Case Study: Tallangatta
Primary School and
Tallangatta Secondary College
Learning and relationships in
neighbouring rural schools
Description of context: This case study examines the successful transition
strategies in two schools; Tallangatta Primary School (TPS) and Tallangatta
Secondary College (TSC). These two schools belong to a cluster of seven schools.
Tallangatta sits on the shores of Lake Hume, in Victoria’s North East in rural
Victoria. The primary school and secondary college are less than one kilometre
apart in Tallangatta. TPS has an enrolment of 99 students with composite classes in
Years 5 and 6. TSC has a total enrolment of about 440 students in Years 7-12.
The transition program in these two schools is contextualised by two important
socialisation processes. The first is the school bus. Narratives about the secondary
college are shared by students on the bus that services TPS and TSC. This means the
students are spending extended times hearing about transition from their rural
peers who have transitioned before them. The strong popularity of weekend sport
in this rural context is a second important socialisation process. Students who
transition have had opportunities to build networks through team sporting
activities on the weekends. The majority of the students in town play weekend
sport where teams of middle years students that span the two schools are bonding
before the students transition.
Aims of the transition strategy:
To provide a sense of belonging as the students transition.
To provide positive transition experiences so the parents and students have a sense
of agency during the transition to TSC.
To provide continuity of learning for the students across the transition process.
To develop supportive relationships between peers and teachers for transitioning
students.
How the strategy is implemented in the two schools:
Transition co-ordinators [Nurturing positive teacher-student relationships]
Both school principals have identified transition as an element in their school
strategic planning and have identified transition co-ordinators who oversee the
transition program in their school. At the primary school the transition co-ordinator
is an early career teacher who relishes this opportunity to demonstrate leadership
skills. At the secondary college the transition co-ordinator is also the Year 7 coordinator. Both these roles come with position descriptions that support succession
planning as teachers move in and out of these positions. An unusual feature of this
case study is the Year 6 transition co-ordinator had firsthand experience of this
transition as he moved from a rural primary school to TSC so he had intricate
knowledge of what the students experience in the transition.
A focus on relationships [Strengthening primary secondary connections]
Transition of students between these two schools rests on strong communication
between the teachers and principals at both schools. The teachers have regular
meetings to plan for events throughout the year. Each term the primary sch ools in
the region have a transition day where the Year 6 teachers from the local primary
schools bring their students together for socialisation and group building activities.
In a rural school this is important to build confidence and resilience amongst this
group who will socialise together in Year 7. During one of the transition days at the
school, teachers from the college came down to answer questions that were
anonymously written by the students on post-it notes. The Year 6 co-ordinator
mentioned this as a good way to respond to student concerns in a thoughtful and
caring way so all issues are addressed anonymously by the teachers. These
transition days serve as a pre-cursor to the state mandated transition day in term 4
where the students meet the Year 7 teachers.
In addition to the above activities, the Year 6 students from TPS visit the TSC
several times a year for science days. The science teachers are released to engage
the students in science experiments using the extensive resources of the scie nce
labs in the college. The principal of the college commented on how this was a
strategic transition event as it provided the primary students not only with
understanding of Science, Technology and Mathematics curriculum, but was also
helping students build relationships with teachers at the college. The principal from
the primary school added that the science resources in the primary school are
limited compared to the high school.
Preparatory activities to help adjust to study in high school [Communicating
effectively critical information]
The Year 6 co-ordinator at the primary school identified the importance of changing
classroom organisation in their final term at primary school to support a smooth
transition into secondary school. To simulate preparing for classes at the college,
students had to read a timetable, select the texts they needed from their tub of
resources that was some distance away from the classroom and learn how to open a
combination lock. One student commented “it gets you in the habit of going to get
your books in the morning and getting used to small spaces where the lockers are”.
Before the students begin Year 7 at TSC, the primary students complete a profile so
the classes are constructed “with at least one person they have identified from their
Year 7 group” to be in the same home group.
Opportunities to build relationships with older students [Enabling new relationships]
The college focused on strong relationships between teachers and students as well
as valuing peer relationships between Year 7 students and Year 10 students. At the
end of Year 9, students in the college apply to be leaders in a peer support leader
program. In the following year, successful Year 10 candidates mentor a group of
Year 7 students as they begin classes. As one Year 7 student commented “the peer
support leaders worked with us every Tuesday afternoon in term 1 and helped us
socialise with other students and answer our questions”.
