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Today, most child development experts have begun to think of readiness as a
process that occurs over time and that is not complete by the first day of kindergarten. Moreover, many experts have come to
see readiness as a broader construct that incorporates all aspects of children's lives and contributes to their ability to
learn, including their innate abilities, previous experiences, access to services, and school's expectations.
In 1995, the National Education Goals Panel identified five dimensions of early learning and development that are important for children's success in school.
It was hoped that these dimensions would provide a common reference point for understanding and eventually defining readiness. The five dimensions include
health/physical development, emotional well-being and social competence, approaches to learning, communicative skills, and cognition and general knowledge.
These definitions emphasize the following points about school readiness:
- All children are ready to benefit from school.
- There will be tremendous variation in the skills and abilities of children as they enter school. It is not appropriate to expect that all
children will enter school with a standard set of skills.
- School readiness is more than knowing ABCs and numbers. It is a broad concept that encompasses schools, communities, children, and their
range of early experiences (North Carolina School Improvement Panel, 2000).
SERVE understands that efforts to improve children's readiness begin long before children enroll in kindergarten. They begin with efforts to support and educate families,
involve community stakeholders, and raise the quality of early care and education. As a result, SERVE has established the School Readiness Project. The ultimate goal of this
project is to improve student achievement by providing research and training that helps ensure that all children get the best possible start in school.
The mission of SERVE's School Readiness Project is to develop and provide leadership and resource expertise to early childhood educators and professionals. The School
Readiness Project also seeks to establish collaborative relationships within the early childhood education community, to provide training and technical assistance, and
to produce quality publications for the field.
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Major Activities:
- Conducting research and development activities
- Convening and sharing information among groups of
early childhood educators, administrators, and policymakers,
and sharing exemplary practices and programs
- Disseminating research, products, and materials
- Collaborating with other agencies and organizations that serve children and their families
- Providing training and technical assistance to early childhood professionals on topics such
as quality care/education, transitions, and early literacy
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