Newsletter

Early Childhood Longitudinal Study
Kindergarten Class of 1998-99

NEWSLETTER
Volume 5: Spring 2006

Sponsored By:

Dear ECLS-K Parents, Teachers, and Schools,
The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K) followed the
progress of students from the fall of 1998 to the spring of 2004. It has been so successful that the
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in the Institute of Education Sciences of the U. S.
Department of Education has decided to continue to follow the students as they move on into middle
school. We are now asking you as their parents, teachers, and schools to participate in the 2006 and
2007 data collection activities (see project schedule below).

U.S. Department of Education
Institute of Education Sciences
NCES 2006-080rev

The ECLS-K is a unique and important study. No other research study has ever followed a
nationwide sample of about 20,000 students from kindergarten into middle school. The design of
the ECLS-K creates the opportunity to address important questions on the factors that are (and are
not) commonly associated with children’s schooling. The ECLS-K is currently being used to explore
many questions about the family and school factors associated with children’s academic progress
and well-being across the elementary school years, including important health issues such as diet
and physical activity. This newsletter describes some of the types of information collected since
the study started in 1998.
As the ECLS-K children progress from elementary to middle school they are changing in significant
ways. For example, they are likely to have more responsibilities and changing activities. This makes
the information that you provide in the 2006-07 data collection very important.
We have much to learn from the ECLS-K about the academic progress and well-being of America’s
children. Your contributions are extremely valuable. We are confident that the continued participation
of the students, their parents, teachers, and schools in the 2006-07 ECLS-K data collection will help
educators, researchers, and policymakers better understand how schools and families can best meet
the needs of all students. We look forward to working with you in the coming year.


ECLS-K Staff

Project Schedule
Spring/Summer 2006
• Parents grant permission to assess children in the spring of 2007 and identify the schools their children attend.

Fall 2006
• Parents complete interviews.
• Schools schedule assessment dates.

Spring 2007
• Children complete assessments and questionnaires.
• Teachers and schools complete questionnaires.

ECLS-K NEWSLETTER

Some Things We’ve Learned
Regional Differences in Kindergarten Programs
Since the 1930s, children attending kindergarten traditionally enrolled in half-day kindergarten programs. Changes in American
society and education over the past 20 years have supported the rise of full-day kindergarten programs. ECLS-K research results
published in an NCES report have shown that there are differences in the students’ kindergarten experiences depending on
where in the country they live (Figure 1). In fall 1998, over one-half of children enrolled in kindergarten attended a full-day
kindergarten program. More kindergartners living in the South attended a full-day program (83 percent) than a half-day
program (17 percent). On the other hand, more kindergartners living in the West attended a half-day program (70 percent)
than a full-day program. More information from the ECLS-K about kindergartners can be found in Regional Differences in
Kindergartners’
Early Education Experiences (NCES 2005-099).
full and half days by region

Figure 1. Kindergartners attending half-and full-day programs: School year 1998-99

56%
30%
70%
West

52% 48%

44%

Northeast

Midwest

States included in each region are
as follows:
Northeast: CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT,
NJ, NY, PA
Midwest: IL, IN, MI, OH, WI, IA, KS,
MN, MO, NE, ND, SD
South: DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC,
VA, WV, AL, KY, MS, TN, AR, LA, OK, TX
West: AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT,
WY, AK, CA, HI, OR, WA
All regions:

17%

45%

83%

55%

South
Half-day kindergartens

Full-day kindergartens

SOURCE: Regional Differences in Kindergartners’ Early Education Experiences (NCES 2005-099)

Academic Skills
Parents, teachers, and policy makers are interested in the pace at which students master reading and mathematics skills.
By gathering this information from the students at various points in time, the ECLS-K has allowed researchers to better
understand when children learn certain skills.
For reading, the ECLS-K measures children’s basic literacy, vocabulary, and comprehension skills. The ECLS-K measures five
levels of reading comprehension, 1) understanding words in context (knowing what words mean in text), 2) literal inference
(interpreting the meaning of words from information found in the text), 3) deriving meaning (reading between the lines,
drawing on background knowledge to understand what the text is saying), 4) interpreting beyond text (understanding how
the author uses language and describing how a story relates to something in real-life experience), 5) evaluating nonfiction
(analyzing biographies and news articles). This newsletter focuses on three of the five levels of reading comprehension
assessed by the ECLS-K: understanding words in context; literal inference; and deriving meaning. In the spring of kindergarten, a
small number of the ECLS-K students could understand words in context; about half of them could by first grade; and nearly all
could by third grade. Additionally, by the spring of first grade about 18 percent of the students could make literal inferences and
70 percent could by third grade. While few students could derive meaning at kindergarten or first grade, nearly one-half could
by third grade, and about three-fourths of them could by fifth grade.

ECLS-K NEWSLETTER
Percentage of students demonstrating a specific
reading skill, by grade

Food and Nutrition

Figure 2. Specific reading skills: School years 1998-2004
Percent

100
80
60
40
20
0

Kindergarten
(Spring)

1st
(Spring)

3rd
(Spring)

5th
(Spring)

Grade
Understanding words in context
Making literal inferences using cues in text
Deriving meaning by identifying clues

SOURCE: Fifth Grade: Findings From the Fifth-Grade Follow-up of the Early Childhood
Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99, E.D. Tab (NCES 2006-038).

