Starting school: Perspectives of Australian children, parents and educators

Bob Perry and Sue Dockett

University of Western Sydney,

Paper presented at the British Education Research Association Conference, Edinburgh September 11-13, 2003

Abstract

Starting school is an important time for young children, their families and educators. Pianta and Kraft-Sayre (1999, p.47), suggest that the transition to school “sets the tone and direction of a child’s school career”.

Data gathered from interviews and questionnaire responses from approximately 300 parents, 300 educators and 300 children have been used to describe the most important issues for children, parents and educators as children start school in New South Wales, Australia. Using grounded theory, a series of categories of responses was devised which reflected the issues raised by respondents. These categories related to: knowledge needed to start school; elements of social adjustment required in the transition to school; specific skills to be mastered; dispositions conducive to a successful start to school; the rules of school; physical aspects of starting school; family issues; and the nature of the educational environment. These categories and the relative value attributed to them by the different groups of respondents form the basis of this paper.

Background

In New South Wales (NSW), Australia, the four-term school year commences in late January, and finishes in early December. The age by which children are legally required to start school is six years. However, children are eligible to start school at the beginning of the school year if they turn five by July 31, in that same year. Children whose birthdays fall after this cut-off date start school the following year. As there is only one annual intake of students, children starting school can vary in age from four-and-a-half to six years. The first year of school, Kindergarten, involves a full day program. In some schools, Kindergarten students finish school 30 minutes prior to other students, at least for the first term.

The Starting School Research Project, based at the University of Western Sydney, involves a group of researchers and a wide ranging Advisory Committee representing peak early childhood organisations, early childhood employer groups, parent associations, school organisations, community and union perspectives (Dockett & Perry, 2001). Over the past six years, the project has investigated the perceptions and expectations of all those involved in young children’s transition to school.

Introduction

Starting school is recognised as a major transition in the life of children (Fabian, 2002). It is a time when children, and their families, are expected to manage changes in their physical surroundings (Dockett & Perry, 1999; Marshall, 1988); changes in social interactions and expectations (Hamre & Pianta, 2001); changes in the type and structure of learning environments (Fabian, 2002); and changes in how children feel about themselves as learners (Alexander & Entwisle, 1988; Early, Pianta, & Cox, 1999). Part of the significance of the transition to school lies in the potential for this to influence later school outcomes. Studies of children in the UK (Tizard, Blatchford, Burke, Farquhar, & Plewis, 1988) and the US (Alexander & Entwisle, 1988; Ramey & Campbell, 1991) have indicated that early school success is linked to positive school trajectories, in terms of both academic achievement and social competence.

Traditionally, starting school has been regarded as a time when children need to adjust to and manage the changes they encounter. Much focus has been turned to individual children’s perceived readiness for school (Meisels, 1999) and the implications of this. More recently, there has been a move away from this notion of children as individual actors in the transition process, solely responsible for their own success or failure. Rimm-Kaufman and Pianta (2000) have applied a contextual model to the transition process, highlighting the importance of interactions and relationships, and the contexts in which each child is embedded, in the transition to school. This ecological approach draws upon the work of Bronfenbrenner (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1998) in describing ways children influence the contexts in which they live, and the ways those contexts also impact on experiences. In this model, “a child’s transition to school is understood in terms of the influence of contexts (for example, family, classroom, community) and the connections among these contexts (eg, family-school relationships) at any given time and across time” (Pianta, Rimm-Kaufman & Cox 1999, p. 4). From this, “the transition to kindergarten is fundamentally a matter of establishing a relationship between the home and the school in which the child’s development is the key focus or goal” (Pianta et al., 1999, p. 4).

This model situates responsibility for an effective transition to school with all involved in the process. Starting school becomes a community issue and a community responsibility. This broad view of transition recognises that there are many contributors to transition experiences and that the perspectives and expectations of each of these contributors shape those experiences in some way. It changes the ways in which transition programs are conceptualised. Rather than a narrow view of transition programs as experiences that prepare children for school by teaching them specific knowledge and skills, it promotes a view of transition programs as opportunities for meaningful and responsive relationships.

Recognising the importance of a range of people in the transition to school means that it is important to know about their perceptions, experiences and expectations. The expectations of adults–parents and educators–have been researched extensively (eg, Davies & North, 1990; Feeney, Grace & Brandt, 2001; Graue, 1993; Hains, Fowler, Schwartz, Kottwitz & Rosenkoetter, 1989; Harradine & Clifford, 1996; Lewit & Baker, 1995). In general, teachers and parents are reported to share some common expectations–for example, that communication skills and social skills are important (Knudsen-Lindauer & Harris, 1989)–as well as some different views. Differences focus on the importance of academic skills, with parents regarding these are more important than teachers (Lewit & Baker, 1995). Teachers have been more likely than parents to view a successful start to school in terms of children being physically healthy, rested and well nourished (Lewit & Baker, 1995). As well, differences have been reported within groups, with teachers in the first year of school focusing on children’s ability to function within a classroom environment, while teachers in prior-to-school settings placed a strong emphasis on skills they saw as necessary in a successful transition to school (Hains, et al., 1989).

Children’s lives and backgrounds, just like those of their families, are diverse. As a result, they experience the transition to school in different ways (Rimm-Kaufman & Pianta, 2000). Despite this growing recognition that starting school experiences of children will differ, there have been comparatively fewer attempts to investigate these experiences from the perspectives of those children (exceptions include Brostrom, 2000; Cousins, 1990; Dockett, Clyde & Perry, 1998; Ghaye & Pascal, 1988; Griebel & Niesel, 2000; Niesel & Griebel, 2001; Peters, 2000; Podmore, Sauvao & Mapa, 2002). These studies report a focus on the importance of friends (Peters, 2000) as well as what children expect will happen at school (Brostrom, 2000). The study reported in this paper investigates the perceptions, expectations and experiences of adults and children in the transition to school.

