The West Delaware School Board, at their regular monthly meeting on Monday, March 12, discussed the current junior kindergarten (JK) program and possible changes that could be implemented for the next school year.

Presently, West Delaware has two sections of JK taught by Deb Goettsch and Jane Adams, who teach on alternate days in the same classroom. The two classes each have 15 students and attend school all day, every other day.

JK students must meet the same age requirements of students attending kindergarten and be five years-old by Sept. 15. The purpose of JK provides an alternate start to school, and the decision to send a child to JK belongs solely to the parent.

Goettsch told the board many parents send their children to JK because the children are younger, but there are many reasons why parents may opt to utilize the JK program.

She told the board, “Maturity plays a big part. Most are young five year-olds.”

Board President Gary Johnson mentioned it appears St. Mary’s Catholic School in Manchester will offer kindergarten the 2007-2008 school year for the first time, which would more than likely take away one section of kindergarten at Lambert Elementary. The current six sections of kindergarten at West Delaware would be reduced to five sections.

Due to the decrease of a section and the gaining of a classroom, Johnson thought it was a good opportunity to analyze what options are available at the JK and kindergarten level for 2007-2008. JK is a fully funded program within the district so it would not affect the budget if JK and kindergarten were restructured. Johnson suggested expanding JK to an all day, every day program, noting some five year-old students who are being sent to kindergarten may benefit from JK services.

He asked the current kindergarten teachers who were present at the meeting, “If you have kids that aren’t doing well, does it take a lot of teacher time away from other kids?”

Kindergarten teacher Sue Beck responded, “A lot depends on the group dynamics, but sometimes one or two kids can impact a class a lot.”

The main difference between JK and kindergarten is the means of assessment. While both programs cover much of the same material, kindergarten students are expected to pass curriculum benchmarks in order to progress academically.

“They [kindergarten students] really, truly need to be ready to learn” Beck emphasized.

Kindergarten teacher Pam Koloc added, “It’s important for parents to know expectations for kindergarten have changed in recent years.”

The board asked the kindergarten teachers if many students have to repeat the school year. The teachers explained while there have been more repeats in recent years, some have been avoided because after observation in the first weeks of school, kindergarten teachers may recommend some students take advantage of JK services for a year before moving on to kindergarten.

Kindergarten teachers also utilize many volunteers, including parents, sixth grade students, and eighth grade students, to help kindergarten students who are having trouble academically; teachers say this has been helpful for some students. In addition, the kindergarten classes benefit from a reading strategist who spends some time with each class per day.

JK teachers said some parents choose JK for their children because of its half-time schedule, and the children may struggle with an all day, every day schedule. Curriculum would not change for JK; teachers would be able to go more in depth with concepts with more time provided on an every day basis.

After discussion, Johnson reiterated, “We have an opportunity this year we haven’t had in the past.” He noted with one less section of kindergarten there would be an empty classroom and perhaps every day JK would be the most efficient way to utilize the room. He emphasized the change would need to be educationally sound and supported by parents.

In order to discover if the support of parents is present, the district will be conducting a poll of JK and kindergarten parents.

Upcoming meetings for the West Delaware School Board include: a joint meeting with the Maquoketa Valley and Edgewood-Colesburg School Boards on March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Edgewood-Colesburg High School Media Center, and the regular April meeting, which has been moved from Monday, April 9 to Thursday, April 12 at 7 p.m. at the District Conference Center. The Proposed Budget Estimate Public Hearing will be held at the April 12 meeting