The ECLS-K also collects information on the students’ mathematics skills such as multiplication and division and
understanding place value (i.e., ones place, tens place,
and hundreds place). About one-fifth of the students could
multiply and divide by first grade, and nearly all could by
fifth grade. Although student understanding of place value
begins a little later, by fifth grade over three-fourths of the
students demonstrated such understanding. For more
information on the specific reading and mathematics skills
that the ECLS-K students possess, please see, Fifth Grade:
Findings from the Fifth-Grade Follow-up of the Early
Childhood Longitudinal
KindergartenaClass
of
Percentage
of studentsStudy,
demonstrating
specific
E.D.skill,
Tab (NCES
2006-038).
athematics
by grade
m1998-99,

The quality of children’s diet has gained substantial national
interest in recent years as the types of foods and beverages
sold in schools have changed. Among the changes that have
occurred is the sale of foods and drinks that are not part of
the federally sponsored school meal program. The ECLS-K
asked schools to identify the types of foods and snacks
available for students to buy from vending machines, snack
bars, and school stores. In spring 2004, about one-third of
the ECLS-K students could buy various foods and snacks
at their schools including cookies, crackers, or other baked
goods; ice cream and frozen yogurt; fruits and vegetables;
and salty snacks. Many students could also buy bottled
water and fruit juice, while a few could buy sodas, sport
drinks, or fruit punch.
The availability of these foods and snacks at schools differed
by where the students lived. For instance, ECLS-K students
attending schools in the West and Midwest were less likely
than those in the Northeast and South to be able to buy
ice-cream or frozen yogurt at their schools. Approximately
20 percent of students in the West and Midwest could buy
these frozen snacks at school, while about one-half of the
students in the Northeast and South could.
fig. 4 new - ice cream/frozen yogurt

Figure 4. Fifth-graders able to buy ice cream or frozen yogurt at
school: School year 2003-04
Percent

100
80

40

Figure 3. Specific mathematics skills: School years 1998-2004
100

18%
All regions

Northeast

Midwest

17%
South

West

States included in each region are as follows:
Northeast: CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT, NJ, NY, PA
Midwest: IL, IN, MI, OH, WI, IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD
South: DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV, AL, KY, MS, TN, AR, LA, OK, TX
West: AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY, AK, CA, HI, OR, WA

80
60
40

SOURCE: Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K),
spring 2004.

20
0

37%

20
0

Percent

54%

52%

60

Kindergarten
(Spring)

1st
(Spring)

3rd
(Spring)

5th
(Spring)

Grade
Multiplication/division
Place value
SOURCE: Fifth Grade: Findings From the Fifth-Grade Follow-up of the Early Childhood
Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99, E.D. Tab (NCES 2006-038).

*States included students
in each regionin
arethe
as follows:
Additionally,
West and Midwest were less
likely than students in the Northeast and South to be able
to buy fruits or vegetables at their schools. Approximately
20 percent of the students in the West and Midwest could
purchase fruits and vegetables at school, while 40 percent
of students in the Northeast and 49 percent of the students
in the South could.

ECLS-K NEWSLETTER

Physical Activity
Students’ physical activity is another issue of
national importance. In elementary schools,
opportunities for physical activity take place
mostly during physical education (PE) classes
and recess. Data from the spring 2004
collection showed that 12 percent of ECLS-K
students had PE classes every day, while an
additional 15 percent had PE 3 or 4 times a
week. Regionally, almost one-fourth of students
in the South had PE every day, while 2 to 8
percent in other regions did.
Nationally, 77 percent of ECLS-K students in the
spring of 2004 had recess every school day, and
9 percent had none. Sixty percent of students in
the South had recess every day compared with
77 to 85 percent of those living in other parts
of the country.

How often fifth grade students have PE classes
Figure 5. How often fifth-graders have physical education classes:
School year 2003-04
Percent

100
84

80

Total
77

Northeast

66

65

60

Midwest

52

South

40
20
0

7 8

2

10

15
6

6

Less than
1 time/week

1-2 times
a week

14 16

West

23

21
12
2

3-4 times
a week

8

6

Every day

Frequency of physical education classes
SOURCE: Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), spring 2004.

How often fifth grade students have PE classes
Figure 6. How often fifth-graders have recess: School year 2003-04
Percent

100
77

80

Total

83 85

77
60

60

South

40
20
0

Northeast
Midwest
West

9 9 8

15
1

No recess

6 3

3

11

1-2 times
a week

2

8 5
4

14

3-4 times
a week

2
Every day

Frequency of recess
SOURCE: Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K), spring 2004.

All responses are confidential
The success of the ECLS-K depends on your cooperation and we are counting on your participation. Your responses to the
ECLS-K questionnaires are confidential. Your answers will be combined to produce statistical reports, and will not be disclosed
or used in any identifiable form for any other purpose unless otherwise compelled by law. Additionally, no individual data
that links your name, address, telephone number, or identification number will be included in the statistical reports or
otherwise released.

To learn more about the ECLS-K
You can learn more about the ECLS-K at http://nces.ed.gov/ecls. Free copies (limited quantity available) of the published
ECLS-K reports cited in this newsletter can be ordered at the ECLS web site http://nces.ed.gov/ecls or from the U.S.
Department of Education’s Publications Center (ED Pubs) toll free at 1-877-433-7827.

Thank you again for playing a vital role in the ECLS-K.