Redshirting in Kindergarten The Extent, Patterns, and Implications of Kindergarten “Redshirting”

Kindergarten “redshirting”—the decision to delay a child’s kindergarten entry—may have consequences not only for the redshirted child but for other children whose grade cohort is affected. We use nationally-representative data to estimate the prevalence of redshirting, its relationship to observable characteristics, and its impact on the composition of kindergarten cohorts. We find that only 4 percent of children delay kindergarten, a lower number than typically reported. Male, white and high SES children are most likely to delay kindergarten. However, we find no evidence that delayed entry is related to children’s social or cognitive skills prior to school entry. Given the low redshirting rates nationwide, redshirting has only modest effects on the magnitude of national kindergarten-entry achievement gaps.