第2061期:Early Childhood Education Programs at Risk

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) says “The period from birth to eight years old is one of remarkable brain development for children.” The organization adds that it represents an important time for their development and education. 联合国教育、科学及文化组织（教科文组织）表示：“从出生到八岁是儿童大脑发育的黄金时期。” 该组织补充说，这对于他们的发展和教育来说是一个重要的时期。 The U.S. National Institutes of Health says that supporting children’s early learning can lead to higher test scores and a better chance of staying in school and going to college. Studies even suggest early learning can lead to fewer teen pregnancies, improved mental health, and a longer life. 美国国立卫生研究院表示，支持儿童的早期学习可以带来更高的考试成绩以及更好的留在学校和上大学的机会。 研究甚至表明，早期学习可以减少青少年怀孕、改善心理健康并延长寿命。The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is made up of 38 democracies with market-based economies. The organization aims to build better policies for better lives. 经济合作与发展组织 (OECD) 由 38 个实行市场经济的民主国家组成。 该组织旨在制定更好的政策以改善生活。 In a recent education study, the OECD found that most of its member countries provide care or education for children under 5. In countries, including Belgium, Denmark, France, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Norway, Spain and Britain, at least 95 percent of 3-year-olds are enrolled in an early education program. 在最近的一项教育研究中，经合组织发现，其大多数成员国为 5 岁以下儿童提供保育或教育。在比利时、丹麦、法国、匈牙利、冰岛、以色列、挪威、西班牙和英国等国家，至少 95% 的 3 岁儿童参加了早期教育计划。 However, within OECD countries, there can be a large difference in enrollment. In the United States, for example, 80 percent of 3 to 5-year-olds in the capital city of Washington, D.C. are enrolled in early education programs. That is compared to 46 percent in the western state of North Dakota. 然而，在经合组织国家内部，入学率可能存在很大差异。 例如，在美国首都华盛顿特区，80% 的 3 至 5 岁儿童都参加了早期教育项目。 相比之下，西部北达科他州的这一比例为 46%。 The differences also exist in European countries like Greece, Lithuania, and Switzerland. Places with higher rates of women in the workforce usually have higher rates of enrollment for children under 3. 这种差异也存在于希腊、立陶宛和瑞士等欧洲国家。 女性劳动力比例较高的地方通常 3 岁以下儿童的入学率也较高。During the pandemic, the U.S. government provided an additional $24 billion to help child care programs nationwide. The funding finally ended last October. 疫情期间，美国政府额外提供了 240 亿美元来帮助全国的儿童保育项目。 这笔资金最终于去年十月结束。 The Century Foundation is a research organization in New York City. It estimates that one-third of the programs could close as a result. That affects more than 2.2 million children. The organization says that child care is important for the economy at large since child care permits parents to stay at work. 世纪基金会是纽约市的一个研究组织。 据估计，三分之一的项目可能因此而关闭。 这影响了超过 220 万儿童。 该组织表示，儿童保育对整个经济很重要，因为儿童保育可以让父母继续工作。 Around the world, governments invest little in early childhood education, UNESCO says. About 6.6 percent of education budgets are put toward early education programs, 2 percent in poor countries. That is well below the target of 10 percent by 2030 suggested by the children's organization UNICEF. 联合国教科文组织表示，世界各地政府对幼儿教育的投资很少。 大约 6.6% 的教育预算用于早期教育项目，贫困国家为 2%。 这远低于儿童组织联合国儿童基金会建议的到 2030 年达到 10% 的目标。 In the U.S., parents can choose to put their children at age 5 in kindergarten or a child care program. 在美国，父母可以选择将孩子 5 岁送入幼儿园或托儿所。 Kindergarten enrollment has dropped since the COVID-19 pandemic. Concerned about the virus or wanting to avoid online school, hundreds of thousands of families delayed the start of school for their young children. 自 COVID-19 大流行以来，幼儿园入学人数有所下降。 由于担心病毒或想要避免在线学校，数十万家庭推迟了幼儿的入学时间。The Associated Press found that kindergarten enrollment remained down 5.2 percent in the 2022-2023 school year compared with the 2019-2020 school year. 美联社发现，与 2019-2020 学年相比，2022-2023 学年幼儿园入学率仍下降 5.2%。 Deborah Stipek is a former head of the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University. She said kindergarten is where children learn to follow directions, learn good behavior, and get used to learning. Stipek said missing that year of school can put kids at a disadvantage. 黛博拉·斯蒂佩克 (Deborah Stipek) 是斯坦福大学教育研究生院前院长。 她说，幼儿园是孩子们学习听从指示、学习良好行为、习惯学习的地方。 斯蒂佩克说，缺课一年会让孩子们处于不利地位。 Last year, Aylah went to a children’s program that met mainly outdoors instead of enrolling in kindergarten in the state of California. Aylah now has to adjust to being inside a classroom and learning the right way to hold a pencil. 去年，艾拉没有进入加利福尼亚州的幼儿园，而是参加了一个主要在户外举行的儿童项目。 艾拉现在必须适应在教室里并学习正确的握笔方式。 “It’s harder. Way, way harder,” Aylah said of the new way she learned to hold a pencil. “这更难了。 太难了，”艾拉谈到她学会握铅笔的新方法时说道。 Still, her mother Hannah Levy says it was the right decision to skip kindergarten. She wanted Aylah to enjoy being a child. There is plenty of time, she reasoned, for her daughter to develop study skills. 尽管如此，她的母亲汉娜·利维表示，跳过幼儿园是正确的决定。 她希望艾拉享受当孩子的时光。 她认为，她的女儿有充足的时间来培养学习技能。