Teaching Advanced Content in Kindergarten Doesn’t Hinder Students’ Social Skills
January 8, 2019
By: Linda Jacobson
Source: Education Dive
Dive Brief
- In recent years, kindergarten has often been described as the new 1st grade because of the growing emphasis on academic content, particularly math and reading. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, according to a study led by researchers at non-partisan research institution NORC at the University of Chicago.
Dive Insight
- When researchers at Vanderbilt University released findings showing students who attended Tennessee’s state-funded pre-K program were more likely than those who didn’t to be referred to special education, and were just as likely to be retained, they suggested teachers in the early grades might not be building on the knowledge and skills many young children are now bringing into kindergarten with them. “It is doubtful that anything done in pre-k can have sustained effects if the gains made there are not supported and extended in the schooling that follows,” they wrote.