Year 7 Learning: What works – pedagogy or placement?
Dr Meryl Davidson
Paper prepared for the South Australian Primary Principals Association
South Australian Primary Principals Association Education Development Centre 4 Milner Street, Hindmarsh SA 5007 Website: www.sappa.com.au First published 2017 Š South Australian Primary Principals Association 2017 Reproduction of this work in whole or part for educational purposes within Australia is permitted. The prior written permission of the South Australian Primary Principals Association is required for any other use apart from that permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 as amended. Author: Dr Meryl Davidson National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry Creator: Davidson, Meryl, author Title: Year 7 Learning: What works - pedagogy or placement? / Dr Meryl Davidson ISBN: 9780646970653 (paperback) Subjects: Academic achievement--Evaluation Instructional systems--Design--Evaluation Educational tests and measurements--Australia Effective teaching Printed in South Australia by the Bowden Group
Year 7 Learning: What works – pedagogy or placement? A review of the needs and learning outcomes of students during their transition to secondary school. Literature Review commissioned by the South Australian Primary Principals Association
Introduction The transition process from primary to secondary school is an important milestone and provides a challenge for many early adolescent students (Coffey, 2013). The most appropriate learning environment and school placement of these students has been the subject of much debate in Australia, particularly since the 2008 Melbourne Declaration on Education Goals for Young Australians and its commitment to “enhancing middle-years development”. The arguments for and against moving the South Australian year seven student cohort from primary to secondary settings heightened following the movement of both Queensland and Western Australia’s year seven cohort to secondary settings in 2015 / 2016, and the recent confirmation by Catholic Education South Australia that they will move their year seven student cohort to secondary settings by 2019 / 2020. The South Australian public school system will then become the only sector in Australia with its year seven students in primary schools. The current state government has indicated it has no plans to relocate year seven to secondary school arguing that their year seven students are not disadvantaged as the Australian Curriculum (in terms of targeted content) is designed so that year seven can be taught in either primary or secondary settings. It is important to note that not all states and territories are fully implementing the Australian Curriculum. The South Australian Primary Principals Association (SAPPA) believes that the needs of students and their learning must be at the forefront of any decision on the future placement of the state schools’ year seven student cohort (SAPPA, 2016).
Purpose of literature review The aims of this literature review are to identify and summarise empirical research focusing on the placement of year seven students and the educational needs of young adolescent students and their current learning outcomes during their transition from primary to secondary settings.
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Methods
This review focused primarily on searching through data bases such as Academic Search, ERIC and Google Scholar using key words including: student needs during transition from primary to secondary settings, middle schooling philosophy, middle schools, NAPLAN results, and Australian Curriculum. A wide range of over 40 empirical articles from Year 2000 onwards were reviewed. These reported on research predominately from Australia, the USA, the UK and NZ. Relevant media releases were also reviewed to ascertain both political and community views on this topic.
Background re issues impacting on year 7 placement The federal Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA, 2002) made an agreement “to strive for schooling uniformity across all Australian states” (Coffey, Berlach & O’Neill, 2013, p.1). This had a significant influence on the future structures of Australian schools. Previously, the year seven students in NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT had always been in secondary schools while in WA, SA, the NT and Queensland, this cohort of students was part of primary schools (Coffey, 2009). The NT moved their year seven student cohort to middle schools in 2008. In Australia, school entry policies are varied for each state although a single yearly entry has now been adopted (Australian Government Productivity Commission 2017). In South Australia children need to be five years of age by 1st May each school-year to be able to start school at the beginning of the first term of that year. The result was that while some children started school before they were five years old, the cohort of children turning five after 1st May would not be able to start school until the following year, making them up to five years and nine months before they start school. Concerns were raised about the issues surrounding this second cohort of students as more than half would be 13 years of age in their eighth year of school (Pendergast, 2015) and still in primary school. The issues of age and the time spent in the primary setting were influential in both Queensland and the WA educational sectors, finally deciding to move their year seven cohorts to secondary schools. A major issue for South Australian schools with year seven students still in primary school is the current Australian Government’s per capita funding policy. This policy has different amounts of funding for students enrolled in preschool, junior primary, primary and secondary school. The funding for year seven students in secondary schools is approximately $2,000 per year more than for year seven students in primary schools. The Minister for Education in SA, Dr Susan Close stated, “Given that the curriculum is designed for year 7 to equally be in primary school, it is extremely unfair of the Federal Government not to give us the same amount of money for year 7s as they give other states.” (ABC Aus., 2016). To date this situation has not changed.
