Transition to high school

Last updated May 2020

Limited data is available on WA primary school children’s transition to high school.

Overview

The move from primary school to high school is an important transition point for children and can mark the onset of a decrease in engagement in school, particularly for many of WA’s more disadvantaged students.

Attendance rates and levels are generally consistent throughout the primary school years but decline markedly in the secondary school years (from Year 7 onwards).

This data highlights that engagement in school decreases for many children upon entering high school and that the transition from primary school to high school is a critical time for children and young people.

This indicator considers two measures which aim to track how children and young people experience the transition from primary school to high school: optimism about the future and their feelings about the transition to high school.

Areas of concern

The lack of data on how WA children experience the transition from primary school to high school is of concern.

In the Speaking Out Survey 2019, the proportion of students reporting a life satisfaction score of 7 to 10 (out of 10) was significantly higher for Year 4 to Year 6 than Year 7 to Year 10 students (78.6% Years 4 to 6 compared to 68.7% Years 7 to 9).

Last updated May 2020

There is evidence suggesting that children with lower socio-emotional wellbeing find the transition to high school more difficult.¹

Optimism reflects the extent to which children and young people hold generally favourable expectations regarding their future. Higher levels of optimism have been linked to better subjective wellbeing, more persistence and resilience and coping mechanisms, and also better physical health.² Within childhood and adolescence, higher optimism has been linked to lower rates of depression and anxiety, stronger academic achievement and higher peer acceptance.³

The Commissioner’s 2019 Speaking Out Survey asked students to rate on a scale from 0 to 10 where they felt their life was on a scale from the worst (0) to best (10) possible life. While this is not a direct measure of optimism about the future, it does reflect how WA children feel about their life currently and can indicate their level of optimism.

Average ratings were higher for students in Years 4 to 6 than in Years 7 to 9 and 10 to 12 (7.8 in Years 4 to 6 compared to 7.1 in Years 7 to 9 and 6.5 in Years 10 to 12).⁴

With respect to grouped ratings (0 to 4, worst; 5 or 6; and 7 to 10, best), more than three-quarters (78.6%) of Year 4 to Year 6 students rated their life as the best possible.

A significantly lower proportion of female than male Year 4 to Year 6 students rated their life as the best possible (75.9% compared to 81.7%). This result is an early indication of a wellbeing gap between female and male students that manifests itself more significantly throughout the secondary school years. For more information refer to the Positive outlook on life measure in the Mental health indicator for the 12 to 17 years age group.

Year 4 to Year 6 students in different geographic regions and Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students gave largely similar life satisfaction scores.

Highlighting differences between primary school and high school, the proportion of students reporting a life satisfaction score of 7 to 10 was significantly higher for Year 4 to Year 6 than Year 7 to Year 9 students (78.6% Years 4 to 6 compared to 68.7% Years 7 to 10).

Students experiencing disadvantage are also at an increased risk of becoming disengaged from school during the transition from primary to secondary school.⁵ Research by the Telethon Kids Institute has found that socioeconomic disparities in attendance rates which are evident in Year 1, remain constant throughout primary school, and then become wider upon the transition to secondary school.⁶ Poor adjustment to high school and disengagement can lead to multiple other longer-term poor outcomes, including limited employment opportunities.⁷

Endnotes

1. Maguire B and Yu M 2014, Chapter 5: Transition to Secondary School, LSAC Annual Statistical Report 2014, Australian Institute of Family Studies.
2. Carver CS et al 2010, Optimism, Clinical Psychology Review, Vol 30, No 7.
3. Gregory T and Brinkman S 2015 Development of the Australian Student Wellbeing survey: Measuring the key aspects of social and emotional wellbeing during middle childhood, published by the Fraser Mustard Centre, Department for Education and Child Development and the Telethon Kids Institute.
4. Commissioner for Children and Young People WA 2020, Speaking Out Survey 2019: The views of WA children and young people on their wellbeing - a summary report, Commissioner for Children and Young People WA, Perth, p. 39.
5. Hancock KJ et al 2013, Student attendance and educational outcomes: Every day counts, Report for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, pp. 51, 247.
6. Ibid.
7. Maguire, B and Yu M 2014, Chapter 5: Transition to Secondary School, LSAC Annual Statistical Report 2014, Australian Institute of Family Studies.

Last updated May 2020

No data exists on the experiences of WA children in their transition from primary school to high school.

The Australian Institute of Family Studies explored the transition to high school using data from the national Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) and found that a relatively small proportion of children and a slightly higher proportion of parents, reported having difficulties with the transition.¹

Building new friendships was the most commonly reported difficulty by children and their parents. Parents also reported that their children were struggling with the different structure of learning at high school (e.g. multiple subjects and teachers).²

This data cannot be disaggregated by jurisdiction.

