ERIC Number: EJ970126
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Jun
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1476-718X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
To Separate or Not to Separate? Parental Decision-Making regarding the Separation of Twins in the Early Years of Schooling
Staton, Sally; Thorpe, Karen; Thompson, Catherine; Danby, Susan
Journal of Early Childhood Research, v10 n2 p196-208 Jun 2012
In recent times concerns about possible adverse effects of early separation and advocacy for individual rights have resulted in a movement away from organizational level policies about the separation of twin children as they enter school. Instead, individualized approaches that focus on the twin children's characteristics and family perspectives have been proposed. This study, conducted in Australia where all but a few families had choice about the class placement of their twin children, questioned parents (N = 156) about their placement decisions. Results indicated that most parents opted for placement together in the early years of schooling. The choice to separate twins at school entry was associated with parent identification of risk in the twin relationship, while being kept together was associated with parent identification of absence of such risk. The findings are discussed in light of the current evidence against separation, and suggest that parent choices regarding the separation of twin children in the early years are informative to educational policy and practice. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)
Descriptors: Twins, Placement, Family Attitudes, Academic Achievement, Identification, Parents, Foreign Countries, Educational Policy, Decision Making, Educational Practices, Early Childhood Education, Parent Teacher Cooperation, Risk, Children, Statistical Significance, Teachers
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A