• Introduction
• Findings
• Summary
• References

Recent findings from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), the Fast Response Survey System's (FRSS) "Survey of Classes That Serve Children Prior to Kindergarten in Public Schools: 2000-2001," and the Current Population Survey (CPS), October Supplement: 2001, provide new regional information on the early learning experiences of young children in the United States. For instance, the FRSS found that public schools in the Southeast were more likely to offer prekindergarten programs than public schools in the Northeast, Central, or West regions (Smith et al. 2003). In addition, public schools in the South during the 1998-99 school year were more likely to offer full-day kindergarten than schools in other regions of the country (Walston and West 2004). In the CPS, in 2001, children ages 4-6 enrolled in kindergarten in the South were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten (78 percent) than children in the Northeast, Midwest, and West (60, 53, and 43 percent, respectively) (Wirt et al. 2004).

This Statistics in Brief report takes a closer look at two of kindergartners' early education experiences, preschool and kindergarten, in each of four regions of the United States (i.e., Northeast, South, Midwest, and West). This report defines early education experiences as participation in preschool, the number of hours spent in preschool, and the type of kindergarten program (i.e., full-day versus half-day). Preschool experience was based on parental report and defined as kindergartners' participation in either a child care center, preschool, nursery school, prekindergarten or Head Start program the year prior to kindergarten. The purpose of this report is to describe, rather than explain, kindergartners' patterns of participation in preschool and kindergarten programs, and characteristics of the programs and the kindergartners who attend them, in an attempt to provide a regional picture of kindergartners' early learning experiences. This report expands on the findings from the earlier reports (Smith et al. 2003; Walston and West 2004; Wirt et al. 2004) by including kindergartners' participation in all types of center-based care arrangements the year before kindergarten, rather than focusing only on public school prekindergarten programs, and also looks more closely at regional participation in preschool and kindergarten for kindergartners with different individual, family, and school characteristics.

This report attempts to answer two questions about kindergartners' early education experiences within and across four regions¹ of the United States:

• What are the regional differences in kindergartners' preschool experiences (e.g., center-based care or Head Start the year before kindergarten entry) in the United States?
• Are there regional differences in kindergartners' participation in full-day versus half-day kindergarten programs in the United States?

Comparisons in the text are tested for statistical significance to ensure that the differences are larger than might be expected due to sampling variation. All differences described are significant at the .05 level. Due to the large sample size, many differences (no matter how substantively minor) are statistically significant. In this report, "substantive differences" are defined as percentage differences of 5 points or greater for preschool and full-day kindergarten participation, and as mean score differences of one-fifth of a standard deviation (i.e., 3 hours) or more in terms of weekly hours of preschool.

Patterns in kindergartners' child, family, and school characteristics across regions

As shown in table 1, certain child and family characteristics of kindergartners vary by region. For example, the ages of children at the start of kindergarten differ. Among kindergartners in each region, the percentage of young kindergartners turning 5 during the first 4 months of the academic year (i.e., September through December 1993) was higher in the Northeast and West than in the Midwest and the South. This pattern is consistent with the kindergarten entry-age policies of states that make up these regions. Many states in the Northeast and West have policies on kindergarten entry age that allow children to start kindergarten if they turn 5 by December or January. In contrast, the majority of states in the Midwest and South have policies that require children to be at least 5 years of age by mid-September to start kindergarten (Education Commission of the States 2003).

The percent of kindergartners within each region who were Hispanic was largest among kindergartners in the West. About 40 percent of kindergartners in the West were Hispanic, compared with 14 percent in the Northeast, 9 percent in the Midwest, and 15 percent in the South. On the other hand, relatively more kindergartners in the South were Black than in any other region. About 27 percent of kindergartners in the South were Black, compared with 12 percent in the Northeast, 11 percent in the Midwest, and 6 percent in the West.

Among the kindergartners in each region, higher percentages of kindergartners in the South and West than those in the Northeast and Midwest were from families with incomes below the federal poverty threshold. In 1998, the federal poverty threshold for a family of four was $16,655.

Kindergartners in the South and West were less likely than those in the Northeast or Midwest to have mothers with a bachelor's degree or higher. Also, kindergartners in the South and West were more likely than those in the other regions to have mothers who completed less than high school.

