Pre-kindergarten

{{Short description|School program for children before kindergarten}} {{Multiple issues|{{Globalize|date=February 2021}} {{Update|reason=Needs to reflect the history of the subject, as well as more recent developments pertaining to the structure and prevalence of pre-kindergarten programs, particularly subsidized programs|date=July 2024}}}}

thumb|A pre-kindergarten playground {{Childcare}}

'''Pre-kindergarten''' (also called '''pre-K''' or '''PK''') is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://education.seattlepi.com/age-can-start-prek-georgia-5429.html|title=At What Age Can You Start Pre-K in Georgia?|website=Education - Seattle PI}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y1C0DAAAQBAJ|title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of Contemporary Early Childhood Education|first1=Donna|last1=Couchenour|first2=J. Kent|last2=Chrisman|date=16 August 2016|publisher=SAGE Publications|via=Google Books|isbn=9781483340340}}{{pn|date=October 2018}}</ref> It may be delivered through a preschool or within a reception year in elementary school. Pre-kindergartens play an important role in early childhood education. They have existed in the US since 1922, normally run by private organizations. The U.S. Head Start program, the country's first federally funded pre-kindergarten program, was founded in 1967. This attempts to prepare children (especially disadvantaged children) to succeed in school.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Andrews |first1=Shirley P. |last2=Slate |first2=John R. |title=Public and private prekindergarten programs: A comparison of student readiness |journal=Educational Research Quarterly |date=March 2002 |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=59–73 |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/1fd9d6a85609b39e6644082a990af151/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=48020 }}</ref>

== United States ==

As of 2016–17, 44 states, plus the District of Columbia, provide at least some state funding for pre-K programs. Nine states (Colorado, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Oklahoma, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin) plus D.C. include pre-K funding in their school funding formulas.<ref name="Diffey">Louisa Diffey, Emily Parker, and Bruce Atchison, [https://www.ecs.org/wp-content/uploads/State-Pre-K-Funding-2016-17-Fiscal-Year-Trends-and-opportunities-1.pdf State Pre-K Funding 2016-17 Fiscal Year: Trends and Opportunities], Education Commission of the States (January 2017).</ref> Conversely, as of 2016–17, six states (Idaho, Montana, New Hampshire, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Wyoming) provide no state funding for pre-K.<ref name="Diffey"/>

In 2013, Alabama, Michigan, Minnesota, and the city of San Antonio, Texas, enacted or expanded pre-K programs. In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio was elected on a pledge of pre-K for all city children. A poll conducted in 2014 for an early education nonprofit advocate found that 60 percent of registered Republicans and 84 percent of Democrats supported expanding public preschool by raising the federal tobacco tax.<ref name=nyt1402>{{cite news |title=Preschool Push Moving Ahead in Many States |first1=Richard |last1=Pérez-Peña |first2=Motoko |last2=Rich |date=February 3, 2014 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/04/us/push-for-preschool-becomes-a-bipartisan-cause-outside-washington.html |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=October 14, 2018 }}</ref>

Funding for pre-K has proven a substantial obstacle for creating and expanding programs. The issue produced multiple approaches. Several governors and mayors targeted existing budgets. San Antonio increased sales taxes, while Virginia and Maine look to gambling. In Oregon, currently 20% of kids have access to publicly funded pre-K of any kind, and a 2016 campaign is working to fully fund pre-K to 12 education, for all kids whose parents want them to have the option of pre-K.<ref name=nyt1402/><ref name=ffos1>{{cite news|title=Fully Fund Oregon Schools|url=https://fullyfundoregonschools.org|access-date=March 6, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216015435/http://fullyfundoregonschools.org/|archive-date=February 16, 2015}}</ref>

A 2012 review by the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University identified Oklahoma, Georgia and West Virginia as among the leaders in public program quality and fraction of enrolled children. Florida had the highest enrollment in 2012—almost four-fifths of all four-year-olds. About 84 percent were in private, religion-based or family centers. That state's preschool programs did not fare well on quality measures. Other states with more than 50 percent enrollment included Wisconsin, Iowa, Texas and Vermont.<ref name=nyt1402/>

