Transition from Primary to Post-Primary School: Issues for Students with Special Educational Needs
Keywords:
Transition, Primary to Post-Primary, SEN, Special Educational NeedsAbstract
In this, the first of two articles on transition, the author looks at some of the literature on transition from primary to post-primary school and identifies a range of issues that emerge for students with special educational needs (SEN). He argues that pupils with SEN are particularly susceptible to the discontinuities in organisation, curriculum, pedagogy and personal and social interaction that come into sharp relief during and immediately after transfer. The challenges created by these discontinuities are discussed and some possible consequences are noted in order to understand and respond to the increasingly diverse and complex needs of those transferring.
References
Anderson, L.W., Jacobs, J., Schramm, S. and Splittgerber, F. (2000) School Transitions: Beginning of the End or a New Beginning? International Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 33 (4), pp. 325-339.
Barnard, J., Prior, A. and Potter, D. (2000) Inclusion and Autism: Is it Working? London: The National Autistic Society.
Department of Education and Science (DES) (2001a) Report of the Task Force on Dyslexia, Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Department of Education and Science (DES) (2001b) Educational Provision and Support for Persons with Autistic Spectrum Disorders: The Report of the Task Force on Autism, Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Department of Education and Science (DES) (2006) School Matters: The Report of the Task Force on Student Behaviour in Second Level Schools, Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Department of Education and Science (DES) (2007) Inclusion of Students with Special Educational Needs: Post-Primary Guidelines, Dublin: DES.
Drudy, S. and Lynch, K. (1993) Schools and Society in Ireland, Dublin: Gill and Macmillan.
Eccles, J.S., Midgley, C., Wigfield, A., Buchanan, C.M., Reuman, D.A., Flanagan, C. and MacIver, D. (1993) Development During Adolescence, The Impact of Stage Environment Fit on Young Adolescents’ Experiences in School and in Families, American Psychologist, Vol. 48 (2), pp. 90-101.
Eivers, E., Ryan, E. and Brinkley, A. (2000) ‘Characteristics of Early School Leavers: Results of the Research Strand of the 8-15 Year Old Early School Leavers Initiative’, Report to the Department of Education and Science, Dublin: Educational Research Centre.
Galton, M. and Willcocks, J. (1983) Moving from the Primary Classroom, London: Routledge-Kegan Paul.
Galton, M., Gray, J. and Rudduck, J. (1999) The Impact of School Transitions and Transfers on Pupil Progress and Attainment, Research Report 131, Nottingham: Department for Education and Employment.
Galton, M., Gray, J. and Rudduck, J. with Berry, M., Dementriou, J., Edwards, J., Goalen, G., Hargreaves, J., Hussey, S., Pell, T., Schagen, I. and Charles, M. (2003), Transfer and Transitions in the Middle Years of Schooling (7-14): Continuities and Discontinuities in Learning, Research Report 443, London: Department for Education and Skills.
Galton, M., Morrison, I. and Pell, T. (2000) Transfer and Transition in English Schools: Reviewing the Evidence, International Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 33, pp. 341-363.
Hannan, D.F. and Boyle, M. (1987) Schooling Decisions: The Origins and Consequences of Selections and Streaming in Irish Post-Primary Schools, General Research Series No. 136, Dublin: Economic Social and Research Institute.
Hargreaves, A., Earl, L. and Ryan J. (1996) Schooling for Change, London: Falmer Press.
Hargreaves L. and Galton, M. (2002) Transfer from the Primary Classroom: 20 Years On, London: RoutledgeFalmer.
Humphrey, N., Charlton, J. and Newton, I. (2004) The Developmental Roots of Disaffection? Educational Psychology, Vol. 24 (5), pp. 580 594.
Ireland (1993) Report of the Special Educational Review Committee (SERC), Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Ireland (1998) Education Act, Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Ireland (2004) Education for Persons with Special Education Needs Act (EPSEN), Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) (2008) Transitions in the Primary School: Discussion Paper for Assessment in the Primary School and Transition: INTO Consultative Conference on Education 2008, Dublin: INTO.
Lynch, K. and Lodge, A. (2002) Equality and Power in Schools: Redistribution, Recognition and Representation, London: RoutledgeFalmer.
Maras, P and Aveling, E. (2006) Students with Special Educational Needs: Transitions from Primary to Secondary School, British Journal of Special Education, Vol. 33 (4), pp.196-203.
Marshall, B. and Brindley, S. (1998) Cross-phase or Just a Lack of Communication: Models of English at Key Stages 2 and 3 and Their Possible Effect on Pupil Transfer, Changing English, Vol. 5 (2), pp. 123-134.
Martlew, M. and Hodson, D. (1991) Children with Mild Learning Difficulties in an Integrated and in a Special School: Comparisons of Behaviour, Teasing and Teachers’ Attitudes, British Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol. 61, pp. 355-72.
