Abstract:
This thesis explores early childhood teachers’ perceptions of both children’s transition anxiety, and the role they play in alleviating in. Children experience different types of transition in early childhood education (ECE), including vertical, internal, and horizontal. Where some children appear to cope with these changes well, others find transitions difficult due to experiencing increased anxiety at these times. This situation, combined with an apparent paucity of relevant research in the context of ECE, highlights the increased importance of investigating how teachers perceive transition anxiety for some of our youngest children. This study argues that if anxiety in early childhood is not well understood, then teachers may rely on experience and instinct to guide their practice, leaving children with a greater risk of developing negative personal, emotional, and social outcomes. A qualitative, interpretive, case study methodology gathered data from semi-structured interviews with six teacher participants, focus groups, and centre policy documents, from two education and care centres within Auckland, New Zealand (NZ). Using Bronfenbrenner’s bio-ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 1998, 2006) to assist analysis and interpretation, the study found that: teachers were more confident and knowledgeable with the notion of vertical and internal transitions, than with horizontal transitions; teachers avoided using the term anxiety in relation to transition; teachers appeared to have limited theoretical knowledge of transition anxiety; and, teachers perceived their role was to establish positive relationships when alleviating children’s transition anxiety. Overall, the study found that these teachers did rely more on teaching and personal experience of anxiety to guide their practice, because of minimal access to theoretical knowledge. Implications for teacher education, teacher practice, and educational policies, including suggestions for research, are outlined to ensure all children are well supported as empowered learners.
