The Invisible Children of Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers in the United States: An Examination of Existing Pre-K Partnerships
Author: Academy for Educational Development
Date: 2009-01-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Federal Programs,Preschool Children,Disadvantaged Youth,Low Income,School Readiness,Young Children,Migrant Children,Seasonal Laborers,Migrant Workers,Agricultural Occupations,Migrants,Child Care,Cooperation,Partnerships in Education,Early Childhood Education,State Aid

The National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Collaboration Office conducted this small scale study to begin to expand, document and disseminate migrant-specific early learning information and to develop a long-range strategy for addressing/increasing collaboration between MSHS and state Pre-Kindergarten programs serving or having the potential to serve, young children of migrant and seasonal farm workers. The project focused on obtaining additional information regarding the young migrant child's early learning characteristics and experiences and the status of collaboration between MSHS programs and state funded Pre-K programs. The Office is particularly interested in obtaining information on: (1) Ways to improve the coordination of collaborative relationships and activities between migrant and non-migrant Pre-K programs, in an effort to better align, to promote and to ensure school readiness for migrant children; (2) Identifying appropriate goals for a MSHS/Pre-K collaboration partnership; (3) Identifying &quot;best practices&quot; occurring between MSHS and Pre-K programs; (4) Identifying the unique strengths, needs and collaboration opportunities among MSHS programs as a whole; and (5) Identifying the barriers within/among programs, in the larger community, and the political environment that impede meaningful collaboration and services to migrant and seasonal farm worker families and their children. To obtain this information, the National Migrant Head Start Collaboration Office engaged in four activities: (1) Conducted a review of the scientific and main stream literature regarding migrant farmworker families; (2) Conducted a survey of currently operating MSHS programs; (3) Held conversations with many Head Start State Collaboration Directors located in states where migrant farmworkers are employed; and (4) Reviewed Early Childhood Comprehensive System plans which were created by each state and posted on the internet. Although partnership activities and communication does occur among Pre-K providers in any given state, it is important to acknowledge that the success is limited. The results indicate that only half of MSHS programs have MOUs with Pre-K providers and that the MOUs are sporadic at best. One of the most important findings of the survey is that young migrant farmworker children are being referred to additional sources of childcare and early education services by MSHS programs. Inasmuch as children of migrant farmworkers experience extreme stressors that greatly impact their learning, Pre-K providers need to work together to ensure all early childhood care and education settings are ready to receive these children and provide them with high quality services that take into account their unique lifestyles and their cultural and linguistic diversity. Overwhelmingly, MSHS programs agreed that this need to educate and advocate for the young children of migrant farmworkers across early childhood settings is one of the major functions of the MSHS Collaboration Office. (Contains 16 footnotes.) [This report is published by the National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Collaboration Office.