NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS

Statistical Analysis Report February 2000

Early Childhood Longitudinal Study - Kindergarten

Class of 1998-99, Fall 1998

America's Kindergartners

Jerry West, Project Officer

National Center for Education Statistics

Kristin Denton

Education Statistics Services Institute

Elvira Germino-Hausken

National Center for Education Statistics

U.S. Department of Education

Office of Educational Research and Improvement NCES 2000-070
ii

U.S. Department of Education

Richard W. Riley

Secretary

Office of Educational Research and Improvement

C. Kent McGuire

Assistant Secretary

National Center for Education Statistics

Gary W. Phillips

Acting Commissioner

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting, analyzing, and

reporting data related to education in the United States and other nations. It fulfills a congressional mandate to

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NCES activities are designed to address high priority education data needs; provide consistent, reliable, complete,

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February 2000

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Suggested Citation

U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics. America's Kindergartners, NCES 2000-070,

by Kristin Denton, Elvira Germino-Hausken. Project Officer, Jerry West, Washington, DC: 2000.

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iii

Acknowledgments

Many individuals and organizations have contributed to the design and conduct of the Early Childhood

Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K). While it is not possible to name all the

individuals who have helped to move the ECLS-K from an idea to the completion of two rounds of data

collection, we would like to acknowledge some of the individuals and organizations who have played a

significant role in the ECLS-K.

First, we would like to thank the 20,000 kindergarten children and their parents who participated during

the base year of the study. We would also like to thank the more than 3,000 kindergarten teachers in

1,000 schools across the United States who found the time in their busy schedules to complete a battery of

survey instruments. We would like to thank the administrators of these schools for allowing us to work

with their children, teachers and parents, and for providing us with information about their schools. We

are especially appreciative of the assistance we received from Chief State School Officers, district

superintendents and staff, and private school officials.

Westat, Incorporated—in affiliation with the Institute for Social Research and the School of Education at

the University of Michigan, and the Educational Testing Service, under the direction of the National

Center for Education Statistics (NCES)—conducted the base-year study. Karen Tourangeau of Westat

directed the base-year study, managing the many facets of this complex study. Michael Brick and John

Burke of Westat designed the school, child and teacher samples. Rick Dulaney and Annell Bond of

Westat provided leadership to the programming and data processing tasks. Nick Zill made many

contributions to the study instruments and to increasing the user-friendliness of the ECLS-K data files.

We wish to thank Don Rock, Judy Pollack and other staff members at the Educational Testing Service for

the many contributions they have made to the ECLS-K direct child assessment battery. Our thanks also

go to Sam Meisels and Sally Atkins-Burnett and others in the School of Education at the University of

Michigan for their contributions to the ECLS-K direct child assessment and for their work in developing

indirect measures of children's social and cognitive development.

We thank Steven Ingels and his staff at the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) for the

contributions they made to the design of the ECLS-K. We wish to acknowledge the work of Thomas

Hoffer, Leslie Scott, Susan Dauber, Martin Frankel and Diana Jergovic. We also wish to thank Norman

Bradburn of NORC and Janellen Huttenlocher and Susan Levine of the University of Chicago for their

work on the ECLS-K design and instruments.

We would like to acknowledge the contributions that Child Trends, and especially Kris Moore and

Jennifer Manlove, made to the parent interviews. We are grateful to Nancy Karweit, Johns Hopkins

University, for her advice on the study design and for her work on the study questionnaires.

We would like to acknowledge the guidance and support we have received from NCES. We thank Gary

Phillips, Acting Commissioner, and Val Plisko, Associate Commissioner, for their time and efforts. We

would also like to thank two former NCES Commissioners, Pat Forgione and Emerson Elliott, for their

support during the design phase of the project and former Associate Commissioners Marty Orland, Paul

Planchon, and Jeanne Griffith. Jeffrey Owings, Acting Commissioner, provided support and sound advice

throughout the developmental phase of the study and during the early days of the base-year study. His

experience on prior longitudinal studies was an invaluable resource.
iv

We wish to thank and acknowledge the support that we have received from the Head Start Bureau of the

Administration on Children, Youth and Families, the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department

of Agriculture, the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development and the U.S. Department

of Education's Office of Special Education Programs, Office of Bilingual Education and Minority

Language, Affairs and Planning and Evaluation Service.

Jonaki Bose of NCES has made many contributions to the study, especially in the areas of sampling, data

file preparation and dissemination. We also want to thank our former colleague DeeAnn Brimhall for her

contributions and hard work during the early days of the ECLS-K and during the design and field-test

period.

Several staff members of the Educational Statistical Services Institute have made many contributions to

the ECLS-K and to ensuring the quality of the data that are collected and stored. We thank Amy

Rathbun, Jill Walston, Nikkita Taylor and Liza Reaney for their hard work and dedication.

The authors wish to thank NCES staff members for their comments and suggestions on earlier drafts of

this report, including Jeffrey Owings, Marilyn McMillen and Steve Gorman. The report was also

reviewed by Sue Bredekamp of Child Development Associates, John Endahl of the Food and Nutrition

Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Deborah Stipek of the University of California at Los

Angeles. We appreciate the comments and suggestions we received from these persons. In addition, we

thank Sam Meisels, Nick Zill, Judy Pollack and Sally Atkins-Burnett for their comments on the report.

And, we appreciate the comments we received from many of the offices within the Department of

Education.

A special thank you to Kendra Chandler Webb, age 9 (1994), for designing the ECLS logo, and to Westat

for aiding in the design of the cover.
v

Executive Summary

Kindergarten is a critical period in children's early school careers. It sets them on a path that

influences their subsequent learning and school achievement. For most children, kindergarten represents

the first step in a journey through the world of formal schooling. However, children entering kindergarten

in the United States in the 1990s are different from those who entered kindergarten in prior decades. They

come from increasingly diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, social, economic and language backgrounds.

Many kindergartners now come from single-parent families and from step-parent families. They also

differ in the level and types of early care and educational experiences that they have had prior to

kindergarten (Zill et al. 1995).

Our nation’s schools face new opportunities and new challenges. Schools are expected to meet

the educational needs of each child regardless of their background and experience. Services, such as

meals and before- and after-school child care, that were provided by other institutions in the past are now

being provided by schools. Teachers are faced with classrooms of children with increasingly diverse

needs. In addition, growing pressure to raise academic standards and to assess all students’ progress

towards meeting those standards places even more burden on schools and teachers.

Much of the literature on the status of children in our nation's schools is focused on elementary

(e.g., fourth-graders in the National Assessment of Educational Progress) and secondary school children

(e.g., twelfth-graders in the National Assessment of Educational Progress and eighth-, tenth- and twelfthgraders in the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988). Little information is available on

kindergarten programs in the United States and on the nation’s children as they enter kindergarten and

move through the primary grades. Information about the entry status of the nation's kindergartners can

inform educational policy and practice, and especially those policies and practices that are targeted to

meeting the needs of a diverse population of children entering kindergarten for the first time.

In the fall of 1998, about 4 million children were attending kindergarten in the United States,

approximately 95 percent of them for the first time. Of the children attending kindergarten, 85 percent

were in public school, 15 percent in private school, 55 percent were in full day programs and 45 percent

were in part day program. 1

 

1

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99,

Fall 1998.
vi

Whether or not children succeed in school is in part related to events and experiences that occur

prior to their entering kindergarten for the first time. Children’s preparedness for school and their later

school success are related to multiple aspects of their development. Children’s physical well-being, social

development, cognitive skills and knowledge and how they approach learning are all factors that

contribute to their chance for success in school (Kagan et al. 1995). Additionally, the differences we see

in children’s knowledge and skill as they enter kindergarten can be contributed to a variation in family

characteristics (e.g., maternal education, family type) and home experiences (home educational activities,

nonparental care). A complex and continuous collaboration exists between the child and the family; and,

the family can provide the resources and support that children require to increase their chances of

succeeding in school (Maccoby 1992). For some children, the absence of resources and support place

them at increased risk for school failure.

This report presents the first findings from a new national study of kindergartners, their schools,

classrooms, teachers and families. The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-

99 (ECLS-K), sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics

(NCES), began following a nationally representative sample of some 22,000 kindergartners in the fall of

1998. The ECLS-K will follow the same cohort of children from their entry to kindergarten through their

fifth grade year. Data will be collected not only in the fall of kindergarten but also spring kindergarten,

fall first grade, spring first grade, spring third grade and spring fifth grade. In the fall of kindergarten, data

were collected from children, their parents and their teachers. Information from children was gathered

during an individualized in-person assessment with the child in the child’s school, parents were

interviewed over the phone and teachers were given self-administered questionnaires. Westat, Inc. is

conducting the kindergarten and first grade collections for NCES.

This report is based on the 95 percent of children entering kindergarten for the first time in the

fall of 1998. Future reports will provide information on those children who repeated kindergarten in the

fall of 1998.

Cognitive Skills and Knowledge

Children’s cognitive skills and knowledge are frequently thought of as core ingredients in the

recipe for success in school. Researchers have conceived cognitive development as an extended set of
vii

multidimensional skills and proficiencies which include language/literacy, reasoning and general

knowledge (Kagan et al. 1995). Children’s language and literacy refers to both their oral communication

(language) and understanding of the written word (literacy). Children’s reasoning refers to their

mathematical skills. The concept of general knowledge refers to children’s conceptions and

understandings of the world around them.

As children enter kindergarten for the first time, they differ in their cognitive skills and

knowledge. Children’s reading, mathematics and general knowledge are related to their age as they enter

kindergarten, the level of their mother’s education (see figure A), their family type, the primary language

spoken in the home and their race-ethnicity.

• In reading, mathematics and general knowledge, older kindergartners (born in 1992) outperform

the younger kindergartners (born September through December 1993). The older kindergartners

are more likely to score in the highest quartile of the distribution of scores than the younger

kindergartners. However, some of the youngest children, those just turning 5, also score in the

highest quartile (16 percent in reading, 12 percent in mathematics and 12 percent in general

knowledge). Additionally, some of the older kindergartners (born in 1992) are scoring in the

lowest quartile (15-19 percent in reading, 13-17 percent in mathematics and 11-16 percent in

general knowledge).

• Children’s performance in reading, mathematics and general knowledge increases with the level

of their mothers’ education. Kindergartners whose mothers have more education are more likely

to score in the highest quartile in reading, mathematics and general knowledge than all other

children. However, some children whose mothers have less than a high school education also

score in the highest quartile (6 percent in reading, 7 percent in mathematics and 4 percent in

general knowledge). Additionally, some children whose mothers have a bachelor’s degree or

higher are scoring in the lowest quartile (8 percent in reading, 18 percent in mathematics and 10

percent in general knowledge).

• Children’s performance in reading, mathematics and general knowledge differs by their family

type: kindergartners from two-parent families are more likely to score in the highest quartile in

reading, mathematics and general knowledge than children from single-mother families.

However, some children with single mothers also score in the highest quartile (14 percent in

reading, 14 percent in mathematics and 12 percent in general knowledge). Additionally, some

children from two-parent families are scoring in the lowest quartile (22 percent in reading, 21

percent in mathematics and 20 percent in general knowledge).

In terms of their specific skills in reading and math, 66 percent of first-time kindergartners are

proficient in recognizing their letters, 29 percent are proficient in understanding the beginning sounds

(letter sound relationship at the beginning of words) and about 17 percent are proficient in understanding

the ending sounds (letter sound relationship at the end of words). In math, nearly all (94 percent) firsttime kindergartners are proficient in number and shape (recognizing numbers, shapes and counting to 10),
viii

58 percent are proficient in understanding relative size (sequencing patterns and using nonstandard units

of length to compare objects) and 20 percent are proficient in understanding ordinal sequence

(identification of the ordinal position of an object in a sequence—e.g., fifth in line).

Figure A.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners scoring in the highest quartile of reading, math

and general knowledge, by maternal education: Fall 1998

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.

Social Skills

Children’s social skills relate both to the quality and success of their school experiences (Meisels

et al. 1996). Young children construct knowledge by interacting with others and their environment

(Bandura 1986). In order to interact successfully in a variety of circumstances and with a variety of

people, children need to possess interpersonal skills. They need to feel secure enough to join, question

and listen to their peers and adults. This report explores indicators of children’s social development by

looking at children’s interpersonal skills and behavioral patterns as rated by their parents and teachers.

0

20

40

60

80

100

Reading Math General Knowledge

Less than high school diploma

High school diploma or equivalent

Some college, including

vocational/technical

Bachelor's degree or higher
ix

For the most part, parents and teachers report a high incidence of prosocial behaviors and a low

incidence of problem behaviors. Parents report that about 82-89 percent of first-time kindergartners often

to very often join others in play, make friends and comfort others. Teachers report that about 75 percent

of first-time kindergartners are accepting of peer ideas and form friendships. In terms of more problematic

behaviors (e.g., fighting and arguing), parents report that about 33 percent of first-time kindergartners

argue with others often to very often and less than 20 percent of first-time kindergartners fight with others

and get angry easily often to very often. Teacher ratings are lower, with about 10 percent of first-time

kindergartners arguing with others, fighting with others and easily getting angry often to very often.

Teacher ratings of children’s prosocial and problem behaviors differ by children’s family type and

minority status.

• Kindergarten teachers rate children with some characteristics of risk for school difficulty (those

whose mothers have less than a high school education, are single mothers or whose families have

received or are receiving public assistance) less likely than children whose mothers have at least a

high school diploma, who come from two-parent families and whose families have never utilized

public assistance to accept peer ideas and form friendships.

• Reports of children's problem behaviors vary by race/ethnicity. The pattern of these differences

and their magnitude depends on who is rating the children's behavior. When teachers rate the

children in their classrooms, black children are more likely than white and Asian children to be

seen as exhibiting higher levels of problem behaviors (arguing with others, fighting with others,

getting angry easily). When parents rate their children, we see fewer differences between black

and white children. Instead, we see more differences between Asian children and white, black and

Hispanic children. Asian children are less likely than children in these other groups to be seen as

arguing or fighting often to very often by their parents.

Physical Health and Well-Being

Information on children’s physicality helps untangle the diverse skill set children possess at entry

to kindergarten. An important part of learning relates to children having enough rest, enough good foods

to eat and good physical health (Kagan et al. 1995). The concept of physical health and well-being is

broad; it not only includes a disease-free state but also having gross and fine motor skills appropriate to

the child’s age.

The average first-time kindergartner in 1998 was about 45 inches tall and weighed about 46

pounds. About 12 percent of boys and 11 percent of girls have a body mass index which classifies them

as at risk for being overweight. Kindergartners are generally healthy (see figure B)—though their general

health differs by their family type, the level of their mothers education and whether or not they utilized
x

public assistance (i.e., Aid for Families with Dependent Children). A small percentage of kindergartners

are showing signs of developmental difficulty (e.g., high activity level, low attention span).

Figure B.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners who are in excellent general health, by

utilization of public assistance (Aid for Families with Dependent Children-AFDC):

Fall 1998

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.

Approaches to Learning

How children approach learning is central to their chances for success in school. Children’s

learning styles reflect how they address the task of learning (Kagan et al. 1995). Children need to be able

to persist at tasks, be eager to learn and be creative in their work. These characteristics tend to manifest

themselves at a relatively early age, and children demonstrate diversity in their approaches and behaviors

toward learning.

As children enter kindergarten for the first time, parents report that about 75 percent persist at

tasks often to very often (figure C), about 92 percent seem eager to learn (figure C) and 85 percent

demonstrate creativity in their work. Teachers are slightly more conservative in their ratings (figure C),

reporting that about two-thirds to three-quarters of beginning kindergartners persist at tasks, seem eager to

learn and are able to pay attention. Teacher ratings of kindergartners approaches to learning differ by

child characteristics, such as their gender, age at entry, level of mother’s education and minority status.

0

20

40

60

80

100

General Health

Utilized AFDC

Never utilized AFDC
xi

• Both parents and teachers report that girls persist at tasks more often than boys, older

kindergartners (born in 1992) persist at tasks more often than the younger (born September

through December 1993) and children not at risk persist at tasks more often than children at risk

for school difficulty (mother’s education less than high school, single-mother and receipt of

public assistance), except on the basis of home language. 

Figure C.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners teacher rate as persisting at tasks often to very

often, by age of entry: Fall 1998

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.

0

20

40

60

80

100

Task persistence Eager to learn

Parent rating

Teacher rating
xii

The Child and the Family

The nature and frequency of family interactions relate not only to children’s development but also

to children’s preparedness for school. The frequency with which parents interact in positive ways with

their children may indicate the investment parents make in their children’s education. Home activities—

such as reading to the child or interacting through play—are related to children’s school preparedness and

chances for success in school.

The majority of parents report having more than 25 children’s books in the home, and more than

half of parents report having more than five children’s records, audio tapes or CDs in the home. Nearly

half of parents report a family member reading to the child or singing songs with the child every day.

Activities such as reading to children vary by level of mother’s education (see figure D), family type,

receipt of public assistance and minority status.

Figure D.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners read to every day by a family member, by

family type: Fall 1998

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.

As the labor force participation rate of mothers with young children has increased, the percentage

of children receiving care from someone other than their parents has increased as well. In the 1990s, a

large majority of children have been cared for on a regular basis by someone other than their parents prior

0

20

40

60

80

100

Family member reads to child every day

Less than high school

High school diploma or equivalent

Some college, including vocational

technical

Bachelor's degree or higher
xiii

to entering first grade (West et al. 1992). Today, many kindergarten and primary school children receive

before- and after-school care regularly from persons other than their parents (Brimhall et al. 1999).

Prior to starting kindergarten, about four out of five first-time kindergartners received care on a

regular basis from someone other than their parents. Upon entering kindergarten, about half of children

currently receive care on a regular basis before or after school from someone other than their parents.

Both the care children received prior to kindergarten and their current care (e.g., relative, nonrelative,

center-based) varies by characteristics such as level of mother’s education and race/ethnicity status.

At kindergarten entry, children whose mothers have less than a high school education are more

likely to receive before- and/or after-school care from a relative than from a nonrelative or center-based

provider. In contrast, kindergartners whose mothers have a college education are more likely to receive

care in a center-based setting than in either of the two home-based settings.

• At kindergarten entry, black children are more likely than white, Asian or Hispanic children to

receive before- and/or after-school care.

Summary

While first-time kindergartners are similar in many ways, this report demonstrates that

differences exist in children’s skills and knowledge in relation to their characteristics, background and

experiences. The report adds to our understanding of the diversity of young children’s skills and

knowledge. Even as they are just beginning their formalized educational experience, children are

different. They demonstrate differences in their cognitive skills and knowledge, social skills, health and

approaches to learning, and bring with them differences in their home educational experiences and

environments. This report is highly descriptive in nature, presenting a broad array of information on

children’s status as they begin their journey to school. Future reports based on the Early Childhood

Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), will a take more analytical approach and

examine specific issues more in depth. This report and future data from the ECLS-K will help to inform

researchers, practitioners, educators, parents and policymakers on issues concerning young children’s

education during the elementary grades.
xiv

Future Directions

The findings in this report bring to light some areas for further investigation and some interesting

patterns emerge across domains. For instance, differences exist in parent and teacher perceptions of

children’s prosocial skills, problem behaviors and approaches to learning. Primarily, we presented the

data by looking at parent perceptions in relation to child and family characteristics and teacher

perceptions in relation to child and family characteristics. However, future analysis can compare the

similarities and the differences in parent and teacher perceptions of the same child. For example, in terms

of approaches to learning, specifically children’s eagerness to learn, the racial/ethnic differences seem

much greater in the teacher ratings than in the parent ratings in the aggregate.

Furthermore, in this report, we look at the constructs by a specific set of child and family

characteristics (e.g., child’s sex, age at entry, race/ethnicity, maternal education). Future reports can take a

different perspective, and analyze the constructs in terms of additional family characteristics and school

characteristics. For example, the data can be analyzed in terms of pre-school attendance, kindergarten

program type (i.e., full day/part day) and school type (e.g., public/nonpublic). These types of analysis may

have policy implications.
xv

Contents

Acknowledgments................................................................................................................. iii

Executive Summary.................................................................................................................v

Cognitive Skills and Knowledge .........................................................................................vi

Social Skills .....................................................................................................................viii

Physical Health and Well-Being .........................................................................................ix

Approaches to Learning.......................................................................................................x

The Child and the Family ..................................................................................................xii

Summary..........................................................................................................................xiii

Future Directions..............................................................................................................xiv

List of Tables........................................................................................................................xvi

Introduction.............................................................................................................................1

Children’s Skills, Knowledge and Experiences....................................................................2

Data Source.........................................................................................................................5

Report Approach .................................................................................................................7

Findings ..................................................................................................................................8

Cognitive Skills, Knowledge and Experiences ...................................................................10

Social Skills ......................................................................................................................24

Physical Well-Being..........................................................................................................31

Approaches to Learning.....................................................................................................44

The Child and the Family ..................................................................................................48

Relationships Within and Across Areas of Development....................................................59

Future Directions...................................................................................................................61

Methodology and Data Reliability..........................................................................................63

Survey Methodology .........................................................................................................63

Response Rates..................................................................................................................65

Data Reliability .................................................................................................................66

Definitions of Variables.....................................................................................................70

References.............................................................................................................................74

Appendix...............................................................................................................................80
xvi

List of Tables

Table 1.—Sample sizes and population counts of first-time kindergartners, by child

and family characteristics: Fall 1998

6

Table 2.—Mean reading t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage

distribution of quartile scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

18

Table 3.—Mean mathematics t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage

distribution of quartile scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

19

Table 4.—Mean general knowledge t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and

percentage distribution of quartile scores, by child and family characteristics:

Fall 1998

20

Table 5.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by print familiarity

scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

21

Table 6.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each reading proficiency

level, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

22

Table 7.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each mathematics

proficiency level, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

23

Table 8.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which parents say they engage in prosocial behavior, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

26

Table 9.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which teachers say they engage in prosocial behavior, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

27

Table 10.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which parents say they exhibit antisocial behavior, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

29

Table 11.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which teachers say they exhibit antisocial behavior, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

30

Table 12.—Percentage of first-time male and female kindergartners at risk for

overweight, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

34

Table 13.—First-time kindergartners’ mean fine motor skills score and percentage

distribution of scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

37

Table 14.—First-time kindergartners’ mean gross motor skills score and percentage

distribution of scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

38
xvii

Table 15.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by parents’ assessment

of their general health, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

40

Table 16.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners whose parents reported

developmental difficulty in terms of activity level, attention, coordination

and pronunciation of words: Fall 1998

43

Table 17.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which parents say they persist at a task, are eager to learn new things and

are creative in work or play, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

46

Table 18.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with

which teachers say they persist at a task, are eager to learn new things and

pay attention well, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

47

Table 19.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by numbers of books

audiotapes or CDs in the home, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

51

Table 20.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times

each week family members read books and tell stories to them, by child

and family characteristics: Fall 1998

52

Table 21.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times

each week family members sing songs and do arts and crafts with them, by

child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

53

Table 22.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times

each week family members play sports or exercise and play games with

them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

54

Table 23.— Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation in

nonparental care arrangements the year prior to starting kindergarten, by

type of arrangement and child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

57

Table 24.— Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation during

kindergarten in before and after care, by type of arrangement and child and

family characteristics: Fall 1998

58
1

Introduction

Kindergarten is a critical period in children's early school careers. It sets children on a path that

influences their subsequent learning and school achievement. For most children, kindergarten represents

the first step in a journey through the world of formal schooling. However, children entering kindergarten

in the United States in the 1990s are different from those who entered kindergarten in prior decades. They

come from increasingly diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, social, economic and language backgrounds.

