Concerns of Parents of Six and Seven- Year-Old Children Starting School. Summary of Research Findings

Abstract

School start is an important moment not only for the child, but also for their parents. They need to make sure that their child’s basic needs are met in the institution where they would be placed and that all activities would be carried out in consideration of the child’s abilities. The article presents the results of research which aimed to identify the concerns of parents of six and seven-year-old children starting school and to determine the relationship between the occurrence of these concerns and parents’ acceptance or rejection of the assumptions of the reform lowering the compulsory school age (expressed by their decision to send a child to school at the age of six or seven). The experience of the Polish educational system and the reforms it has introduced has shown that if parents do not accept the changes and see them as positive for their children, they are able to block them effectively.

Keywords

• school start
• school education
• six-year-old child
• parents’ concerns