The writing is on the chalkboard. Over the next few years, America can count on a major expansion of early childhood education. We embrace this trend, but as health policy researchers, we want to raise a major caveat: Unless we’re careful, today’s preschool bandwagon could lead straight to an epidemic of 4- and 5-year-olds wrongfully being told that they have attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Introducing millions of 3-to 5-year-olds to classrooms and pre-academic demands means that many more distracted kids will undoubtedly catch the attention of their teachers. Sure, many children this age are already in preschool, but making the movement universal and embedding transitional-K programs in public schools is bound to increase the pressure. We’re all for high standards, but danger lurks.
Continue reading Hinshaw and Scheffler’s op-ed via the Dallas Morning News, “How to expand pre-K without creating ADHD epidemic.”