Full-Day vs. Half-Day Kindergarten and Reading Skills in NYC

Introduction

As increasing numbers of affluent parents enroll their children in pre-school programs that offer more than just the traditional "play and supervision" — providing early instruction in basics like reading and math — the question arises as to whether these children are obtaining a competitive edge over their less fortunate peers. While free pre-kindergarten education is rare, many school districts have responded to the needs of working parents by establishing full-day kindergarten programs, while others have continued to maintain the older half-day system. Unfortunately, the newer system, particularly where it includes genuine introductory academic instruction, is expensive and therefore often unavailable in poorer areas.

An excellent example of this situation can be found in New York City's inner-city schools. Here, a largely minority population must often face a shortage of qualified teachers along with a lack of funds, equipment, and supplies. New York uses a standardized achievement test to evaluate its kindergarteners' progress in reading. These test scores provide a benchmark for achievement, but they do not, in and of themselves, address the much deeper question of whether children who attend half-day kindergartens are being shortchanged. It will therefore be the aim of this paper to uncover and document any differences that may exist in the reading skill level of children enrolled in full-time versus part-time kindergarten programs in the City of New York.

Problem Statement

The very first years of life are the formative years. Study after study has shown that children absorb much of what is vital in terms of social behavior and attitudes toward learning before the end of early childhood.

Quality early childcare and education have been documented to have positive short- and long-term effects on children's lives. As Tittnich (1995) notes:

"Children in high quality programs are more social, less aggressive, and have better language and cognitive skills. These children tend to make more friends and do better when they enter elementary school. In subsequent years, school dropout, crime and violence, and juvenile delinquency are less prevalent in children who have attended high quality early childcare programs… Quality of care seems to be the crucial element."

The sooner a child becomes grounded in the basics of reading and writing, the better his or her chances both in school and in later life. While reading comes easily for some, for others it is a lengthy and difficult process requiring a great amount of specialized and personalized attention. In densely populated, often under-resourced urban areas like New York's inner city, children frequently lack the parental support they need to learn and progress at an adequate rate. In such cases, the in-school experience can make all the difference — a good kindergarten program can mean the difference between a child who reads well and one who reads poorly.

The child who leaves kindergarten unable to read properly, or at all, may never be able to catch up with peers and may suffer numerous consequences as a result. The inability to read makes for a poor start on the road of education, and a poor educational foundation can doom a child to a lifetime of dead-end jobs or even to the temptation of gangs and crime. It is essential, therefore, that the differences in achievement between students in full-time and part-time kindergarten programs be thoroughly understood. Does the disadvantaged child who also attends a part-time program suffer serious consequences in later life?

Literature Review

Reading is essential to virtually all other forms of learning and educational development. It is by means of the written word that we record our thoughts and history, and through which we communicate across distances of time and space. Even in today's high-tech world of computers and the Internet, it remains necessary to read what appears on a computer screen, compose coherent replies to email, write and present reports, and follow both simple and complex written instructions. The illiterate person can no more understand a street sign or a map than he or she can comprehend a lengthy manual, a reference work, or even a simple novel. The ability to read rests at the foundation of learning.

Evidence suggests that developmental "spurts" in reflective judgment — that is, critical thinking — may be observed in students within an educational setting. As King and Kitchener (1994) note, these spurts "can lead to higher-order intellectual performance if supported by learning activities that involve practice in using critical-thinking skills."

Reading is fundamental to the development of higher analytical skills because it is, in and of itself, an analytical process. The child who is just beginning to learn to read must first come to understand the abstractions that letters represent — namely, sounds. The student must then comprehend that these "sound pictures," when strung together, can represent spoken words and ideas. Reading comprehension is fundamentally about making sense of abstractions, while writing concerns the capacity to understand the thought process behind the creation of those same abstractions. In putting our thoughts down on paper, or entering them into a computer, we organize them and make them understandable to others.

Even with the multiple media available to today's children and schools, it remains necessary for children to be fully grounded in reading in order to take advantage of all that the world of knowledge offers. The greater the amount of teacher attention and planning — and thus the greater the amount of time spent instructing and guiding the student — the more significant his or her achievements will be. A study by Yetter (1994) illustrated the importance of teaching children analytical skills and highlighted the critical role played by teachers, library media specialists, and principals in developing a child's potential:

"Findings included the recognition of the importance of personal characteristics of the school library media specialist, principals, and teachers. Characteristics of school library media specialists included the following: leadership abilities, including the capacity to envision the resource-based process and connect it to the principal's agenda for restructuring; the willingness to take risks; the ability to teach the principles of resource-based education to teachers and to teach children effectively; and the personal stamina, energy, and enthusiasm to see the resource-based process from development through implementation. Some characteristics of principals included the following: the knowledge to link the resource-based process to other restructuring efforts, plus the abilities to take risks and provide leadership in the school's restructuring effort. Characteristics of teachers included the following: the capacity to understand the significance of the resource-based process and the willingness to plan collaboratively with school library media specialists and to be risk takers."

"Findings also showed that some structural supports must be considered essential elements in resource-based education. These included flexible scheduling to support efforts of school library media specialists and teachers to plan, teach, and evaluate outcomes cooperatively, and sufficient resources for auxiliary personnel, library materials, equipment, and technology."

Children benefit enormously from the structured environment provided by school, and from the experience, knowledge, and coordinating activities of their teachers and instructors. Reading is a doorway to greater discovery and forms the basis of learning even in a society of computers and digital media. The child who lacks sufficient reading skill will find himself or herself unable to undertake many of the more complex tasks of critical thinking, and unable to explore subjects with which he or she has no direct, personal experience.

Conclusion

If the assumption of this study is correct — that children enrolled in full-time kindergartens perform better than those enrolled in part-time programs — it should be reflected in and substantiated by the ECLAS scores of the participating children.

References

"Frequently Asked Questions [Re: ECLAS]." (2003). The New York City Department of Education.

King, Patricia M., and Kitchener, Karen S. (1994). Developing Reflective Judgment: Understanding and Promoting Intellectual Growth and Critical Thinking in Adolescents and Adults. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

"NYC ECLAS-2." (2003). The New York City Department of Education.

Tittnich, Ethel Marie, M.S. (September 1995). "Quality Issues in Day Care." Pittsburgh, PA: Office of Child Development, University of Pittsburgh.

Yetter, Cathleen Langley. (1994). Resource-Based Learning in the Information Age School: The Intersection of Roles and Relationships of the School Library Media Specialist, Teachers, and Principal.