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Oklahoma's
very young – infants, toddlers and preschool children –
are the focus of this edition of the Oklahoma KIDS COUNT Factbook.
Two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,002), or about one-third
(31.3%) of Oklahoma's children, are under six years of age. Special
attention to early childhood issues is compelled by several factors:
Research
increasingly demonstrates that high quality early childhood
care and educational experiences are vital to a young child's
brain development.
Oklahoma
children are increasingly likely to spend at least part of their
early years in the care of people other than their parents.
Measures
of child well-being indicate problems for Oklahoma's very young
children.
Prevention
and early intervention are cost effective investments capable
of reaping long term benefits.
As
recently as two decades ago, scientists believed that by the time
babies were born, the structure of their brains was fixed and
determined. As more has been learned about how a person's brain
develops, it has become understood that the first years of life
have a decisive impact on the architecture of a child's brain
and the nature and extent of his or her adult capabilities.
Effective
brain functioning requires a well organized network to rapidly
pass signals from one part of the brain to another. The network
is composed of brain cells (neurons) and the connections (synapses)
they form to other brain cells. There are roughly 100 bil-lion
cells (neurons) in a child's brain at birth – nearly enough
to last a lifetime. Each neuron can produce up to 15,000 connections
(synapses). Experiences ÒactivateÓ the synapses and the pathways
they form. The majority of synapses are produced during the first
three years of life at an astonishing speed.
It is not news that babies thrive on warm, respon-sive, nurturing
care. Science demonstrates that this type of caregiving also plays
a vital role in healthy cognitive and emotional development. Early
care has a long-lasting impact on how people develop, their ability
to learn and their capacity to regulate their own emotions.
Children
who are nurtured, protected, provided for, loved and stimulated
before birth and early in life can reap large rewards.
These
fortunate children have healthy cognitive and emotional development
capable of cushioning them from life's inevitable problems. They
grow older with the ability to recover from serious stress or
trauma.
Children
who are exposed to violence, nicotine, drugs or alcohol before
birth or who are abandoned, abused, traumatized, deprived or neglected
early in life can pay a high price. These children start at a
severe disadvantage. Their brain cells (neurons) can be destroyed,
connections (synapses) reduced, emo-tional control and neurological
development under-mined, and in some cases, brain function impaired.
There
is mounting scientific evidence that an individual's capabilities
are not fixed at birth and the human brain has a remarkable capacity
to change. Parents, friends, caregivers, teachers, doctors and
service providers have ample opportunity to facilitate healthy
growth and development – or help compensate for problems
– with carefully timed, intensive interventions, especially
during the first few years when the brain's ability to change
and compen-sate is exceptional.
A
good start for Oklahoma's youngest will be ineffective if purchased
at the expense of their older brothers and sisters. While quality
early childhood experiences provide the crucial foundation necessary
to create a healthy human being, they are not enough. Growth is
a lifelong venture requiring continuing support, protection and
nurturing of school-age children and adolescents if each young
Oklahoman is to reach his or her optimal development.
Two
decades ago the majority of Oklahoma infants, toddlers and preschool
children had a parent at home; not so today. Now, two-parent households
increasingly need a second income to support the family. The increased
participation of Oklahoma women in the workforce is further fueled
by the growing number of single-parent families headed by women
and new welfare requirements which compel attendance at work or
training. Currently, three out of five mothers with children younger
than six are in the workforce.
With
the increasing number of people in the work-force, a majority
of Oklahoma's children are now spending at least part of their
early years in the care of people other than their parents. Such
changes accelerate the need for quality, affordable and available
child care.
Charged
with undertaking a comprehensive assessment of Oklahoma's early
childhood system, the Governor's
Task Force on Early Childhood Education maintained an
ambitious schedule of meetings and investigation during the summer
and fall of 2000.
