Doing harm by doing good: latrogenic effects of early childhood enrollment and promotion policies

Abstract

Recent national concerns about the educational achievement of U.S. students have resulted in an increased emphasis on readiness for school and, in combination with the pervasive effects of mandated standardized testing, have led to several enrollment and promotion practices that have negative consequences for young children. This paper examines the rationale and research data about four of these practices: raising the age at entry, retention in grade, extra-year and transition programs, and parental holding out from kindergarten. The problematic effects of these phenomena are identified, and their role in establishing a "four-tiered kindergarten" is described. An alternative approach to conceptualizing readiness that is free of these negative effects is presented.