Is Maturity That Important for School Starters?

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Over the decades experts were debating what age is the most appropriate for school beginning. Many believe that a child’s ability to make friends, follow instructions and take care of themselves is the real indicator if they are ready to start school, rather than understanding their letters and numbers. On the other hand, parents do not want their children to feel incapable, because they are not going to be there to help them. They want to give their children the best possible start. So, what would be the right age for children to start their schooling?

Children in Australia begin school at age of 5. It is younger than almost anywhere else in the developed world – up to two years ahead of students in top-performing countries such as Finland and Korea.

Experts warn the early transition could be detrimental to the learning and well-being of students, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. In a major international study of 15-year-olds in 2012, 58 % of Australian students said they started primary school at the age of 5, 27 % started at 6, and only 3 % at 7. 12 % were aged 4. That means the average starting age among Australians was 5.2-years-old, which was lower than most developed countries and similar to Britain.

On the other hand, in the highest-performing education systems in the world such as Singapore, Shanghai and Finland, the average starting age was almost 7 years old, with 13 % of students in Shanghai starting at 8.

The leading world experts suggest that 5 is just too young to start formal learning. Children should be engaged in informal play-based learning until the age of about 7.

The benefits of delaying formal schooling are particularly significant for disadvantaged children, who are often forced into school early in Australia by the high costs of childcare.

The issue of a later starting age has been raised in submissions to the federal government’s public inquiry into childcare and early childhood learning.

In conclusion, some claim the emotional, social, psychological, physical and cognitive development are all impeded negatively for the vast majority of children by this push down in the early years. On the other hand, there is a theory which says that the starting age that is not that important but rather what children are doing at school. For instance, in a kindergarten, there is a balance between what’s often called play-based learning and what is a more traditional learning of children sitting at tables.