Relationship of School Entrance Age to Academic and Social Performance

Abstract The purpose of this study was to determine if children's chronological age is related to academic and social performance in school. Subjects were 699 students referred to and evaluated by the school psychologist, 149 students referred to and placed in the Primary Mental Health Project (PMHP), 423 students evaluated for potential gifted placement, 171 students placed in the gifted education program, and 234 students placed in the pre-first grade. The subjects were chosen during 1979 through 1985 from all the students in Grades K through 12 in a small school district in upstate New York. Kendall's tau analyses were completed to determine whether the proportion of students referred to the various programs/services correlated with birth date. Sex effects were also analyzed. Results indicated significance only for older students being referred more often for gifted evaluation, younger students being placed more often in pre-first grade, and boys being referred more often for psycho-educational evaluation and PMHP placement. Age of entrance was not related to referral for psycho-educational evaluation, type of referral (academic or social/-behavioral), and placement in PMHP or the gifted program.