We have a major education problem in Columbia that drives rifts along economic and social lines for lifetimes and even generations.
The problem isn’t unique to Columbia, but it’s effects here can clearly be seen and felt if you’re looking in the right place.
Starting with early childhood, educational experiences for children are often heavily influenced by race and family income, and those who come from homes with fewer resources do worse in school and in life.
In Columbia, this dynamic has contributed to a schism, what some have called the “two Columbias.”
When large groups of people are left behind, it creates massive problems for our society, on the local level and beyond.
A dedicated group of organizations and individuals here know the extent of the problem. That group includes the Cradle to Career Alliance — a not-for-profit coalition of schools and private organizations that works to address education disparities using a data-driven approach. The alliance is the only group in Missouri to have been awarded a grant from the Pritzker Children’s Initiative to work on improved access to early childhood resources.
Alliance members say the $25,000 grant will help them compile data to help identify families for early home visits, allowing resources such as Parents as Teachers and Early Head Start to reach those who need it — those who might otherwise slip through the system unnoticed.
The significant problems caused by educational disparities can’t be overstated. These are problems that drive many of our social ills, such as our overcrowded prisons and the growing gap between rich and poor. Sure, this grant is only $25,000, but it’s only one among a number of active local efforts to boost early childhood education.
Educators and researchers tell us early childhood might be the point in a child’s education that most influences the outcome of his or her time in school. Kids who receive it are better prepared going into kindergarten and have a better time keeping up with academic expectations.
Early childhood education is a finite resource, and one that costs money. As is often the case, that makes the supply limited for families whose means also are limited. Some programs in Columbia, such as Head Start and the Columbia Public Schools’ Title I preschool, help address the problem by providing early childhood education for the poorest families, but there are plenty of other families who struggle to afford preschool.
Columbia Public Schools use an assessment called PALS-K to gauge students’ academic levels entering kindergarten. The numbers of African American children and those who qualify for free and reduced-price lunch who test at a proficient level is regularly below that of all students combined. Among all students, 73.7 percent were proficient in the 2016-2017 school year. Among African American kids, the number was 61.7 percent and among poorer students it was 59.5 percent.
Anything we can do to help all kids reach their potential is worth doing.