Crisis in Kindergarten
Kindergarten classrooms across the United States are in a state of crisis. What's most scary about this crisis is that it is not apparent! It is the crisis of the loss of play: the hallmark of developmentally responsive education in Kindergarten. A recent report from the Alliance on Childhood titled Crisis in the Kindergarten lays out the most comprehensive information on the changed nature of the American Kindergarten and research that demands a change.
Research studies, old and new, revised, updated and verified all show that play is significant for the healthy, complete growth of children, especially in early years (less than 8 years of age). I claim it is essential for children of all ages, upto and beyond age 99. Increasingly, Kindergarten classrooms are focused on ensuring literacy and numeracy development, teaching to standards and often even preparation for standardized testing. The Crisis in the Kindergarten report states that, "Such practices are contributing to high levels of frustration, stress, and anger in kindergartners, sometimes resulting in extreme behavior problems. At the same time that we have increased academic pressure in children’s lives through inappropriate standards, we have managed to undermine their primary tool for dealing with stress— freely chosen, child-directed, intrinsically motivated play."
Increasing focus on teacher-directed instruction on literacy and numeracy was set afoot with the passing of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act. While not all Kindergarten classrooms seem over-the-top didactic, very few place play, child-driven, open-ended, imaginative play at the heart of the curriculum.
The report goes on to state that, "Most troubling in this hijacking of kindergarten is that there is no evidence that a heavy emphasis on teacher-led instruction and scripted curricula yields long-term benefits for children. In particular, low-income children who need support to succeed in school are not showing significant long-term gains."
Instead, "The power of play as the engine of learning in early child- hood and as a vital force for young children’s physical, social, and emotional development is beyond question. Children in play-based kindergartens have a double advantage over those who are denied play: they end up equally good or better at reading and other intellectual skills, and they are more likely to become well-adjusted healthy people."
Many other countries, considered competitors to the United States in the global economy have turned around if not always put play at the heart of their early childhood education.
In Germany (early childhood centers) were changed into centers for cognitive achievement during a wave of educational “reform” in the 1970s. But research compar- ing 50 play-based classes with 50 early-learning centers found that by age ten the children who had played ex- celled over the others in a host of ways. They were more advanced in reading and mathematics and they were better adjusted socially and emotionally in school. They excelled in creativity and intelligence, oral expression, and “industry.”* As a result of this study German kindergartens returned to being play-based again.
China and Japan are envied in the U.S. for their success in teaching science, math, and technology. But one rarely hears about their approach to schooling before second grade, which is playful and experiential rather than didac- tic.
Finland’s children, too, go to playful kindergartens, and they enter first grade at age seven rather than six. They enjoy a lengthy, playful early childhood. Yet Finland consistently gets the highest scores on the respected international PISA exam for 15-year-olds.
The question remains then, when is the United States going to recognize the crisis in its Kindergarten and turn it around? It is expected that in the future, creativity, flexibility and the ability to work with people from diverse backgrounds will be critical for success. How are children expected to be creative, adapatable and socially responsive if early in their life, these are the very skills that are not fostered, and worse yet, deprioritized for skills that don't have long term gains?
I will continue my research on the Crisis in the Kindergarten report and write back with information on how play fosters growth and what parents can do with this information as they consider the right education for their little one.