Comparing Academic Readiness Requirements for Different Postsecondary Pathways: What Admissions Tests Tell Us

Substantial evidence has established that individual differences in executive function (EF) in early childhood are uniquely predictive of children’s academic readiness at school entry. The current study tested whether growth trajectories of EF across the early childhood period could be used to identify a subset of children who were at pronounced risk for academic impairment in kindergarten. Using data that were collected at the age 3, 4, and 5 home assessments in the Family Life Project ( N = 1,120), growth mixture models were used to identify 9% of children who exhibited impaired EF performance (i.e., persistently low levels of EF that did not show expected improvements across time). Compared to children who exhibited typical trajectories of EF, the delayed group exhibited substantial impairments in multiple indicators of academic readiness in kindergarten (Cohen’s ds = 0.9–2.7; odds ratios = 9.8–23.8). Although reduced in magnitude following control for a range of socioeconomic and cognitive (general intelligence screener, receptive vocabulary) covariates, moderate-sized group differences remained (Cohen’s ds = 0.2–2.4; odds ratios = 3.9–5.4). Results are discussed with respect to the use of repeated measures of EF as a method of early identification, as well as the resulting translational implications of doing so.

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A Trauma-Informed Transition Model for New Entrants with Dysregulated Behaviours

New Zealand Journal of Educational Studies ◽

10.1007/s40841-021-00219-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

A. Hunter-Dehn

Keyword(s):

Emotional Regulation ◽

High Stress ◽

School Personnel ◽

Academic Readiness ◽

Transition Model ◽

School Age ◽

Whole School ◽

High Deprivation ◽

Trauma Informed ◽

Preliminary Support

AbstractThe Riroriro programme was a response to the needs of children with extremely dysregulated classroom behaviours, resulting from sustained exposure to traumatic high-stress and high-deprivation environments from pre-birth to school age. Evaluation of the accounts of key individuals involved in the pilot found that participants had improved emotional regulation abilities and interpersonal skills during and up to 1 year after the intervention. Academic performance was not improved significantly, but the interviewees’ accounts suggested that “academic readiness” had been achieved. In line with previous studies, the results indicate preliminary support for the effectiveness of the Riroriro programme in supporting children who have experienced trauma to become mainstream classroom ready. These results suggest that a whole-school, multi-tiered approach providing support at the student, school personnel and system levels can help mitigate the effects of trauma.

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Temperamental Constellations and School Readiness: A MultiVariate Approach

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18010055 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 55

Author(s):

Andrew S. White ◽

Kate M. Sirota ◽

Scott R. Frohn ◽

Sara E. Swenson ◽

Kathleen Moritz Rudasill

Keyword(s):

Longitudinal Study ◽

School Readiness ◽

High Activity ◽

Youth Development ◽

Inhibitory Control ◽

Effortful Control ◽

Peer Interactions ◽

Academic Readiness ◽

Future Research ◽

Early Child Care

This study uses canonical correlation analyses to explore the relationship between multiple predictors of school readiness (i.e., academic readiness, social readiness, and teacher-child relationship) and multiple temperamental traits using data from the second wave (age 54 months, n = 1226) of the longitudinal Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD; NICHD ECCRN 1993). This longitudinal study collected data on a large cohort of children and their families from birth through age 15. For academic readiness, only one temperamental constellation emerged, representing the construct of effortful control (i.e., high attentional focusing, high inhibitory control). For peer interactions, two significant constellations emerged: “dysregulated” (low inhibitory control, low shyness, and high activity), and “withdrawn” (high shyness, low inhibitory control, low attentional focusing). Finally, the analyses exploring child-teacher relationships revealed two significant constellations: “highly surgent” (high activity, low inhibitory control, low shyness) and “emotionally controlled” (low anger/frustration and high inhibitory control). Results of this study form a more nuanced exploration of relationships between temperamental traits and indicators of school readiness than can be found in the extant literature, and will provide the groundwork for future research to test specific hypotheses related to the effect temperamental constellations have on children’s school readiness.

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Relationships among Perceptual-Motor Measures and their Correlations with Academic Readiness for Preschool Children

Perceptual and Motor Skills ◽

10.2466/pms.1974.39.1.467 ◽

1974 ◽

Vol 39 (1) ◽

pp. 467-473 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Brad S. Chissom ◽

Jerry R. Thomas ◽

Delores G. Collins

Keyword(s):

Dynamic Balance ◽

Kindergarten Children ◽

Academic Readiness ◽

Multiple Correlation ◽

Balance Task ◽

Motor Tests ◽

Academic Measures ◽

Highly Correlated ◽

The Relationship ◽

Ball Test

Kindergarten children ( N = 39) were administered 4 perceptual-motor tests and 2 academic measures in order to assess the relationship among the perceptual-motor tests and between the perceptual-motor and academic tests. Results indicated that the Shape-0 Ball Test and Frostig test were highly correlated and were good predictors of the academic measures. The dynamic balance task (stabilometer) correlated moderately with the Shape-O Ball Test, the Frostig, and the academic criteria. The Oseretsky tests did not correlate significantly with any of the other measures. Stepwise multiple correlation indicated that combining the perceptual-motor tests slightly increased their ability to predict each of the academic criteria.

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