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Preparing Preschoolers for Kindergarten

A Look at Teacher Beliefs

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Transitions to Early Care and Education

Part of the book series: Educating the Young Child ((EDYC,volume 4))

Abstract

In this study, we examine the nature of teacher belief systems regarding preparing children for kindergarten using teacher-level data collected for 103 diverse early education programs serving low-income and linguistic minority preschool -age children in Los Angeles County that were part of the Los Angeles: Exploring Children’s Early Learning Settings (LA ExCELS) study. Three main program types are represented: public centers, private centers, and licensed family child care homes. In addition, 57 kindergarten teachers participated in this study. We describe the range of belief systems these diverse educators have about working with this population of children at risk of school failure and preparing them for the transition into elementary school. Results indicate that early educators in preschool and kindergarten settings strongly endorse the importance of a variety of school preparation experiences for young children, but there are differences among early educators in their beliefs about appropriate approaches to guiding the education of young children.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the National Institute of Child and Human Development (R01 HD046063-01) for their support of this research. The authors would also like to thank Carollee Howes, Principal Investigator of the LA ExCELS, for her support of this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Education, Child and Family Studies, University of North Carolina, 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC, USA

    Sandraluz Lara-Cinisomo

  2. Department of Child and Family Studies, California State University, 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Allison Sidle Fuligni

  3. RAND Corporation, 1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA, USA

    Lynn A. Karoly

Authors
  1. Sandraluz Lara-Cinisomo
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  2. Allison Sidle Fuligni
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  3. Lynn A. Karoly
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Correspondence to Sandraluz Lara-Cinisomo .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Professional Studies in Education, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, South Eleventh Street 570, Indiana, 15705, Pennsylvania, USA

    DeAnna M. Laverick

  2. Studies in Education, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, College Lodge Rd. 654, Indiana, 15701-4015, Pennsylvania, USA

    Mary Renck Jalongo

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Lara-Cinisomo, S., Fuligni, A., Karoly, L.A. (2011). Preparing Preschoolers for Kindergarten. In: Laverick, D., Renck Jalongo, M. (eds) Transitions to Early Care and Education. Educating the Young Child, vol 4. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0573-9_9

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