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Running Head: WHEN IS A CHILD READY FOR KINDERGARTEN?
When is a Child Ready for Kindergarten?
Leslie S. Cuti
Southeastern Louisiana University
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Abstract
This study will examine the effect of attending a preschool program on academic performance
and school readiness. Previous studies indicate that preschool programs have a positive effect on
readiness for kindergarten as well as a positive effect on academic performance. The participants
will be 135 kindergarten students in a local elementary school. The students will be divided into
two groups. The first group will be students who have attended preschool. The second group will
be those who have not. The Brigance K Screening will be used to determine the students’
readiness for kindergarten and academic level. The research proposes to determine that preschool
programs do have a positive influence regarding students’ readiness for kindergarten and
academic performance.
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When is a Child Ready for Kindergarten?
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of attendance in a preschool program
on academic performance and school readiness of kindergarten students.
Review of Related Literature
What is school readiness? How is it defined? Why is determining the level of readiness
important? These are all very good questions which need to be answered. The definition of
readiness is when a child has been exposed to consistent, stable adults who are emotionally
invested in them, a physical environment that is safe and predictable, regular routines and
rhythms of activity, competent peers, and materials that stimulate their exploration and
enjoyment of the world and from which he/she can derive a sense of mastery (Pianta & LaParo,
2003). Pianta and LaParo also suggest that caution should be taken by educators when
implementing a readiness assessment. The educators should look very closely at the quality of
the assessment (Pianta & LaParo, 2003).
It has been reported that kindergarten teachers value academic skills as well as placing
strong emphasis on social and task oriented skills. Both attributes are important for a child to be
considered ready for school (Pianta & LaParo, 2003). The reason for emphasis to be placed on
both social and task oriented skills is that the focus of kindergarten has shifted. The focus has
shifted from being a social adjustment to school to being a cognitive development and academic
development program. This shift makes it almost necessary for a child to be socially ready upon
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entering kindergarten (Nurss, 1987).
Teachers have reported student difficulties in the first weeks of school as: following
directions, lack of academic skills, difficulty working independently, difficulty working as part of
a group, poor social skills and communication problems. All of these factors can be attributed to
a lack of preschool experience (Pianta & LaParo, 2003).
All factors listed are important for school readiness. However, a distinction of readiness
for kindergarten must be made. To determine a child’s readiness requires one to know which type
of kindergarten program the child will enter. For example, different approaches to instruction
such as reading and writing make different demands on the child. Consequently, a child may be
ready for one type of kindergarten program, but unready for another type (Nurss, 1987).
Therefore, a conclusion can be drawn that readiness for kindergarten greatly depends on
the child’s development of social skills that are expected for the particular program for which the
child will enter (Nurss, 1987).
Who is ready and who is not ready to enter kindergarten? This is not an easy question to
answer. It would be beneficial to educators as well as to students to know when a child is ready
to enter kindergarten. Research reveals that nearly fifty percent of all children entering
kindergarten are at risk for later school failure simply because they are not developmentally ready
to begin formal instruction (Buntaine & Costenbader, 1997).
Once a child has been identified as unready or developmentally immature for
kindergarten several recommendations can be made. The recommendations are for the child to
stay home another year before entering kindergarten, to attend a pre-kindergarten program, spend
two years in kindergarten or to attend a pre-first grade program the year after kindergarten
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(Buntaine & Costenbader, 1997). Research suggests that an extra year by any method makes
sense because the youngest children developmentally tend to lag behind their peers (Holloway,
2003). Research also suggests that the extra year delay should give the child time to become
developmentally mature and therefore ready to succeed in kindergarten (Buntaine &
Costenbader, 1997). It has also been proven that developmentally older kindergarten students are
more likely to persist at tasks, are more eager to learn and are better able to pay attention
(Holloway, 2003).
Recommendations have been made that policymakers identify children who are at risk for
failure and make quality preschool experiences available to them. This will give the student an
opportunity to develop readiness skills. Innovative approaches are needed in providing early
education services for children from low-socioeconomic circumstances (Zill, 1995).
High quality preschool programs prove to have long-term benefits (Slavin & Karweit,
1992). Studies show that most U.S. children enter kindergarten having some experience in
preschool programs of some sort. However, the quality of the experiences varies greatly (Zill,
1995). Research suggests that early childhood interventions such as preschool programs improve
children’s cognitive development and school achievement in the short-term and enhance overall
school competencies in the long-term (Reynolds & Temple, 1998). Other studies show that
existing preschool programs have positive effects in the areas of emerging literacy and numeracy
(Zill, 1995).
There are three justifications for early childhood education. On implication is that it
provides a greater and longer-lasting change in academic and social outcomes. Secondly, the
experience of a stable and predictable learning environment promotes normal cognitive and
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social functioning. Finally, transition into formal schooling is a sensitive, if not critical period in
a child’s scholastic development(Reynolds & Temple, 1998).
