Transition between primary and secondary school represents an important milestone in young people’s development. While most young people look forward to this transition, it is a source of anxiety for many. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 2218 children in 73 schools in Wales, this study aimed to understand the extent to which 10–11 year old children worried about and/or looked forward to their imminent transition to secondary school, the things they worried about and/or looked forward to, and how feelings about transition differed by socioeconomic status, as well as by emotional and behavioural difficulties. About a third of children reported being quite or very worried about transition to secondary school, while approximately two-thirds reported looking forward to it quite a bit or very much. These items were only moderately correlated, with many children both looking forward to and worrying about transition, or neither. Major sources of worry about transition centred around bullying and impact on existing friendships, while forming new friendships or joining existing friends in their new school were key things children looked forward to. Children from poorer backgrounds, attending poorer schools and reporting more emotional difficulties were significantly more likely to report worries about transition. Children from poorer families, and children reporting more emotional difficulties and behavioural difficulties, were less likely to look forward to transition. Interventions to support children in transition to secondary school need to be sensitive to the needs of children from poorer backgrounds and children with mental health difficulties.

小学和中学的过渡是青少年发展的一个重要里程碑。虽然大多数年轻人期待这种转变，但它也是许多人焦虑的根源。这项研究基于对威尔士 73 所学校 2218 名儿童的全国代表性调查，旨在了解 10-11 岁儿童对即将升入中学的担忧和/或期待程度，以及他们担心的事情和/或期待，以及对过渡的感受如何因社会经济地位以及情感和行为困难而不同。大约三分之一的孩子表示非常或非常担心过渡到中学，而大约三分之二的孩子则表示相当或非常期待。这些项目只有中等程度的相关性，许多孩子既期待又担心过渡，或者既期待又担心过渡。对过渡的担忧主要集中在欺凌和对现有友谊的影响，而建立新的友谊或加入新学校的现有朋友是孩子们期待的关键事情。来自较贫困背景、就读较贫困学校和报告更多情感困难的儿童更有可能报告对过渡的担忧。来自贫困家庭的儿童以及报告更多情感困难和行为困难的儿童不太可能期待过渡。支持儿童过渡到中学的干预措施需要敏感地考虑贫困儿童和有心理健康问题的儿童的需求。