Pushing Academics into Preschool is Harmful

A brand new comprehensive study of preschool finds significant drawbacks to pushing academics too early.

Researchers found that any initial academic gains were quickly erased, and children who attended academic focused pre-k were actually behind their peers in elementary and middle school. Another troubling finding was that the students who experienced early academic pressure showed dramatic increases in behavioral issues later on.

At Cedarwood, we take a different approach to early childhood education. We focus on what is developmentally appropriate for each age group, understanding that children especially need play, movement, and art — which are critical to social-emotional health and academic success.

Asking children to take on tasks before they are developmentally ready can have lasting negative effects, as Dale C. Farran, PHD, Research Professor at Vanderbilt University finds:

Not only do effects from pre-k classrooms fade, but also results from one study of the longitudinal effects of pre-k attendance conducted by my colleagues and me demonstrated that in the long run the effects turned negative.

A greater focus on academics for three- and four-year-olds is not the solution.

Read more about Farran’s “Iceberg Model of Early Developmental Competencies” here.

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Why Waldorf? At Cedarwood, each student’s imagination is continually nurtured by a team of teachers and a broad spectrum of experiential learning opportunities as they develop their capacity for growth, creativity, and critical thinking. The curriculum is comprehensive and designed to educate the whole child, with lessons in math, science, language arts, history, geography, music, eurythmy, handwork, movement, and not one but two world languages, Spanish and Japanese. Art is not taught separately in our elementary program, but rather imbues students’ understanding of every single subject they encounter.

Curious about a Waldorf education for your child? Let’s connect!