Based on the most up-to-date research, The Quiet Child is an in-depth study of habiutally quiet or withdrawn pupils during their transition from primary to secondary school. It establishes the importance of talk in learning and explores the ways in which quiet pupils are educationally disadvantaged through their inability or unwillingness to talk, both to teachers and fellow pupils. Secondly, it examines the factors, such as diminished sense of self-worth or a difficulty in forming and sustaining relationships, which may have contributed to the child's reluctance to participate in lessons. Finally, the book suggests teaching strategies to enable teachers to develop their pupils' self-esteem through fostering positive relationships, thus empowering them to play an active role in their education. Janet Collins is a Research Fellow in the Centre for Language and Communication, School of Education, The Open Universtity. As a primary school teacher, she has had extensive experience working in mainstream schools with children with special educational needs.Philip Hills, the Series Editor, is Head of the Centre for Research into Human Communication and Learning at the University of Cambridge. He has written extensively on education, information technology and communication.