Session Information
15 SES 04, International Point of View
Paper Session
Contribution
The aim of this project was to synthesise a wide range of research into a position statement designed to inform and guide research, policy and practice in the area of transition to primary school. While the project was undertaken in Australia, its research participants came from eight countries, (Australia, USA, New Zealand, Iceland, Finland, UK, Sweden, Hong Kong) and the final position statement has clear international relevance to the transition to school research, policies and practices.
The importance of positive transitions to school has been emphasised in research around the world (Dunlop & Fabian, 2007; Pianta & Cox, 1999). It is well established that a successful start to elementary school is linked to later positive educational and social outcomes (Alexander & Entwisle, 1998, Peters, 2010). Early childhood education researchers, practitioners and policy makers are aware of this research and realize the necessity of establishing a position concerning the importance of successful transition to school.
This is particularly the case in the light of the many pressures that are experienced by educators in prior-to-school settings and the first years of school. In Australia, as in other countries, an increasingly focus on children’s readiness for school has emerged, coupled with perceived pressure to push-down school curriculum to prior-to-school settings. Anecdotally at least, such pressures are related to increased focus on national testing. The same trends have been reported in the US and UK (Fisher, 2010; Wesley, & Buysse, 2003).
At the same time as an increased focus on children’s readiness for school, there is evidence that many children start school without having accessed high quality early childhood programs or other services that support their optimal growth and development. For example, the recent roll-out of the Australian Early Development Index (AEDI) in Australia (Centre for Community Child Health and telethon institute for Child health Research, 2009) indicates that significant numbers of Australian children are considered to be ‘developmentally vulnerable’ across at least one developmental domain at the time they start school. These children are overwhelmingly considered to be ‘unready’ for school.
Rather than consider the labels ‘ready’ or ‘unready’, and embrace a deficit approach to starting school, the theoretical framework adopted in this project reconceptualises transition to school in the light of social justice, human rights (including children’s rights), educational reform and ethical agendas, as well as the established impact of a positive transition to school on children’s ongoing learning, development and wellbeing. The set of beliefs underpinning the position statement incorporate:
understandings of all children as competent, capable and creative, who have already learned a great deal before they enter school, regardless of their context or backgrounds;
acknowledging and supporting children as active participants in their own transition and learning;
recognising and valuing the strengths of all involved in transitions to school;
genuine partnerships involving reciprocal, responsive, respectful relationships;
critical reflection on established policies and practices and their underlying assumptions; and
commitment to curriculum and pedagogy relevant to children’s characteristics, interests and circumstances.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Alexander, K. L., & Entwisle, D. R. (1998). Facilitating the transition to first grade: The nature of transition and research on factors. Elementary School Journal, 98(4), 351-364. Centre for Community Child Health and Telethon Institute for Child Health Research. (2009). A snapshot of early childhood development in Australia – AEDI national report, 2009. Australian Government: Canberra. Retrieved from http://www.aedi.org.au Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2007). Research methods in education (6th edn.). London: RoutledgeFalmer. Dunlop, A-W., & Fabian, H. (Eds.) (2007). Informing transitions in the early years: Research, policy and practice. London: OUP/McGraw Hill. Educational Transitions and Change (ETC) Research Group. (2011). Transition to school: Position statement. Albury-Wodonga: Research Institute for Professional Practice, Learning and Education, Charles Sturt University. Available on-line: www.csu.edu.au/research/ripple/research-groups/etc/ Fisher, J. (2010). Moving on to Key Stage 1. Maidenhead, UK: Open University Press. Peters, S. (2010). Literature review: Transition from early childhood education to school. Waikato: New Zealand Ministry of Education. http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/ece/78823 Pianta, R.C., & Cox, M. (Eds.) (1999). The transition to kindergarten. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes. Wesley, P. W., & Buysse, V. (2003). Making meaning of school readiness in schools and communities. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 18, 351-375.
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