The study examined the relationship between kindergarteners’ social-behavioral readiness and key educational outcomes in over 9,000 elementary school students. The results showed that by the time they reached 4th grade, students who were considered socially and behaviorally “not ready” for school were:

–Up to 80% more likely to be retained in their grade

–Up to 80% more likely to receive services and supports through an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or a 504 Plan geared toward children with disabilities

–Up to 7 times more likely to be suspended or expelled at least once

Boys were also more likely to be assessed as not socially and behaviorally ready in kindergarten and to experience all three academic difficulties.

“These results are important,” says Gross, professor and the Leonard and Helen Stulman Endowed Chair in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing. “They show how critical social and behavioral skills are for learning, how early the struggle begins for young children, and how important it is to address the problem of social-behavioral readiness well before children enter kindergarten.”