A mother of one set of boy-girl twins observes that boys and girls use different strategies for learning. Contends that educators and child development specialists need to reevaluate the criteria they use to determine readiness for school. (MLF)

Illustrating major points with specific examples (including a "Doonesbury cartoon), the main article faults schools' organizational efficiency and educators' ignorance of child development for forcing young children to work beyond their developmental readiness. An inset article presents the 19th century kindergarten as a haven for children to grow…

Tips are offered on how to ease the transition of students from elementary to middle level or junior high schools. A teacher-advisor program is proposed, and staff development modules are suggested to help teachers assist students in the transition process. (TE)

Calls for new priorities in U.S. federal government that focus on children and deemphasize military spending. All government efforts to improve education will be worthless unless more attention and funding is devoted to children's readiness to learn. (LB)

Discusses two related early education issues: providing public school programs for younger children and serving children who do not do well in kindergarten. Recommends ungraded, child-centered developmental programs for all children from birth to age 9 and prekindergarten summer enrichment programs for children assessed at certain devlopmental…

Studies confirm the educational advantages and cost-effectiveness of high-quality early childhood programs and have made more persuasive the argument for developing such programs. The most important determinants of such programs are: group size, qualifications and training of staff, stability of care, and adult-child ratio. (MD)

This paper addresses the issues surrounding the widely publicized problem of newborn infants who have been exposed to cocaine before their birth, and suggests ways to prevent the problems associated with fetal exposure to drugs during pregnancy. The paper presents information concerning the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on infants,…

Young children think and learn differently, yet early childhood education is now subject to new pressures. Many believe that early exposure to technology accelerates mental development and improves sensory and mental capacity. There is no factual support for this idea. Children who grow up with technology are not necessarily more proficient with…

Difficulties in teaching students whose general knowledge is limited are discussed by a teacher at the Nofe-Golan Regional High School. Suggestions are offered regarding obtaining information about each student, preparing first lessons, student and teacher ground rules, readying students for tests, and special activities. (LB)

Preschool intervention may be effective for economically disadvantaged children but not for middle-class children. Yet many preschool children need universally available day care. The best way to provide this would be to work with the schools. The author promotes the return to concept of the community school as a local center for all social…

This model for assessing the readiness for college of high school students with learning disabilities offers a life-span developmental perspective. It identifies life-event stressors, mediating variables (abilities and attitudes), the social-psychological adaptation process, and adaptive/maladaptive outcomes. (DB)

Parents have a pervasive and continual influence on their children's career development, beginning with early childhood and continuing as the child progresses through fantasy, exploration, tentative and trial stages of career development, and as the child responds to the question "What do you want to be when you grow up?" The child's readiness for…

Reviews research on the academic performance of early entrants, noting that damaging consequences for children who are not developmentally mature may continue throughout their school careers. Suggests possible ways to reduce the magnitude of the "unready" child's problem. (KS)

This monograph examines the phenomenon of young children who lack the socialization and academic preparation needed to meet the demands of schooling and take advantage of educational programs. Such children have inadequately nurtured bodies and incompletely or inappropriately stimulated minds. The changing nature of childhood is portrayed in…

Providing a comprehensive overview, this guide to kindergarten screening was produced to aid Maine's school districts as they work to increase the effectiveness of their screening programs. Part 1, providing materials related to meeting the requirements of Maine's Education Reform Act of 1984, includes regulations pertaining to screening, a…