Policies increasing the amount of time allocated to reading instruction are popular initiatives to meet the demands of accountability testing. Research suggests that time on instruction and children’s approaches to learning (ATL), which generally includes measures of attention, persistence, motivation, and flexibility, are positively associated with measures of reading achievement. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study–Kindergarten cohort, this study simultaneously examines the degree to which time on reading instruction and children’s ATL are related to reading growth during kindergarten and first grade, while also examining whether time on instruction contributes to reading achievement differentially for children with varying ATL. Results indicate that time on reading instruction and children’s ATL were positively associated with children’s reading achievement. Overall, time on instruction was equally beneficial for children regardless of their ATL. Findings highlight the importance of using teaching practices to support children’s ATL.
BlairC.RazzaR. P. (2007). Relating effortful control, executive function, and false belief understanding to emerging math and literacy ability in kindergarten. Child Development, 78, 647–663.
2.
BodovskiK.FarkasG. (2007). Mathematics growth in early elementary school: The roles of beginning knowledge, student engagement, and instruction. Elementary School Journal, 108, 115–130.
3.
Center on Education Policy. (2007). Choices, changes, and challenges: Curriculum and instruction in the NCLB era. Washington, DC: Author.
4.
ChatterjiM. (2006). Reading achievement gaps, correlates, and moderators of early reading achievement: Evidence form the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS) kindergarten to first grade. Journal of Education Psychology, 98, 489–507.
5.
ClaessensA.DuncanG.EngelM. (2009). Kindergarten skills and fifth-grade achievement: Evidence form ECLS-K. Economics of Education Review, 28, 415–427.
6.
CoatesD. (2003). Education production functions using instructional time as an input. Education Economics, 11, 273–292.
7.
ColeyR. (2002). An uneven start: Indicators of inequality in school readiness. Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service.
8.
CovayE.PuccioniJ. (2013). Inequality in non-cognitive skills and cumulative disadvantage. Paper presented at the American Sociological Association annual conference, New York.
9.
DatarA. (2006). Does delaying kindergarten entrance give children a head start?Economics of Education Review, 25, 43–62.
10.
DesimoneL.LongD. (2010). Teacher effects and the achievement gap: Do teacher and teaching quality influence the achievement gap between Black and White and high- and low-SES students in the early grades?Teachers College Record, 112, 3024–3073.
11.
DobieW.FryerR. G. (2011). Getting beneath the veil of effective schools: Evidence from New York City (Working paper 17632). Washington, DC: National Bureau of Economic Research.
12.
DreebanR.GamoranA. (1986). Race, instruction, and learning. American Sociological Review, 51, 660–669.
13.
DuncanG.DowsettC.ClaessensA.MagnusonK.HustonA.KlebanovP.…CristaJ. (2007). School readiness and later achievement. Developmental Psychology, 43, 1428–1446.
14.
ElbaumB.VaughnS.HughesM. T.MoodyS. W. (2000). How effective are one-to-one tutoring programs in reading for elementary students at-risk for reading failure? A meta-analysis of the intervention research. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 605–619.
15.
FantuzzoJ.Bulotsky-ShearerR.McDermottP.McWayneC.FryeD.PerlmanS. (2007). Investigation of dimensions of social-emotional classroom behavior and school readiness for low-income urban preschool children. School Psychology Review, 36, 44–62.
16.
FantuzzoJ.SekinoY.CohenH. L. (2004). An examination of the contributions of interactive peer play to salient classroom competencies for urban Head Start children. Psychology in the Schools, 41, 323–336.
17.
FryerR. G.LevittS. D. (2004). Understanding the Black-White test score gap in the first two years of school. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 862, 447–464.
18.
FryerR. G.LevittS. D. (2005). The Black-White test score gap through third grade (Working paper No. w11049). Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research
19.
GrazionoP. A.ReavisR. D.KeaneS. P.CalkinsS. D. (2007). The role of emotion regulation in children’s early academic success. Journal of School Psychology, 45, 3–19.
20.
GuarinoC. M.HamiltonL.LockwoodJ. R.RathburnA. H. (2006). Teacher qualifications, instructional practices, and reading and mathematics gains of kindergartners. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.
21.
GuthrieJ.WigfieldA.YouW. (2012). Instructional contexts for engagement and achievement in reading. In ChristensonS. L.ReschlyA. L.WylieC. (Eds.), Handbook of research on student engagement (pp. 601–634). New York, NY: Springer.
22.
HamreB. K.PiantaR. C. (2007). Learning opportunities in preschool and early elementary classrooms. In PiantaR. C.CoxM. J.SnowK. (Eds.), School readiness and the transition to kindergarten in the era of accountability (pp. 49–84). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.
23.
HeafnerT. L.FitchettP. G. (2012). National trends in elementary instruction: Exploring the role of social studies curricula. Social Studies, 103, 67–72.
24.
HowesC.BurchinalM.PiantaR.BryantD.EarlyD.CliffordR. (2008). Ready to learn? Children’s pre-academic achievement in pre-kindergarten programs. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 23, 27–50.
