Abstract
Teachers’ valid observational assessments of children’s competencies in kindergarten are critical, as formal classroom testing is not prevalent. Controlling for SES and gender, hierarchical multiple regression was used to test the hypotheses that kindergarten teachers’ ratings of certain learning and behavioral competencies related to literacy, mathematics, and approaches to learning were predictive of third and fourth grade reading and mathematics achievement. Data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Kindergarten Class of 2010–2011 (ECLS-K:2011) were used for analyses. The ECLS-K:2011 sample included 12,866 children assessed at the end of kindergarten and who completed measures of academic achievement at the end of third and fourth grade. The hypothesized models suggested that the most basic literacy and mathematics competencies measured at the end of kindergarten along with approaches to learning are the most predictive of academic performance in third and fourth grade. Implications for teaching and learning in kindergarten were examined and discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
107–110., P. L. (2002). No child left behind act of 2001. In: US Government Printing Office Washington, DC.
Adlof, S. M., Catts, H. W., & Lee, J. (2010). Kindergarten predictors of second versus eighth grade reading comprehension impairments. 43(4), 332–345. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219410369067
Aunio, P., & Niemivirta, M. (2010). Predicting children's mathematical performance in grade one by early numeracy. Learning and Individual Differences, 20(5), 427–435. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2010.06.003
Bailey, D., Duncan, G., Odgers, C., & Yu, W. (2017). Persistence and fadeout in the impacts of child and adolescent interventions. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 10(1), 7–39.
Baker, C., Tichovolsky, M., Kupersmidt, J., Voegler-Lee, E., & Arnold, D. (2015). Teacher (mis)perceptionsof preschoolers’ academic skills: Predictors and associations with longitudinal outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107(3), 805–820.
Blair, C., & Razza, R. P. (2007). Relating effortful control, executive function, and false belief understanding to emerging math and literacy ability in kindergarten. Child Development, 78(2), 647–663. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01019.x
Boardman, M. (2006). The impact of age and gender on Prep children’s academic achievements. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 31(1), 1–6.
Bodovski, K., & Farkas, G. (2007). Do instructional practices contribute to inequality in achievement? The case of mathematics instruction in kindergarten. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 5(3), 301–322.
Bortolotti, S., Tezza, R., Francisco de Andrade, D., Bornia, A., & Farias de Sousa, A. (2013). Relevance and advantages of using the item response theory. Quality and Quantity, 47, 2341–2360.
Bulotsky-Shearer, R. J., Dominguez, X., & Bell, E. R. (2012). Preschool classroom behavioral context and school readiness outcomes for low-income children: A multilevel examination of child- and classroom-level influences. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(2), 421–438.
Chall, J. S., & Jacobs, V. A. (1983). Writing and reading in the elementary grades: Developmental trends among low SES children. Language Arts, 60(5), 617–626.
Chall, J. S., & Jacobs, V. A. (2003). Poor children’s 4th grade slump. American Educator, 27(1), 14–22.
Clements, D. H., & Sarama, J. (2011). Early childhood mathematics intervention. Science, 333(6045), 968. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1204537
Coakes, S. J. (2005). SPSS: Analysis without Anguish: Version 120 for windows. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Cobb-Clark, D., & Moschion, J. (2017). Gender gaps in early educational achievement. Journal of Population Economics, 30(4), 1093–1134.
Cross, A. F., & ConnPowers, M. (2011). A working paper: New information about school readiness. Indiana Institute on Disability and Community.
Dickinson, D., & Porche, M. (2011). Relation between langauge experiences in preschool classrooms and children’s kindergarten and fourth-grade language reading abilities. Child Development, 82(3), 870–886.
DiPerna, J., Lei, P., & Reid, E. (2007). Kindergarten predictors of mathematical growth in the primary grades: An investigation using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten cohort. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(2), 369–379.
Duncan, G. J., Dowsett, C. J., Claessens, A., Magnuson, K., Huston, A. C., Klebanov, P., et al. (2007). School readiness and later achievement. Developmental Psychology, 43(6), 1428–1446.
Engle, P., & Black, M. (2008). The effect of poverty on child development and educational outcomes. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1136(1), 243–256.
Entwisle, D., Alexander, K., & Olson, L. (2005). First grade and educational attainment by age 22: A new story. American Journal of Sociology, 110, 1458–1502.
Geary, D. C., Hoard, M. K., Nugent, L., & Bailey, D. H. (2013). Adolescents’ functional numeracy is predicted by their school entry number system knowledge. PLoS ONE, 8(1), e54651.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0054651.
Gullo, D. F. (1990). Kindergarten schedules: Effects on teachers’ ability to assess academic achievement. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 5, 43–51.
Gullo, D. F. (2018). A structural model of early indicators of school readiness among children of poverty. Journal of Children and Poverty, 24(1), 3–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/10796126.2017.1401899.
Gullo, D. F., & Ambrose, R. P. (1987). Perceived competence and social competence In kindergarten: Its relationship to academic performance. Journal of Educational Research, 81, 28–32.
Gut, J., & Grob, A. (2013). A contextualized view on long-term predictors of academic performance. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105(2), 436–443.
Hair, J., Anderson, R., Tatham, R., & Black, W. (1998). Multivariate data analysis (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Hoge, R., & Butcher, R. (1984). Analysis of teacher judgements of pupil achievement levels. Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 777–781.
