Task force takes first step in Idaho preschool effort. Teachers union recommends lifting ban on funding of preschools; critics say preschools cost too much

Advocates for early childhood education told a legislative task force on Thursday that eager-to-learn 3-year-old kids in the state are falling behind their counterparts elsewhere because Idaho doesn’t give them a chance to attend publicly funded preschool.

"Society pays in many ways for students who do not participate in early childhood education," said Sherri Wood, president of the Idaho Education Association, the state teachers’ union.

JESSE HARLAN ALDERMAN
The Associated Press

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