Maryland has been a leader in improving school readiness over the last 12 years, dramatically increasing the percentage of children that are “fully ready” as they enter Kindergarten. Here’s a snapshot of progress from their recent Maryland Report on School Readiness 2013-14:
• 83% of entering kindergarteners are fully ready in 2013-2014, up from 49% in 2001-2002, a 69% improvement in readiness over the past 12 years.
• All 24 of Maryland’s jurisdictions showed growth from 2001-2002.
• 80% of African-American children are now fully school-ready, up from 37% in 2001-2002
• The percentage of Hispanic children who are school-ready rose from 39% in 2001-2002 to 73% in 2013-2014.
• The percentage of children from low-income households who are fully school-ready
rose from 34% in 2001-2002 to 77% in 2013-2014.
• Children enrolled in public Pre-K programs (83% fully ready) are better prepared for school than their peers who were at home or in informal care (73% fully ready).

Maryland uses a comprehensive kindergarten readiness assessment that measure what children should know and are able to do before they start formal education. Kindergarten teachers use a portfolio-based assessment to evaluate their students’ skill levels in seven domains. Maryland and Ohio departments of education have created a coordinated way of supporting child development to be used by all early learning programs with children from 3 to 5 years, with help from the federal Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge Grant.
Dave Edie