25.
HowseR. B.CalkinsS. D.AnastopoulosA. D.KeaneS. P.SheltonT. L. (2003). Regulatory contributors to children’s kindergarten achievement. Early Education and Development, 14, 101–119.
26.
HuL.BentlerP. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.
27.
KlineR. B. (2011). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
28.
LeeV.BurkhamD. (2002). Inequality at the starting gate. Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute.
29.
Li-GriningC. P.Votruba-DrzalE.BachmanH. L.Chase-LansdaleP. L. (2006). Are certain preschoolers at risk in the era of welfare reform? The moderating role of children’s temperament. Children and Youth Services Review, 28, 1102–1123.
30.
Li-GriningC. P.Votruba-DrzalE.Maldonado-CarrenoC.HaasK. (2010). Children’s early approaches to learning and academic trajectories through fifth grade. Developmental Psychology, 46, 1062–1077.
31.
LinH. H.FreemanL.ChuK. L. (2009). The impact of kindergarten enrollment age on academic performance through kindergarten to fifth grade. European Journal of Social Science, 10, 45–54.
32.
McClellandM. M.CameronC. E.ConnorC. M.FarrisC. L.JewkesA. M.MorrisonF. J. (2007). Links between behavioral regulation and preschoolers’ literacy, vocabulary, and math skills. Developmental Psychology, 43, 947–959.
33.
McWayneC.FantuzzoJ.McDermottP. (2004). Preschool competency in context: An investigation of the unique contribution of child competencies to early academic success. Developmental Psychology, 40, 633–645.
34.
MorrisonF. J.ConnorC. M. (2002). Understanding schooling effects on early literacy: A working research strategy. Journal of School Psychology, 40, 493–500.
35.
MuthénL. K.MuthénB. O. (2012). Mplus user’s guide (7th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Author. (Original work published 1998)
36.
National Center for Education Statistics. (2002). User’s manual for the ECLS-K first grade public-use data files and electronic code book. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement.
37.
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care Research Network. (2003). Do children’s attention processes mediate the link between family predictors and school readiness?Developmental Psychology, 39, 581–593.
38.
PatallE. A.CooperH.Batts AllenA. (2010). Extending the school day or school year: A systematic review of research. Review of Educational Research, 80, 401–436.
39.
PiantaR. C.La ParoK.PayneC.CoxM. J.BradleyR. (2002). The relation of kindergarten classroom environment to teacher, family, and school characteristics and child outcomes. Elementary School Journal, 102, 225–238.
40.
PonitzC.Rimm-KaufmanS.GrimmK.CurbyT. (2009). Kindergarten classroom quality, behavioral engagement, and reading achievement. School Psychology Review, 38, 102–120.
41.
PorterA. (1991). Creating a system of school process indicators. Education Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 13, 13–29.
42.
PuccioniJ. (2015). Parents’ conceptions of school readiness, transition practices, and children’s academic achievement trajectories. The Journal of Educational Research, 108, 1–18.
43.
RaverC. C.GarnerP.Smith-DonaldR. (2007). The roles of emotion regulation and emotion knowledge for children’s academic readiness: Are the links casual? In PiantaR.CoxM.SnowK. (Eds.), Kindergarten transition and early school success (pp. 121–148). Baltimore, MD: Brookes.
44.
ReadyD. D.LoGerfoL. F.LeeV. E.BurkamD. T. (2005). Explaining girls’ advantage in kindergarten literacy learning: Do classroom behaviors make a difference?Elementary School Journal, 106, 21–38.
45.
ReardonS.GallindoC. (2009). The Hispanic-White achievement gap in math and reading in the elementary grades. American Educational Research Journal, 46, 853–891.
46.
ReardonS. F.RobinsonJ. P. (2008). Patterns and trends in racial/ethnic and socioeconomic academic achievement gaps. In LaddH.FiskeE. (Eds.), Handbook of research in education finance and policy (pp. 497–516). New York, NY: Routledge.
47.
RouseC.Brooks-GunnJ.MclanahanS. (2005). School readiness: Closing racial and ethnic gaps. The Future of Children, 15, 5–14.
48.
SyS. R.SchulenbergJ. E. (2005). Parent beliefs and children’s achievement trajectories during the transition to school in Asian American and European American families. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29, 505–515.
49.
TorgesonJ. K.AlexanderA. W.WagnerR. K.RashotteC. A.VoellerK. K. S.ConwayT. (2001). Intensive remedial instruction for children with severe reading disabilities: Immediate and long-term outcomes from two instructional approaches. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 33–58.
50.
VaughnS.Linan-ThompsonS.HickmanP. (2003). Response to instruction as a means of identifying students with reading/learning disabilities. Exceptional Children, 69, 391–409.
51.
WangA. (2010). Optimizing early mathematics experiences for children from low-income families: A study on opportunity to learn mathematics. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37, 295–302.
52.
WangJ. (1998). Opportunity to learn: Impacts and policy implementation. Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 2–3, 137–156.
