Silicon Valley Community Foundation School Readiness Assessment in San Mateo County

Overall Vision of School Readiness Birth-3 rd grade alignment: By age 3, children have the language and social emotional foundations that support strong cognitive development Children enter Kindergarten with well-rounded development, proficient in identified kindergarten readiness skills Children are at or above grade level at 3rd grade

San Mateo and Santa Clara model for measuring readiness School Readiness K Teacher Expectations Parent Survey K Academics Self- Regulation Social Expression Self-Care & Motor Skills San Mateo – 2001,02, 03, 05, 08 Santa Clara -2004, 05, 06, 08 Longitudinal Assessments in 2009 and ECE & Elementary School Practices in Santa Clara County

Academics Recognizes letters Recognizes shapes Recognizes colors Counts 10 objects Engages with books Writes own first name Recognizes rhyming words Self-Regulation Comforts self Pays attention Controls impulses Follows directions Negotiates solutions Plays cooperatively Participates in circle time Handles frustration well Social Expression Expresses empathy Relates well to adults Has expressive abilities Is curious & eager to learn Expresses needs & wants Engages in symbolic play Self-Care and Motor Skills Uses small manipulatives Has general coordination Performs basic self-help / self-care tasks BASIC BUILDING BLOCKS OF READINESS

K Academics Self- Regulation Social Expression Self-Care & Motor Skills Needs-Prep K Academics Self- Regulation Social Expression Self-Care & Motor Skills All-Stars +50% K Academics Self- Regulation Social Expression Self-Care & Motor Skills Focused-on-the-Facts ~25%~10% K Academics Self- Regulation Social Expression Self-Care & Motor Skills Social-Stars ~10%

READINESS GAPS PERSIST Kindergarten Readiness 3 rd Grade ELA Tests Proficient + Advanced All Stars Needs Prep 60% 13% 3 rd Grade Math Tests Proficient + Advanced 77% 20%

K academics + Self Regulation work together to impact 3 rd grade 3 rd Grade ELA 3 rd Grade MATH

8 Linking Readiness to 3 rd Grade Achievement From Applied Survey Research

 Children who are 5 before K entry  Children with parents who  Read with them more often  Tell stories and sing songs  Have higher maternal education  Are Asian, Caucasian  Are high income  Children who attend preschool Who is most likely to be Ready at 3 rd grade?

Disparities by Income Grow Over Time English Language ArtsMath

Gaps for Latino Children Grow English Language Arts Math

Preschool Advantage Narrows English Language Arts Math

Santa Clara CountySan Mateo County

What does all of this mean? Kindergarten readiness matters for later school success. Kindergarten readiness is not sufficient; some of our children who enter school well prepared are not achieving at grade level by 3rd grade Extra support and resources are needed for low-income, English Learners, and Hispanic/Latino children, even for those who enter Kindergarten ready. There are differences between San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties that merit reflection.

How has our School Readiness data been used? A model of replication Evaluation of First 5 San Mateo County Programs Increase awareness of the importance of preschool through third grade alignment

Goals for 2012 School Readiness Assessment Build upon history of previous school readiness assessments Receive baseline for participating Ready Schools school districts Align with Santa Clara County Align with new state tools

CA Preschool Foundations Standardize preschool formative assessments (DRDP) Make it easy (DRDPtech) Build alignment between PK and K (DRDP-SR) Make it part of the CA student data system

Benefits to being early adopters of the DRDP-SR Can naturally be integrated into Transitional Kindergarten No school district IT support is required Free training for teacher implementers DRDP-SR will be integrated into CALPADS in

Timeline April-June Confirm research design (proposals from interested evaluators are due April 30 th ) Recruit schools July-August Train participating teachers with option for on-line or in-person training on August weeks after the start of school Observe and complete student assessments (teachers)