The Beneficial Head Start Program Essay -- essays papers

The Head Start program is a beneficial one that helps youth overcome educational setbacks. In order for one to understand the benefits of the program one must know what its goals are, how its goals continue to be accomplished, what specific setbacks are remedied from it and how others feel about it. Head Start is a comprehensive child development program that has an overall goal to prepare children from low-income families for school (The Administration For Children And Families, 2002). To prepare a child for school the program has the goal of meeting educational, health, social service, and parental needs. â€Å"Head Start also wants to help bring about a greater degree of social competence in these children (Mallory and Goldsmith, 2002).† The program has met a goal of impacting child development and day care services, and the increasing availability of services offered to low-income families and their children (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2002). There are many factors that play a part in the accomplishment of these goals. Head Start meets educational needs by ensuring that each child is exposed to different learning experiences that nurse intellectual, social, and emotional growth (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2002). The children are in an atmosphere for gaining knowledge but at the same time are placed with peers whom they can build social skills and form relationships with. Health needs are met due to the program’s emphasis on early detection of medical problems. Each child in Head Start becomes involved in a health program. The health program covers immunizations, medical, dental, and mental services (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2002). Immunizations are ... ...t in any benefits offered by the Head Start program.† This is the time when that statement is proven wrong. â€Å"In 1968, Head Start began funding a program that eventually became called Sesame Street. It is a Carnegie Corporation Preschool Television Show that is still aired to this day (The Administration for Children and Families, 2002).† Granted some people have not viewed the show , however, their children may have. If that is not the case plenty of people are still familiar with the name and concepts of the show Sesame Street. The Head Start program is extremely beneficial to communities across the United States of America. The program set goals, continues to accomplish them, remedies educational setbacks for low-income families and children and raises debates about the success of such programs which only pushes them to strive harder to reach their goals.