Is universal child care universally beneficial?

Nobel laureate James Heckman recently made waves among early childhood advocates when he said he is not, and never was, a supporter of universal pre-K. In this episode, Katharine Stevens — a resident scholar at AEI specializing in early childhood development — joins Ian and Naomi for a riveting discussion on James Heckman’s research and […]

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Nobel laureate James Heckman recently made waves among early childhood advocates when he said he is not, and never was, a supporter of universal pre-K.

In this episode, Katharine Stevens — a resident scholar at AEI specializing in early childhood development — joins Ian and Naomi for a riveting discussion on James Heckman’s research and the case for providing targeted, high-quality care to disadvantaged children over universal pre-K.

Later, Naomi, Ian and Katharine discuss how regulatory burdens could be favoring child care centers over home-based providers during this crisis, and why that is a problem.

Show notes:
0:52 | James Heckman’s recent interview and the economics of human potential
4:00 | Why universal pre-K would not benefit all children
5:20 | The high-intensity, high-quality programs for disadvantaged children
8:20 | Why the optimal early learning environment for most children is their own home
9:30 | The trade-off between parental labor force participation and childhood development
11:20 | Regulatory pressures on home-based child care centers during the pandemic
13:00 | The benefits of home-based child care settings
15:40 | The importance of teaching young children about stable family structure and family formation

Additional Resources:
– Nobel-Prize Winning Economist Dr. James Heckman on Social Mobility, the American Dream, and how COVID-19 Could Affect Inequality | Archbridge Institute

The post Is universal child care universally beneficial? appeared first on American Enterprise Institute - AEI.