Kindergarten called key tokids’ success

Tuesday, July 16, 2002 | 11:03 a.m.

Children from America's poorest neighborhoods would have a better chance at success in school if they attended an extra four months of kindergarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers said Monday.

The "Kindergarten-Plus" initiative would be a "down payment" on a universal early childhood education system, said Sandra Feldman, president of the 1.4 million-member union.

But Feldman readily admits there is no money on the table for such an initiative, either at the state or federal levels. The AFT is trying to gauge support from both its members and the public before taking its proposal to Congress, she said.

The Nevada Board of Education has proposed an all-day kindergarten program as part of a $875 million statewide initiative. Under the AFT plan, disadvantaged students would begin kindergarten in the summer two months earlier than their peers, and continue for two months longer the following summer, Feldman said.

The Kindergarten-Plus proposal would be in addition to federal Head Start programs already in place for young children from low-income backgrounds, Feldman said. Usually beginning the year before kindergarten, Head Start activities include school readiness, as well as immunizations, health and nutritional services.

Agustin Orci, deputy superintendent of instruction for the Clark County School District, agreed that additional kindergarten class time would likely help many of the Las Vegas Valley's youngest residents. The school district already has several full-day kindergarten programs in place as pilot studies and would offer more if the district could afford it, Orci said.

"As usual, it all comes down to money," Orci said. "There's no shortage of great ideas, just the cash to implement them."

Children from poor families are more likely to struggle in kindergarten if their parents are high school dropouts or if their primary language isn't English, according a study by the National Center for Education Statistics. Disadvantaged children often come to kindergarten unable to recite the alphabet or count to 20, and are more likely to be in poorer health than their peers, according to the study.

Kindergarten teachers are among the most dedicated professionals in the education field, but even the most seasoned classroom veteran can only do so much, Feldman said.

"Although poor children make huge strides during kindergarten, other children are not standing still," said Feldman, noting that more affluent students often spend the summer months in enrichment programs and summer camps.

There are an estimated 580,000 5-year-olds from low-income families who are not involved in a summer enrichment program, according to the AFT. To start, the Kindergarten-Plus program would be offered to the students in the bottom quartile -- about 145,000 children. The cost would be about $285 million per year, a "drop in the bucket" compared with some federal subsidies, Feldman said.

The AFT's proposal of a year-round program makes sense, Orci said. It's one of the reasons 12-month schools have won supporters, Orci said.

"With a year-round schedule, you're avoiding that three-month gap," Orci said. "When you have a child who is already behind, the effects of that gap are certainly more pronounced."