Many kindergartners now come from single-parent families, step-parent families and homes with very

different social and economic backgrounds. They also differ in the level and types of early care and

educational experiences that they have had prior to kindergarten (Zill et al. 1995).

These trends present new opportunities and pose challenges to our nation's schools. Schools are

expected to meet the educational needs of each child regardless of their background and experience.

Services, such as meals and before- and after-school child care, that were provided by other institutions in

the past are now being provided by schools. Teachers are faced with classrooms of children with

increasingly diverse needs. In addition, growing pressure to raise academic standards and to assess all

students’ progress toward meeting those standards places even more burden on schools and teachers

(Kagan 1990, Meisels 1992).

Much of the literature on the status of children in our nation's schools is focused on elementary

(e.g., fourth-graders in the National Assessment of Educational Progress) and secondary school children

(e.g., eighth and twelfth-graders in the National Assessment of Educational Progress and eighth-, tenthand twelfth-graders in the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988). Little information is available

on the achievement of children in kindergarten programs in the United States and on the nation’s children

as they enter kindergarten and move through the primary grades. Information about the entry status of the

nation's first-time kindergartners can inform educational policy and practice, and especially those policies

and practices that are targeted to meeting the needs of a diverse population of children entering

kindergarten for the first time.

In the fall of 1998, about four million children were attending kindergarten in the United States,

approximately 95 percent of them for the first time. Of the children attending kindergarten, 85 percent

were in public school and 15 percent in private school. Over the past few decades, the nature of

kindergarten programs has shifted from typically half-day programs to full-day programs. Presently, 55
2

percent of children are in full-day programs, and 45-percent in part day programs. 2 This report will

present a snapshot of these first-time kindergartners. It describes some of the skills, knowledge and

experiences that children bring with them as they enter kindergarten. It describes some of the things firsttime kindergartners can and cannot do, what problems they may or may not have and what resources may

or may not be available to them. The report examines variations in children’s skills, knowledge and

experiences across a set of sociodemographic characteristics of children and their families.

Children’s Skills, Knowledge and Experiences

Whether or not children succeed in school is in part related to events and experiences that occur

prior to the their entering kindergarten for the first time. Children’s preparedness for school and their

later school success are related to multiple aspects of the children’s development, such as their physical

well-being, social development, cognitive skills and knowledge and their approaches to learning (Kagan

et al. 1995). Along with these characteristics, some would emphasize the role that schools play in

determining whether particular children are prepared for school and their success in the classroom (Crinic

and Lamberty 1994; Meisels 1999). Additionally, children’s preparedness for school involves a complex

and continuous collaboration between the child and the family. The family can provide the resources and

support that children require to increase their chances to succeed in school (Maccoby 1992). For some

children, the absence of resources and support place them at increased risk for school failure.

Cognitive Skills and Knowledge. Children’s cognitive skills and knowledge are frequently

thought of as core ingredients in the recipe for success in school. Researchers have conceived cognitive

development as an extended set of multidimensional skills and proficiencies which include

language/literacy (e.g., reading), reasoning (e.g., mathematical knowledge and skills) and general

knowledge (Kagan et al. 1995). Children’s language and literacy refers to both their oral communication

(language) and understanding of the written word (literacy). In this study, children’s reasoning refers to

their mathematical skills. The concept of general knowledge refers to children’s conceptions and

understandings of the world around them.

These three cognitive domains—reading, mathematics and general knowledge—play an

important role in children’s chances for scholastic success. The cognitive skills children demonstrate at

kindergarten entry can potentially shape their early school experience (Sameroff and Haith 1996).

 

2 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99,

Fall 1998.
3

Therefore, documenting the skills children possess before they receive formal schooling provides a

baseline for assessing their progress in kindergarten and beyond (Meisels 1996). This report will describe

children’s cognitive skills in the reading, mathematics and general knowledge domains as they enter

kindergarten for the first time.

Social Skills. Children’s social skills relate both to the quality and success of their school

experiences (Meisels et al. 1996). Young children construct understanding by interacting with others and

their environment (Bandura 1986). In interacting successfully in a variety of circumstances with a variety

of people, children demonstrate interpersonal skills. They need to feel secure enough to join, question and

listen to their peers and adults. This report will explore indicators of children’s social development by

looking at children’s interpersonal skills and behavioral patterns as rated by their parents and teachers.

Specifically, this report will present information on first-time kindergartners’ interpersonal skills and

behaviors, both prosocial and problem.

Physical Health and Well-Being. We also consider the relationships among children’s physical

well-being, motor development and educational outcomes. The stage for learning is often set with enough

rest, good foods to eat and good physical health (Kagan et al. 1995). The concept of physical health and

well-being is broad; it not only includes a disease-free state but also a physical prowess appropriate to the

child’s age in terms of gross and fine motor skills. Consequently, information on children’s physicality

helps untangle the diverse skill set children possess at entry to kindergarten. This report will present

information on first-time kindergartners’ height and weight, body mass index, fine and gross motor skills,

general health and developmental difficulties they are experiencing that may affect their classroom

experience.

Approaches to Learning. How children approach learning is central to their chances for success

in school. Children’s learning styles reflect how they address learning (Kagan et al. 1995). Children need

to be able to persist at tasks and be eager to learn. In addition, demonstrating creativity in their thinking

and in their work can also increase their chances for success in school. These characteristics tend to

manifest themselves at a relatively early age. As early as kindergarten entry, children demonstrate

diversity in their approaches and behaviors toward learning. Therefore, this report will explore basic

information on children’s approaches to learning.
4

The Child and the Family. The nature and frequency of family interactions relate not only to

children’s development but also to children’s preparedness for school. The frequency with which parents

interact with their children may indicate the investment parents make in their children’s education. Home

activities—such as reading to the child or interacting through play—are related to children’s school

preparedness and chances for success in school.

As the labor force participation rate of mothers with young children has increased, the percentage

of children receiving care from someone other than their parents has increased as well. In the 1990s, a

large majority of children have been cared for on a regular basis by someone other than their parents prior

to entering first grade (West et al. 1995). Today, many kindergarten and primary school children receive

before- and after-school care regularly from persons other than their parents (Brimhall et al. 1999).

The importance to early school success of the home literacy environment, parents’ regular

interaction with their children and children’s participation in early care and education programs has led

the National Education Goals Panel to include these as proxy measures of school readiness in their annual

report. Consequently, this report on children’s status at entry to kindergarten includes information on each

of these measures.
5

Data Source

This report presents the first findings from a new national study of kindergartners, their schools,

classrooms, teachers and families. The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-

99 (ECLS-K), sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics

(NCES), began following a nationally representative sample of some 22,000 kindergartners in the fall of

1998. Westat, Inc., conducted the study for NCES.

In the fall of the 1998-99 school year, public and private schools offering kindergarten programs

and a sample of the children attending kindergarten in these schools were selected to participate in the

ECLS-K.3 Baseline data about these children, their families and kindergarten programs were collected at

this time. The findings reported here are based on data from telephone interviews with these children’s

parents/guardians and self-administered questionnaires completed by the children’s kindergarten teachers.

Findings also come from data gathered during an individualized assessment with each child (see the

Methodology Section for a description of the variables and measures used in this report).

The current longitudinal design of the ECLS-K includes five additional waves of data collection.

Data will be collected from the same sample of children in the spring of kindergarten, the fall4 and spring

of first grade and the spring of third and fifth grades.

Sample. A nationally representative sample of approximately 22,000 children enrolled in about

1,000 kindergarten programs during the 1998–99 school year were initially sampled. The children

attended both public and private kindergartens that offered full-day and part-day programs. The sample

included children from different racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds and included oversamples

of Asian children, private kindergartens and private school kindergartners. This study supports separate

estimates of public and private school kindergartners; black, Hispanic, white and Asian children; and

children from different socioeconomic backgrounds. This report presents information on children entering

kindergarten for the first time. Sample sizes and population counts for first-time kindergartners are

presented in table 1.

 

3

 The ECLS-K sample of schools included traditional schools offering kindergarten and some combination of grades

1-12 and early childhood programs that offered kindergarten in addition to programs for preschoolers.

4

 The fall first grade data collection is limited to a parent/guardian interview and to a direct assessment of children’s

skills and knowledge in three domains: mathematics, reading and general knowledge. In addition, the goal of this

round of data collection was to complete the parent interviews and direct child assessments for a 25 percent subsample of the full ECLS-K sample.
6

Table 1.—Sample sizes and population counts of first-time kindergartners, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristics Sample Population

Population

Percentage

Total 17,223 3,678,473 100

Child’s sex

 Male 8,659 1,867,904 51

 Female 8,564 1,810,570 49

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 657 129,127 4

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 4,019 869,575 24

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 5,449 1,166,292 32

 Born May – Aug. 1993 5,441 1,177,595 32

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1,600 326,637 9

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 2,233 518,685 14

 High school diploma or equivalent 5,041 1,115,650 30

 Some college, including vocational/technical 5,432 1,152,511 31

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 4,070 798,065 22

Family type

 Single mother 3,547 790,442 21

 Single father 303 66,430 2

 Two parent 13,071 2,753,403 75

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1,901 427,642 12

 Never utilized AFDC 15,209 3,226,334 88

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1,678 324,618 9

 English 15,499 3,343,764 91

Child’s race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 9,819 2,117,928 58

 Black, non-Hispanic 2,473 570,111 15

 Asian 939 108,030 3

 Hispanic 3,019 704,214 19

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 197 20,881 1

 American Indian/Alaska Native 292 64,194 2

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 460 88,101 2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 9,020 1,925,039 52

 Black, non-Hispanic 1,987 458,563 12

 Asian 749 87,038 2

 Hispanic 1,957 446,094 12

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 581 142,854 4

 Black, non-Hispanic 420 97,482 3

 Asian 136 15,252 (*)

 Hispanic 985 240,126 7

* less than .5 percent.

NOTE: Percentages may not add to 100 due to rounding and/ or missing data.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
7

Report Approach

The ECLS-K is designed, in part, to describe children’s status at school entry. The kindergarten

population includes both first-time kindergartners and repeat kindergartners. In order to explore children’s

status as they enter school for the first time, first-time kindergartners need to be separated from repeat

kindergartners. Therefore, this report concentrates only on first-time kindergartners,5 and the findings

generalize only to that population.

The report has two purposes: (1) it provides the first national picture of entering kindergartners in

the United States and (2) it introduces the rich data set associated with the ECLS-K. This first publication

uses the fall kindergarten data and provides descriptive statistics on many variables that relate to children

and their families. Future reports will describe kindergarten teachers and kindergarten classrooms, address

more complex models and hypotheses and will utilize the longitudinal nature of the study.

The majority of this publication focuses on the child, and information is presented according to

several factors that may influence child development. Characteristics both intrinsic and extrinsic to the

child potentially contribute to the child’s chances for success or risk for failure. Children’s sex,

race/ethnicity and age at school entry (intrinsic factors) are often considered potential resource and/or risk

factors. As others have shown, children’s physical well-being, social skills, cognitive skills and learning

approaches all vary to some extent by their sex, race/ethnicity and age at school entry (Hafner et al. 1990;

Zill et al. 1995). Other factors that are extrinsic to the child also influence their health and physical-well

being, social skills, cognitive skills and knowledge and how they approach the task of learning. These

factors include their mother’s education, family type (two-parent, one-parent), home language and their

families' receipt of public assistance (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics 1999; Zill

et al. 1995). Consequently, when reporting information on children and their families, this report will

present the data by these salient characteristics.

In this report, children’s physical well-being, social development, cognitive skills and knowledge

and approaches to learning are treated separately. However, we recognize that although these domains

represent different and unique aspects of children’s development, they are related to and may influence

one another. Thus, we also include information on the relationships between the different aspects of

development in a separate section of the report.

 

5

 Parents were asked if this was their child’s first or second year of kindergarten. Based on parent identification, this

report refers to the 95 percent of kindergartners who are entering for the first time.
8

Findings

The findings in this report are presented in five sections. The first four sections organize the

findings around four dimensions of children’s development: children’s cognitive skills and knowledge,

physical well-being, social skills and approaches to learning. The fifth section presents information on

children’s home environment and child care experiences. The cognitive skills and knowledge section

describes children’s reading and mathematics skills and general knowledge. The physical well-being

section presents information on children’s height and weight, motor skills, general health and

developmental difficulties. The section on children’s social skills presents information on children’s

prosocial and problem behaviors. The approaches to learning section presents information on children’s

task persistence, eagerness to learn, creativity and ability to pay attention. Finally, the family section of

the report presents information on the home environment, home educational activities and children’s

nonparental care experience.

In each of the sections, findings related to such child characteristics as sex and age at

kindergarten entry are presented first. At this young age, much of what is being measured is thought to be

developmental in nature. Therefore, some of the differences that relate to children’s age at entry should be

interpreted with caution. They may simply represent some of the natural developmental variation that is

inherent in this age group. The next set of child characteristics pertain to factors closely associated with

the risk for school failure or academic difficulties such as low maternal educational attainment level,

family type (number of parents in household), receipt of welfare and primary language spoken in the

home (Zill et al. 1995). When these risk factors occur in concert, the cumulative effect may place children

at an even greater risk for school failure or academic difficulty.

Furthermore, because race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status are so closely linked, we also

present estimates by children’s race/ethnicity separately for children whose mothers have less than a high

school education and those whose mothers have a high school diploma (or its equivalent) or more.6 When

describing findings, we use the term “at risk for school failure or school difficulties” to refer to children

whose mothers have less than a high school education, come from a single mother family, have a history

of public assistance or who live in a family whose primary language is not English. Due to sample size

restrictions, the analysis in this publication only includes significance tests for white, black, Hispanic and

 

6

 When presenting estimates, white refers to white non-Hispanic and black refers to black non-Hispanic.
9

Asian children. Furthermore, though we felt it important to present the estimates by children’s

race/ethnicity separately for children whose mothers have less than a high school education and those

those mothers have a high school diploma or more, due to low sample sizes we did not perform statistical

comparisons. The findings pertain only to first-time kindergartners, and the cognitive skills and

knowledge section presents information only for those first-time kindergartners who were assessed in

English. In the discussion of findings from the family interview, parents are referred to as the respondent,

which is true in the majority of cases (97 percent of respondents were parents). The survey methodology

section includes details about the study design and instruments. Unless otherwise noted, all differences

cited in the text are statistically significant at the .05 level. The standard errors are reported in the

Appendix.
10

Cognitive Skills, Knowledge and Experiences

Elementary school (K-5) curricula focus on three broad areas of academic competence—reading,

mathematics and general knowledge. These areas of school curricula are considered to be central to

children’s successful development and functioning as adult citizens in society. Much of the school day is

spent learning core cognitive skills in reading and mathematics and increasing children’s knowledge of

the natural, physical and social worlds.

Children begin school already possessing knowledge and skills in the areas of reading (Vacca et

al. 1995), mathematics (Baroody 1993; Ginsburg 1989) and general knowledge. Their experiences with

their environment—street signs, number of steps up to their door, witnessing the change of seasons—all

contribute to children’s cognitive development. The foundation children have to build upon with school

curricula will influence children’s experiences in school and their cognitive growth. Because children

have different background experiences, one would expect variation in the skills and knowledge children

possess at school entry.

The ECLS-K assessment battery has been developed to assess common skills and knowledge

across children. These common skills reflect school curricula across the nation; therefore, the battery

samples typical and important elements of the curriculum with particular emphasis on content and process

areas that are critical to growth and can be expected to reflect growth on the same scale over time.

Assessment Battery. For the most part, in kindergarten, reading skills refer to children’s emergent

literacy, phonemic knowledge and language development. Emergent literacy reflects the child’s

understanding that print in books has meaning; language development includes children’s oral language

and their receptive vocabulary (Snow et al. 1998). The two—language and literacy—cannot be separated;

together, they enable children to express and interpret thoughts, beliefs and desires. A close relationship

exists between learning language and learning to read, both of which are complex processes. Children’s

phonemic knowledge, understanding sounds and how they form words and learning to read are reciprocal.

While phonemic knowledge plays an essential role in learning to read, growth in reading skills contributes

to more advanced phonemic knowledge (Perfetti et al. 1987; Snow et al. 1998). The ECLS-K measure of

reading in kindergarten assesses children’s basic literacy skills (e.g., recognizing the printed word,

identifying sounds, word reading, vocabulary and reading comprehension).
11

Mathematics has been described as “a way of thinking about the world” that is more than mere

computation of numbers (Baroody 1993, p. 151). It involves conceptual understanding of numbers,

shapes, mathematical operations and processes for problem solving. The skills and knowledge that

support such problem solving contribute to children’s critical thinking thus benefiting not only

mathematics learning but also overall cognitive development. The ECLS-K mathematics assessment

measures children’s knowledge and skills necessary to solve problems and reason with numbers. The

mathematical skills measured by the ECLS-K battery include, but are not limited to, the understanding of

the properties of numbers, mathematical operations (e.g., addition) and problemsolving. They also include

understanding the patterns and relationships of numbers, formulating conjectures and identifying

solutions.

General knowledge represents children’s breadth and depth of understanding of the social and

physical environment (i.e., the social, physical and natural world) and their ability to draw inferences and

comprehend implications. Dimensions of knowledge measured by the ECLS-K battery include factual

information from the physical, earth, biological and social sciences. The skills children need to establish

relationships between and among objects, events or people and to make inferences and to comprehend the

implications of verbal and pictorial concepts, are also measured. It addresses such topical areas as history,

geography and science.

The ECLS-K assessed children directly to measure their skills in reading, mathematics and their

knowledge and understanding of the social and physical environments. Each child was individually

assessed, using computer-assisted technology. Trained assessors presented the items using an easel and

entered responses into a computer.

Given the longitudinal objectives of the study and the need to measure children’s performance in

each of the three areas within a limited amount of time, a two-stage adaptive assessment, tailored to the

child’s present level of performance, was used. Each assessment area (reading, mathematics, general

knowledge) included a routing test (the first stage) which determined each child’s approximate skill level.

Upon completion of the routing test, the child was administered a second-stage form consisting of items

tailored to his or her ability level. Both reading and mathematics have three second-stage forms. General

knowledge has two second-stage forms.

The children take different routing tests for reading, mathematics and general knowledge. A

child’s test level in one domain is independent of his/her performance in either of the other two domains.
12

Thus, it is possible for a child to take, for example, a low-level reading test but a high-level mathematics

test.

About 9 percent of first-time kindergartners are language minority children—children whose

primary language in the home is not English. The core ECLS-K direct assessment battery was designed to

be administered in English. To determine whether language minority children could be validly and

reliably assessed using the core battery, the Oral Language Development Scale (OLDS), a measure of

basic English proficiency, was first administered.

The OLDS is a subset of the PreLAS 2000 (Duncan and DeAvila 1998) measuring receptive and

expressive language in English. The scales appraise children’s ability to follow oral directions, express

oral vocabulary and produce complete sentences by retelling a simple story using picture cues, skills

required by the ECLS-K battery. Assessors administered the English-language OLDS to all language

minority children. Children performing above the cut-off point were administered the core ECLS-K

assessment, whereas children who scored below the cut-point were not administered the complete core

ECLS-K assessments (see the Methodology and Data Reliability section for more information). Future

reports will look at the population of children screened out of the English assessment more closely. In this

report, 19 percent of the Asian population and 29 percent of the Hispanic population were excluded from

the English cognitive battery. Consequently, the racial/ethnic differences on the cognitive skills and

knowledge should be interpreted in context.

Assessment Battery Scores. To describe the variability of first-time kindergartners’ performance

in reading, mathematics and general knowledge, scores from each assessment domain were converted into

both normative and criterion-referenced proficiency scores. To compare the performance of first-time

kindergartners, their reading, mathematics and general knowledge scores were converted to t-scores with

a mean score equal to 50 and a standard deviation of 10. To further explore the differences in children’s

scores, we divided the t-scores into quartiles. Children in the lowest quartile (0–25 percent) scored with

the lowest 25 percent of children. Children in the highest quartile (76–100 percent) scored with the

highest 25 percent of children.

In addition to normative interpretations of scores, the ECLS-K battery scores are converted into

criterion-referenced proficiency scores. Criterion-referenced scores can be used to evaluate performance

on specific sets of skills within each domain. The clustering of items was empirically based, with each

cluster representing skills necessary to successfully complete the typical item located at points along the
13

scale. Children who pass a particular level have generally mastered the preceding levels. The ECLS-K

reading assessment domain includes the following five criterion-referenced proficiency levels:

• First level measures recognition of upper and lower case letters of the alphabet;

• Second and third levels assess phonological sensitivity at the subword level (e.g., knowledge

of letter and sound relationships at the beginning and at the end of words);

• Fourth level measures the ability to read common words; and

• Fifth level measures comprehension of written text.

In addition to understanding that words in print have meaning and recognizing that letters have

distinct forms and can be related to word sounds, beginning to read involves understanding how words

are represented in print—conventions of print or writing. As children recognize words in print, they also

become familiar with the rules and conventions of reading (e.g., words are printed in discrete units, bound

by spaces and sequenced from left to right) and the terms used to talk about reading (e.g., top of the page,

first sentence). Children learn these concepts of print conventions as they begin learning the relationships

between printed letters and sounds in spoken words and in analyzing words. The measure of children's

familiarity with the conventions of print in the ECLS-K was comprised of a cluster of three items:

directionality at both the word and sentence levels and where a reading passage ends.

The mathematics assessment consisted of measures of children's skills and knowledge of the

properties and functions of numbers and geometric shapes, operations and applications. There are five

mathematics proficiency levels at the kindergarten level, each level representing a higher level of skill and

knowledge.

• Level one refers to a cluster of items that measures reading numerals, recognizing shapes and

counting to 10.

• Level two includes items that measure reading numerals, counting beyond 10, sequencing

patterns and using nonstandard units of length to compare objects.