The Year 10 peer support leaders also accompanied the Year 7s in their annual
camp early in term one to Queenscliff as part of the transition program. Parents
commented on the social networks the students developed on this camp that
supported their learning throughout their time in the college.
Building a sense of belonging [Nurturing positive teacher student relationship]
The college combines subjects in the first semester of Year 7 so the students only
have four teachers with three lessons per day. This gives the teachers time to
develop relationships with the students and helps provide the students with a sense
of belonging. The students who were interviewed commented how this organisation
helped them to settle into the college.
The parents understood that this organisation was a way to cover the content and
not provide the students with too much homework in their first semester at TSC.
One parent commented “Because they have 90 minute lessons they have the teacher
there to help them complete the work they would normally do as homework.”
Another important feature of the transition program was the email communication
with the parents. All the parents commented on how they had regularly received
individual emails from the teachers about student achievement, socialisation,
resilience and peer learning. Parents said these emails were sent when needed and
gave the parents a sense the teachers knew the students and the social context of
their learning.
Evidence of learning outcomes and/or impact:
The students identified that their learning outcomes were scaffolded in Year 7 and
they could see clear links to the work they had completed in Year 6 that laid the
foundation for their learning at TSC. The students recounted the work in Year 6 was
more demanding as their teacher prepared them for high school by covering
Algebra and extending writing. The students identified this helped them in their
transition to TSC through a continuity of curriculum learning between Year 6 and
Year 7.
Parents were impressed with the students’ engagement in learning they
demonstrated at an exhibition night where they showcased understandings in areas
of acrobatics, dancing, music, science and art. The parents attributed the students’
confidence in their performances and to the work the students and teachers
completed as part of the transition program. According to one parent, “The teacher
ran this really well, the students all shone.”
One parent commented on the impact of the transition program on the resilience of
the students. “It probably does make them more resilient because they feel so
comfortable with where they are and their surroundings and who is around them
that they are able to cope with changes.”
Parents identified an element of successful learning at TSC was the strong
relationships between students supported by the transition program in the colle ge.
One parent noted “If the students struggle socially they are going to drop off the
radar.” There was agreement from the principals and teachers that strong learning
outcomes are only possible if the students also have a strong wellbeing and
engagement program.
Another impact of the program has been a decrease in anxiety. As one teacher
commented “the things we have put in place have helped reduce the anxiety
amongst students as they move into Year 7”.
Steps for future improvement:
In Term 4 each year, the Year 7 students at TSC who have transitioned from TPS
complete a survey designed by the transition co-ordinator in the primary school.
This survey informs TPS teachers about what worked well and captures the
suggestions the students have to improve the transition program. The Year 6
teachers in TPS use the survey findings and their reflections to improve their
program each year.
Teachers from TSC and TPS are developing their understanding of discipline
learning and teaching through moderation of student work across Year 6-9 in
discipline areas. The teachers in both schools are forging new professional learning
communities that support their understanding of learning from a student
perspective. The primary teachers develop their understanding about the demands
of genres and content knowledge the students will learn about in secondary school.
Secondary teachers develop their understanding about the foundations that are
already in place for learning in the secondary college.
Advice to other schools:
The principal at TSC identified the importance of viewing transition as a process
rather than an event, which is consistent with international literature on best
practice of primary to secondary school transition. This consequence of school
leadership viewing transition as a process means that parents and their children are
the focus of the school transition program, rather than the ‘event’ of a transition
day. As a result there are multiple opportunities for students, parents and teachers
to come together to foster relationships to mediate the process of student
transition.
The principal at the primary school was passionate about the duty of care all the
teachers have for all students in the school, even after they leave the primary
school. Integrating the strands of wellbeing, engagement and learning was a
fundamental underpinning to the student centred approach to transition that is
planned, implemented and reviewed at the school and college.
Contacts for more information:
Albert Freijah
Principal
Tallangatta Secondary College
freijah.albert.j@edumail.vic.gov.au
Amanda M Elliot
Principal
Tallangatta Primary School
elliot.amanda.m@edumail.vic.gov.au