Equitable Access to High-Quality Early Care and Education: Opportunities to Better Serve Young Hispanic Children and Their Families

Julia Mendez Smith, Danielle Crosby and Christina Stephens

The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 2021, vol. 696, issue 1, 80-105

Abstract: Significant investments in public early childhood care and education (ECE) have yielded higher Hispanic enrollment in preschool-age programs, but progress has been uneven and inconsistent, especially for the youngest Hispanic children and low-income families. We review how ECE has contributed to Hispanic children’s development, offering a detailed review of Hispanic children’s participation in ECE, including evidence of effectiveness from ECE programs such as Early Head Start and Head Start, and state pre-K programs. We conclude with a discussion of why Hispanic children remain underserved by ECE and what policy changes could increase participation in these programs among Hispanics. We argue for expansion of established high-quality ECE into Hispanic-dense communities, for strategies that enroll and retain Latino children in ECE in ways that are family-centered and culturally responsive, and that ECE must adapt to better serve Hispanic families and dual language learners who require culturally appropriate pedagogy.

Keywords: Latino; Hispanic; preschool; early education; childcare; equity; investment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:anname:v:696:y:2021:i:1:p:80-105

DOI: 10.1177/00027162211041942

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