Kindergarten: full time.

• Position: STATESTATS

More and more, policymakers are realizing that kindergarten should not be an overlooked school year. Studies show that children in full-day kindergarten programs show significantly stronger academic gains over the course of the year than do their counterparts in half-day programs.

The level of enrollment in full-day kindergarten has been steadily increasing over the past 25 years. In 2000, 63 percent of children were enrolled in a full-day public or private program.

Yet, according to the Education Commission of the States, most states lack: clarity on what is full-day kindergarten, universal access to full-day kindergarten, adequate funding, and policies that ensure high quality programs.

State polices differ greatly. Eighteen states define full-day kindergarten in statute. Nine states require school districts to offer full-day programs. Two states require children to attend full-day kindergarten. And seven states provide school districts with a strong financial incentive to offer full-day programs.

STATE FUNDING INCENTIVES FOR FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN

A strong incentive exists when the state...