early childhood education system is being criticized as misguided and insufficient, even as he vows to train thousands of teachers to teach preschoolers to read.

On Wednesday, Bush was scheduled to present a booklet compiled by the first lady, Laura Bush, on early childhood education. Advisers said Bush would concentrate on a ``major public awareness campaign'' for parents, caregivers and teachers across the country.

Sarah Greene, president and chief executive of the National Head Start Association, said Bush's plan to train 50,000 Head Start teachers in reading techniques may be duplicating what they've already learned.

``Why is the president adding yet another bureaucratic layer?'' Greene asked.

She questioned why Bush is tinkering with the 37-year-old federal program when it has proven effective and is constantly being revised.

A major part of former President Johnson's War on Poverty, Head Start and its offshoot, Early Head Start, are designed for the development of children from birth to age 5, pregnant women and their families. Their basic goals are to make poor children as prepared for school as those from more affluent families.

``Making reckless changes to a program that works, rather than directly addressing the shortcomings of the K-12 system, makes little sense,'' Greene said.

She and others also said Bush's proposed $130 million increase to Head Start won't help its teachers keep up with increased living costs nor help the program expand.

``Unfortunately, the cost of quality child care in this country far exceeds what most working families can truly afford,'' said Sen. James Jeffords, I-Vt. ``The president's is a first good step, but we need to do so much more.''

Greene said the Head Start program serves about 42 percent of eligible 3- and 4-year-olds. Her association says the nation's more than 2,400 Head Start programs serve 923,000 children.

Bush's goal to train all Head Start teachers to use one approved approach flouts the tradition that allows local organizations to decide what programs to use.

Margaret Spellings, Bush's domestic policy adviser, told reporters Tuesday that findings of new research on the way the brain learns often are at odds with techniques used in preschools.

Spellings, who helped develop Bush's education plan, said there's ``very little connection between Head Start and other early childhood programs and the kindergarten-through-12th grade public school world.''

Echoing Bush's approach to K-12 education, Spellings suggested Head Start programs that can't show they're preparing poor students to succeed in school ``could theoretically lose their contract.''

Greene said testing and assessing young children is ``a very controversial issue,'' and the administration has discussed no specific proposals with her. She worried that a strict assessment system could penalize programs with especially needy children.

``You have to take the children where they are and build upon that,'' she said.

Appearing near Philadelphia Tuesday, Bush said he would direct the Department of Health and Human Services to begin training Head Start teachers on the best techniques to teach the rudiments of reading to preschoolers.

Bush said he wants to dedicate $45 million for research into early literacy programs and practices that work, the same basic goal as another proposal that cropped up Tuesday on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., said he and a bipartisan group of colleagues would propose giving $5 billion in incentive grants to states over five years, to coordinate early childhood programs in Head Start and other preschool programs in public schools, day-care centers and at home.

Bush said he wants every child to start school with standard knowledge such as the letters of the alphabet, an idea of the sounds that signify those letters, the look of written words and the experience seeing their parents and other adults reading.

``Every child must have an equal place at the starting line,'' he said.

The average preschool teacher makes about $16,000 a year, according to the Head Start association. Head Start teachers earn about $21,000.