Kindergarten-ready kids down

The percentage of Mississippi children considered kindergarten-ready has fallen during 2020 pandemic year, according to state test results released Nov. 12 by the Mississippi Department of Education. Its Kindergarten Readiness Assessment results showed 31.8 percent of kindergarteners scored ready this year, but that’s down from 36.6 percent in 2019 (and 36.1 percent in 2018). Scores from 2020 were not released. The test evaluates early literacy skills. The assessment is further proof of the pandemic’s impact on students, Carey Wright, state superintendent of education, said in a media release. “Mississippi’s kindergarten teachers are outstanding … and I anticipate seeing those gains when students are retested in spring 2022,” Wright added. The score to be considered kindergarten-ready is 530, which means students can identify most letters of the alphabet, match most letters to their sounds, and are building vocabulary and understanding of print. Research shows 85 percent of students who score 530 or higher on the assessment at the beginning of kindergarten are proficient in reading at the end of third grade, the department said. The Clarion-Ledger newspaper reported the 2021 Pre-Kindergarten Readiness assessment also showed a decline in readiness with 13 percent of four-year-olds testing at or above the threshold. That’s down from nearly 16 percent in 2019. (Source: MS Live 11/14/21) Mississippi's kindergarten readiness scores fall during pandemic - Magnolia State Live | Magnolia State Live