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Gestational Age and Kindergarten School Readiness in a National Sample of Preterm Infants

Prachi E Shah1, Niko Kaciroti2, Blair Richards3

  • 1Division of Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI; Center for Human Growth and Development, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.

The Journal of Pediatrics
|July 30, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Infants born very preterm (VPT) face higher risks of poor school readiness in reading and math. Children born at 32 weeks or later show improved school readiness outcomes.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Pediatrics
  • Early Childhood Education
  • Public Health

Background:

  • School readiness is crucial for academic success.
  • Gestational age at birth is a potential determinant of early childhood development.
  • Understanding the impact of preterm birth on school readiness is vital for intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between gestational age and kindergarten-level reading and math skills.
  • To determine if infants born at lower gestational ages exhibit poorer school readiness compared to those born at term.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from 5250 children in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort.
  • Assessed kindergarten reading and math skills using specialized assessments.
  • Employed multivariate logistic regression to analyze the odds of poor school readiness (defined as scores ≥1.5 SD below the mean) across gestational age categories (VPT, M/LPT, ET, term).

Main Results:

  • A significant association was found between gestational age and poor school readiness in both reading and math.
  • Very preterm (VPT) infants had significantly higher odds of poor school readiness in reading (aOR=2.58) and math (aOR=3.38) compared to term infants.
  • Moderate/late preterm (M/LPT) and early term (ET) infants did not show significantly different odds of poor reading readiness compared to term infants.

Conclusions:

  • Very preterm infants exhibit the highest odds of poor school readiness in reading and math.
  • Children born at 32 weeks gestation or later demonstrated lower odds of poor school readiness.
  • Continuous developmental monitoring is recommended for very preterm infants before kindergarten entry.
Abstract

Keywords:
gestational agekindergartenpreterm infantreading, mathschool readiness

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