Role and impact of transition teachers in supporting pupils’ transition from primary to secondary school

Theme: Educational and Life Transitions Beth Hannah* & Tricia Thomson** *TCELT, University of Dundee ** University of Dundee Contact email: [email protected] Title: Role and impact of transition teachers in supporting pupils’ transition from primary to secondary school Aims The transition from primary to secondary school is a significant life event for pupils, parents/carers, and teachers. This study focused on the role and impact of the deployment of transition teachers in one Local Authority (LA) in Scotland. Objectives were: 1. Ascertain the number and type of interventions being used by the transition teachers to support pupils’ transition from primary to secondary school 2. Investigate the transition teachers’ understanding of the basis for selecting these interventions 3. Ascertain the ways in which the transition teachers’ interventions are being evaluated to measure impact and the perceived effectiveness of these evaluation methods Methods Five transition teachers were interviewed. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. Qualitative content analysis, involving both researchers, generated themes and sub-themes for each objective. Main findings Transition teachers engage in a range of interventions (targeted and universal), including literacy, numeracy and science support, health and wellbeing, building relationships, supporting transition to high school, and enhancing expectations of high school. Qualitative and quantitative data were used to inform selection of interventions. Participants identified a number of challenges in evaluating impact of interventions. A range of evaluation methods was employed to inform planning, qualitative (e.g. plan do review) and quantitative (e.g. test data). Conclusions Recommendations have been made to the LA to inform policy and practice.