Beginning university can be conceptualized as a stressful life event as both positive aspects and several new challenges are associated with the transition (Hudd, Dumlao, Erdmann-Sager, Murry, Phan et al., 2000; Kerr, Johnson, Gans, Krumrine, 2004; Lamothe, Currie, Alisat, Sullivan, Pratt et al., 1995). Sometimes a poor transition may result in a students inability to complete their degree. It is important to develop a more thorough understanding of the transition to university in order to improve student retention. The present investigation considered a range of demographic, psychosocial, and health behaviours that may be related to a students ability to adapt to university. These variables were investigated using a short-term longitudinal design over the first year of university. Participants (Time 1 N = 229, Time 2 N = 73) consisted of first year University of Saskatchewan students (age, M = 18.46, SD =1). Results suggested that approximately 1/3 of the students found the transition to university to be difficult and that in general women had a more difficult time than men in terms of social and personal/emotional adjustment. There was no significant difference in academic adjustment or achievement between men and women. Psychosocial variables and health behaviours were related to one another such that greater physical activity levels went hand in hand with more adaptive coping and higher levels of social support and self-esteem. During the first semester, easier transitions and better adjustment were largely predicted by more adaptive coping, good social support, better grades and fewer daily hassles. For women, second semester transition experiences and adjustment measures were strongly predicted by the same measures as observed in the first semester.

Beginning university can be conceptualized as a stressful life event as both positive aspects and several new challenges are associated with the transition (Hudd, Dumlao, Erdmann-Sager, Murry, Phan et al., 2000; Kerr, Johnson, Gans, Krumrine, 2004; Lamothe, Currie, Alisat, Sullivan, Pratt et al., 1995). Sometimes a poor transition may result in a students inability to complete their degree. It is important to develop a more thorough understanding of the transition to university in order to improve student retention. The present investigation considered a range of demographic, psychosocial, and health behaviours that may be related to a students ability to adapt to university. These variables were investigated using a short-term longitudinal design over the first year of university. Participants (Time 1 N = 229, Time 2 N = 73) consisted of first year University of Saskatchewan students (age, M = 18.46, SD =1). Results suggested that approximately 1/3 of the students found the transition to university to be difficult and that in general women had a more difficult time than men in terms of social and personal/emotional adjustment. There was no significant difference in academic adjustment or achievement between men and women. Psychosocial variables and health behaviours were related to one another such that greater physical activity levels went hand in hand with more adaptive coping and higher levels of social support and self-esteem. During the first semester, easier transitions and better adjustment were largely predicted by more adaptive coping, good social support, better grades and fewer daily hassles. For women, second semester transition experiences and adjustment measures were strongly predicted by the same measures as observed in the first semester.

Thesis advisor: Irwin Blumer / This study examines the perceived impact of a parental empowerment project on parents of students of color transitioning into high school. The overarching problem addressed is the achievement gap. The study is an investigation of a means to increase the involvement of parents of color at an important transition. This is a gap closing measure because research dictates that this type of intervention can lead to higher academic achievement for minority students. To this end, seven participants constitute the sample group. Each sample member is treated as an individual case in keeping with the study's design as a qualitative case study. This study seeks to determine how these seven parents had their attitudes and behaviors shifted as a result of their participation in the aforementioned project, and which factors supported and inhibited their involvement as their children transitioned into high school. The researcher finds that all of the sample members perceived some benefit from their participation. These benefits for the parents include fostering a greater role understanding, increased ability to hold their children accountable, and an increased understanding of the high school curriculum. The monthly parent meetings, one of the three elements comprising the empowerment program, were most helpful for parents. Whereas, the scheduling of meetings made it difficult for members of the sample to be as involved as they wanted to be. Ultimately, the study concludes that a program which involves parents during their children's high school transition can help them increase their own sense of efficacy. It suggests opportunities for further research to be done on the impact of such a program on the actual academic performance of students. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Administration.

