Transition Between Swedish Preschool and Preschool Class: A Question About Interweaving Care and Knowledge

The purpose of this study is to examine the experience of preschool teachers and preschool class teachers with children's transition from preschool to preschool class. The research questions were as follows: (1) Have transition activities between preschool and preschool class been implemented, and if so, how? (2) What experience with the transition process do the preschool teachers and the preschool class teachers have?

Overall, the results show that most institutions have an action plan for the transition between preschool and preschool class, and that these plans include some form of handover of information. The study indicates that the preschool class teachers are most likely to initiate this handover, but the handover takes place without much dialogue and interaction between the two institutions.

All informants expressed that the gap between the view on children's learning by preschool teachers and preschool class teachers is too wide, and that the lack of dialogue and cooperation between the two institutions is an impediment to the transition process. The informants point out in particular lack of time and resources as the reason for the insufficient level of cooperation. Other barriers mentioned are large groups of children and organisational challenges.

The results show that handover meetings are experienced as stressful, and often there are no routines for which information is to be handed over, and how this information should be communicated. The informants also mention the duty of confidentiality between the institutions as a limiting factor for the handover. The interviews also suggest that information on the children's social development is viewed as the most important topic in the handover. Information is often shared about the entire group of children rather than about the individual child. The preschool class teacher only requests information about the individual child when the child stands out socially, has behavioural problems or needs additional support. According to the authors, lack of time, resources and consensus on children's development and learning are the main reasons that focus is not on the individual child when handing over information.

The results indicate that the lack of cooperation and dialogue between the two institutions forms prejudices about how "the others" work. Among other things, this is expressed as a feeling of "us against them", which, according to the authors, may prevent optimum transition from preschool to preschool class.

The data material consists of a questionnaire completed by 36 preschool teachers and 38 preschool class teachers, and semi-structured interviews with four preschool teachers and four preschool class teachers. The informants were selected on the basis of the criterion that they all had experience with the transition process from preschool to preschool class. The questionnaire was based on three main topics relating to the background of the informants, how children's language is developed, for example, and how activities in the transition from preschool to preschool class are implemented. At the end of the questionnaire, the informants could expand on their answers in an open-ended question. The interviews focussed on the informants' experiences with the transition from preschool to preschool class as well as on the children's language development. Lev Vygotsky's theory on the zone of proximal development formed the basis for the analysis of the overall data material.

Alatalo, T., Meier, J., & Frank, E. (2016). Transition Between Swedish Preschool and Preschool Class: A Question About Interweaving Care and Knowledge. Early Childhood Education Journal 44(2), 155-167.