Senate Bill 399: Compulsory School Attendance for 6-year-olds

Authors:
Legislative Educational Planning Committee

Summary:
This bill would lower the compulsory school attendance age from 7 to 6.

Note: This bill does not contain an actual exemption from compulsory attendance based on parental objection. Instead, this bill would allow a parent to exempt their child from the grade level of kindergarten, while still requiring attendance at school.

Status:

1/3/2008		(Senate) Prefiled for introduction
1/14/2008		(Senate) Introduced, Referred to Education
2/26/2008		(Senate) CR: Be passed as am. by Education
2/28/2008		(Senate) COW: CR be adptd; be further am.; be passed as am. -SJ 1376; EFA: Passed as am.; Yeas 36 Nays 3 -SJ 1377
2/29/2008		(Senate) Engrossed -SJ 1386
2/29/2008		(House) Received and introduced -HJ 1492
3/4/2008		(House) Referred to Education -HJ 1511
3/6/2008		(House) Hearing: Wednesday, 3/12/08, 9 a.m., Room 313-S

HSLDA's Position:
Oppose!

Action Requested:
Please call members of the House Education Committee and ask them to reject this harmful bill.

1. Call your own representative if he or she is listed below and give the message below (in your own words). Use our Legislative Toolbox to find the name of your representative.

2. In addition to calling your own representative, call several others. If your last name begins with A-G, call those in group 1; if your last name begins with H-M, call group 2; N-R, call group 3; S-Z, call group 4.

Your message can be as simple as: “Please vote no on S.B. 399. It will hurt children because many 6-year-olds are not developmentally ready for school. Parents know their children best. Parents, not the government, should decide whether they start school at 6 or 7.”

Since this bill undermines the authority of all parents, not just homeschoolers, it is not necessary to state that you are a homeschooler.

House Education Committee Members:

Background:

According to the 2005 NAEP, test scores of children from states which have low compulsory school attendance ages (5-6) did not score any higher than children from the other states, and in some subjects their average was actually lower.

Many education experts have concluded that beginning a child’s formal education too early may actually result in burnout and poor scholastic performance later.

A report published February 6, 2007 by the Goldwater Institute examines Stanford 9 test scores and finds Arizona kindergarten programs initially improve learning but have no measurable impact on reading, math, or language arts test scores by fifth grade.

The data show that students in schools with all-day kindergarten programs have statistically significant higher 3rd-grade test scores, but there is no impact on 5th-grade scores. This finding is consistent with previous research. Forcing children into school early delivers short-term benefits at best.

Another significant impact of expanding the mandatory schooling is the inevitable tax increase to pay for more classroom space and teachers to accommodate the additional students compelledto attend public schools. When California raised the upper age limit of compulsory attendance, unwilling students were so disruptive that new schools had to be built just to handle them and their behavior problems, all at the expense of the taxpayer.

For more information on compulsory attendance, please see our memorandum, “Mandatory Kindergarten Is Unnecessary.”

Other Resources

E-lert—February 28, 2008— Kansas: Action Needed to Stop Expansion of State Control Over Children!

E-lert—February 29, 2008— Kansas: Battle Moves to House to Stop Greater State Control Over 6-Year-Olds

E-lert—March 7, 2008— Kansas: Action Needed to Stop Expansion of State Control Over Children!

E-lert—March 19, 2008— Kansas: Action Still Needed to Stop Expansion of State Control Over Children!

Bill Text (PDF)    (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)