Professor Julie Fisher on Moving On: Transition to Year One

Julie Fisher is an independent Early Years Adviser and visiting Professor of Early Childhood Education at Oxford Brookes University. She held the post of Early Years Adviser in Oxfordshire for 11 years, before which she was lecturer in early childhood education at the University of Reading. She has taught children from 3 to 12 years of age and has been headteacher of two urban, multi-cultural schools.

Julie has been the national Chair of a number of early years organisations including the National Association of Early Years Inspectors, Advisers and Consultants and the national Early Childhood Forum. In her work, she draws on her own research projects which engage her in constant contact with practitioners and children in both schools and settings. She is a well-known and respected author whose books include ‘Starting from the Child’ (4th edition 2013); ‘The Foundations of Learning’ (2002); ‘Moving On to Key Stage One’ (2nd edn in press) and ‘Interacting or Interfering?’ (2016).

In this interview, we discuss why transitions are still a critical part of children’s educational lives; the importance of a play-based setting; the need for a new edition of ‘Moving on to Key Stage 1’; her research for the new edition and some of the surprising results; helping Headteachers to become more knowledgeable about the value and place of play.

Julie has achieved a doctorate for her research into the changing role of early childhood educators. She is also a recipient of the prestigious Nursery World Lifetime Achievement Award for her contribution to early childhood education.

Links:

You can watch Julie’s EYTV Episode on Interacting or Interfering here: https://www.earlyyears.tv/episode/professor-julie-fisher-on-interacting-or-interfering/

Open University Press https://www.mheducation.co.uk/moving-on-to-key-stage-one-improving-transition-into-primary-school-2e-9780335248865-emea

You can find Professor Fisher on Early Education here: https://www.early-education.org.uk/julie-fisher