Update: Head Start Nominee Bows Out; School Failure Remains

The media have noted that “The woman appointed to lead child development and early education in North Carolina once led an organization opposed to preschool programs.”

Now the media report she has bowed out.

Too bad. North Carolina could have used someone with a skeptical eye for early education.

She was blasted in the media  for having a “conflict of interest” because she had criticized at least some aspects of the program.   But if the governor had appointed someone with the opposite bias, someone with a long history of lobbying for early childhood education, you would have heard this.

It’s a safe bet that the media will continue to ignore the bombshell report on Head Start that came out late last year but which apparently hasn’t penetrated liberal consciousness. It was an analysis of the effects of Head Start. This comes from the government itself, and it was rigorously designed.  The conclusion: Head Start is a flop. A failure. A dud.

Here‘s a good commentary, from a child psychologist writing for the liberal Brookings Institution. Here’s how he sums up this massive, long-term report from the federal government:

There is no measurable advantage to children in elementary school of having participated in Head Start.  Further, children attending Head Start remain far behind academically once they are in elementary school.  Head Start does not improve the school readiness of children from low-income families.