ABSTRACT

The main objective of this article is to offer a synthesis on school readiness, as it is understood today in fundamental research. In a moment in which early education is a very important issue in Romania, school readiness is a hot topic in international research. Looking at it from this perspective, all we would learn about school readiness from other educational systems can be informative for an optimal reconceptualization of our educational system. The article begins with a broad definition of school readiness and a description of the multiple levels of this concept. Afterwards, we try to understand when and how to assess school readiness, and outline the variations that exist between cultures, communities and individuals. The paper ends with recommendations for the reconceptualization of early education in the Romanian educational system, where the focus should be on child development and progress, and not on child assessment per se.

KEYWORDS: school readiness, abilities, assessment, preschool development.