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of ninth-grade students and their teachers and parents/guardians with regard to the transition from middle school to high school. A mixed-method approach with both qualitative and quantitative measures assessed attitudes toward this transition. Student focus groups were also conducted toward this end. Parents and school staff were surveyed to gain insight into the problems associated with the student transition.Data gathered from students, parents, and school faculty were also analyzed to facilitate the design of a school-transition program for the local high school serving as the study site in this research. The findings support research that has indicated academic and social problems confronted by students transitioning into high school. All three study groups agree that developing a program to effectuate early adjustment by students and parents to this transition will “pave the way” toward ultimate student success.

This mixed method study sought to explore the perceptions of key stakeholders in education, on the role and contribution of ICT in Scottish secondary schools towards generic skills development among pupils for post school transitions. The timing of this study coincided with a period characterised by contextual pressures globally, marked with technology changes, youth unemployment and curriculum reviews. A review of literature was conducted systematically to evaluate the explicit permeation of ICT in Scottish schools. A sequential mixed method design was adopted for the two phased study commencing with a convenience sampling technique for the first phase, involving 1364 upper secondary school pupils from all eight schools, 64 teachers and the 17 employers in one local Council in Scotland. A purposive sampling technique was applied to select two sample schools for the second phase, based on best use and practices of ICT. Questionnaires were administered online and in person at the first phase, followed by a semi structured interview at the second phase. SPSS was used for descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and one way Anova, while Nvivo 10 software was used for thematic analysis from the interview transcript. The study offers a framework for personalisation starting with identification of pupils’ ability and ICT skill level at inception classes, followed by a personalised learning design incorporating pupils’ interest, ability and post school destination. The study also proposes separate roles for teachers and policy makers in order to maintain teachers’ autonomy, as policy makers’ interference has been identified to have an impact on teachers’ professionalism, effectiveness and confidence necessary for imparting generic skills in pupils. A series of recommendations are provided for future research, including a longitudinal evaluation of generic skills acquired from individual school subjects through the upper school years to post school destination, to ascertain effective transfer and sustainability of generic skills.

This thesis aims to understand the multi-layered experiences of children with English as an additional language (EAL) in changing contexts by focusing on academic and social experiences in their transition from primary to secondary school. Although EAL is often linked with knowledge and proficiency in the English language as a means to access learning, this study builds on the complexity underlying the term that incorporates background, culture, agency and power in the ways children navigate their schooling. This is achieved through in-depth longitudinal accounts of children’s experiences and engagement co-constructed with participants and triangulated through interactive qualitative methods. The main focus is the active role of children in finding and embracing opportunities for social and academic engagement as part of their educational trajectories, identifying their agency in processes of change in the contrast between formal academic contexts and informal research discussions. In order to learn more about young people’s academic and social experiences, the study is theoretically informed by two perspectives. The first perspective is Bourdieu’s field analysis and the concepts of habitus, dispositions and agency. The analysis emphasises how and where children use their agency to engage with and manage expectations and options highlighted by institutional discourses and teachers. Looking at children’s engagement explicitly, the research highlights overlooked agency of children too easily categorised as EAL or ‘vulnerable’. The second analytical perspective explores engagement and trajectories in a classroom context and draws on Bernstein’s constructs of classification and framing with the aim to explain how children engage and reflect on their experiences across differently structured classroom contexts. Drawing on theoretical constructs and research in the area of EAL and diversity more widely, I present six case studies of experiences and show that in the case of children with EAL invisible agency, misinterpreted engagement and negotiating positioning both socially and academically are more complex than the notion of learning English to access learning. I argue that in the light of gaps in teachers’ understandings of children’s experiences, practical adjustments to classroom processes and communication could provide better understanding of the wider scope of EAL and schooling experiences.