In 2002, Florida voters enacted a state constitutional amendment requiring that the state establish a free voluntary pre-kindergarten (VPK) program for all four-year-old children by fall 2005.<ref name="Bassok">Daphna Bassok, Luke C. Miller, Eva Galdo, & Amanda J. Johnson, [http://curry.virginia.edu/uploads/resourceLibrary/EdPolicyWorks-Report-FL-VPK.pdf Florida's Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program: An Overview of the Largest State Pre-School Program in the Nation], EdPolicyWorks Report, University of Virginia Curry School of Education/Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy].</ref> Florida's program is the largest state-level preschool program in the nation.<ref name="Bassok"/> It is universal, meaning that all children are eligible so long as they meet the age and residency requirement.<ref name="Bassok"/> In the 2013-14 school year, 80% of VPK programs were housed at private centers, 18% were housed at public schools, 1% were housed at family daycares, and 1% were housed at private schools.<ref name="Bassok"/> The program resulted in an increase in pre-k participation, which was about 80% in 2014.<ref name="Bassok"/> The program has suffered a decline in funding; in 2019, the ''Orlando Sentinel'' editorial board wrote that the Florida Legislature "has neglected the pre-K program almost since it was approved by voters."<ref>[https://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/editorials/fl-op-pre-k-declines-florida-constitutional-amendments-20190528-evzg4q3u6ja3ta2awf3nniailm-story.html Editorial: Pre-K failures are a sign of the Florida Legislature’s contempt for citizen initiatives], ''Orlando Sentinel'' (May 28, 2019).</ref>

== Impact ==

According to a 2024 review published in ''Science'',<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Burchina |first1=Margaret |last2=Whitaker |first2=Anamarie |last3=Jenkins |first3=Jade |last4=Bailey |first4=Drew |last5=Watts |first5=Tyler |last6=Duncan |first6=Greg |last7=Hart |first7=Emma |date=2024 |title=Unsettled science on longer-run effects of early education |url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adn2141 |journal=Science |language=en |volume=384 |issue=6695 |pages=506–508 |doi=10.1126/science.adn2141 |pmid=38696579 |bibcode=2024Sci...384..506B |issn=0036-8075 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240502185921/https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adn2141 |archive-date=2 May 2024|url-access=subscription }}</ref> research on the effectiveness of pre-K programs have had mixed results.<ref name=":2" /> While some studies purported to show positive results, these were based upon non-random-assignment methods and are limited. Lottery based studies have generally found pre-K programs had null results.<ref name=":2" />

A randomized control found that children randomly assigned to undertake full-day pre-K had substantially greater outcomes in cognition, literacy, math, and physical development, at the end of pre-K, than their peers who were randomly assigned to undertake half-day pre-K.<ref>{{Cite thesis|title=The Effects of Full-day Pre-kindergarten: Experimental Evidence of Impacts on Children's School Readiness|url=http://www.edworkingpapers.com/ai19-79|publisher=Annenberg Institute at Brown University|date=2019-06-07|language=en|first=Vivian C.|last=Wong}}</ref>{{Non-primary source needed|date=March 2025}} A longitudinal randomized control study of 2,990 low-income children in Tennessee found that "children randomly assigned to attend pre-K had lower state achievement test scores in third through sixth grades than control children, with the strongest negative effects in sixth grade. A negative effect was also found for disciplinary infractions, attendance, and receipt of special education services, with null effects on retention."<ref>{{cite journal | doi=10.1037/dev0001301 | title=Effects of a statewide pre-kindergarten program on children's achievement and behavior through sixth grade| journal=Developmental Psychology | year=2022 | last1=Durkin | first1=Kelley | last2=Lipsey | first2=Mark| last3=Farran| first3=Dale| last4=Wiesen| first4=Sarah| volume=58| issue=3| pages=470–484| pmid=35007113| pmc=9716729}}</ref>{{Non-primary source needed|date=March 2025}}

The Perry Preschool Project was a study on the impact of pre-kindergarten programs on outcomes for disadvantaged youth. The availability of high-quality pre-kindergarten education was found to have a statistically significant association with higher high school graduation rates, lower crime rates, lower teen pregnancy rates, and better economic outcomes in adulthood.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://youth.gov/content/perry-preschool-project|title=Perry Preschool Project|website=youth.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite report| author= Greg Parks |url=https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/181725.pdf |publisher= U.S. Department of Justice |title=The High/Scope Perry Preschool Project}}</ref>

== Children of immigrants ==

The US Census Bureau forecast that the foreign-born population in the United States would make up 19% of the US population by 2060 (up from 13% in 2014).<ref>Colby, S. & Ortman, J. (2014). Projections of the Size and Composition of the U.S. Population: 2014 to 2060. Current Population Reports, P25-1143. U.S. Census Bureau.</ref> Children of immigrant families face special challenges.

