ERIC Number: EJ1168065
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 18
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1040-9289
EISSN: N/A
Full- versus Part-Day Kindergarten for Children with Disabilities: Effects on Executive Function Skills
Gottfried, Michael A.; Little, Michael H.
Early Education and Development, v29 n2 p288-305 2018
Responding to a robust body of literature suggesting that children's early educational experiences are critical, policymakers have implemented and expanded the provision of full-day kindergarten (FDK) in recent decades. Most studies have focused on the effectiveness of FDK on child academic assessments or test scores, but none have examined FDK and the link to executive function skills. Moreover, little work exists on the effectiveness of FDK for children with disabilities. The purpose of this study is to build on these incipient lines of research by estimating the effect of FDK on the executive function skills of children with disabilities. Drawing on data from a nationally representative sample of children with disabilities (n = 2,120) from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011, we find significant positive effects of FDK on working memory (SD = 0.14) and cognitive flexibility (SD = 0.14) for children with disabilities in kindergarten. Despite significant immediate effects, the benefits of FDK rapidly fade by the end of 2nd grade. Practice or Policy: Policy implications and directions for future research are addressed.
Descriptors: Kindergarten, School Schedules, Disabilities, Executive Function, Children, Longitudinal Studies, Surveys, Short Term Memory, Cognitive Ability, Outcomes of Education, Statistical Significance, Regression (Statistics), Least Squares Statistics, Statistical Analysis
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Kindergarten
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A