Entering kindergarten is one form of accelerating one's path through schooling. The unique needs of young learners require policies for early entrance to kindergarten to be flexible, and options for parents to be accessible and equitable across school districts and communities. In this article, the author discusses state policies for early…

In this article, the authors discuss two interventions deployed to remediate low performing students. The first is grade level retention in which a student is required to repeat a given grade due to lack of academic or social progress. The second is academic redshirting in which a parent voluntarily delays the entrance of her child into…

Experience and research repeatedly illustrate the need for and value of parent advocates--as parents know their child best. Parents need to be prepared to take a positive, proactive, and focused role with teachers and administrators in their child's school to find the best programming for their child. Academic acceleration should be considered as…

Presents rates at which first-time students enroll in different types of institutions by age, family income, and dependency status. Also provides students' reasons for enrolling in less-than-4-year institutions. (Author)

In the past, there were no four-year-olds to be found in infant or primary schools. The statutory school age of five had been established in 1870, after a hurried and confused debate in the House of Commons; one hundred years later, it was a regulation still honoured in practice. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, children started school in the term…

The rising trend in the minimum entrance age for kindergarten in the US has been motivated by findings from cross-sectional studies that older entrants have more favorable school outcomes compared to younger entrants. However, these studies fail to account for endogeneity in entrance age resulting from parental choice, leading to biased estimates…

This short report identifies the academic and environmental experiences that support the reclaiming of students at high academic risk and describes an applicable school-wide programme emanating from the call for educational change in Israel. The proposed structured academic programme demonstrates how schools can achieve broad student knowledge and…

This article describes one set of parents' decision to enroll their child in school early. Problems finding someone to test their child and other institutional and social obstacles are described. Tips to guide the decision-making process are offered and the parents' attitudes a year after their daughter's enrollment are presented. (PB)

In a question-and-answer format, John Goodlad explains findings of his recent study ("A Place Called School") of 38 schools, including reasons why classroom tone is often emotionally flat and steps that might improve educational quality. Tracking, use of instructional time, and ages for entering and leaving school are also discussed. (PP)

Discusses four educational methods designed to deal with the risk of kindergarten failure. Methods include increased provision of prekindergarten programs; adoption of a later school entrance age; a developmental placement system; and a continuous progress plan with multi-age groupings. (BB)

Describes ways in which well-intentioned efforts to protect young children from inappropriate school practices have had the opposite effect. Readiness testing, retention, transition classes, tracking, and increased entrance age are discussed. Alternative strategies are proposed. (BB)