Kindergartners in the Midwest and South were more likely to have mothers who worked full time (i.e., 35 hours or more per week) than those in the Northeast or West. In contrast, kindergartners in the West were more likely than kindergartners in the Midwest or the South to have a mother who was not in the labor force.

Kindergartners in the West were more likely to have attended schools in central cities than kindergartners in the Northeast or the Midwest. About 47 percent of kindergartners in the West attended schools in central cities, compared with 33 percent in the Northeast and 32 percent in the Midwest. In contrast, kindergartners in the Midwest were more likely to have attended schools in rural areas than kindergartners in the West or the Northeast.

The majority of kindergartners attended public school kindergarten programs rather than private school, regardless of region. However, kindergartners in the South were more likely to attend a public school for kindergarten than kindergartners in any of the other regions.

Patterns in kindergartners' preschool experience across regions

Overall, 68 percent of kindergartners attended preschool the year before entering kindergarten. As shown in table 2, kindergartners' preschool experiences² the year before kindergarten differed by region. Kindergartners in the West were less likely to have attended preschool than kindergartners in any of the other regions. Sixty-two percent of kindergartners in the West attended preschool the year before kindergarten, compared with 71 percent in the Northeast, 72 percent in the Midwest, and 69 percent in the South. Of the kindergartners who attended preschool, those in the South spent more hours per week in their preschool programs, on average, than kindergartners in any of the other regions (figure 1).

Patterns in kindergartners' preschool experiences across regions, by child, family, and school characteristics

Preschool attendance. Regional differences are also evident when examining the data within groups of kindergartners differing on various child, family, and school characteristics; these regional differences generally follow the pattern of regional differences found for the full sample of kindergartners (table 2). For example, Black kindergartners in the West were more likely to attend preschool than Black kindergartners in the South or the Northeast. About 83 percent of Black kindergartners in the West attended preschool, compared with 70 percent in the Northeast and 76 percent in the South. In addition, Asian kindergartners in the Midwest were more likely to have attended preschool than their peers in the West.

Kindergartners in the Midwest whose mothers were not in the labor force were more likely to have attended preschool than kindergartners in the South or West. In addition, kindergartners in the West whose mothers were not in the labor force were the least likely of all of the regions to have attended preschool. Kindergartners in the West whose mothers worked full time were also less likely to have attended preschool than kindergartners in any of the other regions.

In terms of kindergarten school urbanicity, kindergartners from central cities in the Midwest were more likely to have attended preschool than those from central cities in the West. Kindergartners from rural areas in the Midwest were also more likely to have attended preschool than those from rural areas in the West. Also, central city kindergartners from the South were more likely to have attended preschool than central city kindergartners in the West.

Kindergartners who attended public school kindergartens in the West were less likely to have attended preschool than kindergartners who attended public school kindergartens in the other regions.

Mean hours per week kindergartners spent in preschool. On average, kindergartners in the South spent more hours per week in preschool the year before kindergarten than kindergartners in any of the other regions (figure 1). This pattern of regional differences found for the full sample of kindergartners is also evident when examining data within groups of kindergartners differing on various child, family, and school characteristics (table 2).

For example, the youngest kindergartners (age 4: born September through December 1993) in the South spent more hours in preschool than the youngest kindergartners in any of the other regions. Also, Black kindergartners in the South attended preschool for more hours on average than Black kindergartners in any of the other regions. Furthermore, Hispanic kindergartners in the South and Northeast spent more hours in preschool than those in the West or the Midwest (28 and 24 hours vs. 20 and 17 hours, respectively).

Kindergartners whose families were below the poverty threshold followed the same pattern as most of the other groups (i.e., kindergartners in the South spent relatively more hours per week in preschool than kindergartners in any of the other regions).

Kindergartners whose mothers did not complete high school spent more hours, on average, in preschool in the Northeast and the South than in the West or the Midwest. Comparatively, kindergartners whose mothers completed a bachelor's degree or higher followed the same pattern as most other groups mentioned previously (i.e., Southern kindergartners spent relatively more hours per week in preschool than kindergartners in any of the other regions). Also, on average, kindergartners whose mothers were not in the labor force spent more hours weekly in preschool in the South than in any of the other regions.

