Early-childhood educators in California are receiving training to learn how to teach early-learners whose first language is not English. The training aims to help teachers improve their communication skills with students who are still learning their first language as well as English.

Early-childhood educators at a Texas school district are incorporating science, technology, engineering and math into their prekindergarten classrooms. In this commentary, educator Mary Konrad shares four strategies for teaching STEM in early-learning programs.

Rigorous research about the effects of prekindergarten programs is lacking, Katharine Stevens, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, writes in this commentary. She highlights findings from a review of 10 programs and suggests focusing early-learning conversations on identifying successful interventions for at-risk children.

An emphasis on academics may not be the best path to learning in early-childhood education, according to a recent report. Report author Lilian Katz, professor emerita of early-childhood education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, suggests instead an emphasis on social, emotional and intellectual goals.

Efforts to improve early-childhood education are being complicated by a lack of funding and coordination, said a federal official attending a conference on the topic. While the Obama administration has pledged its support to improving early-learning systems nationwide, such efforts have not been included in competitive grant programs such as the Race to the Top, which are focused on K-12 schools, said Jacqueline Jones, the senior adviser for early learning at the Department of Education.