Public Schools With Prekindergarten Classes

This survey is the first to characterize public elementary school¹¹ prekindergarten classes nationwide. The data provide an overview of the schools with prekindergarten classes and describe several features of the classes. For example,

• What percentage of public elementary schools nationwide has prekindergarten classes? Does the percentage of schools vary by school characteristics?
• What percentage of public elementary schools offers only general education prekindergarten classes? What percentage of schools offers only special education prekindergarten classes? What percentage of schools offers both types of classes?
• What percentage of public elementary schools offers only full-day prekindergarten classes? What percentage of schools offers only halfday prekindergarten classes? What percentage of schools offers both types of classes?

Overall Prevalence of Public Schools With Prekindergarten Classes

During the 2000-2001 school year, there were about 56,400 public elementary schools, 19,900 (35 percent) of which had prekindergarten classes (Table 1 and 2). Table 1 shows the distribution of public elementary schools (column 2) and the distribution of public elementary schools with prekindergarten classes (column 4).¹² As can be seen, 31 percent of all public elementary schools were small (enrollments of less than 300 students), 44 percent were midsized (300 to 599 students), and 25 percent were large (600 or more students); 25 percent of the schools with prekindergarten classes were small, 46 percent were midsized, and 30 percent were large. In addition, 22 percent of the public schools with prekindergarten classes had minority enrollments of less than 6 percent, 17 percent of the schools had minority enrollments of 6 to 20 percent, 22 percent of the schools had minority enrollments of 21 to 49 percent, and 37 percent of the schools had minority enrollments of 50 percent or more.

Among the 19,900 public schools with prekindergarten classes during the 2000-2001 school year, the likelihood of elementary schools offering prekindergarten classes increased with school size: 28 percent of small elementary schools had a prekindergarten program, whereas 36 percent of midsized and 42 percent of large elementary schools had prekindergarten classes (Table 2). City schools were more likely than urban fringe/large town schools or rural/small town schools to have prekindergarten classes. The classes were offered in 45 percent of city elementary schools, compared with 30 percent of urban fringe/large town schools and 34 percent of rural/small town schools.

The percentage of public elementary schools with prekindergarten classes varied by region, with the Southeast being most likely to offer prekindergarten. Almost half (46 percent) of elementary schools in the Southeast offered prekindergarten; the likelihood of these classes in the Northeast, Central, and West was 30 percent, 32 percent, and 35 percent, respectively.

The likelihood of public schools offering prekindergarten classes also was positively related to minority enrollment and poverty concentration. Overall, as percent minority enrollment increased, the likelihood of offering prekindergarten increased-from 27 percent in schools with 6 to 20 percent minority enrollment to 47 percent in schools where minority enrollment was 50 percent or more. Twenty-five percent of elementary schools with the lowest poverty concentration (less than 35 percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch) offered prekindergarten. Despite the fact that early childhood education programs have often targeted the needs of children from low-income families, 51 percent of the schools with the highest poverty concentration (75 percent or more of students eligible) offered such classes.

Prevalence of Public Schools With General Education or Special Education Prekindergarten Classes

Among public elementary schools nationwide, 28 percent offered general education prekindergarten classes (Table 2). There was a positive relationship between school size and the likelihood that a school would offer general education prekinder-garten classes, ranging from 22 percent of small schools to 32 percent of large schools. City schools were more likely to offer this type of class than were schools in urban fringe/large towns or rural/small towns (37 percent versus 23 and 26 percent, respectively). The likelihood also varied by region: schools in the Southeast (37 percent) were more likely to offer these classes than schools in any other region (28 percent in the West and 24 percent in both the Northeast and Central regions). The likelihood that schools offered general education classes also tended to increase with percent minority enrollment (ranging from 18 to 41 percent) and poverty concentration (ranging from 16 to 44 percent).

Fifteen percent of public elementary schools offered special education prekindergarten classes (Table 2). Variation by school characteristic s was similar to the variation found in the percentage of schools that offered general education prekindergarten classes. For example, the likelihood of schools offering special education prekindergarten classes was positively related to school size, with 12 percent of small schools, 16 percent of midsized schools, and 20 percent of large schools offering this type of class. There were no differences in the likelihood that schools offered this type of class based on locale. However, schools in the Southeast were again more likely to offer these classes than schools in any other region: 23 percent in the Southeast compared with 9 percent in the Northeast, 14 percent in the West, and 15 percent in the Central region. The likelihood that schools offered special education classes also tended to increase with percent minority enrollment (ranging from 12 to 18 percent).

Public elementary schools also differed in whether they offered general education prekindergarten classes only, special education prekindergarten classes only, or both general education and special education classes during the 2000-2001 school year. Among all public elementary schools, 20 percent offered only general education prekindergarten classes, 8 percent offered only special education classes, and 8 percent offered both types of classes (Figure 1).

Prevalence of Public Schools With Only Full-Day, Only Half-Day, or Both Types of Prekindergarten Classes

Of the approximately 56,400 public elementary schools nationwide, 13 percent offered only fullday prekindergarten classes, 19 percent offered only half-day classes, and 3 percent offered both types of classes (Table 3). The likelihood that schools would offer only full-day or only half-day classes differed by each of the selected school characteristics.

There was a positive relationship between public school size and the likelihood of offering only fullday prekindergarten classes, ranging from 9 percent of small schools to 16 percent of large schools. No significant differences by school size were detected in the likelihood of offering only half-day classes.

City schools were more likely than urban fringe/large town schools to offer only full-day and to offer only half-day prekindergarten classes. Sixteen percent of city schools offered only fullday classes and 24 percent offered only half-day classes; 10 percent of urban fringe/large town schools offered only full-day classes and 17 percent offered only half-day classes. City schools also were more likely than rural/small town schools to offer only half-day prekindergarten classes (24 versus 18 percent, respectively).

Thirty-six percent of public elementary schools in the Southeast offered only full-day prekindergarten classes, compared with 7 percent of schools in the Northeast, 4 percent in the Central region, and 8 percent in the West. The schools in the Southeast were least likely to offer only halfday classes (7 percent, versus 19 to 24 percent).

As percent minority enrollment increased, so did the likelihood that public schools offered only fullday prekindergarten classes. The likelihood ranged from 7 percent of schools with the lowest minority enrollment offering only full-day classes to 21 percent of schools with the highest minority enrollment.

There also was a positive relationship between poverty concentration and the likelihood of offering only full-day prekindergarten classes, ranging from 6 percent of schools with the lowest poverty concentration offering only full-day classes to 23 percent of schools with the highest poverty concentration offering only such classes.

---

¹¹ For this study, "public elementary school" refers to public special education and regular elementary and combined schools. A school was defined as an elementary school if the lowest grade was less than or equal to grade 3 and the highest grade was less than or equal to grade 8. Combined schools contain both elementary and secondary grades (e.g., K to 12 or 1 to 9). See appendix A for a detailed description of school types.

¹² For similar percentage distributions, see the following, tables: Table 4. Number and percentage distribution of public elementary school prekindergarten children, 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.

Top