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Millions of kids across the country are starting school this week. Yesterday, we heard about how access to early childhood education programs is expanding nationwide, though still lagging in a handful of states.

But even as more kids are attending school earlier, what they’re learning and how they’re learning varies from classroom to classroom, and it often doesn’t match up with what’s considered best practice.

That’s the lesson that Suzanne Bouffard learned when she began to look at pre-kindergartens with her toddler. At the time, Bouffard was a childhood development specialist at Harvard, and the experience set her on a course across the country visiting classrooms for her book, “The Most Important Year: Pre-Kindergarten and the Future of Our Children.”

She says that the importance of early childhood education is recognized more than ever, and now might be our best chance to do it right.

This segment is hosted by Todd Zwillich.