He also plans to give the department responsibility for managing an expanded Head Start programme.

ECONOMIST: Lexington

In 2011, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER), 39 states had state-funded pre-school initiatives (not including Head Start, the federal programme for poor children).

ECONOMIST: Despite budget cuts, reformers are pushing ahead

Head Start, the government's main pre-school programme for the poor, could be dramatically expanded.

ECONOMIST: The poor are still there, and need helping