Study of Springfield students shows the bump kids get from attending pre-K programs

Children in Springfield who attend a formal preschool program are significantly more prepared to learn once they get to kindergarten than those who don't, according to a report released Tuesday.

The 2022 Readiness for Kindergarten report from the Mayor's Commission for Children showed 23.9% of students evaluated in the fall were not prepared — a lower rate than what was found in studies from 2014, 2016 and 2020 — and the amount dropped more, to just 20.4%, if the child had attended a formal preschool program.

"More children are attending preschool and pre-K programs in Springfield," said Melissa Duncan Fallone, associate professor at Missouri State University, who prepared the report.

"Pre-K is important for preparing children for kindergarten but it is especially important for low-income students."

The report, typically released every four years, showed the level of readiness was also related to socioeconomic status.

Among students who qualify for free or reduced price school meals, a national measure of poverty, just 63% were prepared for kindergarten compared to 86% of the students who pay the regular price. But that gap closed significantly, according to the report, when comparing kids of different financial means who all attended pre-K.

The Mayor's Commission for Children has completed six kindergarten readiness studies since it was created in 2004, part of an effort to encourage and support the development of early childhood programs in Springfield and the area.

"The data that we've heard is an important part of that and shows why that focus is so important," said Springfield City Council member Matt Simpson, who also serves as mayor pro tem.

"The numbers that we heard today represent lives in our community — lives with hopes and dreams and potential that we all need to make sure they have the ability to realize."

Report comes as child care, education a focus in Jefferson City

Simpson said the report shows the progress that has been made in Springfield and the work that remains to get as many children prepared to learn in kindergarten as possible.

The commission started studying kindergarten readiness because national research has repeatedly shown that if a child is prepared to learn at that age, they are more likely to read at grade level and stay on track to graduate high school with peers.

Gerry Lee, associate executive director of the Missouri School Boards' Association, said state lawmakers who are looking at ways to expand early childhood education need to have a copy of this report. He is a member of the Mayor's Commission on Children and a former Springfield school board member.

"That is the hot topic right now in Jeff City and this data needs to make its way to our delegation to make sure that they see that," he said. "This is really important stuff, knowing the results of pre-K."

For each study, kindergarten teachers evaluate between 312 and 435 students. This year, 360 students from classes all over the Springfield district were evaluated:

A look at how many students were unprepared in each report:

• 2022 − 23.9%

• 2018 − 26%

• 2016 − 24.7%

• 2014 − 28.5%

• 2010 − 20.4%

• 2006 − 24.7%

Fallone pointed out that in the 2022 study, nearly 53% of students were prepared and 32% were well prepared. The report showed girls were more likely than boys to be "well prepared" for kindergarten.

SPS preschool program growing but short-staffed

The percentage of kindergarten students who attend preschool has grown in recent years. It hovered at 68% in 2014 and 2016 but jumped to 86% in 2022.

Superintendent Grenita Lathan said the district has enough space to serve 900 students in preschool but can only serve 750 right now because of staffing shortages.

"We place students on a waiting list so as we add staff, we add more students," she said.

Lathan said the district built the Adah Fulbright Early Childhood Center to meet the growing demand for preschool. "It is our goal to increase seats across the district."

She said the district has experienced an uptick in behavior issues among the youngest learners in Wonder Years, the district's preschool program.

"It is a challenge for us," she said. "We plan to add some additional positions to actually support our Wonder Years program around behavior for the upcoming school year."

She said kindergarten teachers complete a one-on-one assessment of each child who enters kindergarten.

Elizabeth Andrews, a pediatrician and member of the Mayor's Commission for Children, said parents are becoming more aware of Wonder Years but she still encounters families who do not know the preschool program is available through the district.

She said the report showed there was a strong connection between going to preschool and being prepared to learn in kindergarten.

"It was really refreshing to see that being prepared was more dependent upon pre-K attendance than it was socio-economics," she said.

More: Springfield's top seniors from each high school honored, discuss future plans

Outlook for future studies

Brigitte Marrs, executive director of the Mayor's Commission for Children, said districts are now required to assess and report kindergarten readiness and report the results to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

For that reason, Marrs said the 2022 report may be the last. There is a possibility, however, that the commission will do one more, in 2026, since it will be 20 years after the first.

She said the $10,000 cost of the study was paid for by the Musgrave Foundation and the Community Foundation of the Ozarks.

Claudette Riley covers education for the News-Leader. Email tips and story ideas to criley@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Report: Children who go to pre-K are better prepared for kindergarten