• Level three items measure number sequence, reading two-digit numerals, identification of the

ordinal position of an object and solving a word problem.

• Level four includes calculating sums up to 10 and relationships of numbers in sequence.

• Level five measures problemsolving using multiplication and division and number patterns.
14

Assessors read the items to the child. Items were presented with graphics and manipulatives.

Children could use counting blocks and paper and pencil to solve the problems. This assessment battery is

intended for use with both kindergarten and first-grade children. Therefore, when looking at the

proficiency scores of beginning kindergartners, it is not out of the ordinary for the majority of children to

be scoring in the lower proficiency levels (e.g., letter recognition, beginning sounds, number and shape

recognition and relative size).
15

Key Findings: Cognitive Skills and Knowledge

Norm-referenced scores

• In reading, girls slightly outperform boys. A larger number of girls than boys score in the highest

quartile in reading (table 1). Girls and boys perform similarly in mathematics and general knowledge

(tables 2 and 3). A similar proportion of boys and girls score in the highest quartile in mathematics

and general knowledge.

• In reading, mathematics and general knowledge, older kindergartners (born in 1992) outperform the

younger kindergartners (born September through December 1993). The older kindergartners are more

likely to score in the highest quartile of the distribution of scores than the younger kindergartners.

However, some of the youngest children, those just turning 5, also score in the highest quartile (16

percent in reading, 12 percent in mathematics and 12 percent in general knowledge).

• Children’s performance in reading, mathematics and general knowledge increases with the level of

their mothers’ education. Kindergartners whose mothers have more education are more likely to score

in the highest quartile in reading, mathematics and general knowledge. However, some children

whose mothers have less than a high school education also score in the highest quartile (6 percent in

reading, 7 percent in mathematics and 5 percent in general knowledge).

• Children’s reading, mathematics and general knowledge performances differ by their family type:

kindergartners from two-parent families are more likely to score in the highest quartile in reading,

mathematics and general knowledge than children from single-mother families. However, some

children with single mothers also score in the highest quartile (14 percent in reading, 14 percent in

mathematics and 12 percent in general knowledge).

• In reading, mathematics and general knowledge, children’s performances differ by the primary

language spoken in the home: more kindergartners in homes where the primary language is English

score in the highest quartile in reading, mathematics and general knowledge than those in homes

where the primary language is not English.

• Children who are white are more likely to score in the highest quartile than black or Hispanic

children in reading, mathematics and general knowledge. However, that is not to say that

minorities are not achieving above the average. In reading, some black (15 percent) and

Hispanic (15 percent) children score in the highest quartile.
16

Key Findings: Cognitive Skills and Knowledge

Criterion-referenced scores: Reading

• Print familiarity skills such as knowing that print reads left to right, knowing where to go when a line

of print ends and knowing where the story ends are important; 18 percent of first-time kindergartners

cannot do any of these three skills; 21 percent can do one of these three skills; 24 percent can do two

of these three skills; and 37 percent can do all three of these skills (table 4).

• As children enter kindergarten for the first time, 66 percent pass reading proficiency level one

(recognizing their letters); 29 percent pass level two (beginning sounds); 17 percent pass level three

(ending sounds); 2 percent pass level four (sight words); and 1 percent pass level five (words in

context) (table 5).

• More girls than boys pass reading proficiency levels one (recognizing their letters), two (beginning

sounds) and three (ending sounds).

• Older first-time kindergartners (born in 1992) are more likely to pass levels one through four than

younger first-time kindergartners (born September through December 1993). Older first-time

kindergartners are also more likely to have all three print familiarity skills than younger first-time

kindergartners.

• Children with few risk factors are more likely to pass various reading proficiencies than children at

risk. For example, children whose mothers have higher levels of education passed the first three

reading proficiency levels at higher rates than kindergartners whose mothers have less education.

Plus, children from families who do not receive welfare services are more likely to pass reading

proficiency levels one (letter recognition), two (beginning sounds) and three (ending sounds) than

kindergartners from families who did receive public assistance. The same pattern is true for print

familiarity. Children whose mothers have higher levels of education are more likely than children

whose mothers have less education and children whose families did not receive public assistance are

more likely than children whose families received public assistance, to have all three print familiarity

skills.

• Children’s reading proficiency and print familiarity also differ by family type. Children from families

with two parents pass reading proficiency levels one through four more often than kindergartners with

single mothers and are more likely to have all three print familiarity skills.

• Children who are white are more likely to pass levels one (letter recognition), two (beginning sounds)

and three (ending sounds) than children who are black or Hispanic. Children who are Asian are also

more likely to pass levels one through three than white, black or Hispanic children.
17

Key Findings: Cognitive Skills and Knowledge

Criterion-referenced scores: Mathematics

• When they enter kindergarten, 94 percent of first-time kindergartners pass mathematics proficiency

level one (reading numerals, recognizing shapes and counting to 10); 58 percent pass level two

(reading numerals, counting beyond 10, sequencing patterns and using nonstandard units of length to

compare objects); 20 percent pass level three (number sequence, reading two digit numerals,

identification of the ordinal position of an object and solving a word problem); 4 percent pass level

four (includes calculating sums up to 10 and relationships of numbers in sequence); and under 1

percent pass level five (problemsolving using multiplication and division and number patterns) (table

6).

• The older first-time kindergartners (born 1992) are more likely than the younger first-time

kindergartners (born September through December 1993) to pass levels one through four (reading

numerals, recognizing shapes and counting to 10; reading numerals, counting beyond 10, sequencing

patterns and using nonstandard units of length to compare objects; number sequence, reading two

digit numerals, identification of the ordinal position of an object and solving a word problem;

calculating sums up to 10 and relationships of numbers in sequence).

• Kindergartners whose mothers have higher levels of education are more likely to pass levels one

through four than kindergartners with mothers who have a lower levels of education.

• Kindergartners from families with two parents are more likely to pass levels one through four than

kindergartners with single mothers.

• First-time kindergartners whose families have not received or are not receiving welfare services are

more likely than kindergartners from families with receipt of welfare to pass levels one through four.

• Similar to reading, there are racial/ethnic differences in the mathematics proficiencies of beginning

kindergartners. White and Asian children are more likely to pass levels one through four than black or

Hispanic children.
18

Table 2.—Mean reading t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile scores, by child

and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 50 25 25 25 25

Child's sex

 Male 49 29 25 24 22

 Female 51 21 25 26 28

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 53 15 25 26 34

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 52 19 22 27 32

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 51 24 24 25 27

 Born May – Aug. 1993 48 30 27 23 20

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 47 33 28 23 16

Mother's education

 Less than high school 43 52 26 16 6

 High school diploma or equivalent 48 32 28 24 16

 Some college, including vocational/technical 51 21 27 26 26

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 56 8 18 28 46

Family type

 Single mother 47 36 29 21 14

 Single father 48 31 31 22 16

 Two parent 51 22 24 26 28

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 44 49 27 16 8

 Never utilized AFDC 50 22 25 26 27

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 46 44 22 18 16

 English 50 25 25 25 25

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 52 18 24 28 30

 Black, non-Hispanic 47 34 30 21 15

 Asian 55 13 24 24 39

 Hispanic 46 42 24 19 15

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 48 33 28 17 22

 American Indian/Alaska Native 42 57 23 11 9

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 49 31 23 23 23

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 53 16 24 29 31

 Black, non-Hispanic 48 30 30 22 18

 Asian 56 11 21 25 43

 Hispanic 48 35 24 22 19

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 45 43 28 21 8

 Black, non-Hispanic 43 52 28 16 4

 Asian 48 28 41 19 12

 Hispanic 41 64 22 10 4

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
19

Table 3.—Mean mathematics t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile scores, by

child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 50 25 25 25 25

Child's sex

 Male 50 26 24 24 26

 Female 50 24 26 26 24

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 55 13 18 23 46

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 53 17 22 26 35

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 51 22 26 26 26

 Born May – Aug. 1993 48 32 27 24 17

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 46 41 27 20 12

Mother's education

 Less than high school 43 53 25 15 7

 High school diploma or equivalent 48 32 28 23 17

 Some college, including vocational/technical 51 21 27 28 24

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 56 18 18 19 45

Family type

 Single mother 46 37 28 21 14

 Single father 48 31 29 19 21

 Two parent 51 21 24 26 29

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 44 50 27 16 7

 Never utilized AFDC 51 22 25 26 27

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 47 38 26 19 17

 English 50 25 25 25 25

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 52 18 23 27 32

 Black, non-Hispanic 46 39 30 21 10

 Asian 54 13 25 24 38

 Hispanic 47 40 26 20 14

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 47 34 27 27 12

 American Indian/Alaska Native 43 50 26 15 9

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 49 31 24 25 20

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 53 16 23 28 33

 Black, non-Hispanic 47 36 30 22 12

 Asian 55 12 24 23 41

 Hispanic 48 32 27 24 17

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 45 45 25 19 11

 Black, non-Hispanic 42 56 27 13 4

 Asian 50 18 36 28 18

 Hispanic 42 60 24 11 5

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
20

Table 4.—Mean general knowledge t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile scores,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 50 25 25 25 25

Child's sex

 Male 50 25 24 25 26

 Female 50 25 26 25 24

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 56 11 16 26 47

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 53 16 22 26 36

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 51 23 25 27 25

 Born May – Aug. 1993 48 32 27 24 17

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 46 42 27 19 12

Mother's education

 Less than high school 43 52 29 14 5

 High school diploma or equivalent 48 31 28 25 16

 Some college, including vocational/technical 51 21 26 29 24

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 56 10 16 26 48

Family type

 Single mother 46 40 27 21 12

 Single father 48 25 35 26 14

 Two parent 52 20 24 26 30

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 43 51 28 15 6

 Never utilized AFDC 51 22 25 26 27

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 43 53 28 13 6

 English 51 24 25 25 26

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 53 14 23 29 34

 Black, non-Hispanic 44 51 28 15 6

 Asian 48 34 27 20 19

 Hispanic 46 41 28 19 12

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 45 47 29 16 8

 American Indian/Alaska Native 44 49 25 18 7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 50 23 26 30 21

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 54 12 23 29 36

 Black, non-Hispanic 44 48 28 17 7

 Asian 49 30 26 22 22

 Hispanic 48 35 28 22 15

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 47 34 34 23 9

 Black, non-Hispanic 40 66 25 8 1

 Asian 41 60 29 6 5

 Hispanic 42 63 27 8 2

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
21

Table 5.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by print familiarity scores, by child

and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic 0 skills 1 skill 2 skills 3 skills

Total 18 21 24 37

Child's sex

 Male 20 20 23 37

 Female 17 21 25 38

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 11 17 22 50

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 13 18 24 45

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 17 20 24 38

 Born May – Aug. 1993 22 22 24 32

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 27 25 22 26

Mother's education

 Less than high school 32 28 24 17

 High school diploma or equivalent 23 23 24 30

 Some college, including vocational/technical 17 20 24 39

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 8 14 23 56

Family type

 Single mother 26 24 24 25

 Single father 22 25 24 29

 Two parent 16 19 24 41

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 32 27 22 19

 Never utilized AFDC 17 19 24 40

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 26 22 24 28

 English 18 20 24 38

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 14 18 24 45

 Black, non-Hispanic 29 26 24 21

 Asian 15 19 22 43

 Hispanic 24 23 26 27

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 30 27 19 23

 American Indian/Alaska Native 38 27 18 17

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 18 23 24 35

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 12 17 24 47

 Black, non-Hispanic 27 25 25 23

 Asian 14 17 22 46

 Hispanic 22 22 25 31

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 26 26 25 22

 Black, non-Hispanic 40 30 20 11

 Asian 22 36 23 19

 Hispanic 32 26 27 15

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
22

Table 6.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each reading proficiency level, by child and

family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Letter

recognition

Beginning

sounds

Ending

sounds

Sight

words

Words in

context

Total 66 29 17 2 1

Child's sex

 Male 62 26 15 3 1

 Female 70 32 19 2 1

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 76 38 24 5 2

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 73 36 22 4 2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 67 31 17 2 1

 Born May – Aug. 1993 60 23 13 1 1

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 56 20 11 1 1

Mother's education

 Less than high school 38 9 4 (*) (*)

 High school diploma or equivalent 57 20 11 1 (*)

 Some college, including vocational/technical 69 30 17 2 1

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 86 50 32 6 2

Family type

 Single mother 53 18 10 1 (*)

 Single father 58 21 11 2 1

 Two parent 70 33 19 3 1

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 41 11 5 1 (*)

 Never utilized AFDC 69 31 18 4 1

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 49 20 12 3 2

 English 67 30 17 2 1

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 73 34 20 3 1

 Black, non-Hispanic 55 19 10 1 (*)

 Asian 79 43 29 9 5

 Hispanic 49 19 10 1 1

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 55 24 14 2 1

 American Indian/Alaska Native 34 11 6 (*) (*)

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 61 27 16 4 2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 75 36 21 3 1

 Black, non-Hispanic 59 22 12 1 1

 Asian 82 47 32 10 5

 Hispanic 55 23 13 1 1

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 47 12 6 (*) (*)

 Black, non-Hispanic 37 7 3 (*) (*)

 Asian 60 20 9 1 1

 Hispanic 29 6 3 (*) (*)

* less than .5 percent.

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
23

Table 7.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each mathematics proficiency level, by child and family

characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Number &

shape

Relative

size

Ordinal

sequence

Add/

subtract

Multiply/

divide

Total 94 58 20 4 (*)

Child's sex

 Male 93 57 21 5 1

 Female 95 59 20 4 (*)

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 97 74 37 10 2

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 96 67 29 7 1

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 95 60 21 4 (*)

 Born May – Aug. 1993 92 51 14 2 (*)

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 89 42 10 2 (*)

Mother's education

 Less than high school 84 32 6 1 (*)

 High school diploma or equivalent 92 50 13 2 (*)

 Some college, including vocational/technical 96 61 20 4 (*)

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 99 79 37 9 1

Family type

 Single mother 90 44 11 2 (*)

 Single father 91 51 16 3 (*)

 Two parent 95 63 23 5 (*)

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 85 33 6 1 (*)

 Never utilized AFDC 95 61 22 5 1

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 89 45 13 3 (*)

 English 94 59 21 4 (*)

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 96 66 26 5 (*)

 Black, non-Hispanic 90 42 9 1 (*)

 Asian 98 70 31 9 1

 Hispanic 90 44 12 2 (*)

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 91 48 11 2 (*)

 American Indian/Alaska Native 80 34 8 1 (*)

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 94 54 17 4 (*)

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 97 68 27 6 (*)

 Black, non-Hispanic 91 45 10 1 (*)

 Asian 97 73 34 10 2

 Hispanic 93 49 14 2 (*)

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 87 40 9 1 (∗)

 Black, non-Hispanic 83 27 4 (*) (∗)

 Asian 94 58 16 4 1

 Hispanic 82 27 5 1 (*)

* less than .5 percent.

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English (approximately 19 percent of Asian children and

approximately 30 percent of Hispanic children were not assessed). Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
24

Social Skills

Social skills are an important part of children’s development. A primary goal of early childhood

education is the socialization of children (Meisels et al. 1996; Vinovskis 1992). The ability to make and

keep friends and maintain relationships with peers and adults (such as teachers) form the social

foundation of school. Children's social skills may be related to their later academic achievement (Swartz

and Walker 1984). And their experiences with peers will likely influence their attitudes toward school and

learning (Kagan et al. 1995).

Children's social skills may be conceptualized along two lines—prosocial and problem behaviors

(Meece 1997). Prosocial behavior includes positive behaviors that facilitate successful social interaction.

Children act in ways to help others without necessarily experiencing gain for themselves. As children

expand their social worlds and cognitive understanding of self and others, they are more able to

empathize and share with others. Prosocial skills in young children can be as simple as the abilitiy to

accept peer ideas in play or to form friendships. Conversely, problem behaviors are those that tend to

impede social interaction. Children who exhibit problematic behavior (e.g., fighting, arguing) may not be

liked by peers or may be seen as disruptive by adults. Both the positive and negative behaviors that

children exhibit frame their learning environment by affecting the social dynamics within this

environment.

Several discrete behaviors serve as indicators of children's social skills, either prosocial or

problematic in nature. Children may exhibit different behaviors at home and school. Thus, it is important

to frame children’s social skills in the context of the home and in the context of the school. Therefore,

parents and teachers of each sampled child answered questions on the frequency with which the child acts

in certain ways (e.g., joins others in play, makes friends, argues with others, fights with others). The

frequency of these behaviors is categorized as never/sometimes and often/very often.
25

Prosocial Behavior. Children with prosocial skills may experience an easier time adjusting to the

school setting. The ability to make friends and a sensitivity to others may contribute to a positive

atmosphere in which learning can occur. In this report, children's prosocial behavior is examined by three

single item indicators. Parents rated how frequently their child easily joins others in play, makes and

keeps friends and comforts or helps others (table 7). Similarly, teachers noted how often a child accepts

peers' ideas for group activities, forms and maintains friendships and comforts or helps other children

(table 8).

Key Findings: Prosocial Behavior

• From parent ratings, at least 80 percent of children join others, make friends or comfort others often

or very often.

• From teacher ratings, about three-quarters of first-time kindergartners are adept at forming

friendships and accepting peer ideas, engaging in these behaviors often or very often. Additionally,

half of kindergartners comfort other children in school.

• Both parents and teachers rate girls as more likely than boys to comfort others often or very often.

Teachers also rate kindergarten girls as more likely to accept peer ideas and form friendships.

Parents of kindergartners do not see large differences in how often boys and girls join others, but

parents do report that girls make friends slightly more often than boys.

• From the perspective of the kindergarten teacher, the older children (born September to December

1992) are more likely than the younger children (born September through December 1993) to accept

the ideas of others and to comfort others. Parents’ perceptions reflect these age differences for

joining others.

• Also, from the perspective of kindergarten teachers, children with some characteristics of risk for

school difficulty (those whose mothers have lower education, are single mothers or whose families

have received or are receiving public assistance) are less likely than children whose mothers have

higher levels of education, who come from two-parent families and whose families have never

utilized public assistance to accept peer ideas and form friendships. Parent reports concerning

joining others and making friends reflect most of these differences.

• Based on the reports of their parents and teachers, children whose home language is one other than

English are less likely to engage in the three prosocial behaviors examined here than children whose

primary home language is English.
26

Table 8.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they engage in prosocial

behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Join others Make friends Comfort others

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 14 86 11 89 18 82

Child's sex

 Male 14 86 13 87 22 78

 Female 15 85 10 90 14 86

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 14 86 11 89 18 82

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 13 87 11 89 18 82

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 14 86 11 89 18 82

 Born May – Aug. 1993 14 86 12 88 18 82

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 18 82 14 86 20 80

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 21 79 20 80 29 71

 High school diploma or equivalent 15 85 12 88 18 82

 Some college, including vocational/technical 13 87 9 91 15 85

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 12 88 9 91 15 85

Family type

 Single mother 16 84 13 87 19 81

 Single father 12 88 11 89 19 81

 Two parent 14 86 11 89 18 82

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 17 83 15 85 21 79

 Never utilized AFDC 14 86 11 89 17 83

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 23 77 21 79 30 70

 English 13 87 10 90 17 83

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 10 90 9 91 15 85

 Black, non-Hispanic 16 84 13 87 19 81

 Asian 22 78 18 82 28 72

 Hispanic 20 80 17 83 24 76

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 40 60 28 72 24 76

 American Indian/Alaska Native 15 85 13 87 16 84

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 14 86 10 90 14 86

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 10 90 8 92 15 85

 Black, non-Hispanic 15 85 12 88 18 82

 Asian 21 79 17 83 25 75

 Hispanic 18 82 14 86 18 82

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 13 87 15 85 20 80

 Black, non-Hispanic 21 79 19 81 25 75

 Asian 27 73 25 75 41 59

 Hispanic 25 75 22 78 36 64

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
27

Table 9.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they engage in prosocial

behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Accept peer ideas Form friendships Comfort others

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 26 74 23 77 49 51

Child's sex

 Male 29 71 27 73 57 43

 Female 23 77 20 80 40 60

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 27 73 25 75 46 54

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 25 75 20 80 46 54

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 25 75 22 78 48 52

 Born May – Aug. 1993 27 73 26 74 51 49

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 31 69 26 74 54 46

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 31 69 30 70 58 42

 High school diploma or equivalent 27 73 25 75 50 50

 Some college, including vocational/technical 25 75 22 78 47 53

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 24 76 19 81 43 57

Family type

 Single mother 31 69 29 71 54 46

 Single father 33 67 33 67 59 41

 Two parent 24 76 21 79 47 53

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 33 67 33 69 57 43

 Never utilized AFDC 25 75 22 78 47 53

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 29 71 28 72 56 44

 English 26 74 23 77 48 52

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 24 76 20 80 45 55

 Black, non-Hispanic 32 68 29 71 56 44

 Asian 25 75 27 73 50 50

 Hispanic 27 73 26 74 55 45

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 26 74 31 69 58 42

 American Indian/Alaska Native 30 70 32 68 55 45

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 29 71 27 73 47 53

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 23 77 19 81 44 56

 Black, non-Hispanic 32 68 27 73 54 46

 Asian 25 75 26 74 50 50

 Hispanic 25 75 24 76 53 47

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 29 71 31 69 53 47

 Black, non-Hispanic 33 67 35 65 66 34

 Asian 24 76 25 75 51 49

 Hispanic 31 69 27 73 58 42

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
28

Problem Behavior. Children who exhibit aggressive or antisocial behaviors may have a more

difficult time adjusting to school. Children who fight, argue or yell at others are more likely to experience

peer rejection, and such rejection has been associated with academic difficulties and increased likelihood

for school dropout (Kupersmidt et al. 1990; Parker and Asher 1987). In this report, children's problem

behaviors are described by three single item indicators. Parents and teachers (tables 9 and 10,

respectively) each rated how often the child argues with others, fights with others, or gets angry easily.

Key Findings: Problem Behavior

• The incidence of problem behavior is relatively infrequent in first-time kindergartners. Teachers

report that 10 to 11 percent of first-time kindergartners argue or fight with others or get angry easily

often to very often. Children also exhibit few antisocial problems as rated by their parents. However,

parents report a somewhat higher incidence of these behaviors. According to their parents, 15 percent

of children often or very often fight with others and 33 percent often or very often argue with others.

• The frequency of children's problem behaviors varies by their family type. Single mothers are more

likely than respondents from two-parent families to report their children as arguing, fighting or

getting angry often or very often. Teachers are less likely to rate children from households with two

parents than children from single-mother families as exhibiting problem behavior.

• Reports of children's problem behaviors vary by race/ethnicity. The pattern of these differences and

their magnitude depends on who is rating the children's behavior. When teachers rate the children in

their classrooms, black children are more likely than white and Asian children to be seen as exhibiting

higher levels of problem behaviors (arguing with others, fighting with others, getting angry easily).

