Who's Ready for Whom and When?

States designate an arbitrary cut-off date to create consistency in school entry practices. If a child reaches a certain age by the cut-off date (usually five for kindergarten and six for first grade), a child may begin school. However, cut-off dates vary considerably across states. In addition, age is not the best or most accurate way to determine how well a child will adjust to school. In fact, research indicates that there is little relationship between school entry age and later school success for children who are within a few months of the normal school entry date . However, these policies are relatively fair because all students are treated equally.

It is difficult, though, to imagine that all entering kindergarten students will have similar skills and needs. Often school districts and communities hold kindergarten screening programs designed to help parents determine if their child is "ready" for school and to identify problems in development that might warrant attention or extra services. In spite of of the kindergarten screening programs, young children are very difficult to evaluate accurately, owing to their rapid development, short attention spans, and often inconsistent performance on demand. Children also may be entering the school system with, for instance, varying language abilities, varying cultural heritages, and different preschool experiences.

Furthermore, because it is normal for children to learn different skills at different rates, it is inappropriate to judge school readiness based on one standard set of skills and abilities. While schools may reasonably expect that children enter kindergarten as active, curious, and eager learners, it is not reasonable to expect that all five-year-olds have the same level of preparation for early reading, math, and social skills, or have the same attention spans or motor dexterity. It is the school's job to teach children at their own level and to meet each child's needs, not the child's job to meet the school's expectations upon entry. School readiness should signify the need for educators to be ready for the child as much as it has come to signify the child's need to be ready for the school.

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