ED438089 PS028294
Title:
America's Kindergartners: Findings from the Early Childhood Longitudinal
Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99, Fall 1998.
Author(s):: West, Jerry; Denton, Kristin; Germino-Hausken,
Elvie
Author Affiliation: National Center for Education Statistics
(ED), Washington, DC.(EDD00004)
Pages: 126
Publication Date: February 2000
Report No: NCES-2000-070
Available from: EDRS Price MF01/PC06 Plus Postage.
Availability: ED Pubs, P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398.
Tel: 877-433-7827 (Toll-Free); Web site: http://nces.ed.gov. For
full text: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/index.asp.
Language: English
Document Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data (110); Reports--Research
(143)
Geographic Source: U.S.; District of Columbia
Journal Announcement: RIEJUL2000
The Early
Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99, began
following a nationally representative sample of approximately 22,000
kindergartners in the fall of 1998. Baseline data about these children,
their families, and the kindergarten programs were collected from
telephone interviews with the children's parents/guardians and from
self-administered questionnaires completed by the kindergarten teachers.
Data were also gathered during an individual assessment with each
child. The study assessed the children's cognitive skills and knowledge,
social skills, physical health and well-being, approaches to learning,
and the children's family environment. Among the findings were the
following: (1) in reading, mathematics, and general knowledge, older
kindergartners outperform younger kindergartners; (2) children's
performance increases with the level of their mothers' education;
(3) kindergartners from two-parent families are more likely to score
in the highest quartile than children from single-mother families,
although some with single mothers also score in this quartile, and
some from two-parent families score in the lowest quartile; (4)
for the most part, children exhibit a high incidence of prosocial
behaviors; (6) reports of children's problem behaviors vary by race/ethnicity
and by whether the teacher or parent is rating the child; (7) kindergartners
are generally healthy, although their general health differs by
their family type, level of mothers' education, and whether or not
the family uses public assistance; (8) in terms of children's approach
to learning, both parents and teachers report that girls persist
at tasks more often than boys, older kindergartners persist more
often than younger ones, and children not at risk persist more often
than children at risk for school difficulty; (9) the majority of
parents report having more than 25 children's books in the home;
and (10) black children are more likely than white, Asian, or Hispanic
children to receive before- and/or after-school care. Findings indicate
that while first-time kindergartners are similar in many ways, differences
exist in children's skills and knowledge in relation to their characteristics,
background, and experiences. The study will continue to follow the
cohort through their fifth-grade year. (Contains 56 references.)
(HTH)
Descriptors: *Child Health; *Cognitive Development; Cognitive
Style; Family Environment; Kindergarten; *Kindergarten Children;
Longitudinal Studies; Parent Attitudes; Primary Education; *Social
Development; Teacher Attitudes; Well Being
