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Partly cloudy early with increasing clouds overnight. Low 59F. W winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph..
Partly cloudy early with increasing clouds overnight. Low 59F. W winds at 10 to 20 mph, decreasing to less than 5 mph.
Updated: September 14, 2025 @ 3:55 pm
One of the recommendations in Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's report on reform of California government is to raise the age children can enter kindergarten.
There's certainly reason to ponder such a change. California is among a minority of states that allow children as young as 4 years old to start kindergarten. In most states, children entering kindergarten must turn 5 by July 1 or Sept. 1 - before the school year begins.
The problem with the proposal is that it has nothing to do with education and everything to do with saving money. The idea of changing the birthday to Sept. 1 from Dec. 2 is to save money by pushing an estimated 90,000 to 115,000 younger children out of kindergarten - about 25 percent of California's 457,000 kindergartners.
Maybe California should make this change. But this is a decision that should be made on educational, not just budget, grounds.
There are good educational reasons to limit kindergarten to 5- and 6-year-olds. For example, a 2001 report of the National Center for Education Statistics, "Entering Kindergarten," found that older kindergartners are closer to being able to read and do arithmetic, have better physical coordination to do such tasks as use a pencil and are more persistent at working at something until finished.
But if the state is going to go this route, it should face the reality that doing so properly won't really save money. That's because the change would emphasize the need for California to get serious about providing preschool programs for 3- and 4-year-olds - thus making sure children are ready for kindergarten at age 5.
The very children who are least ready for kindergarten are also least able to afford preschool alternatives. A new study, "Kids Can't Wait to Learn: Achieving Voluntary Preschool for All in California," reports that California ranks 37th among the 50 states in preschool enrollment: Only 47 percent of preschool-age children are enrolled in preschool programs. Further, the study notes, annual fees for a preschool program can cost more than twice the annual tuition in the California State University system.
The governor's report simply dismisses this issue - saying only that the state should provide "advanced notice" of the change to allow families of the displaced 90,000 to 115,000 children time to find alternatives. That's not enough. What's needed more than advance notice is affordable access to preschool for 3-and 4-year-olds.
- Sacramento Bee
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