Endnotes

1. Maguire B and Yu M 2014, Chapter 5: Transition to Secondary School, LSAC Annual Statistical Report 2014, Australian Institute of Family Studies, p. 100.
2. Ibid, p. 100-101.

Last updated May 2020

At 30 June 2019, there were 1,618 WA children in care aged between five and nine years, more than one-half of whom (55.1%) were Aboriginal.¹

There is no available data on the views of WA children in care about their future or their transition to high school.

Endnotes

1. Department of Communities 2019, Annual Report: 2018–19, WA Government p. 26.

Last updated May 2020

The Australian Bureau of Statistics Disability, Ageing and Carers, 2018 data collection reports that approximately 30,200 WA children and young people (9.2%) aged five to 14 years have reported disability.^1,2

There is no available data on the views of WA children with disability about their future or their transition to high school.

More than 300 Year 7 to Year 12 students with disability who attend mainstream classes or programs participated in the Speaking Out Survey 2019. For more information refer to the Transition from school for the 12 to 17 years age group.  

Endnotes

1. The ABS uses the following definition of disability: ‘In the context of health experience, the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICFDH) defines disability as an umbrella term for impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions… In this survey, a person has a disability if they report they have a limitation, restriction or impairment, which has lasted, or is likely to last, for at least six months and restricts everyday activities.’ Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016, Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia, 2015, Glossary.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics 2020, Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia, 2018, Western Australia, Table 1.1 Persons with disability, by age and sex, estimate, and Table 1.3 Persons with disability, by age and sex, proportion of persons.

Last updated May 2020

There are several reasons why student engagement can decrease upon entering high school, including:¹

• the higher academic expectations and work level in high school may affect students’ engagement
• young people are developing more autonomy from their parents and may have more direct involvement in the decision to attend/not attend school
• young people aged 11 to 15 years are more susceptible to illness and injury than primary school students
• the secondary school environment with students having separate teachers for each subject may also affect children's and parents’ level of engagement with schooling.

Results from the Speaking Out Survey 2019 highlight that some children, and especially female students, experience a significant decline in their life satisfaction and sense of wellbeing as they transition from primary school to high school.² Further in-depth analysis and exploration of these results will be carried out in 2020 to better understand the factors influencing these changes in wellbeing.

More broadly, multiple factors can influence a child’s transition to high school, including:³

• school-level support such as orientation tours at the high school, peer-support programs (buddy programs) and discussion sessions
• socioeconomic and demographic characteristics such as gender, socioeconomic status and whether the child has older siblings
• individual factors such as self-esteem, ability to make friends, temperament and academic performance
• parenting style, research has found that children with parents who are engaged in their education and warm and supportive generally experience smoother transitions.

Some key activities that have been identified as important for a successful transition are:

• assistance with developing new friendships through mentor programs or joint activities with older students
• visits to high schools, induction and taster days, and information booklets
• initiatives that help children develop their social and personal skills (friendships, self-esteem and confidence).⁴

Data gap

The lack of data on how WA children anticipate or experience the transition from primary school to high school is a significant gap. Without this data it is difficult to determine why attendance rates in high school decline and implement appropriate policies and practices to improve attendance and engagement in learning.

Endnotes

1. Hancock KJ et al 2013, Student attendance and educational outcomes: Every day counts, Report for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, p. 248.
2. Commissioner for Children and Young People WA 2020, Speaking Out Survey 2019: The views of WA children and young people on their wellbeing - a summary report, Commissioner for Children and Young People WA, Perth, p. 3.
3. Maguire, B and Yu M 2014, Chapter 5: Transition to Secondary School, LSAC Annual Statistical Report 2014, Australian Institute of Family Studies, p. 84
4. Evangelou M et al 2008, What Makes a Successful Transition from Primary to Secondary School?, Research Report No. DCSF-RR019, Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education 3-14 Project (EPPSE 3-14), United Kingdom Department for Children, Schools and Families, Institute of Education, University of London.

For more information on the transition to high school refer to the following resources:

• Centre for Education, Statistics and Evaluation (CESE) 2017, The role of student engagement in the transition from primary to secondary school: Learning curve 19, NSW Department of Education.
• Evangelou M et al 2008, What Makes a Successful Transition from Primary to Secondary School?, Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education 3-14 Project, United Kingdom Department for Children, Schools and Families, Institute of Education, University of London.
• Hancock KJ et al 2013, Student attendance and educational outcomes: Every day counts, Report for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.