Pre-K in Tennessee may get cut

Tennessee is facing a budget shortfall of over 780 million dollars and Governor Phil Bredesen has told all state agencies to expect at least a 10% budget cut. One of the programs that will probably be cut will be Tennessee's well-regarded Pre-K program. Tennessee is one of a handful of states that require all Pre-K teachers hold a bachelor's degree in early childhood education, the state has standards for Pre-K and that class sizes be limited to 20 students for each teacher and assisstant.
The demand for pre-K statewide has been growing year over year. This spring alone, school districts across the state requested more than 300 additional classrooms for the 2008-09 school year.
Bredesen's plan to funnel $25 million to create 250 new classrooms was put on hold months ago. Scores of disappointed parents, who were initially told that their kids had gotten into the program, were turned away. Sharika Watson, whose son goes to state-funded pre-K Ross Elementary, was among the lucky ones.
"It helps him get the school experience started at an early age," she said. "He comes home, he remembers the colors and everything else verbatim. He's just excited. I'd recommend it to anyone."
The research on the effectiveness of Pre-K education is mixed, some claim little or no gain is made for students who attend Pre-K classes while others view the experience of Pre-K as beneficial as students enter elementary school. Studies have shown that two groups that benefit greatly from Pre-K are ESL students and free and reduced lunch students. Studies have shown these students make considerable gains in language and cognitive ability.