SCHOOL AGE FOR BOYS

That your Petitioners (citizens of Tasmania) are very concerned that children in Tasmania must be enrolled in full-time school in the calendar year in which they turn six years of age which in the case of boys particularly, is an age when they are often not ready for school. This view is supported by teachers and research which indicates: •Children develop their abilities at very different rates and the calendar is a poor guide to school readiness. •Girls develop speaking, reading and writing skills six to twelve months ahead of most boys. •Younger boys, especially those born late in the year, often struggle in the school system, particularly when they cannot keep up with the required level of learning. Starting school too young has been found to have a lifelong negative effect. •Some other Australian States have a "flexible age bracket" when a child must start full time school to allow parents greater input into when their children are ready to start school. •Leading child psychologists including boys education specialists Steve Biddulph, and Dr Rex Stoessiger, suggest that many boys benefit from waiting a year longer before beginning school so they can approach learning with more maturity and enjoy greater success. And your Petitioners request that the Legislative Council will use the Parliamentary process to address this matter and engage the Government with a view to having the existing law relaxed so as to allow a period of flexibility where parents can decide.