When parents rate their children, we see fewer differences between black and white children. Instead,

we see more differences between Asian children and white, black and Hispanic children. Asian

children are less likely than children in these other groups to be seen as arguing or fighting often to

very often by their parents.
29

Table 10.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they exhibit antisocial

behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Argue with others Fight with others Easily get angry

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 67 33 85 15 83 17

Child's sex

 Male 67 33 84 16 81 19

 Female 68 32 86 14 85 15

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 68 32 87 13 84 16

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 68 32 86 14 84 16

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 68 32 86 14 84 16

 Born May – Aug. 1993 67 33 84 16 82 18

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 69 31 85 15 81 19

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 64 36 79 21 71 29

 High school diploma or equivalent 65 35 83 17 82 18

 Some college, including vocational/technical 69 31 87 13 86 14

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 72 28 90 10 88 12

Family type

 Single mother 65 35 82 18 78 22

 Single father 68 32 90 10 84 16

 Two parent 69 31 86 14 85 15

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 64 36 79 21 74 26

 Never utilized AFDC 68 32 86 14 84 16

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 73 27 85 15 79 21

 English 67 33 85 15 84 16

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 67 33 86 14 85 15

 Black, non-Hispanic 67 33 84 16 81 19

 Asian 78 22 90 10 84 16

 Hispanic 70 30 84 16 79 21

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 71 29 80 20 84 16

 American Indian/Alaska Native 66 34 82 18 81 19

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 65 35 86 14 80 20

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 68 32 87 13 87 13

 Black, non-Hispanic 69 31 86 14 84 16

 Asian 77 23 89 11 84 16

 Hispanic 70 30 84 16 82 18

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 53 47 73 27 71 29

 Black, non-Hispanic 58 42 75 25 67 33

 Asian 85 15 96 4 79 21

 Hispanic 72 28 83 17 73 27

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
30

Table 11.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they exhibit antisocial

behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Argue with others Fight with others Easily get angry

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 89 11 90 10 89 11

Child's sex

 Male 87 13 89 11 86 14

 Female 92 8 92 8 91 9

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 89 11 91 9 89 11

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 89 11 91 9 90 10

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 89 11 91 9 89 11

 Born May – Aug. 1993 88 12 89 11 88 12

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 89 11 88 12 86 14

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 87 13 86 14 87 13

 High school diploma or equivalent 88 12 90 10 88 12

 Some college, including vocational/technical 90 10 91 9 89 11

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 91 9 93 7 90 10

Family type

 Single mother 85 15 87 13 86 14

 Single father 82 18 82 18 85 15

 Two parent 90 10 91 9 90 10

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 84 16 85 15 85 15

 Never utilized AFDC 90 10 91 9 89 11

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 91 9 89 11 88 12

 English 89 11 90 10 89 11

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 90 10 92 8 90 10

 Black, non-Hispanic 83 17 86 14 85 15

 Asian 94 6 93 7 91 9

 Hispanic 90 10 89 11 88 12

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 86 14 89 11 88 12

 American Indian/Alaska Native 86 14 85 15 87 13

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 90 10 90 10 88 12

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 91 9 92 8 90 10

 Black, non-Hispanic 84 16 87 13 85 15

 Asian 94 6 92 8 90 10

 Hispanic 90 10 90 10 89 11

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 87 13 88 12 87 13

 Black, non-Hispanic 80 20 83 17 85 15

 Asian 97 3 97 3 95 5

 Hispanic 89 11 86 14 86 14

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
31

Physical Well-Being

When children enter school, their developmental status is based not only upon their previous

cognitive development, literacy experiences and social development but also on their physical

development. Indeed, children's physical and motor development play a key role in their preparedness for

school. Children's physical well-being may frame their learning opportunities—limiting or expanding

them. The child with poor fine motor skills will have difficulty holding and using a pencil, which may

contribute to difficulties in printing letters and words. Fine motor skills (i.e., visual motor) can predict

reading, mathematics and general school achievement, and such perceptual skills may be more predictive

than even cognitive skills for later success in reading comprehension (Tramontana et al. 1988).

Children's social interactions and emotional well-being may also be influenced by their physical

developmental status. Children who have problems with their health or have lower levels of physical

activity may feel lonely and less well liked by their peers (Page et al. 1992). In terms of height, adults and

young children alike tend to rate taller boys as more able or more liked than shorter boys, and preschool

boys tend to evaluate taller girls as more liked (Eisenberg et al. 1984). In regard to weight, an overweight

child may be teased and feel lonely, potentially limiting his or her confidence in joining cooperative

learning activities or speaking in class.

Furthermore, children with developmental difficulties (e.g., increased activity levels, attention

difficulties, articulation difficulties) may develop feelings of separateness from their peers and adults

other than their parents, potentially adversely affecting their school experiences (Kagan et al. 1995;

Meisels et al. 1993). The maturational process of growing relates to numerous other physical well-being

processes, such as activity level and coordination.

The following section describes a set of key characteristics that represent the domain of physical

well-being. Each of these characteristics reflects an aspect of physical health and well-being that

potentially influences children’s adaptation to and success in school. The child-specific areas of physical

well-being in this report include children’s height and weight (body mass index), fine motor skills (e.g.,

copying figures, manipulating blocks), gross motor skills (e.g., hopping on one foot, walking backward in

a line), general health and developmental limitations. Trained assessors measured each child’s height,

weight and motor skills. Parents reported on their child’s general health and potential developmental

difficulties.
32

Height and Weight. Children’s height and weight are robust indicators of general health and

well-being (Shonkoff 1992). Both serve as markers of children’s ability to thrive and reflect the effects of

nutrition, the consequences of persistent and chronic illness or environmental conditions. At entry into

kindergarten, children’s growth is relatively rapid. At this young age, there is a good amount of variation

in children’s height and weight. On average, first-time kindergarten children are 45 inches tall and weigh

46 pounds, with boys averaging 45 inches, 47 pounds and girls averaging 44 inches, 46 pounds (not

shown in tables).

Body Mass Index. Obesity is a significant health problem, with medical and psychological

consequences for children (Hammer et al. 1991). Rosner and his colleagues (1998) report that “childhood

obesity is the most prevalent and serious nutritional problem in the United States” (p. 211). Because of

the concern with effects of childhood obesity, the measurement of the relationship of height to weight has

recently been added as an indicator of health (Rosner et al. 1998). Body mass index (BMI), the ratio

between height and weight (weight in kilograms/height in meters2), is used as an index of overweight in

children and adolescents. Body mass index guidelines are sex and age specific (Rosner et al. 1998), in that

age is a part of the computation and the index is calculated separately for males and females (table 11). A

boy, aged 5 who is of average height—45 inches—would need to weigh 53 pounds to be considered at

risk for overweight. This is about 13 percent more than the average weight of 47 pounds. A girl, aged 5

who is of average height—44 inches—would need to weigh 51 pounds to be considered at risk for

overweight. This is about 11 percent more than the average weight of 46 pounds.
33

Key Findings: Body Mass Index

• For both boys and girls, percent at risk for overweight varies by level of mother’s education.

Specifically, boys and girls whose mothers have less than a bachelor’s degree are at greater risk for

being overweight than boys and girls whose mothers have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

• Boys and girls who come from homes where the primary language is not English are at greater risk

for being overweight than boys and girls who come from homes where the primary language is

English.

• Risk for being overweight also varies by children’s race/ethnicity. Hispanic boys are at greater risk

than their white and black counterparts for being overweight. White girls are less likely to be at risk

for overweight than their black and Hispanic counterparts.
34

Table 12.—Percentage of first-time male and female kindergartners at risk for overweight, by child and

family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic Males Females

Total 12 11

Mother's education

 Less than high school 15 12

 High school diploma or equivalent 13 13

 Some college, including vocational/technical 12 11

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 9 8

Family type

 Single mother 13 13

 Single father 10 9

 Two parent 12 11

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 12 10

 Never utilized AFDC 11 10

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 19 17

 English 11 11

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 11 9

 Black, non-Hispanic 10 13

 Asian 15 9

 Hispanic 17 15

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 15 8

 American Indian/Alaska Native 18 15

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 10 13

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 10 9

 Black, non-Hispanic 11 13

 Asian 15 10

 Hispanic 17 15

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 16 9

 Black, non-Hispanic 7 11

 Asian 15 6

 Hispanic 16 16

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Age is factored in to the BMI calculation, and therefore is not used as a

characteristic. Overweight is defined as BMI at or above the sex- and age-specific guidelines calculated at 12-month age

intervals (Rosner et al. 1998).

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
35

Motor Skills. Physical and motor development are important indicators of development in the

cognitive and socioemotional areas (Bukatko and Daehler 1995; Meisels et al. 1993). Children’s control

and coordination of balance and body movements relates to their performance in academic areas in the

elementary grades. Specifically, children’s visual motor skills (i.e., coordination of eyes and hand

movements) are among the best predictors of reading achievement in the first through third grades

(Tramontana et al. 1988). Other studies (e.g., Wallbrown et al. 1975) demonstrate that although cognitive

measures are more effective predictors of reading vocabulary, perceptual measures are better predictors of

reading comprehension.

Children’s motor development and neuromotor maturation affect their socioemotional

development as well. Problems in motor coordination correlate with peer ratings and loneliness (Doan

and Scherman 1987; Hartup 1983; Hops and Finch 1985; Page et al. 1992). For boys in particular,

physical prowess is a consideration in the formation of social networks as boys progress through the

elementary years. In combination with height and weight, motor assessment gives an indication of the

well-being of the child.

The ECLS-K direct measures of fine motor skills involve children constructing forms with

wooden blocks, copying basic figures (e.g., circle, square, cross) and drawing a person. The gross motor

assessment involves balancing on each foot, hopping on each foot, skipping and walking backward on a

line. For comparison purposes, note that the fine motor (maximum nine points) and the gross motor

(maximum eight points) scales are not scored the same as each other. On both scales, higher scores

indicate higher levels of coordination (tables 12–13). To fully appreciate differences by child and family

characteristics in fine and gross motor ability, the scores were empirically divided into approximate

thirds. Therefore, comparisons about the characteristics of children scoring in the lower, middle and

higher portion of the distribution can be made. The middle group of children is able to perform the fine

and gross motor tasks expected for children their age. The lower group of children are scoring about one

or more standard deviations below the average. These children are possibly at risk for later developmental

difficulties.
36

Key Findings: Motor Skills

• More girls than boys score in the higher portion of the distribution for both fine and gross motor skills

(tables 13 and 14).

• Children’s fine and gross motor skills vary with their age. Older kindergartners (born in 1992) are

more likely to score in the higher portion of the distribution than the younger kindergartners (born

September through December 1993).

• Children whose mothers have higher levels of education are more likely to score in the higher portion

of the distribution for both the fine and gross motor skills than children whose mothers have a lower

education level.

• In terms of fine motor skills, more children from two-parent families score in the higher portion of the

distribution children from single-parent families.

• Children’s gross motor skills vary by their race/ethnicity. Black children are more likely to score in

the higher portion of the distribution for gross motor skills than white, Asian or Hispanic children.
37

Table 13.—First-time kindergartners’ mean fine motor skills score and percentage distribution of scores,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

fine motor Lower Middle Higher

Total 6 29 36 35

Child's sex

 Male 6 31 37 33

 Female 6 26 36 38

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 6 20 36 44

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 6 20 36 44

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 6 25 37 38

 Born May – Aug. 1993 5 34 37 29

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 5 45 33 22

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 5 42 35 22

 High school diploma or equivalent 5 33 36 31

 Some college, including vocational/technical 6 25 37 39

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 6 18 36 46

Family type

 Single mother 5 37 35 28

 Single father 6 31 41 28

 Two parent 6 26 37 37

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 5 44 33 23

 Never utilized AFDC 6 26 37 37

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 6 31 35 34

 English 6 28 36 36

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 6 24 37 39

 Black, non-Hispanic 5 41 33 26

 Asian 7 15 36 49

 Hispanic 6 31 36 33

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 6 27 32 41

 American Indian/Alaska Native 6 31 39 30

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 6 28 41 31

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 6 23 37 40

 Black, non-Hispanic 5 39 33 28

 Asian 7 14 36 50

 Hispanic 6 27 35 38

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 5 44 34 22

 Black, non-Hispanic 4 51 34 16

 Asian 6 18 33 49

 Hispanic 5 39 37 24

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Scale 0–9.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
38

Table 14.—First-time kindergartners’ mean gross motor skills score and percentage distribution of scores,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

gross motor Lower Middle Higher

Total 6 26 35 39

Child's sex

 Male 6 31 36 33

 Female 7 22 34 44

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 7 21 32 47

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 7 21 33 46

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 6 24 35 41

 Born May – Aug. 1993 6 31 36 33

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 6 37 35 28

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 6 30 35 35

 High school diploma or equivalent 6 28 35 37

 Some college, including vocational/technical 6 25 35 40

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 5 24 34 42

Family type

 Single mother 6 26 33 41

 Single father 6 33 33 34

 Two parent 6 27 35 38

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 6 29 32 38

 Never utilized AFDC 6 26 35 39

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 6 30 34 36

 English 6 26 35 39

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 6 28 35 37

 Black, non-Hispanic 7 21 33 46

 Asian 6 26 36 38

 Hispanic 6 28 35 37

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 6 26 40 34

 American Indian/Alaska Native 6 31 29 40

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 6 24 38 38

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 6 27 35 38

 Black, non-Hispanic 7 21 33 46

 Asian 6 26 35 39

 Hispanic 6 28 35 37

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 6 36 34 30

 Black, non-Hispanic 7 22 35 43

 Asian 6 33 34 33

 Hispanic 6 29 36 35

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Scale 0–8.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
39

General Health. Health and physical well-being are both precursors and corollaries to other areas

of development. Elementary school teachers report that children’s health is critical to their school

performance (Heaviside and Farris 1993). At a time when children learn best by doing, strong and healthy

children are better able to explore their physical world and are better prepared to put their best foot

forward to begin formal schooling. Parents were asked to rate their children’s general health from

excellent to fair/poor (table 15).

Key Findings: General Health

• A majority of parents of first-time kindergartners report their child’s general health to be excellent (51

percent) or very good (32 percent). Only a minority of children are reported as having fair or poor

general health (3 percent) (table 15).

• Kindergarten children whose mothers have higher levels of education rate their children’s general

health better than children whose mothers have lower levels of education.

• Children from two-parent families are more likely to be in excellent health than children from singlemother families.

• Children whose families have never utilized public assistance are more likely to be in excellent

general health than children whose families have utilized public assistance.

• Children’s general health status varies by their race/ethnicity. White children are more likely than

black, Hispanic or Asian children to be in excellent general health.
40

Table 15.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by parents’ assessment of their general health,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic Excellent Very good Good Fair/ poor

Total 51 32 14 3

Child's sex

 Male 49 33 15 3

 Female 53 31 14 2

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 51 34 12 3

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 53 30 14 3

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 51 32 14 3

 Born May – Aug. 1993 51 32 14 3

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 47 33 16 4

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 35 35 23 7

 High school diploma or equivalent 47 34 16 3

 Some college, including vocational/technical 54 32 12 2

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 62 28 9 1

Family type

 Single mother 42 36 17 5

 Single father 49 29 19 3

 Two parent 54 31 13 2

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 36 35 22 7

 Never utilized AFDC 53 32 13 2

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 38 33 25 4

 English 52 32 13 3

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 57 30 11 2

 Black, non-Hispanic 43 34 18 5

 Asian 37 38 21 4

 Hispanic 41 33 21 5

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 35 48 11 6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 41 39 16 4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 53 29 15 3

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 58 30 10 2

 Black, non-Hispanic 45 34 17 4

 Asian 41 35 21 3

 Hispanic 47 32 18 3

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 41 35 20 4

 Black, non-Hispanic 35 34 22 9

 Asian 25 46 24 5

 Hispanic 32 35 26 7

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
41

Developmental Difficulties. Children's health and well-being is broadly defined as the absence of

or freedom from disease or chronic symptoms that limit successful engagement in age-appropriate

physical, mental and social activities. A healthy youngster is not simply one who is growing well and is

free from disease, but one who demonstrates appropriate physical, mental and social competencies for his

or her age and the capacity to engage successfully in age-appropriate activities (Shonkoff 1992).

Information about pre-existing and persistent difficulties contributes to a fuller understanding of

first-time kindergartners. The developmental difficulties described in this section are important indicators

of greater vulnerability for poor school outcomes. However, the presence of a limitation does not in itself

indicate a diagnosis or impairment.

The parent-reported developmental difficulties presented in this section include: vision, hearing,

activity level, attention, articulation and coordination. Parents were asked to rate their child as compared

to other children of the same age.

Teachers and parents of kindergarten children rated a child’s ability to sit still and pay attention as

essential or very important to his/her being ready to start school (West et al. 1993). Parents were asked

about their children’s overall activity level and ability to pay attention. Risk for developmental difficulties

pertaining to activity level was indicated if the parent responded their child was a lot more active than

children the same age. Risk for developmental difficulties pertaining to ability to pay attention was

indicated if the parent responded their child paid attention less well or much less well than other children

the same age (table 16).

Children’s coordination also relates to their chances for school success. If children possess a

marked lack of basic coordination (such as movement of arms and legs), this lack of coordination may

impact how they relate to others. Similarly, a difficulty in articulation may detrimentally affect how

children relate to others. Parents were asked to rate their child’s coordination and ability to pronounce

words and communicate effectively. Risk for developmental difficulty was indicated if the parent felt

their child’s coordination and word pronunciation was slightly less or much less than other children the

same age (table 16).
42

Key Findings: Developmental Difficulties

• Only a small percentage of first-time kindergartners are experiencing vision (6 percent) and hearing

problems (3 percent).7

• Almost 20 percent of first-time kindergartners are reported as being a lot more active than their agemates. This indicator of risk for developmental difficulty in terms of hyperactivity varies by child’s

sex, mother’s education, welfare receipt and race/ethnicity. More boys than girls are reported as a lot

more active. Children with some characteristics of risk for school difficulty (low maternal education,

single mothers or receipt of welfare) are more frequently reported as being a lot more active than

children not at risk. Black children are more frequently reported as a lot more active than white, Asian

and Hispanic children.

• Thirteen percent of parents report their children encounter difficulties in paying attention. Difficulty

in paying attention varies by children’s sex, mother’s education, welfare receipt and race/ethnicity.

Boys seem to pay attention less well or much less well to a greater extent than girls. Children whose

mothers have lower levels of education report attention difficulties more frequently than children

whose mothers have higher levels of education. Children who come from single mother-families and

families who have utilized welfare services are at greater risk for this outcome than children from

two-parent families and from families who have never utilized welfare services. Asian children are

less likely to experience attention difficulties than white or black children.

• Articulation of words and ability to communicate varies by children’s sex. Boys are more likely than

girls to have difficulties in this area. Children whose mothers have higher levels of education are less

likely that children whose mothers have lower levels of education to have difficulties with

articulation.

 

7

 Due to the limited percentage of children with vision and hearing difficulties, these estimates are not presented in a

table, and are not reported by child and family characteristics.
43

Table 16.—Percentage of first-time kindergartners whose parents reported developmental difficulty in terms of activity

level, attention, coordination and pronunciation of words: Fall 1998

Characteristic Activity level Attention Coordination Articulation

Total 18 13 4 11

Child's sex

 Male 20 18 5 14

 Female 16 9 3 7

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 20 18 8 18

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 19 13 4 10

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 18 12 3 10

 Born May – Aug. 1993 18 15 4 11

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 17 14 4 11

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 24 17 4 14

 High school diploma or equivalent 19 14 4 12

 Some college, including vocational/technical 18 14 4 10

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 14 10 5 8

Family type

 Single mother 25 16 4 11

 Single father 22 15 4 10

 Two parent 16 12 4 10

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 26 19 4 15

 Never utilized AFDC 17 13 4 10

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 17 9 2 10

 English 19 14 4 11

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 16 13 5 11

 Black, non-Hispanic 30 17 3 11

 Asian 16 9 3 12

 Hispanic 17 11 3 10

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 15 12 5 12

 American Indian/Alaska Native 25 15 5 10

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 20 17 2 12

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 15 13 5 10

 Black, non-Hispanic 28 15 3 9

 Asian 17 9 3 11

 Hispanic 17 12 3 10

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 28 23 5 17

 Black, non-Hispanic 36 25 5 19

 Asian 12 7 3 16

 Hispanic 16 10 3 9

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Developmental difficulties are defined as: activity level a lot more active than children the

same age and attention, articulation and coordination are less well or much less well than children the same age.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
44

Approaches to Learning

To understand more fully the variations among kindergartners, it is important to look at their task

specific performance skills and experiences, which in part reflects the myriad of ways that they become

involved in learning (Crinic and Lamberty 1994; Meisels 1999; Prince 1992). The ways in which children

approach learning frames the very essence of how they think and act in learning situations (Kagan et al.

1995). Consequently, it is important to examine behavioral inclinations or dispositions such as

independence, task persistence, eagerness to learn and creativity (Kopp 1982).

The term approaches to learning represents a broad array of behaviors that influence learning.

Certain characteristics related to children's approach to learning may influence how prepared they are for

learning in a formal school setting. Children who are able to work undisturbed and persist at tasks and

who are attentive are more likely to have a successful experience in the school setting. Kindergartners’

ability to sustain their attention, for example, has been shown to predict later achievement in reading and

mathematics (Tramontana et al. 1988) and to contribute to an easier adjustment to school. Children who

are rated by teachers as able to complete tasks, follow directions and the like tend to also be rated higher

in their academic achievement in general and in reading and mathematics in particular (Clark et al. 1985).

Consequently, we examine children’s learning styles in terms of their task persistence, eagerness to learn

new things, creativity and ability to focus attention.

Parents and teachers provided information on children’s learning approaches. Parents were asked

to rate how frequently their child persists at tasks, seems eager to learn new things and demonstrates

creativity. Teachers were asked similar questions, rating how frequently the child persists at tasks, seems

eager to learn new things and pays attention.8 Parent and teacher responses were categorized as either

never/sometimes or often/very often.

 

8

 The construct of paying attention is also addressed in the developmental difficulties section of the previous

chapter. In the Physical Well-Being chapter, we presented parent ratings of concern for their children’s ability to pay

attention. Here, we present teacher ratings of how often the child pays attention in the classroom. Therefore,

depending on the context of the question, the construct of paying attention can be conceptualized as both a potential

risk for developmental difficulty and as an integral part of a child’s approach to learning.
45

Key Findings: Approaches to Learning

• Parents and teachers have similar views of children’s task persistence. Parents report that about 73

percent of children persist at tasks (table 17), and teachers report that about 71 percent of children

persist at tasks often or very often (table 18).

