In evaluating the role of kindergarten entry age, previous researchers have not examined the entry-age effects for English language learners (ELL). Additionally, little work has assessed the role of entry age on both achievement and social-emotional outcomes. This study is the first to do both simultaneously. The authors used data from a…

The authors examined long-term outcomes for children who experienced delayed entry to kindergarten or kindergarten retention. They used a cohort of 6,841 students to compare these groups to each other and typically progressing peers. First, the authors compared the groups on demographic and early childhood variables. For the long-term school-based…

The authors investigated whether age at kindergarten entry was associated with early literacy achievement gaps and if these gaps persisted over time. Using the kindergarten age eligibility cutoff date, they created 2 groups of students who represented the oldest and youngest children in a cohort of students in high-poverty, low-performing schools.…

The effects of school entrance age on school performance and adjustment were examined by comparing six groups, each representing two months of the year. While there were age group differences in the entry year, there were none in subsequent years. (Author/MT)

Twenty-one studies reporting on early admission of children to elementary school are reviewed and discussed in terms of methodological design and findings. An appendix summarizes studies with implied or explicit comparisons. (Author/MT)

Describes a study that compared academic achievement indices of summer birth date seventh-ninth graders (n=45) who entered kindergarten at age five with indices of similar summer birth date children who entered at age six (n=45). All statistically significant differences favored older males and females, especially in reading for older males. (SM)

Much interest exists among parents and researchers regarding the benefits and drawbacks of delaying kindergarten entrance to acquire academic advantage ("redshirting"). How evident is this assumed advantage at the kindergarten level and beyond? The authors evaluated large-scale test data from Grades K-8 to investigate the difference in performance…

This study examined whether school entrance age was related to academic and social performance and whether the proportion of students referred to various programs correlated with age. Older students received more referrals for gifted evaluation, younger students received more placements in pre-first grade, and boys received more referrals for…