| Preschool policy frameworks are intended to guide teaching practice and to ensure high quality preschool education, but many would argue that preschoolers are entering kindergarten without the skills essential for success. Prior to the accountability movement initiated by No Child Left Behind (NCLB), professional associations, guiding practice nationwide, generated these policies. After NCLB, individual states were charged with developing policies align with state teaching standards. The purpose of this study is twofold: First, examine whether there has been a shift in focus (i.e., from psychosocial to cognitive etc.) within these policies as a result of NCLB. Second, examine two underlying views of cognitive development informing these policies---continuous and discontinuous. Continuous views hold that learning takes place in small incremental steps and that learning precedes development (e.g., Vygotsky); whereas as discontinuous views hold that learning takes place in identifiable stages and that development precedes learning (e.g., Piaget). Historical comparative analysis was used to compare policies pre-NCLB and post-NCLB. Given the nature of regional trends, the analysis was limited to preschool policies frameworks from New England states.; The findings reveal that preschool policy frameworks have shifted. Prior to NCLB, policies emphasized the biosocial and psychosocial development of the child, and less emphasis was placed on the child's cognitive development. After NCLB, the primary focus of the policies shifted to emphasize the child's cognitive development, and less emphasis was placed on psychosocial and biosocial development. This shift, suggests that NCLB influenced preschool policy-making.; Additionally, preschool policy frameworks were found to be internally inconsistent, mixing disparate views of discontinuous and continuous cognitive development theory. Policies included guidelines for practice based on both continuous and discontinuous views of cognitive development, effectively creating policies at odds with themselves. These inconsistencies make it difficult for early educators to apply the policies in a consistent manner or even make sense of the intended goals.; In sum, both the shift to a more cognitive focus and the internal inconsistencies may undermine the very goal of school readiness the policies were created to support. The results of this study can inform early educators, trainers of early educators, and policy makers as they strive to develop policies and practices that support early childhood growth and development. |
