Michigan State University Extension
Diversity and Pluralism - D4110135
12/95/
ERIC TITLE NUMBER: ED342506 AUTHOR: Burts, Diane C.; And Others
TITLE: Achievement of Kindergarten Children in
Developmentally Appropriate and Developmentally
Inappropriate Classrooms.
YEAR PUBLISHED: 1991
NOTE: 7 p.; Paper presented at the Biennial Meeting of the
Society for Research in Child Development (Seattle, WA,
April 18-20, 1991).
ABSTRACT: This study compared end-of-year standardized test
scores (CAT) of 204 children in 6 developmentally
appropriate and 6 developmentally inappropriate
kindergarten classes. Particular attention was given to the
effects on test scores of the interaction of classroom type
with sex, socioeconomic status, and race. Relationships
between children's CAT scores and stress scores in the
developmentally appropriate class were compared to the same
relationships in the developmentally inappropriate class.
In the developmentally appropriate class, children who
exhibited higher levels of stress during testing scored
significantly lower on the CAT average, and on the reading
comprehension and language portions of the CAT, than
children who exhibited lower levels of stress. These
findings suggest that higher levels of stress during
standardized testing may negatively affect performance on
the test. No significant differences between classroom type
and overall test scores were found. Emphasis on academics
in developmentally inappropriate classrooms did not result
in higher test scores. This finding and previous research
that indicates negative consequences of inappropriate
curricula suggest that developmentally inappropriate
instructional practices are not only potentially damaging
to young children's psychological well-being, but that they
are also ineffective in promoting achievement in
kindergarten children. Appended are 11 references.
(Author/GLR)
KEY DESCRIPTORS: Comparative-Analysis; Kindergarten-;
Primary-Education; Racial-Factors; Scores-;
Sex-Differences; Socioeconomic-Status
KEY DESCRIPTORS: *Academic-Achievement; *Kindergarten
Children; *Standardized-Tests; *Stress-Variables; *Test
Validity
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