As
indicated in its recently released report, the Governor's Task
Force discovered a child care system in Oklahoma often providing
poor to mediocre care, maintaining long waiting lists for young
children, plagued with high staff turnover, and unaffordable to
most families. It costs less to pay the tuition at a public college
than it does to enroll a four-year-old in full-time child care.
The Governor's Task Force determined that improvements in the
quality and affordability of child care would have a significant
and long-lasting impact on a child's life and Oklahoma's future.
Many
of the key indicators of young child well-being tracked by KIDS
COUNT paint a grim picture for Oklahoma infants, toddlers and
preschool children. An average of almost 3,500 (3,457) babies
a year are born too small. Almost 400 (389) a year die before
their first birthday. More than forty percent (40.6%) of the victims
of child abuse are under age six, with children that young making
up more than three-quarters (78.4%) of the deaths attributable
to child abuse or neglect.
During
its comprehensive assessment of Oklahoma's early childhood system,
the Governor's Task Force discovered several Oklahoma trends
which made healthy development more difficult for Oklahoma's youngest:
• an increase in the number of families headed by a single
parent (resulting from rising divorce rates and increasing births
to unmarried mothers)
• an increase in the number of children not living
with either parent (resulting from children being raised by
other relatives, growth in foster care placements and incarceration
of the child's parent)
• a decrease in the amount of time parents spend with
their child (caused by increased hours at work and increased
participation of mothers in the workforce)
Oklahoma
leads the nation in worsening poverty among its youngest children.
The
Governor's Task Force noted that a substantial number of
young Oklahoma children were exposed by poverty to risks which
can impede early brain development (inadequate nutrition, exposure
to environmental toxins, trauma and abuse, poor quality daily
care, and poor health care). The concerns of the Governor's
Task Force were substantiated by its discovery that statewide,
about one-fourth of incoming kindergarten children were not ready
to begin school. Many individual schools reported much higher
rates.
For
the first time, Oklahoma KIDS COUNT ranks Oklahoma's 77 counties
based on seven indicators related to early childhood care and
education:
Population
of Young Children (1998) identifying counties with
the largest numbers of infants, toddlers and preschool children
(birth through age five)
Immunizations
Completed by Age Two (1995) measuring the provision
of preventive health services to infants and toddlers in the community
Elevated
Lead-based Poisoning Tests (1994 -1997) measuring community
environmental hazards dangerous to young children
Births
to Mothers Under Age 20 (1998) counting children born
into the community less likely to have adequate emotional and
financial resources
Inadequate
Prenatal Care (1998) counting pregnancies in the community
likely to result in health problems for the babies
Child Care Availability (2000) measuring the availability
of licensed child care in the community for children under age
six with working parents
Young
Child Poverty Rates (1997, estimates) a measure of
the presence of very poor infants, toddlers and preschool children
in the community
(View
the Map with County Rankings with your web browser; or download
the pdf file or this section, complete with map and charts.)
Taken
together, these indicators provide a comprehensive picture of
a county's early childhood status in a manner which can be ranked,
updated and tracked from year to year. Each county is ranked on
each of the seven indicators. All measures were given the same
weight, making no attempt to judge relative importance. The seven
individual county rankings are totaled into an Early Childhood
County Index in which the higher the number, the more improvement
the county needs to achieve in order to provide the best start
for its youngest citizens.
Birth outcomes in large cities are not as good as those elsewhere.
A recent national KIDS COUNT Special Report, The
Right Start, assessed the conditions of babies and their
families in America's largest cities finding that both of Oklahoma's
largest cities, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, follow this inauspicious
national trend.
Compared
to Oklahoma as a whole (62.5%), a smaller proportion of the births
in Oklahoma City (61.0%) and Tulsa (57.5%) were classified as
healthy (based on birthweight, APGAR score, prenatal care received
and length of gestation). Births in Oklahoma City and Tulsa were
less healthy than the average for the nation's fifty largest cities
(61.6%).
