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Prekindergarten in U.S. Public Schools: 2000-2001
NCES: 2003019
March 2003

Prekindergarten Children in Public Schools

Results from the survey provide information on the children who were enrolled in prekindergarten classes offered by regular and special education public elementary schools during the 2000-2001 school year. The data address questions such as:

  • What was the age distribution of prekindergarten children, and was there a difference in the distribution between children enrolled in general education and those enrolled in special education prekindergarten classes?
  • What was the racial and ethnic make-up of prekindergarten enrollment?
  • How many prekindergarten children were LEP?
  • How many were low income?
  • How many had IEPs?

Number of Prekindergarten Children in Public Schools

During the 2000-2001 school year, approximately 822,000 children were enrolled in public elementary school prekindergarten classes (Table 4).13 As a group, they comprised about 9 percent of 3- and 4-year-old children nationwide: 4 percent of 3-year-olds and 14 percent of 4-year-olds.14, 15 To put these numbers in context, data from the U.S. Department of Education indicated that in 1999, about 54 percent of 3- and 4-year-olds nationwide were enrolled in some form of preprimary educational program in public elementary schools or in some other setting (Snyder 2001).16

Table 4 shows the distribution of prekindergarten children by selected characteristics of the public schools offering their classes. One-third (33 percent) of the prekindergarten children attended large elementary schools, 44 percent attended midsized schools, and 24 percent attended small schools. Almost half (45 percent) of prekindergarten children attended public schools with minority enrollment of 50 percent or more.

Among the 822,000 children enrolled in public school prekindergarten classes,17 79 percent were enrolled in general education classes and 21 percent were enrolled in special education classes (Table 5). In the Northeast, 86 percent of the prekindergarten children were enrolled in general education classes and 14 percent were enrolled in special education classes, whereas in the Southeast, 76 percent of the children were enrolled in general education classes and 24 percent were enrolled in special education classes. In schools with the highest poverty concentration, 87 percent of the prekindergarten children were enrolled in general education classes and 13 percent were enrolled in special education classes, compared with 73 percent in general education classes and 27 percent in special education classes in schools with the lowest poverty concentration.

Age of Prekindergarten Children in Public Schools

The survey asked public schools to report the age of prekindergarten children as of October 1, 2000. As of that date, 20 percent of the children were 3 years, 68 percent were 4 years, and 9 percent were 5 years or older. The remaining 3 percent were younger than 3 years (Figure 2).

The age distribution of prekindergarten children enrolled in public schools differed by type of prekindergarten class. Although most children enrolled in either general education or special education prekindergarten classes in public schools were 3 or 4 years, larger percentages of children who were younger than 3 years, 3 years, or 5 years or older were enrolled in special education than in general education prekindergarten classes.

Racial/Ethnic Backgrounds of Prekindergarten Children in Public Schools

The survey also asked about the racial and ethnic background of prekindergarten children enrolled in public elementary schools. In the 2000-2001 school year, 49 percent of the prekindergarten children were White, 24 percent were Hispanic, and 23 percent were Black; Asian and American Indian/Alaska Native children represented 3 and 2 percent of the prekindergarten population, respectively (Table 6). Data on all public school students of all ages from the 2000-2001 school year indicated that about 61 percent were White, 17 percent were Hispanic, 17 percent were Black, 4 percent Asian, and 1 percent were American Indian/Alaska Natives.18

The proportion of public school prekindergarten children from different racial and ethnic groups varied by all the school characteristics. As school size increased, the percentage of White prekindergarten children decreased and the percentage of Hispanic prekindergarten children increased (Table 6). In small schools, 61 percent of prekindergarten children were White and 16 percent were Hispanic. In large schools, 36 percent of the children were White and 36 percent were Hispanic. In small public schools nationwide, 72 percent of all students were White and 10 percent were Hispanic; in large public schools, 56 percent of all students were White and 20 percent were Hispanic.19