A summary of the key research identified from the literature review
1. The transition process from primary to secondary school and its effects on adolescent students •
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The research shows that regardless of whether the students are in year six or year seven when they transition to secondary school, many have mixed feelings of uncertainty, fear and excitement. Ashton (2008) reported that while most students cope well with the move there is evidence that academic progress often falters when changing schools. Humphrey & Ainscow (2006) noted that while there are variations of school systems around the world, there are many similarities in the challenges that the transition to secondary school brings particularly in relation to the differences between the cultures of primary and secondary schools. Ashton (2008) in the UK and Longaretti (2006) in Victoria, Australia, conducted studies with students before and after their transition from primary to secondary schools to ascertain their 2 | P a g e
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perceptions of the transition process. The results were similar in both studies as generally student concerns related to: o relationships (loss of friends, bullying, strict teachers, making new friends, being the sole child); o curriculum and school organisation (getting lost, having work that is too easy / too hard, learning new things, homework, testing); and o personal (growing up, depression, future aspirations, enjoyment). Longaretti (2006) reported that young adolescent students with positive aspirations were more likely to enjoy school and continue to higher secondary school levels and to university. Research indicates that the prevalence of bullying victimisation and the effects on social health were stronger in the first two years of secondary school (Lester, Cross, Dooley & Shaw, 2013, p. 107). These authors stressed that the critical timing of whole school bullying intervention programs should occur prior to transition and during the first two years of secondary school.
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Towns (2011) from Tasmania reported on her research into the issues surrounding internally transitioning students who attend P–12 schools. While not changing schools, these students are still required to move campus for their secondary education and have experiences and expectations that are similar to external transitioning students. The author found that generally the internally transitioning students experienced more difficulties in making new friends and perceived the homework and school work was more difficult than anticipated but they had less concerns about getting lost, having strict teachers or being bullied than the externally transitioning students.
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Coffey (2009) reported on the move of the year seven student cohort to secondary settings in WA Catholic schools and noted that, while there were differences between the year sevens and year eights, the year seven students adapted well to their new secondary school environment after initial difficulties experienced in term one. These difficulties included becoming more organised, finding their way around the school, managing lockers, coping with increased amounts of homework and mixing with new peers. The author attributed the success of the move to the school staff who spent considerable time and effort on planning and managing the transition.
Comments
The research indicates that most students will thrive in their new secondary setting where there are good communication strategies between the primary and secondary school teachers, effective mentoring programs in place, appropriate communication avenues for parents, effective planning and preparation programs, and where there are priorities for building strong relationships with students in a supportive and cooperative climate within a middle schooling pedagogy. What is most evident across all research into the transition of year six or year seven students from primary to secondary school is the focus on the quality of the teachers involved and how critical this is to ensuring a successful transition process and the future academic progress of the students (Hanewald, 2013). What is also evident from this research is that most research articles, particularly from Australia, discuss their findings on transition from primary to secondary school as relevant for early adolescent students regardless of whether they are moving schools after year six or year seven. Preference for the placement of these students at the time of transition is not addressed.
2. Middle Schooling and Middle Schools •
“The middle years of education is a time of significant physical, social, emotional and cognitive change for adolescent students” (Pridham & Deed, 2012, p.36). During transition from primary to 3 | P a g e
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secondary school, some students become disengaged and alienated as they have no sense of belonging at their new school. These feelings can lead to under-achievement, behavioural problems and increased drop-out rates (Dinham & Rowe, 2008). The result of these statements has led to most states and territories in Australia implementing middle school approaches and programs. Most government schools use middle schooling approaches with their young adolescent students in both their primary and secondary schools.
