ANY KINDERGARTEN teacher can tell. When the school year starts, it’s easy to spot a youngster who went to preschool and began the learning process — and a kid who didn’t and is already behind.

This crucial gap is the argument for expanding such quality-time programs for 4-year-olds before they get to elementary school. Last June, voters rejected Proposition 82, which called for a universal preschool system for every California youngster. It was a complex package with a price tag of $2.1 billion and a tax on the rich.

This past week, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a $50 million preschool plan to hire teachers where they’re needed most: in the state’s low-scoring schools. The measure means up to 17,000 youngsters will get a chance at early education and arrive better prepared in kindergarten.

Study after study shows that preschool helps young kids do better in the classroom later on. It’s especially true for students don’t grow up speaking English.

The measure, authored by Assemblywoman Wilma Chan, D-Oakland, will help both public schools and nonprofit programs certified by the state. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell would evaluate the programs to make sure the money is properly spent.

State and federal money pays for 160,000 children in preschool. Chan’s bill would reach down to schools where students test in the bottom third of the state Academic Performance Index. These schools also have a disproportionate share of poor families.

Though most of the $50 million will be spent on new hires, there will also be funds for equipment, training and advisories to parents to sign up their children.

Alongside this measure is a welcome addition. Another $50 million will be appropriated for expanded facilities for preschools. This is one-time money aimed at updating and enlarging school buildings across the state. In many poor school districts, Chan notes, there are waiting lists for early education. Enrollment is often limited by a lack of space, she said.

The job of preparing young children for school isn’t completed. Thousands are still denied a preschool slot. But the state has taken a first step in the right direction.

Comment: What we need to remember is that politicians forget that children don’t succeed because of money poured into schools. They succeed because of families. You can’t buy that. Thinking that more opportunities for children will help undo damage at home is a pipe dream. Putting the responsibility on teachers to rear children lost to neglect is also a pipe dream.