Early childhood education and school readiness is essential to preparing children to succeed in an increasingly competitive global economy. Compared to other countries, however, the United States lags far behind on preschool, trailing a number of other countries in enrollment, investment, and quality. In February 2013, however, President Barack…

In a follow-up study of the effects of early day care on children's cognitive and socioemotional competence, children who entered day care before the age of 1 year were found to have a better academic performance at ages 8 and 13 and to receive more positive teacher ratings than other children on several socioemotional variables. (Author/GLR)