• Both parents and teachers attribute task persistence more often to girls than boys, to the oldest (born

in 1992) than the youngest (born September through December 1993) and to children not at risk than

children at risk for school difficulty (low maternal education, single mother and receipt of public

assistance), except on the basis of home language.

• Both parents and teachers were less likely to rate black children as often or very often persistent at

tasks than white and Asian children.

• Teachers are less likely than parents to identify the children as often or very often eager to learn.

Parents report that 92 percent of children behave in this way; teachers report that 75 percent children

seem eager to learn.

• Teachers perceive differences by child and family characteristics in children’s eagerness to learn. For

example, girls are more likely than boys to be seen as eager to learn, and older children (born in 1992)

are more likely rated as eager to learn than younger children (born September through December

1993). Children with some characteristics of risk (low maternal education, single-mother household

and receipt of public assistance) are less likely to be seen as eager to learn than children not at risk.

White and Asian children are more likely to be seen as eager to learn by their teachers than black or

Hispanic children.

• Parent ratings of children’s eagerness to learn differ by mother’s education and receipt of public

assistance. Children whose mothers have lower levels of education and those who have received

public assistance are less likely to be seen by their parents as eager to learn in comparison with

children whose mothers have higher levels of education or whose family had not received public

assistance.

• About 85 percent of children are seen by their parents as demonstrating creativity in work or play

often to very often. Children whose mothers have not completed high school are less often seen as

creative by their parents than children whose mothers have a high school diploma or greater. White

children are more often seen as creative by their parents than black, Asian or Hispanic children.

• A majority of children’s teachers (66 percent) state that first-time kindergartners are able to pay

attention most of the time (often to very often). Girls are more likely than boys and older

kindergartners are more likely than younger kindergartners to be seen as having this ability.

According to teachers, children with some characteristics of risk are less likely than other children to

be able to pay attention. Their teachers view black children as less likely than white, Asian or

Hispanic children to be able to pay attention.
46

Table 17.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they persist at a task, are

eager to learn new things and are creative in work or play, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Persist Eager to learn Creative

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 27 73 8 92 15 85

Child's sex

 Male 31 69 9 91 17 83

 Female 23 77 7 93 13 87

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 24 76 8 92 14 86

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 26 74 7 93 14 86

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 27 73 8 92 15 85

 Born May – Aug. 1993 28 72 8 92 16 84

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 31 69 10 90 20 80

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 35 65 15 85 27 73

 High school diploma or equivalent 30 70 9 91 17 83

 Some college, including vocational/technical 26 74 6 94 12 88

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 19 81 5 95 11 89

Family type

 Single mother 32 68 10 90 18 82

 Single father 30 70 9 91 15 85

 Two parent 25 75 7 93 14 86

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 35 65 11 89 20 80

 Never utilized AFDC 26 74 8 92 15 85

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 29 71 13 87 23 77

 English 27 73 8 92 15 85

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 25 75 7 93 11 89

 Black, non-Hispanic 32 68 10 90 20 80

 Asian 24 76 12 88 24 76

 Hispanic 29 71 10 90 21 79

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 38 62 19 81 29 71

 American Indian/Alaska Native 30 70 10 90 23 77

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 31 69 8 92 13 87

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 24 76 6 94 11 89

 Black, non-Hispanic 30 70 8 92 19 81

 Asian 21 79 8 92 20 80

 Hispanic 28 72 7 93 17 83

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 34 66 10 90 21 79

 Black, non-Hispanic 41 59 17 83 27 73

 Asian 32 68 27 73 37 63

 Hispanic 33 67 15 85 30 70

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
47

Table 18.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they persist at a task, are

eager to learn new things and pay attention well, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Persist Eager to learn Attention

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 29 71 25 75 34 66

Child's sex

 Male 35 65 29 71 42 58

 Female 22 78 22 78 26 74

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 21 79 21 79 30 70

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 22 78 20 80 27 73

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 27 73 23 77 32 68

 Born May – Aug. 1993 34 66 30 70 39 61

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 37 63 34 66 43 57

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 39 61 38 62 45 55

 High school diploma or equivalent 30 70 28 72 36 64

 Some college, including vocational/technical 27 73 22 78 32 68

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 21 79 17 83 25 75

Family type

 Single mother 37 63 33 67 44 56

 Single father 39 61 33 67 45 55

 Two parent 26 74 23 77 31 69

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 41 59 38 62 47 53

 Never utilized AFDC 27 73 24 76 32 68

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 31 69 32 68 37 63

 English 28 72 25 75 34 66

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 25 75 22 78 30 70

 Black, non-Hispanic 38 62 34 66 45 55

 Asian 19 81 20 80 29 71

 Hispanic 33 67 30 70 38 62

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 36 64 32 68 41 59

 American Indian/Alaska Native 36 64 28 72 48 52

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 27 73 28 72 33 67

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 23 77 20 80 28 72

 Black, non-Hispanic 36 64 31 69 42 58

 Asian 18 82 18 82 28 72

 Hispanic 31 69 27 73 36 64

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 39 61 35 65 44 56

 Black, non-Hispanic 50 50 47 53 58 42

 Asian 18 82 23 77 32 68

 Hispanic 35 65 36 64 41 59

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
48

The Child and the Family

Families are the primary context of children’s development (Bronfenbrenner 1979) and strongly

influence their developmental outcomes. The variability of children’s knowledge, skills and behaviors at

entry to kindergarten can be attributed to the variety of the educational opportunities in the home. Parents

play a central role in young children’s socialization and learning (Maccoby 1992). To a large extent,

young children learn by interacting with others. Young children thrive when they can actively participate

in and construct their knowledge (Ginsburg and Opper 1988). They learn through both direct experience

and vicarious experience (Bandura 1986). It is extremely important for young children to directly

experience activities such as reading, constructing projects, playing with puzzles and playing sports.

Children gain invaluable experience and knowledge through actively doing. Also, children learn through

observation. When parents or family members read stories, tell stories and sing songs, children construct

knowledge and learn skills by modeling the behavior. Additionally, parents serve as mentors who can

effectively bridge children’s skills to the next level; this too is an invaluable part of the learning process

(Wertsch 1985).

Furthermore, child care experiences may be associated with the variance in skills children

demonstrate as they enter kindergarten. In the mid-1990s, approximately 60 percent of preschool children

under the age of 6 experienced some type of nonparental care and education (West et al. 1995);

approximately 40 percent of kindergartners received nonparental care before or after school (Brimhall et

al. 1999). High quality programs with experienced, well-trained staff provide an enriched setting that may

serve as a foundation for the transition to school. Quality early care and education programs provide

opportunities to explore social and cognitive tasks that better prepare children for success in school. For

example, children who have participated in group care may have an easier time interacting with a large

group of unfamiliar peers and adults. They may also be better acclimated to the school setting and to

learning experiences and tasks. Once in kindergarten, the care and education children experience before

and after school may serve to further support or enrich what is taught in the classroom (Brimhall et al.

1999).
49

Literacy Environment and Family Interactions. The extent to which parents and families in the

United States interact with young children in the home is of particular interest. Specifically,

policymakers, researchers, educators and parents take an interest in suggested practices (Bredekamp and

Copple 1997) such as the frequency with which parents read, tell stories, sing and play with their children.

Moreover, information about the literacy environment in the home may shed light on children’s cognitive

skills as they enter kindergarten.

A strong indicator of the literacy environment in the home may be the number of child-oriented

resources (e.g., books, tapes and CDs). A literacy rich environment contributes to children’s language and

literacy development, which in turn plays a role in their chances for school success (Snow et al. 1991).

Similarly, the opportunities for children to interact with their family in educational activities may enhance

their chances for school success. Experiences such as reading with children, singing songs with children

and playing with children serve a dual purpose. These activities not only enrich their language and

literacy experiences but also potentially transmit information and knowledge about people, places and

things. Research suggests that these types of activities are on the rise (Wright et al. 1994). Moreover, we

need to consider not only the literacy environment and home educational activities but also how the

literacy environment and home educational activities differ by child and family characteristics (National

Center for Education Statistics 1998).
50

Key Findings:

Literacy Environment and Family Interactions

• The majority of parents report having more than 25 children’s books in the home (table 19). More

than half of parents report having more than five children’s records, audiotapes or CDs in the home.

• The number of children’s books in the home varies by maternal education and family receipt of

welfare. Mothers with lower education and families reporting receipt of welfare were more likely to

report having fewer books in the home (0–25 books) than mothers with higher education and families

with no reported welfare receipt. This pattern is also found for the number of children’s records,

audiotapes or CDs in the home.

• Nearly half of parents report reading to their child (table 20) and singing songs to their child (table

21) every day (45 percent). Thirty-eight percent of parents report playing games with their

kindergartners three to six times a week (table 22). Nearly half (44 to 47 percent) of families engage

in telling stories, doing arts and crafts and playing sports or exercise once or twice a week or less.

• Activities such as reading and singing songs vary by maternal education, family type, welfare receipt

and race/ethnicity. Children whose mothers have lower levels of education, single mothers, families

reporting receipt of welfare services and black parents are less likely to be read to every day than

those with mothers with higher levels of education, two-parent families, families without welfare

support and white, Hispanic and Asian parents (respectively). A different pattern emerges with an

activity like singing songs. Children with single mothers, families with receipt of welfare services and

black parents are more likely to be sung to every day than those with two parents, families with no

receipt of welfare services and white, Hispanic and Asian parents (respectively).
51

Table 19.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by numbers of books and children’s records, audiotapes or CDs in

the home, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Number of children’s books in

child’s home

Number of children’s records, audio tapes, or

CDs in child’s home

Characteristic

Less

than 26 26-50 51-100 101 + None 1-5 6-10 11-20 21 +

Total 26 28 29 17 13 24 22 21 20

Child’s sex

 Male 27 28 28 16 14 25 22 20 19

 Female 25 28 29 17 12 24 21 23 21

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 18 25 33 24 11 18 24 21 26

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 25 28 29 18 13 24 21 22 21

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 26 28 29 17 12 24 22 21 20

 Born May – Aug. 1993 27 29 28 17 13 24 22 21 19

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 30 28 27 15 14 26 21 21 18

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 62 24 10 4 35 33 15 9 8

 High school diploma or equivalent 31 32 26 11 15 29 22 19 16

 Some college, including vocational/technical 17 31 33 19 8 24 25 23 22

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 7 22 40 31 3 12 22 31 32

Family type

 Single mother 40 30 21 10 19 29 20 17 15

 Single father 37 30 22 10 18 27 18 20 18

 Two parent 21 28 32 19 11 23 22 23 22

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 52 27 14 7 26 32 17 14 11

 Never utilized AFDC 23 28 31 18 11 23 22 22 21

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 65 25 7 3 25 38 16 12 9

 English 20 29 32 19 11 22 22 23 22

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 9 28 38 25 7 19 23 26 25

 Black, non-Hispanic 50 31 15 4 22 29 21 15 13

 Asian 46 26 20 8 14 22 20 22 21

 Hispanic 52 27 16 6 22 36 18 13 11

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 34 41 16 9 15 29 20 17 20

 American Indian/Alaska Native 51 22 16 11 29 30 13 14 14

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 20 36 28 16 11 26 21 21 21

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 7 27 39 26 5 18 24 27 26

 Black, non-Hispanic 46 32 17 5 17 30 22 16 14

 Asian 39 29 22 10 9 21 21 25 25

 Hispanic 38 32 21 9 13 34 22 17 14

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 30 38 22 10 25 27 20 14 13

 Black, non-Hispanic 69 23 6 2 39 27 16 10 8

 Asian 72 16 12 (*) 41 29 14 10 7

 Hispanic 77 17 5 1 38 40 12 6 4

* less than .5 percent.

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners who were assessed in English. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
52

Table 20.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members read books and

tell stories to them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Reading Tell stories

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 1 19 35 45 8 36 30 25

Child’s sex

 Male 1 21 35 43 9 36 30 25

 Female 1 17 35 47 7 37 31 26

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1 16 40 44 8 32 34 25

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1 19 37 42 8 38 31 24

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 1 19 35 45 8 37 30 26

 Born May – Aug. 1993 1 19 35 45 8 37 31 25

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1 18 31 49 8 33 30 29

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 4 34 27 36 10 42 25 23

 High school diploma or equivalent 1 24 36 39 9 39 29 23

 Some college, including vocational/technical (*) 15 40 45 7 35 32 26

 Bachelor’s degree or higher (*) 7 34 59 5 31 35 29

Family type

 Single mother 2 27 32 39 9 38 28 25

 Single father (*) 22 35 40 12 34 28 26

 Two parent 1 16 36 47 7 36 31 26

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 3 32 28 38 8 39 26 26

 Never utilized AFDC 1 17 36 46 8 36 31 25

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 4 28 30 38 10 37 27 26

 English 1 17 36 46 7 36 31 25

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 1 13 37 49 7 35 33 25

 Black, non-Hispanic 2 31 33 35 10 40 26 24

 Asian 1 23 29 47 7 37 28 28

 Hispanic 3 27 31 39 9 39 27 25

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander (*) 19 35 45 3 29 36 33

 American Indian/Alaska Native 3 33 25 40 6 41 22 30

 More than one race, non-Hispanic (*) 15 42 43 8 29 36 28

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic (*) 12 38 50 7 34 34 25

 Black, non-Hispanic 1 29 35 35 9 39 28 24

 Asian 1 21 29 49 5 36 28 30

 Hispanic 2 22 34 42 8 37 28 27

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 3 25 30 43 8 38 25 28

 Black, non-Hispanic 4 41 23 32 13 45 21 21

 Asian 4 35 26 34 16 39 28 17

 Hispanic 5 36 26 33 11 43 24 22

* less than .5 percent.

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
53

Table 21.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members sing songs and

do arts and crafts with them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Sing songs Arts and crafts

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 5 23 27 45 7 40 32 20

Child’s sex

 Male 7 27 27 40 8 42 32 18

 Female 4 19 27 50 7 38 33 23

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 5 26 27 42 6 44 32 18

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 6 24 26 44 8 41 31 19

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 6 23 27 45 7 40 32 21

 Born May – Aug. 1993 5 22 27 46 8 39 33 21

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 5 21 27 47 7 37 33 23

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 12 27 19 43 14 41 22 23

 High school diploma or equivalent 6 24 25 46 9 41 30 20

 Some college, including vocational/technical 4 21 29 47 5 39 35 20

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 3 21 32 44 3 38 39 20

Family type

 Single mother 6 21 22 51 10 40 29 21

 Single father 12 28 25 36 9 43 22 26

 Two parent 5 23 28 44 6 40 34 20

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 7 22 21 49 11 40 26 24

 Never utilized AFDC 5 23 28 44 7 40 33 20

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 11 28 23 38 15 38 25 23

 English 4 22 27 46 6 40 34 20

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 4 23 29 44 5 40 36 19

 Black, non-Hispanic 4 20 21 54 11 39 26 23

 Asian 14 30 22 35 8 35 28 29

 Hispanic 9 25 24 41 13 41 26 20

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 4 20 37 39 8 39 36 17

 American Indian/Alaska Native 10 25 18 47 9 48 27 24

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 4 21 26 49 5 39 34 22

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 4 22 30 44 4 40 37 19

 Black, non-Hispanic 3 20 22 55 10 41 27 22

 Asian 9 29 24 37 7 34 31 29

 Hispanic 6 22 27 45 11 39 30 21

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 7 25 17 51 9 42 27 23

 Black, non-Hispanic 7 22 19 52 13 35 21 31

 Asian 37 28 13 22 13 41 16 30

 Hispanic 15 30 19 35 18 43 20 19

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
54

Table 22.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members play sports or

exercise and play games with them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Play sports or exercise Games

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 10 36 33 22 4 35 38 22

Child’s sex

 Male 8 34 34 24 5 34 38 24

 Female 11 38 31 19 4 36 39 21

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 7 35 33 25 3 35 41 21

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 9 36 33 22 4 36 38 22

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 10 35 33 21 5 35 39 21

 Born May – Aug. 1993 10 36 32 22 4 34 38 23

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 10 37 30 23 5 32 37 25

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 17 33 23 27 10 39 27 24

 High school diploma or equivalent 11 36 30 23 5 37 35 23

 Some college, including vocational/technical 8 36 35 21 3 34 42 22

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 7 37 39 18 2 30 47 21

Family type

 Single mother 13 35 27 24 6 37 33 23

 Single father 7 32 31 29 5 30 34 32

 Two parent 9 36 34 21 4 34 40 22

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 12 33 26 29 7 36 30 28

 Never utilized AFDC 9 36 34 21 4 35 40 22

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 16 40 25 20 9 40 28 23

 English 9 35 34 22 3 34 39 24

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 7 35 37 20 3 34 43 21

 Black, non-Hispanic 12 34 26 29 5 36 31 28

 Asian 12 45 26 18 6 38 33 23

 Hispanic 16 37 26 21 9 38 31 22

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 6 27 31 36 1 40 34 25

 American Indian/Alaska Native 10 33 27 31 4 34 34 28

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 8 38 32 22 5 33 36 27

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 7 36 38 19 2 33 44 20

 Black, non-Hispanic 11 35 27 27 5 35 33 27

 Asian 10 45 26 19 5 38 35 22

 Hispanic 13 39 28 20 6 36 35 23

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 11 31 27 31 6 37 32 25

 Black, non-Hispanic 15 30 21 34 7 39 25 29

 Asian 20 50 18 13 12 36 28 24

 Hispanic 20 36 23 21 13 42 24 21

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Totals may not be within range

of subgroup values due to missing cases.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
55

Care Experience. A child's social world is influenced by many different groups, the closest being

the family. Upon entering kindergarten, a child's world expands to include the school and larger

community. For many children, however, another vital influence is the nonparental care and education

they receive. These settings can provide educational opportunities similar to those provided in the home

and the school. Their influence on children can be as essential as that of the parents, teachers and schools.

With the number of children receiving care from persons other than their parents, their

participation in nonparental care and education is of concern. High quality care and education programs

have positive influences on children’s social-emotional and cognitive development, and can provide

children with the opportunity to develop more advanced social and language skills, a more positive

disposition, and increase the complexity of their play and cooperativeness (Love et al. 1996). Attendance

in a preschool program may account for variance in children's cognitive skills at kindergarten entry (Gullo

and Burton 1992). In particular, the type of care children receive (e.g., center-based, relative care) relates

to differences in their social-emotional and cognitive development, as well as their school performance

(Miller and Marx 1990; Pierce et al. 1999; Vandell and Corasaniti 1988). Children's participation in care

and education then is important to document because it can influence who they are at kindergarten entry

and who they will become as the school year continues.
56

Key Findings: Child Care

• About four out of five first-time kindergartners (81 percent) receive care on a regular basis from

someone other than their parents the year prior to starting kindergarten (table 23). This care is most

often provided in a center-based setting (69 percent), followed by care by a relative in a private home

(24 percent) and care by a nonrelative in a private home (15 percent).

• Prior to kindergarten of the children in nonparental care, children whose mothers have higher levels

of education are more likely to be in center-based care than children whose mothers have less

education.

• Prior to kindergarten, children from homes where English is not the primary language are less likely

to have attended a center-based program the year before starting kindergarten.

• Once children enter kindergarten for the first time, about 50 percent of these children receive care

before and/or after school from someone other than their parents (table 24).

• As children enter kindergarten, before- and/or after-school care is most often provided in a private

home by a relative of the child. Center-based care is the second most frequent type of before- and

after-school care setting followed by nonrelative care.

• At kindergarten entry, children whose mothers have less than a high school education are more likely

to receive before- and/or after-school care from a relative than from a nonrelative or center-based

provider. In contrast, kindergartners whose mothers have a college education are more likely to

receive care in a center-based setting than in either of the two home-based settings.

• At kindergarten entry, black children are more likely than white, Asian or Hispanic children to

receive before- and/or after-school care.
57

Table 23.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation in nonparental care arrangements the

year prior to starting kindergarten, by type of arrangement and child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Nonparental care arrangement

Characteristic

Total Relative

care

Nonrelative

care

Centerbased care

No

nonparental

care

Total 81 24 15 69 19

Child’s sex

 Male 81 24 15 69 19

 Female 82 24 16 69 18

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 81 22 15 70 19

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 81 22 15 70 19

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 82 24 15 70 18

 Born May – Aug. 1993 82 24 16 69 18

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 78 27 14 64 22

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 65 23 7 52 35

 High school diploma or equivalent 79 28 13 64 21

 Some college, including vocational/technical 85 25 17 73 15

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 90 15 21 82 10

Family type

 Single mother 86 37 14 71 14

 Single father 88 36 19 69 12

 Two parent 80 19 16 68 20

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 78 30 11 69 22

 Never utilized AFDC 82 18 19 74 18

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 69 26 9 54 31

 English 83 24 16 71 17

Child’s race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 83 19 18 72 17

 Black, non-Hispanic 88 36 8 78 12

 Asian 79 27 8 65 21

 Hispanic 72 26 13 56 28

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 50 21 5 35 50

 American Indian/Alaska Native 84 36 10 70 16

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 86 26 18 70 14

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 85 19 19 73 15

 Black, non-Hispanic 89 36 10 80 11

 Asian 82 29 9 67 18

 Hispanic 79 29 15 62 21

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 63 19 6 50 37

 Black, non-Hispanic 80 37 4 69 20

 Asian 71 19 3 59 29

 Hispanic 59 19 8 45 41

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Categories of non-parental care

arrangement are not mutually exclusive.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
58

Table 24.—Percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation during kindergarten in before and after

care, by type of arrangement and child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Nonparental care arrangement

Characteristic

Total Relative

care

Nonrelative

care

Centerbased care

No

nonparental

care

Total 50 23 13 19 50

Child’s sex

 Male 50 23 12 20 50

 Female 50 24 13 19 50

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 46 22 13 19 54

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 48 22 13 19 52

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 50 24 13 20 50

 Born May – Aug. 1993 51 24 13 20 50

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 52 26 12 20 48

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 35 24 8 7 65

 High school diploma or equivalent 50 28 11 16 50

 Some college, including vocational/technical 54 25 14 23 46

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 52 13 16 28 48

Family type

 Single mother 69 41 14 25 31

 Single father 74 43 19 22 26

 Two parent 44 18 13 18 56

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 48 30 11 14 52

 Never utilized AFDC 50 17 15 24 50

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 53 33 9 16 47

 English 50 23 13 21 50

Child’s race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 49 18 15 21 51

 Black, non-Hispanic 61 38 8 23 40

 Asian 47 28 6 17 53

 Hispanic 46 26 12 13 54

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 39 26 7 12 61

 American Indian/Alaska Native 48 35 7 7 52

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 53 26 14 22 47

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 49 17 15 22 51

 Black, non-Hispanic 63 37 9 25 37

 Asian 51 29 7 20 49

 Hispanic 53 29 13 17 47

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 33 21 8 6 67

 Black, non-Hispanic 48 38 4 13 52

 Asian 28 23 2 3 72

 Hispanic 32 21 10 5 68

NOTE: Estimates based on first-time kindergartners. Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding. Categories of non-parental care

arrangement are not mutually exclusive.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
59

Relationships Within and Across Areas of Development

The purpose of this report is to present a description of children as they enter kindergarten—to

explore the similarities and differences in the knowledge, skills and experiences they possess. The

preceding chapters addressed each area of development (cognitive, social, physical, approaches to

learning and family) separately to show the unique nature of each area of development. However, as we

bring this description of children to a close, we note that the areas of children’s development are both

unique and at the same time inextricably linked.

