VA Research

Thursday, October 2, 14
how can i use graphic design this semester to help solve a local problem
--hard to choose, because there are so many
--after research, i found one issue seems to be the root of many other problems
Early education for underprivileged
children in Kansas City
A third grader who cant read at
his or her grade level is likely to
drop out of high school
not nd a job
have kids who cant read
This afects our city.
Jobs disappear.
Companies disappear.
Theres more crime.
Solution is simple:
Talk.
Read.
Play.
Being able to read > Wanting to learn > Showing up to school > Continuing to learn at the right grade level
Going to college > Finding a job > Having kids > Reading to them
Number of words children hear in typical lower-income homes
compared with number typically heard in more-afuent homes
30 million fewer words by the age of 3
30 million word gap
cripples readiness for reading
single-parent less a!uent homes: capable of talking, reading, playing w/ child but just isnt aware that they should be doing it
Talk, Read, Play is a unique educational campaign. It takes neuroscience studies about brain development in young children and simplifies it to a message every parent and caregiver can use to help support a childs
early development: Talk, Read, Play with your child every day.
By age 3, childrens brains have formed
1,000 trillion connections between neurons.
--By the time they are 3 years old, childrens brains have formed 1,000 trillion connections between neurons.
--If babies bodies grew at the same rapid pace as their brains, they would weigh 170 pounds by one month of age.
Interacting with your baby increases the speed at which he or she will learn.
Reading aloud to children helps stimulate brain development.
--Babies whose parents frequently talk to them know more words by age 2 than babies whose parents rarely speak to them.
--80% of a child's brain is developed by age three.
General awareness can eventually lead to policy change.
When I talked to Scott I realized this is a complicated problem. One factor is that children from lower-income families dont have
access to quality pre-K education, but public funding for that is expensive, and not everyone in society shares the same outlook.
Not everyone wants to pay taxes to help fund state-wide pre-K.
--But we can educate the public in hopes that they will invest in early education.
The Heckman Equation
Heckman: His groundbreaking work with economists, psychologists, sociologists, neuroscientists has shown that quality early childhood development heavily influences health, economic
and social outcomes for individuals and society at large. Heckman has proven that there are great economic gains to be had by investing in early childhood development.
Invest + Develop + Sustain = Gain
Invest in educational and developmental resources for disadvantaged families to provide equal access to successful early human development. Nurture early
development of cognitive and social skills in children from birth to age five. Sustain early development with effective education through to adulthood. Gain a more capable,
productive and valuable workforce that pays dividends to America for generations to come.
I also met w/ Mike from Turn the Page KC. They work on school readiness, school attendance, summer school, and community
engagement.
Ultimately their goal is to get kids reading at the right grade level.
How can creative problem solving help
to get more underprivileged children
in KC reading at the right grade level?
--I know I want to specically focus on getting kids reading at the right grade level...
What social behavior am I looking to change?
Raise public awareness.
Gain more volunteers.
Who is my audience?
High schoolers
Retirees
People looking for a place to volunteer
--I chose high schoolers because have free time during the day after school, often have school-based incentives to volunteer,
and have the rest of their lives ahead of them to advocate for this cause.
--Retirees have time on their hands.
--People who want to get involved, but dont know where to start.
How can I measure change?
Assess number of volunteers in KC schools.
Assess number of children who can read at their grade level.
When a lot of people focus on something, it gets better.
--I want to leave you with this quote Mike said during our meeting. I was interested in the community engagement role his
organization plays which includes getting volunteers, raising public awareness
--As discouraging as it can be to learn about this problem in our community, its inspiring to know we can do our part to help.

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Thursday, October 2, 14

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