This series of Key Findings draws on information provided
by the Cohort ‘08 9-year-old and his or her Primary Caregiver
(usually the mother, and henceforth in this report referred to as
the mother). The series is based on the 7,563 9-year-olds whose
families participated in the study at ages 9 months, 3 years, 5
years and 9 years old.
This Key Findings report is the second in a series from this latest
round of data collection from Cohort ’08 at 9 years of age. It looks
at children’s attitudes to school and specific school subjects
and relates these to their family context and to their skills and
dispositions at the age of 5. At the time of the survey, almost all
children were in school. Of these, 9% were in second class, 66%
were in third class and 24% were in fourth class.1 Out-of-school
learning is also examined and mothers’ reports of their support
for, and involvement in, their child’s education are discussed
