Academic and nonacademic skills developed in preschool and early elementary years are foundational to important longer-term outcomes¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r? · q1
Currency · newest study 2021 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2026: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q1 i? The academic and nonacademic skills students develop in their preschool and early elementary school years are foundational to important longer-term outcomes. → Beth Tarasawa 2021

Evidence¶

Beth Tarasawa 2021¶

Beth Tarasawa, Angela Johnson, Christine Yankel. (2021). Preparing early learners: Considerations for supporting the kindergarten class of 2021. NWEA Research brief. https://www.nwea.org/research/publication/preparing-early-learners-considerations-for-supporting-the-kindergarten-class-of-2021/

q1 · i? · review · r?

The brief asserts, citing recent research it summarizes, that early academic and nonacademic skills are "foundational to important longer-term outcomes." The available text presents this as a premise, not a new empirical analysis.

"Because the academic and nonacademic skills students develop in their preschool and early elementary school years are foundational to important longer-term outcomes, understanding these changes and finding ways to effectively support our youngest students’ learning is critical for educators and leaders."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Age and Developmental Stage — predictor: learners who differ on it differ in outcomes

Related Claims¶

• Attendance in preschool and kindergarten is framed as important to young learners' school success — related
• Attendance in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten is important, and early-grade chronic absenteeism has identifiable risk factors — related
• Many children enter kindergarten without the foundational mathematics skills needed to succeed — related
• Early ability to delay gratification predicts later academic and social outcomes, but the association is weaker and more context-dependent than originally reported. — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Pre-kindergarten absence is widespread in a large urban district, particularly among African American students and those entering with the lowest skills — related
• Block Play Predicts Math Achievement — related
• Learning is effective when it builds on children's existing knowledge in real-world contexts, and early fraction foundations matter because many older children struggle with rational numbers — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• NELS indicators of math skills, work habits, leadership, teamwork and sports-related skills, and locus of control are related to postsecondary earnings and to the likelihood of attending and completing postsecondary education — related
• Early childhood educators' formal preparation and child development skills are particularly important for successful public preschool programs — related
• Preschool emotion knowledge predicts kindergarten academic achievement one year later — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Children's adult-reported and observed effortful control in early elementary school prospectively predicts academic achievement 6 years later — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• The impact of AI on learning, motivation, and meaning differs by life stage: AI functions as a supplement for those with established skills but risks bypassing foundational experiences for younger learners — related
• Parents play an important role in young children's math development — related
• Selective attention processes are hypothesized to relate to language, literacy, and mathematics, three domains important to early academic skills — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Multiple non-academic competencies (leadership, sports-related skills, work habits, prosocial behavior, locus of control) appear to predict students' later success in higher education and the labor market — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Early math exposure in young children is linked to development, math confidence, and later math use (authors' assertion) — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Attendance in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten is important for young learners — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Difficulty adjusting to kindergarten and first grade can put young children at academic risk — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Exposing young children to early math concepts supports reasoning, problem solving, and later success in and out of school — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Soft skills play an equally important role in education investments and outcomes as cognitive skills — a broader claim this one bears on
• Critical thinking skills can be significantly developed in early primary (grades 1-4), a level where evidence was scarce — related
• Supporting early childhood math development is important for young children's development — a narrower finding that bears on this claim