Consequently, below, we engage in a brief presentation of the basic relationships that exist

between children’s cognitive skills and knowledge, social skills, physical well-being, approaches to

learning and family experiences as they enter kindergarten for the first time. This is just a brief look at

these rich and complex relationships. Future reports will analyze the nature of these relationships more

closely. Though some of these constructs do not bear direct relationships to each other, in more complex

analysis of the data they may play a role in explaining or mediating existing relationships within and

across areas of development.

Key Findings:

Relationships Within and Across Areas of Development

• The children who do well in reading are also likely to do well in mathematics and general knowledge.

As children enter kindergarten, their reading and mathematics skills and knowledge are moderately9

related (r = .79), as are their reading skills and general knowledge (r=.60) and their mathematics skills

and general knowledge (r = .65).

• Both parents and teachers in the ECLS-K provided information on children’s social skills. Parent

perceptions of children’s social skills are not directly related to their cognitive skills and knowledge.

However, there is a small correlation between teacher perceptions of how easily children make and

keep friends and children’s reading (r = .20), mathematics (r = .22) and general knowledge (r = .21) tscores. Teacher perceptions of children’s other social skills (i.e., accepts peer ideas, comforts others,

argues, fights and gets angry easily) are only slightly related to children’s cognitive t-scores

(correlations below .17). Neither parent nor teacher perceptions of children’s social skills as assessed

by their ratings of children’s prosocial and problem behaviors are directly related to children’s fine or

gross motor scores, their literacy environment, their home educational activity experiences or their

child care history.

 

9

 (Hinkle et al. 1994) This statistical text states that correlations .5–.7 are moderate, .3–.5 are low and 0–.3 are little.
60

Key Findings—continued:

Relationships Within and Across Areas of Development

• Children’s fine motor skills relate to their cognitive skills and knowledge (reading, r = .41;

mathematics, r = .48; general knowledge, r = .39). Children’s gross motor skills relate to mathematics

(r = .22), but are not directly related to their reading and general knowledge. Neither fine nor gross

motor skills are directly related to their home literacy environment, their home educational activity

experiences or their child care history.

• Children’s approaches to learning were described by both their parents and their teachers. Parents’

perceptions of children’s approaches to learning (i.e., task persistence, eagerness to learn and

creativity) do not directly relate to children’s cognitive t-scores. Teacher perceptions of children’s

approaches to learning (i.e. task persistence, eagerness to learn and attention) are related to children’s

reading, mathematics and general knowledge t-scores. Eagerness to learn relates to reading (r = .31),

mathematics (r = .32) and general knowledge (r = .28). Task persistence relates to reading (r = .32),

mathematics (r = .34) and general knowledge (r = .27). And attention relates to reading (r = .32),

mathematics (r = .34) and general knowledge (r = .29). Children’s approaches to learning are not

directly related to their home literacy environment, their home educational activity experiences or

their child care history.

• There are small relationships of children’s home literacy environment and home educational

experiences to their reading, mathematics and general knowledge t-scores. The number of children’s

books in the home relates to children’s general knowledge (r = .21) but not directly to their reading or

mathematics knowledge and skills. And how frequently a family member reads to the child relates to

children’s reading (r = .20) and general knowledge (r = .21), but not directly to their mathematics

knowledge and skills. Children’s literacy environment and home educational experiences do not

directly relate to their child care history.
61

Future Directions

This report presents a snapshot of the children in United States kindergarten classrooms. We can

see both similarities and differences in children. For example, the majority of first-time kindergartners,

regardless of their individual characteristics, are familiar with print and can recognize letters, numbers

and shapes. Most children engage in prosocial types of behavior and are unlikely to exhibit problem

behaviors. And most children are in very good to excellent health. At the same time, there are differences

in the knowledge and skills children bring with them to school. For example, children’s age relates to

differences in their cognitive skills and knowledge, their social skills (both prosocial and problem

behavior), their physical well-being (especially their motor skills) and the way in which they approach

learning. Though, at this young age, some of these differences may be attributed to natural developmental

variation; however, we need to consider the possible experiential differences of older kindergartners

versus the younger ones. In this report, we also demonstrate that risk factors such as having a mother with

less than a high school diploma, being from a single-mother family, welfare receipt and a non-English

primary language relate to the differences in children’s knowledge, skills and health at school entry.

The findings in this report suggest some areas for further investigation. To name a few—first, in

this report, we looked at children’s knowledge and skills by a specific set of child and family

characteristics (e.g., child’s sex, age at entry, race/ethnicity, maternal education). Future reports can take a

different perspective, and analyze children’s knowledge and skills in terms of additional family

characteristics and school characteristics. For example, the data can be analyzed in terms of pre-school

attendance, kindergarten program type (i.e., full day/part day) and school type (e.g., public/nonpublic).

Furthermore, the data can be analyzed in terms of the possible cumulative effects of risk factors (e.g., low

maternal education, minority status, receipt of welfare services) and the interaction of these risk factors

(e.g., maternal education with race/ethnicity) with other child and program characteristics. These types of

analysis may have important policy implications.

Second, we presented a picture of the differences in parent and teacher perceptions of children’s

prosocial skills, problem behaviors and approaches to learning. Primarily, we presented the data by

looking at parent perceptions in relation to child and family characteristics and teacher perceptions in

relation to child and family characteristics. However, future analysis can compare the similarities and the

differences in parent and teacher perceptions of the same child. For example, in terms of approaches to

learning—specifically children’s eagerness to learn, the racial/ethnic differences seem much greater in the

teacher ratings than in the parent ratings in the aggregate.
62

And third, some interesting patterns emerge across domains. For example, black children are

more likely to score in the higher group of children in gross motor skills than any racial/ethnic group. At

the same time, black children are also being rated by their teachers as demonstrating higher frequencies of

problematic behaviors (e.g., arguing, fighting) than other racial/ethnic groups and are also being rated by

their parents as being much more active than other children their age. Together, these findings present an

interesting picture that warrants consideration.

As we have seen in this report, children entering kindergarten for the first time have a wide range

of skills, knowledge and experiences. While they are similar in many ways, differences exist in relation to

children’s background and experiences. As we mentioned, kindergarten is a critical period in children's

early school careers—this experience sets children on a path that influences their subsequent learning and

school achievement. This report and future data from the ECLS-K will help to inform researchers,

practitioners, educators, parents and policymakers on issues concerning young children’s education and

aid in a deeper understanding of the connection between children’s early school experiences and later

school success.
63

Methodology and Data Reliability

Survey Methodology

The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Kindergarten Class of 1998–99 (ECLS-K) is being

conducted by Westat for the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics

(NCES). It is designed to provide detailed information on children’s early school experiences. The study

99 school year. The children participating in the ECLS-K will be followed

longitudinally through the fifth grade.

Sample Design. A nationally representative sample of 22,625 children enrolled in 1,277

kindergarten programs during the 1998–99-school year were sampled to participate in the ECLS-K. The

children attended both public and private kindergartens that offered full-day and part-day programs. The

sample included children from different racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds and included

oversamples of Asian children, private kindergartens and private school kindergartners. This study

supports separate estimates of public and private school kindergartners; black, Hispanic, white and Asian

children; and children from different socioeconomic backgrounds.

Sampling for the ECLS-K involved a dual-frame, multistage sampling design. The first stage of

sampling involved the selection of 100 primary sampling units (PSU) from a national sample of

PSUs. The PSUs were counties and county groups. Public and private schools were then selected within

the PSUs, and students were sampled from the selected schools. Public schools were selected from the

Common Core of Data, a public school frame, and private schools were selected from a private school

frame developed from the Private School Survey.10 Approximately 23 kindergartners were selected on

average within each of the sampled schools.

Fall kindergarten data were obtained from September to December 1998. Data were collected

from the child, the child's parents/guardians and teachers in the following ways.

Child Assessments. Children were asked to participate in various activities designed to measure

important cognitive (e.g., general knowledge, literacy and quantitative skills) and noncognitive (e.g.,

motor skills) skills. All measures were obtained through an untimed one-on-one assessment of the child.

 

10 During the spring of 1998, Westat identified new schools that were not found on either frame. A sample of these

schools was included in the ECLS-K school sample.
64

Each child was assessed using a computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI), administered oneon-one from the assessor to child. The assessment consists of three cognitive domains (reading,

mathematics and general knowledge); a psychomotor assessment, including fine and gross motor skills;

and height and weight measurements. The cognitive assessment included a two-stage battery, where the

first stage in each domain contained a routing test that determined a child’s approximate skills. According

to the child’s performance on the routing test, the child was administered the appropriate skill level

assessment for that domain (the second stage). The reading and mathematics assessments had three skill

levels, while the general knowledge domain had two skill levels.

To be sensitive to the needs and capabilities of the children in the sample, an English language

proficiency screener, called the Oral Language Development Scale (OLDS), was administered if the

school records indicated that the child’s home language was not English. The child had to demonstrate a

certain level of English proficiency to be administered the cognitive assessment in English. If a child was

not sufficiently proficient in English, but spoke Spanish at home, the child was administered a Spanish

version of the OLDS. If the child was proficient in Spanish then they were administered the mathematics

and psychomotor assessments in Spanish, as well as the height and weight measures. Children from other

non-English home language backgrounds who were not sufficiently proficient in English were excluded

from the direct assessment, with the exception of height and weight measures. In terms of first-time

kindergartners, about 93 percent were assessed in English. Of the 7 percent of children excluded from the

assessment, 18 percent were Asian and 80 percent were Hispanic. The children excluded from the English

assessment represents 19 percent of the Asian children and 29 percent of the Hispanic children.

Parent Interview. Parents/guardians were asked to provide key information about their children

on subjects such as family demographics (e.g., age, relation to child, race/ethnicity), family structure

(household members and composition), parent involvement, home educational activities, child care

experience, child health, parental education and employment status and child’s social skills and behaviors.

Most of the data were collected through a computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI), though some

of the interviews were collected through a computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI) when

respondents did not have a telephone or were reluctant to be interviewed by telephone.

Teacher Questionnaires. All kindergarten teachers with sampled children were asked to fill out

three self-administered questionnaires. The first two pertained to their own educational backgrounds,

teaching practices, experiences and the classroom settings where they taught. For each of the sampled
65

children they taught, the teachers also completed a child-specific questionnaire that collected information

on the child’s social skills and approaches to learning. This report only uses data from the child-specific

questionnaire.

Response Rates

Overall, 74 percent of the 1,277 schools agreed to participate in the study.11 More schools

participated during the spring of the base year (n=940) than during the fall (n=880). Due to the lower than

expected cooperation rate for public schools in the fall of the base year, 73 additional public schools were

included in the sample as substitutes for schools not participating in the fall. These schools were included

in order to meet the target sample sizes for students. Substitute schools are not included in the school

response rate calculations.

The ECLS-K school response rates are comparable to or exceed those of past NCES longitudinal

surveys. In the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88), 69.7 percent of the originally

sampled schools agreed to participate in the base year.

Of the sampled children, 19,173 participated in the fall kindergarten child assessment for an 89.8

cooperation rate or a response rate of 66.4 percent (74% X 89.8%). There were no large differences in

cooperation rates for subgroups of children: 89.5 percent of sampled boys participated, and 90.4 percent

of sampled girls participated. Asians had the lowest cooperation rates at 88.6 percent while American

Indians or Alaskan Natives had the highest response rate of 93.4 percent. There were 18,101 parent

interviews completed during the fall of the school year for a cooperation rate of 85.3 percent or a 63

percent response rate (74% X 85.3%). About 91 percent of the children had child-specific data reported

by their teacher in the fall of kindergarten (74% X 91.2 = 67.5%). These numbers are also comparable to

the completion rates obtained in NELS:88. There, about 90 percent of the students participated in the

eighth grade student tests, and 87.5 percent of the parents completed parent questionnaires. Teachers in

NELS:88 completed individual student ratings for about 89.6 percent of the students. Thus overall, the

ECLS-K child, parent, teacher and school cooperation rates are comparable to other school-based

longitudinal studies conducted at NCES.

 

11 All response rates specified are the weighted rates.
66

A nonresponse bias analysis is being conducted to determine if substantial bias is introduced due

to school nonresponse. Five different approaches are being used to examine the possibility of bias in the

ECLS-K sample. First, weighted and unweighted response rates for schools, children, parents, teachers

and school administrators are being examined to find large response rate differences by characteristics of

schools (e.g., urbanicity, region, school size, percent minority and grade range) and children (e.g., sex,

age, race-ethnicity). Second, estimates based on the ECLS-K respondents are being compared to

estimates based on the full sample. The distributions of schools by school type, urbanicity, region and the

distributions of enrollment by kindergarten type (public versus private), race-ethnicity, urbanicity, region

and eligibility for free and reduced-price lunch are being compared for the responding schools and all the

schools on the sampling frame. Third, estimates from the ECLS-K are being compared with estimates

from other data sources (e.g., Current Population Survey, National Household Education Survey, Survey

of Income and Program Participation). Fourth, estimates using the ECLS-K unadjusted weights are being

compared with estimates using the ECLS-K weights adjusted for nonresponse. Large differences in the

estimates produced with these two different weights would indicate the potential for bias. Fifth, and last,

simulations of nonresponse are being conducted.

All of the above analyses are underway and some have been completed. The results of these

analyses will be summarized in the ECLS-K User's Manual and reported in detail in the ECLS-K

Methodology Report. Preliminary findings from these analyses suggest that there is not a bias due to

school nonresponse. In particular, there is no evidence of a bias in the types of estimates found in this

report.

Data Reliability

Estimates produced using data from the ECLS-K are subject to two types of error, sampling and

nonsampling errors. Nonsampling errors are errors made in the collection and processing of data.

Sampling errors occur because the data are collected from a sample rather than a census of the population.

Nonsampling Errors. Nonsampling error is the term used to describe variations in the estimates

that may be caused by population coverage limitations, as well as data collection, processing and

reporting procedures. The sources of nonsampling errors are typically problems like unit and item

nonresponse, the differences in respondents’ interpretations of the meaning of the questions, response

differences related to the particular time the survey was conducted and mistakes in data preparation.
67

In general, it is difficult to identify and estimate either the amount of nonsampling error or the

bias caused by this error. In the ECLS-K efforts were made to prevent such errors from occurring and to

compensate for them where possible. For instance, during the survey design phase, focus groups and

cognitive laboratory interviews were conducted for the purpose of assessing respondent knowledge

topics, comprehension of questions and terms and the sensitivity of items. The design phase also entailed

testing for the CAPI instrument and a field test that evaluated the implementation of the survey.

By designing the child assessment to be both individually administered and untimed both

coverage error and bias were reduced. Individual administration decreases problems associated with

group administration such as children slowing down and not staying with the group or simply getting

distracted. The advantage of having untimed exams was that the study was able to include most children

with learning disabilities, hearing aids, etc. The only children who were excluded from the study were

those who were blind, deaf, those whose Individual Education Program (IEP) clearly stated that they were

not to be tested and non-English speaking children who were determined to lack adequate English or

Spanish to meaningfully participate in the ECLS-K battery. Exclusion from the direct child assessment

did not exclude children from all other parts (e.g., teacher questionnaire, parent interview).

Another potential source of nonsampling error is respondent bias which occurs when respondents

systematically misreport (intentionally or unintentionally) information in a study. One potential source of

respondent bias in this survey is social desirability bias. If there are no systematic differences among

specific groups under study in their tendency to give socially desirable responses, then comparisons of the

different groups will accurately reflect differences among the groups. An associated error occurs when

respondents give unduly positive assessments about those close to them. For example, parents may give

rosier assessments about their children’s school experiences than might be obtained from school records

or from the teachers.

Response bias may also potentially be introduced in the responses of the teachers about each

individual student. Each teacher filled out a survey for each of the sampled children they taught in which

they answered questions on the child’s socioemotional development. Since the survey was conducted in

the fall it is possible that the teachers did not have adequate time to observe the children, and thus some of

the responses may be influenced by the expectations of the teacher based on which groups (e.g., sex,

racial, linguistic, disability) the children belonged to. In order to minimize bias, all items were subjected

to multiple cognitive interviews, field tests and actual teachers were involved in the design of the

cognitive assessment battery and questionnaires. NCES also followed the criteria recommended in a
68

working paper on the accuracy of teacher judgments of students’ academic performances (Perry and

Meisels 1996).

Readers should be aware that respondent bias may be present in this survey as in any survey. It is

not possible to state precisely how such bias may affect the results. NCES has tried to minimize some of

these biases by conducting one on one, untimed assessments and by asking some of the same questions

about the sampled child of both teachers and parents.

Sampling Errors and Weighting. The sample of kindergarten children from the class of 1998–99

was just one of many possible samples that could have been selected. Therefore, estimates produced from

the ECLS-K sample may differ from estimates that would have been produced from other samples. This

type of variability is called sampling error because it arises from using a sample of children attending

kindergarten in 1998–99, rather than all children attending kindergarten that year.

The standard error is a measure of the variability due to sampling when estimating a statistic.

Standard errors for estimates presented in this report were computed using a jackknife replication method.

Standard errors can be used as a measure for the precision expected from a particular sample. The

probability that a complete census count would differ from the sample estimate by less than 1 standard

error is 68 percent. The chance that the difference would be less than 1.65 standard errors is about 90

percent, and that the difference would be less than 1.96 standard errors, about 95 percent.

Standard errors for all of the estimates are included in appendix A in this report. These standard

errors can be used to produce confidence intervals. For example, it is estimated that 51 percent of the

parents reported that their children had excellent general health, and this statistic has a standard error of

0.70 percent. Therefore, the estimated 95 percent confidence interval for this statistic is approximately 50

to 52 percent (1.96 X .70 = 1.4; confidence interval = 51 +/- 1.4).

In order to produce national estimates from the ECLS-K data collected during the fall of the

1998-99 school year, the sample data were weighted. Weighting the data adjusts for unequal selection

probabilities at the school and child levels and adjusts for school, child, teacher and parent nonresponse.

The first stage of the weighting process assigns weights to the sampled primary sampling units (PSUs)

equal to the inverse of the PSU probability of selection.12 The second stage of the weighting process

 

12 The approach used to develop weights for the ECLS-K will be described in the ECLS-K User's Manual and the

ECLS-K Methodology Report.
69

assigns weights to the schools sampled within PSUs. The base weight for each sampled school is the

PSU weight multiplied by the inverse of the probability of selecting the school. The base weights for

eligible schools are adjusted for nonresponse. These adjustments are made separately for public and

private schools.

The base weight for each child in the sample is the school nonresponse adjusted weight for the

school the child attends multiplied by a post-stratified within school student weight (total number of

students in the school divided by the number of students sampled in the school). The parent weight,

which is the weight used to produce the estimates found in this report, is the base child weight adjusted

for nonresponse to the parent interview. Again, these adjustments are made separately for public and

private schools.

In addition to properly weighting the responses, special procedures for estimating the statistical

significance of the estimates were employed because the data were collected using a complex sample

design. Complex sample designs, like that used in the ECLS-K, result in data that violate the assumptions

that are normally required to assess the statistical significance of the results. Frequently, the standard

errors of the estimates are larger than would be expected if the sample was a simple random sample and

the observations were independent and identically distributed random variables. WesVarPC was used in

this analysis to calculate standard errors.

Replication methods of variance estimation were used to reflect the actual sample design used in

the ECLS-K. A form of the jackknife replication method (JK2) using 90 replicates was used to compute

approximately unbiased estimates of the standard errors of the estimates in the report. The jackknife

methods were used to estimate the precision of the estimates of the reported national percentages and

means. To test the difference between estimates, Student’s t statistic was employed, using unbiased

estimates of standard errors derived by the replication methods mentioned above. Also, trend tests were

used to test statements regarding the relationship between two characteristics (e.g., mother’s education

and children’s performance on the ECLS-K assessment battery).

As the number of comparisons at the same significance levels increases, it becomes more likely

that at least one of the estimated differences will be significant merely by chance, that is, it will be

erroneously identified as different from zero. Even when there is no statistical difference between the

means or percentages being compared, there is a 5 percent chance of getting a significant F or t value

from sampling error alone. As the number of comparisons increases, the chance of making this type of
70

error also increases. A Bonferroni adjustment procedure was used to correct significance tests for

multiple comparisons. This method adjusts the significance level for the total number of comparisons

made with a particular classification variable. For example, the total number of comparisons for the type

of family is three (i.e., single father vs. single mother, single father vs. two parents, single mother vs. two

parents). Thus the significance criterion for each family type comparison is adjusted to p = 0.0167 (i.e.,

0.05/3).

Definitions of Variables

Direct Cognitive Assessment. The ECLS Kindergarten cognitive assessment battery consisted of

questions in three subject areas: Reading, Mathematics and General Knowledge.

The Reading assessment included questions in basic skills (print familiarity, letter

recognition, beginning and ending sounds, rhyming sounds, word recognition), vocabulary (picture

vocabulary) and comprehension (listening comprehension, close sentences, words in context).

Comprehension items were targeted to measure skills in initial understanding, developing

interpretation, personal reflection and demonstrating critical stance. The reliability of the estimate of

overall reading ability (IRT-based theta) was .90.

About half of the Mathematics assessment consisted of questions in number sense and

number properties and operations. The remainder of the assessment included questions in

measurement; geometry and spatial sense; data analysis, statistics and probability; and patterns,

algebra and functions. The assessment items were designed to measure skills in conceptual

knowledge, procedural knowledge and problem solving, with the heaviest emphasis on problem

solving. The reliability of the estimate of overall mathematics ability (IRT-based theta) was .90.

The General Knowledge assessment was a composite of science and social studies material.

The science questions assessed conceptual understanding; observing/collecting data/classification;

communication; and drawing/testing inferences, in the context of questions based on life science and

the physical sciences. Social studies material included questions relating to history/government,

culture, geography and economics. The assessment questions drew on children’s experiences with

their environment and many questions related to more than one of the categories listed. The reliability

of the estimate of overall general knowledge and skills (IRT-based theta) was .88.
71

Standardized Scores (T-Scores): The standardized scores reported in the ECLS-K database are

transformations of IRT theta (ability) estimates, rescaled to a mean of 50 and standard deviation of 10

using cross-sectional sample weights for fall kindergarten. For example, a t-score of 55 represents a

reading achievement level that is half a standard deviation higher than the mean for the fall kindergarten

population represented by the tested sample of ECLS-K participants.