Research suggests that the transition to adolescence and secondary school can be challenging and potentially disruptive to adolescent functioning. Large-scale studies on the effectiveness of peer support programs are currently lacking and those that have been conducted are compromised by methodological problems. The primary purpose of this research was to 1/ identify psychometrically sound measurement instruments for use with secondary school students; 2/ test the impact of the peer support program on espoused program outcomes and other aspects of students' psychological well-being and adjustment to the secondary schooling context; 3/ extend previous research by examining the effects of serving as a peer support leader on leadership ability and other psychological constructs; and 4/ identify students' perceptions of the impact, strengths and weaknesses of the program in order to further strengthen peer support intervention design. The findings have important implications for the provision of programs and techniques employed to address students' problems following the transition to adolescence and secondary school. In particular, they suggest that peer support programs have the potential to make a significant contribution to schools' efforts to orchestrate positive outcomes, not only for early adolescents, but also for older students who implement the program / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Research suggests that the transition to adolescence and secondary school can be challenging and potentially disruptive to adolescent functioning. Large-scale studies on the effectiveness of peer support programs are currently lacking and those that have been conducted are compromised by methodological problems. The primary purpose of this research was to 1/ identify psychometrically sound measurement instruments for use with secondary school students; 2/ test the impact of the peer support program on espoused program outcomes and other aspects of students' psychological well-being and adjustment to the secondary schooling context; 3/ extend previous research by examining the effects of serving as a peer support leader on leadership ability and other psychological constructs; and 4/ identify students' perceptions of the impact, strengths and weaknesses of the program in order to further strengthen peer support intervention design. The findings have important implications for the provision of programs and techniques employed to address students' problems following the transition to adolescence and secondary school. In particular, they suggest that peer support programs have the potential to make a significant contribution to schools' efforts to orchestrate positive outcomes, not only for early adolescents, but also for older students who implement the program / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Transition to middle school is a turbulent time of development in which friends have growing impact on adolescents’ academic adjustment. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the unique and joint contributions of academically oriented and deviant close friends on reading and math achievement, competence beliefs in reading and math, and engagement during the transition into middle school. The sample was 652 (53.4 percent male) ethnically diverse and academically at-risk students. Within-wave associations between peer affiliation and outcome variables were found in the expected directions. Outcome variables were highly stable. The model yielded adequate fit of the data. Contrary to expectations, neither peer affiliation variable (academically-oriented friends or deviant friends) contributed to year 6 outcomes, controlling for year 5 outcomes, nor did the two affiliation variables interact in predicting changes in outcomes. Affiliation with close friends was moderately stable over time and affiliation with learning oriented friends was positively associated with the academic outcomes and affiliation with deviant friends was negatively associated with the academic outcomes. Close friendships may change so rapidly that a relationship between close friend affiliation at any one point in time is not predictive of changes in one’s engagement, competence beliefs, or achievement. Future research that examines peer relationships and academic competencies across a longer period of time and more frequently may allow for a clearer understanding of relationships among peer affiliation and academic outcomes.

The thesis is about children's experience of the induction to Reception class and the transitions that they make through Key Stage One. It draws on the work of van Gennep (1960), Vygotslcy (1978), Laevers (1997) and Bruner (1996) to explore rites of passage, well-being and acculturation that take place during induction and transitions. The data is gathered mainly by semi-structured interviews to gain the perceptions of fifty children, their parents and teachers about the process of the children's (and their parents') induction at two schools in a town in Shropshire. Children are admitted to the schools in the term before their fifth birthday, thus there are three intakes a year. Children from each of the groups in both schools are included in the study. The research began just before the children started their induction programme in the term before they entered full-time schooling in the academic year 1994/1995. It explores preparations and concerns before starting school and as the children become incorporated into school life. The study goes on to examine the views of twenty-four of these children, their parents and teachers, about the transitions that the children make from the end of their reception class until they leave Key Stage One in July 1997. It also looks at the changes made to the induction programmes during this time. This is a relatively unresearched area and the study uncovered a number of critical factors that have not been brought together or presented in this way before. The main findings identify that the amount, and nature of, information given to parents and children is crucial before and during induction and transitions. If it is right then anxieties about the unknown are reduced, resulting in children's and parents' emotional well-being. The importance of a supportive friend during transitions is also highlighted. A further finding discloses that, far from parental partnership building throughout children's time in school, it decreases due to a lack of clarity about what it entails.