Helping them on their first steps to the second level

Handling the transition from primary to post-primary schoolIn recent weeks, tens of thousands of children made this transition from primary to secondary school, and are now quickly settling down to the new routine.

There are major changes that every child faces in this situation, which can cause children much distress and which can often go unnoticed given the very different relationship that exists between parents and the secondary school system.A primary school child has one teacher, sits in one classroom, and carries their books in one school bag. On entering secondary school, your child acquired more than a dozen teachers, a timetable of more than 40 class periods, located all over the school.

Having taken the correct books into school, along with the correct PE gear on appropriate days, the first task of the day is to go to their locker and organise their books and copies for the first half of their morning. They will repeat this process twice more each day, before and after lunch break. They will then head off in the direction of their first class, using their timetable as a guide.

How can parents help their child manage the logistics of secondary school?

Parents can very quickly be lulled into a false sense of security by the seeming routine of secondary school, after the excitement of the first few days have passed. Parents can ensure that all is going well by adhering to a few basic house rules. Most schools insist that all students have a homework notebook, and request that parents sign this notebook each night. Your child will very quickly realise if you are taking this task seriously, which involves spending 10 to 15 minutes checking that they have completed the assigned homework in their journal. You should also ensure that they pack the appropriate textbooks and copies using the child's timetable, a copy of which should be displayed in a prominent place adjacent to where this task is carried out daily.

The degree to which you prioritise this daily routine will determine your child's attention to their school work. Unfortunately, many children who lose interest in school, and who drift out of the school system in their mid-teens, do so because of lack of interest and support from their parents.

Identifying problems early on in the school year

The most common difficulty children manifest in the early stages of second level education is in coming to terms with so many new subjects. This is to be expected and should not be a matter of initial concern.

If after a month or so, you are getting persistently negative comments from a particular subject teacher or from a number of them, it is advisable to contact the child's class tutor or year head to come in and discuss the problem. Early intervention can lead to the child receiving additional support from within the classroom or through one to one support within the school or at home.

Becoming a victim of bullying

This is a highly complex area which is present in all human relationships among both adults and children. I will devote an entire column to dealing with this issue in the coming weeks. Suffice it to say that if your child shows reluctance to go to school or seems to have become withdrawn, or has changed their eating and sleeping patterns, it is time to investigate this issue.

TALK BACK...

At a time when the issue of the return of third-level fees seems to be generating the usual howls of protest from parents and other interested parties, it is interesting to note that a whole new fees structure has fallen into place in almost every second- level school throughout the country, without a word of protest from parents. I refer of course to the €1,000-plus Transition Year fee that almost all schools now charge for putting on the innovative and creative programmes that have been developed over the past 10 to 15 years.

As most schools individually cost each item of the programme, parents can see immediately the immense benefits that their child will gain from participation in the wide range of activities now provided by those who have developed full-time careers out of delivering their particular programme to Transition Years up and down the country. Costly as it is, it is a resounding success and is being much studied by other countries.

There is one cloud on the horizon, which staff of the Department of Family and Social Affairs, working with young unemployed under 25 years old, identified recently at a conference I chaired. In schools in less advantaged communities, where parents cannot pay €1,000-plus towards the cost of TY, the programmes can - due to lack of funds - be less than challenging, and can lead to children losing the rhythm of normal class work and drifting out of school, attracted by the temporary earning power they discover during their work experience module.

It is time for the Department of Education and Science to recognise the reality of what has evolved in TY, and give a meaningful subsidy to designated disadvantaged schools to enable them to retain the interest and enthusiasm of their students during Transition Year?

You can talk back to Brian Mooney at bmooney@irish-times.ie