Does the quality of the program affect the school readiness level of students who attend
the programs? Reports state that families are enrolling record numbers of young children in
preschool programs. Over half of all U.S. 3-5 year olds are enrolled in a preschool child-care
center before entering kindergarten (Diamond, Reagan, & Bandyk, 2000). Therefore, it is
imperative that each preschool program be of the highest quality because of the influences that
these programs have on readiness for success in school (Peisner-Feinberg, Burchinal, Clifford,
Culkin, Howes, & Kagan, 2001).
In the past child care focused solely on caring for children with no emphasis on child
development or education. Research stresses that academic, social and emotional benefits are
associated with quality early childhood experiences (Freeman, & King, 2003). Because of the
awareness of the importance in quality, early childhood workers are being trained to improve the
preschool experience. Training is being conducted in the areas of curriculum, classroom
management, student assessment and kindergarten readiness (Freeman, & King, 2003).
All of the evidence presented in these studies indicate that preschool programs have a
positive effect on kindergarten readiness and academic success.
Hypothesis
It is hypothesized that children who have attended a preschool program prior to entering
kindergarten will score statistically significantly higher than children who have not with respect
to their academic success and overall performance.
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Operational Definitions
The students in this study are children entering kindergarten for the first time. These
children will be classified into two groups: those who have participated in a preschool program
prior to entering kindergarten and those who have not. Preschool program, for the purpose of
this study, is defined as any structured, out of the home program, that serviced the child prior to
the child entering kindergarten.
Methodology
Research Design
This study will use ex post facto research design. For this study, the independent variable
will be students who have attended a preschool program and students who have not. The levels
will include students who have attended some type of preschool program and those who have
not. The dependent variable will be the students’ academic performance and school readiness
when entering kindergarten. This type of research will only allow for possible cause and effect
conclusions.
Sample
A convenience sample of 135 public school kindergarten students will be used in this
study. The population of the group will be 75% African American and 25% white students.
There will be 60% girls and 40% boys in the population. The first group will consist of students
who have attended a preschool program. The second group will consist of students who have not
attended any form of preschool prior to entering kindergarten.
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Instrumentation
The Brigance K Screen will be used in this study to determine student readiness for
kindergarten and academic level. This instrument is a criterion-referenced instrument that is
designed to test several broad skill areas. The areas are: language, motor skills, ability, number
skills, body awareness, and auditory and visual discrimination. The coefficient alpha for this test
is .9 which proves a high degree of consistency. The authors of the test relied on expert analysis
to ensure content validity.
Procedures
The students in this study will be divided into two groups based on whether or not the
student attended a preschool program before entering kindergarten. Group one will consist of all
students who did attend at least one year of preschool before entering kindergarten. Group two
will consist of all students who did not attend any form of preschool program before entering
kindergarten. The students will then be given the Brigance K Screening assessment to determine
their level of readiness for kindergarten as well as their academic level upon entering
kindergarten. The screening will be administered one week prior to the students entering
kindergarten for the first time.
Data Analysis
In order to determine if a statistically significant difference will exist between students
who have attended preschool and those who have not a related sample t test will be used.
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References
Buntaine, R., & Costenbader, V. (1997). The effectiveness of a transitional pre-kindergarten
program on later academic achievement. Psychology in the Schools, 34, 44-50.
Diamond, K., Reagan, A., & Bandyk, J. (2000). Parents’ conceptions of kindergarten readiness:
relationships with race, ethnicity, and development. The Journal of Educational
Research,
94, 93-100.
Freeman, G., & King, J. (2003). A partnership for school readiness. Educational Leadership,
60, 76-79.
Holloway, J. (2003). When children aren’t ready for kindergarten. Educational Leadership, 60,
89-90.
Nurss, J. (1987). Readiness for kindergarten. Illinois, U.S. (ERIC Document Reproduction
Service No. ED 291 514).
Peisner-Feinberg, E., Burchinal, M., Clifford, R., Culkin, M., Howes, C., & Kagan, S. (2001).
The relation of preschool child-care quality to children’s cognitive and social
developmental trajectories through second grade. Child Development, 72, 1534-1553.
Pianta, R., & LaParo, K. (2003). Improving early school success. Educational Leadership, 60,
27-29.
Reynolds, A., & Temple, J. (1998). Extended early childhood intervention and school
achievement: age thirteen findings from the Chicago Longitudinal Study. Child
Development, 69, 231-246.
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Slavin, R., & Karweit, N. (1992). Preventing early school failures: What works? Educational
Leadership, 50, 10-18.
Zill, N. (1995). School readiness and children’s developmental status. Illinois, U.S. (ERIC
Document Reproduction Service No. ED389475).