Prof. Curran publ. article in Educational Policy journal

Last week, F. Chris Curran, assistant professor of Public Policy at UMBC, published an article in the journal Educational Policy with co-authors Michael H. Little, Lora Cohen-Vogel, and Thurston Domina of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The article “School Readiness Assessments for Class Placements and Academic Sorting in Kindergarten” examines the relationship between the use of kindergarten readiness assessment data and differential sorting of students by ability across classrooms. 

Curran's findings suggest that using this readiness data for class placements may be predictive of greater sorting by ability across classes, particularly in English/Language Arts.  This study builds on previous research demonstrating that experiences in early education and kindergarten can significantly impact children’s academic trajectories and draws attention to previously understudied implications of readiness assessment use.  The article is available here."