T-scores do not measure mastery of a particular skill or set of skills. They provide only

normative information; that is, an estimate of an individual’s or a subgroup’s achievement level relative to

the population as a whole. T-Scores cannot be used to determine whether the population means are high

or low, or whether average population gains over time are large or small. They can only provide an

indicator of the extent to which an individual or a subgroup ranks higher or lower than the national

average and how much this relative ranking changes over time.

Proficiency Level Scores: Proficiency scores provide a means of distinguishing status or gain in

specific skills within a content area from the overall achievement measured by the IRT Scale Scores and

T-Scores. Clusters of four assessment questions having similar content and difficulty were included at

several points along the score scale of the Reading and Mathematics assessments. (No proficiency scores

were computed for the General Knowledge assessment, since the questions did not follow a hierarchical

pattern.) A student was assumed to have mastered a particular level of proficiency if at least three of the

four items in the cluster were answered correctly, and to have failed at this level if two or more items

were wrong. Clusters of items provide a more reliable assessment of proficiency than do single items

because of the possibility of guessing: it is very unlikely that a student who has not mastered a particular

skill would be able to guess enough answers correctly to pass a four item cluster. The proficiency levels

were assumed to follow a Guttman model; that is, a student passing a particular skill level was expected

to have mastered all lower levels; not passing a particular skill level indicates non-mastery at higher

levels. Only a very small percentage of children in fall kindergarten had response patterns that did not

follow the Guttman model, that is, a non-passing score at a lower level followed by a passing score at a

higher level.

Other Direct Assessments. In addition to cognitive assessments, children’s height, weight and

psychomotor skills were also directly assessed. The psychomotor assessment consisted of both fine and

gross motor skills. For the fine motor skills (scale 0–9) children were asked to manipulate blocks and

copy a formation (maximum 2 points), copy basic figures (maximum 5 points) and draw a person
72

(maximum 2 points). For the gross motor assessments (scale 0–8), children were asked to balance on one

foot (maximum 2 points), hop on one foot (maximum 2 points), skip (maximum 2 points) and walk

backward on a straight line (maximum 2 points).

Children’s Social Skills, Problem Behaviors, Approaches to Learning and Health Status.

Parents and teachers were administered items which assessed children’s social skills (e.g., frequency with

which children make friends and comfort others), problem behaviors (e.g., frequency with which children

fight with others and get angry easily) and how children approach learning (e.g., frequency with which

children persist at tasks and seem eager to learn). Parents were asked to provide information about

children’s general health, activity level, ability to pay attention, coordination and articulation. In a largescale survey setting it is difficult, time-intensive and costly to directly assess young children’s social

skills, problem behaviors, approaches to learning and health status. Therefore, parents and teachers

reported on these constructs. When interpreting this information, we need to take into account that the

nature of the data is parent and teacher report and not a direct assessment (for a review see Zill et al.

1995). 

Derived Variables. A number of variables used in this report were derived by combining

information from one or more questions in the ECLS-K. The derivation of key variables is described in

this section.

Children’s age at entry to kindergarten: This variable was constructed using two variables:

month and year of birth. These variables were combined to form five categories: children born prior to

September 1992, born between September – December 1992, January – April 1993, May – August 1993

: This variable was constructed using the question on the highest grade the

mother had completed, and whether the mother had obtained a high school equivalency degree if she did

not complete high school. This information was collapsed into four categories: less than high school,

high school or equivalent, some college including vocational/technical training and bachelor’s degree or

higher.

Family type: This variable is a composite that is constructed from the household roster. The

following information was used in the construction: whether there was a mother present in the household

and her relationship to the child (birth, adoptive, step, foster, partner), whether there was a father present
73

in the household and his relationship to the child (birth, adoptive, step, foster, partner). This information

was used to construct a variable with the following categories: single-mother household, single-father

household and two-parent household.

Welfare receipt: Welfare receipt refers to the utilization of Aid for Families with Dependent

Children (AFDC) since the child was born or in the past 6 months.

Primary language spoken in home: For this report a dichotomous variable was used to indicate

whether English was the primary language spoken at home. This composite was constructed by using

responses to three questions in the parent interview: whether another language other than English was

regularly spoken at home; if yes, whether English was also spoken at home; and if English and one or

more other languages were spoken at home, which of those languages would be considered the primary

language spoken at home.

Children’s race/ethnicity: The race/ethnicity composite was constructed from two parentreported variables: ethnicity and race. New Office of Management and Budget guidelines were followed

under which a respondent could select more than one race. Thus each respondent had to identify whether

the child was Hispanic, and then select one or more race. The following are the seven composite

race/ethnicity categories: white non-Hispanic, black non-Hispanic, Hispanic, Asian, Hawaiian Native or

Pacific Islander, American Indian or Alaska Native and more than one race specified non-Hispanic. Due

to sample size restrictions, this publication only does significance tests for whites, blacks, Hispanics and

Asians.
74

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80

Appendix

Standard Errors for Estimates
81

Table 2a.—Standard errors for mean reading t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile scores, by

child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 0.2 0.8 0.6 0.5 0.8

Child's sex

 Male 0.2 0.9 0.7 0.6 0.8

 Female 0.2 0.9 0.8 0.6 1.0

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.5 1.6 2.2 2.0 2.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.3 1.0 0.8 0.7 1.2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.2 0.9 0.8 0.8 1.0

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.3 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.3 1.7 1.5 1.3 1.1

Mother's education

 Less than high school 0.3 1.4 1.1 1.2 0.7

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.2 1.1 0.9 0.9 0.9

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.6 1.0

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.2 0.6 0.8 0.3 1.2

Family type

 Single mother 0.3 1.5 1.2 0.8 1.0

 Single father 0.7 3.5 3.0 2.3 2.4

 Two parent 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.9

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.2 2.2 1.7 1.0 0.8

 Never utilized AFDC 0.2 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.9

Primary language spoken in home 0.5

 Non-English 0.2 1.9 0.6 1.0 1.5

 English 0.8 1.4 0.5 0.9

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.7 0.7 0.6 1.0

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.4 1.6 1.5 1.0 1.4

 Asian 0.6 1.5 2.0 1.9 2.4

 Hispanic 0.4 1.8 1.0 1.0 1.2

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.2 4.3 3.1 2.6 5.0

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.6 6.5 2.0 3.2 3.2

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.6 2.6 2.2 2.4 2.2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.7 0.8 0.6 1.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.4 1.5 1.5 1.0 1.5

 Asian 0.6 1.4 2.1 2.0 2.4

 Hispanic 0.5 2.1 1.2 1.1 1.5

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 2.0 1.7 2.0 1.3

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 3.1 2.7 2.6 1.2

 Asian 0.8 6.0 11.3 7.2 3.5

 Hispanic 0.5 2.3 1.7 1.5 1.0

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
82

Table 3a.—Standard errors for mean mathematics t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile scores,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.7

Child's sex

 Male 0.2 0.9 0.6 0.5 0.9

 Female 0.2 0.8 0.6 0.7 0.8

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.4 1.5 1.7 1.9 2.4

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.3 0.9 0.9 0.7 1.3

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.2 0.9 0.7 0.8 0.8

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.3 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.7

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.3 1.8 1.4 1.3 1.0

Mother's education

 Less than high school 0.3 1.8 1.3 1.0 0.7

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.2 1.1 0.8 0.9 0.7

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.2 0.6 0.8 0.8 1.2

Family type

 Single mother 0.3 1.3 0.9 0.8 0.9

 Single father 0.7 3.0 3.1 2.7 2.7

 Two parent 0.2 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.8

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.2 1.7 1.3 1.0 0.8

 Never utilized AFDC 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.8

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 0.5 2.2 1.7 1.5 1.5

 English 0.2 0.8 0.5 0.5 0.8

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.4 1.5 1.0 1.2 1.1

 Asian 0.5 1.7 1.6 1.8 0.9

 Hispanic 0.3 1.8 1.3 1.2 2.3

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.2 4.2 3.4 2.8 4.6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.5 6.4 2.5 4.3 2.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.7 2.7 2.4 2.7 2.6

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.5 0.7 0.6 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.4 1.7 1.1 1.4 1.1

 Asian 0.6 1.7 1.9 1.9 2.5

 Hispanic 0.3 1.8 1.3 1.4 1.1

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 2.3 2.2 1.6 1.2

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 3.1 2.3 1.8 1.3

 Asian 0.8 5.7 9.7 6.7 6.2

 Hispanic 0.5 2.9 2.2 1.5 1.2

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
83

Table 4a.—Standard errors for mean general knowledge t-scores of first-time kindergartners, and percentage distribution of quartile

scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

t-score

0-25

percent

26-50

percent

51-75

percent

76-100

percent

Total 0.3 1.0 0.4 0.5 0.7

Child's sex

 Male 0.3 1.0 0.6 0.7 0.9

 Female 0.3 1.1 0.5 0.6 0.8

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.4 1.4 1.6 1.7 2.1

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.3 1.0 0.8 1.0 1.2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.3 1.2 0.7 0.7 1.0

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.3 1.4 0.7 0.8 0.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.4 1.8 1.4 1.3 1.1

Mother's education

 Less than high school 0.3 1.9 1.2 1.2 0.6

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.3 1.4 0.8 0.7 0.7

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.6 1.1 0.7 0.8 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.2 0.6 0.8 0.7 1.1

Family type

 Single mother 0.4 1.9 0.9 1.1 0.7

 Single father 0.7 3.1 3.7 3.3 2.2

 Two parent 0.2 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.8

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.3 2.1 1.3 1.0 0.8

 Never utilized AFDC 0.2 0.9 0.5 0.5 0.8

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 0.4 2.2 1.8 1.3 0.9

 English 0.3 1.0 0.5 0.6 0.8

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 2.3 1.2 1.1 0.6

 Asian 0.6 2.6 2.0 2.1 1.8

 Hispanic 0.3 1.6 1.1 1.1 0.9

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.2 5.9 4.4 3.0 3.2

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.5 7.8 2.1 4.2 2.4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.5 2.6 2.3 2.8 2.2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.6 1.0

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 2.5 1.3 1.3 0.7

 Asian 0.6 2.7 1.9 2.0 1.9

 Hispanic 0.4 1.9 1.2 1.3 1.2

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 0.3 1.9 1.5 2.0 1.3

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.6 2.7 2.3 1.4 0.4

 Asian 1.0 5.9 7.0 3.4 2.6

 Hispanic 0.4 2.5 2.2 1.5 0.7

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
84

Table 5a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by print familiarity scores,

by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Percent knowing

Characteristic 0 skills 1 skill 2 skills 3 skills

Total 0.9 0.4 0.5 0.9

Child's sex

 Male 0.9 0.6 0.6 0.9

 Female 0.9 0.5 0.7 1.0

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.5 1.6 1.8 2.2

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.8 0.7 0.8 1.2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 1.0 0.7 0.8 1.1

 Born May – Aug. 1993 1.1 0.6 0.8 1.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.5 1.3 1.1 1.5

Mother's education

 Less than high school 2.0 1.0 1.4 1.3

 High school diploma or equivalent 1.2 0.8 0.8 1.1

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.9 0.6 0.7 1.0

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.5 0.6 0.7 1.1

Family type

 Single mother 1.6 0.9 1.1 1.2

 Single father 3.3 3.3 2.6 2.8

 Two parent 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.8

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.6 1.1 1.0 1.1

 Never utilized AFDC 0.7 0.4 0.5 0.8

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.8 1.6 1.6 1.8

 English 0.9 0.5 0.6 0.9

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.3 1.2 1.5 1.7

 Asian 2.0 1.9 1.8 2.3

 Hispanic 1.2 0.8 1.0 1.3

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.3 3.2 3.3 3.5

 American Indian/Alaska Native 6.9 2.2 2.2 4.4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.0 2.6 2.3 2.9

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.1 1.2 1.4 1.8

 Asian 2.1 2.0 2.0 2.5

 Hispanic 1.2 1.0 1.1 1.4

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.4 1.5 2.8 2.0

 Black, non-Hispanic 4.0 2.5 3.1 1.9

 Asian 3.8 6.0 5.9 5.9

 Hispanic 2.6 2.2 2.0 2.0

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal

Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
85

Table 6a.—Standard errors for percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each reading proficiency level, by child and

family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Letter

recognition

Beginning

sounds

Ending

sounds

Sight

words

Words in

context

Total 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.2 0.1

Child's sex

 Male 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.2 0.1

 Female 0.9 1.1 0.8 0.2 0.1

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 2.4 2.5 2.0 0.8 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1.1 1.3 1.1 0.3 0.2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.3 0.1

 Born May – Aug. 1993 1.0 1.1 0.7 0.2 0.1

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.7 1.4 1.0 0.4 0.2

Mother's education

 Less than high school 1.5 0.9 0.6 0.1 0.1

 High school diploma or equivalent 1.1 1.1 0.8 0.2 0.1

 Some college, including vocational/technical 1.0 1.1 0.9 0.3 0.1

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.8 1.2 1.1 0.4 0.2

Family type

 Single mother 1.3 1.2 0.8 0.2 0.1

 Single father 3.5 3.0 2.0 0.8 0.8

 Two parent 0.7 1.0 0.8 0.2 0.1

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.2 0.9 0.2 0.1 0.1

 Never utilized AFDC 0.8 1.1 0.6 0.3 0.1

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.9 0.9 1.4 0.2 0.1

 English 0.8 1.0 0.7 0.8 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.9 1.1 0.8 0.2 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.7 1.2 0.3 0.1

 Asian 1.7 1.5 2.2 1.4 0.9

 Hispanic 1.7 2.4 1.2 0.3 0.2

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 4.1 4.8 3.6 1.8 0.7

 American Indian/Alaska Native 5.3 3.5 1.6 0.3 (*)

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.5 2.4 2.0 1.0 0.6

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.9 1.1 0.8 0.2 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 1.9 1.5 0.4 0.2

 Asian 2.3 2.3 2.0 1.3 0.8

 Hispanic 1.8 1.6 1.3 0.3 0.2

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.2 1.3 1.3 0.3 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.7 1.5 1.1 (*) (*)

 Asian 4.5 3.8 2.9 0.5 0.5

 Hispanic 2.3 1.8 1.2 0.8 0.8

* less than 0.05.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
86

Table 7a.—Standard errors for percentage of first-time kindergartners passing each mathematics proficiency level, by child and

family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Number &

shape

Relative

size

Ordinal

sequence

Add/

subtract

Multiply/

divide

Total 0.3 0.7 0.7 0.2 0.1

Child's sex

 Male 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.3 0.1

 Female 0.3 0.9 0.7 0.2 0.1

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.9 1.8 2.0 1.3 0.5

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.3 1.0 1.2 0.5 0.2

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.3 0.1

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.6 1.0 0.7 0.3 0.1

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.2 1.7 1.0 0.3 0.1

Mother's education

 Less than high school 1.0 1.2 0.6 0.3 (*)

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.5 0.9 0.7 0.2 (*)

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.4 0.9 0.9 0.3 0.1

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.2 0.9 1.0 0.5 0.2

Family type

 Single mother 0.7 1.3 0.8 0.3 (*)

 Single father 2.3 3.4 2.6 1.1 (*)

 Two parent 0.3 0.7 0.7 0.3 0.1

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.7 1.0 0.5 0.2 (*)

 Never utilized AFDC 0.2 0.7 0.8 0.3 0.1

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.2 2.1 1.5 0.9 0.2

 English 0.3 0.8 0.7 0.2 0.1

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.8 0.8 0.3 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.8 1.5 1.0 0.2 (*)

 Asian 0.7 1.5 0.9 0.3 0.1

 Hispanic 0.7 2.4 2.1 1.2 0.5

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 2.0 4.0 4.2 1.9 1.5

 American Indian/Alaska Native 4.2 6.2 2.3 0.3 (*)

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.5 3.4 2.6 1.3 0.3

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.3 0.7 0.8 0.3 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.8 1.6 1.2 0.3 (*)

 Asian 1.9 2.9 2.0 1.1 0.5

 Hispanic 0.6 1.6 1.1 0.4 0.1

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.3 1.8 1.3 0.4 (∗)

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 2.4 1.2 0.7 (∗)

 Asian 5.4 5.1 2.1 1.4 (∗)

 Hispanic 1.7 2.0 0.9 0.3 0.8

* less than 0.05.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
87

Table 8a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they engage in

prosocial behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Join others Make friends Comfort others

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Child's sex

 Male 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

 Female 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.8 1.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.3 1.3 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.2

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 1.1 1.1

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Family type

 Single mother 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8

 Single father 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.9 3.1 3.1

 Two parent 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0

 Never utilized AFDC 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.5 1.5

 English 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.2

 Asian 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.9 1.9

 Hispanic 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.0 1.0

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 9.0 9.0 6.8 6.8 4.2 4.2

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.8 1.8

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.9

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.9 0.9 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2

 Asian 1.7 1.7 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.7

 Hispanic 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6 2.1 2.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.1 2.1 2.7 2.7 2.6 2.6

 Asian 3.5 3.5 6.3 6.3 5.6 5.6

 Hispanic 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.9 1.9

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
88

Table 9a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they engage in

prosocial behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Accept peer ideas Form friendships Comfort others

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Child's sex

 Male 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.8

 Female 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.8 0.8

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.8 2.2 2.2

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.6 1.6

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.1 1.1 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.2

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.6 1.1 1.1

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1

Family type

 Single mother 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.1

 Single father 3.3 3.3 3.7 3.7 3.5 3.5

 Two parent 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.4

 Never utilized AFDC 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.6 1.6

 English 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.9 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3

 Asian 1.8 1.8 2.2 2.2 2.6 2.6

 Hispanic 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.0 3.0 3.7 3.7 3.9 3.9

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.7 2.7 2.1 2.1 2.4 2.4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.4 2.5 2.5

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.9 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3

 Asian 1.9 1.9 2.4 2.4 2.7 2.7

 Hispanic 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.9 1.9 2.6 2.6 2.5 2.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.5 2.5 2.1 2.1 2.6 2.6

 Asian 4.1 4.1 5.0 5.0 6.0 6.0

 Hispanic 1.7 1.7 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.7

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
89

Table 10a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they exhibit antisocial behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Argue with others Fight with others Easily get angry

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Child's sex

 Male 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Female 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.8 1.8 1.3 1.3 1.7 1.7

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.3 1.3 0.8 0.8 1.2 1.2

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.3 1.3 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.9 0.9 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

Family type

 Single mother 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Single father 2.8 2.8 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0

 Two parent 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.3 1.3

 Never utilized AFDC 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.4 1.4 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

 English 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.1 1.1 0.9 0.9 1.3 1.3

 Asian 1.5 1.5 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2

 Hispanic 1.0 1.0 0.7 0.7 1.0 1.0

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 2.4 2.4

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.3 2.3 1.4 1.4 0.7 0.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.4 2.4 1.9 1.9 2.0 2.0

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.2

 Asian 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3

 Hispanic 1.1 1.1 0.8 0.8 1.1 1.1

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.2 2.2 2.0 2.0 1.4 1.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.2 2.2 1.9 1.9 2.5 2.5

 Asian 5.0 5.0 1.5 1.5 4.7 4.7

 Hispanic 1.7 1.7 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
90

Table 11a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they exhibit antisocial behavior, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Argue with others Fight with others Easily get angry

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Child's sex

 Male 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Female 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.6 1.6 1.1 1.1 1.6 1.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

Family type

 Single mother 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6

 Single father 2.2 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.1 2.1

 Two parent 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.9 0.9 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.8

 Never utilized AFDC 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 0.8 0.8 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

 English 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7

 Asian 0.9 0.9 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0

 Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.8

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.8 1.8 1.2 1.2 2.7 2.7

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.7 1.7 1.9 1.9 1.3 1.3

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.4 1.4 1.5 1.5 1.7 1.7

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.1 1.1 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7

 Asian 1.0 1.0 1.3 1.3 1.1 1.1

 Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.8 1.8 1.6 1.6 1.9 1.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.9 1.9 2.0 2.0

 Asian 1.8 1.8 1.6 1.6 2.1 2.1

 Hispanic 1.2 1.2 1.5 1.5 1.2 1.2

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
91

Table 12a.—Standard errors for percentage of first-time male and female kindergartners at risk

for overweight, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic Males Females

Total 0.4 0.4

Mother's education

 Less than high school 1.3 1.0

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.7 0.7

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.6 0.7

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.7 0.8

Family type

 Single mother 0.9 0.8

 Single father 2.6 3.1

 Two parent 0.4 0.4

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.7 1.1

 Never utilized AFDC 0.5 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.6 1.4

 English 0.4 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.9 1.2

 Asian 2.0 2.0

 Hispanic 1.1 0.9

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.6 2.9

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.3 3.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.9 2.7

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.0 1.4

 Asian 2.3 2.3

 Hispanic 1.4 1.2

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.7 2.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.4 1.7

 Asian 4.7 2.9

 Hispanic 1.9 1.6

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood

Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
92

Table 13a.—Standard errors for first-time kindergartners’ mean fine motor skills score and percentage distribution of

scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

fine motor Lower Middle Higher

Total (*) 0.6 0.4 0.6

Child's sex

 Male (*) 0.8 0.6 0.8

 Female (*) 0.6 0.6 0.7

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.1 1.8 2.1 2.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 (*) 0.8 0.8 1.1

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 (*) 0.8 0.7 0.9

 Born May – Aug. 1993 (*) 0.9 0.8 0.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 (*) 1.6 1.3 1.4

Mother’s education

 Less than high school (*) 1.4 1.0 1.0

 High school diploma or equivalent (*) 1.0 0.8 1.0

 Some college, including vocational/technical (*) 0.6 0.8 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher (*) 0.8 0.9 1.0

Family type

 Single mother (*) 1.2 0.8 1.0

 Single father 0.1 2.9 2.9 3.1

 Two parent (*) 0.6 0.5 0.7

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.1 1.3 1.4 1.2

 Never utilized AFDC (*) 0.6 0.4 0.6

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English (*) 1.6 1.2 1.4

 English 0.1 0.7 0.5 0.7

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic (*) 0.8 0.6 0.8

 Black, non-Hispanic (*) 1.1 1.0 1.1

 Asian (*) 2.2 2.0 2.3

 Hispanic (*) 1.3 1.0 1.1

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 0.1 3.2 3.2 3.6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 0.1 2.5 1.9 2.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.1 2.9 3.2 2.6

