Preschool to Kindergarten: The Role of Preschool Social Competence in the Transition to Kindergarten

1
Preschool to Kindergarten The Role of Preschool
Social Competence in the Transition to
Kindergarten
Chanele D. Robinson and Karen E. Diamond
Purdue University
Table 1 Summary of Gender and Preschool Social
Competence Predicting Kindergarteners Outcomes
Introduction

• Kindergarten Transition
• Kindergarten Transition Parent Questionnaire
  6-items concerning children's perceptions of
  kindergarten rated by parent (? .75)
• Kindergarten Teacher Transition Practices
  Survey 8-items concerning children's
  difficulties transitioning to kindergarten (?
  .88)
• Kindergarten Social/ Academic Competence
• Social Skills Rating System (Kindergarten-SSRS)
  
• 30-item social skills scale (? .94)
• 9-item problem behaviors (? .88)
• 5-item academic competence scale (? .95)

• Children from low-income families are at
  greater risk for poor social emotional outcomes
  and problems in the transition to kindergarten
  than their more advantaged peers.
• Many kindergarten teachers report that more
  than half of their class had transition
  problems.
• Learning-related social skills are related to
  early school performance, the transition to
  school, and kindergarten promotion/retention.

Research Questions
Analyses and Results

• Table 1
• Summary of Gender and Preschool Social Competence
  Predicting Kindergarteners Outcomes

• What is the relationship between parents reports
  and teachers ratings of kindergarteners social
  and academic competence during the transition to
  kindergarten? 
•  
• Is preschool social competence related to
  parents and teachers reports of childrens
  transition to and competence in kindergarten?

• Associations among kindergarten outcomes
• There were significant positive correlations
  between teachers reports of childrens
  transition and their ratings of social and
  academic competence (r .53 to .70)
• There were no significant associations between
  parents and teachers perceptions of the
  transition process (r .02 to -.10).

Participants
Note Results report from step 3 of final
models. p lt .05, p lt .01, p lt .001
Discussion/ Implications

• Unique impact of preschool social competence on
  kindergarten transition and social/academic
  competence
• For each kindergarten outcome variable, a three
  step regression model was run including gender,
  preschool Wally social problem solving, preschool
  social behaviors, and preschool SSRS-total score.
• Girls were rated by kindergarten teachers as more
  socially and academically competent and having
  fewer difficulties in the transition to
  kindergarten.

• N 108 children enrolled in Head Start programs
• Mean age 57 months (SD 7)
• 56 Male (n 60)
• 67 White, 19 Hispanic, 10 Black
• Parent Education Level 8 Formal Schooling/no
  Degree, 54 High School Graduate, 19 Some
  College, 7 Associates Degree, 7 Bachelors
  Degree

• Children with more positive ideas on how to solve
  a problem in preschool were more likely to have
  fewer ratings of difficulties in the transition
  to kindergarten.
• Preschool teachers ratings of childrens social
  skills and problem behaviors were associated with
  kindergarten social skills and fewer
  difficulties in the transition to kindergarten.

• Overall, kindergarten teachers views of
  childrens transition and competencies are highly
  related with each other.
• Consistent with other research there were gender
  differences among kindergarten outcomes, with
  girls having higher ratings than boys.
• Preschoolers who had more positive ideas about
  solving social problems were more likely to be
  reported by their kindergarten teachers as having
  fewer difficulties during the transition to
  kindergarten.
• Results indicate that preschool social competence
  may assist children in the transition process.
• Surprisingly, parents reports were unrelated to
  childrens social competence in either preschool
  of kindergarten.
• Preschool childrens social competence was
  related to kindergarten teachers reports of
  childrens social, but not academic competence.
  Further research is needed to understand the
  links between preschool childrens social problem
  solving ideas and their school competence.

Measures

• Preschool Social Competence
• Social Skills Rating System (Preschool-SSRS)
• 30-item Social skills scale (? 0.94)
• 10-item Problem behaviors scale (? 0.82)
• Wally Test of Social Problem Solving Five
  school setting problem scenarios were described
  and child was asked What would you do?
• Total number of positive responses was used in
  analyses
• Preschool Social Behavior 20 minute social
  behavior observation
• A composite of 3 Global ratings (e.g.,
  cooperation, independence, self-regulation)
  on a 6-point scale was used in analyses.

This research was supported in part by a grant
from NICHD (R01HD046091) to Indiana University
with a subcontract to Purdue University.