Transition to school: A family affair

This chapter reviews the current theoretical paradigms that have been used in the study of the role of families in transition to school and the impact of transition to school on families. It pursues important lines of inquiry across geographical jurisdictions, socioeconomic and cultural contexts to provide background to the following chapters. It establishes the relevance of considering families and transition across many contexts and the ways in which education policy and systems have sought to address this. The chapter also considers practical processes and approaches that have been used systematically to involve families in their children’s transitions to school and to cater for the needs of those families within the transitions space. The chapter concludes with an overview of each of the following chapters in the book from the perspectives of these theoretical and practical considerations.