=== Cultural values and childcare options ===

Children of immigrants represent the fastest growing US population. Asians and Latinos are the two largest racial groups. Like all families, immigrants have choices when pursuing childcare options. Cultural differences shape childcare choices, such as attitudes towards early academic development. These differences help explain certain irregular childcare options. Compared to Latino immigrant groups, Asians are more likely than Latinos to enroll their children in pre-kindergarten programs due to the inclusion of academics.<ref name="auto">{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.childyouth.2013.04.024 |title=Predictors of early care and education type among preschool-aged children in immigrant families: The role of region of origin and characteristics of the immigrant experience |journal=Children and Youth Services Review |volume=35 |issue=9 |pages=1342–1355 |year=2013 |last1=Miller |first1=Portia |last2=Votruba-Drzal |first2=Elizabeth |last3=Coley |first3=Rebekah Levine }}</ref> The focus of pre-academic school readiness is important to Asian parents. Latino immigrant parents generally opt for more informal childcare options, such as parental, relative or non-relative in-home care.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.1747-7379.2007.00060.x |title=Early Child Care and the School Readiness of Children from Mexican Immigrant Families |journal=International Migration Review |volume=41 |pages=152–181 |year=2018 |last1=Crosnoe |first1=Robert |s2cid=146434326 }}</ref> This is due in part to the opinion that academic skills are to be taught through formal instruction after children enter primary school.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1177/0002716208322765 |title=Disparities in the Educational Success of Immigrants: An Assessment of the Immigrant Effect for Asians and Latinos |journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science |volume=620 |pages=90–114 |year=2008 |last1=Harris |first1=Angel L. |last2=Jamison |first2=Kenneth M. |last3=Trujillo |first3=Monica H. |s2cid=144186529 }}</ref> While Latino families value the acquisition of academic skills, the in-home childcare choice reflects the importance of cultural and linguistic values and traditional family dynamics. Parents with limited English proficiency are more likely to choose parental or in-home care instead of pre-kindergarten programs.<ref name="auto" />

=== Barriers ===

According to information from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), low-income immigrant families are less likely to use center-based childcare, such as pre-kindergarten, than children of non-immigrants.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.0020-7985.2004.00274.x |title=The Child Care Arrangements of Preschool-Age Children in Immigrant Families in the United States |journal=International Migration |volume=42 |pages=65–87 |year=2004 |last1=Brandon |first1=Peter D. }}</ref> While some Latino families prefer in-home childcare, many report wanting to enroll their children in a pre-kindergarten program. Interviews with immigrant mothers revealed common motivations for seeking pre-kindergarten placements for their children, including maternal employment, opportunity to learn English and social and emotional development.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.ecresq.2013.02.001 |title=Low-income African and Latina immigrant mothers' selection of early childhood care and education (ECCE): Considering the complexity of cultural and structural influences |journal=Early Childhood Research Quarterly |volume=28 |issue=3 |pages=470–486 |year=2013 |last1=Vesely |first1=Colleen K. }}</ref> Obstacles immigrant mothers reported facing included high cost, long wait-lists, a need to provide documentation (especially for illegal aliens and those who lacked English-language proficiency) and a lack of information regarding eligibility for subsidized programs. On average, immigrants tend to experience higher poverty rates due to low wages, less education and a lack of English proficiency.

=== Benefits ===

While many children benefit from pre-kindergarten and early childhood education, immigrant children, particularly those from lower socio-economic households, stand to benefit the most. Studies show that first and second-generation immigrants lag behind children of non-immigrant families in cognitive and language skills.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/j.ecresq.2009.07.004 |title=The early developmental competencies and school readiness of low-income, immigrant children: Influences of generation, race/ethnicity, and national origins |journal=Early Childhood Research Quarterly |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=411–431 |year=2009 |last1=De Feyter |first1=Jessica Johnson |last2=Winsler |first2=Adam }}</ref> Pre-K's focus on cognitive, social, emotional and physical development would address these skills and reduce the inequalities in school readiness between children from immigrant and non-immigrant families. Educators must be sensitive to sensitivities of immigrant groups regarding the acquisition of the English language versus their native-language. Pre-K could help children build either or both skills. For most US students, English fluency is essential.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/fare.12171 |pmid=30853737 |title=Family Socioeconomic Status, Immigration, and Children's Transitions into School |journal=Family Relations |volume=65 |pages=73–84 |year=2016 |last1=Crosnoe |first1=Robert |last2=Ansari |first2=Arya |issue=1 |pmc=6405210 }}</ref>

== See also ==

* Balwadi * Forest kindergarten * Transitional kindergarten * Pre-school playgroup—a related type of establishment found in the United Kingdom

==References==

==External links==

* [http://www.researchconnections.org Child Care & Early Education Research Connections]

Category:Childhood Category:Early childhood education in the United States Category:Educational stages Category:Educational years Category:School types Category:Kindergarten Category:Preschools