Gathering Places
Gathering Places
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One lost year, a lifetime
of lost potentialCurrent brain-development research shows us that a child's cognitive and emotional potential is formed primarily between birth and age 5. Pushing back the entrance age for kindergarten without provision for a quality alternative such as universal preschool is not in the best interests of children or working families.
Senate Bill 2032, which would raise the minimum age for entering kindergarten, is regressive and undermines working parents. Hawaii, as one of about 15 states that have universal full-day kindergarten, is recognized as a national leader in kindergarten access. More states are trying to go in this direction. Full-day kindergarten is more necessary than ever because of what is required of children in elementary education --high-stakes testing in Grade 3 -- not to mention to help working families ensure children are stimulated during the most critical learning years.
One of the national authorities on this whole set of issues is New York's venerable Foundation for Child Development. In an October 2001 paper, "Kindergarten: The Overlooked School Year," author Sara Vecchiotti says that both schools and parents sometimes delay children's entrance into kindergarten for a year (most likely for summer children), a practice called red-shirting.
This practice is based on the belief that children need extra time to mature, and that older children adjust better to the demands of kindergarten than younger children. Research does not support these beliefs. Extra time to mature or additional educational experience (retention or transitional kindergarten) does not result in an academic boost. While older children do initially perform better academically, these positive outcomes are limited and fade out in the early grades.
Retaining children in kindergarten also can hurt their social and emotional development.
The reasons why children are judged "not ready" for school will not be resolved by holding them out of kindergarten for a year. Doing so robs children of a critical opportunity to learn, especially since many child care places/arrangements are of poor quality.
Pushing the kindergarten entrance age back is pushing kids further out of critical developmental windows.
Rep. Norman Sakamoto, the author of SB 2032, needs to know that when states push back eligibility birth dates, it is purely an economic measure.
Most of the other states have low requirements primarily for economic reasons. Historically kindergartens were full-day, but were cut back during the Depression and other economic declines.
Why do we find that New Mexico, a conservative state with high poverty rates and a maverick governor, passed legislation two years ago to implement full-day kindergarten and is funding it over other priorities?
Why is Oklahoma funding full-day kindergarten next year, after funding universal preschool for many years?
Why would Hawaii want to go backward when it comes to educating children?
We seem to be ignoring the fact that money saved in kindergarten enrollments is short term because we will pay dearly for remediation when children begin failing socially and academically because of a lack of attention in the early years.
Yes, it is true that children are not living up to the expectations of kindergarten, but this problem will NOT be solved by holding a cohort of kids back for a year. A 2000 study by Kaufman, Pianta and Cox reports that 46 percent or more of all children had specific problems transitioning to kindergarten.
The readiness issue is not endemic to the youngest children. It may be symptomatic of unrealistic expectations for all kindergartners; a need for improved continuity between early education and kindergarten; or a confusion as to the respective learning objectives of pre-k and kindergarten.
It also is true that work is needed during kindergarten to address inequalities in skills, but more time is needed in kindergarten, not less. And children need earlier access to learning opportunities, rather than later.
Donna L. Ching is a management consultant specializing in early childhood issues. She now is overseeing a federal program for pre-kindergarten Hawaiian children.
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