Hooper, S. R., Roberts, J., Sideris, J., Burchinal, M., & Zeisel, S. (2010). Longitudinal predictors of reading and math trajectories through middle school for African American versus Caucasian students across two samples. Developmental Psychology, 46(5), 1018–1029. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018877
Hyson, M. (2008). Enthusiastic and engaged learners: Approaches to learning in the early childhood classroom. New York: Teachers College Press and Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Isaacs, J. (2012). Starting school at a disadvantage: The school readiness of poor children. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution.
Jacobs, A. (2015). Towards a neurocognitive poetics model of literary reading. In R. Willems (Ed.), Towards a cognitive neuroscience of natural language use (pp. 135–159). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Janus, M., & Duku, E. (2007). The school entry gap: Socioeconomic, family, and health factors associated with children’s school readiness to learn. Early Education and Development, 18(3), 375–403. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409280701610796a.
Jordan, N. C., Kaplan, D., Nabors Oláh, L., & Locuniak, M. N. (2006). Number sense growth in kindergarten: A longitudinal investigation of children at risk for mathematics difficulties. Child Development, 77(1), 153–175. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00862.x
Jordan, N. C., Kaplan, D., Ramineni, C., & Locuniak, M. N. (2009). Early math matters: Kindergarten number competence and later mathematics outcomes. Developmental Psychology, 45(3), 850–867. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014939
Kidd, D., & Castano, E. (2013). Reading literary fiction improves theory of mind. Science, 342(6156), 377–380.
Lee, V. E., & Burkam, D. T. (2002). Inequality at the starting gate: Social background differences in achievement as children begin school. Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute.
Li-Grining, C. P., Votruba-Drzal, E., Maldonado-Carreño, C., & Haas, K. (2010). Children’s early approaches to learning and academic trajectories through fifth grade. Developmental Psychology, 46(5), 1062–1077. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020066.
Lonigan, C. J., & Shanahan, T. (2009). Developing early literacy: Report of the National Early Literacy Panel. Executive Summary. A scientific synthesis of early literacy development and implications for intervention. Jessup, MD: National Institute for Literacy.
McClelland, M. M., Acock, A. C., & Morrison, F. J. (2006). The impact of kindergarten learning-related skills on academic trajectories at the end of elementary school. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 21(4), 471–490. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2006.09.003
Meyers, L. S., Gamst, G., & Guarino, A. J. (2013). Applied multivariate research: Design and interpretation (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.
Morris, D., Bloodgood, J., & Perney, J. (2003). Kindergarten predictors of first- and second-grade reading achievement. The Elementary School Journal, 104(2), 93–109. https://doi.org/10.1086/499744
Pallant, J. (2001). SPSS survival manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS for Windows. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press.
Panel, N. M. A. (2008). Foundations for success: The final report of the National Mathematics Advisory Panel. US Department of Education Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/mathpanel/report/final-report.pdf
Paris, S. G. (2005). Reinterpreting the development of reading skills. Reading Research Quarterly, 40(2), 184–202. https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Passolunghi, M. C., Lanfranchi, S., Altoè, G., & Sollazzo, N. (2015). Early numerical abilities and cognitive skills in kindergarten children. Journal of Experimental child Psychology, 135, 25–42.
Perry, J., Guidubaldi, J., & Kehle, T. (1979). Kindergarten competencies as predictors of third grade classroom behavior and achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 71, 443–450.
Razza, R. A., Martin, A., & Brooks-Gunn, J. (2015). Are approaches to learning in kindergarten associated with academic and social competence similarly? Child & Youth Care Forum, 44(6), 757–776.
Rimm‐Kaufman, S. E., LaParo, K. M., Downer, J. T., & Pianta, R. C. (2005). The contribution of classroom setting and quality of instruction to children’s behavior in kindergarten classrooms. The Elementary School Journal, 105(4), 377–394. https://doi.org/10.1086/429948
Sakes, M. (2013). Children's competencies in process skills in kindergarten and their impact on academic achievement in third grade. Early Education and Development, 24(5), 704–720. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2012.715571
Snow, C., & Matthews, T. (2016). Reading and language in the early grades. The Future of Children, 26(2), 57–74.
Tabachnick, B., & Fidell, L. (2001). Using multivariate statistics (4th ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Tourangeau, K., Nord, C., Lê, T., Wallner-Allen, K., Vaden-Kiernan, N., Blaker, L., & Najarian, M. (2018). Early childhood longitudinal study, kindergarten class of 2010–11 (ECLS-K:2011) user’s manual for the ECLS-K:2011 kindergarten-fourth grade data file and electronic codebook, public version (NCES 2018–032). Washington, DC: National Center for Educational Statistics.
Welsh, J. A., Nix, R. L., Blair, C., Bierman, K. L., & Nelson, K. E. (2010). The development of cognitive skills and gains in academic school readiness for children from low-income families. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(1), 43–53.
Williams, K., White, S., & MacDonald, A. (2016a). Early mathematics achievement of boys and girls: Do differences in early self-regulation pathways explain later achievement? Learning and Individual Differences, 51(October), 199–209.
Williams, M., Perron, J., & Biemiller, A. (2016b). Revisiting the age-old question: What are the effects of relative age and gender on young children in school settings? Journal of Childhood Studies, 41(2), 4–12.
Zigler, E., Gilliam, W., & Jones, S. (2006). A vision for universal preschool education. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gullo, D.F., Impellizeri, W.E. Kindergarten Teachers’ Ratings of Children’s Behavioral and Learning Competencies: Predictive Impact on Children’s Third and Fourth Grade Achievement Trajectories. Early Childhood Educ J 50, 301–314 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01157-6
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01157-6