In addition, the number of hours per week kindergartners spent in preschool varied across regions with respect to their kindergarten school urbanicity. In both central city and rural areas, kindergartners in the South spent relatively more hours per week in preschool the year before kindergarten than kindergartners from any of the other regions.

On average, public school kindergartners in the South who attended preschool the year before kindergarten spent more weekly hours in preschool than public school kindergartners in any of the other regions. For those children who attended private school kindergartens and had attended preschool the year before kindergarten, children in the South and West spent more weekly hours in preschool, on average, than those in the Midwest.

Table 1. Percentage distribution of fall 1998 kindergartners, by region and selected child, family, and school characteristics: School year 1998-99

²Households in which there was no mother were not included in these estimates.

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), Base-Year Public-Use Data File, fall 1998 and spring 1999.

Table 2. Percent of fall 1998 kindergartners who attended preschool the year before kindergarten and mean hours per week in preschool, by region and selected child, family, and school characteristics: School year 1998-99

²Households in which there was no mother were not included in these estimates.

NOTE: Preschool experience is based on parental report and defined as participation in a center-based early care or education program or participation in Head Start the year before kindergarten.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), Base-Year Public-Use Data File, fall 1998 and spring 1999.

Figure 1. Kindergartners' mean hours per week in preschool in the year prior to kindergarten, by region: School year 1998-99


NOTE: Preschool experience is based on parental report and defined as participation in a center-based early care or education program or participation in Head Start the year before kindergarten.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), Base-Year Public-Use Data File, fall 1998.

Patterns in kindergartners' kindergarten program type across regions

In the United States, in the fall of 1998, approximately 4 million children attended kindergarten; some attended full-day programs, and some attended half-day programs. In the fall of 1998, some 55 percent of all kindergarten children attended a full-day program (West, Denton, and Germino Hausken 2000). Kindergartners in the South were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs than kindergartners in any of the other regions (figure 2). In contrast, kindergartners in the West were more likely to attend half-day kindergarten programs than kindergartners in any of the other regions.

Participation in full-day kindergarten across regions by child, family, and school characteristics

As noted above, kindergartners in the South were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs than kindergartners in any other region of the country and kindergartners in the West were least likely to do so (table 3). These overall patterns of regional differences found for the full sample of kindergartners are also evident when examining the data within groups of kindergartners differing on various child, family, and school characteristics (table 3).

When considering children's race/ethnicity, the percentage of Hispanic kindergartners attending full-day programs differed across the regions. For example, Hispanic kindergartners in the West were less likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs than Hispanic kindergartners in any of the other regions. No consistent pattern of differences in full-day program attendance across regions could be determined for Black and "other" kindergartners (e.g., while the percentage of Black kindergartners in the South that attended full-day programs [89 percent] was different from the percentage of Black kindergartners in the Midwest that attended full-day programs [60 percent], it was not measurably different from the percentage of Black kindergartners in the Northeast [79 percent]).

Young kindergartners in the South (age 4: born September through December 1993) were more likely than young kindergartners in other regions to attend full-day kindergarten programs. About 78 percent of young kindergartners in the South attended full-day kindergarten, compared with 55 percent in the Northeast, 33 percent in the Midwest, and 24 percent in the West.

Kindergartners whose families were below the poverty threshold were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs if they lived in the South than if they lived in any of the other regions. In contrast, poor kindergartners in the West were the least likely of any region to attend a full-day program.

Kindergartners whose mothers had not completed high school were more likely to be enrolled in full-day programs if they attended school in the South than if they attended school in any of the other regions. In contrast, these kindergartners in the West were the least likely to have attended full-day programs. Consistent with this pattern, kindergartners whose mothers were employed full time and kindergartners whose mothers were not in the labor force were most likely to be enrolled in full-day programs if they lived in the South and least likely to be enrolled in full-day programs if they lived in the West.

Kindergartners in central city schools were more likely to attend full-day programs if they lived in the South than if they lived in any of the other regions. Also, central city school kindergartners who lived in the Northeast were more likely to attend full-day programs than those in the Midwest or West. In contrast, kindergartners in rural schools in the Northeast were the least likely of rural school kindergartners of any region to attend a full-day program.

