Full-day kindergarten increases first grade readiness for underserved students, data finds
Apr 1, 2025, 3:53 PM | Updated: 3:54 pm
A student colors a graduation cap during Kindergarten College-Ready Day at Ridgecrest Elementary School in Cottonwood Heights on Friday, Sept. 1, 2023. (Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah kindergartners in underserved populations are more likely to be ready for first grade when enrolled in full-day programs.
A report from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute highlighted findings from the Utah State Board of Education’s 2022-23 KEEP assessment.
The report noted that full-day programs helped students with disabilities, those in minority groups and those with economic disadvantages better prepare for first grade.
A look at the data
The data looked at kindergartners who weren’t ready for first grade in the fall, but were ready by the time spring came around.
Twenty-four percent of students with disabilities in full-day kindergarten were ready for first grade by spring, while only 16% of half-day students were ready.
The data also revealed that 36% of economically disadvantaged students in full-day kindergarten were ready by spring. That’s 10% more than half-day students.
For students in “underserved racial and ethnic minorities,” 35% of full-day students were ready for first grade by the spring, compared to the 25% of half-day students.
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Senior Education Analyst Andrea Brandley said that number is expected to grow as more full-day programs become accessible to students.
“[In] 2023, the Legislature passed a full-day kindergarten bill providing access to full-day kindergarten across the state,” Brandley said.
She noted the state has seen a big jump in the number of available full-day kindergartens.
“The change in this is pretty significant for some of our underrepresented students, particularly if they go to full-day kindergarten,” she said.
Brandley said the benefits of investing in student success extend well beyond the students themselves.
“Even beyond early childhood, we see pretty significant achievement gaps across different demographic groups in our state and finding ways to shrink these achievement gaps would help strengthen Utah’s workforce, boost economic prosperity,” said Brandley.
Josuee Sanchez is a reporter for KSL NewsRadio.