The percentages of prekindergarten children enrolled in public schools who were from various racial and ethnic groups also differed by locale. In city schools, 28 percent of the prekindergarten children were White, 35 percent were Hispanic, and 33 percent were Black. In contrast, in rural/small town schools, 74 percent of the prekindergarten children were White, 10 percent were Hispanic, and 12 percent were Black. Among all city public school students nationwide, 37 percent were White, 27 percent were Hispanic, and 30 percent were Black. Among rural/small town public school students, these percentages were 79, 7, and 10, respectively.20

The racial and ethnic distribution of prekindergarten children in public schools differed by region as well. For example, 9 percent of the prekindergarten children enrolled in schools in the Southeast were Hispanic, compared with 47 percent of the prekindergarten children in schools in the West. Black prekindergarten children represented 38 percent of the prekindergarten children in schools in the Southeast, compared with 13 percent in the West. Among all public school students in the Southeast, 7 percent were Hispanic and 31 percent were Black. Among all public school students in the West, 33 percent were Hispanic and 9 percent were Black.21

There was a negative relationship between the percentage of White children enrolled in prekindergarten in public schools and poverty concentration. In schools with the lowest poverty concentration, 79 percent of the prekindergarten children were White, compared with 22 percent in schools with the highest poverty concentration. The converse was true for Hispanic and Black children. In schools with the lowest poverty concentration, these groups represented 8 and 7 percent of the prekindergarten children, respectively; in schools with the highest poverty concentration, they represented 39 and 36 percent, respectively. Nationwide, in the public schools with the lowest poverty concentration, 79 percent of all students were White, 8 percent were Hispanic, and 8 percent were Black. In public schools with the highest poverty concentration, 15 percent of all students were White, 40 percent were Hispanic, and 39 percent were Black.22

Public School Prekindergarten Children Who Were Limited English Proficient

The survey also asked about the number of public school prekindergarten children who were limited English proficient. For this survey, a child who was LEP (or "English language learners") was defined as one "whose native or dominant language is other than English, and whose skills in listening to, speaking, reading, or writing English are such that he/she derives little benefit from school instruction in English." Under this definition, 15 percent of prekindergarten children were LEP (Table 7). Data on the percentage of public elementary school students overall indicate that about 9 percent of all students received LEP services.23

The percentage of public school prekindergarten children who were LEP varied by school characteristics. There was a positive relationship between the percentage of prekindergarten children who were LEP and school size, ranging from 10 percent in small schools to 22 percent in large schools. In city schools, 22 percent of prekindergarten children were LEP; in rural/small town schools, 6 percent were LEP. In schools in the West, 30 percent of prekindergarten children were LEP, whereas the percentage ranged from 7 to 9 percent in other regions.

There also were positive relationships between the percentage of public school prekindergarten children who were LEP and percent minority enrollment and poverty concentration. The percentage of children who were LEP ranged from less than 0.5 percent in schools with the lowest percent minority enrollment to 26 percent in schools with the highest percent minority enrollment. It ranged from 5 percent in schools with the lowest poverty concentration to 25 percent in schools with the highest poverty concentration.

Public School Prekindergarten Children Who Were Low Income

Public schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provide meals free of charge or at a reduced price to students from low-income families (Fox et al. 2001). Throughout this chapter, eligibility for free or reduced-price meal benefits is used as a proxy to describe students from low-income families. Data from the School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study II (SNDA-II) indicated that on an average day in the study target week during the 1998-1999 school year, 45 percent of students attending public elementary schools that participate in the NSLP were low income (Fox et al. 2001).

The FRSS survey asked public schools to report the number of prekindergarten children and the percentage of students in all grades who were eligible for free and reduced-price lunch benefits during the 2000-01 school year.24 It is important to remember that prekindergarten programs have tended to target at-risk children, including lowincome children. Table 7 shows that 61 percent of prekindergarten children were low income. This percentage was higher than the percentage of all public elementary school children who were low income (47 percent) (not shown in table).25

There was a positive relationship between the percentage of public school prekindergarten children who were low income and the size of the school, ranging from 54 percent in small schools to 68 percent in large schools. The percentage of prekindergarten children who were low income also varied by locale and region. In city schools with prekindergarten classes, a higher percentage of prekindergarten children were low income than in urban fringe/large town schools or rural/ small town schools with prekindergarten classes (72 percent versus 55 and 53 percent, respectively). The percentages of prekindergarten children who were low income were higher in the Southeast and West than in the Northeast and Central regions (71 and 70 percent versus 47 and 51 percent, respectively). In addition, in public elementary schools with prekindergarten classes, there was a positive relationship between the percentage of prekindergarten children who were low income and percent minority enrollment, ranging from 33 percent in schools with the lowest percent minority enrollment to 79 percent in schools with the highest percent minority enrollment.

