Tennessee Kindergarten Bill Would Require 'Maturity Test' For Thousands, Shift Age Cutoff Date

Thousands of Tennessee children would be required to pass a "maturity test" every year to enter kindergarten under a new bill passed by the state House of Representatives Wednesday.

Under current law, Tennessee children must be 5 years old by Sept. 30 to enter kindergarten. House Bill 2566 would shift the cutoff date forward to Aug. 31 in fall 2013 and Aug. 15 beginning the year after, ensuring that all kindergarteners are at least five years old upon matriculation. Children who are still 4 years old by the cutoff dates could enter kindergarten with their same-year peers only if they show the maturity of a 5-year-old on a standardized test.

The bill is sponsored by Republican state Rep. Glen Casada and passed by a 68-30 vote. The companion bill awaits a Senate vote.

"There are an element in education that want to get children a universal education from the cradle to the grave. I disagree with that," Casada told the Associated Press. "We want those young people at home with their family for the first several years of their life. That's where the most learning is and that's where the foundation sits."

Casada told the Tennessean that "the trend is to start older," and the proposal stems from recommendations by the state's kindergarten teachers. While the measure's proponents say students who start kindergarten at an older age are more likely to succeed, Casada notes that there is no existing research to support that argument.

Still, Republican state Rep. John Fogerty says a maturity test makes more sense than a birthday requirement because no specific date can determine whether a child is mature enough to attend kindergarten. He also told WPLN that the measure would help kindergarten teachers who struggle with children who "aren't necessarily emotionally, experientially or culturally as mature as they should be."

According to the Tennessean, estimates from legislative staffers show that the measure could save as much as $21 million a year for the state and $11 million for districts. It would also affect the approximately 4,200 students in the state that have birthdays between Aug. 15 and Sept. 30.

The savings led Democrats and other critics to argue that the proposal aims to lay off teachers and deny students of early childhood learning opportunities, as schools will use the decreased kindergarten enrollment as reason to fire teachers. Democratic state Rep. Sherry Jones said savings from the bill should be allocated to pre-kindergarten programs, which would be faced with even longer waiting lists for already limited slots.

"Unless we do that, this really defeats the purpose of education," Jones told AP. "Not everybody can stay home and take care of their children like they would like to. People have to work to eat."

Legislative proposals in Tennessee have garnered national attention as the state House pass in February the so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill, which restricts references to homosexuality in schools, limiting all sexually related instruction to "natural human reproduction science" in kinder garten through eighth grade.

The state's controversial "Monkey Bill" also became law earlier this month after Republican Gov. Bill Haslam declined to act, legalizing the measure that permits teachers to challenge "controversial" subjects like evolution and climate change. The state Senate also passed this month additional language to Tennessee's abstinence-only sex education curriculum that warns against "gateway sexual activity," which many have interpreted to include discouragement of anything that has potential to lead to sex -- including kissing, hand-holding and cuddling.

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Comments

[Andrea Maxson Roddy]

03:46 PM on 05/30/2012

Our county starts at the very first part of August, so our kids still wouldn't be 5 by matriculation. What is the point here?! Some kids aren't even mature enough by the time they are in high school. School is there to teach our children. That is why we pay taxes. Most people are struggling to make it until their child can get into kindergarten. Daycare/pre-school is expensive. I also love the comment about "Casada told the Associated Press. 'We want those young people at home with their family for the first several years of their life. That's where the most learning is and that's where the foundation sits.' " I am lucky enough to be at home, though it would not have been my first choice. Staying at home is a struggle financially, but it would have taken 75% of my salary to put 2 kids in daycare! My daughter was 4 when she started, and she excels. My son will also be 4 when he starts this fall. I see nothing wrong with it.

[streettalk]

08:07 PM on 05/04/2012

maturity test for children your joking of cause because if you are not then i have to ask whats the difference between a mind and a brain.? does not cheese mature with time. and tell me what is time as you see it. what is the difference between a guardian and a par-rent and why are they called this.lol god bless

[iberoguy]

11:25 PM on 05/02/2012

How about if you do not know how to write or read comprehensible, you repeat the course REGARDLESS of your age. You are 15 but still with 5 years old mates. But in our adult wisdom, oh you can not be with a 5 y/o we'll move you on.......that's is why we have so many politicians today.

