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Abstract: School readiness is receiving increased attention from schools, parents, teachers, and policy makers. This article presents a reflective and critical review of the school readiness construct, the theoretical perspective that has guided practice in the area to date, and the effectiveness of the educational placement options currently available for children deemed to be "unready." It is argued that the construct of school readiness has suffered from a narrow, maturationist theoretical perspective, which presents the problem as residing solely within the child, with the determination of readiness being the duty of the school systems. The popular practices of delayed entry, retention, and transition classes are not supported by the empirical literature. It is argued that a new theoretical framework and a paradigm shift is needed in the area of school readiness to lead the way to reformed practices. A new perspective based upon Vygotskian sociocultural theory and contemporary developmental theory is offered that presents readiness as a bidirectional process of both the school and the child flexibly adjusting to each other to ensure success. Finally, the implications of such a perspective for school psychologists and educational practice are discussed.
Most parents struggle with the decision of when their child should begin school. The issue of school readiness is recently receiving increased attention from schools, parents, teachers, policy makers, and researchers, alike. Although Goal I of the National Educational Goals is that all children will begin school ready to learn by the year 2000 (National Governors' Association, 1990), it is difficult to discern exactly what this means for the individual child. How the child will become ready, and exactly what readiness means are still a mystery.
Although it may appear on the surface to be a simple task to decide whether a child is ready for school, the complexity of the school readiness issue becomes apparent when one tries to establish operational definitions, guidelines, and timelines. Readiness has been historically defined as two separate concepts: readiness to learn and readiness for school (Kagan, 1990; Lewitt & Baker, 1995). Readiness to learn is viewed as a level of development at which an individual is able to learn specific material. Readiness for school indicates that the individual also will be able to be successful in a "typical"...