Plea from a Third Grade Teacher

As a third grade teacher who often works with students with behavior problems, I have been disappointed to hear about the recent study [pdf] showing that preschoolers are being expelled from state-funded classrooms at higher rates than students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. As the experts are saying, these students are the most in need of learning the skills preschool programs have to offer; namely the socialization skills necessary to succeed academically in kindergarten and beyond.

While research suggests that the benefits of preschool tend to wear off by fifth grade, some would argue that the first five years of school are important.

The positive effects of preschool on young children are very clear to early childhood teachers in elementary schools. At the school I teach at in the Bronx, one student who had never been to school before shouted on the first day of kindergarten, "Stop reading so loud, Teacher! I am trying to sleep!" Preschool allows students to understand at an early age the roles of the student and the teacher, as well as how to cooperate in a classroom environment.

Furthermore, while the largest benefits of preschool seem to be related to socialization, students who have gone to preschool do seem to have an academic advantage upon entering kindergarten. Many of the students in my school have no knowledge of things like the names of letters or numbers, the days of the week, or the months of the year by the beginning of first grade.

Although inappropriate behavior in the classroom can be incredibly difficult to deal with, especially when you are dealing with preschool students who have less experience dealing with a classroom setting, it is crucial that these students be exposed to rules and regulations as early as possible. Children who do not learn how to behave earlier in life will be more likely to face problems later in their school careers. And that's when I teach them. So please preschools, teach your students to behave at age four if only to make my life easier when they're eight.