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However, the NT and Queensland, as well as most non-government schools across Australia, have separate middle schools or junior high schools. R–12 school structures may have sub-schools including a dedicated middle school section (Dinham & Rowe, 2008; Pendergast, 2015).
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The research shows that the age range for students considered to be part of the middle-years education is generally 10–15 years in Australia (Dinham & Rowe, 2008; Humphrey & Ainscow, 2006).
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According to Schaefer, Malu, and Yoon (2016, p. 1), the middle schooling philosophy began in the USA over 50 years ago, and was identified by practices including team teaching and an interdisciplinary curriculum. In the last three decades, it has become more popular with Australian schools as it is viewed as responsive to the needs of early adolescent students (Dinham & Rowe, 2008).
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Research indicates that the middle school philosophy aims to increase student motivation and a sense of belonging. There is an increased focus on the social emotional needs of early adolescent students, an interdisciplinary approach to the curriculum, smaller class sizes, a focus on creating a caring and inclusive classroom environment, a pedagogy using cooperative learning, action learning and teaching, and catering for a range of student learning styles. Central to the success of middle schools are quality trained middle schooling teachers who also play a critical role in forming relationships with students and in fostering peer relationships (Coffey, Berlach & O’Neill, 2011).
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However, there are many concerns expressed about the academic success (rigor) of middle schooling both nationally and internationally (Weiss & Baker-Smith, 2010). This is particularly concerning for Australia as there is a continual growth of middle schools and the middle schooling philosophy, with an acceptance that this is the best approach for Australia’s young adolescent students as its practices are perceived to improve student engagement and motivation for learning (Dinham & Rowe, 2008).
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Weiss and Baker-Smith (2010) raised concerns following their US research into the academic and social outcomes of middle school students and K– 8 school students. The researchers compared the data of these students after they had entered their ninth grade at high school. As part of their reason for conducting their study, Weiss and Baker-Smith (2010) noted that New York City eliminated middle schools in favour of K–8 schools several years before the study took place. The researchers’ data showed that attendance at a K–8 school had a significant relationship to future placements in the ninth grade (high school) where K-8 students were more likely to be accepted into a magnet school (elite public school) than those students who attended middle schools. The limitations of this study include variables that could also account for this result such as the different SES, race, ethnicity etc. of those students attending middle schools and the fact that magnet schools tend to enrol more gifted and talented students.
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One of the concerns noted by Schaefer et al. (2016, p. 17) is that middle school teachers were finding it more difficult to use middle schooling practices with the introduction of standardised tests to measure achievement and with a standardised curriculum. They also commented that the
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middle schooling movement needed to continually evolve and “develop new ways to conceptualise to meet the learning needs and desires of future generations of young adolescents”. •
Dinham and Rowe (2008) provided a critical review of the issues of the middle years, middle schooling and middle schools. They noted their concern about the lack of empirical evidence that demonstrates improved student learning through using the middle schooling pedagogies of constructivism and discovery learning etc. These authors commented that statements about what should happen rather than what is happening in Australian middle schools were being expressed and had concerns about the realities of secondary teachers having the necessary professional development or the time to implement middle schooling practices effectively. Chadbourne (2003; cited in Dinham & Rowe, 2008, p. 8) questioned whether the practice is “any different from good teaching and effective schooling generally”.
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Researchers Tytler, Osborne, Williams, Tytler and Clark (2008) reported on their literature review that focused on support for and barriers to engagement in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) at the Primary–Secondary transition. They found that despite decades of mandated science in the primary school curriculum, coherent science programs at the primary school level were inconsistent, possibly due to a lack of teacher confidence or interest in science. These authors were initially concerned that middle schooling teachers taught several different subjects to reduce the number of teachers that early adolescent students may have during one day, as this could mean a loss of speciality and knowledge in the STEM subjects. They also found that closer alignment of school science practice with middle-years’ pedagogical principles would improve student engagement.
