Starting School: Who is Prepared? Young Lives’ Research on Children’s Transition to First Grade in Peru

From Niños del Milenio, Grupo de Análisis para el Desarrollo (GRADE), and Young Lives, this research examines the transition from preschool to first grade in Peru. In 2007, Young Lives in Peru began qualitative research on a sub-sample of 4 communities which represent different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. This paper describes findings, generated in the first phase, on the preparedness of schools and teachers for facilitating transition to first grade; parents’ perspectives on early schooling; how much information they have on the transition; and the ways in which children experience this transition.

The research shows how childhood is represented and experienced during early childhood transitions and across different domains (home, school, community). A mixed method approach was used, combining interviews with parents, teachers, and children; participatory techniques with children; home and community observations; and classroom observation at preschool and primary levels. Also, researchers inquired as to the ways in which preschool and first grade teachers and schools interact and exchange information; the types of resources (material, organisational, and intellectual) designed to support teaching in the first grade and their availability; and the impact which teachers' training, attitudes, and ideas have on this transition. In addition, the study inquired about differences in experiences of transition in urban and rural contexts, in indigenous and non-indigenous settings, and in terms of gender.

"Preschool education from 3 to 5 is offered in two ways: formal preschools (similar to kindergarten) and non-formal, community-based programmes, called PRONOEI [Programas no escolarizados de educación inicial - programmes of initial education without schooling]. The main difference between the two services is that whilst preschools have a certified preschool teacher, PRONOEIs have an ‘animator’, usually a woman from the community who is trained by a preschool teacher in charge of about five to ten animators..." Four per cent of children up to 2 years old have access to care services run by the Ministry of Women and Social Development, whilst 59.5 per cent of children aged 3 - 5 have access to preschool education. Issues of integration/separation of preschool, primary, and secondary schools are cited as highly relevant in regard to early transitions. From the data collected, it appears that having preschool and primary levels working in the same school facility seems to contribute somewhat to the communication and exchange between teachers. Other than informal exchange of information, no paedagogical or otherwise relevant information about the children’s abilities, characteristics, or needs is passed from one level to another, in part because of lack of institutional encouragement and in part due to a perception that preschool teachers are less professional than primary teachers.

In some schools, the primary teacher accepts a first grade assignment and then proceeds to teach that class each year at the next grade level throughout the primary grades. Other schools assign a teacher to teach each grade level instead of moving him/her forward with the class each year. Special training is not generally available once a teacher has taken the teacher training coursework. In one instance, an urban group of teachers at the same grade level met to exchange lesson planning and peer training.

Some teacher-parent interaction was found in each situation studied, but there was no conversation around transition. Teachers look for parents to be allies: "they want parents as allies, supporting and working with their children at home; parents who inquire after how their children are progressing; who express interest in their children’s education and are able to provide support for the teacher when they need it."

In general in Peru, "caregivers express a positive view of preschool and see it as an important experience for their children;...preschool is also seen as a place to learn social skills, such as interpersonal communication, independence, how to establish relations with other children, make friends, defend oneself, and become less shy - abilities that will help in first grade but are much broader in nature...." The most ambivalence among parents on preschool attendance was expressed in the Quechua rural communities in the Andes, where half the caregivers agree that preschool education is important and half do not. Additional barriers to rural attendance are distance and availability of a school. In urban areas, barriers to attendance may be hidden costs, but, since parents more often work outside the home, preschool attendance is more useful to them, and, thus, a higher percentage of children attend.

Though children generally expressed curiosity and interest in attending school, physical actions of discipline on the part of the teacher may be a reason that children are afraid of transitioning to school. Children's hesitancy may be countered by parents physically disciplining children to force them to attend. The study found that children see school as a place for friendship and learning, but also "bullying and hitting among children and punishment by teachers". They view the transition to primary school in terms of "activities, teachers, spaces, practices or behaviours". Preschool teachers are perceived as 'better', more supportive; whilst primary teachers do things faster and give less individual attention. The continuities between preschool and primary school activities and practices highlighted by children may reflect what some authors have called the 'schoolification' of preschool services - more writing on a blackboard, studying, and drawing.

The study points out that:

• Peruvian preschool and primary school attendance is rising due to better availability and access, though there are inequities in access between urban and rural areas.
  
• Transition from preschool to first grade is not understood or structured as a process within and between educational institutions.
• There is often physical and administrative separation of preschool and primary levels and a lack of continuity between classroom environments, both physically (e.g., learning corners) and culturally (child-centred vs. teacher-centred approaches).
  
• There is a lack of specialised teacher training to foster successful transitions.
  
• There are no plans or programmes for the attendance of children who have no preschool experience.
  
• Exchange and communication between parents and teachers is very general and addresses issues of behaviour, general performance, and specific school or classroom material needs, but communication on transition is absent. Parents have scarce information on transitions, the importance of this particular transition to first grade, and the ways they can support it.
  
• Parental attitudes towards school, including preschool, are positive, and they pay attention to quality differences between schools.
  
• The main burden of adaptation is left to children. "However, they show a very positive attitude to this transition and the capacity to cope with it."
  

The authors conclude that children, despite positive attitudes toward early transitions, face certain forms of violence, such as bullying, hitting, and physical punishment at home and school. "The fact that [practices of physical violence] are still present demands a better strategy for improving children’s educational experiences, especially when starting school. Moreover, starting school deserves much more attention from policy makers and educators in order to take best advantage of the positive attitude emerging among parents and children themselves.”