This year moving from primary to secondary school is pretty challenging. Many young people have not been in school since March, and others have had little opportunity to engage in home learning during that period either. Others have been able to pursue their personal interests in depth with help from parents, in ways that go beyond the normal curriculum. Cohorts of students have become very fragmented. Schools have made extraordinary efforts to adapt to these new conditions, but it hasn’t been easy. Supported by the UCL Coronavirus Response Fund, UCL Institute of Education researchers have taken part in a research project over the summer to identify areas of best practice that may be of most use to Year 7 students and their schools, and produced two leaflets aimed at offering support during the first weeks and months. We reviewed the latest international research, spoke to children and teachers and ran surveys to identify what strategies are needed to help primary to secondary transition run smoothly. You can download the leaflets here, and we would welcome comments.
Sandra Leaton Gray 