School entry age range
The appropriateness of the education the child receives is of paramount importance, not the length of time spent in the infant school.
Formal schooling in Scotland begins on entry to Primary 1. Children need not attend primary school until they reach 5. However, there is only one annual entry point, in August. This means that the age at entry can range from approximately 4 years 6 months to 5 years 6 months, a whole year of difference in physical, social and cognitive maturity. This means that there is a significant range of needs to be considered and met in each year group.
In many other westernised countries, formal schooling does not begin until children are 6. In England and in the United States children start school two years earlier, at 4 years old.
There is no evidence to suggest that children achieve more highly because they begin school earlier. The actual age at entry is perhaps less relevant than the suitability of the curriculum and methodology used in early education. The way in which young children are perceived as learners will determine the provision offered. Fortunately, we have moved some way from 'the empty vessel' view of young children as learners who can be drilled with skills and 'given' a certain diet of knowledge. We know that how children see, experience or conceptualise the world around them is fundamental to their social, emotional and cognitive development and that first-hand experience is essential. We also know that children make most sense of what is learned when they see and feel the purpose of their learning. So rather than age at entry, research suggests that the content and the methods used in early years education are more likely to determine the long-term results. The question then, seems to be: 'In the interests of the child and the quality of learning, when is it best to introduce formal, teacher- and resource-led education?'
The existing 3-5 curriculum takes cognisance of the way in which young children learn. It promotes the provision of experiential, activity-based contextualised and meaningful learning opportunities. The systematic continuation of this curriculum into school settings and Primary 1, in particular, has not been adopted. This is despite the fact that almost all children at Primary 1 age would benefit from such an approach. There are some children who may well be seriously disadvantaged by the formality of some Primary 1 curricula and related didactic teaching methods. The group at risk often includes the younger entrants. This can be compounded by gender and socio-economic factors, too. The chances of a fair start are reduced further for boys who have free school-meal entitlement and are only 4 years old. Immediate resource concerns in tackling this at the transition point through more flexible entry procedures pale into insignificance against the resource implications of an unfair too early start.
From: Daniels, S, Redfern, E D, and Shorrocks-Taylor, D, 'Trends in the Early Admission of Children to School: appropriate or expedient?' in Educational Research, vol. 37, No. 3 pp. 239-249, 1995