Child and family characteristics, main developmental activities, and parental expectations for children, kindergarten classes of 1998–1999 and 2010–2011, by socioeconomic status (SES)
| 1998–1999 | Low-SES (quintile 1) | Low-middle SES (quintile 2) | Middle SES (quintile 3) | High-middle SES (quintile 4) | High-SES (quintile 5) | All quintiles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Child and family characteristics and main developmental activities | |||||||
| Race/ethnicity | White | 26.40% | 53.70% | 61.20% | 68.10% | 78.80% | 57.70% |
| Black | 26.20% | 17.80% | 15.50% | 12.00% | 6.40% | 15.60% | |
| Hispanic | 39.80% | 21.20% | 15.80% | 12.70% | 6.80% | 19.20% | |
| Hispanic English language learner (ELL) | 28.40% | 9.50% | 4.80% | 3.10% | 1.40% | 9.40% | |
| Hispanic English speaker | 11.50% | 11.70% | 10.90% | 9.60% | 5.40% | 9.80% | |
| Asian | 2.30% | 1.70% | 2.30% | 2.70% | 4.70% | 2.70% | |
| Other | 5.30% | 5.60% | 5.30% | 4.40% | 3.40% | 4.80% | |
| Poverty status | Lives in poverty | 71.30% | 22.30% | 10.60% | 4.20% | 1.10% | 21.80% |
| Language | Child’s language at home is not English | 31.20% | 12.00% | 7.00% | 6.10% | 5.30% | 12.30% |
| Family composition | Not living with two parents | 45.60% | 30.50% | 23.80% | 15.80% | 11.10% | 25.10% |
| Number of family members | 4.84 | 4.55 | 4.42 | 4.36 | 4.40 | 4.51 | |
| First- or second-generation immigrant | 30.30% | 15.10% | 12.80% | 13.10% | 15.40% | 17.30% | |
| Pre-K care arrangements | Pre-K care | 64.20% | 70.90% | 76.50% | 81.00% | 87.80% | 76.20% |
| Pre-K care, center-based | 43.70% | 45.00% | 50.20% | 55.40% | 65.80% | 52.20% | |
| Parental care | 30.50% | 22.60% | 17.20% | 15.40% | 9.90% | 18.90% | |
| Care by relative | 15.90% | 18.30% | 16.20% | 11.80% | 6.60% | 13.70% | |
| Care by nonrelative | 5.30% | 8.20% | 10.90% | 11.60% | 13.70% | 10.00% | |
| Care by multiple sources | 4.60% | 5.90% | 5.50% | 5.80% | 3.90% | 5.20% | |
| Activities indices | Literacy/reading | -0.221 | -0.059 | -0.010 | 0.070 | 0.193 | -0.003 |
| Other educational and engagement activities | -0.114 | -0.011 | 0.014 | 0.042 | 0.071 | 0.002 | |
| Number of books | Average number | 32.4 | 58.1 | 74.3 | 87.9 | 107.3 | 72.5 |
| Number of books, grouped by least to most | 0–25 | 61.70% | 31.60% | 20.20% | 11.30% | 5.00% | 25.50% |
| 26–50 | 23.10% | 34.80% | 30.80% | 30.60% | 21.40% | 28.20% | |
| 51–100 | 11.30% | 23.40% | 32.90% | 36.00% | 41.00% | 29.10% | |
| 101–199 | 1.80% | 4.00% | 5.70% | 6.60% | 9.50% | 5.60% | |
| More than 200 | 2.10% | 6.20% | 10.30% | 15.50% | 23.00% | 11.50% | |
| Parents’ expectations for their children’s educational attainment | |||||||
| Highest education level expected | High school or less | 24.10% | 15.20% | 7.70% | 3.70% | 1.20% | 10.20% |
| Two or more years of college, vocational school | 16.40% | 21.80% | 21.40% | 11.60% | 3.80% | 14.90% | |
| Bachelor’s degree | 33.20% | 38.70% | 46.70% | 58.80% | 57.20% | 47.10% | |
| Master’s degree | 9.20% | 9.40% | 10.30% | 13.60% | 22.80% | 13.10% | |
| Ph.D. or M.D. | 17.10% | 15.00% | 13.90% | 12.30% | 15.00% | 14.60% | |
