TITLE Full Day Kindergarten at an Inner City Elementary School: Perceived and Actual Effects.

This study examined the actual and perceived effects of full-day kindergarten on students ' growth in play and problem solving, language and literacy, and socioemotional development. Participating in the study were two kindergarten teachers and their classrooms serving similar diverse inner city populations in western Canada, cne a half-day program and the other a full-day program. Data sources included semi-structured interviews with kindergarten staff, anecdotal comments generated by the teacher throughout the year for student report cards, quantitative data on student progress, and quantitative data on a comparison group of students in a half-day kindergarten. The findings indicated that both programs were generally in keeping with principles exhibited by exemplary programs. Instruction in both programs was focused on the whole child and emphasized the role of the learner in social context. All students in the full-day program experienced substantial growth over the course of the year in play and problem solving, language and literacy, and socioemotional development