TARGET: Ready for the Common Core and Arizona’s Future Workforce Building the Foundation for Success Through a Strong Birth to 8 System

Meeting workforce needs today and in the future… More than 50% of current high school students lack the written, verbal, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills employers need. Twenty percent (20%) of today’s workforce is functionally illiterate. By 2020, analysts predict that the majority of available jobs will require skilled labor, even as fewer and fewer skilled workers enter the job market. Workforce Challenges

Our Aspiration… Demonstrate independence Have strong content knowledge Respond to varying demands of audience, task and purpose Comprehend as well as critique Understand other perspectives and cultures Use technology and digital media strategically and capably Lead with confidence College and Career Ready Students

Our Method Focus: Real World Application In-depth Content Learning Relevant to College and Career Consistent Learning Targets Skills: Critical Thinking Problem Solving Effective Communication Skills Arizona’s Common Core Standards

Our Foundation Engaged and Supported Families High Quality Early Education Healthy Births and Development on Track High Quality All Day Kindergarten Continuity between ECE and K-3 Effective Teaching and Learning in ECE and K-3 S TRONG S YSTEM ( S ) THAT S UPPORT C HILDREN FROM B IRTH THROUGH A GE 8

The URGENCY to ACT State Education Status 2011 AIMS 2011: Reading: 77% of third graders at or near grade level. Math: 68% of third graders at or near grade level. State Education Goals 2020 Increase to 94% the number of 3rd graders reading at or near grade level. (ADE Statewide Literacy Plan) Implementation of Move on When Reading Legislation Full implementation of Common Core ( ) and new assessment ( ) The children who are tasked with meeting the state 2020 education goal are being born NOW! The opportunity is TODAY to ensure their success!

Why Birth to Age 8? An Introduction…

Why Birth to Age 8? Students who cannot read by the end of 3 rd grade (age 8) are four times more likely to drop out of high school. 88% of students who failed to earn a high school diploma were struggling readers in 3 rd grade.

Why Birth to Age 8? What Happens Early Matters Most 80% of a child’s critical brain development happens by age 3, and about 90% by age 5. Early advantages accumulate; so do early disadvantages. Resource: deos/threecore_concepts/brain_architecture/

Why Birth to Age 8? Early Learning Predictors: High Quality Early Education

High quality early learning Healthy development School Readiness Ready for Kindergarten Kindergarten Proficiency/ Knowledge Higher standardized test scores in math and reading Early Grade Success Reading at grade level or beyond in 3 rd grade Future Educational Success Early Grade Predictors Why Birth to Age 8?

Return on Investment Every $1 invested in quality early education saves $7 dollars in special education, public assistance and lost taxes. The rate of return for quality early childhood education is 10% per year. urce/why-early-investment-matters Long-Term Benefits of 0-8

Return on Investment of Early Childhood Education Studies show early learning influences long-term success: Special Education CostsSchool Success Grade RepetitionGraduation CrimeWorkforce Readiness Teen ParentsJob Productivity Welfare DependencyCommunity Engagement Job Training CostsCOMPETITIVE ARIZONA Sources: Schweinhart, 2005; Bruner, 2003 Slide from Nebraska’s Early Childhood Business Roundtable

Arizona Context AZ’s Children and System Status

Arizona’s Children 0-8 StatisticArizonaU.S. Faster child (0-17) growth rate %23.4% Greater % of young (0-5) children in population8.6%7.9% Greater young child diversity (0-5) White, non-Hispanic39.7%51.0% Hispanic44.9%25.2% Native American6.2%1.2% African American4.6%14.3% Asian2.6%4.5% Higher percentage young (0-5) lower income children Under 100%27.5%24.8% Under 200%55.7%48.0%

16 Graph adapted from Hart, B. & Risley, T. R. (1995). Meaningful Difference in the Everyday Experiences of Young Children. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. Researchers grouped children into three socioeconomic status groups based on occupation: “Professional” “Working Class” and “Welfare”. Groups strongly correlated with parents education levels and family income. 749 words (Children in working class families) 525 words (Children in welfare families) 1,116 words (Children in professional families) Implications of Poverty – Achievement Gap Starts Early

Progress to Date in AZ Creation of First Things First, a dedicated, voter approved funding source for young children. FTF is funding many key programs/projects to support and enhance the early childhood system. Implementation of a system to improve the quality of child care/early learning programs (Quality First). Statewide literacy Initiative, READ ON Arizona, developing a community-based collaborative approach to create a continuum of supports to improve literacy outcomes for young children. Arizona has secured some federal and philanthropic support to expand critical programs. Governor’s Arizona Ready Council is integrating early learning as a component of 2020 goals.

The Challenges Arizona ranks 49 th in the nation on the percentage of children ages 3 to 5 that attend early education/ preschool. Data from NIEER shows decline in funding in recent years. pWD2cb39EW9dGZLZDZjSG5PcnlIVXlCT0l6U zJ0OEE&output=html pWD2cb39EW9dGZLZDZjSG5PcnlIVXlCT0l6U zJ0OEE&output=html Scale: Access to High Quality Early Learning Experiences

The Challenges

Arizona’s Opportunities Develop culture/infrastructure that supports early childhood as part of Arizona’s education continuum Protect/expand/leverage resources allocated for proven 0-8 practices Expand to scale high quality early care and education programs for children and families Support capacity building/professional development for birth to 8 educators/ providers Leverage support and position AZ to benefit from potential federal/national early learning resources. Linking and Strengthening Systems

Next Steps – What You Can Do “If anyone is talking about education, birth to age 8 should be a part of the conversation.” Educate your colleagues about the importance of birth to 8 Stay apprised of policies and legislation impacting young children at the federal, state and local level Schedule an informational visit with a legislator Write, talk and question candidates for office Write an opinion piece for the local paper Share Your VOICE and INFLUENCE for Arizona’s children

Department of Economic Security Maricopa County Department of Public Health AHCCCS AZ-Academy of Pediatrics/Best Care for Kids AZ Arizona Department of Health Services Children’s Action Alliance READ ON Arizona Greater Phoenix Leadership Bank of America Merill Lynch First Things First United Ways (Tucson, Maricopa, Flagstaff, Yuma) Tucson Unified School District Univision 33, Telefutura Phoenix Freeport-McMoran Copper & Gold Foundation Balsz School District Flagstaff Unified School District Arizona Community Foundation Helios Education Foundation Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce Desert Schools Federal Credit Union Arizona Business Education Coalition (ABEC) EMPACT DMB Associates Inc. Raising Special Kids Family Involvement Center Southwest Human Development Winslow and Partners AZ-NAEYC Central Arizona College University of Arizona Arizona Department of Education/Head Start State Collaboration Arizona Child Care Association Governor’s Office of Education Innovation – AZ Ready City of Phoenix State Board for Charter Schools AZ Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Expect More Arizona Association for Supportive Child Care Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Steele Family Foundation BUILD Arizona Membership BUILD Arizona is a coalition of children’s champions who are working together to enhance opportunities for all young children in Arizona. We are business leaders, nonprofit executives, public sector representatives, educators, health and other practitioners working toward making and keeping Arizona competitive in the years ahead.