Kindergartners in public schools were most likely to attend full-day programs if they lived in the South, compared with any other region. Also, public school kindergartners who lived in the Midwest were more likely than those in the West to be enrolled in full-day programs. In contrast, kindergartners in private schools were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten if they lived in the West or Northeast than if they lived in the Midwest.

Figure 2. Percentage distribution of kindergartners enrolled in full-day and half-day programs, by region: School year 1998-99


SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), Base-Year Public-Use Data File, fall 1998.

Table 3. Percent of fall 1998 kindergartners attending full-day programs, by region and selected child, family, and school characteristics: School year 1998-99

²Households in which there was no mother were not included in these estimates.

³Preschool experience is based on parental report and defined as participation in a center-based early care or education program or participation in Head Start the year before kindergarten

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), Base-Year Public-Use Data File, fall 1998 and spring 1999.

Summary

Findings from this report indicate that kindergartners' preschool experiences and kindergarten program type vary by the regions in which their schools are located and by the regional characteristics of these kindergartners, their families, and their schools. This report identifies common regional patterns in early childhood experiences and notes exceptions to the general findings.

Overall, 68 percent of kindergartners attended preschool the year before entering kindergarten. However, kindergartners in the West were less likely to have attended preschool than kindergartners in the South, Northeast, or Midwest. These estimates differ from those reported in the FRSS "Survey of Classes That Serve Children Prior to Kindergarten in Public Schools: 2000-2001" because the FRSS only collected information on public school prekindergarten programs (Smith et al. 2003). In contrast to the overall pattern described in this report, Black kindergartners in the West were more likely to have attended preschool than Black kindergartners in the South or Northeast.

In general, kindergartners who attended preschool the year before kindergarten spent an average of 22 hours per week in such programs (table 2). Of kindergartners who attended preschool, those in the South spent more hours per week in their preschool programs, on average, than kindergartners in any of the other regions. This pattern was found for Black and Asian kindergartners, kindergartners whose families were below the poverty threshold, and kindergartners whose mothers completed a bachelor's degree or higher.

Consistent with findings from Full-Day and Half-Day Kindergarten in the United States (Walston and West 2004), this report found that kindergartners in the South were more likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs than kindergartners in any of the other regions, and kindergartners in the West were the least likely to attend full-day kindergarten programs. In the West, this pattern was consistent for Hispanic kindergartners, young kindergartners (those not yet 5 years old at kindergarten entry), kindergartners whose families were below the poverty threshold, kindergartners whose mothers had completed less than high school, kindergartners whose mothers were employed full time, and kindergartners whose mothers were not in the labor force.

Results from this report indicate that kindergartners' participation in preschool experiences and full-day kindergarten programs differs by the region in which they live. Given this finding, future research on early childhood program participation should consider incorporating region into analyses of the relationships of preschool or kindergarten program attendance with educational outcomes.

Education Commission of the States. (2003, August). State Statutes Regarding Kindergarten. Retrieved September 3, 2004, from http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/29/21/2921.pdf.

Galley, M. (2002). State Policies on Kindergarten Are All Over the Map. Education Week, 21(17): 45.

Hinkle, D. (2000). School Involvement in Early Childhood. U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Institute on Early Childhood Development and Education.

Potts, A., Blank, R., and Williams, A. (2002). Key State Education Policies on PK-12 Education: 2002, Results From the 2002 CCSSO Policies and Practices Survey. Washington, DC: Council of Chief State School Officers.

Smith, T., Kleiner, A., Parsad, B., Farris, E., and Greene, B. (2003). Prekindergarten in U.S. Public Schools: 2000-2001 (NCES 2003-019). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Walston, J., and West, J. (2004). Full-Day and Half-Day Kindergarten in the United States: Findings From the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (NCES 2004-078). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

West, J., Denton, K., and Germino Hausken, E. (2000). America's Kindergartners (NCES 2000-070). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Wirt, J., Choy, S., Rooney, P., Provasnik, S., Sen, A., and Tobin, R. (2004). The Condition of Education 2004 (NCES 2004-077). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

¹Regions used for the ECLS-K are the same as those used by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The following is a list of states that are included in each region:

• Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont;
• Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin;
• South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia; and
• West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.

²Preschool experience was based on parental report and defined as children's participation in either a child care center, preschool, nursery school, prekindergarten, or Head Start program the year prior to kindergarten.