Goals Advisers Urge New Twist to School Readiness

By Linda Jacobson

Preparing elementary schools for children should be as much of a goal as preparing children for schools, a new report urges.

Such "ready" schools provide a smooth transition for incoming pupils, offer high-quality instruction while they address individual needs, and commit to staff development, says the report. It takes a different angle on the first national education goal of getting children ready to learn in school.

"Efforts to improve school readiness," the report says, "begin long before children enroll in kindergarten. They begin with efforts to support families, educate parents, expand access to health care, and raise the quality of...