Social and Academic Effects of Varying Types of Early Schooling Experiences

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of early educational experiences on the academic achievement and social skills of a sample of 91 inner city first‐grade students. The Integrated Assessment System (IAS) was used to measure children's achievement in mathematics and language arts, and the Social Skills rating system (Gresham & Elliott, 1990) was administered to measure children's social skills. Data analyses were conducted after controlling for first‐grade teachers' instructional practices and beliefs about developmentally appropriate practices. Children with prekindergarten experience had higher scores in the areas of mathematics (holistic and mathematical procedures) and language (response to reading). Similarly, prekindergarten experience was associated with higher social skills at the end of first‐grade. In addition, there were different patterns of academic achievement and social skills for students who attended first‐grade in the same school as the one where they received their early educational experiences compared to students who transitioned to first‐grade classes from different elementary schools following their prekindergarten and kindergarten experiences. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.