| 2010–2011 | Low-SES (quintile 1) | Low-middle SES (quintile 2) | Middle SES (quintile 3) | High-middle SES (quintile 4) | High-SES (quintile 5) | All quintiles | |
| Child and family characteristics, and main developmental activities | |||||||
| Race/ethnicity | White | 23.10% | 45.50% | 56.80% | 69.00% | 71.30% | 52.90% |
| Black | 19.60% | 17.00% | 13.40% | 9.40% | 5.80% | 13.20% | |
| Hispanic | 50.40% | 28.30% | 19.70% | 12.20% | 8.60% | 24.10% | |
| Hispanic English language learner (ELL) | 36.10% | 11.90% | 5.20% | 2.10% | 0.90% | 11.40% | |
| Hispanic English speaker | 14.30% | 16.30% | 14.40% | 10.10% | 7.70% | 12.60% | |
| Asian | 2.50% | 2.80% | 3.20% | 4.40% | 8.70% | 4.20% | |
| Others | 4.40% | 6.40% | 7.00% | 4.90% | 5.60% | 5.70% | |
| Poverty status | Lives in poverty | 84.60% | 35.70% | 10.90% | 3.10% | 0.60% | 25.50% |
| Language | Child’s language at home is not English | 40.30% | 15.60% | 8.00% | 5.00% | 7.00% | 15.30% |
| Family composition | Not living with two parents | 54.90% | 41.70% | 34.10% | 19.30% | 9.60% | 31.80% |
| Number of family members | 4.81 | 4.62 | 4.53 | 4.44 | 4.46 | 4.57 | |
| First- or second-generation immigrant | 49.80% | 25.70% | 18.90% | 17.20% | 21.60% | 26.10% | |
| Pre-K care arrangements | Pre-K care | 66.60% | 75.60% | 81.60% | 85.00% | 88.30% | 79.30% |
| Pre-K care, center-based | 44.30% | 47.00% | 53.10% | 61.60% | 69.90% | 55.10% | |
| Parental care | 34.90% | 25.40% | 19.10% | 15.40% | 12.00% | 21.40% | |
| Care by relative | 16.00% | 19.70% | 17.40% | 12.70% | 8.60% | 14.90% | |
| Care by nonrelative | 3.30% | 5.50% | 7.40% | 7.30% | 6.90% | 6.10% | |
| Care by multiple sources | 1.50% | 2.40% | 3.10% | 2.90% | 2.70% | 2.50% | |
| Activities indices | Literacy/reading | -0.231 | -0.038 | 0.033 | 0.094 | 0.171 | 0.008 |
| Other educational and engagement activities | -0.049 | 0.022 | 0.029 | 0.026 | 0.001 | 0.006 | |
| Number of books | Average number | 35.2 | 57.6 | 74.1 | 90.8 | 106.3 | 73.1 |
| Number of books, grouped by least to most | 0–25 | 59.30% | 33.60% | 19.40% | 11.50% | 5.00% | 25.50% |
| 26–50 | 24.70% | 31.70% | 32.50% | 26.90% | 22.40% | 27.70% | |
| 51–100 | 11.20% | 24.80% | 32.30% | 39.00% | 41.70% | 30.00% | |
| 101–199 | 1.70% | 3.10% | 5.50% | 6.50% | 7.70% | 4.90% | |
| More than 200 | 3.10% | 6.80% | 10.30% | 16.20% | 23.20% | 12.00% | |
| Parents’ expectations for their children’s educational attainment | |||||||
| Highest education level expected | High school or less | 11.40% | 6.20% | 5.00% | 2.40% | 1.00% | 5.20% |
| Two or more years of college, vocational school | 16.70% | 25.00% | 17.20% | 9.80% | 3.20% | 14.40% | |
| Bachelor’s degree | 34.80% | 39.10% | 47.00% | 57.10% | 53.10% | 46.30% | |
| Master’s degree | 10.70% | 12.30% | 14.60% | 16.80% | 26.60% | 16.20% | |
| Ph.D. or M.D. | 26.40% | 17.30% | 16.20% | 13.90% | 16.10% | 17.90% | |
Note: SES refers to socioeconomic status.
Source: EPI analysis of ECLS-K, kindergarten classes of 1998–1999 and 2010–2011 (National Center for Education Statistics)