Kindergarten

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how parents who have children that are going to enroll in a kindergarten program for the first time are now faced with the decision of whether to enroll their children in a half-day kindergarten program or to enroll them in an all-day one. The paper then provides an overview of both kindergarten programs and gives the advantages and disadvantages of each program. It also examines the advantages of an all-day kindergarten program over the traditional half-day programs in terms of educational, economic and socio-emotional factors.

Outline:
Introduction
Half-Day Kindergarten Program
Advantages of Half-Day Programs
Disadvantages of Half-Day Programs
All-Day Kindergarten Program
Advantages of All-Day Kindergarten Program
Disadvantages of All-Day Kindergarten Program
Comparative Studies
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Transitions and interruptions during the day such as transferring from a kindergarten program to a childcare program are lessened because of all-day kindergarten programs. All-day programs also provide more time for one-to-one interaction between the teacher and the child learner as well as provide for a greater potential for academic performance. Lastly, all-day kindergarten programs are convenient for parents since they would not have to look for another institution of program to put their children to for the rest of the day while they are at work. Arranging child care during the workday would become less costly and less complicated for working parents when their child is in school for the whole day rather than half of the day. Another reason that supports all-day kindergarten programs is that children who have spent some of their prekindergarten years in nursery school classes or child care arrangements (often full-day) are ready for the cognitive, social, and physical demands of a full-day kindergarten (Gullo 1990)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Finkelstein, Judith M. (1983). RESULTS OF MIDWESTERN UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS STUDY: KINDERGARTEN SCHEDULING. Volume I Number 4. Iowa: Price Laboratory School Research, 1983. ED 248 979.
• Hough, D., & Bryde, S. (1995). Summative Evaluation of the Springfield K-12 Public Schools Full-Day Kindergarten Program. Unpublished evaluation from Springfield Public Schools, Springfield, MO. July 26, 1995.
• Gullo, D.F. (2000). The Long-Term Educational Effects of Half-Day vs. Full-Day Kindergarten. Early Childhood Development and Care, 160: 17-24.
• Morrow, L.M., Strickland, D.S., and Woo, D.G. (1998). Literacy Instruction in Half-Day and Whole-Day Kindergarten. Newark, DE: International Reading Association, Inc., and the National Reading Conference.
• Cannon, J.S., Jacknowitz, A., and Painter, G. (2005). Is Full Better than Half? Examining the Longitudinal Effects of Full-day Kindergarten Attendance: A working paper, Rand. 2005.

More papers on Kindergarten:

• Persuasive Essay # 69079 : "Full-Day Kindergarten in California"
• Research Paper # 72139 : "Kindergarten Readiness"
• Article Review # 134573 : "Kindergarten to First Grade"
• Article Review # 121948 : "Kindergarten Students' Reading"

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