What if my child enrolls school too late?
[mme_highlight] For children with adequate development, neither delayed nor early entrance into kindergarten has been shown to yield substantial differences regarding academic success after the first few years of school. Nevertheless, some results show that children who enroll kindergarten later may perform slightly better on some tests over time. [/mme_highlight]
Many parents pose a difficult question when the time of school entry comes: should they enroll their children in kindergarten as soon as they become age-eligible or may it be beneficial to academic success to wait an additional year? In fact, chronological age at entrance of kindergarten is many times considered by parents and teachers as a major determinant of future academic success achievement.
However, if a child entries kindergarten later because of poor readiness due to risk factors such as poverty, low maternal education, single parent status or minority status. Age of entry to school is also in the centre of some government policies.
The exact age of enrollment in kindergarten varies around the world. In most European countries, like Switzerland and German, as well as in Australia, Japan and Russia, children enter kindergarten at 6. In Sweden, children enter school at the age of 7 and in England between 4 and 5 years of age. Differently, in New Zealand children begin school on their fifth birthday, rather than on a specific uniform date in September or October.
What is redshirting?
Redshirting refers to a voluntary delay in kindergarten entrance. The term has its roots on a practice used by athletes to prolong their eligibility for another season. About 10% of American parents defer their children’s kindergarten entry.
This occurs more frequently Children whose birthdays are closest to the cutoff, Caucasian children, boys and children from high-income families are most likely to be held back from kindergarten by parents (redshirting).
According to the National Centre for Education Statistics, approximately 9% of kids have a delayed school entrance. In addition, a report from 2007 in the US has shown that this delayed entrance occurs with about 14% of children between 5 and 6 years of age.
What is the balance between benefits and possible harms in a delayed enrollment?
For children with adequate development, neither delayed nor early entrance into kindergarten has been shown to yield substantial differences regarding academic success after the first few years of school.
Nevertheless, data from a study conducted by Rand Corporation in 2005 suggested that children who entered kindergarten one year later scored better in reading tests. However, this conclusion can be biased, because those children had one more year of life experience and may be better prepared because they had an extra year in preschool. In addition, it should be noted that this difference is likely to disappear overtime.
An interesting study conducted by NICHD (Early Child Care Research Network) analyzed data from more than 900 children with the goal of understanding the effect of age of entry to kindergarten on children’s functioning in early elementary school. Children’s academic achievement and socioemotional development were evaluated repeatedly from 54 months of age through 3rd grade.
Results show that age of entry proved to be significantly related to three measures of children’s estimated functioning in the fall of their kindergarten year: Letter-word recognition test, Language and Literacy and Mathematical Thinking scales.
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Although the effect size is little, age of entry proved also to be significantly related over time to four measures: Letter-word recognition test, applied problems test, Memory for sentences and Picture vocabulary test.
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Summary
- Age of school entry should not be regarded as a major determinant of children’s later academic success.
- Most research findings demonstrated that, in itself, entrance age was not a good predictor of learning or academic risk. Nevertheless, some results show that children who enroll kindergarten later may perform slightly better on some tests over time.
- Empiric evidence supports the enrollment of children in kindergarten at the age-appropriate time (which varies from country to country).
- If there is concern about a child’s school readiness, parents should discuss it with teachers and health care providers.
- The decision of age of enrollment of children in kindergarten must be centered on each child and should balance costs of one more year of childcare and a marginal benefit for those children who have one more year of preschool preparation.
- Keep in mind that a child whose entrance is delayed for one year may eventually be ahead in the class, but probably knows less than children of the same age who are in the next grade.
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References
- Stephanie Pappas, “More Parents ‘Redshirting’ Kindergartners”,Live Science, 5 September 2010.
- Winsler A, Hutchison LA, De Feyter JJ et al. Child, family, and childcare predictors of delayed school entry and kindergarten retention among linguistically and ethnically diverse children. Dev Psychol. 2012 Sep;48(5):1299-314.
- NICHD Early Child Care Research Network. Age of Entry to Kindergarten and Children’s Academic Achievement and Socioemotional Development. Early Educ Dev 2007; 18:337.
- Morrison FJ, Griffith EM, Alberts DM. Nature-nurture in the classroom: entrance age, school readiness, and learning in children. Dev Psychol 1997; 33:254.
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