Transitional kindergarten in California: A guide for parents, primary grade teachers, and early childhood educators

Transitional Kindergarten (TK), a new grade level implemented by the California Department of Education (CDE) for children ages 4 ½ to 5, is meant to serve as a “bridge” between preschool and elementary school. Now in its fourth year of universal implementation, enrollment has been increasing despite the lack of any specific CDE standards for TK. While TK programs have been moving along across school districts, little information is available regarding program quality, developmental appropriateness, and effects on child outcomes. This lack of clarity poses a challenge for parents and other stakeholders facing questions such as whether to move four-year-olds from preschool to TK, or if TK-only classrooms are better than TK/K combination classrooms. In an effort to clarify the often confusing, contradictory, and ever-changing information available regarding TK in California, this project (a research-based, user-friendly TK guide) draws from existing research and synthesizes the information into an easily accessible format. Sources include TK classroom studies, surveys of TK teachers and preschool providers, interviews with TK parents, and CDE documents. The TK guide is ultimately designed to support parents, primary grade teachers, elementary school administrators, and early childhood educators as they seek to make informed decisions on behalf of young children. Two evaluators of the guide, one TK teacher and one professor of education studies, praised the guide’s clear presentation of the information and expressed hope that it will soon be available to all TK stakeholders