About two-thirds of California\u2019s 3- to 5-year-olds are on track to enter kindergarten, according to new federal data. But being ready for school involves a lot more than a child\u2019s ability to count or recite their ABCs.<\/p>\n
The effort to get a snapshot of kindergarten readiness is part of the National Survey of Children\u2019s Health<\/a>, which collected information from thousands of parents and guardians about their child in five areas \u2014 early learning, motor skills, social-emotional development, self-regulation and health. The goal was to answer an overall question: Is your child ready for school?<\/p>\n Readiness in California is on par with the nation\u2019s average, which also puts kindergarten readiness at two-thirds of 3- to 5-year-olds. But immense disparities exist. The gap in kindergarten readiness between the poorest families and the wealthiest is approximately 20%. <\/p>\n While there\u2019s growing interest in assessing school readiness<\/a>, education experts differ on what to measure and how. And some dispute whether children should be ready for school or if schools should be better prepared to address the needs of kindergartners. <\/p>\n Despite the complexities, what a young child learns before they enter classrooms can set the course for the rest of their academic career, experts said.<\/p>\n What is kindergarten readiness?<\/p>\n Kindergarten readiness encompasses the foundational skills<\/a> necessary to engage in a more formal learning environment, said Ohio State University educational psychology professor Laura Justice. <\/p>\n Although there is not a universal definition, many experts and educators rely on guidance from the bipartisan National Education Goals Panel, which has criteria<\/a> similar to the questions asked by the federal survey. <\/p>\n School readiness is a relatively new concept, with the panel\u2019s guidelines emerging in the 1990s. Historically, there weren\u2019t many expectations for children entering kindergarten, although some students \u2014 typically from higher-income families \u2014 arrived in classrooms with more advanced skills than others, said Robert Crosnoe, a sociology professor at the University of Texas at Austin. That meant states had to provide enriching learning opportunities before children set foot in a kindergarten classroom \u2014 so they could learn not only their ABCs but also skills such as carrying on a conversation and problem-solving during playtime.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we just focus on those strictly academic things, it\u2019s only going to get us so far,\u201d Crosnoe said.<\/p>\n Is your child ready for kindergarten? It\u2019s not an easy answer <\/p>\n There are a few ways to measure readiness<\/a>, but each method has its drawbacks, said Jill Cannon, a senior policy researcher at global policy think tank Rand. <\/p>\n Parents can answer questions about their child \u2014 such as in the National Survey of Children\u2019s Health \u2014 but can be biased or misinterpret questions, especially if English isn\u2019t their first language. Teachers can assess children instead, but interpretations of a child\u2019s behavior can often depend on the teacher who is doing the assessment.<\/p>\n When to measure readiness can also be a factor.<\/p>\n A child\u2019s age when they enter kindergarten, typically at age 5, can influence readiness, as children who are several months older are often in the same class with younger 5-year-olds.<\/p>\n \u201cSix months now to me means nothing, but back then \u2026 I had a lot of learning to do. I grew a lot,\u201d Cannon said. \u201cThese kids, they grow a lot over the kindergarten year.\u201d<\/p>\n How to prepare your child <\/p>\n If your child is scheduled for a kindergarten readiness assessment, don\u2019t worry. Most experts agree that readiness tests are important in identifying what supports kids will need.<\/p>\n When it comes to social-emotional readiness, most children often catch up within the first month or two if they don\u2019t come in ready, said transitional kindergarten teacher Amy DiStefano, who also taught kindergarten for 22 years. Based on guidance from the National Education Goals Panel, kindergartners should be able to take turns and cooperate. They should also be able to understand others\u2019 emotions and express their own feelings. <\/p>\n DiStefano, who teaches at Taper Avenue Elementary in San Pedro, said she evaluates kindergarten readiness based on students\u2019 ability to follow one-step directions and their ability to communicate among themselves and with adults, especially when it comes to problem-solving, sharing and asking for help. <\/p>\n Readiness can be observed in different ways, UC Berkeley education professor emeritus Bruce Fuller said. Pre-literacy skills and math concepts can be important for school districts and policymakers as children get ready to begin state testing in later years. Teachers often look at a child\u2019s classroom behavior: Do they raise their hand, stand in line? For parents, the ability to make friends and use cooperative skills can be vital. <\/p>\n Benchmarks from the National Education Goals Panel indicate that children should have awareness of sounds and letters, understand how a story works and be able to represent ideas through drawings. They should be curious and persistent on tasks, have gross and fine motor skills and a concept of numbers.<\/p>\n \u201cEarly learning activities in the home, the complexity of language that families use, the quality of pre-K \u2014 all these drive a huge difference in the pace of the child\u2019s development,\u201d Fuller said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t mean that certain kids won\u2019t catch up, but on average, kids that are not ready for school \u2014 kids that are not developing at typical rates \u2014 are likely to fall further behind in elementary school.\u201d<\/p>\n How is kindergarten readiness measured in California?<\/p>\n California doesn\u2019t have a statewide assessment to evaluate kindergarten readiness. <\/p>\n To truly assess kindergarten readiness, the approach would have to be holistic \u2014 and as a result, costly. Early childhood advocates in California tend to err on the side of limiting testing as well, Fuller said.<\/p>\n \u201cChildren\u2019s advocates rightly point to kids\u2019 emotional happiness, well-being and social skills as the foundation,\u201d Fuller said. \u201cAssessing social and emotional dimensions of growth is an inexact science. We could assess all 4-year-olds, but we might not be measuring the right thing.\u201d<\/p>\n Teachers, however, are able to monitor their children and adapt activities to encourage development in appropriate ways, said Gennie Gorback, president-elect of the California Kindergarten Assn.<\/p>\n \u201cTeachers, especially kindergarten teachers, are so good at meeting children where they are, assessing them and knowing what their needs are and preparing activities and lessons, surrounding where they need to grow,\u201d Gorback said.<\/p>\n How to boost kindergarten readiness<\/p>\n Research suggests that attending a high-quality preschool program<\/a> is one of the best ways to boost kindergarten readiness.<\/p>\n However, preschool curricula vary vastly across the U.S., with some prioritizing certain development areas, such as literacy. And the quality of preschool can vary drastically.<\/p>\n In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom recently oversaw the expansion of transitional kindergarten, which sought to provide all 4-year-olds with free early childhood education in public schools. It has provided children with \u201cthe gift of time,\u201d to develop their social-emotional skills in preparation for kindergarten, Gorback said.<\/p>\n But some kindergarten expectations are getting pushed to the younger grade level, including social-emotion development, she said.<\/p>\n Some measures of preschool quality are universal. Many early childhood education experts rely on the National Institute for Early Education Research\u2019s 10 quality benchmarks<\/a> to make broad assessments in all states that offer public preschool programs. Parents can use the standards as a guide for choosing a preschool that\u2019s most likely to help prepare their child for the next step. <\/p>\n