Implementing Pre-K-3: Aligning Views of School Readiness and Early Childhood Curriculum Among School Staff and Parents

• In Event: Implementation and Assessment in Early Childhood Programs

Abstract

AAn important consideration in building a preK to 3 system at the local level is the consistency among key participants, including parents, in their perspectives on what children need to be ready for school and how to prepare them. This paper presents findings from a study of parents’, teachers, and school administrators’ views of school readiness and developmentally appropriate curriculum in the context of an early childhood initiative in a large school district. Although there was general appreciation across all groups of the importance of social and emotional competencies as well as academic skills, they differed in their views of appropriate instructional strategies for preparing children for school. These differences had implications for their understanding and support of the program.

Author

• Julie A. Spielberger, University of Chicago