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Pendergast (2015) reported on the outcomes of several national studies conducted in the USA’s middle schools in 2011 as part of her study on reforming middle years teaching and learning in Queensland schools. These national studies found that where the public middle schools followed the middle school philosophy closely, there were higher numbers of students on or above grade level in mathematics and reading than for other schools in the surveys.
Comments While there is an increase in popularity of the middle school philosophy in Australia, it is concerning that internationally there is a move away from middle schooling and middle school structures, particularly in the US where lower student outcomes have been reported in some states. The research however, also identifies some studies from other USA states that support middle schooling particularly when the philosophy is adhered to ‘authentically’. The method to obtain this deep understanding of middle school philosophy and practice is through middle school teachers having access to continual and relevant professional development. Concerns about the negative effects that the introduction of a standardised curriculum and standardised testing for achievement have on the implementation of best practices in middle schooling may have similar repercussions in Australia. Dinham and Rowe (2008, p. 1) suggest in their critical review into best practice in middle schooling, “the emphasis is best directed at building evidence-based pedagogical capacity in school’s most valuable resources – teachers”.
3. Learning from Queensland and WA: The process for moving the year seven cohort to secondary settings •
There is an abundance of recent research into the issues and effects of the planning, consultation and preparation processes used during the movement of the year seven student cohorts in both Queensland and WA public schools. They also provide the reasoning for the decision to move the 5 | P a g e
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year seven student cohort to secondary settings that may be valuable for the Department for Education and Child Development (DECD) in South Australia. Pendergast (2015) summarised the arguments for moving Queensland’s year seven cohort to secondary settings as it: o allows access to independence and deep learning that educators agree young adolescents are ready for; o enables access to specialist resources in learning areas such as science; o takes advantage of the band structure (i.e. Year 7/8 band) in the Australian Curriculum; o tries to address recurrent patterns in lack of academic progress and widening achievement gap in this age group, through appropriate support structures. This author also explains that the shift to a “Junior Secondary” (Years 7–9) model in Queensland is grounded in six guiding principles, which are: (1) a distinct identity for junior secondary; (2) a focus on quality teaching for young adolescents; (3) attention to student well-being and pastoral care; (4) parent and community involvement; (5) student leadership opportunities; and (6) local decisionmaking. In WA, the Catholic education sector moved its cohort of students six years ahead of the public schooling system. Coffey (2009) examined the reasons for the move and the preparation. Coffey, Berlach and O’Neill (2011), conducted research into the process of the transition and later provided a follow-up paper on their earlier findings. Coffey (2009) examined the perspectives of students, parents and teachers across six schools and found that the transition was generally considered positive by all groups: o Students tended to struggle initially with organisational aspects and homework demands, but were happy with the level of support they received from the year level coordinator and teachers to facilitate the transition. o Parents were generally happy with the levels of support and felt positive about the educational opportunities their children could access in the secondary setting, but some reported needing greater communication and information from the school about issues such as extracurricular activities. o Teachers were generally positive and reported that the students were ready for secondary school, but secondary trained teachers sought greater professional development relating to teaching younger students. Concerns also arose in situations where the roles of year level coordinators / curriculum coordinators / learning area coordinators etc. were not clearly delineated. o It was concluded that the transition needed to attend carefully to pastoral, social and organisational aspects, and that schools should consider how to create a distinct space and support structure for incoming year seven students. A parent survey by the Western Australian Council of State School Organisations Inc. (2012) found that: o Most parents saw the academic benefits of secondary schooling for their year seven children but they were concerned about issues of safety, exposure to drugs, alcohol and violence, and a lack of communication with parents by secondary schools. o There were concerns expressed by parents in rural and remote areas for whom the transition of year seven to secondary school would have significant financial implications in many cases. There is a need to carefully consider the implications of the transition for rural and remote students and their families.
