Not many would take issue with President Obama’s recent call to
make high-quality preschool a reality for more U.S. kids. Even
before Obama announced his intentions, both Democrats and
Republicans had already lined up in their home states to push
preschool programs, with more than a dozen states considering
bolstering early education. What’s bound to be more
controversial is the nature of the still-to-be-created
“universal preschool” program. Should academics take front and
center, with toddlers getting drills on the nuances of upper-
and lower-case letters? Or should they more subtly absorb the
concept that 2 + 2 makes 4 by building with blocks or playing
sorting games? Early-childhood experts say that play is the best
way for little ones to learn. But, points out Barbara Willer,
deputy executive director of the National Association for the
Education of Young Children (NAEYC), comparing play-based
preschool to a more academic approach is a “false dichotomy.”
Good preschool teachers incorporate both, but in s