Vermont is pressing ahead on its preschool plans.
Back in 2014, then-Governor Peter Shumlin signed a bill into a law that offered 10 hours a week of high-quality preschool programs to the state’s 3- and 4-year-olds. By 2016, more and more programs were up and running.
Now, Vermont is in its first year of fully implementing universal pre-K statewide.
Local teacher Anne Demers says that students who have attended pre-K arrive in her first-grade classrooms with more of the skills they need to learn.
To determine how children are doing, “All publicly funded prekindergarten programs are required to report on the progress of children on an annual basis using the online Teaching Strategies GOLD child assessment,” according to the Agency of Education’s website.
Because outreach is crucial, preschool programs are reaching out to parents to educate them about the state’s pre-K law and to encourage them to visit programs.
So, keep an eye on Vermont’s early education growth. The state is becoming a national role model.