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Comment The research into the processes and planning used by the Queensland and WA government and non- government education departments when moving their year seven students to secondary settings provides some thoughtful insights that may be of benefit for SA now and in the future. It is evident from the research that the age of students in year seven and time spent in primary school contributed to the decision for both Queensland and WA moving their year seven students to secondary settings.
4. Using NAPLAN results to assess student learning outcomes compared to their year seven placement
The review of the literature concerning the National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is limited to one study found during the search (Goss, Sonnemann, Chisholm, & Nelson, 2016). These researchers, together with Dinham (2014), however, caution against comparing the results of states and territories within Australia as there are different variables between them (e.g. age in year levels tested) or scales used that have different meanings due to their analysis. What needs to be followed are the overall trends that indicate an increase or decrease in scores over time.
NAPLAN preliminary results for 2016 • The NAPLAN Trend results were accessed by this researcher for a brief discussion as part of this review. The results for years seven and nine from Queensland, WA and SA were viewed and cautiously compared against their 2008 results. o The results of the NAPLAN tests showed some improvements for Queensland and WA while SA results remained static. o Goss et al. (2016), for the Grattan Institute commented on the improvements in the Queensland results but attributed this to the significant investment in the early years of schooling and not the placement of year seven students in secondary schools. o NB: This is worth noting as valuable funding to improve the literacy and numeracy results of students in the early years and increased access to quality professional development for early and middle primary teachers in South Australia’s public schools could improve these students’ results in both national and international assessments and indicate their readiness to succeed in secondary school.
Comment As it is difficult to compare the results of national tests with other states and territories, it will be difficult to use these results to inform the debate on the benefits of year seven students remaining in primary school or moving to secondary schools.
5. Outcomes of this review •
An intensive literature review of the empirical research has indicated that most research articles demonstrate no significant preference for year seven students being educated in primary or secondary school. Most research focused on age appropriate teaching which can be conducted in primary as well as secondary settings. One research paper by Tytler et al. (2008) expressed concern that generalist primary school teachers would not have the skills and deep knowledge to teach STEM subjects effectively. This issue is being addressed by the South Australian government particularly with the introduction of specialist teachers and science classrooms in primary schools in 2018. 7 | P a g e
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Due to the nature of any comparisons being made between states and territories in Australia, it is difficult to draw conclusions regarding the relative merits of year seven students’ placement in primary, as opposed to secondary school, particularly in terms of improved academic outcomes.
6. Recommendations From the outcomes of this literature review it is recommended that:
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SAPPA to continue to advocate for effective middle school pedagogy for all schools (regardless of type of setting) based on evidence based research and resourced professional development for middle school teachers. SAPPA to continue investigating the implications of year seven students being relocated with subsequent effect on: o potentially two year level cohorts leaving in the same year (of initial relocation); o reclassification of principals; o risks to small rural schools and communities; and o loss of employment for primary teachers.
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SAPPA to consider further research and monitoring of the year seven NAPLAN results for South Australia, particularly for the public school cohort.
