Kindergarten has become a skill-based, academically oriented program. Readiness test scores are often used to determine which children need extra time or special programs, although this practice can be challenged on legal and ethical grounds. Many experts agree that kindergarten experience should be intellectually stimulating rather than…

The Ready School, a concept endorsed by the National Education Goals Panel, focuses on getting schools ready for children to supplement the traditional approach of getting children ready for school. The author cites 10 qualities associated with Ready Schools and describes the eight-dimension Ready School Assessment project now being tested by the…

In "Ready to Learn: A Mandate for the Nation," Ernest L. Boyer examines the challenges posed by the school readiness national goal. The seven-step strategy for achieving this goal includes a healthy start, empowered parents, quality preschool experience, a responsive workplace, television as teacher, neighborhoods for learning, and…

Teachers and longitudinal researchers have observed that the long-term benefits of participating in a quality early childhood program are more social than academic. Early childhood is a unique stage of life, not an opportunity for intervention and remediation. Kindergarten and first-grade environments should be flexible, activity-oriented, and…

Although implementing the school readiness goal is clearly a shared responsibility of parents, schools, and community, activities beyond the schoolhouse must be matched by internal school efforts, including accessing knowledge and attitudes; evaluating existing strategies in training, screening, testing, service linkages, and classroom practices;…

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)

A recent U.S. Department of Education survey correlated sociodemographic risk factors associated with children's learning problems with accomplishments and difficulties children bring to kindergarten. Family risk factors included mother with less than a high school education, family below the poverty line, unmarried or non-English-speaking mother,…

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…

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…

The Santa Clara (CA) transition project is a collaborative effort between the county's Head Start program and a San Jose school district. The program provides teacher training, transition activities, developmentally appropriate practices, comprehensive family services, and parent involvement opportunities. During 1994-95, the project is working…