The belief that additional time allows children to become more ready for school has affected public policy and individual practices. Prior studies estimated either associations between school entry age and academic growth or causal effects on achievement measured at one or two points. This article contributes novel causal evidence for the impacts…

Using an unanticipated policy reform in Mexico that shifted 4 months the cutoff date for elementary school eligibility in 2006 and information on academic performance of 15-year-old students from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 survey, who entered first grade in 2006, this paper estimates the effects of starting…

Setting the age for starting elementary students at 60 months old has been a hotly debated topic in Turkey since the Grand National Assembly passed an education reform bill as Law No. 6287, known to the public as the "4+4+4 regulation." At the outset of its implementation, students who started first grade in school year 2012-2013 had an…

This study aims to make a comparison of various lessons' mean exam scores achieved at the first, second, third and fourth grade by students who started elementary school at 60-66 months and those who started at or above 69 months as these students started the elementary school at the same time after an amendment in elementary education law in…

Examined the effects of age at entrance to first grade on success in elementary school, using a set of demographic, social, and early experience variables as covariates. Concluded that entrance age was a far less powerful predictor of academic achievement than were socioeconomic factors. (Author/GR)

The early elementary teacher must find a reasonable solution to the question of how to best meet the needs of incoming 5-year-olds. This study reviews recent research on the academic and emotional needs of young students and on existing programs dealing with school readiness. Brief annotations are presented for 54 research articles. These articles…

Examined school entrance age effect on academic achievement and social-emotional adjustment among 137 fourth graders. Found that differences between 73 oldest and 64 youngest subjects, identified in first grade, persisted in part to fourth grade. Younger subjects scored lowest in mathematics and oral and silent reading comprehension; were slower…

Recent statements by educators and child development specialists support the contention that a child's developmental maturity is the key predictor of success in school. Possible modifications of student placement policies are considered, including establishment of transitional programs for kindergarten graduates not fully ready for first grade.…

The effects of age at entrance into school on subsequent elementary school performance were studied in a cohort of children who started grade 1 in the Dallas school system (Texas) in fall 1981. Most of the subjects were born on or after September 1, 1974 and before September 1, 1975; the spread of ages was 1 year. A total of 3,028 male and 3,019…

Some parents have chosen to delay their children's enrollment in kindergarten by a year because of individual differences in the pace and pattern of children's development. In other situations, some schools recommend delaying a child's school entry based on "readiness" testing or require that some kindergartners attend kindergarten for a…

This paper reviews literature and research on the effects of age of initial entry into schooling, citing over 20 studies from the 1930's through the 1970's relating entrance age to academic success and personality development. Studies investigating the effect of early entry into first grade on academic achievement have indicated that not only…

The first part of this document presents the results of a survey of early entrance testing procedures in 25 Florida districts and details teacher ratings of 486 first-grade and 154 kindergarten students whose entrance test results had permitted them to enter kindergarten a year earlier than other students with birthdays between October and…

This report presents findings from the first year of a pilot program permitting kindergarten age students to enter school at the first grade level (K-1 program for 5-year-olds). The purposes of the study were: (1) to compare the academic and social behavior of the early admissions (EA) students with that of the regular first graders; (2) to…

Reviews research concerning the effects of retention of kindergarten and first grade students and alternatives to such retention. (BB)

This study investigated outcome data obtained from six samples of primary school students, four of which consisted of at-risk students. Participants were: (1) 46 students from a transitional first-grade, developmental, regular education school readiness program (SRP) for at-risk kindergartners; (2) 20 nonplaced kindergartners who were recommended…