The timing of a child’s school entry has significant consequences for the entire family and affects the parents’ relationship, the mother’s employment situation and siblings’ grades. This is a result of forthcoming research article from Aarhus BSS at Aarhus University and the ROCKWOOL Foundation’s Research Unit.
10.08.2020 | TINE BAGGER CHRISTIANSEN
When should my child start school? This is a question posed by many families each year - particularly if their child is born at the turn of the year. In fact, the decision of when to send your child to school not only affects the child itself, but the entire family. Even if the child is declared school ready. A new study from Aarhus BSS and the ROCKWOOL Foundation’s Research Unit shows that the age of the child at school entry has significant consequences for the entire family and affects the parents’ relationship, the mother’s employment situation and siblings’ grades.
In the study, the researchers explored how it affects families that their children spend an additional year in kindergarten before starting school. Among other things, it turns out that mothers whose children start school one year later work more and have more stable employment in the time surrounding the child's school entry. The mother's occupation is particularly interesting because she usually works less when the children are small.
The study is published in The Journal of Human Resources.
"We were surprised to find that transitions to something new in the school system are so demanding that it affects the whole family."
Helena Skyt Nielsen, Professor, Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus BSS
More time to spare
Professor Helena Skyt Nielsen from Aarhus BSS is one of the researchers behind the study, and to her the results reflect that these mothers have more time to spare because older children need less help and support when they start school. Older children generally cope more easily with transitions to something new, and they also handle school work and exams better than younger children. What is new is the study’s revelation that rest of the family also is affected by the child’s age at school entry.
“We were surprised to find that transitions to something new in the school system are so demanding that it affects the whole family,” says Professor Helena Skyt Nielsen.
Fewer divorces and higher grades for siblings
The study also shows that parents are more likely to stay together if the child starts school at the age of 7.5 rather than at 6.5 years. The simple reasons are that an older child needs less attention and time, which in turn gives the parents more time together. Parents also feel less pressure when the child can manage more on its own. This is also interesting in terms of understanding the causes of divorce in general. The effect on the stability of the relationship persists throughout the child's schooling, and it even increases around the end of ninth grade. However, the effect diminishes in the very long term, which means that the child's school starting age has no effect on whether the parents are still together when the child is in their twenties.
The late school entry also affects the grades achieved by older siblings. Siblings of “early starters” get lower grades than siblings of “late starters”. According to Helena Skyt Nielsen, this indicates that parents have more time and energy to help the older siblings when the younger child starts school at a later age. Sending an “immature” child school demands many resources from the parents, and this may result in more divorces and lower grades for older siblings.
Recommendation for families with children
However, the researchers do not recommend that the school entry should generally be deferred for children born late in the year.
Rather, their advice for families is that the mother or father should probably avoid changing their career in the same year that their child starts school. It is also important to be aware that when children start school, it puts pressure on the family. Families should take this into account to allow themselves the extra time and energy for the individual child.