Method

Pilot studies

A series of pilot studies were undertaken by the Starting School Research Project in the period 1996-1998 to investigate the perceptions and expectations of those involved in children’s transition to school. These studies involved focus group interviews (Minichiello, Aroni, Timewell & Alexander, 1995) with parents, teachers[1] in prior-to-school settings, teachers in school settings, children who had just started school, children who were about to start school, and children who had been at school for some time. Using grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967), interview data were analysed, and response categories were created to reflect the issues which were reported by parents, teachers and children as important to consider when children started school (Dockett & Perry, 1999; Perry, Dockett & Tracey, 1998). These categories, supported by relevant research, were used to develop an extensive questionnaire, which was distributed to parents and teachers across NSW in 1998-2000. The questionnaire was trialed with the assistance of the Advisory Committee for the project.

Questionnaire

The questionnaire was distributed in 15 locations across NSW, which were identified through the use of stratified purposeful sampling (Miles & Huberman, 1994), using the variables of geography (urban, rural and remote communities), socio-economic status (low, middle and high) cultural diversity, and the special needs of children. Decisions relating to socio-economic status and cultural diversity relied on data from organisations represented on the Advisory Committee as well as census data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. A total of 1290 questionnaires were distributed through early childhood and school services in the identified locations. The analysis for this paper is based on a return of 578 questionnaires, a response rate of 45%.

The questionnaire consisted of a wide range of questions about starting school. For the purposes of this paper, only responses to the first question “List the first five things that come into your mind when you think about a/your child starting school” are reported.

Interviews

In addition to the questionnaire developed for adults, small focus group interviews were conducted with children who had just started school, or who were about to start school. Focus groups were organised as informal, conversational contexts, where children were asked to describe what happened as they started school. Children were encouraged to engage in conversations with the interviewer, and with each other, as a means of exploring aspects of starting school that were important to them.

Focus groups lasted for an average of 15 minutes, with the duration dependent on children’s interest and involvement. Mostly, focus groups were conducted in a quiet area of the school or prior-to-school setting. However, some groups were conducted in the playground. With the permission of the children, interviews were audio-recorded.

Coding of responses

Grounded theory was used to establish categories of response from the pilot studies. The categories recognised the source of responses–that is, whether the response came from parents, teachers and/or children; the frequency of responses; and the strength of responses–that is, categories were derived from responses that were not only mentioned frequently, but also by many respondents (Cocklin, 1992). The categories identified in the pilot studies were supported by confirmatory factor analysis (Meredith, Perry, Dockett & Borg, 1999).

Eight categories of response were identified (Table 1). These were used by two independent researchers to code the interview and questionnaire data. Initial inter-rater reliability was established at 94% for questionnaire responses and 96% for interview responses (Perry, Dockett, & Howard, 2000). Once consistency had been reached in coding, a random 10% of responses were coded by independent raters to ensure that such consistency was maintained. Any discrepancies were the focus of discussion, with most being resolved. Any responses that could not be coded consistently were not included in analysis.

Table 1. Categories of responses and examples

Category / Description / Example
Knowledge / Ideas, facts or concepts that need to be known in order to start school /
I can write my name
You have to know numbersKnowing the alphabet, counting
Adjustment / Adjustment to the school context, including interpersonal and organisational adjustment / There are three tables and you sometimes have to sit on the floor
School routines
Can talk with children and adults at school
Follows directions
Skills / Small units of action that could be observed or inferred from observable behaviour /
You have to draw a smiley face
Toilets independently
Identifies own possessions
Disposition / Attitudes towards, or feelings about school or learning / Some friends are different
I cried cause I was scared and a little bit shy
Excited about school
Rules / Fitting in with the school and school expectations /
You have to wear a hat
Lining up
Coping with discipline
Physical / Physical attributes, needs or characteristics. Also includes issues about safety, health and age. / You have to brush your teeth and get dressed [to get ready for school]
It’s really big
Playground safety
Washing hands
Family issues / Issues related to family functioning or involvement with the school / My sister told me the class and what to do
Parent-school communication
Cost
Parent’s role
Educational environment / The nature and/or characteristics of the school environment / You have to draw pictures and you have to do homework and stuff
Choosing a school
Quality and nature of education provided
How the school caters for individual children/children with special needs

N.B. Comments in italics are quotes from children Other comments listed are taken from adults’ questionnaire responses.

Results

Teachers and parents

Completed questionnaires were received from 298 parents and 280 teachers. Teacher respondents were drawn from both prior-to-school (53, 19%), and school settings (189, 67%). Eleven percent of teacher respondents (31) did not identify the setting in which they taught, and a further 7 listed their educational setting as “other”.

Of the298 responses from parents, 108 (36%) had a child who was about to start school and 165 (55%) had a child who had just started school. A further 25 respondents (8%) did not specify their child’s situation.

As respondents were asked to specify a list of five items in response to the question “List the first five things that come into your mind when you think about a/your child starting school”, there were potentially 1490 items from parents and 1400 from teachers. The actual total of items for parents was 1298 and for teachers, 1264. Percentages reported in Table 2 reflect these actual totals. These percentages are presented graphically in Figure 1.

Children

Focus group transcripts were analysed according to the categories presented in Table 1 to ascertain the issues regarded as important by children. Because of the informal nature of the focus groups, much of the conversation in some groups did not relate to starting school. This general conversation was not coded. Responses that related to starting school were coded for a total of 310 children (113, 36%), who were about to start school, and 197 (64%), who had recently started school). A total of 3074 responses were coded for children, with an average of 10 comments per child.