Public School Prekindergarten Children With Individualized Education Programs

Nationwide, about 13 percent of all public school students had IEPs during the 2000-2001 school year.26 Overall, 30 percent of children enrolled in public elementary school prekindergarten classes during the 2000-2001 school year had IEPs (Table 7).27, 28 Sixty-nine percent of prekindergarten children with IEPs were enrolled in special education prekindergarten classes, and 31 percent were enrolled in general education prekindergarten classes (not shown in table). By definition, for this study all children enrolled in special education classes had to have IEPs.

No significant differences were detected in the percentages of public school prekindergarten children with IEPs by school size, locale, or region. However, the percentage of prekindergarten children with IEPs generally tended to be higher in schools with lower percent minority enrollment. In schools with the lowest percent minority enrollment, 36 percent of the prekindergarten children had IEPs, and in schools with 6 to 20 percent minority enrollment, 38 percent of the prekindergarten children had IEPs. In schools with 50 percent or more minority enrollment, the percentage of prekindergarten children with IEPs was 23 percent.

The percentage of public school prekindergarten children with IEPs decreased as poverty concentration increased. In schools with the lowest poverty concentration, 40 percent of prekindergarten children had IEPs, whereas in schools with the highest poverty concentration, 20 percent had IEPs. This may be due to the relationship between early childhood education programs and income. Since prekindergarten programs have tended to target at-risk children, including children from low-income families, prekindergarten classes in schools with low poverty concentrations may attract children at risk for other reasons (e.g., having an IEP) (Hinkle 2000; U.S. General Accounting Office 1999).


13 For similar percentage distributions, see the following tables: Table 1. Number and percentage distribution of public elementary schools and elementary schools with prekindergarten classes, by selected school characteristics: 2000-2001; Table 8. Number and percentage distribution of public elementary school prekindergarten classes, by selected school characteristics: 2000-2001; and Table 13. Number and percentage distribution of public elementary school prekindergarten classroom teachers, by selected school characteristics: 2000-2001.

14 These percentages are based on counts of 3- and 4-year-olds published by the U.S. Bureau of the Census (2001).

15 The questionnaire collected data on the number of prekindergarten children by age, including the number who were 5 years or older. Since this category is unbounded (i.e., 6-year-olds could be included), no meaningful contextual data could be presented. Therefore, this discussion focuses on 3- and 4-year-olds (88 percent of all public elementary school prekindergarten children).

16 This percentage is based on data from the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Preprimary Enrollment, various years; and U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Current Population Survey, reported in Table 45 of the Digest of Education Statistics 2000, unpublished tabulations.

17 In accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), special education placement options for prekindergarten children with IEPs are also located in settings other than public elementary schools. Additional information about children with disabilities can be found at www.ideadata.org

18 National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data 2000-2001, Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey (NCES 2002-362). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, unpublished tabulations. Data are based on all public regular and special education, vocational education, and alternative education schools.

19 See footnote 18.

20 See footnote 18.

21 See footnote 18.

22 See footnote 18.

23 National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data 2000-2001, Local Education Agency Survey: School Year 2000- 2001 (NCES 2002-360). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, unpublished tabulations.

24 The item nonresponse rate for the number of prekindergarten children who were low income was 5.6 percent. As a result, the survey estimate may be somewhat different from the actual percentage of students eligible to receive the benefits.

25 Since the number of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch was missing for 17 schools and enrollment was missing for 8 schools (both data elements were missing for one school), this percentage was based on 99 percent of public elementary schools.

26 See footnote 23.

27 This may be indicative of the traditional focus of prekindergarten programs on at -risk children, including those with disabilities.

28 See footnote 17.

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