PreK-3 Alignment: Challenges and Opportunities in California

With the infusion of new funds, Governor Gavin Newsom has placed early childhood education high on California's policy agenda. Yet the state still faces the complicated challenge of sustaining and building on the progress children make in preK. Research has shown that preK-3 alignment--coordinating preK-3 standards, curricula, instructional practices, assessments, and teacher professional development--can be an effective means to this end. In interviews with a sample of California school district leaders, researchers sought to better understand preK-3 alignment in the California context. What types of alignment efforts are school districts making? What challenges are they encountering? In what ways does California policy facilitate or hinder alignment efforts? Results revealed: (1) One third of the study districts are not engaged at all in alignment efforts; others are engaged to varying degrees; (2) Divergent beliefs among district leaders about the role and purpose of preK affects alignment efforts; (3) PreK directors who are part of the superintendent's cabinet have broader opportunities for collaborating with district decision makers and increasing acceptance of preK; (4) Elementary principals' formal responsibility for preK is limited to administrative or operational oversight; (5) Different licensing requirements for preK and elementary teachers as well as different salaries and job expectations limit cooperation; and (6) Inconsistent program regulations, multiple funding streams, and competition for scarce state dollars attenuates districts' focus on alignment. Policy implications for the state and for districts are discussed. [This report was written with assistance from Molly Ingle Michie.]