The
percent of births classified as at risk based on the mother's
characteristics (under age twenty, unmarried, less than twelve
years of education) in both Oklahoma City (9.1%) and Tulsa (8.8%)
was worse (higher) than the average for the nation's fifty largest
cities (8.6%) and worse (higher) than the comparable percent for
Oklahoma as a whole (8.0%).
In
undertaking its assessment of early childhood, the Governor's
Task Force looked both within and outside Oklahoma borders
to identify effective ideas and approaches for improving Oklahoma's
early childhood care and education system. The Governor's Task
Force documented that high quality care and education resulted
in positive, long lasting results, particularly among low-income
children.
The
Governor's Task Force concluded that prevention and early
intervention strategies were cost effective and held great promise,
reducing the need for remediation, treatment or crisis intervention
in later years. For example, the benchmark respected High/Scope
Perry Preschool Project demonstrated that quality preschool
programs decreased the need for special schooling, increased employment,
reduced welfare dependence, decreased crime, and more É all saving
taxpayer dollars at the rate of $7.16 for every public dollar
invested in quality preschool services.
More
recently, the Abecedarian
Project demonstrated similarly impressive results through
a carefully controlled study comparing infants from low-income
families who received early intervention in a high quality child
care setting with infants who did not. Both groups were assured
adequate nutrition, supportive social services and access to primary
health care services. The Abecedarian children each received individualized
educational activities consisting of ÒgamesÓ that were incorporated
into his or her day. By following the children's progress through
age 21, the Abecedarian Project found that high-quality, intensive,
sustained, multi-faceted early intervention programs improve the
course of intellectual development in young children. Documented
positive effects included higher IQ and cognitive performance,
improved language, fewer instances of grade retention, decreased
need for special education, higher reading and math achievement
scores, higher levels of formal education, delayed parenthood,
and, for teen mothers, higher rates of post-high school education.
Impressive savings would flow to taxpayers if the results of the
Abecedarian Project were only partially realized in Oklahoma.
Ensuring
that Oklahoma children have the best start possible requires understanding
the value of and investing in family support, preschool and early
intervention programs, child care and health care. Family support
helps families provide a nurturing home environment. Success requires
that parents are acknowledged as their child's first and most
important teacher and that parents have access to whatever they
need to make the most of each child's unique oppor-tunities to
develop. Preschool and early intervention programs provide developmental
support to help prepare children for school and assure that children
start school ready to learn. Children who are low-income, socially
vulnerable and have developmental delays benefit greatly from
such developmental support. Child care must be of high quality,
and safe and affordable, providing developmentally-appropriate
care while parents are at work or away from home. Health care
coverage and access to primary and preventive services, physical
activity, and nutrition are necessary to develop and maintain
healthy minds and bodies.
Oklahoma
has made a good start by implementing innovative programs and
making significant investments in the early care and education
of Oklahoma children. However, the Governor's Task Force
found that Oklahoma's creativity and concern were being stymied
by the absence of a comprehensive, coordinated policy structure
focusing on families and communities.
The
recently released Governor's Task Force report advocated
four key strategies (accompanied in the report by numerous detailed
recommendations). This long-term early childhood initiative is
designed to achieve their vision that all Oklahoma children
will be healthy, eager to learn, and ready to succeed by the time
they enter school.
• Strategy
One: Enact a strong public policy promoting early
childhood care and education
• Strategy
Two: Create a statewide public-private early childhood
partnership
• Strategy
Three: Implement a comprehensive public engagement
campaign
•
Strategy Four: Mobilize communities to provide environments
that support children and families
Implementation of the Governor's Task Force strategies
promises the right start for Oklahoma's infants, toddlers and
preschool children. To take such action will maximize the benefits
of Oklahoma's current and future investments in family support,
preschool and early intervention programs, child care and health
care. To do otherwise will neglect Oklahoma's youngest and Oklahoma's
future.
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