Interrelated Roles of Early Childhood Policy and Early Childhood Research

Research conducted to solve medical or social problems can have a profound impact on subsequent practices and interventions. A prime example was the identification of phenylketonuria (PKU), an inborn error of metabolism that, when left untreated, leads to severe intellectual disabilities. The development of a screening test (Guthrie & Susi, 1963) for newborns has dramatically reduced the instances of mental retardation due to PKU. All 50 states now have policies that mandate hospitals screen newborn infants so that if PKU is present, changes in the infant’s diet can be made to reduce the buildup of toxic enzymes (Batshaw, Roizen, & Lotrecchiano, 2012). Although not as dramatic, this research-to-policy-practice influence is found in the field of early childhood education (ECE). For example, research has demonstrated that development of the brain during the first five years of life is critical to a child’s subsequent development and success in school (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000). The American Academy of Pediatrics reported that there is “extensive evidence of the disruptive impacts of toxic stress, offering intriguing insights into causal mechanisms that link early adversity to later impairments in learning, behavior, and both physical and mental well-being” (Shonkoff et al., 2012, p. e232). Children living in poverty often do not receive the same stimulation, language, and opportunities of other children who live above the poverty line. They live in families that often experience many risk factors (e.g., food insecurity, substance abuse, social isolation). To address and ameliorate the impact of risks associated with poverty, most states offer compensatory programs from birth to school entry.