Wisdom from Lilian Katz

Writing in the Art of Leadership book, Cultivating an Early Childhood Curriculum, Lilian Katz discusses the risks of early academic instruction:

“Research on the long-term effects of various curriculum models suggests that the introduction of academic work into the early childhood curriculum yields good results on standardized tests in the short term, but may be counterproductive in the long term. For example, the risk of early instruction in beginning reading skills is that the amount of drill and practice required for success at an early age will undermine children’s dispositions to be readers.

It is clearly not useful for a child to learn skills if, in the process of acquiring them, the disposition to use them is lost…

Another risk of introducing young children to academic work prematurely is that those who cannot relate to the tasks required are likely to feel incompetent. Students who repeatedly experience difficulties may come to consider themselves stupid and may bring their behavior into line accordingly.”

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