Julian Walker
The Virginian-Pilot
©
RICHMOND
A group of retired military officers is pushing for more investment in early childhood education to produce a work force more capable of serving in the armed forces.
During a Tuesday news conference in Richmond, the Mission: Readiness advocacy group called for the state to spend tens of millions of dollars more on Virginia's preschool initiative for at-risk 4-year olds.
The retired officers argued that early intervention can position youngsters for promising futures - including making them better qualified for military service.
According to a report released Tuesday by the group, Pentagon statistics show that 75 percent of Americans ages 17 to 24 are ineligible for the military because of inadequate education, criminal backgrounds or excess weight.
"Imagine 10 young people walking into a recruiter's office and seven of them getting turned away," said retired Gen. Richard Hawley, a former head of the Air Force's Air Combat Command headquartered at Langley Air Force Base.
The report cites nationally known studies that show young people who received high-quality early childhood education were less likely to be arrested for a violent crime and more likely to graduate from high school.
"We cannot allow today's dropout crisis to become a national security crisis," Hawley said. "Starting with pre-kindergarten, we'll make sure young people have a foundation that will prepare them for whatever path they choose, to include military service."
Future publications from the group will address potential solutions to the health issues, according to the report.
Two Hampton Roads legislators - Del. Mamye BaCote, D-Newport News, and Sen. Harry Blevins, R-Chesapeake - attended Tuesday's news conference and spoke in support of the effort.
But BaCote acknowledged that finding more money for the state preschool initiative during austere economic times is a tall order.
Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
Amy Jeter, (757) 446-2730, amy.jeter@pilotonline.com
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
Twitter
Google
Yahoo
Educational System Reform
Learning, not money, should be the priority for reforming our children’s education. The learning process will best prepare our children for the future and being able to contribute to society. Keep "downtown" out of the teaching and grading process, let the teachers teach. All students do not have the aptitude for college, or leadership; therefore, the basics (reading, writing, and basic math) should be a must for all students in grammar school - the student must learn the basics before they can graduate. Let the grades be determined by the teachers - the important thing is that before going into middle school each student should take general aptitude and interest tests to see if they should proceed in the vocations, arts, or college tract. The curriculum must be broadened to facilitate all three specialties. The student should also have physical education and recess for socialization, and a basic introduction to home economics - managing a check book, budgeting, and banking. These changes will better prepare the students for their futures. Concentrate on educating our children, not the politically mandated numbers game!
Get involved
Parents need to spend more time with their children when they are young teaching basic skills and behaviors. Play board games that take time, patience, and strategic thinking. Turn off the TV. and video games and play cards or some goofy game like Yahtzee that needs attention and follow through to finish the game. These simple things build attention span, teach patience, teach strategic thinking, and build a desire to reach winning outcomes and instill a sense of achievement and confidence.
Go out side and play lawn games, tic-tac-toe bean bag toss, hopscotch, croquet, all the other principles apply with the addition of fresh air, and hand to eye coordination and lessons on self-restraint and sportsmanship.
Purchase math puzzles, teach them to count change, have them cook with you and teach them how to weigh and measure items.
Have one hour of reading time every day. The parent has to be fully vested in and participating in the reading hour. Read with them, out loud, taking turns. Listen to your child read and let them listen to you, believe me both of you will become better readers. Keep reading with them, reading hour should be a part of everyday life until you
oh yeah dump more money down the pit
This is insane. We spend more money on education than we do on health care and unfortunately we get much worse results for our money. All this pandering to teachers and dumping all this money on salary increase after salary increase, adding aides and helpers at unbelievable numbers, building monuments as schools, and spending outrageous amounts on text books that obviously provide little value. This is all just waste and hasn’t solved any problems or produce better educated students. The answer is not spending more and more, geez we spend $7,000 - $10, 0000 a year per student now and results are getting worse not better.
This is about parenting and taking an active interest in being the most important educational influence on your child. Stop thinking the schools really have the time to care about your child other than in the surface altruistic collective way they care for the whole class. It really isn’t their job to focus on students as individuals; that is your job as their parent.
Priorities
Is that really what defines our educational system...whether they are fit for military duty? And how throwing money going to produce better results? If money were the case then we would certainly have seen the results by now and this is what the definition of a failed policy should be. Any half dead politician or hack can come out and say they support education and talk about increasing funding but that's useless without some real reform and I dont see it. Maybe those 75% should think about politics instead of the military.
STop throwing good money after bad
More money is not the answer. Tell the parents to take responsibility. How about this: let's deport all those who have lived their entire lives on the government dole? Citizens and illegals.
Concur
Either get the parents to take the responsibility or to give up their tax breaks. It is not my responsibility to provide for your children's future. Cut My Taxes and do not educate those not willing to learn.
Wow!
"Pentagon statistics show that 75 percent of Americans ages 17 to 24 are ineligible for the military because of inadequate education, criminal backgrounds or excess weight."
An eye-opening statistic! This age group comprises our leaders of tomorrow.