This study utilized the 2013 language arts data from the Mississippi Curriculum Test II to examine the impact Pre-k has on the reading achievement of low socio-economic African American students. This study was guided by one research question and employed a causal-comparative research design. The research question sought to determine the difference in MCT2 language arts scores of third grade students who participated in a school district’s Pre-k program and those who did not attend the district’s Pre-k program. The results indicated that there was a significant difference in the language arts scores of students who attended Pre-k and those that did not. The study concludes with implications for practicing educators and recommendations for future research.

In an era of high stakes testing and accountability, educators and policy makers are working to improve the educational outcomes for children. In a quest to help children achieve at high levels, Pre Kindergarten is often cited as a proactive strategy to address the academic gaps many children have upon entering school. While the goal of Pre Kindergarten is to prepare children for later schooling, it is important to determine if this costly strategy has sustainable, long-term academic benefits. The purpose of this research was to determine if a Title I, Part A Pre Kindergarten program had an impact on the later academic achievement of children in a rural, high poverty, high minority, public school district in Mississippi. The results from this study can provide educators and policymakers with data as they work to align resources to provide an effective education program. It can provide educators with information to review and revise practices and procedures for positive early childhood education experiences. The quantitative, causal-comparative study examined the 3rd-grade academic achievement of children to determine if a significant difference existed between the students who received Pre Kindergarten services and those who did not. Student scale scores on the Mississippi Department of Education 3rd Grade Reading Summative Assessment and student attendance data were used to explore student’s later academic achievement. The overall collective data results from the study suggest Pre Kindergarten participation does not significantly improve the reading scores of children at the end of 3rd-grade. Although variances in the data were shown, it may be a result of the small sample sizes. The children who attended Pre Kindergarten did miss significantly fewer days of school. The recommendations for future research are as follows: (a) conduct a longitudinal study to determine how students who received Pre Kindergarten services compared to those who did not in later grades such as grades five, eight, and a later high school grade, (b) replicate the study with data from the children who received Pre Kindergarten services in an Early Learning Collaborative in Mississippi, and (c) conduct a qualitative study of 3rd grade teachers to see if they recognize a difference between the Pre Kindergarten participants and non-participants.

This thesis describes a standards-based pre-kindergarten mathematics curriculum. The purpose of this thesis was to create a series of original lesson plans for the pre-kindergarten classroom that would address defined standards with instructional and other materials appropriate for teaching and assessing student understanding of the concepts. The curriculum is based on standards set forth by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Virginia Department of Education's Foundation Blocks for Early Learning. The body of the work introduces the foundation for the thesis with theoretical underpinning, defines the content strands and learning objectives, establishes a pacing schedule for meeting the objectives, and includes lessons for thirty weeks of instruction. Included in the appendices are parental newsletters, black line masters, literature and technology resources, and a student assessment.

Throughout the United States, state governments are allocating millions of dollars to support Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK) programs. Recent research has indicated that students that participate in VPK demonstrate higher academic achievement scores across a number of subject areas. Moreover, VPK participants are more likely to enter primary school on grade level, which in turn leads to a reduction in grade retention. Studies have indicated that although all students that participate in VPK programs benefit from such programs, minority students and students that come from low-socioeconomic backgrounds benefit at an even higher level. The intent of this study was to determine to what extent, if any, a VPK program within a large, suburban school district impacted the academic achievement and kindergarten preparedness of participants in comparison to students that did not participate in the VPK program offered by the district. To measure the impact, student scores on the 2006-2007 Florida Kindergarten Readiness Screener (FLKRS) were compared through the use of an independent samples t-test. The same students had their 3rd grade Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) Reading and Mathematics scored compared as well. Two groups were compared against one another. The control group was a group of students that did not participate in the VPK offered by the school district. The treatment group was the group of students that participated in the district offered VPK. The results of each of the independent sample t-tests conducted determined that there was not a statistically significant different in either student preparedness or student academic achievement between the VPK participant group and the non-participant group.

