As the 'fiscal cliff' approaches, John Boehner and other lawmakers should beware of another kind of deficit ? the growing opportunity deficit for low-income US children, already?present by the time they enter kindergarten.?Government can help with universal childcare and preschool.
North Carolina's Gov. Bev Perdue laughs after a smart answer about school said by Dy'Asha Clark, right, Dec. 10 at Primary Colors Early Learning Center in Durham, N.C. Op-ed contributor Lane Kenworthy says US lawmakers should take a cue from Scandinavian countries that fund high-quality preschool education.
Bernard Thomas/The Herald-Sun/AP
EnlargeIf President Obama, John Boehner, and House Republicans are unable to reach a deal to avoid the ?fiscal cliff,? automatic spending cuts will cause states to lose an estimated $7.5 billion in federal funding for more than 100 grant programs, many of which are vital to low-income communities. Even if Washington averts the precipice, these programs face likely reductions in federal spending as part of an eventual budget deal. But lawmakers who want to preserve the ?land of opportunity? by unsaddling future generations from debt should think twice about such cuts.
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Once a world leader in equal opportunity, America now ranks behind many other affluent countries. Among adults aged 25 to 45 in 2000-2008, just 30 percent of those born into a family in the bottom fifth of incomes had reached the middle fifth of incomes or higher, whereas 80 percent of those born into the top fifth of earners had done so. That gap looks set to grow even larger, as differences in test scores and college graduation between children from low-income versus high-income homes have been rising since the 1970s.
We have, in short, a significant opportunity deficit for Americans who grow up in low-income families. And it's getting worse. Like it or not, a real solution will require more ? not less ? smart spending by government.
A host of social and economic shifts have contributed to the trend toward unequal opportunity. Children who grow up in a home with both of their biological parents are more likely to stay in school, avoid prison, and earn more in adulthood. The share of poorer children who grow up with both parents has fallen in the past several decades, while there has been far less change in family structure for those with higher incomes.
Parenting traits and behaviors have long differed according to parents' education and income, but this difference has increased with the advent of the modern intensive-parenting culture. Low-income parents aren't able to spend as much on goods and services aimed at enriching their children, such as music lessons, travel, and summer camp. Studies show they tend to read less to their children and provide less help with schoolwork. They are less likely to set and enforce clear rules and routines for their children. And they are less likely to encourage their children to aspire to high achievement in school and, later, at work.
Differences in out-of-home care also have widened. A generation ago, most preschool-aged kids stayed at home with their mothers. Now, many are in childcare of one sort or another. Children of affluent parents can attend education-oriented preschools, while kids of poorer parents are more likely to be left with a neighborhood babysitter who parks them in front of the television.
Children from poor backgrounds are less likely than others to enter and complete college, and in the past generation this difference has expanded, due in part to the rising cost of a college degree.
The job market has become more difficult, too. Technological advance, globalization, loss of manufacturing employment, union decline, and other developments have reduced the number of jobs that require limited skills but pay a solid wage ? the kind that once moved poorer Americans into the middle class.
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