Don’t ignore earliest learners in reading plan

Recently, the Illinois State Board of Education passed a comprehensive plan to improve school-aged students’ reading instruction. But we shouldn’t forget our youngest children. Literacy skills start developing early in life, and young children who experience a rich literacy environment are more likely to prosper academically, develop strong communication skills and become lifelong learners.

As the executive director of the Greater Wheeling Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the literacy chair of the Rotary Club of Wheeling, we know that employers struggle to find employees with these necessary skills. Today’s young children are tomorrow’s workforce and a failure to invest in the former affects the latter. Addressing school readiness through early education is essential to putting kids on a path to success.

Nowhere is the need for high-quality early learning opportunities clearer than in the Illinois kindergarten Individual Development Survey, which shows that only 48% of kindergartners are fully prepared for school in language and literacy skills, statewide. The Wheeling area’s figures surpass the state average — yet only 52% of local kids are where they need to be as they start school.

The good news is that state policymakers have begun investing further in the early care and education priorities that help young children grow essential skills at a time in their lives when brain development is at its peak: 90% of brain development occurs before kindergarten, notes the business-leader organization ReadyNation. As state and federal policymakers debate spending plans for the next fiscal year, they should prioritize resources for the education of young children — money well invested.

Michael Putz, Executive Director

Greater Wheeling Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Richard Rosen, Literacy Chair

Rotary Club of Wheeling