Discrepancies in Assessing Preschool Readiness: A Comparative Study of Parent and Teacher Perspectives on Three-to-Four-Year-Olds

Abstract This study investigates preschool readiness in children aged 3–4 years through a comparative analysis of parent and teacher assessments. While early childhood development is a critical predictor of future academic success, there remains a significant research gap regarding how different informants perceive developmental milestones during the initial transition to preschool. Using the Preschool Education Questionnaire, data were collected from a large sample of parents and teachers in the Czech Republic to evaluate cognitive, motor, social, and language domains. The findings reveal systematic differences between informant groups, particularly in language and social-emotional ratings, where parents tended to provide more optimistic evaluations than teachers. These results highlight the necessity of multi-informant assessment frameworks to obtain a holistic view of a child’s development. By identifying these perceptual discrepancies, the study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of school readiness and offers practical implications for early intervention and parent-teacher communication in preschool education.