Parents’ Emotional and Academic Attitudes Towards Children’s Transition to Preschool Class – Dimensions of School Readiness and Continuity

Abstract

The aim for this study is to examine Swedish parents’ expectations and concerns about their children’s upcoming transition from preschool to preschool class. The empirical data for this study consists of 176 questionnaires answered by parents of children who are about to make this transition. The results show that parents, primarily those whose oldest child is now making the transition to the preschool class, generally seem to be more concerned and worried about the transition than the other parents. They present an emotional attitude towards the children’s transition to the preschool class. In addition, parents who primarily have older children already attending school present a more academic attitude towards the children’s transition. The way parents describe their children in transition is closely connected to the concept of school readiness, and the results show that school readiness can be described as a social and cultural construction that differs across contexts, situations, expectations and previous experiences.