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Dr Meryl Davidson (EdD, Leadership & Management; Masters Degree in Education; Graduate Certificates in Educational Management and in International Studies (students with disabilities); Bachelor of Education (Pr); Dip T.(Pr). April 2017
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REFERENCES ABC News (2016). Year 7 students ‘robbed of specialist education’ in SA. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-19/year-7-students-robbed-of-specialist-education-insa/6331116 Ashton, R. (2008). Improving the transfer to secondary school: How every child’s voice can matter. Support for Learning, Vol, 23. No. 4, p. 176–182. Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2016). Australian Curriculum. http://www.acara.edu.au/ Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2016). NAPLAN reports 2016. http://reports.acara.edu.au/ Australian Government Productivity Commission, (2017). Report on Government Services 2017 Vol.B Child care, education and training. Coffey, A. (2009). Managing the move (Executive Summary). The University of Notre Dame Australia, Education Papers and Journal Articles online. http://researchonline.nd.edu.au/edu_article/48/ Coffey, A. (2013). Relationships: The key to successful transition from primary to secondary school? Improving Schools Vol. 16 (3), p. 261–271 SAGE Coffey, A., Berlach, R. G., & O’Neill, M. O. (2011). Transitioning year seven primary students to secondary settings in Western Australian Catholic Schools: A description of the process. Journal of Catholic School Studies, Vol. 83. No 2. p. 6–17. Coffey, A., Berlach, R. G., & O’Neill, M. O. (2013). Transitioning Year 7 Primary Students to Secondary Settings in Western Australian Catholic Schools: How successful was the move? Research in Middle Level Education, Vol, 36. No 1 p. 1–15. Dinham, S. (2014). ‘Primary schooling in Australia: Pseudo-Science plus extra times Growing Inequality Equals Decline’ Keynote address, Australian College of Educators National Conference, Adelaide, 11th September. Dinham, S., & Rowe, K. (2008). Fantasy, fashion and fact: Middle schools, middle schooling and student achievement. Paper presented to BERA Edinburgh. September 3rd Goss, P., Sonnemann, J., Chisholm, C., & Nelson, L. (2016). Widening gaps: what NAPLAN tells us about student progress. Grattan Institute. Hanewald, R. (2013). Transition between primary and secondary school: Why it is important and how it can be supported. Australian Journal of Teacher Education Vol, 38 No. 1. p. 62–74. Available at: http://ro.eru.edu.au/ajte/vol38/issw/ Humphrey, N., & Ainscow, M. (2006). Transition club: Facilitating learning, participation and psychological adjustment during the transition to secondary school. European Journal of Psychology of Education. Vol, 21. No. 3. p. 319–331 Lester, L., Cross, D., Dooley, J., & Shaw, T. (2013). Bullying victimisation and adolescents: Implications for school-based intervention programs. Australian Journal of Education. Vol, 57. No 2. p. 107–123. 9 | P a g e
Longaretti, L. (2006). School transition: Aspirations and Inspirations. Paper presented at the AARE Conference, Adelaide, November 2006. Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (2002). National report on schooling in Australia. MCEETYA. Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs. (2008). Melbourne declaration on educational goals for young Australians. MYCEETYA. Pendergast, D. (2015). Moving year 7 to secondary, the junior secondary initiative and the 6 guiding principles: Reforming middle years teaching and learning in schools in Queensland. Journal of the Home Economics Institute of Australia. Vol, 22 No. 1 p.10–18. Pridham, B., & Deed, C. (2012). Applied learning and community partnerships improve student engagement in Australia. Middle School Journal. Vol, 44 No 1. p. 36–42. Schaefer, M., Malu, K., & Yoon, B. (2016). An Historical Overview of the Middle School Movement, 1963– 2015. RMLE Online Vol, 39 (5) p. 1–18. South Australian Primary Principals Association (SAPPA) (2016). Placement of Year 7 Students: A position paper. SAPPA February 2016. Towns, S. A. (2011). The primary to secondary transition for a unique cohort of students. Independence ONLINE Vol.36, No 2. Tytler, R., Osborne, J., Williams, G., Tytler, K., & Cripps-Clark, J. (2008). Opening up pathways: Engagement in STEM across the primary-secondary school transition. Australian Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. Weiss, C., & Baker-Smith, C. (2010). Eighth-Grade School Form and Resilience in the Tradition to High School: A Comparison of Middle Schools and K–8 Schools. Journal of Research on Adolescence, Vol, 20. No. 4, p. 825–839. Western Australian Council of State School Organisations Inc. (2012). Report on the parent survey of the relocation of Year 7 students to secondary schools. file:///C:/Users/jarv0067/AppData/Local/Downloads/WACSSO%20Report%20on%20the%20parent% 20survey%20regarding%20the%20Year%207%20relocation%20.pdf 10 | P a g e