Maunsell, C., Barrett, V. and Candon, M. (2007) Primary to Post-primary: Perceptions of Pupils with Special Educational Needs. In Downes, P. and Gilligan, A.L. (eds) Beyond Educational Disadvantage, Dublin: Institute of Public Administration, pp. 418-428.
Morgan, M. and Kett, M. (2003) The Prison Adult Literacy Survey Results and Implications, Dublin: Irish Prison Service.
Murphy, M., Harrold, M., Carey, S. and Mulrooney, M. (2000) A Survey of the Level of Learning Disability among the Prison Population in Ireland: Final Report, Dublin. The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.
National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) (1999) The Junior Cycle Review-Progress Report: Issues and Options for Development, Dublin: NCCA.
National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) (2007) Guidelines for Teachers of Students with General Learning Disabilities, Dublin: NCCA.
National Council for Special Education (NCSE) (2006) Implementation Report: Plan for the Phased Implementation of the EPSEN Act 2004, Dublin: The Stationery Office.
National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) (2007) Special Educational Needs - A Continuum of Support (Guidelines for Teachers), Dublin: The Stationery Office.
Naughton, P. (2003) Primary to Second-level Transition Programmes: Rationale, Principles and a Framework, Oideas, Vol. 50, pp. 40-65.
Nugent, M. (2007) Comparing Inclusive and Segregated Settings for Children with Dyslexia - Parental Perspectives from Ireland, Support for Learning, Vol. 22 (2), pp. 52-59.
O’Brien, M. (2001) A Study of Student Transfer from Primary to Second-level Schooling: Pupils’, Parents’, and Teachers’ Perspectives, Dublin: DES.
O’Brien, M. (2004) Making the Move: Students’, Teachers’ and Parents’ Perceptions of Transfer from First to Second-level Schooling, Dublin: Marino Institute of Education.
Reid, K. (2005) The Challenge of Truancy and School Absenteeism. In Topping, K. and Maloney, S. (eds) The RoutledgeFalmer Reader in Inclusive Education, London: RoutledgeFalmer pp. 113-130.
Shevlin, M. and Rose, R. (eds) (2002) Encouraging Voices, Dublin: National Disability Authority.
Shiels, G. and Ní Dhálaigh, U. (eds) (2001) Reading Matters: A Fresh Start, Dublin: Reading Association of Ireland.
Smyth, E., Dunne, A., McCoy, S. and Darmody, M. (2006) Pathways through the Junior Cycle: the Experience of Second Year Students, Dublin: The Liffey Press.
Smyth, E., McCoy, S. and Darmody, M. (2004) Moving Up: The Experiences of FirstYear Students in Post-Primary Education, Dublin: The Liffey Press.
Thompson, D. Whitney, I. and Smith, P.K. (2007) Bullying of Children with Special Needs in Mainstream Schools, Support for Learning, Vol. 9 (3), pp. 103-106.
Tilstone, C. and Rose, R. (2003) Strategies to Promote Inclusive Practice, London: Routledge.
Visser, J., Cole, T. and Daniels, H. (2002) 'Inclusion for the Difficult to Include', Support for Learning, Vol. 17 (1), pp. 25-28.
Ward, R. (2000) Transfer from Middle to Secondary School: A New Zealand Study, International Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 33, pp. 365-374.
Warin J. and Muldoon, J. (2009) Wanting to be ‘Known’: Redefining Self-awareness through an Understanding of Self-narration Processes in Educational Transitions, British Educational Research Journal, Vol. 35 (2), pp. 289-303.
West, P., Sweeting, H. and Young, R. (2008) Transition Matters: Pupils' Experiences of the Primary-Secondary School Transition in the West of Scotland and Consequences for Well-being and Attainment, Research Papers in Education: Policy and Practice, 2008, 1-29, London: Routledge.
Wilkin, A., Archer, T., Ridley, K., Fletcher-Campbell, F. and Kinder, K. (2005) Admissions and Exclusions of Pupils with Special Educational Needs: Research Report 608, Slough: NFER.
Zeedyk, M.S., Gallagher, J., Henderson, M., Hope, G., Husband, B. and Lindsay, K (2003) Negotiating the Transition from Primary to Secondary School: Perceptions of Pupils, Parents and Teachers, School Psychology International, Vol. 24, pp. 67-79.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright Notice
Authors contributing to REACH: Journal of Inclusive Education in Ireland retain the copyright of their article and at the same time agree to publish their articles under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial- NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) License allowing third parties to share, copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format under the following terms:
- Attribution (BY): You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- NonCommercial (NC): You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- NoDerivatives (ND): If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
Learn more about Creative Commons licensing.
