Transition to Kindergarten. Early Childhood Research & Policy Briefs, Volume 2, Number 2
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 463 897 PS 030 342 AUTHOR Pianta, Robert; Cox, Martha TITLE Transition to Kindergarten. Early Childhood Research & Policy Briefs, Volume 2, Number 2. INSTITUTION National Center for Early Development & Learning, Chapel Hill, NC. SPONS AGENCY Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED), Washington, DC. PUB DATE 2002-00-00 NOTE 8p.; For Volume 2, Number 1, see PS 030 341. CONTRACT R307A60004 AVAILABLE FROM Publications Office, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, CB# 8185, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-8185. Tel: 919-966-0867; e-mail: [email protected]. For full text: http://www.ncedl.org. PUB TYPE Reports - Descriptive (141) EDRS PRICE MFO~/PCO~Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Change Strategies; Early Experience; *Educational Policy; Family School Relationship; *Preschool Children; Primary Education; School Readiness; *Student Adjustment; Student Needs; *Transitional Programs IDENTIFIERS *Transitional Activities ABSTRACT The transition to formal schooling is a landmark event for millions of children, but transition practices commonly used may not be well-suited to the needs of children and families. This research and policy brief, a quarterly synthesis of issues addressed by investigators and affiliates of the National Center for Early Development and Learning, focuses on transition activities and policies. The brief examines issues surrounding transition to kindergarten and how U.S. schools support this transition. The brief encourages policy makers to broaden the focus on children's readiness skills to one encompassing the settings that influence those skills--family, peer group, preschool, and school and suggests needed policy changes and factors in need of further research. The brief includes a fact sheet on the transition to kindergarten summarizing the findings of the larger report. (Contains 18 references.) (HTH) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. wQ Transition to Kindergarten. Early Ch ildhood Research and Policy Briefs. Volume 2, Number 2, Winter 2002 Robert Pianta and Martha Cox National Center for Early Development & Learning Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill U.S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Oll.ce 01 Edbcsl.onal Rosearcn and lmplovomenl EDUCATIONAL_~_. RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERlC) originating it. 0 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. ' Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERl position or policy. 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE I- -. 1. * * . :#. el A synthesis of current issues by investigators and affiliates of the National Center for Early Development & Learning prepared for the National Institute on Early Childhood Development & Education indergarten boosting their chances for success in elementary school and beyond. It is imperative to understand and shape the conditions under which families, and educators. But public funds can be best used. research by the National Center In addition, children’s experi- for Early Development & Learning ences prior to kindergarten are (NCEDL) and other investigators different now than they were a indicates that the transition generation ago. Kindergarten practices commonly used in classes are larger and children schools may not be well suited to have to deal with more children the needs of children and families. and more adults than in pre- school. There is increasing What are the issues? emphasis on formal instruction There are several reasons why the and the acquisition of skills. transition to kindergarten and the Maturity demands are greater, early grades of school is impor- such as sitting still for longer tant. periods of time and self-control First, the early elementary and attention. Children usually years, particularly kindergarten, ride the bus without parents and are important in establishing with bigger children for the first competencies critical to children’s time. More children now attend school success and achievement. pre-school or are enrolled in non- These competencies involve child familial care settings that give social and academic skills as well them experiences with peers and as parents’ involvement in the classroom-like environments. education of their children. Second, early childhood How do US schools learning environments are quite support the transition different from traditional elemen- to kindergarten? tary school classroom settings. A national survey of nearly 3,600 Early childhood settings provide kindergarten teachers in late 1996 support for both children and by NCEDL confirmed what had families, recognizing the very been learned in a more limited clear developmental differences survey in 1992. Of the 23 transition between preschool-age children practices listed on the survey, the and school-age children. The majority of teachers reported using entrance to kindergarten is a practices such as: point of considerable change and 3 sending a letter to parents after transition for families, children, the beginning of school. and staff. It is precisely these 3 holding an open house after differences that transition prac- school starts. tices attempt to bridge and 3 sending a brochure home after overcome. school starts. Third, increasingly large The least commonly reported Natfonal Center for>B amounts of public funds are now practices included: Early Development & Leardng dedicated to educating young children with the intent of (see SUPPORT page 2) 3 * .. ”- How should we think about transition? HE FIRST NATIONAL Educational Goal, “by the Year 2000 all children will start school ready to learn,” emphasizes not only child-related skills that pro- mote school success, but also the importance of family, 111111) school, and community-level factors (e.g., access to high- quality preschools) that sup- port the development of Teachers -Peers 11111) Teachers C-----., Peers children’s competencies. School readiness is not a property of a child (View 1 in the figure at right) but is a product of interactions among key settings in which the child Neighborhood- Family -b Neighborhood C------, Family paiticipates (View 2). In our model to the right, Transition has to be understood in terms of the settings that contribute to child the transition to school for a development (e.g., family, classroom, community) and the connections among these settings (e.g., family-school relationships) at any given time and across time. SUPPORT continued from page 1 calling the child before or after Importantly for policymakers, which are reported to be very 9v school starts. we also asked these teachers to helpful. Staff take materials from ?3 visiting the child’s home or identify barriers to what they school to home to demonstrate how - preschool prograrn(s). thought would be better or more to use them with the child. In this These results paint a very clear useful transition practices than the work we have learned that families picture of the typical transition ones they currently employed. and schools strongly value good experience for children and fami- Teachers identified a number of transition experiences that link them lies. They are most likely to receive administrative barriers such as together before the child enters a form letter telling them when receiving class lists too late to school. schools starts, what to bring, and contact families before school, When given the opportunity to that open house is scheduled for absence of a plan for developing think about, plan, and implement some time near the end of Septem- transition policy and practices in high-quality transition practices, ber. They are least likely to get a their district, and a lack of school school staff have been willing and personal call or personalized system support for effective enthusiastic and families have information before school starts. transition. In addition, they noted responded well. Partnerships The most commonly used the lack of funds to support the between families and schools can transition practices by the nations’ time they needed in the summer to be established even before school kindergarten teachers and elemen- conduct good transition practices. starts. In addition, local preschool tary schools, when contrasted with NCEDL staff are working closely staff can meet with staff from the policies and practices recom- with teachers and school staff to elementary schools and begin mended by “Ready Schools,” pub- improve the transition to school in discussions of how to make lished by the National Education several communities across the expectations and learning experi- Goals Panel (1997), can be charac- country. For example, staff meet ences similar across preschool and terized as low intensity, group- with parents and with teachers to kindergarten, thus improving the oriented practices that do little to discuss classroom expectations. They quality of educational experiences involve families and build partner- work to gain the trust of families by for the child in the classroom ships prior to entering school. In home visits and accompany the setting. These collaborations short, schools do too little too late family on school visits. Staff coordi- highlight the importance of to connect with children and nate meetings between the preschool policies that support transition families. teacher and elementary school staff planning among all stakeholders. 4 TRANSITION continued from page 2 given child is not just a matter of that child getting