This study examined development of academic, language, and social skills among 4-year-olds in publicly supported prekindergarten (pre-K) programs in relation to 3 methods of measuring pre-K quality, which are as follows: (a) adherence to 9 standards of quality related to program infrastructure and design, (b) observations of the overall quality of…

Presents the results of a meta-analysis of cross-time relations of academic/cognitive and social/behavioral readiness assessments from preschool to second grade that used 70 longitudinal studies. Discusses findings in terms of assessment and conceptualization of school readiness, the role of school and classroom experiences in individual…

This study describes pre-kindergarten teachers' use of kindergarten transition practices and examined the extent to which these practices were associated with kindergarten teachers' judgments of children's social, self-regulatory, and academic skills upon their entry into kindergarten. Participants were 722 children from 214 pre-kindergarten…

Several large-scale research efforts imply that improving instructional quality rather than assessing student readiness is a better way to promote student performance in the early grades. (Contains 12 references.) (Author/MLF)

Definitions of school readiness tend to focus on social and academic competencies that children are presumed to need to start school ready to learn. However, a child-focused definition of school readiness is limited because it neither identifies processes that lead children to acquire these competencies, nor does it recognize children's dependence…

Examined the practices teachers employ to help children and families make the transition to school, and the links between school, teacher, and classroom characteristics and transition practices. Discusses findings on factors influencing transition practice, including teacher experience and training, teacher race or ethnicity, class size, and the…

This manual describes an approach to enhancing children's transitions into kindergarten. This approach, developed as a collaborative effort among researchers at the National Center for Early Development & Learning Kindergarten Transition Project at the University of Virginia and local school personnel, focuses on forming a network of social…

This study surveyed 3,595 teachers to determine judgments of prevalence and types of problems children present upon entering kindergarten. Up to 46% reported that half their class or more had specific problems in any of several transition areas. Rates of perceived problems were related to school minority composition; district poverty level; and,…

Teachers' most common initiatives to help students in their transition to kindergarten signal a negative shift in quality, nature, and depth of contact. Excerpting an article discussing transition practices of kindergarten teachers, this newsletter issue summarizes a study of 3,595 kindergarten teachers. The teachers were asked about their use of…

Compared children retained in kindergarten with matched samples of age and grade mates, using teacher ratings as an index of their social and academic skills. Found that retained children showed a reduction in behavior problems, specifically acting-out and shy-anxious behaviors, but only slightly increased competence for task orientation across…

This book presents the Contextual Systems Model (CSM), a theoretical framework for the study and education of young children at risk for failing at formal schooling. Chapter 1, "Contemporary Children and Risk," provides a demographic snapshot of the realities of children's lives and introduces formal concepts regarding risk and risk…

School readiness assessment is a prominent feature of early childhood education. Because the construct of readiness is multifaceted, we examined children's patterns on multiple indicators previously found to be both theoretically and empirically linked to school readiness: social skill, interactions with parents, problem behavior, and performance…