The San Antonio Express-News has a very well-written, thoroughly reported package of stories and graphics on the increasingly academic nature of kindergarten. But, unlike a lot of coverage of this issue, the Express-News' piece delves into both the academic challenges disadvantaged kids face as well as the dilemmas that confront educators who are striving to help them catch up and thrive.

For other journalists interested in exploring this subject, this story offers both a good model and several researchers to turn to: they include Sam Meisels and Frances Stott of the Erikson Institute, Jack Fletcher of the University of Houston, and Dominic Gullo of Queens College, here in New York City. Part of the package is a graphic showing the rate at which various Texas school districts hold back kindergartners. Other journalists could track down this data in the communities they cover and explore the reasons for any disparities they turn up.