[acumenguy]

09:12 PM on 05/02/2012

First, Tn "jumps-the shark."
Next, they jumped a piranha tank.
Now, they want to jump a pool full of sasquatch.

Is Tn on a mission to be recognized as the most bass-akwards state in the Union?

[murfiani39]

06:45 PM on 05/02/2012

We need a maturity test for our politicians. Lave the kids alone. Just another out sourced gimmick that will cost the tax payers more money.

[traciek88]

01:57 AM on 05/01/2012

TN has been passing some awful, stupid and backwards laws but this is a fantastic idea. Why should children be forced to go to a full day of school if they are not intellectually or emotionally ready? Some children need that extra year of family and preschool before they are ready enough to learn and focus in elementary school. Children develop at different levels and it's not an insult to the child or parents to put children with those they are at the same as they are despite their age. Not only that, but kindergarten has become so much more rigorous it's insane. When I was in kindergarten barely 20 years ago it more mirrors a preschool class of today. Besides, even if a child is smart enough to be in kindergarten that doesn't mean they have the social skills to survive well in school yet.

[dewey13]

10:35 PM on 04/30/2012

A little known amendment to this was the requirement to raise the drinking age to 25.

This will keep alcohol out of the high schools

[traciek88]

01:53 AM on 05/01/2012

I hope that was said sarcastically. Nothing will keep high schoolers from drinking.

[dewey13]

05:38 AM on 05/01/2012

It's Tennessee.

Think about it

[stopnlisten]

02:25 PM on 04/30/2012

Standardized tests at 5 years old?????????
NO NO NO NO NO.....

[simonqueyes]

12:57 PM on 04/30/2012

Great idea for the parents of the kindergartners too.

[joebikerchef]

09:20 AM on 04/30/2012

I was pushed into school early, missed the cut off date by 3 days...just 3 days...I had no problems, and excellent grades...Then high school came around. I was a 4'10" 78lb squirt as a freshman...and then, a 16 year old senior surrounded by 18 year olds...I'm all good now, but, it would have been better to wait...

[noshortcuts]

11:47 PM on 04/29/2012

There are many traditions that no longer make sense as schools expect higher levels with scripted curriculums at earlier grades. No longer do we have developmental kindergartens. Rather than gross motor block stacking, fine motor finger painting, and socialization play houses, today's K-grade requires children to develop significant reading, writing, and math skills. Note that mega school material publishers make no money on developmental programs. Today's kinder kid must be ready to hit the ground literally running without the time to walk first.

The other tradition that needs to go is the old 9 months on, 3 months off school year. Most studies show a modified year round calendar does a better job of helping students retain learned skills. Teachers also perform better when they have significant breaks every three months. No need to take the summer off to harvest crops.

[ZeraLee]

11:01 PM on 04/29/2012

This is a problem that preschool is supposed to take care of. This change is an exercise in procrastination in the name of short-term penny-pinching. The environment these kids live in will not change. Holding them back a year will stigmatize them and create further problems at the "high school graduation"/"18th birthday" point in their lives.

In the long run, this will allow the problem to fester into a larger and more expensive problem later on. This is how conservatives deal with problems. They close their eyes, hide the checkbook, and wait for someone else to take responsibility. Very "pound of cure".

"There are an element" are=plural, an=singular. Casada lives his disdain for a proper education.

[chris hatala]

03:33 PM on 04/29/2012

How about passing a maturity test to run for office, this would doom the tea party.

[Fhajad034]

12:19 PM on 04/30/2012

It'd be nice, but I dunno, man. It said "standardized test." I come from California and even then I know that's a bad thing, since you can get a lot right by just guessing.

[10YearTeacher]

10:31 AM on 04/29/2012

As a teacher, I totally agree with this. I'm not an early-ed specialist, but a few of my close friends are. One of the biggest complaints I hear from them is getting kids in Kindergarten that are no where near ready. Those kids end up repeating Kindergarten more often than not. That first year is frustrating for both the kids and the teachers. Unless the school has a "young 5s" or "Begindegarten" kind of program, just keep them at home and enjoy them for another year!

[aralpharetta]

01:18 AM on 04/29/2012

Those who PASSED our MATURITY Tests - BRAVO!