Is Kindergarten a Right?

I thought it was the start of early education in America.
I'm really surprised at this, and me I did not get to go to kindergarten. Straight into 1st grade, catholic school with scary nuns.
I think it should be for sure! Kids need to learn the basic's and have an understanding of what learning is.

I also believe it helps with the anxiety of being in a different environment. New structured environment.

 

I think it is desirable for all kids to have access to kindergarten or an equivalent learning experience at age 5.
I honestly thought that was the norm all around.
Then again, I live in NY and had no idea that people in Florida voted on paper ballots that could have "hanging chads" either.
I'm definitely guilty of assuming that "the norm" for me applies to other folks as well.

 

Wow, I am pretty sure that Kindergarten, and even Junior Kindergarten, are standard in the Canadian education system.

I didn't even realize this was a question. Having seen both my kids go through the system and spending a lot of time with teachers discussing pedagogy, I'd say that, yes it is an essential part of the education experience.

Heck, my son learned to read in kindergarten.

 

Kindergarten is mandatory here in Florida.
And, yes, I believe it should be for every child. Kindergarten prepares children for the learning experience - it gives them time to adjust to the environment and learn what is expected of them. 1st graders should be able to launch into learning without several months being dedicated to teaching them how to be students.

 

It is not mandatory in New Jersey either, except in lower income districts, but most school districts provide, at the very least, half day kindergarten.

 

It is mandatory in Oz as well. When a child is turning 6 during the school year, they must be enrolled. You can opt to send them a year earlier (if they turn 5 during the first half of the school year). I think it is super important. A lot of parents are terrible teachers - encourage reading, but let them be taught by a professional

 

I never attended kindergarten. It wasn't available.

At least I know have a reason for being a doofus.

 

I view Kindergarten as a primer for real education.

I haven't had any experience with it since I was a young child, but, assuming everything is basically the same, it is typically only half day classes, it teaches basic things that a lot of kids have at least a bit of a grasp on prior to going to school, and it's fun as shit for the most part. I think this is all is a great help in preparing kids for "actual" school.

However, I also think all of this is not necessary for a kid to go through in order to succeed academically.

So, do I think it should be mandatory?

Simply... No.

 

I think the compulsory minimum age for school attendance in most states is six or seven. I would lower the compulsory age to five, with a minimum of at least 1/2 day kindergarten required. There is no doubt in my mind that it offers a critical foundation for both basic school skills and socialization skills.

 

Oddly, I'm against mandatory kindergarten (well, maybe not that oddly as I tend to be odd all by myself). I sort of support the right to kindergarten, but not whole-heartedly. The RIGHT to kindergarten should NOT be confused with the OBLIGATION to attend kindergarten. Not all children are ready for group social/learning activities at 5, or at 6. I am actually of the opinion that starting some children at a later age is a good thing. A flexible school age start of 5, 6, or 7, depending entirely on the parents' assessment of the their child's preparedness, would be much better than a fixed age 6 commencement. The same should hold true for kindergarten, although it should never be mandatory.

I am all for education, the more the better. But I am against regimentation and inflexibility, especially at the most important years - the beginning. And too many parents see kindergarten as state-sponsored daycare and nothing more.

 

Whether it is or isn't a right I'm not sure. But I grew up in the back water country of Australia when the honorable before the Labour party lost it's way and the Liberal / National coalition stood for something more pure. In those days education was completely free. In my tiny little state, we had pre school, then kinder, and then year 1. Most of us all knew our ABC's and could count before we were 6 years old. Australia back then was hell bent on being a clever country.

The education system has lost it's way a little since then. But, educating kids from a very early age is more that just that the three Rs, it's about social development from an early age, something that's also very important.

 

I see what you're saying, and I agree with you. After all, we held E back from kindergarten for one year because she wasn't ready. Still, she attended kindergarten a year later. I don't see it as much an age thing as it is a socialization/environmental thing. I believe children should come to first grade knowing what is expected of them and ready to learn first grade material.

 

I believe kindergarten should be mandatory. It provides a half-day environment in which a child gets the opportunity to learn and practice social and learning behaviors. Behavior, like rote learning, requires a lot of practice. I feel it's important to have that base in place before challenging a child cognitively in first grade with material that will be tested later. I learned to write, work with others, and respect a teacher in kindergarten, so I had a lot of success in first grade. It is an extremely valuable experience, as it eliminates some of the adjustment period to cognitive learning and memorization in first grade.

 

Amazon.com: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (9780345466396): Robert Fulghum: Books

I thought everyone had to go, except for the homeschool kids. But, it's not like Kindergarten will corrupt your kids.
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Amazon.com: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (9780345466396): Robert Fulghum: Books

I thought everyone had to go, except for the homeschool kids. But, it's not like Kindergarten will corrupt your kids.

 

That's kind of my thinking, but a little differently.
I mean, why not mandatory kindergarten?
Are we under the impression that our children need less education? It seems like such a no-brainer that I can't really imagine any rational objection to it.

 

Of course it won't.
It's getting the HPV vaccine to prevent cancer that corrupts them.

 

I see a few comments on here regarding kindergatern = half days. Not in the land of Oz. Kindergarten runs exactly for exactly the same amount of time as years 1-6 (and in the same school environment). It is a *lot* more than day care. Half a year in, my youngest son can read simple books on his own, write quite legibly and can spell a bucket load of words. At the beginning of the year, he could write his name and that was about it. Without these basics, how are kids expected to get into the "real" learning?

 

Kindergarten is the same length as the other elementary school classes here, as well.