Child Care and Early Education Research Connections

Skip to main content

Classroom age composition and the early learning of preschoolers

Description:

Data from 1,407 preschoolers were used to examine the implications of classroom age composition for the early learning and development of 4-year-olds in classrooms with 3- and 5-year-olds also in attendance. Results suggest that a greater number of younger classmates did not detract from 4-year-olds’ language development, literacy performance, or inhibitory control, nor did having older peers consistently facilitate learning in these domains. However, 4-year-olds who entered school with low inhibitory control and print knowledge demonstrated greater gains in both domains when attending classrooms with more same-age or older classmates than when in classrooms with more younger peers. When taken together, these results suggest that classroom age composition, in prekindergarten programs serving mostly 4-year-olds, for the most part has little consequence except for those 4-year-olds entering school with lower skill levels in key domains, in which case having older peers is of benefit. (author abstract)

Resource Type:
Reports & Papers
Country:
United States
State(s)/Territories/Tribal Nation(s):
California; Connecticut; Illinois; New York; North Carolina; Ohio; Rhode Island; Tennessee

Related resources include summaries, versions, measures (instruments), or other resources in which the current document plays a part. Research products funded by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation are related to their project records.

- You May Also Like

These resources share similarities with the current selection.

Classroom age composition and developmental change in 70 urban preschool classrooms

Reports & Papers

Classroom age composition and vocabulary development among at-risk preschoolers

Reports & Papers

Classroom age composition and preschoolers’ language and literacy gains: The role of classroom engagement

Reports & Papers
Release: 'v1.61.0' | Built: 2024-04-23 23:03:38 EDT