The elimination of junior kindergarten in 2013 would be delayed by a year to give officials more time to develop a statewide preschool program, under a plan supported by legislators.
A measure under consideration would also address a snafu that prohibits schools from ceasing to offer the program without a change to state law.
OPTIONS FOR EARLY LEARNING
The state wants to create a statewide early learning program that would rely on public-private partnerships and expansion of existing programs. Among the state-funded programs currently available to families:
>> The Pre-Plus program houses preschools on 17 elementary school campuses, and served 350 children in the 2010-11 school year. Under the program, the state offers providers with rent-free sites in exchange for efforts to promote school readiness and successful transition to kindergarten.
>> Hawaii’s Head Start preschool program, geared toward low-income families, served 3,047 children in 2010-11.
>> The Linapuni Early Education Center (at Linapuni Elementary School) provides at-risk 4-year-olds with access to preschool, and served 38 kids in the 2010-11 school year.
>> The state Department of Education provides services for children with special needs who are 3 to 5 years old. In the 2010-11 school year, 1,115 children were served in special-education preschool classrooms.
>> As part of the Preschool Open Doors program, the state offers tuition subsidies for low-income children to attend preschool. In 2010, about 600 children were served.
>> About 5,600 families also get tuition subsidies to help defray the costs of child care through the state Department of Human Services. |
Early childhood education advocates are largely in favor of the one-year delay and optimistic about the move to a universal preschool program, citing the mixed success of junior kindergarten.
But some have expressed qualms with proposed legislation that would do away with junior kindergarten because it doesn’t include a clear requirement that the state set up a preschool system in its place.
A measure before the Senate does create an Office of Early Learning, which would be charged with developing a plan for an early childhood education system.
"We certainly would love to see something a little bit more … that would guarantee that group of children would not be left out," said Bob Peters, chairman of the state’s Early Learning Council. "We don’t want to lose that cadre of children (now in junior kindergarten) who will be displaced by the elimination."
Some principals have voiced similar concerns, and are worried about the loss of the service at a time when preschool attendance is already down. They say junior kindergarten, despite implementation issues, has improved access to high-quality early learning, especially for children from low-income families.
NEARLY 5,900 children statewide attend junior kindergarten, which began in 2006 as a way to better prepare late-born children for kindergarten and first grade. Children in junior kindergarten can be moved into first grade after one year or can remain for another year of kindergarten.
The number of junior kindergartners at schools varies widely, from as few as three at Kaelepulu Elementary in Kailua (compared with 27 regular kindergartners) to as many as 83 at Kealakehe Elementary on Hawaii island (compared with 145 regular kindergartners), according to state data.
Hawaii is one of just 10 states with no state-funded preschool program, and many children enter kindergarten lacking basic skills and preschool experience.
But lawmakers say the junior kindergarten program was never fully implemented, with only about one-third of public elementary schools ever developing stand-alone junior kindergarten classes. Most campuses put junior kindergartners and kindergartners together.
Two years ago, legislators approved the elimination of junior kindergarten in 2013, amending state law so that kindergartners must be at least 5 years old on the first day of a new school year.
But as the state Attorney General’s Office pointed out in a recent opinion, "the amendment is silent as to junior kindergarten." The office said that because the law did not specifically spell out that junior kindergarten must end, the program has to be offered until the law is changed.
The legal obstacle gave legislators a chance to take up the discussion of junior kindergarten again this session, and help determine what could be developed in its place.
State Sen. Jill Tokuda, chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee, said the measure moving through the Senate is aimed at ensuring "there are no gaps" in service.
"Our intention and our hope is that junior kindergarten will be there while we create this system," she said. "We want to seize this opportunity … to really start to make steps, some real headway, to really have a very comprehensive discussion of where we’re going to go."
She said Hawaii is "definitely behind the curve" when it comes to offering preschool services.
Eliminating junior kindergarten is expected to save upward of $30 million — which advocates hope can be used to instead provide preschool services.
Tokuda said doing away with junior kindergarten was never about saving money, but rather spending money more efficiently.
She said some of the discussion this legislative session will be on trying to determine what a proposed preschool system would look like, and how much it would cost.
"Do we have the resources to fund just the beginnings of an early learning system here in Hawaii?" she asked. "What we’re trying to do is line that up."
Dave Tom, Director of public policy at the Good Beginnings Alliance, said the creation of an early learning system is inferred in Senate Bill 2545, which passed through the Senate Education Committee on Jan. 27. A similar bill to eliminate junior kindergarten is also before the House.
"I know the intent of the Senate Education Committee is to have a replacement program for these late-born 5-year-olds," Tom said. "My concern is that it’s not specified in the language in the bill."
The planned phaseout of junior kindergarten comes amid growing concern about declining preschool attendance in the islands.
A growing body of research shows that low-income kids, those who do not attend preschool and students who fall behind in kindergarten are more likely to struggle in school — and later in life.
In its strategic plan, the DOE has identified early learning as a key area of concern, indicating that by 2018 it wants all kindergartners to enter school with "quality preschool experiences" or be "ready to learn."
But over the past several years, as families have struggled with wage reductions and job loss, the number of incoming Hawaii kindergartners and junior kindergartners who attended preschool has dropped.
This school year, 58 percent of the state’s 16,000 kindergartners and junior kindergartners had attended preschool, down from 61 percent in 2008. The figures are far lower at some campuses: At Aiea Elementary, 28 percent of incoming kindergartners this school year had attended preschool; just 27 percent of kindergartners at Puuhale Elementary in Kalihi did.
Puuhale Elementary Principal Yolanda St. Laurent said junior kindergarten has helped children who didn’t attend preschool, "laying that foundation" for more success in first grade and beyond.
She added, "For our teachers, what becomes extremely taxing is that they have to reach way below to preschool experiences."
Kuhio Elementary Principal Evelyn Hao said she supports the delay of eliminating junior kindergarten and believes the program has boosted student achievement.
"It’s benefited especially our clientele because many of our children do not go to preschool," she said.
About 42 percent of Hao’s incoming kindergartners this school year attended preschool.
At Kuhio, there are four kindergarten classes, and about a third of the kindergarten students are junior kindergartners.
Hao said that while she wants to see Hawaii’s preschool system bolstered, she also doesn’t want to let go of junior kindergarten — and is concerned about what the transition would look like.
"I want to hold onto this because we have it now," she said.
Under Senate Bill 2545, junior kindergarten would be eliminated at the end of the 2013-14 school year. Starting with the 2014-15 school year, incoming kindergarten students would have to be at least 5 years old by July 31 of the year they start school.
Late-born children would have to wait an additional year before entering school, but would be accommodated by the planned universal preschool system.
Terry Lock, The state’s early childhood coordinator, acknowledged that developing an early learning system won’t be easy — or cheap.
"We’re definitely supporting this as an opportunity to really think about access to quality experiences for 4-year-olds," Lock said.
State Rep. Mark Takai, a member of the House Education Committee, said junior kindergarten suffered from spotty implementation, and in some cases promoted kids to first grade who weren’t ready.
He said the intent of the Legislature was never to allow junior kindergartners to be classified as kindergartners.
Takai, who asked the state Attorney General’s Office last year for an opinion on the junior kindergarten law — and whether as written the service could be appealed — said he hopes the planned early learning programs "that we intend to create to fill that gap are actually created when that gap occurs." He added, "It’s all a matter of funding."
