RE: Mandatory Kindergarten/Alternate opinion

Ms Vander-laan,
I am very appreciative of your thoughtful commentary, and believe that we basically share the same goal: for all children to have access to a safe and nurturing environment where learning can take place.  (I define learning as the ability to construct one's own knowledge.)

My concern is that by making an already available kindergarten program "mandatory", the burdensome kindergarten assessment requirements will deteriorate further into even more excessive early childhood test-prep.  Until the State of California adopts and faithfully implements developmentally appropriate activities in a learning environment where individual timetables for learning are respected (at least K-3), I do not see mandatory kindergarten being the joyful play experience we know it should be to best benefit young children.

I fervently believe that any child of normal intelligence that has spent the first 6-8 years of life playing vigorously with sand and water, blocks, dolls and a paint easel, and being read and sung to daily has no chance of being illiterate.  I also believe any knowledgeable teacher can teach a willing child between the ages of 8 - 10 (with this type of preschool background) to read in 12 weeks.

I learned to read in October of my second grade school year; I remember the day I read four sentences fluently about Orange Oliver a kitten, no pressure from Ms Lindstrom, just encouragement and delight.  By fifth grade I read at a 9th grade level, by 8th at 12th.  My mother learned to read in Spring of 3rd grade: she's a librarian.  My brother was 11 when he learned to read: he now makes 3 x's my salary running an agribusiness concern, conducts contracts in English and Spanish.  We all read for pleasure as well as information.

Early literacy has no bearing on the adult success of a student, certainly no more than a child being potty-trained at 16 months vs 30 months makes him better at crapping in the john as an adult.  I believe children pushed to early literacy may develop learning disabilities they were not born with, because the brain is not yet developed for these higher level thinking tasks and inferior parts of the brain are exercised to this purpose with unfortunate later results. I believe that is why some of our little test-takers who demonstrate rote achievement in 1st & 2nd grade poop out and fall behind in 4,5,6 grades, because they cannot critically think (but they are very good at regurgitating an adult's opinion back to her). I think it is dangerous to educate a citizenry to be NOT able to critically think!!! I think Neurology will even back me up some on that opinion.

I really hope you will comment on Universal Preschool June 10.  I appreciate your thughts and find all of this dialogue verystimulating.  It is heartening to know that, agree or disagree, so many good people care about the future of California's children.