NFDW 2022 position paper on early childhood education

1. NFDW 2022
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In Support of Early Childhood Education
The National Federation of Democratic Women (NFDW) commends
President Joe Biden and his administration for the leadership they have
shown in addressing the importance of Early Childhood Education. As
reported in U.S. News & World Report, the Build Back Better Act is a
“Game-Changer” for Early Childhood Education.1 His social spending plan
includes an historic investment that could reform early childhood education
nationwide and help the U.S. match other industrialized countries. With the
$1.75 trillion BBB package of education, health care, workforce and other
social benefits passing the House and headed to the Senate, we are poised
to make a seismic improvement in increasing access to early childhood
education. Any significant federal investment would be noteworthy for an
inadequate service long considered a blight on the country’s system.
The importance of this investment cannot be overstated. The benefits of
early childhood education are well known to professionals and parents in
terms of the impact on kindergarten adjustments, maturity level, equal
education, and critical skill development in the areas of socialization,
listening, motor movement, and language.2
However, when it comes to early childhood education, both childcare and
pre-K, the U.S. is dwarfed by the types of services and access other
industrialized countries provide for families. In fact, out of 41 other
industrialized nations, we are ranked fourth to last in the percentage of 3-to-
5-year-olds enrolled in early childhood education, according to a 2021 report
released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Only Costa Rica, Switzerland, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia trail the U.S., which
has an enrollment of 65%. More than half of the countries in the analysis
enroll 90% of their 3-to-5-year-olds.
But in the U.S., most families live in so-called childcare deserts, lacking
access to early education programs, despite the research showing the long-
term impact on student achievement, including by closing academic
1
https://kidcityusa.com/early-childhood-education/benefits-of-sending-your-child-to-preschool/

2. NFDW 2022
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and social and emotional gaps, lowering rates of special education
placement, and increasing graduation rates.
Therefore, the NFDW calls on the Senate to pass the Build Back Better Act
supporting Early Childhood Education.
According to National University, “Early Childhood care and education (ECCE)
is more than preparation for primary school. It aims at the holistic
development of a child’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical needs in
order to build a solid and broad foundation for lifelong learning and well-
being. ECCE has the possibility to nurture caring, capable and responsible
future citizens.”3
Congress must pass the Build Back Better Act to give Early Childhood
Education the funding our children need and deserve.
2
National University- nu.edu/resources/why-is-early-childhood-education-important