Anders Garpelin

Transition to School: A Rite of Passage in Life

Transitions in educational systems are organised in different ways around the world. Children pass through a number of marked transitions, organised on the basis of age group, stages or types of schools. Our research group has studied transitions in the educational system of Sweden, focusing especially on the perspectives of children and young people. In our research, a connection is made between such transitions and the concept of rites of passage. This chapter explores these theoretical foundations, examines how these have influenced our research, outlines plans for future studies and, finally, considers implications, dilemmas and questions.

Teacher’s perspective on how to promote children’s learning in reading and writing

The aim of the study is to deepen the understanding of teacher’s perspective on how to promote all children’s learning in reading and writing in grade 1 of primary school. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in a Swedish context with 18 primary school teachers, representing a large collective experience from working as teachers in grade 1. The result shows there is a lack of sharing information and experiences, between preschool class and grade 1, concerning reading and writing activities and instructions. The teachers’ perspectives on reading and writing instruction can be described as pluralistic, in the sense that each teacher refers to several strategies and approaches to promote learning and development related to reading and writing. The variation of children appears to give meaning to the work of the teachers in the study, though it also is associated with challenges e.g. the experience of being alone and not sufficient to support children’s different abilities, experiences and needs. According to teachers in the study, the additional support in schools is more remedial than preventive since the resources are mainly invested in older students.

International Perspectives on the Pedagogies of Educational Transitions

There has been a great deal written recently about children starting school, particularly primary school. All of the stakeholders in these transitions to school have been considered, along with matters of readiness – for the child, family, educators, schools and communities; adjustment and adaptation; continuity and change in curricula and learning; and the opportunities, aspirations, expectations and entitlements encompassed in the transformation of roles involved. As the children move from their prior-to-school experiences – preschool, child care, home, other out-of-home care – to school, they experience many changes. One of these is often a change from a primarily play-based pedagogical approach in the prior-to-school setting to perhaps a more structured, even formal pedagogy in school. But what about the pedagogies of the transitions themselves? Children do not stop learning and teachers do not stop teaching as children are in the process of transition to school. There are pedagogies of transition employed. This book explores these pedagogies through the work of an international alliance of transitions to school researchers from five countries – Iceland, Scotland and Sweden (European) and Australia and New Zealand (Antipodean). This alliance is named Pedagogies of Educational Transitions – POET.

Obstacles and Challenges in Gaining Knowledge for Constructing Inclusive Educational Practice: Teachers’ Perspectives

In this chapter we explore teachers’ perceptions of children’s diversity in different educational settings. Using interviews with teachers from Swedish preschools, preschool classes and the first grade in primary school, we aim to study transitions in school from the perspectives of several actors. The theoretical framework we employ is influenced by an ecological approach to understanding children’s needs in educational transitions. The teachers’ reflections on these three transitions emphasised the importance of context when responding to children’s needs. The teachers also described transitions as dynamic processes in which factors and conditions at different levels interact.

Pedagogies of Educational Transition: Current Emphases and Future Directions

In exploring the pedagogies of educational transitions, the chapters in this book reflect both the personal and collective nature of transitions. While transitions are experienced by individuals, they occur within social, educational, community, political, economic and institutional frames, involving children and families in expanding sets of relationships. Examining experiences of transition not only illuminates the potential influences in individual lives but also contributes to our collective understandings of transition. As a result, we can highlight the journeys of transition for individual children and families and discuss the shared transition experiences of children in Sweden as they move from preschool to the preschool class and then to school, challenges in recognising diversity and promoting inclusion in different contexts, the experiences of Indigenous children as they start school in Australia and New Zealand, implications for children as they experience different pedagogical and curriculum approaches across preschool and school in Iceland and the potential of transitions as a focus for change in Scotland.

Educational Practices and Children’s Learning Journeys from Preschool to Primary School

Children all around the world pass through a number of transitions in educational systems. These transitions are organised in different ways in different countries. In Sweden, children pass through three school forms in early childhood education: preschool, preschool class and primary school. In a research project funded by the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish POET group conducted case studies in three municipalities, using participant observations, semi-structured interviews and focus group interviews. The aim has been to deepen the understanding of children’s learning journeys from preschool into school. A second aim has been to examine the long-term implications of educational practices across the transitions for children’s learning and participation. In this chapter, some findings from the research project are presented. The results show how the complex structure of Swedish early childhood education creates challenges for children and their learning journeys.