State-funded voluntary pre-K programs have grown steadily over the past decade and now enroll 1.3 million children (Barnett, Carolan, Fitzgerald, J., & Squires, 2012). While the overall trend has been to increase participation in state funded Pre-K, access in most states is targeted to select groups of at-risk 4-year-olds. Unfortunately, targeted programs for disadvantaged children tend to underserve their targeted populations with respect to availability and quality (Gelbach & Pritchett, 2002). In light of this, Pre-K advocates have begun pushing for universal Pre-K. However, only six states offer universal-prekindergarten, and with varying degrees of success. In this environment of modest state funding for Pre-K, the state of Oklahoma has managed to rise to the forefront of the universal Pre-K movement. That a high-quality Pre-K system exists in a conservative state is a very curious case and provides an opportunity for a thorough examination of the political processes. This study seeks not only to explain the development and passage of universal Pre-K in Oklahoma, but to also understand what lessons can be taken from a historical analysis of this issue for contemporary education policy. / text

Although there has been research conducted in the area of information seeking behavior in children, the research focusing on young children, more specifically on pre-kindergarten students, is almost nonexistent. Children at this age are in the preoperational developmental stage. They tend to display curiosity about the world around them, and use other people as a means to gain the information they are seeking. Due to the insistence from President Obama to implement pre-kindergarten programs for all low and middle class children, the need to understand the cognitive, emotional, and physical needs of these children is becoming increasingly imperative. To researchers, the actions displayed by these young children on a daily basis remain vital in determining the methods by which they are categorized, studies, and even taught. This study employed Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory (SDT), Dervin's sense-making theory, Kuhlthau''s information search process model (ISP), and Shenton and Dixon's microcosmic model of information seeking via people to lay the theoretical foundational framework. This ethnographic study aimed to fill the age gap found in information seeking literature. By observing young children in the school setting, I gained insight into how these children seek information. The resulting information collected via field observations and semi-structured interviews were coded based on Shenton and Dixon's model of information seeking via people. The findings, in Chapter 5, revealed emerging codes and trends in the information seeking behaviors of pre-kindergarten students.

To meet the guidelines generated by the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB) pressures to raise student achievement have filtered down to and emerged in prekindergarten classrooms. The leadership of state, federal, and local policymakers is critical to the movement for high quality prek for all. The purpose of this study was to examine the scores of prekindergarten students when presented 3 different methods of literacy instruction and to compare the scores according to gender and among 3 age groups. This study found a significant difference in the scores of students when analyzed according to age. The youngest students scored significantly higher than the older students. The results support the literature that young children's brains are more active. There is evidence to support the move to provide high quality prekindergarten for all, which includes Tennessee Governor Phil Bredeson's preK Initiative.

Presently, over five million English-language learners (ELLs) are being educated in U.S. schools, and by the year 2020, more than half of the public school system population in the U.S. will be from families whose native language is not English (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005). Culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) (Ladson-Billings, 1995) provides a framework for classroom teachers to meet the needs of diverse learners. This ethnographic case study describes what CRP looks like for young ELLs and how a pre-kindergarten school teacher and her bilingual paraprofessional successfully implement CRP. This study: (a) examined the manifestation of culturally relevant pedagogy in a pre-kindergarten classroom for English-language learners, and (b) investigated the ways two teachers promoted three central tenets of CRP in their pre-kindergarten classroom: (1) academic success; (2) cultural competence; and (3) critical consciousness. The research questions were explored by collecting fieldnotes during 20 classroom observations, 3 individual interview transcripts, 3 individual member-checking transcripts, and 15 classroom documents. Findings were based on an open-coding analysis process and a priori coding to demonstrate examples of culturally relevant pedagogical practices and beliefs. The data suggests five major principles of CRP for young ELLs: (1) Oral multilingual classroom language experiences for young children occurred frequently; (2) Monolingual and bilingual teacher collaboration was beneficial for teachers and young children’s language and cultural development; (3) Children’s funds of knowledge were employed and integrated into classroom learning experiences; (4) Peer-to-peer interactions promoted language learning, literacy, and cultural understandings; and (5) Teachers’ and children’s acknowledgement of cultural similarities and differences were built upon. Furthermore, teachers promoted academic success by not accepting student failure and making students responsible for the academic success of their peers; cultural competence is established when teachers encourage children to interact effectively with others from different cultures; and critical consciousness is fostered when children know their authentic stories, are able to stand up for themselves, and ask questions about the world around them. These findings provide a greater understanding of CRP for young ELLs, specifically in a pre-kindergarten context, and hold important implications on future research on CRP.

