Although change can be considered an inevitable part of life, the process itself can be both challenging and confronting. This is no less the case than for early adolescents as they negotiate the transition from primary to secondary school. Whilst this transition can be considered a regular part of the formal school experience, it can represent a significant challenge to all who are involved including students, parents and teachers. As schools plan to support these stakeholders through the process an understanding of the issues faced by each group is important. Whilst transition may be fraught a focus on the relational aspects of the process can help to ameliorate many of the challenges presented during this change. This article examines the importance for schools of a focus on relationships to ensure that the concerns of all stakeholders are acknowledged and accounted for in the planning of school transition programs.
AshtonR. (2008). Improving the transfer to secondary school: How every child’s voice can matter. Support for Learning, 23(4), 176–182.
2.
Australian Capital Territory Department of Education and Training. (2005). Teaching and learning in the middle years in the ACT. Canberra: ACT DET
3.
BafumoM. E. (2006). What matters in the middle. Teaching PreK-8, 37(3), 10–12.
4.
ChadbourneR. (2001). Middle schooling for the middle years: What might the jury be considering?Southbank, VIC: Australian Education Union.
5.
ChedzoyS. M.BurdenR. L. (2005). Making the move: Assessing student attitudes to primary-secondary school transfer. Research in Education, 74, 22–35.
6.
CoffeyA. (2009). Managing the Move. ResearchOnline@ND, University of Notre Dame, Australia.
7.
CoffeyA.BerlachR.G.O’NeillM. (2011). Transitioning year 7 primary students to secondary settings in Western Australian Catholic schools: A description of the process. Journal of Catholic School Studies, 83(2), 6–17.
8.
CoffeyA.BerlachR.G.O’NeillM. (2013). Transitioning year 7 primary students to secondary settings in Western Australian Catholic schools: How successful was the move?Research in Middle Level Education Online, 36(10), 1–15.
CrosnoeR.ElderG. H. (2004). Family dynamics, supportive relationships and educational resilience during adolescence. Journal of Family Issues, 25(5), 571–602. doi: 10.1177/0192513X03258307
11.
DalyB. P.ShinR. Q.ThakralC.SeldersM.VeraE. (2009). School engagement among urban adolescents of color: Does perception of social support and neighborhood safety really matter?Journal of Youth Adolescence, 38, 63–74. doi:10.1007/s10964-008-9294-7
12.
DinhamS.RoweK. (2008). Fantasy, fashion and fact: Middle schools, middle schooling and student achievement. Paper presented to BERA, Edinburgh, 3 September.
13.
EliasM. J. (2001). Easing transitions with social-emotional learning. Principal Leadership, 1(7), 20–24.
14.
EliasM. J. (2002). Transitioning to middle school. The Education Digest, 67(8), 41–43.
15.
FullerA. (2001). A blueprint for building social competencies in children and adolescents. Australian Journal of Middle Schooling, 1(1), 40–48.
16.
GanesonK. (2006). Students’ lived experience of transition into high school: A phenomenological study. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia.
HumphreyN.AinscowM. (2006). Transition club: Facilitating, learning, participation and psychological adjustment during the transition to secondary school. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 21(3), 319–331.
19.
JenningsP. A.GreenbergM. T. (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 491–525. doi: 10.3102/0034654308325693.
20.
JohnstoneK. (2001). The lived reality of the transition to high school for rural students. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Australian Association for Research in Education in Education (AARE) Fremantle, Western Australia, 2–6 December.
21.
LetrelloT. M.MilesD. D. (2003). The transition from middle school to high school: Students with and without learning disabilities share their perceptions. The Clearing House, 76(4), 212–214.
22.
LongarettiL. (2006). School transition: Aspirations and inspirations. Paper presented at the AARE Conference, Adelaide, November.
23.
McGeeC.WardR.GibbonsJ.HarlowA. (2003). Transition to secondary school: A literature review. Hamilton: The University of Waikato.
24.
MidgleyC.EdelinK. C. (1998). Middle school reform and early adolescent well-being: The good news and the bad. Educational Psychologist, 33(4), 195–206.
25.
MizelleN. B. (1999). Helping middle school students make the transition into high school. Champaign, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary Early Childhood Education. Retrieved from ERIC database (ED 4332411.
26.
MizelleN. B. (2005). Moving out of middle school. Educational Leadership, 62(7), 56–60.
27.
MizelleN. B.IrvinJ. L. (2000). Transition from middle school into high school. Middle School Journal, 31(5), 57–61.
28.
OlssonC. A.BondL.BurnsJ. M.Vella-BrodrickD. A.SawyerS. M. (2003). Adolescent resilience: A concept analysis. Journal of Adolescence, 26, 1–11.
29.
PeckS. C.RoeserR. W.ZarrettN.EcclesJ. S. (2008). Exploring the role of extra curricula activity quantity and quality in the educational resilience of vulnerable adolescents. Variable and pattern-centred approaches. Journal of Social Issues, 64(1), 135–155.
30.
PrattS.GeorgeR. (2005). Transferring friendship: Girls’ and boys’ friendships in the transition from primary to secondary school. Children & Society, 19, 16–26. doi: 10.1002/CHI.830.
31.
ProsserB. (2008). The role of the personal domain in the middle years teachers’ work. Australian Journal of Middle Schooling, 8(2), 11–16.
32.
ReddyJ.RhodesJ. E.MulhallP. (2003). The influence of teacher support on student adjustment in the middle school years: A latent growth curve study. Development and Psychopathology, 15, 119–138. doi: 10.1017.S0954579403000075
33.
RoeserR. W.EcclesJ. S. (1998). Adolescents’ perceptions of middle school: Relation to longitudinal changes in academic and psychological adjustment. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 8(1), 123–158.
34.
RoeserR. W.EcclesJ. S.SameroffA. J. (2000). School as a context of early adolescents’ academic and social-emotional development: A summary of research findings. The Elementary School Journal, 100(5), 443–471.
35.
RudzinskasA. (2008). Are middle years students unique?Australian Journal of Middle Schooling, 8(2), 24–26.
36.
RyanA. M.PatrickH. (2001). The classroom social environment and changes in adolescents’ motivation and engagement during middle school. American Educational Research Journal, 38, 437–460. doi: 10.3102/00028312038002437.
SweetserG. K. (2003). Transition from primary school to secondary school: The beginning of a journey. Presented at the New Zealand Association for Research in Education and Australian Association for Research in Education (NZARE & AARE) Conference, Auckland, New Zealand, 29 November–3 December.
39.
TobbellJ. (2003). Students’ experiences of the transition from primary to secondary school. Educational and Child Psychology, 20(4), 4–14.
40.
ToppingK. (2011). Primary-secondary transition: Differences between teachers’ and children’s perceptions. Improving Schools, 14(3), 268–285. doi: 10.1177/1365480211419587
41.
YatesL. (1999). Transitions and the Year 7 experience: A report from the 12 to 18 project. Australian Journal of Education, 43(1), 24041.
42.
ZeedykM. S.GallacherJ.HendersonM.HopeG.HusbandB.LindsayK. (2003). Negotiating the transition from primary to secondary school: Perceptions of pupils, parents and teachers. School Psychology International, 24(1), 97–79. doi: 10.1177/0143034303024001010.
43.
ZimmermanM. A.ArunkumarR. (1994). Resiliency research: Implications for schools and policy. Social Policy Report, 8(4), 1–18.
