Prekindergarten Classes in Public Schools

The survey examined characteristics of prekindergarten classes in regular and special education public elementary schools. Results from the survey addressed questions such as the following:

• How many prekindergarten classes were offered in public elementary schools , and how were they distributed between general education and special education?
• What was the average number of prekindergarten classes offered by public elementary schools?
• What was the average size of these classes? How did this differ by type of class?
• How many prekindergarten classes were on a full-day schedule and how many were on a half-day schedule? What percentage of the classes was offered 5 days per week?

Number of Prekindergarten Classes

During the 2000-2001 school year, approximately 58,500 prekindergarten classes were offered in regular and special education public elementary schools. Thirty-one percent of the classes were offered in schools in the West, 29 percent in the Central region, 22 percent in the Southeast, and 18 percent in the Northeast (Table 8).²⁹ The majority of public schools with prekindergarten classes offered at least two classes; 38 percent offered two classes, and 37 percent offered three or more classes (Figure 3). During the 2000-2001 school year, among elementary schools with prekindergarten classes, 23 percent offered one general education prekindergarten class, 34 percent offered two classes, and 22 percent offered three or more classes (Figure 4). Eighteen percent offered one special education prekindergarten class, 16 percent offered two classes, and 9 percent offered three or more classes (Figure 5).

Sixty-seven percent of the prekindergarten classes offered during the 2000-2001 school year were general education classes, and 33 percent were special education classes (Table 9). This distribution varied by poverty concentration. Among public schools with the lowest poverty concentration, 60 percent of the prekindergarten classes were general education classes and 40 percent were special education classes; among schools with the highest poverty concentration, 77 percent were general education classes and 23 percent were special education classes. Overall, public elementary schools that offered prekindergarten classes averaged 2.9 prekindergarten classes per school during the 2000-2001 school year (Table 10). Nationwide, public elementary schools averaged two general education prekindergarten classes and one special education prekindergarten class.

The overall average differed by locale and region. Among the public elementary schools that offered prekindergarten classes, city schools averaged 3.4 prekindergarten classes and urban fringe/large town schools averaged 3.1 classes per school; rural/small town schools averaged 2.4 classes per school. Public elementary schools in the Southeast that offered prekindergarten classes offered fewer of them on average than did schools in the Northeast or Central regions:³⁰ 2.4 classes per school in the Southeast compared with 3.2 classes per school in both the Northeast and Central regions.

The average number of classes offered also differed by percent minority enrollment and poverty concentration. Public schools with the lowest percent minority enrollment averaged 2.5 classes per school, whereas schools with the highest percent minority enrollment averaged 3.3 classes per school. Schools with 35 to 49 percent of students eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunch averaged 2.5 classes per school, whereas schools with 75 percent or more students eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunch averaged 3.3 classes per school.

There were similar differences in the average number of general education prekindergarten classes offered by public schools. City schools offered a higher average number of general education prekindergarten classes than rural/small town schools: 2.3 classes per school versus 1.6 classes per school. Elementary schools in the Southeast offered an average of 1.5 classes compared with 2.1 to 2.4 classes per school in other regions. Schools with the lowest minority enrollment averaged 1.7 general education prekindergarten classes per school; schools with the highest minority enrollment averaged 2.3 classes per school. Finally, there were differences in the average number of general education classes by poverty concentration. Public schools with the highest poverty concentration averaged 2.5 classes per school, compared with 1.7 to 1.9 classes in schools with lower levels of poverty.

Average Number of Children Per Prekindergarten Class in Public Schools

The survey collected data necessary to calculate the average number of children enrolled in public elementary school prekindergarten classes overall, as well as in general prekindergarten classes and special education prekindergarten classes. On average, there were 14 children in each public elementary school prekindergarten class during the 2000-2001 school year (Table 11). The average number of children per general education prekindergarten class was higher than the average for special education classes-17 children in general education classes compared with 9 children in special education classes. Results from the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey indicated that in public elementary schools nationwide, the average class size in selfcontained classes was 21 students per class (Gruber et al. 2002).

The overall average number of children per prekindergarten class in small schools was lower than the average in other schools. Small schools averaged 13 children per class, compared with 14 and 15 children per class in midsized and large schools, respectively. The average also was lower in rural/small town public schools than in city schools (13 versus 15 children per class, respectively). In addition, class sizes were lower in public schools in the Northeast (13 children per class) than in schools in the Southeast (15 children per class).

Average prekindergarten class sizes were lower in public schools with lower percent minority enrollment and lower poverty concentrations than in schools with the highest percent minority enrollment and higher poverty concentrations. In schools with 50 percent or more minority enrollment, the average prekindergarten class size was 15 children, compared with 13 children in schools with less than 6 percent minority enrollment and 12 children in schools with 6 to 20 percent minority enrollment. There was an average of 12 children per prekindergarten class in schools with less than 35 percent of students eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunch, compared with 14 children in schools with 50 to 74 percent of eligible students and 16 children in schools with 75 percent or more eligible students.

Prekindergarten Class Schedules in Public Schools

The survey also gathered information on the schedule of public school prekindergarten classes in terms of the length of the school day and the number of days per week that the classes met. During the 2000-2001 school year, 32 percent of the prekindergarten classes were full-day classes and 68 percent were half-day classes (Table 12). Most full-day classes (84 percent) met 5 days per week. Among the half-day classes, 51 percent met 5 days per week.

The likelihood that prekindergarten classes would be full day varied by each of the public school characteristics. Twenty-six percent of prekindergarten classes offered in small schools were full-day classes, compared with 36 percent of the classes offered in midsized schools. Prekindergarten classes in rural/small town schools were more likely to be full-day classes than those in urban fringe/large town schools: 38 percent of the classes offered in rural/small town schools were full-day classes, compared with 28 percent of classes offered in urban fringe/large town schools. In addition, there were differences in the percentages of full-day prekindergarten classes among schools in different regions of the country. About three-fourths (77 percent) of the classes offered in schools in the Southeast were full-day classes, compared with 23 percent of the classes in schools in the Northeast and the West, and 13 percent of the classes in schools in the Central region.

The type of schedule followed by prekindergarten classes in public schools also varied by percent minority enrollment and poverty concentration in at schools in the Central region were less likely to take place 5 days per week than half-day classes in the Northeast (38 versus 67 percent, respectively), but unlike full-day classes, no other differences by region were detected.

There also were differences by poverty concentration. As poverty concentration increased, the likelihood that half-day classes met 5 days per week increased; the likelihood ranged from 40 percent of the half-day classes in schools with the lowest poverty concentration to 64 percent in public schools with the highest poverty concentration.

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²⁹ 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 4. Number and percentage distribution of public elementary school prekindergarten children, 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.

³⁰ However, schools in the Southeast were most likely to have prekindergarten classes. Almost half (46 percent) of elementary schools in the Southeast offered prekindergarten; the percentages in the Northeast, Central, and West were 30 percent, 32 percent, and 35 percent, respectively.

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