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic (*) 0.7 0.7 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic (*) 1.2 1.2 1.1

 Asian (*) 1.8 2.2 2.4

 Hispanic (*) 1.4 1.3 1.5

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic (*) 2.5 2.1 2.1

 Black, non-Hispanic (*) 2.4 2.6 2.4

 Asian 0.1 10.4 8.3 7.6

 Hispanic (*) 2.1 1.7 1.3

* Standard error less than .05.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
93

Table 14a.—Standard errors for first-time kindergartners’ mean gross motor skills score and percentage distribution of

scores, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic

Mean

gross motor Lower Middle Higher

Total 0.1 0.6 0.4 0.6

Child's sex

 Male 0.1 0.7 0.6 0.7

 Female 0.1 0.6 0.6 0.8

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.1 2.0 2.4 2.2

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.1 0.9 0.7 1.0

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.1 0.7 0.8 0.7

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.1 0.8 0.8 1.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.1 1.5 1.3 1.4

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.1 1.4 1.0 1.2

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.1 0.8 0.8 1.0

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.1 0.8 0.7 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.1 0.9 0.8 0.9

Family type

 Single mother 0.1 1.1 0.9 1.0

 Single father 0.1 3.2 2.8 3.4

 Two parent 0.1 0.6 0.5 0.7

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.1 1.3 1.2 1.6

 Never utilized AFDC 0.1 0.6 0.5 0.6

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 0.1 2.0 1.4 1.7

 English 0.1 0.6 0.4 0.6

Child's race/ethnicity

0.1

 White, non-Hispanic 0.1 0.7 0.5 0.7

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.1 1.0 1.2 1.3

 Asian 0.1 2.2 2.2 2.0

 Hispanic 0.1 1.4 1.1 1.5

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 0.1 5.3 4.2 3.3

 American Indian/Alaska Native 0.1 2.5 1.7 2.0

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.1 2.7 2.8 2.8

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.1 0.7 0.6 0.7

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.1 1.2 1.3 1.6

 Asian 0.1 2.1 2.1 2.1

 Hispanic 0.1 1.5 1.4 1.6

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 0.1 3.1 1.8 2.3

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.1 2.5 2.3 2.6

 Asian 0.1 6.0 9.5 7.1

 Hispanic 0.1 1.9 1.4 2.0

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
94

Table 15a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by parents’ assessment of their general

health, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Characteristic Excellent Very good Good Fair/ poor

Total 0.7 0.5 0.4 0.2

Child's sex

 Male 0.9 0.7 0.5 0.2

 Female 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.2

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 2.0 1.7 1.4 0.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1.0 0.7 0.7 0.3

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.2

 Born May – Aug. 1993 1.1 1.0 0.6 0.3

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.6 1.5 1.2 0.6

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.2 1.1 1.0 0.7

 High school diploma or equivalent 1.0 0.8 0.7 0.3

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.2

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 1.0 0.9 0.5 0.2

Family type

 Single mother 1.0 0.9 0.6 0.4

 Single father 3.2 2.9 2.7 1.0

 Two parent 0.7 0.5 0.4 0.2

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.3 1.2 1.0 0.6

 Never utilized AFDC 0.7 0.5 0.4 0.1

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.4 1.2 1.2 0.5

 English 0.7 0.5 0.4 0.2

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.4 1.1 0.9 0.4

 Asian 2.1 2.1 1.6 0.8

 Hispanic 1.3 1.1 0.9 0.5

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 4.1 5.5 1.8 2.7

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.7 1.8 2.1 0.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.4 2.4 1.5 0.8

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.4 0.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 1.1 0.9 0.4

 Asian 2.4 2.3 1.7 0.8

 Hispanic 1.5 1.1 1.0 0.4

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.3 1.8 1.4 1.0

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.9 2.3 2.4 1.8

 Asian 3.7 4.2 3.5 1.4

 Hispanic 1.7 1.9 1.7 0.9

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study,

Kindergarten Class of 1998–99, Fall 1998.
95

Table 16a.—Standard errors for percentage of first-time kindergartners whose parents reported developmental difficulty in terms of

activity level, attention, coordination and pronunciation of words: Fall 1998

Characteristic Activity level Attention Coordination Articulation

Total 0.5 0.3 0.2 0.3

Child's sex

 Male 0.3 0.5 0.3 0.4

 Female 0.3 0.4 0.3 0.3

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.7 1.6 1.2 1.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.8 0.6 0.3 0.6

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.6 0.5 0.2 0.4

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.5

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.3 1.0 0.6 0.8

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.3 0.9 0.4 0.9

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.7 0.7 0.3 0.5

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.5

Family type

 Single mother 1.2 0.7 0.3 0.5

 Single father 2.8 2.2 1.3 2.1

 Two parent 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.3

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.6 1.0 0.5 0.8

 Never utilized AFDC 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.3

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.5 0.7 0.4 0.9

 English 0.6 0.3 0.2 0.3

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.0 0.9 0.3 0.8

 Asian 1.5 0.6 0.6 1.2

 Hispanic 0.9 1.0 0.3 0.6

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.1 3.3 1.4 2.3

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.3 2.0 1.1 1.2

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.4 1.9 0.7 1.8

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.5 0.3 0.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.0 0.4 0.7

 Asian 1.8 1.0 0.7 1.2

 Hispanic 0.9 0.9 0.4 0.7

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.0 1.6 0.8 1.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 3.3 1.9 1.0 2.0

 Asian 3.9 1.8 1.2 3.9

 Hispanic 1.7 1.1 0.6 1.1

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
96

Table 17a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which parents say they persist at a

task, are eager to learn new things and are creative in work or play, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Persist Eager to learn Creative

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.5

Child's sex

 Male 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.6 0.6

 Female 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.5

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.9 1.9 1.0 1.0 1.8 1.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.7 0.7

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.2 1.2 0.9 0.9 1.2 1.2

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.2

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.7

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.7 0.7 0.4 0.4 0.7 0.7

Family type

 Single mother 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 1.0 1.0

 Single father 2.8 2.8 1.6 1.6 2.5 2.5

 Two parent 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.2 1.2 0.8 0.8 1.2 1.2

 Never utilized AFDC 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.2 2.5 2.5

 English 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.9 0.9

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9 1.2 1.2

 Asian 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.4 1.9 1.9

 Hispanic 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 5.0 5.0 4.6 4.6 6.6 6.6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.6 1.6 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.7

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.9 2.9 1.3 1.3 1.8 1.8

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7 1.0 1.0

 Asian 1.7 1.7 1.0 1.0 1.8 1.8

 Hispanic 1.1 1.1 0.6 0.6 1.0 1.0

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.8 1.8 1.2 1.2 1.6 1.6

 Black, non-Hispanic 3.0 3.0 2.4 2.4 2.9 2.9

 Asian 4.8 4.8 4.6 4.6 5.9 5.9

 Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.4 1.4 1.7 1.7

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
97

Table 18a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the frequency with which teachers say they persist at a

task, are eager to learn new things and pay attention well, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Persist Eager to learn Attention

Characteristic

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Never/

sometimes

Often/ very

often

Total 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

Child's sex

 Male 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8

 Female 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

Child's age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.6 1.9 1.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.8

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.4 1.4 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1

 High school diploma or equivalent 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.7 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.8

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.7 0.9 0.9

Family type

 Single mother 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.1

 Single father 2.8 2.8 2.8 2.8 3.1 3.1

 Two parent 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.6

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.4

 Never utilized AFDC 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.5 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3

 English 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.4

 Asian 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.9 2.3 2.3

 Hispanic 1.2 1.2 1.0 1.0 0.9 0.9

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.4 3.4 3.3 3.3 2.8 2.8

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.2 2.2 2.1 2.1 2.9 2.9

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.6 2.6 2.4 2.4 2.3 2.3

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.5 1.5

 Asian 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.4 2.4

 Hispanic 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.1

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.8 2.8 2.2 2.2 2.0 2.0

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.8 2.8 2.5 2.5 2.1 2.1

 Asian 3.7 3.7 3.9 3.9 5.9 5.9

 Hispanic 2.0 2.0 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
98

Table 19a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by numbers of books and children’s records, audiotapes or

CDs in the home, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Number of children’s books in child’s

home

Number of children’s records, audio tapes, or CDs

Characteristic

Less

than 26 26-50 51-100 101 + None 1-5 6-10 11-20 21 +

Total 1.0 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5

Child’s sex

 Male 1.1 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6

 Female 1.0 0.6 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.6

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.8 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.2 0.8 1.6 1.7 1.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1.3 0.9 0.9 1.0 0.8 0.9 0.9 0.8 1.0

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 1.1 0.7 1.0 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.7

 Born May – Aug. 1993 1.2 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.7 1.2 1.5 1.0 1.0 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.1

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.7 1.2 0.8 0.5 1.2 1.2 0.9 0.8 0.6

 High school diploma or equivalent 1.4 0.9 0.9 0.5 0.7 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.6

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.9 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.5 0.7 0.6 0.6 0.7

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.6 1.0 0.9 1.0 0.3 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.8

Family type

 Single mother 1.8 1.1 1.0 0.7 1.1 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.9

 Single father 3.1 2.8 2.9 2.0 2.4 2.8 2.4 2.5 2.3

 Two parent 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.5

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.6 1.0 0.9 0.6 1.1 0.8 0.9 0.7 0.7

 Never utilized AFDC 0.5 0.7 0.6 0.8 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.6

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.6 1.4 0.8 0.5 1.7 1.6 1.1 1.1 0.8

 English 1.0 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.6

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.8 1.2 1.0 0.4 1.4 1.0 0.9 0.7 1.0

 Asian 2.7 1.6 1.9 1.2 1.8 1.8 1.7 1.6 1.8

 Hispanic 1.5 0.9 0.8 0.5 1.1 1.1 0.7 0.7 0.7

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.1 3.8 2.3 3.1 2.7 3.9 3.0 3.9 2.6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 7.8 2.4 3.0 3.3 4.6 3.0 1.3 2.7 3.9

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.4 3.0 2.4 1.7 1.4 2.2 2.2 2.0 2.2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.6

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.8 1.3 1.1 0.5 1.2 1.2 1.1 0.8 1.0

 Asian 2.7 1.7 2.1 1.5 1.2 1.9 1.6 1.8 2.2

 Hispanic 1.6 1.3 1.0 0.8 0.9 1.4 1.0 0.8 1.0

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.2 1.9 1.7 1.3 2.2 2.1 1.9 1.6 1.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.5 2.3 1.2 0.6 2.5 2.4 2.0 1.4 1.4

 Asian 7.3 4.1 5.5 0.1 7.0 4.8 5.5 2.1 2.1

 Hispanic 1.9 1.5 0.9 0.3 1.9 1.8 1.1 0.8 0.6

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
99

Table 20a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members read books

and tell stories to them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Reading Tell stories

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 0.1 0.6 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.4

Child’s sex

 Male 0.2 0.8 0.6 0.8 0.4 0.6 0.7 0.5

 Female 0.1 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.3 0.8 0.6 0.6

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 0.5 0.2 0.1 0.2 1.0 0.6 0.5 0.4

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.2 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.6 1.1 0.9 0.9

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.1 0.8 0.7 0.9 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.7

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.2 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.8 0.7 0.7

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.3 0.3 1.1 1.7 0.7 1.5 1.3 1.2

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.5 1.1 1.1 1.1 0.6 1.3 1.2 0.9

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.2 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.9 0.8 0.8

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.1 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.8 0.7 0.8

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.1 0.6 0.9 1.0 0.5 0.8 0.9 0.8

Family type

 Single mother 0.3 1.0 0.8 1.1 0.5 1.0 0.9 1.0

 Single father 1.1 2.4 2.6 2.7 2.6 3.1 2.9 2.7

 Two parent 0.1 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.3 0.6 0.5 0.5

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.5 1.6 1.2 1.4 0.8 1.4 1.2 1.0

 Never utilized AFDC 0.1 0.6 0.5 0.7 0.3 0.6 0.5 0.5

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 0.5 1.3 1.4 1.5 0.9 1.5 1.2 1.4

 English 0.1 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.3 0.6 0.5 0.5

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.1 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.4 0.7 0.6 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.4 1.2 1.3 1.2 0.7 1.4 1.1 1.2

 Asian 0.3 1.9 1.8 2.4 1.0 2.1 1.9 1.8

 Hispanic 0.3 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.6 1.1 1.0 0.8

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 0.1 2.5 3.0 2.9 0.9 3.8 3.6 2.5

 American Indian/Alaska Native 0.6 3.0 2.7 2.1 1.0 2.3 1.5 2.3

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 0.1 1.8 2.9 2.7 1.4 2.8 2.9 2.3

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.1 0.4 0.6 0.8 0.3 0.7 0.6 0.6

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.3 1.4 1.3 1.3 0.7 1.6 1.2 1.3

 Asian 0.2 2.1 1.9 2.7 0.9 2.5 2.0 2.0

 Hispanic 0.3 1.1 1.1 1.0 0.7 1.4 1.2 1.0

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 0.6 2.4 2.2 2.0 1.1 2.7 2.6 1.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 2.3 2.1 2.2 1.7 2.5 2.2 1.8

 Asian 1.5 6.0 4.6 5.4 4.2 4.2 6.6 4.6

 Hispanic 0.7 1.8 1.4 1.8 0.9 1.7 1.6 1.4

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
100

Table 21a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members sing songs

and do arts and crafts with them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Sing songs Arts and crafts

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.4

Child’s sex

 Male 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.5

 Female 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.1 2.1 2.0 1.8 0.9 2.2 1.7 1.3

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.9 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.7

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.4 0.5 0.7 0.9 0.4 0.8 0.7 0.6

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.9 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.6 1.1 1.3 1.5 0.8 1.4 1.5 1.0

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.9 1.2 1.0 1.4 0.9 1.2 1.0 1.0

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.4 0.7 0.7 1.0 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.6

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.3 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.4 0.8 0.8 0.5

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.3 0.7 0.9 1.0 0.4 0.9 0.8 0.8

Family type

 Single mother 0.4 0.7 0.8 1.0 0.6 0.9 0.8 0.8

 Single father 1.9 3.0 2.5 2.8 1.7 3.5 2.5 2.3

 Two parent 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.4

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.0 0.9 1.0 1.5 0.9 1.2 1.0 1.1

 Never utilized AFDC 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.4

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.0 1.5 1.2 1.9 1.0 1.4 1.2 1.1

 English 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.4

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 1.0 1.1 1.2 0.7 1.2 1.4 0.8

 Asian 1.7 1.8 1.6 2.0 1.1 1.2 2.0 1.6

 Hispanic 0.7 1.0 0.9 1.1 0.7 0.9 0.8 0.8

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.6 2.2 4.0 3.4 1.9 3.9 2.7 2.9

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.9 2.0 1.5 3.6 1.0 1.6 2.2 1.4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.1 2.1 2.1 2.7 1.2 2.4 2.3 2.3

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.2 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.2 0.6 0.6 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.5 1.0 1.2 1.1 0.9 1.3 1.6 0.9

 Asian 1.2 2.0 1.9 2.0 1.2 2.1 2.2 1.8

 Hispanic 0.6 1.2 1.0 1.4 0.8 1.2 1.1 0.9

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.2 2.1 1.7 2.4 1.2 2.0 2.0 1.8

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 2.8 2.1 3.5 1.7 2.5 2.0 2.2

 Asian 7.2 4.2 3.6 4.9 3.1 5.0 2.8 5.6

 Hispanic 1.4 1.6 1.4 1.7 1.5 2.0 1.2 1.4

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
101

Table 22a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by the number of times each week family members play sports

or exercise and play games with them, by child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Play sports or exercise Games

Characteristic

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Not at

all 1 –2 3-6

Every

day

Total 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.5

Child’s sex

 Male 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.6 0.7 0.6

 Female 0.4 0.6 0.7 0.6 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.6

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.0 1.9 1.9 2.0 0.8 2.0 2.0 1.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.6 1.0 1.0 1.3 0.7 1.1 1.0 1.0

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.7 0.7 0.6

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.5 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.3 0.6 0.8 0.8

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 0.9 1.5 1.4 1.2 0.7 1.4 1.5 1.2

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 0.8 1.0 1.0 1.3 0.7 1.1 1.0 1.0

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.5 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.4 0.9 0.9 0.8

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.4 0.8 1.0 0.6 0.2 0.8 0.8 0.7

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.6 0.2 0.7 0.8 0.7

Family type

 Single mother 0.7 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.5 0.9 1.0 0.9

 Single father 1.6 2.9 2.8 3.3 1.4 2.8 2.6 3.0

 Two parent 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.2 0.5 0.6 0.5

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 0.9 1.1 1.3 1.3 0.7 1.1 0.9 1.2

 Never utilized AFDC 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.5 0.6 0.5

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.1 1.4 1.2 1.1 0.9 0.5 0.2 0.5

 English 0.3 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.4 0.5 0.5

Child's race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.3 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.8 0.9 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.2 1.3 1.2

 Asian 1.3 2.0 2.0 1.5 0.9 2.1 2.3 1.8

 Hispanic 0.8 0.9 0.9 1.0 0.6 1.2 1.0 1.0

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 1.7 4.4 3.0 6.2 0.7 5.3 2.9 5.4

 American Indian/Alaska Native 4.5 1.8 2.2 3.5 1.8 1.7 1.7 2.4

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.0 3.1 2.7 2.2 1.2 2.4 2.4 2.2

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.3 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 0.9 1.1 1.6 1.6 0.5 1.4 1.6 1.3

 Asian 1.2 2.2 1.9 1.9 0.9 2.2 2.2 1.8

 Hispanic 0.8 1.2 1.1 1.2 0.7 1.3 1.4 1.0

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 1.2 1.7 1.5 2.1 1.2 2.2 2.6 2.1

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 2.6 2.3 2.6 1.3 2.4 2.4 2.0

 Asian 3.5 5.4 5.2 3.1 3.0 5.4 6.1 6.2

 Hispanic 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.6 1.1 1.8 1.4 1.6

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
102

Table 23a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation in nonparental care arrangements

the year prior to starting kindergarten, by type of arrangement and child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Nonparental care arrangement

Characteristic

Total Relative

care

Nonrelative

care

Center-based

care

No

non-parental

care

Total 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.8 0.5

Child’s sex

 Male 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.8 0.6

 Female 0.6 0.8 0.5 0.9 0.6

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 1.7 1.2 1.1 1.3 1.7

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 0.9 1.0 0.9 1.1 0.9

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.7 0.9 0.7 1.0 0.7

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.6 0.8 0.6 0.9 0.6

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.6 1.3 1.2 1.9 1.6

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.2 1.3 0.5 1.2 1.2

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.9 0.9 0.7 1.2 0.9

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.7 0.9 0.7 1.0 0.7

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 0.6 0.7 1.0 0.7 0.6

Family type

 Single mother 0.9 1.2 0.9 1.2 0.9

 Single father 2.4 3.0 2.3 3.0 2.4

 Two parent 0.6 05 0.6 0.9 0.6

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.3 1.1 0.6 1.1 1.3

 Never utilized AFDC 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.9 0.5

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.7 1.3 0.8 1.9 1.7

 English 0.5 1.7 0.6 0.8 05

Child’s race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.9 0.6

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.1 1.6 0.9 1.6 1.1

 Asian 1.6 2.1 1.0 2.2 1.6

 Hispanic 1.1 0.9 0.8 1.3 1.1

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 6.6 3.8 1.7 5.9 6.6

 American Indian/Alaska Native 1.1 2.4 1.9 1.9 1.1

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 1.6 2.4 2.3 2.4 1.6

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.5

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.0 1.7 1.1 1.4 1.0

 Asian 1.8 2.1 1.2 2.5 1.8

 Hispanic 1.2 1.4 1.0 1.4 1.2

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.4 2.0 1.1 1.9 2.4

 Black, non-Hispanic 3.2 2.6 1.1 3.7 3.2

 Asian 3.9 6.0 1.5 6.8 3.9

 Hispanic 1.8 1.5 0.9 1.8 1.8

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.
103

Table 24a.—Standard errors for percentage distribution of first-time kindergartners by participation during kindergarten in before and

after care, by type of arrangement and child and family characteristics: Fall 1998

Nonparental care arrangement

Characteristic

Total Relative

care

Nonrelative

care

Center-based

care

No

nonparental

care

Total 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.7 0.6

Child’s sex

 Male 0.8 0.6 0.6 0.9 0.8

 Female 0.8 0.7 0.5 0.7 0.8

Child’s age at entry

 Born Jan. – Aug. 1992 2.0 1.5 1.3 1.5 2.0

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1992 1.0 1.0 0.7 1.0 1.0

 Born Jan. – Apr. 1993 0.9 0.8 0.6 0.8 0.9

 Born May – Aug. 1993 0.9 0.8 0.5 0.9 0.9

 Born Sep. – Dec. 1993 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.5 1.6

Mother’s education

 Less than high school 1.4 1.3 0.9 0.8 1.4

 High school diploma or equivalent 0.9 0.8 0.6 0.8 0.9

 Some college, including vocational/technical 0.9 0.9 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Bachelor’s degree or higher 1.2 0.7 0.9 1.2 1.2

Family type

 Single mother 1.2 1.3 0.9 1.3 1.2

 Single father 2.7 3.2 2.4 2.8 2.7

 Two parent 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.7 0.7

Welfare receipt

 Utilized AFDC 1.4 1.0 0.7 1.0 1.4

 Never utilized AFDC 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.9 0.7

Primary language spoken in home

 Non-English 1.5 1.3 0.9 1.0 1.5

 English 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.8 0.7

Child’s race/ethnicity

 White, non-Hispanic 0.8 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.8

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.5 1.6 0.9 2.0 1.5

 Asian 2.0 1.9 1.0 1.8 2.0

 Hispanic 1.0 0.9 0.8 1.0 1.0

 Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander 3.1 4.4 1.9 3.2 3.1

 American Indian/Alaska Native 2.0 3.1 2.1 2.9 2.0

 More than one race, non-Hispanic 2.9 2.6 1.9 2.0 2.9

Child’s race/ethnicity by maternal education

 Maternal education:

 High school diploma/equivalent or more

 White, non-Hispanic 0.9 0.6 0.7 0.9 0.9

 Black, non-Hispanic 1.6 1.6 1.0 2.2 1.6

 Asian 2.1 2.0 1.1 2.1 2.1

 Hispanic 1.4 1.2 1.0 1.3 1.4

 Maternal education:

 Less than high school diploma or equivalent

 White, non-Hispanic 2.3 1.7 1.2 1.2 2.3

 Black, non-Hispanic 2.7 2.7 1.1 2.3 2.7

 Asian 6.1 6.4 1.1 1.5 6.1

 Hispanic 1.7 1.6 0.9 0.8 1.7

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of

1998–99, Fall 1998.