Pre-kindergarten students often arrive the first day of school carrying a backpack filled with supplies which they are eager to use. Inside these backpacks are scissors, glue, and crayons. This study proposes that the pre-kindergartners are also carrying another backpack, their literacy backpack holding all of their literacy skills and practices that they use every day at home. This qualitative case study examined these literacies brought from home in the students’ figurative literacy backpacks. The study also focused on their teachers’ literacy views and practices. The study was conducted in three parts. First, through field observations and interviews with parents, the literacy practices occurring at home were identified and examined. Unique “literacy stories” were crafted from the data for each of the pre-kindergartners and shared with their parents. Part two of the study examined the two pre-kindergarten teachers’ literacy practices through semi-structured interviews. The impact of external forces (e.g. state and federal mandates, school curriculum, grant requirements, and trainings) on the views and practices of the pre-kindergarten teachers was discussed. These external forces stress the development of formal literacies, thus modeling a narrow definition of literacy. Part three of the study focused on sharing the students’ “literacy stories” with their teachers and examining the teachers’ reactions to the stories. Data from the interviews following reading the stories pointed to the teachers’ acknowledging the multiple literacies found in the homes of their students and a desire to learn more about their families’ literacy practices in order to utilize them in the classroom. The students’ “literacy stories” proved to be a valuable tool in expanding the teachers’ definition of literacy. The stories helped the teachers broaden their views of literacy to include literacy practices that occur in many different cultural and social contexts; adopting a definition more in line with the socio-cultural development of literacy and the NLS concepts (Street, 2003). Using this definition, multiple literacies will be made visible in the classrooms and connections from home to school can be made allowing students to strengthen their existing literacies and expand them to incorporate other literacies. / text

The purpose of the study was to investigate the construct validity of the Total Individual Progress Level I Pre-kindergarten Screen (TIP) for males and females. Exploratory factor analysis of the items was used to determine the underlying dimensions of TIP.The subjects were 799 students from a rural and suburban school district adjacent to a larger city in east-central Indiana who were screened prior to kindergarten entrance during the years 1977 to 1984. The sample was split to allow for cross-validation of the exploratory factor analysis results.The covariance structures of males and females were judged to be similar. Therefore, a principal components analysis using SPSS-X (Nie, 1983) was used to determine the optional number of factors to retain for males and females together in two separate samples. Judgements regarding the number of factors to retain was based on the scree plot and eigenvalue greater than one criteria (Reynolds & Paget, 1981). Both orthogonal and oblique rotations were explored for 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-factor solutions using principal factoring with iterations.The four-factor varimax solutions for Sample 1 and Sample 2 were found to provide the best solution of TIP. The same four constructs were found in both samples and were extracted in the same order, indicating reliability of this factor solution of TIP. The factors were named, in order, Language, Visual, Gross Motor, and Speech Mechanics.The results obtained in the two samples were compared in regard to Rummel's (1970) considerations. Similarities were found in number of retained factors, configuration of the variables, complexity of the solution, variance accounted for by the factors, and communalities. In addition, results of Tucker's congruence coefficient and Cattell's salient variable similarity index indicated factorial similarity for all four factors across both samples.The four derived factors did not completely resemble the four pre-established subscales of TIP.The Concepts subscale did not emerge as a separate construct and the Hearing and communication subscale was broken into two different factors. Fewer items comprised the four-factor varimax solution. Only two of the extracted factors, Gross Motor and Visual, resembled the pre-established subscales of Motor and Vision and Visual, respectively.